Barrier - There are several mental barriers that protect the Blood's thoughts from intrusion. Outside of the first barrier are basic emotions. No reasoning, just emotions. After the first barrier are the basic everyday things. The more barriers you go by the more personal the psychic touch. Opening your barriers fully to someone is a gesture of complete surrender.
In order to completely kill a member of the Blood, you must burn out their mind. This is only achieved when you break through ALL of their barriers and use your Jewels to destroy all thought processes. Obviously, being a darker Jewel makes this easier, although it can still be down by someone with a lighter Jewel if their power is braided with someone else's. Otherwise they become Demon-dead.
Birthright Ceremony - Ceremony in which a member of the Blood acquires their Birthright Jewel, as well as when paternal rights are either granted or denied.
Birthright Jewel - The Jewel a member of the Blood is given originally.
Blood Price - Being given blood from the vein. It's a very profound gesture. It signifies a great deal of trust. A gift of undiluted blood is always a big deal, but most especially from the vein.
Broken - A term used for those that have been locked away from their power and stripped of their Jewels. It's relatively easy to do this to a witch on her Virgin Night by tricking her into breaking through her own Inner Web. In order to do it to a warlord you must break past all their barriers and burn out that section of their mind.
A broken witch is only able to have one child after the breaking before becoming completely barren.
Chalice - Commonly used symbology for a person's mind. I.E., a shattered chalice = a shattered mind. Someone who's gone insane.
Controlling Ring - Ring that is connected to one or many Rings of Obedience. There are both primary and secondary rings. They can be fine-tuned to tell the person wearing it any number of things. From detecting the location of a specific Ring of Obedience to alerting the wearer to a any drawing of power in the ringed male.
Craft - Basically, magic. It doesn't matter if it's basic Craft, which even those without Jewels can do, or complex.
Dark Altar - One of the 13 gateways between the Realms. In order to open them you must know the correct order to light the 3 candles upon the Altar for the Realm you are trying to access.
Darkness, The - A term used to refer to the chaos from which all things come and must inevitably return to.
Demon-dead - Killing the body without killing the mind makes the person "demon-dead". This means that they still have too much power to fade into the Darkness. They need blood of some kind to keep them strong. It doesn't need to be human, nor does it need to be from a member of the Blood, but it is prefered because it holds more power. The most common form of consumption is yarbarah, the blood wine. It's exactly as it sounds, a mixture of blood and wine. Generally made with lamb's blood, although it can be made of any.
At first, they live as though they were alive for the most part. After a while though, things lose their meaning. Food is no longer required, or enjoyed. Sunlight becomes draining, often causing migraines. Sleep becomes more like resting with your eyes closed than actual sleep.
Guardian - Much like the demon-dead, but even more extreme. After making the transition to Guardian it is possible to live for upwards of 50,000 years. Your body does become somewhat weaker, but very slowly.
Inner Web - A member of the Blood's Core, or Self. Basically their soul. Also a term used for the boundary that separates you from your power level and the Darkness. There is a Web for each Jewel rank.
Kindred - Members of the Blood of an animal species.
Landen - Any person who isn't Blood.
Moon Time - A woman's menstrual cycle.
Offering to the Darkness - A ritual which enables a member of the Blood to descend to their final Jewel level. Refer to the "Jewels"section of the forum for more information.
Pleasure Slave - Basically a sex slave as well as serving as an escort. They are the bottom rung of the social ladder. They aren't considered to be real men by the other kinds of slaves.
Protocol - The code of honor that all Blood are supposed to live by.
Ring of Obedience - A metal ring that is worn around a man's thingy and is magically connected to what is called a controlling ring. Upon command of the person wearing the controlling ring, the ring of obedience constricts around the thingy. It can be fine-tuned to cause anything from a low, nagging pain to a level that drops even the strongest male to his knees.
Twisted Kingdom - Term for madness. Someone who is insane is said to be a child of or walk the paths of the Twisted Kingdom. This refers to a more psychotic sense of insanity, not such things as, say, depression or bi-polarity.
Virgin Night - A witch's first time experiencing sexual intercourse. If done without great care for the witch she may be locked away from her power forever, able to do only basic Craft. This is referred to as being "broken".
Winds - The Winds are psychic roadways that allow the Blood to travel quickly through the Darkness. There is a roadway for each Jewel strength. The darker the Jewel, the faster you can travel and the more lines there are to travel along. The Winds are set up in a web-like pattern, converging in Ebon Askavi.
The only way to ride a Wind that's darker than your own Jewel is to purchase passage on a coach or to be shielded by someone who possesses the necessary Jewel rank.
