Tales of Midbar: Religious Intolerance

Rainbow – a faharni, Haprihagfen woman who lives in Minris Vineyard. Daughter of Mountian and Ice, sister of River, wife of Faldren, mother of Irvis.

Recessive – adj. If an allele is described as recessive, it will only be expressed in the absence of it’s dominant counterpart, which for autosomal genes means both copies need to be the recessive allele.

Red dwarf – A small red star. Very common but can’t be seen with the naked eye unless you’re fairly close because they’re so faint.

Red night – time in the light cycle when Aleph is in the sky and the sapphires are turned off.

Red sun - a sun which is red, a red dwarf.

Relic – part of the star ship that brought humans to Midbar. They’ve been hidden at Holy Sites. Removing relics from Holy Sites is thought to result in disaster.

Religionism - unfair hatred or discrimination based on religion. One of the sins of Trulism. Being strongly opposed to be religionism and orientationism (as Trulism is) can be problematic as some religions (e.g. Nuhara and Winemakerism) are orientationist. Being strongly opposed to religionism and sexism can be problematic as some religions (e.g. Nuhara) are sexist. There’s also the problem that some religions (e.g. Nuhara) promote hatred of others.

Rendamar – Large city in northern Pax. The location of Rendamar Temple. Has become notorious for Nuhara persecution of Winemakers.

Rendamar Temple – historically the most important Winemaker Holy Site but it’s now been illegally taken over by Nuharas but the Paxian authorities have failed to take action about this.

Renisho – alias for Sedria.

Revelation Spell – an Old Magic spell that produces pictures in response to a question.

Rigar – a boy whos family manage the Palace Hotel in Minris. Son of Lifrarin and Klastren.

Rinjac - the owner of Minris magic shop, a faharni.

River – a faharni woman who belongs to Haprihagfen and lives in Minris Vineyard. Daughter of Ice and Mountain, sister of Rainbow, wife of Kerdac, mother of Breeze, Cloud and Stone.

Rolat - a lawyer who’s licensed to work in the Minris area.

Rooroo series - a series of children’s books about strange creatures, including Dorakremacs.

Ruvin - a teacher at Minris beginner school.

Sand Dancer – literal translation of the Faharni term for “dust devil”.

Sand Dancer – the previous Vineyard magis who died 9 years before the story starts. Mother of Ice.

Sapphire – a magic cyan light that hangs in Midbar’s sky. They turn on and off to imitate Earth’s days and seasons and even out the spectrum for growing plants.

Sapphire dark – time when the sapphires turn off.

Sapphire light – time when the sapphires turn on.

Sedria – A woman who lives in Ermish. Sister of Olaria, wife of Sutaris, mother of Mouni.

Sedum - large genus consisting mostly of small leaf succulents.

Selenicereus - a climbing cactus that has huge, nocturnal flowers and bears dragon fruit. Hardier than Hylocereus so these are the type used to produce dragon fruit in Minris Vineyard.

Semi-conjugator - a grammatical device in Faharni.

Semic – an ancient language now mostly used in academia and by Haprihagfen.

Sepal - flower part on the outside of a flower, often intermediate between a petal and a leaf.

Sephir – (Semic, feminine) apparently a place where slegim can find clametot to marry.

Sephir Kledris – the place where the hairy anavim come from. Apparently outside the Great Basin.

Sexual non-specificity syndrome - a genetic condition that tends to make people want sexual activity other than consensual sex with an adult, opposite sex partner in the context of a committed relationship.

Shamesh - a medium level leadership position in Winemakerism.

Shinim Shishot - a planet with a human colony that Tianamet has some knowledge of.

Shrine - see Vineyard Shrine.

Shrine Crypt – a cavern behind the Vineyard Shrine. It’s doors often give people images and thoughts that many believe come from Yoho, when touched.

Six main sins (of Trulism) – things Trulists believe to be especially serious. These are: Racism, sexism, korbarism, orientationism, familyism and religionism. Opposing all these prejudices can be problematic as they sometimes conflict (e.g. some religions are sexist, korbarist, orientationist or promote hatred of other religions).

Sleg – (Semic, masculine) a male Haprihagfen, normally young. Apparently desires to marry a clamet in a sephir.

Slegmet – (Semic, feminine) a female Haprihagfen who seems to be the female equivalent of a sleg.

Sneldin - manager of the Hideaway.

Spell - the result of having an associate bound to a person or object. There are also Old Magic spells but these are less clearly defined.

Stamen - the part of a flower, normally just inside the petals, which bare pollen.

Star spot – a spot on a star that increases and decrease in numbers depending on the level of activity. Red dwarfs are prone to have lots of them, decreasing their light output.

Stigma - the part of a flower, normally in the center, which picks up pollen.

Stone – a young faharni Haprihagfen man who no longer lives in Minris Vineyard. Son of Kirdac and River, brother of Breeze and Cloud.

Streculic – Trulist god of knowledge and lies, husband of Briad. Evil and seldom worshiped. Winemakers also believe he exists but don’t recognize him as a god.

Strumeg – a Trulist god.

Sutaris - a faharni man. Husband of Sedria and father of Mouni. Assumed the alias of Ulderas.

Tanbas - the Old Mill’s manager.

Tarm – river that flows through the Tarm Valley.

Tarm Valley – the valley through which the river Tarm flows in the western mountains of Pax.

Taunbret - town to the east of Minris in the Tarm valley, where the Trulist temple of Murmur is located.

Taunbret temple – small Trulsit temple of Murmur in Taunbret.

Temple of Tianamet - large temple in the center of Ermish dedicated to the goddess Tianamet.

Temple Prostitute – somebody who works as a prostitute at a Trulist Holy Site. Normally katcheyim or nibeyim who are recruited as children.

Tenenit - a faharni girl who lives in Minris and attends Minris Beginner School.

Tether spell - a spell that prevents people from going more than a certain distance from a certain object (normally something that’s very hard to move).

The Sea – the only sea on Midbar. It’s roughly circular and located in the middle of the Great Basin.

Tianamet – Trulist goddess of exploration and ignorance.

Tianamet Indratar – a mage on the Tirsac.

Tirsac – Star ship that brought humans to Midbar.

Trulism – The main religion in Pax. It’s polytheistic, peaceful and very politically correct but recruits children (mostly psychics) to be Temple Prostitutes and forbids psychics from marrying each other. Trulists are normally faharnis and usually have tattoos.

Trustee – the head of a high family, always the eldest living member of the male line.

Tuvardin Pins – The author of Intermediate Magic. Presumably not Paxian or lived before the Cataclysm as he has a family name.

Ubata - a town with a large number of Winemakers but also a large number of Nuharas resulting in considerable conflict.

Ubran - the manager of the Galaxy Hotel.

Ulderas - the false identity assumed by Sutaris after fleeing to Minris.

Uldrien - a psychiatrist who specializes in treating children who’ve been sexually abused. He’s a quippa with tattoos of Trulist gods all over his body. Has six fingers on his left hand which has Astrigis tattooed on the back.

Ulgarin - a male acolyte of Astrigis.

Under Bet – a long running internet soap opera.

Universal Winemakers - a minority Winemaker sect, notorious for having priests who sexually molested children.

Uratan - a small country in the mountain on the east side of the Great Basin, inhabited mostly by Idlans.

Veran – old faharni, Trulist who’s Minris’s police chief. He’s rather lazy and doesn’t know much about magic.

Vineyard - a place that grows grapes. Usually this refers to the Minris Vineyard.

Vineyard Magis – the magis associated with Minris Vineyard. Unique in always being an anavah. The last one (Sand Dancer) died 9 years before the story starts.

Vineyard Shrine – the main worship area of Minris Vineyard.

Vritan – a teenage girl who works part time in the Cascade Hotel.

White day – time in the light cycle when Aleph is in the sky and the sapphires are switched on.

Wild magis - the one magis who doesn’t seem to be associated with a Holy Site.

Winemaker Vineyard - a large, creepy vineyard that grows a variety of fruit in addition to grapes. It’s located in the village of Minris.

Winemakerism – monotheistic religion. It’s peaceful but somewhat orientationist. Worships Yoho as it’s only god but also believes that he had an avatar who lived on Earth after all humans were killed in a nuclear war. Winemakers are mostly idlans but those in Pax are normally faharnis. They don’t normally have tattoos.

Wulmit - a doctor, a psycho-geneticist specializing in the genetics of sexuality.

XT – any organism that is not native to Earth.