The Artifact of Foex (46 page)

Journey shot him a dour look. “This is a
private matter and none of your concern, Chet Baikson.”

He folded his arms and scowled. “Knife was my
friend, too.”

“I... yes, you’re right. You have to
understand, Allistair is the oldest city-state on Uos. They have
traditions
here. One of those traditions is what people do
to Flame corpses once we’re dead. They do... the most disgusting
things with our bodies. Prolonged and personal actions are taken in
a traditional sequence. Very personal.”

“Oh.”

“Knife has lived in this city-state since her
first life when she was born to the Tache royal family right here
in Allistair. She has connections and carefully renews them life
after life. They call her ‘Uncle Flame.’ How do you think she’s
able to maintain a long-term residence in this city-state? This
place is worse than Wetshul for us.”

“I didn’t think. I didn’t know.”

Journey shrugged, his expression
uncomfortable. “Death takes so many things, including dignity. Her
royal connections can’t—or won’t—help her after she dies, yet Knife
likes to be control over certain matters. The tomb might seem
grotesque, but it’s a lot better than the alternative. I wouldn’t
even trust a modern-day morgue to deal with us respectably in
Allistair. They might sell the body, or lend it out. You never know
when someone’s going to get all
traditional
. By the time
Knife initiates again, the body will be decomposed.” He sighed and
glanced upwards as if recalling the layout on the third floor.
“Pantheon knows how I’ll get her down the stairs, let alone the
circular staircase in the cave. I’m so tired.”

Chet laid a hand on his arm. “You have a
right to be tired.”

“Yeah, but this still needs doing. I guess
I’ll wrap her in the carpet. It has to be thrown out anyway.”

Chet scowled reflexively and drew back. “You
can’t throw away that carpet! It’s a priceless antique!”

“Chet!” Journey said sharply. “It’s just old.
Get over it.”

Journey was right, of course. Chet looked up,
visualizing how Knife had bled out in the study. “Leave her until
tomorrow morning. The carpet will conceal everything from the
neighbors, anyway. Would you like help taking her down to the tomb?
It’s kind of awkward getting rid of bodies, you know.”

Journey stared at him, then chuckled. He
leaned forward and ruffled his fingers through Chet’s hair. “Thank
you, sweetie. Somehow, that’s very fitting. When Knife initiates
next time—if you’re around and interested in seeing her again—I’ll
try to make sure she knows what you did.”

Chet ducked his head shyly. “You’re
welcome.”

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The Forty

Due to how Uos came to be, there were
originally only forty land-based animal species. As a few have gone
extinct, there are now thirty-eight land-based species. Despite
this, the term “the Forty,” which includes human beings, has
remained the same.

Anuro
(an-NER-ōh)
:
Small birdlike reptiles with tiny,
sharp teeth and stout beaks. Highly colorful, they roam in enormous
flocks and fill the ecological niche of songbirds on Earth.

Ceros
(SER-ōs)
:
Cloven-hoofed, elk-like mammals with an
impressive rack of antlers. They function much like horses do on
Earth.

Cynodict
(sin-ŌH-dict)
:
Hairless canines with whip-like
tails, often kept as pets.

Dium
(DEE-um)
:
A fast moving, high jumping,
reptilian-like mammal. About eight-inches long, they have elongated
noses and a penchant for garbage.

Doedicu
(dōe-DE-kū)
:
Enormous humpback, armored
amphibians. They have beaks, a shell like a turtle, and a cluster
of razor-sharpened spikes at the ends of their tails. Doedicu meat
is universally considered tender and tasty.

Indricoth
(in-dri-COTH)
:
The largest mammals ever to roam
Uos, these herbivores have been extinct since the World War.
Indricoth toys are staples of childhood across all Uos
cultures.

Inofe
(in-ŌH-fee)
:
Giant, predatory felines with saber
teeth. Humans have historically been a favorite food of the
inofe.

Marauch
(MA-rach)
:
A horse-sized, deer-like herbivore
with an elongated, droopy nose. Humans have long bred macrauch for
their meat and leather.

Othnielia
(oth-nee-LEE-ah)
: Herbivorous reptiles about seven feet
tall, standing on two legs with short forearms and a long tail.
Othnielia are the fastest creature on Uos, reaching over eighty
miles an hour in short bursts.

Palaeoth
(pal-EE-oth)
:
Palaeoth are multi-toed hoofed
mammals, about two and a half feet tall and three feet long. They
occupy the same niche as donkeys or goats on Earth. Because of
their sexual displays when in heat, palaeoth have often been linked
to brothels, prostitutes and Flame.

Peteino
(pet-EE-nō)
:
Reptiles with long tails and
leathery wings, peteinos occupy the same general niche on Uos as
chickens on Earth.

Rhamph
(ramf)
:
Winged mammals with cartilage “beaks” and
extensive wingspans, there are more varieties of rhamph on Uos than
any other land-based creature. The smallest can fit in a human
hand, while the largest variety has a wingspan of over eight
feet.

Geography

This section has three parts, including
countries/continents, cities and city-states, and Pantheon-related
geographical features.

The countries/continents:

East Eicha
(ĀY-cha):
Filled with vast, deadly swamps with extreme
temperatures and vicious wildlife, East Eicha is a poor land.
Fortunately, it also features the Monastery Mountains, which are
havens in comparison.

Idryss, or The Forbidden Lands
(IH-dris)
: Ringed by a continuous mountain
range, the Idryss continent is enclosed by a god-barrier
specifically designed to keep gods out. Reincarnating
affiliates—Flame and Magicians—have long confirmed there is an
intense, thriving civilization in Idryss despite the fact that no
one goes in and no one comes out.

Jantrael Straight
(jan-TRAL)
: A pincer-grip of two peninsulas with a
six-mile stretch of ocean between them. There is no way around the
Jantrael Straight if one wants to get from one side of Uos to the
other via the sea.

Palister
(pal-IH-ster)
: To the north, the city-state of
Maansterdam has long been an economic draw to Palister. However,
the rest of the continent is much poorer and far more rural.

Tache
(tash-ĀY)
:
A wealthy country with a bustling economy and an epic history. A
traditional monarchy, the emperors and empresses of Tache have
often been a driving force instigating international conquest and
colonization.

Ventris
(VEN-tris)
: A traditional matriarchal nation, Ventris
has a long history of feudal “households” with a strict caste
system. Ventris and Tache are almost always at war.

West Eicha
(ĀY-cha)
: Much of West Eicha is a peaceful, agrarian
society typically composed in small, rural villages. West Eicha is
thought to be the continent where the Forty were originally
released.

Cities and city-states:

Allistair
(al-is-STAIR)
: Located in the center of Tache, Allistair
is among the oldest and richest of the city-states.

Door
: Located in the center of West
Eicha, Door struggles to remain relevant in modern times since the
death of Foex and his Magicians. The interior of the city-state
suffers from urban blight while the suburbs—a wide-spread
sprawl—thrive.

Eich Che
(ĀY-chāy):
Located on a peninsula at the edge of the
Ventris continent, Eich Che is a city-state independent of the
gods. The premiere monetary and cultural center of Uos, it
surpasses even Allistair’s riches.

El, the lost city of
: At one time, El
was a thriving city deep in the Eilthera Mountains of West Eicha.
Currently surrounded by an impenetrable god barrier, El is lost not
because no one knows where it is, but because no one can get
inside.

Maansterdam
(MAN-ster-dam):
Located in Northern Palister, the
city-state is named for the Maan River, its main source of trade
and travel.

Plainsdaugheau
(PLAINS-daw-ow):
Located on the southern tip of Idryss,
Plainsdaugheau is the only livable space on the continent outside
the god barrier. Founded as a free, independent city-state,
Plainsdaugheau has a constitution—the only one on Uos—and is a
radical democracy.

Saene
(SĪGH-en-āy):
Saene has a lengthy history with many
rises and falls of power, wartime renewal and cultural
institutions. It is the seat of the Ventris monarchy.

Shul
(shool):
Located only fifty-seven miles from Allistair, Shul is an
industrial city with a long history of espionage activity.

Torque
(tork):
A
seaside city on the southeastern edge of Tache, Torque has a long
reputation as a resort.

Wetshul
(WET-shool):
Once a camp for the First Conversion Army,
Wetshul was carved out of the rainy, humid, muddy, miserably cold
swamp of East Eicha.

Pantheon-related geographical features:

God barriers:
Aerora, mother of gods,
cordoned off sections of the planet from her god children and every
other living thing, including humans. There are two major god
barriers upon Uos: the lost city of El, and nearly the entire
continent of Idryss.

God Plain:
The God Plain is a
dimensional fold close to but not physically present upon Uos,
where—as the name suggests—most gods spend their time.

Abyss:
Unlike the God Plain, the Abyss
is an actual geographical feature on Uos. Located in the lost city
of El, no human or god has had access to the Abyss in thousands of
years.