The Tower of Il Serrohe (58 page)

Hutebazile the Second:
Queen of the Barbamin who never meets Don or any outsiders.

Il Mote:
The largest village in the Valle Abajo, established by the Taurimin, which serves as
the central market and social center of the entire Valle.

Il Serrohe Desert:
The stark uninhabited area on the west mesa of the Valle Abajo that stretches from the Seared Meadow on its southern edge and the black lava cliffs on the eastern side, to the distant Black Lava Mountains to the west. The Soreye village and the Tower of Il Serrohe are on its southeastern corner.

Jasin:
A
male watcher/messenger of the Sianox who is friendly and helpful, though his impulsiveness sometimes gets in the way. He wants to be a mate to Flit, though she exasperates him by stealing his possessions and spreading untrue stories (so he says) about him.

Kastmin:
The craftsmen of the Valle Abajo.  They are hard working, skilled at building trades such as woodwork, carpentry, boat building, and glass-making. They are non-aggressive but can craft sturdy weapons. They prefer not to be bothered but will support the other Valle clans. They live in the bosque wetlands on small islands utilizing fundamental civil engineering techniques. 

Linksmin:
Similar to the Loopohmin except they are smaller and will flee rather than attack, if possible. They are not well organized as a clan, living in family groups spread out in territories across the Valle Abajo.  Cunning, self-contained, vicious warriors and hunters, they are loners except when absolutely necessary.

Lookgosee:
A large sand bar island in the Dream River bosque and wetlands which serves as the home of the bats. It’s heavily forested, marked by the hidden bat cave in a sandy hill at its center.

Loopohmin:
Reclusive hunters who live in small families with their own private hunting lands away from others of their clan, though they will tolerate them as long as territories are respected. They are the most aggressive warriors, and among the most cunning clan. 

Low pitched distress signal:
The Nohmin utter an ultra low pitched call when in distress. The pitch allows it to carry farther underground as well as above.

Lunatik Peak
: A vast, rounded volcanic peak resembling a lumpy loaf of bread a few miles west of Dream River and Il Mote. Pine and oak forests cover its higher elevations while the Nohwood lies on its northern foothills. The Pot Hills lie on the south flank of the peak.

Mountains of the Sky:
These gigantic mountains stretch north-south about thirty miles east of the Valle Abajo, equivalent to the Manzanos of the Rio Grande Valley.

Narknose:
The wily, courageous, and outspoken chief of the Nohmin in Nersite’s time.

The Narrow:
A narrow passage between the western, thickly forested Nohwood and the diminishing Tohmay Steeples. The Narrow leads to the Blue Meadow at its northwestern terminus.

Nell:
Elder female of the
Càhbahmin, temporarily in charge since they were without a male chief when Don was there.

Nersite:
A young Nohmin intern storyteller and companion to Don Vargas on his quest to help the clanspeople overcome the Soreyes. He hopes to succeed his mentor, Niddle-ai, as the clan storyteller and is brave, resourceful, curious, and loves adventure. Although sometimes overwhelmed by Don’s bad attitude, he finds Don intriguing and has more confidence in Don’s abilities than Don does.

Netheraire:
A young Nohmin healer and long-time friend of Nersite. It becomes obvious Nersite will “widen his pallet” to bring Netheraire into his root home so they can mate. She is a caring person, yet fully capable of fighting at Nersite’s side against the Soreyes.

Niddle-ai:
Elder Nohmin and clan storyteller. He is mentor and close friend of Nersite. He, Nersite, and Netheraire attempt to bring down the Tower of Il Serrohe shortly before Don arrives the first time.

Nightecho
:
This is
the bat who helps Teresa. Unlike Nightwing, he is more forthright and doesn’t seem to have a hidden agenda.

Nightwing
:
The bat who brings Don into Valle Abajo. Intelligent, sarcastic, cunning, and duplicitous, he tries to persuade Don to accept a quest to help the clans battle the Soreyes. A descendent of Nightecho, much about him is mysterious and suspicious.

Nohmin:
Diminutive clanspeople living in their root homes in the Place of Homes. Cautious and meticulous, they are small but not afraid of a fight and work well in teams. They love well-told stories. They use the Glassing (melts sand) and Timeless (alters perception of the passage of time) chants.

Nohome:
The Nohmin tree of prior generations with underground tunnels among the roots connecting with carved passageways in its trunk and major branches of the great tree. Abandoned by a previous generation when it proved to be too small as refuge for the growing Nohmin clan.

Nolah:
Assertive Nohmin female, wife of Narknose.

Notherbroh:
Young apprentice and neighbor to Nersite. He was present when Don first came to the Place of Homes. He is learning how to be an effective Nohmin adult and warrior with Nersite’s guidance.

Pedro:
Teresa’s long suffering and protective younger brother who accompanies her to what becomes the Portal location (Casita) in the Rio Grande Valley. He is anxious to marry his sweetheart, Angelina.

Pia and Pita:
Pirallt twin sisters who are curanderas and have a sisterly affinity for Teresa. They have a close psychic connection. Pita does all the talking, but Pia is the more intelligent and perceptive of the two. They serve as the means for Teresa to gain contact with the Valle Abajo and construct the Portal which allows special individuals to travel between the Valle Abajo and the Rio Grande Valley.

Piralltah Steeples:
Home of the Pirallts, the clan of Pia, Pita, and Raquela. The “steeples” are hills of volcanic tuff that has eroded in the shape of tent rocks or steeples. They abut the rim of the west mesa in Valle Abajo, a few miles north of the Tower.

Pirallts:
These people serve as gentle healers (curanderas) and counselors to the clanspeople of Valle Abajo. Perceptive of nonverbal communication, they have excellent hearing, are quiet and retiring, and exhibit a spiritual aura, though not fanatical.

The Portal:
See “The Great Tree.”

Place of Homes:
A collection of underground “root homes” where the Nohmin now live on the edge of a cottonwood and cedar forest called Nohwood north of Lunatik Peak.

Rachel:
Don’s mother who died giving birth to him in 1975. Don reveres her memory, but knows of her only through a few stories by his father and her two sisters: Lupita and Shirley Marie.

Raquela:
Pirallt curandera and counselor, she’s the great-great-granddaughter of Pia, who takes on the task of assisting Don to fulfill his quest. She is brave, calm, and self-assured. She finds herself attracted to Don in spite of reservations about his ability to successfully confront the Soreyes.

Sayer:
An early Nohmin story-teller in the time of Teresa.

Seared Meadow
:
A hard-scrabble desert terrain devoid of all but the toughest life forms.  It is a several hundred acre buffer zone between the Place of Homes and the Soreye village on the west mesa above the Valle Abajo.

Sianox:
These lively clanspeople travel rapidly cross country through the trees.
They are adaptable, aggressive, and will steal anything that appears to be valuable or attractive. They serve as messengers for the clanspeople, particularly Nersite, Don, and Raquela. They are traditional enemies of the Barbamin.

Sliktooth:
A Crotalmin whose wide-gaping smile makes Don nervous. He has an odd way of gliding along the ground, and strange posture with his arms folded behind him. He apparently threatens the safety of most inhabitants of the Valle Abajo including Don and Nersite.

St. Jude University:
The small college in downtown Albuquerque where Don teaches English and Southwestern Literature.

Scarflue:
A young Soreye priest who is captured by the Nohmin when they escape Soreye captivity.  He and Nersite develop a moderately trusting relationship mainly because Scarflue is convinced he will die “buried” as a captive in Nohome. He has secrets he can share with the Nohmin.

Sofuh:
The intelligent young Soreye priest Don teaches to read and write. He seems enthusiastic and trusting unlike most Soreyes.

Soreyes:
The tall, lanky desert dwellers who live on the mesa west of the Valle Abajo having arrived from unknown territory to the northwest. Harnessing their fanatically religious, cunning, enterprising and domineering ways, they built the Tower of Il Serrohe four generations back. The Tower is their way to intimidate, enslave, and watch the activities of the clanspeople in the Valle Abajo. They may appear in clan myths as Sky Demons or lizard people because of their reptilian-like skin and behavior. 

Sydewynder:
Chief of the Soreyes when Nersite and Nohmin try to attack the Soreye village and the Tower. He is, sometimes, the antagonist of Don Vargas when he visits the Valle Abajo.

Taurimin:
The premier farmers who supply a great deal of vegetables and grains for the clanspeople of the Valle. They are nonviolent but effective in lending their great physical strength in the battle against the Soreyes. Their village is Il Mote, a farmers’ market and social center of the Valle Abajo.

Teresa Ramos-Chavez:
A young curandera in the town of Peralta, New Mexico at the turn of the Twentieth Century. She is compassionate, innovative, strong-willed, devoted to her God and family in the Rio Grande valley and, eventually, the clanspeople of the Valle Abajo. She is determined to help the clanspeople overcome the Soreyes though she sometimes doubts her abilities.

Tohmay Steeples:
Tall, rugged desert foothills lining the northwest slopes of Lunatik Peak.  Many of the hills are eroded volcanic tuff which takes on the shape of tent rocks or “steeples.” Lynksmin and other predatory clans live mostly on its central flank in small but deadly numbers. 

Toroth:
Large, powerful yet gentle chief of the Taurimin; however, he can be fiercely protective.

Ursimin:
These clanspeople live on the east shore of the Dream River.  They are big, tough hunters but willing to tolerate others as long as they don’t get in their way.  Ursimin are protective of their children and fellow clanspeople. Other than the Soreyes, they are the only religious clan of the Valle Abajo. Their simple religion is centered on a Great Spirit who helps those who honor it.

“
The Way It Is”:
The philosophy of the clanspeople of Valle Abajo.  Everything happens as it should without anyone’s control. However, they have a hard time accepting the Soreyes’ because they don’t seem to be a part of “The Way It Is.” Most clanspeople can’t understand the concept of God or the Universe, but would instinctively say God is “The Way It Is.”

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