"There, love," Merissa murmured, stroking her back while she sobbed. "There, love."
Andrin clung to her, as if the fussy, fluffy, irritating lady-in-waiting were the last solid rock in her universe, for that was precisely what Lady Merissa had become.
And then someone knocked gently on the bedroom door.
Andrin stiffened, and Lady Merissa's spine straightened with an almost audible snap.
"Really!" she huffed. "Is this a grand imperial princess' bedroom, or is it the waiting room down at the local train station?!"
She set Andrin aside gently, then came to her feet, straightening her robe, and stalked across the enormous bedroom towards the door, muttering as she went.
"Can't leave the poor girl in peace," Andrin heard floating malevolently back from her remorselessly advancing lady-in-waiting. "Middle of the night, for goodness sake! Coming bursting in on her, keeping her awake at all hours! I'll give you a piece of my mind, just wait and see if I—!"
Lady Merissa reached the door and yanked it open. A Palace maid stood there, hands folded anxiously, and the poor young woman ought by rights to have burst spontaneously into flame under Lady Merissa's fiery glare.
"Well?" Merissa snapped at her luckless victim.
"Beg pardon, Lady Merissa!" the maid said quickly. "I wouldn't ever have disturbed Her Grand Imperial Highness, not ever! But they insisted."
"Who insisted, girl?" Lady Merissa demanded. "And what could possibly be so important that it couldn't wait until morning?"
"I'm sure I don't know what's important, My Lady!" the maid said. "But it's Privy Voice Yanamar and Voice Kinlafia. They say they have to talk to Her Grand Imperial Highness right away!"
Glossary
Aeravas—a Sharonian city in Harkala; located in approximately the same place as Shiraz, Iran.
Alathia: one of the provinces of the Ternathian Empire, it is the trans-temporal analog of Italy.
Andara—the Arcanan equivalent of the continent of North America. Andara is the home of the warrior kingdoms of the Andarans and provides the backbone of the Union of Arcana's military.
Arau Mountains—the Sharonian equivalent of the Yoblonovy Khrebet mountain range east of Lake Baikal.
Arcana—the home universe and Earth of the Union of Arcana. Its physics are based on "magic."
Arpathia—the Sharonian equivalent of the area stretching from the Caspian Sea through the Siberian tundra north of Mongolia to the Pacific Ocean. While there is no united government for this region, it is often referred to as the Septentrion, which is a trade union developed by the septs (see Septs and Septentrion, below).
Aruncas of the Sword—the Uromathian god of war.
Baranal—literally, "protector" in old Andaran. A baranal is the individual responsible for protecting a shardon (see below).
Barkesh—a city in Sharona located at the approximate trans-temporal site of Barcelona, Spain.
Bergahl—the dominant deity of the Order of Bergahl. Bergahl is a god of both war and justice. His order is a militant one, which has traditionally provided the judges and law enforcement mechanism in the Kingdom of Othmaliz.
Bergahl's Comforters—an ironic nickname for Berghal's Dagger (see nelow).
Bergahl's Dagger—a highly militant cult within the Order of Bergahl. The Dagger was officially disbanded over a hundred years ago.
Bernith Island—the Sharonian analog of the island of Great Britain.
Bernith Channel—the Sharonian analog of the English Channel.
Bernithian Highlands—the Sharonian analog of Scotland.
Bison—the steam-powered tractor portion of the Ternathian Army's experimental mechanized transport.
Blade of Ibral—the Sharonian analog of the Gallipoli Peninsula.
blood debt—an ancient Ransaran concept of justice based on the principle of "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth." It also has personal conotations of vengeance, but has been renounced by modern Ransarans as a barbaric and horrific basis for true justice. The term is sometimes still used as a slang phrase to describe a highly personal form of redress for wrongful actions.
blood vendetta—Shurkhali blood vendetta is triggered when a massive miscarriage of justice leads to someone's death. Shaylar Nargra-Kolmayr's apparent murder by Arcanans triggers a blood vendetta reaction in every Shurkhali alive.
Bolakin, Queens of—the queens who collectively rule the ten Bolakini city-states which control the southern short of the Mbisi Sea.
Bolakini Strait—the Sharonian analog of the Strait of Gibraltar.
Book of the Double-Three—the holy book of the Church of the Double Triads, the imperial religion of Ternathia.
Book of Secrets—one of the two seminal holy books of the Mythalan shakira caste.
Book of the Shakira—one of the two seminal holy books of the Mythalan shakira caste.
Calirath—the imperial dynasty of Ternathia. The Caliraths have ruled Ternathia for more than four millennia.
Celaryon II—King of Ancient Ternathia who negotiated the treaty which bound Ternathia and Farnalia as allies in the year 203 of the Ternathian calendar.
Central Bank of Mythal—the largest, wealthiest, and most powerful of the Mythalan banks. The CBM, unlike the private Mythalan banks, is directly subject to government supervision, and a full third of the seats on its Board of Directors are held by government appointees.
Cerakondian Mountains—the Sharonian equivalent of the Altai Mountains.
Cetacean Institute/Shurkahli Aquatic Realms Embassy: the Sharonian research institute and embassy founded and operated by Shaylar's mother, Thalassar Kolmayr-Brintal, who is a cetacean translator. Similar embassies serve the sentient great apes and higher primates of Ricathia (Africa), Uromathia (Asia), and New Farnal (South America, with its New World monkeys).
Chairifon—the Sharonian equivalent of the Eurasian supercontinent.
Chalar—an Arcanan maritime Empire, based on the island of Chalar (Cuba) and dominating the Chalaran Sea (Caribbean Sea) and Gulf of Hilmar (Gulf of Mexico). Chalar is the dominant naval power of Arcana.
Chalgyn Consortium: survey company that employs Jathmar Nargra & Shaylar Nargra-Kolmayr. The Chalgyn Consortium is an independent survey company based in Shurkhal.
chan—"veteran" in Ternathian. This is an honorific indicating someone who is currently or has been a member of the Ternathian military.
Chinthai—a Sharonian breed of horses very similar to Percherons.
Commandery—the Arcanan equivalent of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Conclave: The formal multi-nation crisis-management organization established when the first portal opened in Sharona. Its members are the heads of state of every sovereign nation in Sharona and, on paper, Sharona's new, independent colony universes.
Cratak Mountains—the Arcanan equivalent of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Crown of fire—the Sharonian term for our own volcanically active "ring of fire" in the Pacific.
Daggerstone—a sarkolis crystal used to store short-range combat spells. Maximum range is no more than twenty feet, and they are impossible to conceal from any Gifted person, but they can store antipersonnel spells of great power.
Dalazan River—the Sharonian analogue of the Amazon River.
Daykassian—the premier Arpathian breed of cavalry horse. Very similar to the Turkoman.
Delkrath Mountains—a mountain range in Delkrathia Province; the Sharonian equivalent of the Santa de Guararrma Mountains of Spain.
Delkrathia Province—a province of the Ternathian Empire north of Narhath and east of Teramandor; it consist of the equivalent of central Spain, from just south of Madrid to the Bay of Biscay.
Dosaru—the Uromathian god of justice. Also known as "Dosaru of the Watching Eyes" and "Dosaru of the Scales."
Ekros—an Arcanian demon; the equivalent of our own Demon Murphy.
Elath—an Andaran kingdom whose territory covers roughly the area of the United States as far west as Kansas and Nebraska and extends as far north as Newfoundland.
Emergency Voice Network—a planet-wide network of Voices capable of linking all Sharonian heads of state in a real-time conference.
Emergency Transportation System—a Sharona-wide teleportation system capable of transporting very small groups of passengers. The ETS is designed for the emergency use of heads of state and diplomats in time-critical crises.
Emperor Edvar Mountains—the Sharonian equivalent of the Pyrenees Mountains.