Robert Jordan - Crossroads of Twilight

Pel, Herid: The author of Reason and Unreason and other books Pel was a student (and teacher) of history and philosophy at the Academy of Cairhien He was discovered m his study torn limb from limb.

First Reasoner: The title given to the head of the White Ajah This position is currently held by Ferane Neheran in the White Tower Ferane Sedai is one of only two Ajah heads to sit in the Hall of the Tower at present.

First Weaver: The title given to the head of the Yellow Ajah This position is currently held by Suana Dragand in the White Tower Suana Sedai is one of only two Ajah heads to sit in the Hall of the Tower at present.

Fists of Heaven, the: Lightly armed and lightly armored Seanchan infantry carried into battle on the backs of the flying creatures called to’raken All are small men, or women, largely because of limits as to how much weight a to’raken can carry for any distance Considered to be among the toughest of soldiers, they are used primarily for raids, surprise assaults on positions at an enemy’s rear, and where speed in getting soldiers into place is of the essence.

Forerunners, the: See Hailene.

Forsaken, the: The name given to thirteen powerful Aes Sedai, men and women both, who went over to the Shadow during the Age of Legends and were trapped in the sealing of the Bore into the Dark One’s prison While it has long been believed that they alone abandoned the Light during the War of the Shadow, in fact others did as well, these thirteen were only the highest-ranking among them The Forsaken (who call themselves the Chosen) are somewhat reduced in number since their awakening in the present day Those thought to have survived are Demandred, Semirhage, Graendal, Mesaana, Moghedien, and two who were reincarnated in new bodies and given new names, Osan’gar and Aran’gar, although it seems possible that Osan’gar may also be dead The life of a Forsaken is always uncertain. Recently, a man calling himself Moridin has appeared, and seems to be yet another of the dead Forsaken brought back from the grave by the Dark One. The same may be possible regarding the woman calling herself Cyndane, but since Aran’gar was a man brought back as a woman, speculation as to the original identities of Moridin and Cyndane may prove futile until more is learned.

Gregorin: Full name Gregorin Panar de Lushenos A member of the Council of Nine in Illian who presently serves as the Steward for the Dragon Reborn in Illian.

Hailene: In the Old Tongue, ‘Forerunners, or “Those Who Come Before ‘ The term applied by the Seanchan to the massive expeditionary force sent across the Aryth Ocean to scout out the lands where Artur Hawkwing once ruled Now under the command of the High Lady Suroth, its numbers swollen by recruits from conquered lands, the Hailene has gone far beyond its original goals, and has in fact been succeeded by the Return. See Return.

Hanlon, Daved: A Darkfriend, formerly commander of the White Lions in service to the Forsaken Rahvin while he held Caemlyn using the name Lord Gaeblyn. From there, Hanlon took the White Lions to Cairhien under orders to further the rebellion against the Dragon Reborn The White Lions were destroyed by a “bubble of evil,” and Hanlon has been ordered back to Caemlyn and, under the name Doilan Mellar, has ingratiated himself with Elayne, the Daughter-Heir. According to rumor, he has done considerably more than ingratiate himself.

Head Clerk: The title given to the head of the Gray Ajah This position is currently held by Serancha Corvine, a woman of reputedly fastidious behavior, in the Tower.

heart: The basic unit of organization in the Black Ajah In effect, a cell A heart consists of three sisters who know each other, each member of the heart knows one additional sister of the Black.

Illuminators, Guild of: A society that held the secret of making fireworks It guarded this secret very closely, even to the extent of murder The Guild gained its name from the grand displays, called Illuminations, that it provided for rulers and sometimes for greater lords Lesser fireworks were sold for use by others, but with dire warnings of the disaster that could result from attempting to learn what was inside them The Guild once had chapter houses in Cairhien and Tanchico, but both are now destroyed In addition, the members of the Guild in Tanchico resisted the invasion by the Seanchan and the survivors were made da’covale, and the Guild as such no longer exists. However, individual Illuminators have escaped Seanchan rule, and perhaps more grand displays will be seen in the not-too-distant future. See also da’covale.

Ishara: The first Queen of Andor (circa FY 994-1020) At the death of Artur Hawkwing, Ishara convinced her husband, one of Hawkwing’s foremost generals, to raise the siege of Tar Valon and accompany her to Caemlyn with as many soldiers as he could break away from the army. Where others tried to seize the whole of Hawkwing’s empire and failed, Ishara took a firm hold on a small part and succeeded. Today, nearly every noble House in Andor contains some of Ishara’s blood, and the right to claim the Lion Throne depends both on direct descent from her and on the number of lines of connection to her that can be established.

Kaensada: An area of Seanchan that is populated by less-than-civilized hill tribes These tribes fight a great deal among themselves, as do individual families within the tribes. Each tribe has its own customs and taboos, the latter of which often make no sense to anyone outside that tribe Most of the tribesmen avoid the more civilized residents of Seanchan.

Katar. A city in Arad Doman known for its mines and forges Katar is wealthy enough that its Lords occasionally need reminding that they are part of Arad Doman.

Kin, the: Even during the Trolloc Wars, more than two thousand years ago (circa 1000—1350 AB), the White Tower continued to maintain its standards, putting out women who failed to measure up One group of these women, fearing to return home in the midst of the wars, fled to Barashta (near the present-day site of Ebou Dar), as far from the fighting as was possible to go at that time Calling themselves the Kin, and Kinswomen, they kept in hiding and offered a safe haven for others who had been put out In time, their approaches to women told to leave the Tower led to contacts with runaways, and while the exact reasons may never be known, the Kin began to accept runaways, as well They made great efforts to keep these girls from learning anything about the Kin until they were sure that Aes Sedai would not swoop down and retake them. After all, everyone knew that runaways were always caught sooner or later, and the Kin knew that unless they held themselves secret, they themselves would be punished severely. Unknown to the Kin, Aes Sedai in the Tower were aware of their existence almost from the very first, but prosecution of the wars left no time for dealing with them. By the end of the wars, the Tower realized that it might not be in their best interests to snuff out the Kin. Prior to that time, a majority of runaways actually had managed to escape, whatever the Towers propaganda, but once the Kin began helping them, the Tower knew exactly where any runaway was heading, and they began retaking nine out of ten Since Kinswomen moved in and out of Barashta (and later Ebou Dar) in an effort to hide their existence and their numbers, never staying more than ten years lest someone notice that they did not age at a normal speed, the Tower believed they were few, and they certainly were keeping themselves low In order to use the Kin as a trap for runaways, the Tower decided to leave them alone, unlike any other similar group in history, and to keep the very existence of the Kin a secret known only to full Aes Sedai. The Kin do not have laws, but rather rules (called the Rule) based in part on the rules for novices and Accepted in the White Tower, and in part on the necessity of maintaining secrecy. As might be expected given the origins of the Kin, they maintain the Rule very firmly on all of their members. Recent open contacts between Aes Sedai and Kinswomen, while known only to a handful of sisters, have produced a number of shocks, including the facts that there are twice as many Kinswomen as Aes Sedai and that some have lived more than a hundred years longer than any Aes Sedai who has lived since before the Trolloc Wars. The effect of these revelations, both on Aes Sedai and on Kinswomen, is as yet a matter for speculation. See also Daughters of Silence, the, Knitting Circle, the.