Everything You Wanted to Know About Extrahumans, But Were Afraid to Ask
Since I've got a lot of books set in this world with more to come, here's a glossary of terms.
People
Changeling- A mortal child of either one or two Faerie parents, who become full fae during adulthood and must tithe to a monarch. Most changelings undergo this process sometime in their twenties, though they can do it as early as their teens.
Dhampyr- The mortal offspring of two vampires. They aren’t as rare as many suspect, though because their blood is exceptionally sustaining to vampires, they keep their status secret. Dhampyr sometimes have magic or psychic powers that work unreliably.
Dragon- The only shifters who can see both magic and psychic abilities, though only while shifted. The most powerful ones, called hatchlings, can partially shapeshift. Dragons are immortal and reproduce infrequently. There are so few of them since the Reveal that they've started taking other magical shifters as mates. This makes them average dragons, who are no longer immortal and can't lay or fertilize eggs.
Faerie- A term used to describe either a changeling who has tithed to a Monarch and spent a year and a day in the Under or the pure creatures such as Gnomes and Pixies who were created by the King and Queen. The word “pure” designates the types in conversation and lore.
Ghost- A dead person with unfinished business becomes a ghost. If a mortal makes a contract before death, that gives them unfinished business and lets them linger. If left too long alone and unheard, they become dangerous wraiths. When ghosts finish their business, they move on, But no one knows where they go from here.
Kelpie- A magical shifter who gets their abilities from an enchanted Faerie pelt which bonds with their soul. The Kelpie pelts were created by the Goblin King, so they have unseelie energy and restrictions. A Kelpie's animal form is a horse. Families pass the pelts down each generation, and part of each ancestor lives on to help their descendant. The ancestors can get distracting, however.
Magical Shifter- These beings can shapeshift into an alternate form and also have elements, glamour, or psychic talents, sometimes a combination. Their magic can come naturally or through an item enchanted by otherworldly beings.
Magus- A mortal who can use magic. Magic comes from energy in the world. Most magi can only use one type of magic. However, a rare few can do more than one kind. Those are called extramagi.
Merfolk- People who can live on land with legs or on sea with fins and tails. They only emerged from the ocean after the Big Reveal and are still extremely rare outside of harbor towns.
Psychic- A mortal with psychic power. Psychic ability comes from a person's own body and mind. Extrapsychics have access to glamour like changelings, but don't become faeries or tithe to a monarch unless they use it.
Shifter- A mortal who can take an animal’s shape. Shifters have one form, with coloring similar to what they have while human. They usually have an enhanced sense while human-shaped, which goes along with their animal. For example, an owl shifter might have keen eyesight and a wolf shifter a great sense of smell.
Selkie- A magical shifter who gets their abilities from an enchanted Faerie pelt which bonds with their soul. The Selkie pelts were created by the Sidhe Queen, so they have seelie energy and restrictions. A Selkie's animal form is a seal or sometimes a sea otter. They can use water magic as long as they wear the pelt. Families pass the pelts down each generation, and part of each ancestor lives on to help their descendant. The ancestors can get distracting, however.
Tanuki- A magical shifter with enhanced speed and the ability to see all types of magic while shifted. They are also the only creatures who can manipulate Luck, causing it to turn from good to bad or the other way around. They stop aging if they own a charm infused with Luck from humans. Very few of those charms exist, having been either used up during the reveal or locked away.
Vampire- An unliving person who drinks blood to survive and enhance their abilities. Only regular mortals, psychics, and magi can get turned into vampires. Shifters, changelings, and Faeries won't turn, though most of those won't survive an attempt.
Powers
Air magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish wind or air.
Earth magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish earth, sand, or rock.
Empathy- A psychic power to sense and influence emotions in other people.
Fire magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish flames.
Ice magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish ice.
Lightning magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish lightning.
Meadhan- A word whispered through the Under since time immemorial. Though in the mundane realm it’s known to mean balance, what it signifies for the faerie realm remains to be seen.
Medium- A psychic who, after a near death experience, can see and work with ghosts.
Pledge- The process of a summoner making a contract with an otherworldly being.
Poison magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish poison. Each magus has a slightly different type of toxin they produce. Some are even antidotes to others.
Precognitive/Clairvoyant- A psychic power to foretell future events.
Projection- A psychic power that allows for leaving the body. The spirit is connected by a silver thread. The body is in danger if left unguarded and soul if it encounters wraiths or other ghostly hazards. Projection psychics need trustworthy people in their lives.
Psychometry- Sensing and projecting emotions or memory by touch, through direct contact or an object.
Spectral magic- the power to conjure, control, and banish light.
Spectral Affinity- A trait some spectral magi have which makes them charismatic and memorable.
Summoner- A psychic power that lets the user make contracts with Pure Faeries, letting the Summoner call them at times of need. Each creature has an anchor, some item symbolizing the bond. Mastery of Summoning takes decades of study, which is why the most powerful are either vampires or past middle age. However, the Over reopening has changed bond dynamics in still unknown ways.
Seelie- The Sidhe Queen's court. The Seelie way is about following the letter of the law, even when it's hard or cruel. They have a hard time reconciling Faerie rules with the new mortal laws since the Big Reveal.
Space magic- The power to conjure, manipulate, and teleport through space. Some can even move other people.
Space Affinity- This space power comes with an ability to locate people or things important to the magus.
Telekinesis- A psychic power that moves objects.
Telepathy- A psychic power to read minds.
Tithe- The process of pledging to either the Queen or King, making a changeling choose to be either Seelie or Unseelie.
Umbral magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish shadows and veil or camoflague objects or people.
Umbral Affinity- A trait some umbral magi have which makes them difficult to remember without psychic ability, Faerie magic, or a shifter pack bond.
Undeath magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish unliving energy.
Unseelie- The Goblin King's court. The Unseelies bend the rules and often navigate mortal society more easily than their seelie counterparts.
Water magic- The power to conjure, banish, and control water.
Wood magic- The power to conjure, banish, and control wood. It takes extreme power to influencing a living plant.
Magical and Otherworldly Creatures
Basilisk- A venomous serpent that also has poison magic.
Celestials- Otherworldly beings from the Over, which are born of righteous acts and personify a single concept. They sometimes make agreements with psychic summoners. They choose a path, either left or right hand.
Dragonet- A tiny dragon-like creature, always associated with one or more element which powers their breath attacks later in life. They have scales but are warm-blooded like birds. Most don’t get much bigger than a small cat.
Familiar- A magical or mythical creature who makes a bond with a magus.
Gryphon- A bird/mammal hybrid that comes in many varieties. It’s said they only bond with particularly brave magi.
Karkus- A crab that can change its shape. They’re said to be the offspring of the crab that pinched Hercules as he battled the Hydra.
Lightning Bird- A familiar from South Africa with an affinity for lightning. Its beak can jump-start a car.
Mercat- A shapeshifting feline with fur for land and scales in the water. They can live in lakes, rivers, or the sea as well as on land. They must never completely dry out or they will die.
Moon Hare- A magical rabbit that gets power from its particular moon phase. They commonly bond with umbral magi.
Pharaoh’s Rat- These natural predators of dragon shifters, though they are no danger if pledged to magi. They are the size of ferrets and resemble a mongoose with more fur. They have an affinity for space magic and can use it on occasion.
Pigeon- Not as mundane as most think, some pigeons have an uncanny sense of direction due to their affinity for air magic.
Pricus- An aquatic goat said to be descended from Capricorn. They can warp time like gnomes, but only when bonded with a magus.
Pure Faeries- Creatures who spring to life from magical sources in the Under. They are genderless unless they choose otherwise and their type and ability depend on place of origin. They're associated with only one court, though they will work together to defeat a common enemy and make agreements with psychic summoners.
Sand Cat- A feline that lives in the desert, able to go for weeks without water by consuming sand. Earth magic lets them do this.
Sha- A magical desert dog from Egypt. Sha are the size of mundane toy breeds with short hair and small pointy ears. They could pass for mundane except for their blue tongues. They are attracted to anything undead.
Sphinx- A magic cat with an affinity for fire. The reason they’re hairless is because they’re resistant to flames.
Strix- A venomous owl with affinity for poison. Female striges have rounded tufts on their heads while males have pointed ones.
Sumxu- A lop-eared cat found only in northern China. They are masters of camouflage and have an affinity for several kinds of magic.
Wisp- These faeries are found all over the world, and appear to be flames of various colors. They're not actually fire, but magic, and little is known about them.
Places
The Academy- Something between a community college and a military academy for extrahumans, the Academy is geared toward helping extrahumans who don't play well with mortals get ready to join a blended society. It's got divisions for learners of all ages, though they are housed separately.
Cherry Blossom School- A dojo geared toward teaching extrahumans self-restraint, meditation, and how to temper their enhanced physical abilities with more mundane skills. It's been around for close to 100 years, run by the Ichiro family. Mundane classes used to be offered as a front, but now are just a separate division.
Ellicot City Magitechnic- A prep school for magi and psychics specializing in magipsychic technology. It’s located outside of Baltimore.
Gallows Hill School- Traditionally for shifters, this charter school in Salem recently opened its doors to changelings and any other extrahumans not categorized as magi or psychics, though even those are welcome if they take courses specific to their powers at neighboring schools.
Hawthorn Academy- A preparatory school for magi in Salem. Its campus is in the space between the mortal realm and the Under, giving it unrivaled privacy. They specialize in teaching familiar magic.
Providence Paranormal College- A school founded just one year after Brown University and located right in its shadow. Providence Paranormal used to admit only magi and psychics, but it's been accepting all types of extrahumans ever since Henrietta Thurston became Headmistress. There has been trouble since then for students and faculty, leading people to believe dissenters are sabotaging the school.
Rutland Umbral Academy- A school in the Rutland Vermont town limits, where sun-sensitive students can live and attend classes safely from preschool through high school.
Troutbrook Academy- A prestigious Preparatory School for changelings with magic, recently open to magi and magical shifters. Its campus is located in South County and has been operating in some form or another since Rhode Island Colony was founded.
The Over- The Celestial realm. Closed off ages ago by a mysterious process, it's since opened again. This realm is made of potential, which is accessed by two paths, right and left hand, and ruled by a High One of each. It is the birthplace of all celestials.
The Under- The Faerie realm. It's was divided into two parts ever since the Sidhe Queen and the Goblin King split up thousands of years ago, but those boundaries eased once they reunited. Mortals don't age in the Under, but it's a dangerous place for them to be. Getting lost means never being seen again and it's easy to get indebted to something nasty while trying to get through or out of the Under.
Weir Academic Complex- A campus in Niagara Falls Canada, with three levels of schooling for magical shifters and their relatives. The Annex is elementary and middle school, Weir Academy is high school, and Weir University offers degree poems all the way up to the doctoral level.
Wolf Messing Psychic Institute and Academy- An institute in Salem for psychics to learn to control their skills before heading to college.
Historical Events
The Big Reveal- The term used for the 1990s, when the world discovered magic was real and extrahumans existed. The decade was marked with fear as everyone adjusted to the changes. Since the 21st Century, law and technology work for both humans and extrahumans.
Boston Internment- A reaction by Boston government officials to the disappearance and suspected trafficking in extrahumans, especially shifters. All registered extrahumans in Boston lived on barges for close to a month under guard by the Boston Police. But the traffickers got their hands on some magical gadgets, rendering the protection useless. Few survived.
Changeling- A mortal child of either one or two Faerie parents, who become full fae during adulthood and must tithe to a monarch. Most changelings undergo this process sometime in their twenties, though they can do it as early as their teens.
Dhampyr- The mortal offspring of two vampires. They aren’t as rare as many suspect, though because their blood is exceptionally sustaining to vampires, they keep their status secret. Dhampyr sometimes have magic or psychic powers that work unreliably.
Dragon- The only shifters who can see both magic and psychic abilities, though only while shifted. The most powerful ones, called hatchlings, can partially shapeshift. Dragons are immortal and reproduce infrequently. There are so few of them since the Reveal that they've started taking other magical shifters as mates. This makes them average dragons, who are no longer immortal and can't lay or fertilize eggs.
Faerie- A term used to describe either a changeling who has tithed to a Monarch and spent a year and a day in the Under or the pure creatures such as Gnomes and Pixies who were created by the King and Queen. The word “pure” designates the types in conversation and lore.
Ghost- A dead person with unfinished business becomes a ghost. If a mortal makes a contract before death, that gives them unfinished business and lets them linger. If left too long alone and unheard, they become dangerous wraiths. When ghosts finish their business, they move on, But no one knows where they go from here.
Kelpie- A magical shifter who gets their abilities from an enchanted Faerie pelt which bonds with their soul. The Kelpie pelts were created by the Goblin King, so they have unseelie energy and restrictions. A Kelpie's animal form is a horse. Families pass the pelts down each generation, and part of each ancestor lives on to help their descendant. The ancestors can get distracting, however.
Magical Shifter- These beings can shapeshift into an alternate form and also have elements, glamour, or psychic talents, sometimes a combination. Their magic can come naturally or through an item enchanted by otherworldly beings.
Magus- A mortal who can use magic. Magic comes from energy in the world. Most magi can only use one type of magic. However, a rare few can do more than one kind. Those are called extramagi.
Merfolk- People who can live on land with legs or on sea with fins and tails. They only emerged from the ocean after the Big Reveal and are still extremely rare outside of harbor towns.
Psychic- A mortal with psychic power. Psychic ability comes from a person's own body and mind. Extrapsychics have access to glamour like changelings, but don't become faeries or tithe to a monarch unless they use it.
Shifter- A mortal who can take an animal’s shape. Shifters have one form, with coloring similar to what they have while human. They usually have an enhanced sense while human-shaped, which goes along with their animal. For example, an owl shifter might have keen eyesight and a wolf shifter a great sense of smell.
Selkie- A magical shifter who gets their abilities from an enchanted Faerie pelt which bonds with their soul. The Selkie pelts were created by the Sidhe Queen, so they have seelie energy and restrictions. A Selkie's animal form is a seal or sometimes a sea otter. They can use water magic as long as they wear the pelt. Families pass the pelts down each generation, and part of each ancestor lives on to help their descendant. The ancestors can get distracting, however.
Tanuki- A magical shifter with enhanced speed and the ability to see all types of magic while shifted. They are also the only creatures who can manipulate Luck, causing it to turn from good to bad or the other way around. They stop aging if they own a charm infused with Luck from humans. Very few of those charms exist, having been either used up during the reveal or locked away.
Vampire- An unliving person who drinks blood to survive and enhance their abilities. Only regular mortals, psychics, and magi can get turned into vampires. Shifters, changelings, and Faeries won't turn, though most of those won't survive an attempt.
Powers
Air magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish wind or air.
Earth magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish earth, sand, or rock.
Empathy- A psychic power to sense and influence emotions in other people.
Fire magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish flames.
Ice magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish ice.
Lightning magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish lightning.
Meadhan- A word whispered through the Under since time immemorial. Though in the mundane realm it’s known to mean balance, what it signifies for the faerie realm remains to be seen.
Medium- A psychic who, after a near death experience, can see and work with ghosts.
Pledge- The process of a summoner making a contract with an otherworldly being.
Poison magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish poison. Each magus has a slightly different type of toxin they produce. Some are even antidotes to others.
Precognitive/Clairvoyant- A psychic power to foretell future events.
Projection- A psychic power that allows for leaving the body. The spirit is connected by a silver thread. The body is in danger if left unguarded and soul if it encounters wraiths or other ghostly hazards. Projection psychics need trustworthy people in their lives.
Psychometry- Sensing and projecting emotions or memory by touch, through direct contact or an object.
Spectral magic- the power to conjure, control, and banish light.
Spectral Affinity- A trait some spectral magi have which makes them charismatic and memorable.
Summoner- A psychic power that lets the user make contracts with Pure Faeries, letting the Summoner call them at times of need. Each creature has an anchor, some item symbolizing the bond. Mastery of Summoning takes decades of study, which is why the most powerful are either vampires or past middle age. However, the Over reopening has changed bond dynamics in still unknown ways.
Seelie- The Sidhe Queen's court. The Seelie way is about following the letter of the law, even when it's hard or cruel. They have a hard time reconciling Faerie rules with the new mortal laws since the Big Reveal.
Space magic- The power to conjure, manipulate, and teleport through space. Some can even move other people.
Space Affinity- This space power comes with an ability to locate people or things important to the magus.
Telekinesis- A psychic power that moves objects.
Telepathy- A psychic power to read minds.
Tithe- The process of pledging to either the Queen or King, making a changeling choose to be either Seelie or Unseelie.
Umbral magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish shadows and veil or camoflague objects or people.
Umbral Affinity- A trait some umbral magi have which makes them difficult to remember without psychic ability, Faerie magic, or a shifter pack bond.
Undeath magic- The power to conjure, control, and banish unliving energy.
Unseelie- The Goblin King's court. The Unseelies bend the rules and often navigate mortal society more easily than their seelie counterparts.
Water magic- The power to conjure, banish, and control water.
Wood magic- The power to conjure, banish, and control wood. It takes extreme power to influencing a living plant.
Magical and Otherworldly Creatures
Basilisk- A venomous serpent that also has poison magic.
Celestials- Otherworldly beings from the Over, which are born of righteous acts and personify a single concept. They sometimes make agreements with psychic summoners. They choose a path, either left or right hand.
Dragonet- A tiny dragon-like creature, always associated with one or more element which powers their breath attacks later in life. They have scales but are warm-blooded like birds. Most don’t get much bigger than a small cat.
Familiar- A magical or mythical creature who makes a bond with a magus.
Gryphon- A bird/mammal hybrid that comes in many varieties. It’s said they only bond with particularly brave magi.
Karkus- A crab that can change its shape. They’re said to be the offspring of the crab that pinched Hercules as he battled the Hydra.
Lightning Bird- A familiar from South Africa with an affinity for lightning. Its beak can jump-start a car.
Mercat- A shapeshifting feline with fur for land and scales in the water. They can live in lakes, rivers, or the sea as well as on land. They must never completely dry out or they will die.
Moon Hare- A magical rabbit that gets power from its particular moon phase. They commonly bond with umbral magi.
Pharaoh’s Rat- These natural predators of dragon shifters, though they are no danger if pledged to magi. They are the size of ferrets and resemble a mongoose with more fur. They have an affinity for space magic and can use it on occasion.
Pigeon- Not as mundane as most think, some pigeons have an uncanny sense of direction due to their affinity for air magic.
Pricus- An aquatic goat said to be descended from Capricorn. They can warp time like gnomes, but only when bonded with a magus.
Pure Faeries- Creatures who spring to life from magical sources in the Under. They are genderless unless they choose otherwise and their type and ability depend on place of origin. They're associated with only one court, though they will work together to defeat a common enemy and make agreements with psychic summoners.
Sand Cat- A feline that lives in the desert, able to go for weeks without water by consuming sand. Earth magic lets them do this.
Sha- A magical desert dog from Egypt. Sha are the size of mundane toy breeds with short hair and small pointy ears. They could pass for mundane except for their blue tongues. They are attracted to anything undead.
Sphinx- A magic cat with an affinity for fire. The reason they’re hairless is because they’re resistant to flames.
Strix- A venomous owl with affinity for poison. Female striges have rounded tufts on their heads while males have pointed ones.
Sumxu- A lop-eared cat found only in northern China. They are masters of camouflage and have an affinity for several kinds of magic.
Wisp- These faeries are found all over the world, and appear to be flames of various colors. They're not actually fire, but magic, and little is known about them.
Places
The Academy- Something between a community college and a military academy for extrahumans, the Academy is geared toward helping extrahumans who don't play well with mortals get ready to join a blended society. It's got divisions for learners of all ages, though they are housed separately.
Cherry Blossom School- A dojo geared toward teaching extrahumans self-restraint, meditation, and how to temper their enhanced physical abilities with more mundane skills. It's been around for close to 100 years, run by the Ichiro family. Mundane classes used to be offered as a front, but now are just a separate division.
Ellicot City Magitechnic- A prep school for magi and psychics specializing in magipsychic technology. It’s located outside of Baltimore.
Gallows Hill School- Traditionally for shifters, this charter school in Salem recently opened its doors to changelings and any other extrahumans not categorized as magi or psychics, though even those are welcome if they take courses specific to their powers at neighboring schools.
Hawthorn Academy- A preparatory school for magi in Salem. Its campus is in the space between the mortal realm and the Under, giving it unrivaled privacy. They specialize in teaching familiar magic.
Providence Paranormal College- A school founded just one year after Brown University and located right in its shadow. Providence Paranormal used to admit only magi and psychics, but it's been accepting all types of extrahumans ever since Henrietta Thurston became Headmistress. There has been trouble since then for students and faculty, leading people to believe dissenters are sabotaging the school.
Rutland Umbral Academy- A school in the Rutland Vermont town limits, where sun-sensitive students can live and attend classes safely from preschool through high school.
Troutbrook Academy- A prestigious Preparatory School for changelings with magic, recently open to magi and magical shifters. Its campus is located in South County and has been operating in some form or another since Rhode Island Colony was founded.
The Over- The Celestial realm. Closed off ages ago by a mysterious process, it's since opened again. This realm is made of potential, which is accessed by two paths, right and left hand, and ruled by a High One of each. It is the birthplace of all celestials.
The Under- The Faerie realm. It's was divided into two parts ever since the Sidhe Queen and the Goblin King split up thousands of years ago, but those boundaries eased once they reunited. Mortals don't age in the Under, but it's a dangerous place for them to be. Getting lost means never being seen again and it's easy to get indebted to something nasty while trying to get through or out of the Under.
Weir Academic Complex- A campus in Niagara Falls Canada, with three levels of schooling for magical shifters and their relatives. The Annex is elementary and middle school, Weir Academy is high school, and Weir University offers degree poems all the way up to the doctoral level.
Wolf Messing Psychic Institute and Academy- An institute in Salem for psychics to learn to control their skills before heading to college.
Historical Events
The Big Reveal- The term used for the 1990s, when the world discovered magic was real and extrahumans existed. The decade was marked with fear as everyone adjusted to the changes. Since the 21st Century, law and technology work for both humans and extrahumans.
Boston Internment- A reaction by Boston government officials to the disappearance and suspected trafficking in extrahumans, especially shifters. All registered extrahumans in Boston lived on barges for close to a month under guard by the Boston Police. But the traffickers got their hands on some magical gadgets, rendering the protection useless. Few survived.