Rage VII: Awakening the Lost
Appendices for Rage Series

Copyright© 2016 by Celtic Bard

Appendix I: Abridged Glossary

amp/amp up- word or phrase used by Bloody Hands to describe the process of purposefully using their rage-induced state of hormone-fueled strength, focus, and pain management.

Awakening- a process of making a Lost Homo esoterica aware that they are a member of the greater Homo esoterica civilization and preparing them to choose which Society they will join. Anyone needing to go through the Awakening process is called a “Lost child” until they are completely Awakened, no matter their age. This is a delicate process usually handled by the elders of the Society from which the Lost child comes or a Loremaster who specializes in this process hired by the child’s genetic Society. Poorly conducted Awakening processes can result in the Lost child being killed, either by sapiens or the Black Guard, due to their unwillingness to believe in or join the Homo esoterica civilization and live by the laws.

chosen Society- the Society a Homo esoterica chooses upon reaching their majority at age twenty-five or completing the Awakening process. Usually, this phrase is only used if the chosen Society is different than the genetic Society.

closed Society- a Homo esoterica Society that does not admit members that were not born of at least one parent who was a member of that Society.

esoterica- shorten form of Homo esoterica usually used in everyday conversation.

genetic Society- the Society from which a Homo esoterica‘s parent or parents come.

Lord/Lady- title given to Society elders in many of the hierarchical or clan-oriented Societies. The Lord or Lady of a given Society in a given area is usually considered the Society’s sovereign for that region and permission must be sought by other members of the Society to move through or dwell in that region.

Lost child- a Homo esoterica that grows up outside of the Homo esoterica civilization for one reason or another. Most Lost children are born of Silken Dark parents or parents of other Societies who are killed beyond the reach of their Society and leave an orphaned child behind for sapien authorities to place in foster care or adoption.

open Society- a Homo esoterica Society that admits members from any Society due to a skill set that matches their criteria for membership.

rage- state of heightened awareness and immunity from most pain that envelops a Bloody Hand during battle. It is called rage because anger is the emotion the Bloody Hands use to purposefully trigger the condition, but any fight-or-flight situation will cause the Bloody Hand adrenal system to flood their bodies with the hormones that cause the state.

sapiens- shortened form of Homo sapiens usually used in everyday conversation to refer to humans. Can be used pejoratively by some Homo esoterica.

NOTE: The following is an abridged guide to the major Societies of Homo esoterica, meaning those that have global or near global presence and/or influence. It by no means encapsulates all that those Societies are nor their often colorful and varied histories.

Appendix II: Societies of Homo esoterica

Acquisitionists- This is a Society that tends to produce highly skilled merchants, middle men, facilitators, and thieves. They have an inborn acquisitiveness that is almost ferret-like, leading them to excel at commerce and allow them to hoard valuables and amass large quantities of money. They have an innate sense of the value of an object that borders on the supernatural, allowing them to get the best of any deal, a compulsion that does not allow them much in the way of charity or sense of fair play. The Acquisitionists are a younger society, having coalesced out of the remains of several other mercantile Societies that were destroyed or dispersed in the late Roman period or early Medieval period. Acquisitionists are rarely found together and do not interact well with each other, carving out territories in the mercantile capitals of the world. They maintain ties primarily for protection from sapiens and other Societies and self-interest.

Aesculapians- This Society is made up of healers, doctors, and nurses of the highest caliber owing to the fact that their breeding over the millennia has gifted them with superhuman abilities in the area of medical diagnosis and a minor empathic talent. They are also gifted with an ability to increase the body’s natural healing by a slight but measurable percentage. The Aesculapians are generally a closed Society, meaning they do not accept members who are not born of at least one Aesculapian parent. Exceptions have rarely been made to this rule and usually only for highly gifted individuals of other Societies that show remarkable medical skills. They are generally very hierarchical and divide themselves even further by their medical specialty. The Aesculapians were founded in Ancient Egypt and flourished during the Golden Age of Greece, when they spread their influence around the world.

Alchemists- Alchemists are one of the older Societies, having been around for as long as there have been people on the planet who experiment with various substances in an effort to learn more about them and to expand their usefulness. They are chemical engineers and chemists who have an inborn gift in the sciences, specifically chemistry, mineralogy, and herb lore. They were early pioneers in pharmacology, giving Homo esoterica advanced medicines long before sapiens, and also tend to be very good bakers and cooks. This is a closed Society with a fairly rigid hierarchical organization with members in most big universities and large cities.

Artisans- Artisans, also known as Tinkers, are a closed Society made up of inventors, manufacturers, and skilled tradesmen. They have a natural affinity for metals and woods and all have an almost superhuman mechanical ability that allows them to fix or make just about anything with whatever is at hand. More recently, they have been sarcastically dubbed the “MacGyver” Society by some of the younger esotericas. Artisans are usually transient, moving from place to place as need for their talents warrants and often hire themselves to sapien corporations to sort out manufacturing issues or to troubleshoot problems in research and development of new products. The Artisan Society is sub-divided by specialty in an almost formal guild system within their own ranks.

Black Guard- The Black Guard is a Society that was formed millennia ago, when leaders of Homo esoterica began to realize their breeding scheme had separated them from their sapien subjects. The Black Guard was established to protect humanity from esotericas’ scheming and bad behavior. The task of keeping Homo esoterica secret was added when esoterica leadership decided to subsume their civilization within humanity’s. To that end, the Black Guard recruits from all Societies in an effort to maintain their neutrality, though they recruit most heavily from the Bloody Hands, Ronin, Hidden Thorns, Psy-Blades, and Chi Witches. The identities of Black Guard members are secret and all members of that Society are still believed to be members of the Society from which they were recruited except those who were Lost. This serves the purpose of keeping their activities and identities secret from other esotericas and allows the offspring of any Black Guard member to choose their Society freely upon reaching their majority.

Bloody Hands- This Society is an old Society made up of warriors of legendary strength and skill in battle. Their breeding over the millennia has given them an adrenal system that allows them to enter a state of focused rage in battle. This state erases most pain from their perception and allows them to continue fighting until either they are dead or their enemies are. Most are excellent tacticians and have either peak or slightly above peak human strength. Bloody Hands will also heal from almost any damage that does not kill them and rarely contract fatal illnesses of any kind. Founded sometime shortly after the Celtic tribes invaded the island of Eire, they are and have always been highly egalitarian and territorial, their leaders (known as Lords or Ladies) not tolerating another Lord within their territory without extensive negotiations and limits on their stay beforehand. The Bloody Hands became a global Society during the Monastic Period of Irish history and have always been a closed and highly clannish Society.

Chi Witches- One of the oldest Societies (probably along with the Kingmakers and the Exiles), the Chi Witches are believed to have emerged in early Ancient Egypt and quickly spread throughout the world. They are a closed Society of healers and arcane martial arts masters with the ability to manipulate their own chi (bioenergy) and that of others to heal and perform seemingly impossible acts. They are a tight-knit Society broken into Houses or Schools that act like clans or tribes. Chi Witches are often contracted as intermediaries or ambassadors between Societies or between a Society and certain sapien governments, organizations, or corporations due to their almost militant neutrality.

Children of Tammuzi- Once believed to be the descendants of the Babylonian vegetative god Du’uzu, the Children of Tammuzi were founded during the spread of agriculture in ancient times in the Fertile Crescent. They are a closed Society whose members are born with a psychic affinity for plants and fungi that allows them to be masters at breeding plants and edible fungi. The Children of Tammuzi have large, extended clans and rarely interbreed with other clans of their own Society, never mind other Societies.

Cupidaeans- This is a closed Society made up of matchmakers of the highest caliber. Cupidaeans are born with an empathic ability, especially for positive emotions like love, lust, and attraction. They also have a psychic ability to instill trust and acquiescence in those who come to them to find mates, either for themselves or their relatives. Cupidaeans also have an eidetic memory for all of the blood lines of Homo esoterica back to the founding of their Society in the early decades of the rise of the Greek city-states as well as certain prominent families of sapiens to whom they also offer their services. Cupidaeans are individualists who tend to carve out their own territories near the larger cities of the world.

Cyphers- Cyphers are linguists of the foremost ability, born with the capability to learn any language with a few minutes of hearing or reading it. This includes computer languages, which has led the Cypher Society to become some of the world’s foremost hackers. They have parlayed this ability into a shadow industry of industrial espionage, black hat hacking for hire, network security, and encryption of both cyber and real world communication. The Cypher Society is a closed Society with origins or locations unknown. Like the Bloody Hands, the Cyphers are fiercely protective of one another and very tribal even within the Society with cyber wars and blood feuds between members or groups of members of the Society common.

Erinysians- The Society most revered by Homo esoterica are the Erinysians. Made up solely of priests and judges, the Erinysians function as both a rudimentary justice system and a church for the other Societies. There are very few Erinysians, compared to the other Societies, with only a few members found in the larger cities of the world. Erinysians have eidetic memories with a limited emotional range that usually only allows them to manifest mild happiness, mild shock, mild annoyance, and intense intellectual curiosity. They are well-versed in the legal and religious history of the esotericas and have the ability to elicit truths from anyone, whether that person wishes to speak the truth or not. It is a closed Society that is very hierarchical and is led by a Chief Magister and a High Priest, both of whom reside in New York City. The leaders of the Erinysians usually dwell in the biggest or most important city in the major world power at any given time and moved to New York from London shortly before World War I started in 1914.

Exiles- Also known as Anarchists or Outcasts, the Exile Society is made up of members of other Societies (and many of their eventual offspring) who either refused to join a Society upon reaching majority or who were cast out by their birth or chosen Society. Most Exiles are outcasts, banished by their Societies for infractions to their Society’s rules or the laws of Homo esoterica that were not so serious as to warrant execution. The remaining members of the Society are simply those who refused to join a Society either because they did not like their options upon reaching the age of majority, have a philosophical dislike of the Society system, or were born to the Exile Society and were not offered membership elsewhere upon reaching their majority. The Exiles are not a true Society like the rest of Homo esoterica‘s Societies in that, as their other name implies, they are anarchists who merely band together for protection. There are few, if any, rules within the Exile community and no leaders. Each Exile is responsible for his or her own actions and only occasionally do Exiles come together for a coordinated action. Because the Exiles are often involved in nefarious deeds of one kind or another, the Black Guard has a large portion of their Society dedicated to keeping them under observation. The Exiles have been around in one form or another, since the dawn of Homo esoterica‘s coalescence into a civilization hidden within humanity’s civilization, meaning that they are probably among the oldest of the Societies that have global influence and population.

Genegineers- Perhaps the Society most responsible for the genetic differentiation between Homo esoterica and Homo sapiens are the Genegineers. The youngest Society, the Genegineers only came into existence a little over a hundred years ago when Homo esoterica gained the ability to lock in their genetic differences as dominant traits. This allowed them to breed with sapiens without worrying about dilution of their genetic lines. Genegineers are an off-shoot of the Aesculapians and were members of that Society that concentrated on genetics and genealogy. Genegineers are born with an eidetic memory, especially for biology and the blood lines within Homo esoterica and certain Homo sapiens families. They are responsible for many of the advancements in medicine that esotericas have access to that sapiens are years or decades away from discovering. While not a closed Society, only those born to the Society have the Genegineer ability to psychically sense bloodlines in all animals, particularly esotericas and sapiens. Like their Aesculapian cousins, the Genegineers are organized with a rigid hierarchy further broken down by specialty.

Grandmasters- The Grandmaster Society is relatively young compared to other Societies, not being recognized until sometime during the late Crusades or early Renaissance in Italy. It is a Society made up of tacticians and strategists that are generally recruited from other Societies. Grandmasters tend to be individualists who are rarely seen with more than one other Grandmaster, usually their apprentice. They are hired by other Societies as planners, cleaners, managers, negotiators, and proxies. They also tend to hire specialists from other Societies such as the Aesculapians, Midasi, Ronin, and The House of Newton’s Bastards.

Hidden Thorns- The Greek legends of the Amazonians grew out of the Homo esoterica Society known as the Hidden Thorns. Female assassins, warriors, and bodyguards, the Hidden Thorns are a closed Society who birth only females born with superhuman reflexes, peak human strength and healing, and superb endurance and hand-eye coordination. They tend towards militant feminism and are organized by tight-knit clans that stake out territories that they protect fanatically. Hidden Thorns will occasionally hire their younger, less established members out as guards or mercenaries to certain Societies like the Silken Dark and the Aesculapians or to select female sapiens that they respect. Aesculapian speculation has long suggested that the Ronin Society was born out of early Hidden Thorns (before they evolved to birth only females) and genetic studies of both Societies have confirmed this fact.

Homerians- This is a Society made up of artists, poets, playwrights, and authors. The Homerians are not bred for but are invited to join from other Societies. Most cities of any decent size around the world have at least a small community of Homerians that tend to gather for fellowship but are fairly individualistic by nature.

Hunters- As their name suggests, Hunters are a Society whose inborn heightened senses (especially smell), mild psychic ability to trace objects to their owners and vice versa, and superhuman endurance, allow them to be the perfect finders of lost objects and people. The Hunters are a closed, clannish Society whose members are hired by both sapiens and esotericas to find their lost, be they objects or people.

Kingmakers- The Kingmakers are a Society of political strategists and advisors who have been manipulating the political structures of the world since the dawn of Homo esoterica. One of the oldest (if not the oldest) Society, the Kingmakers are rarely seen by those observing world events. They work very hard to stay behind the curtain, advising players on the grand stage through their minions and subtly shifting them to achieve their ends. The Kingmakers are closely watched by the Black Guard to insure they do not step over the line that prohibits esotericas from assuming power through politics or commerce. Much like the Grandmasters, Kingmakers are individualists who are usually only seen as individuals or paired master and apprentice. Kingmakers are a closed Society with an empathic ability that allows them to sense people’s desires and weaknesses and exploit them.

Loremasters- The Loremasters are the historians and educators of Homo esoterica. They all have eidetic memories and are thus charged with keeping the history of both Homo esoterica and the world at large. They are also often hired by other Societies to chronicle the histories of their leaders, educate the promising youths of the Society, and Awaken those children who have become Lost and are recovered. The Loremasters are a closed Society with a hierarchical organization broken down by specialty. Those who specialize in Awakening the Lost and chronicling other Societies are held in the greatest esteem by their fellows and by those of other Societies.

Midasi- This is a closed and very individualistic Society made up of bankers, financial analysts, and brokers who possess an instinctual market sense (whatever market they focus on), a high level of acquisitiveness and greed, a compulsive need to get the best of any deal, and a mild empathic ability heightened by touch. Midasi are also gifted liars and have an uncanny ability (not psychic or empathic in nature) to discern truthfulness. Most Midasi are concentrated in the large financial centers of the world with the highest population of them living in the locations of the largest stock exchanges in New York, London, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, and Tokyo. Midasi’s largest contingent of clients is the other esoterica Societies.

Pastoralists- A Society made up of ranchers and animal breeders, the Pastoralists were extremely powerful for millennia due to their wealth made through livestock breeding. Similar to the Children of Tammuzi and their love of plants, they have a psychic affinity for animals that makes them master breeders and trainers of all species of animals, but particularly domesticated food and work animals. Founded simultaneously in Mesopotamia and Egypt during the rise of those civilizations, Pastoralists are a closed and very clan-oriented Society with strong presences in places like the Middle East, Mongolia, the United States, Canada, China, Argentina, Australia, the Balkans, Scotland and Ireland.

Psy-Blades- This is a closed Society made up of telepaths who train their minds to be as deadly as they have made their bodies. They are very loosely organized by tribe and do not often interact with other esoterica or sapiens due to their inability to play well with others. Psy-Blades rarely congregate or hire themselves out individually and tend towards being leaders of criminal organizations or the heads of private security companies.

Ronin- Ronin, as they were in feudal Japan, are singular warriors who consider themselves masterless. They generally hire themselves out individually but associate by clan with clan heads usually deciding who will hire out where. Many clans will coordinate with other Ronin clans to assure they are not pitted against one another. Most Ronin will only hire themselves to other Homo esoterica with reputations for being honorable, with rare exception being made for important sapiens whose word has never been questioned and who are not involved in shady business. Being a closed Society of warriors, they are born with peak human level endurance, reflexes, and hand-eye coordination. The Ronin Society arose in Japan, Korea, and China around 300 AD and greatly influenced the Japanese culture as it began state building. Their tendency towards patriarchalism and adherence to a strict honor code bled into what would become feudal Japan’s societal make up.

Silken Dark- The Silken Dark are a Society made up of extremely attractive but short, leanly muscled men and short, petite, curvaceous women whose handsomeness or beauty have led them to be the great seducers and courtesans of history. It is unknown when or where the Society was founded but there is speculation that it was either in Assyria or the early Chinese states, as those were the two major emergence points for the Silken Dark. Either way, it is an ancient Society whose breeding has gifted its members with great sexual appeal and the empathic ability to amp up lust and attraction in those around them. The Silken Dark is a closed Society that tends toward individualists or fairly small clans. There is a Silken Dark presence in nearly every city of decent size in the world.

The House of Newton’s Bastards- A strange, closed Society formed during the Enlightenment when certain members of various Societies like the Exiles, Chi Witches, Psy-Blades, Ronin, and Hidden Thorns discovered they had the ability to bend the laws of physics to sometimes amazing ends. Due to this congenital ability, those of The House of Newton’s Bastards (often simply called Newton’s Bastards or, more pejoratively, Bastards by other Societies) are employed as assassins, high-class thieves, professional athletes, physicists, and world-class drivers/bodyguards. Newton’s Bastards are very family-oriented and extended clans of Newton’s Bastards often live together on family compounds outside major cities.

Varunans- The Varunans are a Society of seamen and fishermen. They have developed a sensitivity to sea currents and air pressure that gives them an uncanny ability to predict weather and sea conditions with amazing accuracy. They are a closed Society with an almost military-like hierarchy divided by region or territory that was founded during the rise of civilization on the Indian subcontinent and still center their Society leadership in Madras.

Venusians- The Venusian Society is an offshoot of the Silken Dark believed to have split shortly after the rise of the Roman Empire. Unlike their shorter, curvier cousins, the Venusians are an open Society made up of tall women with minimal curves and statuesque beauty and tall, handsome men with fit lean or medium builds. Venusians tend towards acting, modeling, and athletics. Those born into the Society have varying degrees of natural charisma and an ability to control their attractiveness through pheromones. They are organized into close-knit clans with each clan staking out a territory that they control exclusive of other Venusian clans. No Venusian not of the clan controlling a particular territory may dwell or work in that territory without permission of the clan head that holds sovereignty of the territory and they must pay tribute to the native clan. Venusian clans in places like Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, Milan, Miami, Tokyo, and Hong Kong have become very wealthy off of the tributes of other Venusians working in their cities in the fashion, entertainment, and sports industries.

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