written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_gate_cycle wrote:The Earth was destroyed.
Four worlds were created out of the ruin. Worlds for ourselves and the mensch: Air, Fire, Stone, Water.
Four Gates connect each world to the other: Arianus to Pryan to Abarrach to Chelestra.
A house of correction was built for our enemies: the Labyrinth.
The Labyrinth is connected to the other worlds through the Fifth Gate: the Nexus.
The Sixth Gate is the center, permitting entry: the Vortex.
And all was accomplished through the Seventh Gate.
The end was the beginning.
Humans
The humans are your classic humans, of no distinct modern-day nationality.
"Dark-skinned" humans populated Chelestra,
while both "dark-skinned" humans and "caucasians" populated Arianus and Pryan.
Humans are of standard height and physical prowess,
and a small subset possess magical capability.
Human magic is considered part of the Spiritual Masteries,
tending towards "the emotional and mental manipulation of the world
about the magician."[1] A human of sufficient magical talent
can perform a variety of feats, including but not limited to
manipulating the elements, creating illusions, healing, compelling other life-forms,
transforming shape and size, translocation and overcoming physical limitations such as gravity.
While some magicians can mentally construct their magic
rather than speaking it, most need to use physical gestures
and in some instances physical objects (e.g bells) or incantations
to perform their magic.
Elves
Elves are generally taller and more slender than humans
and have a greatly extended lifespan. Their longer lives tend to breed
a lack of urgency in their outlook, sometimes problematic in dealings with the comparatively impatient humans.
Elven magic is considered part of the Physical Masteries,
which "tend to use and make use of physical objects in the world about the wizard."[1]
For instance, this allows for the creation of "smart" self-targeting arrows,
flying dragonships, magical submarines, protective charms against human magics,
fabric which increases lifespan and other mechanical devices with enhanced capabilities.
They can also weave magical messages into songs. Elves must both speak and gesture
to cast their magic, and the magic contained in songs can be triggered
by anyone capable of singing it since the magic is not dependent on a wizard
—thus making it possible for humans to trigger elven magic in this form.
It is because of this that humans have been able to use songs
to trigger a nostalgia so intense that the elves of Arianus have
formed an open rebellion against their ruler.
In contrast, the Kenkari, an isolated group of powerful elven magi on Arianus,
also employ a very specialised form of magic based on the spirit
which allows them to communicate with the souls of others, living or dead
and on one occasion have been shown to change their forms
into their order's symbol; the butterfly,
which is a glaring exception to the mechanical focus.
However, this can possibly be explained by their use of song in these communications,
as well as their use of a special box to transport souls
and a cathedral designed to contain the captured souls.
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Dwarves
Dwarves are short and stocky compared to the other races,
such that humans and elves would have to go down on one knee to converse with a dwarf eye-to-eye.
In fact, doing so is considered a mark of respect towards a dwarf.
Dwarves prefer to live in dark, underground areas,
Aand they possess an innate sense of direction superior to that of humans or elves.
Dwarves have no magical abilities of their own,
however the dwarves of Pryan make very rudimentary use of Sartan magic
through songs and runes carved onto amulets.
While the dwarves themselves are not magically capable,
they, like any of the mensch, can trigger the magic
contained in these runes
with the proper training.
Patryns
Patryns are of the same height and build as humans,
but their current generations are all in excellent physical shape
due to the hardships of the Labyrinth,
and they are possessed of excellent magical ability to varying degrees,
also a necessity for their survival.
All Patryns are capable of using rune magic,
which manipulates the Wave of probabilities,
allowing Patryns to view a myriad of probable outcomes
and select one to occur.
The more unlikely the probability, however,
the more difficult to conjure.
Patryn use of runes seems less elegant than Sartan,
as it relies more on physical representations such as their tattoos,
the use of voice, and drawing the runes in air or on a surface.
Patryn runes complement Sartan runes,
and can sometimes be used to accomplish the same tasks.
Patryns also tend to be loners,
but are intensely passionate and due to the hardships of the Labyrinth.
They will aid one another without question,
but generally put their own survival above that of others.
Patryns who form groups tend to follow a single ruler,
such as the Headman of tribes in the Labyrinth
and Xar of the liberated Patryns.
Sartan
Sartan are of the same height and build of humans,
but unlike the Patryns, they have not been hardened by generations of violent life.
All Sartan are capable of using rune magic.
The Sartan use of runes seems more elegant than the Patryn,
involving singing and dancing in prescribed tones and movements to affect the Wave.
In some instances, Sartan inscribe runes,
mainly to permanently enchant an object or location,
such as when creating barred gateways or magical weapons
that can then be used by mensch.
Sartan runes complement Patryn runes,
and can be used to accomplish the same tasks.
Sartan tend to act as a community,
making decisions as a group rather than as individuals,
and they generally have a ruling Council.
The Sartan on Abarrach, however,
were more fractured due to their hardships.
The character Zifnab is a play on the character Fizban
from Weis and Hickman's Dragonlance novels.
He makes a few references to Fizban during the series
(such as the importance of a Wizard's Hat).
Zifnab seems to break "the fourth wall" constantly,
making references to the Pern series of books,
The Lord of the Rings, Dragonlance, Star Wars, Star Trek,
James Bond, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Arthurian legend, and soul music,
however, this story takes place in Earth's far distant future,
so it is also possible that he could somehow have stumbled across these old bits
of late 20th century literature and pop culture and somehow
incorporated them into his view of reality.
