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88-511: This is a list of characters from The Old Kingdom Series , a set of novels by Australian author Garth Nix . The series comprises six novels: Sabriel (1995), Lirael (2001), Abhorsen (2003), Clariel (2014), Goldenhand (2016) and Terciel and Elinor (2021). In 2006, Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories was released, which contained the novella The Creature in

176-468: A homily , but when the drama in its modern sense was inaugurated in the reign of Elizabeth, the prologue came with it, directly adapted from the practice of Euripides and Terence . Sackville, Lord Buckhurst , prepared a sort of prologue in the dumb show for his Gorboduc of 1562; and he also wrote a famous Induction , which is, practically, a prologue, to a miscellany of short romantic epics by diverse hands. Prologues of Renaissance drama often served

264-561: A "free-willed blend of Charter and Free Magic", though the spells they cast are "pure Free Magic". These are the most advanced and powerful Free Magic elementals, of which seven created the Charter and are represented by the necromancers' bells. Of the remaining two, Yrael later became Mogget, the Abhorsens' companion; and Orannis, "last and mightiest of the Nine", opposed the Charter and was imprisoned by

352-470: A 'master mark' and sometimes a physical focus (typically a sword or wand ). Though Free Magic is 'corrosive' to living things and Charter Magic, Free Magic spells are required to pass the Gates of Death, and the calls of the Abhorsen's bells are Free Magic spells subject to the Charter. Although the Abhorsen may use Free Magic without suffering long-term ill effects, typical necromancers are ultimately "devoured by

440-464: A Free Magic creature to cheat his way up the Guild. Clariel's family is killed in the fighting that follows, Clariel briefly escapes, only to be captured. On the verge of escaping once more she is rescued and is spirited away to the Abhorsen's estates in the south, only to be locked away by the Abhorsen for her own safety. Fearing that her parents will not be avenged, Clariel conspires with Mogget to free two of

528-523: A Free Magic sorcerer more powerful than they, or by immersion in running water (though Free Magic creatures of the Third Kindred, or those infused with the essence of the Nine, are exempt from this rule). Charter Magic is typically ineffective. Charter Sendings : Charter Sendings are servants or sentries constructed entirely of Charter Marks. Many may only act within a given function, which can be of indefinite complexity. Certain fixtures excepted (such as

616-476: A Greater Dead spirit able to move between Life and Death at will. They are fierce combatants, and seem to have enhanced senses, able to track specific targets over hundreds of miles, resisting direct sunlight to do so. The word mordicant comes from a Latin term meaning gnawing . Free Magic Elementals : These are free-willed beings wholly composed of Free Magic. The most common elementals belong to specific "breeds" (such as Stilken, Magrue, Jerreq, or Hish), while

704-553: A black Kerrigor and white Mogget, which are then bound by Ranna. Sabriel then dies, but is resurrected by her ancestors to succeed her father as the Old Kingdom's protector. The protagonist, Lirael, is raised among the Clayr ; but having coal-black hair, a pale complexion, and brown eyes, differs physically from her chestnut-skinned, white-blonde, blue or green-eyed peers, and additionally lacks their native precognition . While trying to make

792-441: A canine sending , she accidentally summons the immortal 'Disreputable Dog', thereafter her constant companion. In Ancelestierre, Prince Sameth (the son of Sabriel and Touchstone) is attacked by the necromancer Hedge and his summoned Dead Hands (a zombie -like construct); and Sameth's friend Nicholas 'Nick' Sayre is placed under Hedge's control. Sameth's father, Touchstone, thereafter conveys him to their capital Belisaere. Here he

880-492: A collar or belt of red leather, distinguished by a bell (Saraneth originally, and Ranna in the second and third books) whose influence maintains his servitude. Throughout the story his role is largely the provision of wry or sometimes snide comments on the present situation. At the climax of the third book he assumes his true form and assists the imprisonment of Orannis. As Yrael he appears as a vaguely humanoid plume of blue-white, possibly electromagnetic energy. The nickname 'Mogget'

968-491: A cousin of the royal family. Mogget manipulates Clariel and she becomes corrupted by Free Magic. Her face became horribly scarred in Clariel: The Lost Abhorsen leading her to don the bronze mask. She is exiled at the end of Clariel: The Lost Abhorsen . During this exile, Clariel adopted the name Chlorr when she chose to sacrifice her humanity in order to become more powerful and extend her life. In Abhorsen , she

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1056-405: A different name, Moregrim, and appeared as an albino dwarf . Mogget cannot use his dwarf-form without the permission of the current Abhorsen or Abhorsen-in-Waiting: Jerizael, the forty-eighth Abhorsen, forbade him from doing so for reasons unknown. At the end of the series, he re-appears as a cat. In Lirael , when Orannis possesses Nicholas Sayre and speaks to the necromancer Hedge, the story of

1144-415: A different peril. The First Precinct is mostly knee-deep water, but has eddies and pools dangerous to the interloper. Its Gate is a huge waterfall . The Second Precinct has pitfalls throughout its domain and low visibility; its Gate is a whirlpool . The Third Precinct has slightly warmer ankle-deep water and visibility is slightly improved. Periodic, irresistible waves carry dead creatures through

1232-459: A new collection of the author's works, To Hold the Bridge (HarperCollins, 2015, ISBN   978-0-0622-9252-0 ). This short story appears on the Old Kingdom series web site as a bonus feature. For the 25th anniversary edition of Sabriel , the short story One Wyverley Summer was included as a bonus feature. In the Old Kingdom, magic takes two forms: Free Magic or Charter Magic. The former

1320-477: A party, to observe the workings of a clandestine government organisation responsible for gathering information about the Old Kingdom. The organisation's head, Alastor Dorrance, has covertly obtained a monstrous 'Hrule' and intends to free it across the Wall; and when he attempts to do so, it runs amok, destroying numerous people until pursued by Nicholas to the Wall, where it is rendered harmless by Lirael. This short story

1408-509: A position at magic-teaching girls’ school Wyverley College, hoping to learn magic—with which she is newly acquainted—and prepare to travel to the Old Kingdom. When an incident sees her reunited with Terciel, and whisked to the Abhorsen’s House by a distant relative who reveals Elinor’s connection to a sisterhood of seeresses, she finds that she is to play a vital part in the fight against a powerful Dead creature. The novella The Creature in

1496-457: A remnant of the immortal 'Kibeth'; but refuses until the end of the story to identify herself as such. She is Lirael's constant companion throughout two of the three initial books. At intervals she changes her size and physique to suit the environment, or assumes various attributes (adhesive pads; enlarged teeth; or wings) to achieve the immediate need. Additionally she has the ability to cast Charter and Free Magic spells by barking; mostly to produce

1584-565: A source of information; but once rescues Sabriel from Kerrigor's minions. In later books, he has married Sabriel and restored many of the Charter Stones that supported the Kingdom magically, and travels constantly to negotiate with other politicians. He represents Ranna in the binding of the Destroyer. The name of Torrigan is stated only at the binding, whereas that of Touchstone (bestowed by Mogget in

1672-413: A specific function of transition and clarification for the audience. A direct address made by one actor, the prologue acted as an appeal to the audience's attention and sympathy, providing historical context, a guide to themes of the play, and occasionally, a disclaimer. In this mode, a prologue, like any scripted performance, would exist as the text, the actor who speaks that text, and the presentation of

1760-557: A surcoat or insignia), Charter Sendings do not possess a concrete physical shape, and derive identity primarily from their function. They are capable of emotive response, but show little desire except to fulfill their mandates. The bells of necromancy are seven eponymous bells used by necromancers to control the Dead, named after the Seven Bright Shiners who invested themselves in the Charter. From smallest to largest they are: Ranna ,

1848-658: Is "killed"; Chlorr can always come back from Death due to her 'whole' spirit not being made to walk through the Ninth Gate. Though unseen throughout the series, many references are made to Corolini in Lirael and Abhorsen , wherein Corolini is the leader of the extremist 'Our Country' Party, which holds the balance of power in Ancelstierre. He accepts huge sums of Old Kingdom gold to use his party's influence to send 200,000 refugees across

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1936-615: Is a berserk, disinterested in Charter Magic but whose rage and strong will gives her a latent affinity to Free Magic. Clariel's reluctant admission to an academy for the young elite and an encounter with a Free Magic creature leaves her curious about its forbidden power. After a meeting with the King ends badly, Clariel is taken to dine at the Governor's manor, where a chance encounter uncovers that Kilp's son (Clariel's unwanted fiancé) has consorted with

2024-433: Is a source of Charter Magic due to the powerful Free Magic and Charter Magic in his blood. The antagonist Orannis, called the Destroyer, is a malevolent, interplanetary immortal referred to as the "Ninth Bright Shiner" desirous to destroy the biosphere of any planet it encounters, but eventually imprisoned by 7 of its 8 cohorts. In the novels Lirael and Abhorsen , it attempts self-resurrection aided by human agents, but

2112-409: Is a strong wind from the Old Kingdom. Strictly speaking, there are five basic supernatural creatures in the Old Kingdom series: The Dead : The Dead are ghosts with both the inclination and the ability to resist the river of Death, who re-enter the world of Life. Though a rare few emerge into Life on their own power, most must be summoned by a necromancer or emerge near a broken Charter Stone (where

2200-464: Is an opening to a story that establishes the context and gives background details, often some earlier story that ties into the main one, and other miscellaneous information. The Ancient Greek word πρόλογος includes the modern meaning of prologue , but was of wider significance, more like the meaning of preface . The importance, therefore, of the prologue in Greek drama was very great; it sometimes almost took

2288-467: Is destined to be the next ruler of the Old Kingdom. She wields Dyrim in the second binding of Orannis. Named for a friend of Sabriel's, who fell during the battle at Wyverly College. Hedge is a necromancer in service of Orannis, who supplies Nicholas Sayre (in mistake for Prince Sameth) as the latter's avatar . He is roughly 100 years old. Motivated by an all-consuming desire for immortality, he believes that if he frees Orannis, he will become viceroy over

2376-517: Is doing everything to stop her, as she brings necromancers together to battle at the Greenwash Bridge. Nicholas is discovered to be capable of acting as a Charter Stone, and so he and Lirael journey to the north in order to send Chlorr of the Mask to her final resting place. Bonnier Books UK has signed a deal with Garth Nix for a new novel in the Old Kingdom series and his backlist, marking the first time

2464-499: Is expected to succeed his mother as the Abhorsen, a future of which he is terrified. Concurrently, Nick Sayre crosses the border into the Old Kingdom and continues to the Red Lake: a region in the south-west of the Kingdom where neither the royal rule nor the Clayr's 'Sight' has influence. Upon news thereof, Sameth goes in search of him, and is later joined by Mogget. Meanwhile, Lirael inherits

2552-482: Is forced to flee the battle at the second binding of Orannis by Mogget and Lirael. In Goldenhand she is also known as "The Witch with No Face". Over the centuries, Chlorr has been able to insert her spirit into different bodies whenever her current body is destroyed or rendered beyond repair/healing. Her bodies are young women supplied by the Northern Tribes. These women are called "Offerings" and their only purpose

2640-399: Is identified as Sabriel's half-sister and heir, Sameth is identified with the otherwise extinct 'Wallmakers', and his talent as a manifestation of that identity. It is stated thereafter that his inventions prove 'most useful' to his relatives; and by virtue of a mutual quest for Nicholas Sayre, he is especially close to his aunt Lirael. Touchstone (formerly Torrigan) is the illegitimate son of

2728-606: Is implied that Saraneth and Mosrael wove themselves into the Abhorsen and Clayr bloodlines respectively. Additionally, Lirael (a "Remembrancer", only made possible by her shared Clayr and Abhorsen heritage) is referred to as "Astarael's get" in The Creature in the Case , and Prince Sameth is referred to as a "Wallmaker" (Ranna and Belgaer) in Abhorsen . Dyrim is considered the Great Charter of

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2816-474: Is imprisoned again by the leading characters. When briefly free, it emits a series of 'manifestations', whereof the second resembles an atomic explosion; and when imprisoned, is confined in two immense metallic ' hemispheres ', each containing half of its constitution, and further held by 7 apotropaic materials. Sabriel is the protagonist of the first novel, and a supporting character in the second and third. Sabriel's mother died shortly after birth, but her father,

2904-671: Is joined by Prince Sameth (Sabriel's son by Touchstone) and Mogget, and discovers her own parentage at Abhorsen's House. Thereafter she and the dog conduct the second binding of the Destroyer. Lirael is next seen in Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case , wherein she has been some time in practice as Sabriel's assistant and pending successor; but specializes here, as in the Library, in the incapacitation of monsters. The Eighth Bright Shiner , an immortal entity of Free Magic; originally neutral in

2992-463: Is not identified; but may be traced to the Australian and British term 'moggy', an affectionate term for cats or any non-pedigree cat. After the events in Abhorsen , Mogget is now unbound and roams The Old Kingdom of his own accord. Sabriel reports she rarely sees Mogget, although he does visit Prince Sameth from time to time. However, he is always in cat form when he visits. Nicholas is the nephew of

3080-432: Is older, and natural in origin, whereas the latter is imposed (in-universe, by the immortal 'Seven Bright Shiners') as an assurance of order. Some Free Magic remains in the world, mainly in various breeds of monster. The Charter is described as an "endless flow" of symbols describing the cosmos; each used by magicians to achieve psychokinesis . The composition of spells ranges from single Charter marks to long series requiring

3168-568: Is to be a future vessel for Chlorr. They are groomed from birth to be a suitable host for her. Chlorr's original physical body is a skeletal corpse buried in Life. Her burial site lies beyond "The Great Rift"; a desolate desert plain north of the Old Kingdom devoid of growth and air. Charter magic does not exist on this plain. A portion of her spirit is anchored in Death. This spirit portion is connected to her corpse in Life. Therefore, no matter how many times she

3256-525: Is trapped in Death , and departs to rescue him. Travelling into the Old Kingdom, while being hunted, Sabriel makes her way to the ancestral house of the Abhorsens to get clues, equipment, and help. Accompanied by her father's assistant Mogget , she discovers Touchstone ; and with him continues to Belisaere (the capital of the Old Kingdom). In a sacred site under the city, Sabriel briefly frees her father, who diverts

3344-537: The antagonist Kerrigor while the others escape. Sabriel and Touchstone then travel to Ancelstierre to destroy Kerrigor's body, which the local soldiery (at their behest) convey to Wyverly College, Sabriel's school. Kerrigor and his undead followers besiege the college, killing many students and guardsmen; whereupon Mogget, in his true form, fights Kerrigor for the right to kill Sabriel. Kerrigor consumes Mogget and throws Sabriel onto her sword; whereupon she throws Mogget's binding ring over Kerrigor. This creates two cats:

3432-547: The Abhorsen Terciel, rescued Sabriel. By her father's wishes, Sabriel grew up in Ancelstierre after living a few years in the Old Kingdom with her father. Shortly before she is to graduate from her school, Wyverley College in Ancelstierre, a Dead servant of her father's gives her his bells and his sword. She interprets this to mean that her father is trapped deep in Death. She returns to the Old Kingdom to save her father. At

3520-408: The Abhorsen's house, she meets Mogget, and learns that there has been no king in two hundred years. When the house is besieged by the dead, Sabriel escapes by calling a flood and flying away with Mogget on a Paperwing (a spelled plane made of paper). When this crashes, Sabriel finds herself in the ships' graveyard of the royal house, where she frees Touchstone from suspended animation . They continue to

3608-540: The Binder, a favorite of the Abhorsens, used to control the Dead directly; and Astarael , the Weeper, also named Sorrowful, which sends both ringer and auditor far into Death. Each bell has a specific power over the Dead and Free Magic creatures, and if used by a skilled necromancer, also on living people. An errant or improper ring can affect the caster instead of the target, or cause other adverse effects. The Abhorsens' bells are

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3696-752: The Binding is told in a song very similar to the English folk song Green Grow the Rushes, O : I'll sing you a song of the long ago. Seven shine the Shiners, oh! What did the Seven do way back when? Why, they wove the Charter then! Five for the warp, from beginning to end. Two for the woof, to make and mend. That's the Seven, but what of the Nine— What of the two that chose not to shine? The Eighth did hide, hide all away, But

3784-471: The Case was published for 2005 World Book Day (HarperCollins Children's Books, March 2005, ISBN   978-0-00-720138-9 ). It was retitled "Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case" for collection in Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories (2005). According to the publisher, "It is six months since the cataclysmic events of Abhorsen ...". Nicholas Sayre is sent by his Uncle Edward to

3872-559: The Case , which was set after Abhorsen . A powerful necromancer and later one of the Greater Dead. At the beginning of Lirael , she approaches antagonist Hedge at the Red Lake; but falls under his control. She wears a bronze mask over her face, giving her the name. Her story was further developed in Clariel: The Lost Abhorsen , wherein Clariel was the granddaughter of the Abhorsen. She was also

3960-490: The Charter's influence has been severely diminished, creating a "door into Death"), or where many deaths have recently occurred. All Dead are averse to running water, and most are unable to withstand direct sunlight. There are two classes of Dead: Lesser and Greater. The Greater Dead are usually represented by Dead from beyond the Fifth Gate (spirits from the deeper realms of Death and correspondingly more powerful). Examples of

4048-548: The Chief Minister of Ancelstierre. Several months after being unknowingly invaded by a sliver of Orannis, Nicholas goes to visit Sameth in the Old Kingdom; but becomes possessed by Orannis himself. He dies toward the end of Abhorsen ; but is resurrected by the Disreputable Dog. In the novella, Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case , he assists Lirael in the imprisonment of a monster. In Abhorsen , Nicholas died but

4136-450: The Clayr's headquarters, and prefers solitude to company. In young-adulthood, she joins the staff of the Clayr's Library, and acquires the Disreputable Dog; and with the latter's help, vanquishes a series of monsters in the Library itself. During a later exploration, she is identified as a 'Remembrancer' (a clairvoyant able, under special conditions, to accurately perceive the past), and immediately sent to rescue Nicholas Sayre. En route , she

4224-577: The Dead; but fails when tricked into passing the Ninth Gate. It is suggested (in the prologue of Lirael ; later in Abhorsen ; and once in Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case and then confirmed in Terciel and Elinor ) that Hedge was once a member of the Crossing Point Scouts preventing Dead creatures from entering Ancelstierre, and a necromancer thereafter. In Life named Rogir or Rogirek:

4312-481: The Disreputable Dog, it can be inferred that Ranna, Mosrael, Dyrim, Belgaer, and Saraneth became the Five Great Charters. These Great Charters invested themselves entirely within the bloodlines and artifacts of the Old Kingdom, as opposed to Astarael and Kibeth, who retained enough of themselves to remain separate entities (the Disreputable Dog points out that she is only Kibeth in a "hand-me-down sort of way"). It

4400-512: The Free Magic entities imprisoned in the House and to bind them to do her bidding. In the process of doing so, Clariel corrupts her Charter Mark, weakening her link with the Charter and her ability to perform Charter Magic, but at the same time allowing her to perform feats of magic using her own raw willpower to shape and control Free Magic. When she reaches the city, she kills Kilp and his son and rescues

4488-432: The Free Magic they profess to master". Practitioners of Charter Magic have a Charter Mark drawn on their forehead at birth. Marks unsullied by Free Magic are used to identify true Charter Mages (as opposed to Free Magic sorcerers or constructs in disguise). The Five Great Charters : In Sabriel , the Five Great Charters are identified by a song: Five Great Charters knit the land. Together linked, hand in hand. One in

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4576-530: The Gate (a wall of mist), often beyond the final Ninth Gate. The Fourth Precinct has a low concentration of Dead, as most of those who reach it have been stunned by the Third Precinct's waves, and are carried easily to the dangerous and deceptively short waterfall that comprises its Gate. Prologue A prologue or prolog (from Greek πρόλογος prólogos , from πρό pró , "before" and λόγος lógos , "word")

4664-525: The Great Charter Stones and the Wall that separates the Old Kingdom from Ancelstierre, to prevent contamination of their descent. The Great Charter Stones are located in an underground reservoir in the Old Kingdom's capital, Belisaere, and are the sources of Charter Magic in the Old Kingdom. Under the influence of the Wall, magic, both Free and Charter, exists only in the Old Kingdom; but can be practised in northern Ancelstierre, and further south if there

4752-777: The Greater Dead include Chlorr of the Mask, Lathal the Abomination (ultimately destroyed by Lirael), and Kerrigor (defeated by Sabriel). Greater Dead, such as Fifth-Gate Resters or Dead Adepts, may exist in Life without a physical body (making them much more difficult to destroy). The name of Lesser Dead refers to Dead Hands, Ghlims, Mordauts, and Gore Crows: a range of re-embodied spirits, often used by necromancers as weapons. Lesser Dead may be incapacitated by immersing them in running water or by destroying their physical bodies with Charter Magic or explosives; Shadow Hands are impossible to harm by strictly physical means, but may be unraveled by specialized Charter Magic spells or returned to Death by

4840-407: The King, only to nearly be killed by the creatures she has bound. She is saved by Belatiel, the new Abhorsen, but is disfigured and badly injured. Belatiel assists her to the forests of the far north, and gives her a bronze mask she earlier used to protect herself from Free Magic. Clariel is destined to later become Chlorr of the Mask . Feeling restless after the events of Abhorsen and reeling from

4928-547: The Seven caught him and made him pay. The Ninth was strong and fought with might, But lone Orannis was put out of the light, Broken in two and buried under hill, Forever to lie there wishing us ill. Death consists of Nine Precincts divided by Nine Gates, through which a grey river flows. Almost everything in Death is a bleak grey, and a subtle grey fogginess limits visibility. The river may also contain and conceal hostile dead beings, who attack living travelers. Only Abhorsens, Remembrancers, or Free Magic Necromancers can cross

5016-658: The Seven. According to "An Extract of the Journal of Idrach the Lesser Necromancer", a text posted on the series' website, the correlation of the Seven and the necromantic bells includes the Precincts of Death, with each bell equalling a specific Precinct. This would suggest that the additional precincts are related to the 8th and 9th "Bright Shiners", although it is not known which Precinct corresponds to which Bright Shiner. Because Astarael appears under Abhorsen's House and Kibeth as

5104-677: The Sleeper, prompting drowsiness in the auditor; Mosrael , the Waker, transmitting the ringer further into Death but the auditor into Life; Kibeth , the Walker, which can give the Dead freedom of movement or force them to walk according to the ringer's intention; Dyrim , the Speaker, used either to revive or annul the hearer's ability to speak; Belgaer , the Thinker, used to restore or remove memory; Saraneth ,

5192-518: The Wall, to death and enslavement by Hedge, and orchestrates the assassination attempt on King Touchstone and Abhorsen Sabriel. After this, he launches a coup; but fails to gain control over the Hereditary Arbiter (the Ancelstierran ceremonial head of state, similar to the King of England). Corolini's government has ceased to exist by the events of Creature in the Case . The Disreputable Dog is

5280-418: The artifacts of a Remembrancer (a clairvoyant able to view the past) and is swiftly dispatched to fulfill a very recent vision of herself and Nick Sayre upon the Red Lake. She is joined by Sameth and Mogget en route . All are attacked repeatedly and nearly overcome by Chlorr of the Mask ; but they reach the Abhorsens' House, where Lirael is identified as Sabriel's half-sister and heir, and Sameth as successor to

5368-425: The boundary at will. Dead spirits can cross only when aided by a Necromancer, or when the border is weakened by a concentration of (often violent) deaths. Dexterity and great willpower are required to resist the current, which is psychological as well as physical. Each gate responds to a Free Magic spell wielded by Abhorsens and Necromancers; Dead cannot pass any Gate unless they are very powerful. Each Precinct contains

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5456-561: The crown. In his place, the mercantile Guilds have taken power, led by the powerful Kilp, the Guildmaster of the Goldsmiths, who rules as governor in Belisaere. Clariel is the seventeen-year-old daughter of Jaciel, a talented goldsmith, the estranged daughter of the current Abhorsen and a cousin of the King. A descendant of two of the ancient bloodlines that bind the Kingdom to the Charter, Clariel

5544-434: The current fashion of the court, and then addressed the audience. The Elizabethan prologue was unique in incorporating aspects of both classical and medieval traditions. In the classical tradition, the prologue conformed to one of four subgenres: the sustatikos , which recommends either the play or the poet; the epitimetikos , in which a curse is given against a rival, or thanks given to the audience; dramatikos , in which

5632-400: The former royal city, where they find Sabriel's father's body, and she briefly revives him. Later, she and Touchstone return to Ancelstierre, to destroy Kerrigor. Nineteen years after the events of Sabriel , she has married Touchstone, who has become King, and has two children: Ellimere and Sameth; but her duties keep her incessantly busy. She is last seen in Abhorsen , wherein she represents

5720-491: The imprisonment of Orannis; and having done so, Lirael's 'Disreputable Dog' (a self-identified remnant of the spirit 'Kibeth') revives the dead Nicholas Sayre and departs into the border dividing Life from Death . Clariel , a prequel to the original three books of the series, is set some six hundred years before the events of Sabriel , in an Old Kingdom ruled by an absent King, Orrikan, who refuses to rule, or abdicate to someone who will, until his granddaughter returns to take

5808-461: The involuntary movement of the subject. During the second binding of Orannis, the Disreputable Dog re-asserts her ancient role to achieve the same; then sacrifices herself to save Lirael. Abhorsen ends with her sending the recently dead Nicholas back to Life, while the Dog trots away along the border of Life and Death. The older sister of Sameth, and oldest child of King Touchstone and Abhorsen Sabriel. She

5896-423: The language as it is spoken. In ushering the audience from reality into the world of the play, the prologue straddles boundaries between audience, actors, characters, playwrights—basically, it creates a distinction between the imaginary space within the play and the outside world. Ben Jonson has often been noted as using the prologue to remind the audience of the complexities between themselves and all aspects of

5984-456: The loss of the Disreputable Dog, Lirael makes her way to The Wall to find Nicholas Sayre lying there unconscious, having woken up a Hrule — a rare free magic creature which drinks blood. From there, they journey to the Clayr's Glacier for further medical attention. At the same time, Ferin of the Athask is racing towards the Clayr's Glacier with an urgent message from Lirael's mother. Chlorr of the Mask

6072-408: The most powerful are unique, or "of a singular nature". Though "many thousands" of Free Magic Elementals escaped the creation of the Charter, most were later imprisoned or enslaved by it. Of the remainder, "no truly dangerous creature of Free Magic has woken in a thousand years, save to the sound of Mosrael and Saraneth, or by a direct summons using their secret names". Some cannot be destroyed except by

6160-504: The mouths of persons who make no appearance in the play itself. Molière revived the Plautian prologue in the introduction to his Amphitryon . Racine introduced Piety as the speaker of a prologue which opened his choral tragedy of Esther . The tradition of the ancients vividly affected our own early dramatists. Not only was the mystery plays and miracles of the Middle Ages begun by

6248-485: The necromantic bells. Most Dead prey on the living to remain in Life. Constructs : Free Magic constructs are forms assumed by Free Magic elementals or powerful Dead spirits (such as Kerrigor). Though such constructs may be destroyed, destroying the Elemental itself is much more difficult and typically the province of Free Magic. Mordicants : These are fiery constructs of clay and blood, animated by Free Magic and guided by

6336-525: The people who wear the Crown. Two in the folk who keep the Dead down. Three and Five became stone and mortar. Four sees all in frozen water. This rhyme dictates that at some point in history the Five Great Charters were concentrated in physical objects, or human bloodlines. The bloodlines are those of the royals, the Abhorsen, the Clayr, and the Wallmakers. After this, the entire Wallmaker line physically became

6424-414: The performance. The actor reciting the prologue would appear dressed in black, a stark contrast to the elaborate costumes used during the play. The prologue removed his hat and wore no makeup. He may have carried a book, scroll, or placard displaying the title of the play. He was introduced by three short trumpet calls, on the third of which he entered and took a position downstage. He made three bows in

6512-610: The place of a romance, to which, or to an episode in which, the play itself succeeded. On the Latin stage the prologue was often more elaborate than it was in Athens, and in the careful composition of the poems which Plautus prefixes to his plays we see what importance he gave to this portion of the entertainment; sometimes, as in the preface to the Rudens , Plautus rises to the height of his genius in his adroit and romantic prologues, usually placed in

6600-403: The plot of the play is explained; and mixtos, which contains all of these things. In the medieval tradition, expressions of morality and modesty are seen, as well as a meta-theatrical self-consciousness, and an unabashed awareness of the financial contract engaged upon by paid actors and playwrights, and a paying audience. Prologues have long been used in non-dramatic fiction, since at least

6688-695: The previous Queen of the Old Kingdom and an unidentified nobleman, and was therefore a member of the Royal Guard before the Queen's death. A childhood friend of his half-brother Rogir (Kerrigor), Touchstone entered a berserk state at the latter's murder of their mother, and the then-Abhorsen changed Touchstone into the figurehead of a ship in Holehallow, the Royal tomb. He was subsequently revived by Sabriel, and accompanied her to destroy Kerrigor. On this quest, he serves largely as

6776-427: The previously extinct 'Wallmakers'. The Abhorsen's House is besieged by Dead Hands led by Chlorr of the Mask (an undead sorceress) under the control of the necromancer Hedge. Hedge himself serves Orannis the Destroyer, an immortal imprisoned millennia prior by 7 of its 8 cohorts and now wants to destroy the biosphere . The protagonists escape the siege through a well-like opening, in whose adjoined tunnel they encounter

6864-451: The royal bloodline. Yrael, also known as Mogget, initially refused to take a side for or against Orannis, and was therefore later enslaved to the Abhorsen by the other immortals. Whenever unbound, he tries to kill the current Abhorsen; but, during Orannis' second binding, he assists in the binding ritual. To Sabriel, Lirael, and Sameth, Mogget appears as a small white cat; to Terciel, Sabriel's father and predecessor as Abhorsen, Mogget adopted

6952-549: The series will be housed under one roof in the UK. The novel was released on November 2, 2021, and follows Sabriel's parents, Terciel and Elinor. Per Publishers Weekly: As young, brown-skinned Terciel moves from a life of hunger to an apprenticeship as Abhorsen-in-Waiting in the Old Kingdom, 19-year-old Elinor takes to the stage and practices carnival skills across the wall, in nonmagical Ancelstierre. After surviving an assault on her home through Terciel’s timely intervention, Elinor takes

7040-445: The son of the previous Queen of the Old Kingdom, and half-brother of Touchstone/Torrigan. During his youth, he tried to make use of Free Magic, but was consumed by it and became one of the Greater Dead. Desirous of power, he attempts to destroy the Charter (killing most of his family in the process) and causes a long interregnum ; but is ultimately placed in suspended animation by Sabriel. In Goldenhand , (after discovering how Chlorr

7128-500: The spirit 'Astarael' (the originator of the Abhorsens' power). Meanwhile, Prince Sameth's parents, the Abhorsen Sabriel and King Touchstone, are in Ancelstierre to stop the genocide of refugees ; but are nearly themselves killed by rebels and return to the Old Kingdom. Thereafter descendants of each of the powers that originally created the Charter unite at the two nations' dividing Wall (a fictionalized Hadrian's Wall ) to re-enact

7216-402: The spirit 'Saraneth' at the binding of the Destroyer. Sameth, called 'Sam' for short, is the son and younger child of Sabriel and Touchstone: a modest, intelligent, amiable, but often clumsy youth. His sole talent, and greatest enjoyment, is the creation of magical machines; and his greatest fear is that of inheriting his mother's office, though he is trained to do so. On the occasion that Lirael

7304-428: The struggle between Orannis and the Seven, and afterward forced to serve the Abhorsen lineage, typically as advisor or moral-support. Until the end of the initial series, he resents this control, and if freed attempts to kill the current Abhorsen, but is usually confined anew. When confined he resembles a white cat, unless permitted by his current superior to assume a humanoid form; whereas the confinement itself appears as

7392-400: The text) is used throughout the story, and may derive from Shakespeare's play As You Like It , wherein it is that of a jester. The reference is confirmed by both Sabriel and Touchstone himself, when both speak of 'Touchstone' as 'a jester's name' or 'fool's name' upon its introduction. Old Kingdom (book series) In Australia an omnibus edition comprising three novels and one novella

7480-437: Was able to come into power and extend her life), the Abhorsen theorized Chlorr was the one who corrupted Kerrigor. Lirael, the protagonist of the second and third books, is Sabriel's younger half-sister on the father's side; but is unaware of this until her nineteenth year, and largely raised by her mother's relatives, the Clayr. Because she lacks the Clayr's precognitive 'Sight', she is considered an eccentric by her neighbors at

7568-583: Was distributed by the Old Kingdom series web site and collected in Across the Wall (Allen & Unwin (Australia), 2005). A short text released on the Old Kingdom Website. The novella To Hold the Bridge was published in 2010 as part of the anthology Legends of Australian Fantasy , edited by Jack Dann and Jonathan Strahan (HarperCollins Publishers Australia, 2010, ISBN   978-0-7322-8848-8 ). It has also been published outside of Australia in

7656-522: Was saved from a true death by the Disreputable Dog. She gave Nicholas a "late" baptism of a Charter Mark and preserved his spirit in Death. Due to being Orannis' vessel, Nicholas has powerful and strong Free Magic in his blood. The Disreputable Dog was able to balance out the Free Magic in Nicholas with baptism. In Goldenhand , the Clayr Healers examine Nicholas and discover he is akin to a Charter Stone. He

7744-498: Was titled The Old Kingdom Chronicles . Omnibus editions in the U.S. have been titled The Abhorsen Trilogy (2003) and The Abhorsen Chronicles (2009). ISFDB catalogues the entire continuing series as "The Old Kingdom / Abhorsen". The protagonist, Sabriel, is in her final few days at her school in Ancelstierre (an alternate history of 1910s England ), when she is visited by a spirit summoned by her father (the Abhorsen), who

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