Encyclopedia

The Age of Expansion – A period generally accepted as being from 1835 to 1880 in which the governments embarked a panoply of inter-world expansionism and resulting military conflicts as they sought to each establish footholds for themselves through the Caeliverse.

Arty – Slang term for ‘air taxi’.  These are usually small hot air balloons that shuttle people from one place to another, often between the ground and airship.

Caeliverse – From the Latin for “dweller in the heavens”, this term is used to refer to the universe of worlds as accessed via the fold cutting technology.  It is inclusive of those planets habitable by humans, and exclusive of all other planets and celestial bodies.

Cathodic Telegraphy – A complex system by which written messages are broken down by a specialized difference engine and translated into different electrical pulses which can be communicated via electrical wires or transmitted via cathode pulses through the fold.

Combat Console – A great mechanical dais in the center of an airship’s command deck with an array of knobs and small wheels that act to control a series of small vertical brass rods.  The rods can be outfitted with tiny representational models of other combat airships in the vicinity, and by manipulation of the controls, plot their position and movement through three dimensional space.  More than simply a representation of the airborne battlefield, the combat console can be used to plot vehicle speed and trajectories, weapons ranges, blast radii, anything the command may need to effect strategic maneuvers on the airfront.

Crystal Liquidic Plasma – Rare crystals, found on only a handful of worlds in the Caeliverse, which contain a volatile organic compound that, when melted with an oxy-hydrogen flame, transformed into a viscous liquid with very peculiar paramagnetic properties.  When used in the Faraday Capacitor, crystal liquidic plasma is the material that makes fold cutting technology possible.

Cutting the Fold – The colloquial term for the process of splitting time and space to open a rift between worlds in the Caeliverse. Originally, the first cut in the fold occurred with the experiments of Sir Michael Faraday and he associate, Dr. Helmut Eisen, when they replaced the iron ring in the electromagnetic coil of Faraday’s mutual induction experiments with crystal liquidic plasma. It later became understood that this process was entirely dependent of the magnetic fields of each world, and it was in the interpolation and coordinated interaction of these magnetic fields the a fold could be cut, linking the space between, though they may lay hundreds or thousands of light years apart. These magnetic fields, when understood, could then be calculated by way of a Difference Engine and then synchronize with the frequency of vibration within the crystal liquidic plasma when controlled by a Mass Oscillator. The location that a cut in the fold takes place upon a world is very important, one cannot just slice ‘from’ any location ‘to’ any location. As magnetisms must be synchronized, only certain places on each world can be synchronized with those of other worlds within their range. The range of each world is a distance in space through which the world’s magnetism can be projected. Almost exclusively, any given world will only be able to successfully cut a fold into three to six other worlds, with the rare exception of Earth that, at different points, appears to be able to synchronize with almost two dozen worlds.

Difference Engine – A mechanical mathematical machine that can perform advanced calculations in a fraction of time that even the most brilliant minds can manage.  Difference Engines are employed in calculating synchronicities between two worlds and relaying that information to the Mass Oscillator within the Faraday Capacitor.

Engelsworthy Bill -  Several of the outer world Governors united to petitioned the Queen to allow them more immediate and direct control over their militaries for short maneuvers without seeking Parliament approval.  This bill would enable those regional governors to have direct control over defense in their sphere of influence.

Faire Coal - In order to reduce the operational load on the airships, whose functions had been expanding, scientists through the Caeliverse began working on alternative fuel sources to power them that would be more lightweight.  the most successful of these, faire coal is coal that has been through a refinement process that pelletizes the material into a small, extremely light material that burns with 80% of the power by volume as compared with standard coal, but at 1/10 the weight.

Faraday Capacitor – An electromagnetic device that, through the integration of crystal liquidic plasma and a technique of mutual induction, cuts a fold in time and space through the magnetism of two worlds.

Herculean Palisade – A titanic mountain range on Seifortshire of broad gentle sloping faces, replete in grassy turf upon which the ancient aboriginals have carved great abstract animal symbols.

Mass Oscillator - A device invented by Charles Babbage which controls the magnetic resonance of crystal liquidic plasma in the Faraday Capacitor and links it with the magnetic vibrations of another world.

The Maye People – The native aboriginal people of Decorus Insula.  Named for Sir Christopher Maye, the noted anthropologist who accompanied one of the first expeditions to their world, he was the first man to successfully translate their native tongue.  Maye people are a highly intelligent native population who immediately took to civility, welcoming the Anglican Empire and quickly integrating into proper society.  Though originally a tribal people, they did not war like those populations of other Caeliverse worlds, instead enjoying a largely peaceful existence of commerce and trade that spanned the world over.  Now proud members of the Anlican Empire, the Maye People appear in all facets of life on Decorus Insula, though tend to be rarely encountered outside their home world.

Nexus Intersect – Traveling between worlds in the Caeliverse via cutting a fold must be calculated by synchonizing the two world’s harmonics via the Mass Oscillator.  However, these harmonics can only be synchronized at specific points locations within the world’s magnetic field, ostensibly isolating the prospective ‘doorways’ between worlds to a few locations, known as the nexus intersect.  Intersects are extremely strategic locations, and are often patrolled by military or police vessels as they are the very bridge between worlds.

Photomatic Telegraphy – Photographic images are scanned via special ocular equipment and broken down via a cathodic telegraphic difference engine into electrical pulses and communicated along the same communication lines.

Scarabus Hulk -  A four legged, steam powered mechanized armoured assault machine carrying a top mounted cannon.  Each machine is manned by a crew of six and equipped with an special steam engine modified to burn the same compact faire coal as is used on airships.  The terror of the battlefield, mechanized vehicles are extremely uncommon on the battlefield, and only those governments with considerable resources can field such creations.  They act as reconnaissance scouts, mobile gun platforms and some very few are large enough to be employed for large scale, combined assault.

Udan – An extremely potent Baeynalese liquor distilled from the root of the Udan’neda plant, and flavored with the fermented essence of white Meskin peppers, both native vegetation of their home world Lochlean Firth.  Similar in look and consistency to eggnog, the flavor is extremely harsh and peppery.  The Baeynalese see the drinking of Udan as a ceremonial practice often for greeting friends, and in certain instances it serves as an essential component in religious rituals.