Glossary

This glossary offers quick definitions of terms used in discussing the Project Hecate story and this wiki.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A

### Accord

Any secret sworn in Persephone's name. Violation of one is heresy, except when commanded to divulge secrets by order of the divine or when under Holy Tribunal.

In modern day, an accord is a treaty or agreement of peace between two parties.

### Alien

An adjective commonly used to refer to a being who originates elsewhere than Earth.

### Alter Ego

An alter ego (from Latin, "*other I*") is another self, a second personality or persona within a person. The term is commonly used in comic books and related media, for the alternate or secret identity of superheroes and supervillains.

Classically, an alter ego is used by heroes to conceal their identities in order to protect their friends and family from harm at the hands of their enemies, whereas villains usually have an alter ego to make sure they do not get arrested.

### Alternate Timeline

A reality that diverged from the "true" timeline due to the actions of time travelers or other temporal phenomena. They are different from parallel universes in that they did not separate cleanly at the point of creation, resulting in the new timeline destroying the old one.

### Amphibious

Capable of breathing and existing in the air or in water.

### Android

An artificial being designed to resemble a human being in as many ways as possible, and whose physiology and life functions replicate and mimic those of human beings as closely as possible. An android could be a robot or synthetic organism.

### Artificial Intelligence

The intelligence exhibited by machines or software.

B

### Big Bang

The expansion of a primal space at the beginning of this universe, which created the universe.

### Bioelectricity

Electricity generated naturally by a living being.

### Bionic

Of or having to do with an artificial simulation of a living thing or, more usually, of part of a living thing. A cyborg possesses certain bionic limbs or organs. An android's body is entirely bionic.

### Black Hole

A region of space-time with such a strong gravitational pull that no particle or electromagnetic radiation can escape from it.

C

### Clarke's Third Law

An adage first coined by the thaumaturgist Arthur C. Clarke; *"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."*

However, the reverse of this adage is used in the magical community, stating: *"Any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology."*

### Cosmic

Of a scale beyond that which is normal on Earth.

### Cosmic Beings

Creatures of often immense power. They are usually immortal and often have Cosmic parentage.

### Cosmic Power

Energy derived from non-Earthly sources that the technologies of most sentient races cannot tap, and that is on a scale far beyond what most Earthly technology can tap or generate.

### Cybernetics

The comparative study of automatic control and communications systems, whether biological (e.g., the human nervous system) or artificial (e.g., computers). More narrowly, the term refers to the science of synthesizing mind and machine, and to the engineering problems involved in detecting thoughts in the brain and translating them into mechanical responses.

### Cyborg

Cyborg is a contraction of the words *cybernetic organism*. A cyborg is an organic being with robotic or cybernetic augmentation or implants to replace or enhance physical parts.

D

### Demichor

The blood of demigods, nymphs, and satyrs that lack any true immortality. Demichor is usually a bright red color or sometimes black color.

### Dimensional Lesion

A hole in time and space which acted as a portal from one place in spacetime to another.

### Dimensional Rift

An opening between dimensions traversable by living beings. Used most often for transportation from one dimension to another.

### Dimensional Transference

A temporal theory related to the stability of the universe.

E

### Electrostatic Field

An electric field associated with static electric charges, the electric charges at rest on the surface of an insulated body.

### Elf

A certain humanoid being native to the realms of Alfheim and Svartalfheim.

### EMP

EMP stands for Electromagnetic Pulse, a short burst of electromagnetic energy that is generally disruptive or damaging to electronic equipment, and at higher energy levels it can damage physical objects such as buildings and aircraft structures.

### Enhanced

1. Human being, or individuals from other races, with superpowers bestowed by man-made experiments or accidents, instead of natural powers acquired through genetic heritage.
2. In the context of the level of physical attributes, a level beyond regular human beings, but still within the overall limits of human potential. Meaning characters are sometimes capable of superhuman feats within very specific circumstances, but not superhuman in otherwise normal circumstances.

### Entropy

The universal tendency for energy in a closed system to equalize. On a universe-wide scale, it is the inevitable degradation of matter and energy to an inert uniform state incapable of sustaining life.

### ESP

ESP stands for Extra-Sensory Perception. The psychic powers of telepathy, precognition, clairvoyance.
Forms of Extra-Sensory Perception include:

* Precognition: The ability to see in the future.
* Clairvoyance: The ability to see in the future, in the past, and/or in the present in a way impossible to classic senses.

### Essence

Psychic energy which has taken on an elemental quality or is being actively used by a being or force.

### Exoskeleton

A rigid framework inside which an organism's other components are contained, or a mechanical device that amplifies the strength of the user, who stands or sits in an open cabin.

### Extraterrestrial

* A being from a world in this dimension other than Earth.
* Of or having to do with a world in this dimension other than Earth.

F

### Fell

To slay or kill; particularly to kill a divine being.

### Force Field

In science fiction and fantasy literature, a force field or protective shield is a barrier made up of energy to protect a person, area or object from attacks or intrusions. The idea may be based partly on the concept of a vector field, though in character it resembles the "warding spells," the defensive magic claimed to be used by the Druids and shamans of the ancient world.

### Full-Spectrum

The part of the electromagnetic spectrum from infrared to near-ultraviolet, all wavelengths are useful to plant or animal life; in particular.

G

### Genetic

Having to do with the genes, the section of a cell of a living being that contains the molecule DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), which controls the transmission of hereditary characteristics from parent to offspring.

### Genetics

The study of the process of heredity of physical characteristics in living organisms.

### Giant

A humanoid of extraordinary length and strength. The definition is commonly used by humans to talk about an extraordinary tall subject.

### Gift

Power that goes beyond the capabilities of regular human beings, commonly known as "superpowers".

### Gifted

Initially, any person with superpowers. Following the clarification of the origin of superpowers, it only applies to people who had natural superpowers instead of acquiring it due to man-made experiments or similar sources.

### God

The creations of the Titans originally, created by the Titans infusing their own power into mortal followers, who had once been worshipped by humanity. Later, the gods became their own race by breeding amongst themselves and with the nymphs. All races of gods now dwell on some extraterrestrial worlds, although they may have lived on Earth in ancient times.

### Godling

A young god child of natural birth who is too young to survive essence infusion.

H

### Hadron

Any subatomic particle made of quarks and subject to a strong force, most notably protons and neutrons.

### Haven

The transdimensional structure which is home to Israfil. Formerly it was the headquarters of the Elvhen armies.

### Henchman

A Henchman is an underling of a more powerful criminal mastermind or super-villain. In recent years, the term has bred a neologism known as "Hench", which is an action verb used to describe the actions of a Henchman.

### Hologram

A three-dimensional image of an object, produced by the patterns formed by a laser beam.

### Humanoid

Having virtually the same physical characteristics as a human being. Only a normal Earth human being can properly be termed human, although some mutants can be classified as human under a broader definition of the term. Beings who greatly resemble human beings in physical characteristics, but are not exactly like them are humanoids. Beings who resemble humans in some major outward physical characteristics but not in others that are of equal importance are called semi-humanoids.

### Hybrids

Hybrids, sometimes called "Half-breeds", are the result of the cross between two species, one or both not necessarily humanoids. The spawn from hybrids is also considered as hybrids. The Hybrids are supposed by their nature to be sterile in theory, but that does not coincide with the reality.

### Hyperspace

A theoretical dimension whose physical laws differ from Earth's in the following ways. First, it is possible to surpass the speed of light within hyperspace. Second, hyperspace is "warped" in comparison to Earth's dimension so that the distance between two points in hyperspace might be immensely shorter than the distance between the equivalent points in Earth's dimension. Interstellar travel is impractical for any sentient race that has not discovered the means of traveling through hyperspace in order to reach a destination in their own dimension. Hyperspace is also known as sub-space and warp-space.

I

### Ichor

The divine equivalent of blood. With an amber-gold color, it burns with pure life essence.

### Inertial Confinement

Inertial confinement fusion is a type of fusion energy research that attempts to initiate nuclear fusion reactions by heating and compressing a fuel target, typically in the form of a pellet that most often contains a mixture of deuterium and tritium, two isotopes of hydrogen.

J

K

L

### Levitation

The psychic, psionic, magical (but not physical) ability to screen the physical body from the effects of gravity and thus rise off the ground.

M

### Mind Control

In comics, mind control often appears as the means whereby a person literally seizes control of the minds of the victims to the point where not only their bodies come under direct control, but also their consciousness as well, so that they become puppets or slaves to the controller.

N

O

### Okeanides

The mothers and progenitors of the vast majority of the Nymph tribes. They were born of the Titans Okeanos and Tethys fusing their bodies together and then pledged themselves to doing the work of Gaia.

### Omnipotent

All-powerful. The term is also used generically to describe beings possessing vast power, which, although not unlimited, by far surpasses that of most sentient beings.

P

### Pantheon

A tribe, clan, or race of gods of a common origin.

### Phase

When used as a verb, a term meaning to pass through another object by altering the synchronization of the atoms of the object passing through with the atoms of the object being passed through.

### Plasma

A super-heated state of matter consisting of charged subatomic particles.

### Prosthesis

An artificial replacement for a missing limb or other body parts. If the prosthetic part simulates all of the functions (or more) of the natural part, it is called bionic.

### Primordials

The creators of the Titans. An ancient race of dimensional travelers and researchers. Most notable among them were Ouranos and Gaia. Eventually, the Titans overthrew them

Q

### Quantum Entanglement

The name used to describe the connection between quantum systems. Quantum entanglement is often used when explaining the phenomenon that occurs when quantum information is transmitted from one place to another (e.g. teleportation).

R

### Robot

A mechanical entity sometimes but not always possessing a humanoid configuration. This could include androids and synthezoids.

S

### Satyr

The male equivalent of a nymph, these diminutive beings look like a combination of boy and goat. They do not share the nymph's symbiotic relationship with the environment but usually live among nature as protectors, companions, and servants of nymphs and other divinities. Satyrs usually serve the Okeanide that oversees whichever nymph tribe they choose to live among, but Pan is the God of Satyrs and all are expected to offer him the proper respect.

### Secret Identity

Both heroes and villains, sometimes, choose to keep their true name and identity secret to protect themselves, their friends, their loved ones or simply their social status.

### Semtex

A plastic explosive used in commercial blasting, demolition and in certain military applications.

### Sentient

Having intelligence near or above the human level. The definition of intelligence is slippery but often includes self-awareness, problem-solving, and tool use.

### Singularity

A point in space where the normal rules of physics do not apply. Normally found only in a black hole, a concentration of matter so dense that even light cannot escape its gravity well.

### Space-Time Continuum

The term used to denote the continuous set of coordinates created by the whole of space added to the whole of time.

### Superhuman

The term superhuman applies to a usually physical aptitude far beyond the range attainable by normal human beings. The term Enhanced refers to physical abilities that are not outside the theoretical limits of a normal human being, but are not usually presented in an average human being for being, for example, impossible or to difficult to maintain in a practical way, so it can be considered a term for "light" superhuman abilities.

### Suspended Animation

Suspended animation is the slowing of life processes by external means without termination. Breathing, heartbeat, and other involuntary functions may still occur, but they can only be detected by artificial means. Extreme cold is used to precipitate the slowing of an individual's functions.

T

### Taser

Taser stands for "Thomas A. Swift's electric rifle", in honor of the fictional character Tom Swift, and is often used to refer to weapons that deliver electrical current to disrupt voluntary control of muscles.

### Teleport

The process of transporting matter to a separate location without occupying the space in between.

### Transformation

To change in form, appearance, or structure; metamorphose.

### Titan

The incredibly powerful beings created by the Primordials to aid them in their research. These beings received much of their immense power due to the fact that they each contained a multitude of souls.

U

### Umbramancy

The ability to manipulate the 'Shades of Reality' to various effects.

V

### Vigilante

A civilian who undertakes law enforcement without legal authority, and often in violent ways.

W

X

Y

### Yakuza

A Japanese crime clan.

Z