Thesaurus entry - Dolomite Glider

The Never Ending Quest - Episode 22517


The Gentle Reader may have noticed that the race that Checkers belongs to has been referred to by several different names. This seems to be inconsistent, but this is actually not the case. The differences come from different points of view of those observing her.

A neutral term would be Dolomite Glider or Glider.

Dolomite, as used by Belboz in 21990, is a geopolitical and not a racial reference. However, as the Gliders are the only intelligent race in the Red Dolomite Range, Gliders are implied here.

Harpy, as used by Astra in 22231, is considered very insulting by Gliders, although Astra would know of no other. This term was applied by the neighboring tribes that first ventured into the Red Dolomite Range. The first meetings between hunting parties of Gliders and the neighboring tribes were violent encounters, and these neighboring tribes created the legend of cannabilistic, cruel, foul creatures attacking unsuspecting travellers. This was unfair, but the Gliders, for their own reasons, never made an effort to endear themselves to the neighboring tribes. The legend passed into the West, by way of mariners and travellers, into the legendary tales of the harpies heard in Aqualaria. Nobody in Aqualaria has ever visited the Red Dolomite Range to confirm the legends, so there is no real knowledge of the Gliders there. Gliders also vaguely resemble the demons and vampires of other legends, and the very few who venture beyond the Red Dolomite Range tend to meet with hostility.

The men of Allaria have not even heard the legends of the harpies, so Fred keeps refering to Checkers as "the strange woman" or the "winged woman."

The Gliders refer to themselves as human beings or men, and also classify themselves as glideri, which in their language has the dual meaning of "able to fly" and "rational being." (Dragons are also glideri). Anglideri has several meanings, depending on the context. One meaning is "temporarily unable to fly" as in 22231. It could also refer to any animal that is unable to fly, as in 22317. A third meaning, by the way, is "prey," a natural enough extension of the word as there were no ground-based animals with advanced intelligence in the Red Dolomite Range. This mindset, and the "shoot first and ask questions later" methods of some Glider hunting parties, undoubtedly contributed to the violence of the initial encounters.

In most branches of the story, Checkers does not behave remotely like the stereotype that Astra has probably heard. The reasons, Gentle Reader, are left for you to determine.

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11/18/2002 9:40:48 PM

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