Childgatherers are ammonite officials, sent out by the Wise to peoples tributary to the Commonwealth, to select children from among them with which they are to pay the flesh-tithe to the Masters in Osrakum, at their annual ritual of the Rebirth
A forbidden house is a secure facility in which Chosen women are sequestered. Access to them is controlled by ammonites and subject to the codicils of the Law-that-must-be-obeyed. The rationale for these systems is the priority of knowing with absolute certainty the parentage of a Chosen child
A Quaestor is appointed by the Wise to shadow a Legate. They are a sort of ambassador for the Wise, in post both to command all the ammonites who attend a Legate, to aid that Legate with all the technical knowledge of the Wise and to supervise that Legate and the legion he commands on behalf of the Wise. A Quaestor begins his career as an ammonite, and may well have been close to being …
When the flesh tithe is divided among the Three Powers, the portion that the Wise take as their lot become ammonites. Ammonites are the servants of the Wise and are schooled by them to fulfil all the administrative and ritual roles of that Power. Like his masters, an ammonite wears robes of purple and a mask of silver, in contrast to those of gold worn by the Chosen. The results of the examinations that an …
