Кіріспе
Орсон Скотт Кардтың романдық сериясы "Үйге оралу сагасы" – Орсон Скотт Кардтың ғылыми фантастикалық сериясы. Бұл серия Мормон кітабының үлгісімен жасалған. Кейбір аттар да Мормон кітабынан алынған. Бес томдық серия болашақтағы 40 миллион жылда өтеді, ал 1-3 томдар Гармония деп аталатын ойдан шығарылған планетада орын алады. Серияның негізгі идеясы – адамзат соғыстары Жерді тұруға жарамсыз қылғаннан кейін адамдардың таралуы. Гармонияны қоса алғанда, қырықтан астам планета адамдармен мекенделді (серияда тек екеуі аталады: Рамазан, арабтар қоныстанған; және Гармония, көрінеу славян мәдениеттері қоныстанған, себебі оның тілдері орыс тілінен дамыған). Гармонияда адамзаттың технологиялық прогресін Жоғарғы Жан (Оверсоул) бақылайды – бұл планетаны бақылау үшін алғашқы қоныс салушылар құрған спутниктер армиясын пайдаланатын жасанды интеллект. Ол адамдардың әрекеттеріне де ықпал етеді. Олардың зұлымдық жасауына тосқауыл қоймаса да, қашықтыққа саяхаттау немесе жылдам байланыс сияқты нәрселерге әкелетін ойларды басу арқылы қоғамдық құрылыс жою мүмкіндігін шектейді. Сондықтан Гармониядағы технологияға қарапайым компьютерлер және күн энергиясымен жұмыс істейтін қолға ұсталатын қарулар кіреді, бірақ көліктер мен тіпті арбалар жоқ. Бірақ Жоғарғы Жанның қызмет ету мерзімі тек 20 миллион жылды құрайды, сондықтан ол бірте-бірте бұзыла бастайды. Ол Жерге экспедиция жіберіп, өзінің үлгісі болған Жердің құпия сақшысынан кеңес алуды шешеді. Содан кейін адамдар Жоғарғы Жан жіберген түстерге ұқсас түстерді көре бастайды, бұл түстер Жердің Сақшысынан жарық жылдамдығынан да жылдам таралады. Мормон кітабының тақырыптарынан шабыттанған серияның алғашқы үш кітабы басты кейіпкерлердің Гармония арқылы кемелерге қарай баяу жорығындағы қиындықтарын көрсетеді. Төртінші кітап, Earthfall, кемелердің бірінің Жерге қайта оралу сапары мен оның үйге оралуынан туындаған мәдениеттік өзгерістерге, атап айтқанда, жаңа қоныс құруға және адамзат мәдениетін аралық мыңжылдықтарда Жерде пайда болған жаратылыстармен үйлестіруге арналған. Соңғы том, Earthborn, болашақта тағы бес ғасырдан кейін орын алады; бастапқы экспедицияның жалғыз аман қалған мүшесі мәдениеттің өзгеру бағытын өзгертуге және Жоғарғы Жанның миссиясын аяқтауға тырысады.
Novel series by Orson Scott Card
The Homecoming Saga is a science fiction series by Orson Scott Card. The series is patterned on the Book of Mormon. Some of the names also come from the Book of Mormon. The series, containing five volumes, takes place forty million years in the future, with volumes 1 3 taking place on a fictional planet called Harmony. The main premise of the series is that a human diaspora occurred after Earth was rendered uninhabitable by human wars. Forty plus planets, including Harmony, are colonized by humans (though only two are actually named in the series: Ramadan, settled by Arabs; and Harmony, apparently settled by Slavic cultures, as its languages all developed from Russian.) On Harmony, the advancement of human technology is controlled by the Oversoul – an artificial intelligence monitor, using a small army of satellites, established by the original colonists to monitor the planet. It also influences the actions of humans. Though it does not prevent them from doing evil, it keeps their societal capability for destruction limited by suppressing any thoughts that might lead to things like long distance travel or instant communication. Thus the technology on Harmony includes basic computers and solar powered handheld energy weapons, but no cars or even wagons. The Oversoul, however, was only designed to last twenty million years, so eventually it begins to break down. It decides to send an expedition back to Earth to seek advice from the entity of which it is an imitation: the mysterious Keeper of Earth. Soon after, the people begin to receive dreams similar to those that the Oversoul sends that come directly from the Keeper of Earth via faster than light transmission. As loosely inspired by the themes of the Book of Mormon, the first three books in the series deal with the main characters travails in journeying the site of the ships via a slow trek across Harmony. The fourth book, Earthfall, concerns itself with the journey of one of the ships back to Earth and the culture class that results upon its homecoming, specifically, establishing a settlement and reconciling human culture with the existing creatures that have risen on Earth in the intervening millennia. The final volume, Earthborn, takes place five centuries further in the future; the one remaining member of the original expedition seeks to alter the path of the changing culture and see the Oversoul's mission finally fulfilled.
The Homecoming Saga is a science fiction series by Orson Scott Card. The series is patterned on the Book of Mormon. Some of the names also come from the Book of Mormon. The series, containing five volumes, takes place forty million years in the future, with volumes 1 3 taking place on a fictional planet called Harmony. The main premise of the series is that a human diaspora occurred after Earth was rendered uninhabitable by human wars. Forty plus planets, including Harmony, are colonized by humans (though only two are actually named in the series: Ramadan, settled by Arabs; and Harmony, apparently settled by Slavic cultures, as its languages all developed from Russian.) On Harmony, the advancement of human technology is controlled by the Oversoul – an artificial intelligence monitor, using a small army of satellites, established by the original colonists to monitor the planet. It also influences the actions of humans. Though it does not prevent them from doing evil, it keeps their societal capability for destruction limited by suppressing any thoughts that might lead to things like long distance travel or instant communication. Thus the technology on Harmony includes basic computers and solar powered handheld energy weapons, but no cars or even wagons. The Oversoul, however, was only designed to last twenty million years, so eventually it begins to break down. It decides to send an expedition back to Earth to seek advice from the entity of which it is an imitation: the mysterious Keeper of Earth. Soon after, the people begin to receive dreams similar to those that the Oversoul sends that come directly from the Keeper of Earth via faster than light transmission. As loosely inspired by the themes of the Book of Mormon, the first three books in the series deal with the main characters travails in journeying the site of the ships via a slow trek across Harmony. The fourth book, Earthfall, concerns itself with the journey of one of the ships back to Earth and the culture class that results upon its homecoming, specifically, establishing a settlement and reconciling human culture with the existing creatures that have risen on Earth in the intervening millennia. The final volume, Earthborn, takes place five centuries further in the future; the one remaining member of the original expedition seeks to alter the path of the changing culture and see the Oversoul's mission finally fulfilled.
Кейіпкерлер
Мұнда тізілген кейіпкерлер Жерге экспедицияға қатысатын адамдар; олар серияның барысында маңызды рөлдерді атқарады. Бір ғана кітапта маңызды рөл атқаратын кейіпкерлер үшін сол кітаптың бетіне қараңыз. Жоғары Жан – Гармониядағы барлық оқиғаларды жазатын жасанды интеллект. Әйелдер оған құдайша, ал ерлер – құдай ретінде табынады. Ол генетикалық түрлендірілген адамдардың іс-әрекеттеріне әсер ете алады, олар оның нұсқауларын қабылдауға бейімделген. Жоғары Жан өзінің мақсатын орындамай толық құлау қаупі бар екенін сезгенде, кейбір адамдарды олардың ұрпақтары Жоғары Жанды жақсырақ есту үшін көбейтуге бағыттай бастады. «Жердің естелігі» кітабында ол бұл адамдарға Жерге оралуды жоспарлауға тікелей нұсқау береді, Жердің Сақтаушысынан нұсқаулар алу үмітімен, ол Жоғары Жанның үлгісі болды. Жоғары Жан – Мормон кітабындағы Құдайға ұқсас.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Нафаи – серияның басында он төрт жаста, Жоғары Жан оны Жерге экспедицияны басқаруға таңдайды, себебі оның оған ерекше байланысы бар. Ол ақылды және жақсы ниетті, бірақ жас, және сөзін тоқтатуды білмейді. Серия барысында Нафаи жетіліп, өзінің рөліне еніп кетеді. Ол Волемак пен Расаның екінші ұлы. Ол Люетке үйленеді, ал олардың тұңғыш баласы – Чвея. Ол жұлдыз шеберінің плащын мұраға алады, ол оның Жоғары Жанмен байланысын күшейтеді және жарақаттарды емдеу сияқты пайдалы функцияларды орындайды. Оның есімі Мормон кітабының алғашқы кітаптарының авторы және атымен аталған Нефиге сілтеме жасайды.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Люет – серияның басында он үш жаста, ол Базиликада Сукөр деп белгілі, себебі Жоғары Жанмен байланысы оған болашақты көретін түстерді түсінуге мүмкіндік береді. Ол Нафаиден әлдеқайда ересектеу, оның импульсивті және кейде қасарысқан мінезін сабырлылықпен және ақылды кеңестермен теңседіреді. Дегенмен, ол оған да соншалықты мұқтаж.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Иссиб – Нафаидің үлкен ағасы, анасының құрсағында алған жарақаттан мүгедек. Базиликада және кемелер маңында ол «көтерілушілер» көмегімен қозғала алады, олар оның мүшелерін қарапайым бұлшықет жиырылыстарына жауап ретінде қозғалтады, бірақ осы аймақтардан тыс жерде ол жоғары технологиялық орындыққа тәуелді. Оның зерттеулері оны Жоғары Жан Гармониядағы адамдардың ойларынан ақпаратты жасырып отырғанын түсінуге әкеледі; ол және Нафаи Жоғары Жанға қарсы шыққаннан кейін, ол олармен бірлесіп жұмыс істей бастайды. Ол Хушидке үйленеді және Индекспен жұмыс істеудегі ең жақсылардың біріне айналады. Иссиб Мормон кітабындағы Сэмнің үлгісімен жасалған.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Хушид – Люеттің үлкен әпкесі, ол жіптерді тоқушы: адамдар арасындағы қарым-қатынастарды оның көз алдында жіптер ретінде көре алады. Бұл оған адамдардың не ойлап отырғанын түсінуге және дұрыс таңдалған сөздердің әлсіз жіптерді қалай үзуге болатынын білуге мүмкіндік береді. Алайда, ол өзінің (жіптерді тоқу/бұзу) іс-әрекеттерінің кең ауқымын көре алмайды. Бастапқыда ол Иссибпен некесін саяхаттағы үйленбеген ерлер мен әйелдердің ыңғайлы жұптары ретінде қараса да, олар бір-біріне ғашық болады.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Элемак – Нафаидің үлкен ағасы. Ол тіл үйренуге бейім, тәжірибелі саудагер, бірақ билікке құмар және зорлық-зомбылыққа бейім болғандықтан Жоғары Жан оны таңдамайды. Ол Нафаиді ешқашан кешірмейді. Ол компанияның қалған мүшелерін өлтіруді қаламаса да, Нафаиді өлтіру туралы ойын ешқашан тастамайды. Оның жоспарлары күрделілене түскен сайын, Нафаидің қорғанысы да күрделіленеді, бұл үшін оған Жоғары Жан мен оның айналасындағы қауым көмектеседі. Элемак Мормон кітабындағы Ламанның үлгісімен жасалған.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Меббекев – Нафаидің екінші ағасы. Ол – шексіз ләззат іздеуші және актер болғысы келетін адам, экспедиция басталғандағы оның соңғы азғырылуы – Расаның немересі Дол, бұрынғы бала актер. Олар үйленеді, бірақ Меббекев ақырында адал емес болады. Ол да үлкен ағасы Элемакпен бірге Нафаиге қарсы шығады, бірақ ол екеуінен де ақылды емес. Меббекев Мормон кітабындағы Лемуелдің үлгісімен жасалған.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Раса – Нафаидің анасы. Базиликада ол үлкен беделге ие мектепті басқарады, ал оның бес «нисесі» (тұрақты демеушілік рөлдеріне қабылданған сыйлық студенттері) Жерге экспедицияға шығады. Волемакпен некелерін жаңарта алмағаннан кейін ол біршама уақыт Габаллуфикске тұрмысқа шығады, бірақ ақырында Волемакқа қайта оралады және оны экспедицияға дейін тұрақты түрде жаңартады. Компаниядағы ең қарт әйел болса да, ол сапар барысында тағы үш балаға ие болады, ең үлкені – Ойкиб. Раса Мормон кітабындағы Сарияға ұқсас.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Волемак – Нафаидің әкесі. Гармонияда оның атағы – Ветчик, ол бай саудагер. Оның Жоғары Жанға және оның жоспарларына деген сенімі шайқалмайды. Бұл оны бастапқыда ақылға сыймайтын әрекеттерге итергенімен, топ сапарға шыққан кезде олар ақталады. Ақырында, тек Волемакпен ғана Нафаидің және Элемактың жақтастары тікелей қақтығысқа бармайды. Волемак Мормон кітабындағы Лехиге ұқсас.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Шедемей – дарынды генетик, Расаның нисесінің бірі, ол Жерге экспедицияға қатысады, себебі оның Жердегі флора мен фаунаны басқару үшін қажетті жабдықтары мен білімі бар. Ол Здорабпен жұптаспаған соңғы жұп, ол оған үйлену туралы ойға келгенше наразы болады, содан кейін олар компаниядағы ең жақын жұптардың біріне айналады. Егер Нафаи плащты киюден бас тартқанда, Жоғары Жан оны жұлдыз шеберінің плащын киюге екінші болып таңдайды. Олар Жерде қоғам құрғаннан кейін Нафаи оған плащты сыйлайды, содан кейін ол планетаны бақша сияқты күзету үшін айналасындағы ғарыш кемесіне оралады. Ол уақытының көп бөлігін тоқтатылған анимацияда өткізеді, Жоғары Жан оның ояну кезіндегі жалғыз серігі болады. Бес жүйылдықтан кейін, планетада «Ешқашан жерленбеген Бір» деп белгілі болған ол мектеп ашу үшін және саяси трагедияны болдырмау үшін қайта оралады.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Здораб – Индексті алу кезінде кездейсоқ таңдалған қызметші. Романның жалғыз гомосексуал кейіпкері, ол көзге түспейді, тыныш түрде жай ғана жұмыстарды орындайды, сондықтан олар оның жұмысы екенін ескермейді. Екінші жағынан, ол Индекстің ішінде өте жақсы жүзе алады, Жоғары Жанның бағдарламалауындағы тікелей жолдар мен кедергілерден қашады. Шедемей оған олардың сөзсіз некелесуі туралы сұрақ қойғанша оған деген жек көрушілік сезімін сақтайды және ол өзінің бейтарап қызметінің гомосексуалды планетада өмір сүру үшін жасалған әрекет екенін біледі. Шедемей Здорабқа деген пікірін өзгертеді, екеуі де жақын болады. Шедемей кемеге қайтқанда, Здораб онымен бірге кетеді; жұлдыз шеберінің плащы болмағандықтан, ол Шедемейден бұрын қайтыс болады, бірақ (тоқтатылған анимацияның арқасында) компанияның қалған бөлігінен әлдеқайда кейін. Здораб Мормон кітабындағы Зорамның үлгісімен жасалған.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Эйад – Расаның сұлу нисесінің бірі. Нафаи он төрт жасында оған ғашық болады, бірақ ол билікке құмар және Элемакқа үйленеді. Олар үстемдік үшін күрескенде, ол екеуінің арасында тартылып тұрады. Осы кезде Нафаи Люетке үйленеді және оған ғашық болады; ол ешқашан зина жасау туралы ойламайды. Оның құрметіне Эйад ақырында Нафаиге қарсы оның қатыгез күйеуіне көмектеседі және жетілгендігіне байланысты оған ұсыныс жасамайды.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Севет – Габаллуфикспен Расаның үлкен қызы. Базиликада жақсы әнші, ол жиі күйеуімен адал емес, алғашқыда Обрингпен, кейін Элемак пен Меббекевпен. Оның күйеуі, Ваз, алдауға бейім, бірақ оның жоспарлары айқын емес, ол өшпенділікке ұшырайды және ешқашан ұмытпайды.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Кокор – Габаллуфикспен Расаның кіші қызы. Севетке зор қызғанышпен қарайды. Ол Севетті күйеуімен бірге жатқан жерде тапқанда, әлсіз мінезді, бірақ қатыгез Обрингке шабуыл жасайды, Севеттің тамағына соққы береді және оның ән айту қабілетін жояды. Олар әрқашан бір-бірін басып өтуге тырысады және ешқашан толыққанды келісімге келмейді.
The characters listed here are those who go on the expedition to Earth; they play major roles throughout the series. For characters whose significance is primarily in one book, see that book's page. The Oversoul Artificial intelligence that records all events on Harmony, worshipped as a goddess by the women and a god by the men. It is able to influence the actions of the people, who were genetically altered to be able to receive its directions. When the Oversoul realized that it was in danger of decaying completely without having completed its purpose, it began influencing certain humans to breed so that their descendants would have greater and greater ability to hear the Oversoul. In The Memory of Earth it begins directly instructing these people to engineer a return to Earth, in the hope of receiving instructions from the Keeper of Earth, on which the Oversoul was modeled. The Oversoul is a parallel to God in the Book of Mormon
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Nafai Fourteen at the start of the series, he is chosen by the Oversoul to lead the expedition to Earth, in part because of his extraordinary connection to it. He is clever and well intentioned, but is young, and has difficulty knowing when to stop talking. As the series progresses, Nafai matures and grows into his role. He is the second son of both Volemak and Rasa. He marries Luet, and their first child is Chveya. He inherits the cloak of the starmaster, which enhances his connection to the Oversoul and performs such useful functions as healing injuries. His name is a reference to Nephi, the author and namesake of the first books of the Book of Mormon. Luet Thirteen at the start of the series, she is known in Basilica as the Waterseer because her connection to the Oversoul enables her to have and interpret prophetic dreams. She is consistently more mature than Nafai, tempering his impulsive and occasionally headstrong personality with patience and good counsel. Nevertheless, she needs him as much as he needs her. Issib Nafai's older brother, crippled by trauma in the womb. In Basilica and in the vicinity of the ships he can move with the aid of "floats", which move his limbs in response to simple muscle contractions, but outside of these areas he is confined to a high tech chair. It is his studies that lead him to realize that the Oversoul is blocking things from the thoughts of humans on Harmony; after he and Nafai begin defying the Oversoul, it begins to work with them. He marries Hushidh, and becomes one of the best at dealing with the Index. Issib is patterned on Sam from the Book of Mormon. Hushidh Luet's older sister, she is a raveler: able to see the relationships between people manifested as threads in her vision. This gives her remarkable insight into what people are thinking, as well as the ability to know what well chosen words will break weak threads. Unfortunately, she is not so adept at seeing the larger effects of her (un)raveling. Though she at first sees her marriage to Issib as a convenient pairing of the unmarried males and females on the trip, they fall in love. Elemak Nafai's oldest brother. An accomplished tradesman with an aptitude for learning languages, he is nevertheless too power hungry and violent to be chosen by the Oversoul. He never forgives Nafai for this. Although he has no wish to kill the rest of the company, he never lets go of the idea of killing Nafai. As his plots grow more complex, so do Nafai's defenses, thanks to the Oversoul and the community around him. Elemak is patterned on Laman from the Book of Mormon. Mebbekew Nafai's second oldest brother. An unabashed hedonist and would be actor, his most recent seduction at the start of the expedition is Rasa's niece Dol, a former child actor. They get married, but Mebbekew is eventually unfaithful. He also sides with his older brother Elemak against Nafai, though he is considerably less clever than either. Mebbekew is patterned on Lemuel from the Book of Mormon. Rasa Nafai's mother. In Basilica she runs a school with enormous prestige, and five of her "nieces" (prize students adopted into roles of permanent sponsorship) embark on the expedition to Earth. After failing to renew her marriage with Volemak, she is married to Gaballufix for a while, but eventually goes back to Volemak and renews him consistently until the expedition. Though the oldest woman in the company, she bears three more children in the course of the journey, the oldest being Oykib. Rasa is patterned on Sariah from the Book of Mormon. Volemak Nafai's father. On Harmony his title is the Wetchik, and he is a wealthy trader. His faith in the Oversoul and its plans is unshakeable. Though it leads him to seemingly irrational actions early on, they are justified by the time the group sets out on his journey. Eventually it is only Volemak's authority that keeps Nafai's supporters and Elemak's supporters from outright conflict. Volemak is patterned on Lehi from the Book of Mormon. Shedemei A brilliant geneticist, and one of Rasa's nieces, she joins the expedition not because of any strong connections to the party but because she has the equipment and the expertise to manage the flora and fauna on the possibly ravaged Earth. She and Zdorab are the last unpaired couple, and she resents the idea of marrying him until she gets to know him, at which point they become among the closest pairs in the company. She was the Oversoul's second choice to don the cloak of the starmaster if Nafai refused it. After they build a community on Earth, Nafai eventually does give her the cloak, at which point she returns to the orbiting spaceship to watch over the planet like a garden. She spends much of her time in suspended animation, with the Oversoul her only company on waking. Five hundred years later, known on the planet as The One Who Was Never Buried, she returns to start a school and avert a political tragedy. Zdorab A servant, picked up apparently by accident on retrieving the Index. The only gay character in the novels, he is a wallflower, keeping quietly out of the way and handling menial tasks so fluidly that the others begin to take it for granted that they are his job. On the other hand, he is the most adept at navigating the Index, using back doors to avoid loops and blocks in the Oversoul's programming. Shedemei is disdainful of him until she confronts him about their inevitable marriage and learns that his uncomplaining servitude is a survival mechanism for being homosexual on a fairly bigoted planet. Shedemei revises her opinion of Zdorab, and the two become very close. When Shedemei retreats to the ship, Zdorab goes with her; without the cloak of the starmaster, he dies before she does, but (thanks to suspended animation) long after the rest of the company. Zdorab is patterned on Zoram from the Book of Mormon. Eiadh One of Rasa's beautiful nieces. Nafai is in love with her at age fourteen, but she is attracted to power and marries Elemak. As the two struggle for dominance, she wavers between the two. By this time Nafai is married to, and in love with, Luet; he never considers adultery. To her credit, Eiadh eventually sides with Nafai against her murderous husband, and has matured enough that she does not make advances on him. Sevet Rasa's older daughter by Gaballufix. A fine singer in Basilica, she cheats on her husband regularly first with Obring, later with Elemak and Mebbekew. Her husband, Vas, is deceptively accepting; unlike Elemak, his plotting is not obvious, but he is cold and calculating and never forgets a grudge. Kokor Rasa's younger daughter by Gaballufix. Violently jealous of her sister Sevet. When she discovers Sevet in bed with her husband, the mean spirited but weak willed Obring, she lashes out, striking Sevet in the throat and destroying her singing ability. The two are always attempting to dramatically one up each other, and are never truly reconciled.
Тақырыбы
Импульс мылтығы – жарық негізінде жұмыс істейтін қару. Оның ату қашықтығы сапалы Горайни садағының қашықтығынан шамамен 1/4-ке тең. Импульс сәуле күшін және әсер ету аумағын реттеуге арналған бірнеше режимдерге ие. Бұл режимдер ет пісіруге қолданылатынынан бастап, жақын қашықтықтан адамды тікелей жоюға қабілетті күшке дейін өзгеріп отырады. Өте қауіпті болғанына қарамастан, импульс негізінен жануарларды аулау үшін жасалған. Көптеген тұстарда кейіпкерлер оны құрал ретінде қолдану мүмкіндігіне қатты қарсылық білдіреді. Ол батареямен жұмыс істейді және батареяны күн сәулесі арқылы қайта зарядтауға болады. Батареясы пайдалану барысында тозатынын ескере отырып, пайдаланбаған импульстарды қараңғы жерде сақтаған жөн. Батареясы толық тозығы жеткеннен кейін қару қолдануға жарамсыз болып, тасталады. Импульстарды жасауға болады, бірақ оларды жөндеу туралы білім адамның қабілетінен асып түседі.
Pulse A rifle like light based weapon. The range is about 1/4 the range of a good Gorayni bow. A pulse has multiple settings for beam strength and area. The different settings vary from one used for cooking meat to one able to blast a man to pieces at point blank range. Despite its lethality, the pulse is designed nearly exclusively for hunting animals. At several points, characters express their shock at the prospect of using it as a deadly weapon. It is battery powered and the battery can be recharged by exposure to sunlight. Since its battery decays with use, unused pulses should be hidden away in a dark place. Once a battery is dead the weapon becomes useless and is discarded. Pulses can be manufactured but the knowledge to repair them is beyond humans.