Valkyrie Moon: Essential Lore

The following is an original document I used for reference as I wrote my novel Valkyrie Moon. All writing is my own.

The Aerdan Lunarchy

Every citizen of the Lunarchy knows the story. Long ago, humanity’s first home—the Old World—fell victim to a terrible pestilence. Desperate to halt its spread, the nations of that age unleashed weapons of unimaginable power. But the ensuing fires consumed far more than the plague ever did, leaving civilization in ruins.

Then came Wotan. This mysterious being from the stars appeared to a ragged band of survivors, assuming the name of a half-forgotten god from humanity’s myths. Whether Wotan was truly divine remains one of the oldest mysteries in the Lunarchy, but to the survivors, such theological questions paled in importance to the choice he offered: leave or die. And so a handful of fortunate survivors abandoned their dying world and wandered the stars for forty-three years aboard a great golden vessel before reaching the temperate planet of Aerda. From there they settled each of the world’s nine moons, forging the realm now known as the Aerdan Lunarchy.

Yet survival alone didn’t provide enough fertile ground for a new civilization to rise from the ashes. To ensure they thrived across their new worlds, Wotan returned to give humanity a sacred gift: runeglyphs, arcane symbols capable of commanding mechanical servants crafted from a substance called aethyrium. Soon these servants, called automa, became indispensable to every aspect of life in the Lunarchy. They guarded castles, harvested crops, healed the sick, delivered messages, and performed countless other tasks. 

Over time, a religious order called the Holy Ministeriat rose to oversee stewardship of the sacred mysteries of aethyrium. It declared misuse of runeglyphs to be blasphemy, kept the most powerful glyphs from anyone but its own clergy, and assumed sole authority over the source of aethyrium—a secret it jealously guards to this day.

Automa

Automa are mechanical servants constructed from the enigmatic material known as aethyrium. The runeglyphs engraved upon their bodies determine both their purpose and their capabilities. Though conventional wisdom has long declared these constructions incapable of true independent thought, even the simplest autom can perform astonishing feats when commanded by someone who speaks the names of the glyphs engraved on their bodies.

The seven recognized classes of automa are:

Armamatons: Towering combat automa employed as soldiers and bodyguards.

Memomatons: Speedy messenger automa capable of recording speech, preserving memories, and carrying information across the Lunarchy. Rumors tell of a secret glyph hidden by the Ministeriat, one that can transmit sound across great distances instantaneously—but until such a glyph is discovered, memomatons remain the best way to convey messages across the void of space.

Labormaton: The most populous variety of autom—used for construction, agriculture, mining, and other menial tasks.

Makermatons: Highly specialized automa whose runeglyphs allow them to assist artisans, engineers, and craftsmen in skilled trades.

Aeromatons: Winged automa used for scouting, courier work, and aerial reconnaissance. Partnerships between the producers of armamatons and aeromatons have produced airborne warriors such as the Ministeriat’s feared valkyrie-automa.

Mendermatons: Medical automa with the glyphs necessary to stabilize injuries, perform surgery, and assist physicians. 

Datamatons: Highly complex analytical automa capable of maintaining vast archives within their rudimentary “brains,” performing complex calculations, and organizing information beyond any human scholar’s ability.

Politics

No single power governs the Lunarchy. Instead, the realm relies on an uneasy balance between the Crown, the Great Houses, and the Holy Ministeriat. The Crown rules the realm but gets no charter to manufacture automa. The Ministeriat controls the supply of aethyrium and safeguards the sacred runeglyphs, but it lacks the authority to make laws. The Great Houses command immense wealth, armies, and influence, but each has the glyphs to produce only a single class of automa. 

Great Houses:

Donner

Head: Lunarch Siegfried IV

Sigil: Crossed golden lightning bolts

Fiefdom: Thunder Moon

Autom: none

Description: After the Exodus ended on the planet Aerda, Maximilian von Donner forged the Lunarchy from the largest warring tribes and pacified the rest. He built his capital on Aerda, but his heart belonged to the white-capped mountains and lush forests of the Thunder Moon. Today, the Donners honor twin masters—family and duty—and seek to walk the razor’s edge between them. 

Stücker

Head: Grand Duke Dietrich

Sigil: Gray Hammer and tongs 

Fiefdom: Forge Moon

Autom: Datamaton

Description: The proud Stückers control the largest shipyards in the Lunarchy, a series of orbital facilities over the Forge Moon. Some say that no matter where you are on the moon’s surface, the glow of the shipyards paints the heavens red. This notion is likely mere exaggeration, but the truth remains that the Stücker orbital foundries over the Forge Moon have launched everything from humble merchant vessels to the great dreadnaughts that guard the Lunarchy’s frontier.

Gelderhaus

Head: Duke Albrecht 

Sigil: Golden key

Fiefdom: Treasure Moon

Autom: Makermaton

Description: Through the Gelderhaus Bank, the family has fingers in every financial pie in the Lunarchy, resulting in coffers brimming with gold. While some accuse them of greed, the Gelderhauses suggest that they simply wish to be good stewards of the realm: universities, observatories, opera houses, and expeditions across the Lunarchy all thrive thanks to Gelderhaus funds. 

Dunkrieg

Head: Duchess Aleksandra 

Sigil: Blue raven

Fiefdom: Raven Moon

Autom: Armamaton

Description: Long considered allies of the crown, the Dunkrieg family resides on the mysterious, austere Raven Moon, which few outsiders visit willingly. The moon is home to a persistent bluish mist, windswept highlands, black forests, and even ancient stone fortresses that seem to predate even humanity’s arrival on Aerda. 

Holbern

Head: Duke Otto

Sigil: White frost giant 

Fiefdom: Ice Moon

Autom: Memomaton

Description: It is a well-known jest that the Holberns smile infrequently, if at all. Some blame this on their purported resentment over being given the remote Ice Moon instead of a more coveted fiefdom, others suggest their cold demeanor is simply a reflection of the world that raised them. The Ice Moon is no place for the weak, and generations of brutal winters have forged a line known throughout the Lunarchy for their restraint, resilience, and unwillingness to waste words or resources. 

Grimmel

Head: Duke Ernst

Sigil: Black kraken 

Fiefdom: Kraken Moon

Autom: Labormaton

Description: Oceans cover nearly the entire Kraken Moon, broken only by the storm-lashed cliffs of scattered archipelagos. While other Great Houses were venturing outward into the void of space to explore their new dominion, the Grimmels learned to navigate the treacherous seas of their moon, where the waves conceal creatures large enough to swallow battleships whole.

Koenigsmann

Head: Margrave Karl

Sigil: Green dragon perched on a crown 

Fiefdom: Dragon Moon

Autom: Mendermaton 

Description: Descended from the staunchest supporters of the first Lunarch, the Koenigsmanns have tamed the moon’s eponymous wildlife. Their heraldry reflects their devotion to the royal family: the dragon stands above the crown but never wears it.

Wolfstern 

Head: Margravine Gretel

Sigil: Silver roggenwolf

Fiefdom: Wolf Moon

Autom: Aeromaton

Description: Some say humanity knows the dark between the moons better than the benighted forests of the Wolf Moon. Beyond the cities, vast stretches of wilderness still belong to roggenwolves and older things that rarely appear in civilized records. The Wolfsterns are as crafty and dangerous as their namesake, as many a rival has learned the hard way.