The World of Théxar
Théxar is a planet beneath the orange star Khar’Vex. It has oceans, cold ledges, river deltas, crowded courtyards and cities climbing slopes. Some inhabitants spend their days on the road; others recognise every sound from the room next door. Their history consists of great treaties and small decisions for which they must answer to those close to them.
Who Lives on These Pages?
Xha’Ruun is the name of a people. Sha’Ruun is the name of a language. They are different words: neither the book’s title nor its inhabitants’ name is the name of everything in their world.
Xha’Ruun have six limbs: two legs, two lower arms and two upper, membranous vexes. They have three eyes and four ears. Vexes fold in narrow passages; in open air they can serve expression and heat exchange. Vexes do not provide powered flight. The shade of bronze skin changes, but colour alone cannot reveal another person’s thoughts without error.
Kinship, friendship and neighbourly ties are recognisable, but daily life is shaped around different bodies: clothing needs room for vexes, a noisy hall sounds different from different seats, and a workbench must allow the upper pair of limbs to fold comfortably.
The world extends beyond one people. Its history also includes the Kel’vash and Mor’in, contact, agreements and differing needs. Sharing a road does not imply sharing food, housing or a notion of politeness. An encounter begins before a guest understands those differences.
From the River to the Stone Gallery
The three principal continents are Kharak, Rhuval and Vexar. Together with the islands, they occupy a third of the surface; ocean covers the rest. The ocean separates routes and connects them: a coastal settlement depends both on the neighbouring field and on weather far beyond the visible water.
Several stories take place on Kharak:
- Three Gates is a settlement in the inland Thar delta. Water is shared among channels, sluices are repaired, children grow up, and people argue about who must wait. Living beside the river binds neighbours even when they are angry with one another.
- Or-Vesh is a city of stone terraces. Freight roads, stairs, workshops, the Upper Gallery and the Round Hall form different daily routes. A straight line on a plan may be impassable to a resident using a walking support.
- Grey Ledge is a field site. A small plant, shifting gravel and a six-legged stoneback demand longer attention than a single visit to a familiar slope.
- Dry Pass is a way station and the location of Bel’s lodging house. One observing night links its courtyard to a distant celestial body; next morning, the crates still have to be unloaded.
These places do not all occupy one neighbourhood. Each has its own journey, livelihood and circle of encounters. A familiar melody may have travelled a route its present singer has never taken.
How Time Is Counted
A Théxar day lasts 27.3 Earth hours. The mean year contains 178.2 local days. The calendar has six months of 29 days, followed by four Renewal Days. Every fifth year receives one additional Renewal Day. A local year is therefore shorter than an Earth year: an age cannot be transferred between them without conversion.
Historical dates use the Common Reckoning, which includes year zero. A negative date means “before the beginning of this reckoning,” not that ancient inhabitants had no calendars of their own.
| Year | What Connects the Eras |
|---|---|
| −750 | The Treaty of Unity. Negotiations do not erase earlier distrust or the need to carry out agreements locally. |
| −742 | The agreement over three channels at Three Gates: Iara, Sev and Miren’s story. |
| −741 | Life in the courtyard where Enna arrives. |
| Around −740 | Osvi and Yaren’s learning room. |
| 0 | Introduction of the Common Reckoning. |
| 850 | Establishment of the Council of Unity: a separate event, not another name for the treaty of −750. |
| 4028 | The date of several older surveys and reference accounts. Their figures describe that historical moment. |
| Around 4200 | The present of Or-Vesh, Grey Ledge, the House of Voices and the discovery story at Dry Pass. |
Thousands of years separate the ancient and contemporary stories. Their characters do not know one another personally. They are connected by changing institutions, surviving words, objects, songs and memories—some accurate, some partial.
What Can Be Heard behind the Words?
A finite declarative statement in Sha’Ruun marks its source: direct observation, inference, another person’s report or quotation. This habit makes a source audible but does not eliminate mistakes or lies. A witness may miss something important, a translator choose an overconfident word, a storyteller embellish the past.
The book consequently contains different voices. A believer’s account of the First Vibration belongs to that faith. A carriers’ song keeps working rhythm and remembers the road in its own way. A family letter tells what one person experienced. A scientific description explains an observation and gains no additional evidence from a beautiful resemblance to a legend. These voices can disagree and still live under one roof.
Where to Begin
“The Threshold of a World” introduces Théxar through Leira and Iva’s first evening in an unfamiliar city. Afterwards, follow the chapter order or choose a story that draws you:
- Roads, treaties and water: “Eight Seals” → “Water That Cannot Be Locked Away” → “The Courtyard with an Unlocked Door”.
- Family, learning and a preserved voice: “A Place That Remains Yours” → “The Voice on the Other Side of a Word” → “The Man Who Delayed Goodbyes”.
- City, work and music: “Listening from Another Place” → “The Vehicle That Has to Return” → “The Long Way Home”.
- Observation and discovery: “The Measure You Bring Home” → “The Garden That Moves beneath Your Feet” → “The Night That Made Room for Something More”.
For planetary structure, the history of peoples and the details of crafts, return to the library. You need not remember every name on first meeting: first, each person has a task, a desire and somebody to return to.