[I included these out of order simply because the note on the thaumatic entry had relevance to other entries throughout. I must have seen references to "faces" and such enough in earlier entries that I decided to finally define it. From here forward, I will keep them in the order they follow in the glossary.]:

"Alchemist: A member, or in some cases an associate, of the secret society known publically as the Balefialu. Alchemists believe that the elements as they exist in mortality are impure and corrupt. They seek to coax out and manipulate pure forms of the elements in an attempt to perfect themselves. For the most part, alchemists deal with the mask and on the symbolic relationships between the various faces, especially the mask as a symbol for the true face."

If I remember correctly, balefialu means "purifiers." I had not realized that alchemy was so closely tied to that secret society. Ultimately, surely, they were separate.