List of My-Otome terminology

This is a list of the terminology used in the My-Otome anime and manga series. Many terms differ slightly between the anime and the manga.

Otome
Otome are elite female warriors, employed by important political figures as bodyguards. On the planet Earl, where the series takes place, only one place exists where Otome are trained: Garderobe Academy in Windbloom Kingdom, where the ancient technology powering Otome is kept.

Otome receive their powers from nanomachines injected into their blood which granted peak-human strength and limited healing abilities. However, said nanomachines are vulnerable to the prostate specific antigen (PSA); acting as an antigen, PSA causes an Otome's body to develop immunity against nanomachines (and any future injections), rendering her permanently powerless. Therefore, Otome cannot engage in sexual intercourse with males.

The Japanese word "otome" (乙女 otome) means "maiden", which can be considered to the Otome's forced virginity. This is, however, not the way it is spelled in the original title of My-Otome (舞-乙HiME), which only uses the first kanji of the word. In the manga, Otome are officially called 乙-type HiME (乙-type Highly-advanced Materialising Equipment), and this designation is briefly seen on a GEM screen (but never addressed) in the anime.

Meister Otome
A Meister (pronounced an MaiStar) Otome is an Otome who is a qualified graduate. This proves through the design of the GEM.

Contract
A contract is a pact between an Otome and her master, whom she is appointed to protect. It is enforced by the Otome's GEM. The contract restricts the use of Otome powers, only allowing it upon the master's explicit authorization. It is not merely a technical term; the Otome and her master share their pain, and if one of them dies, so does the other.

If an Otome without a permanent master faces a need to utilize her powers, she can forge a temporary contract to allow her interim master to grant the needed authorization. Interim contracts are logged in Garderobe Academy.

Robe
A Robe is an Otome's powered suit. It provides her with super-strength, the ability to fly and materialize her Element, and, apparently, life support in outer space or at least above the upper atmosphere assuming the My-Otome universe still applies most of the rules of the normal world. Most Robes have prehensile ribbons or coat tails the number of which vary, some are used for support or extra appendages while some can be used offensively as blades. All Robes have distinctive glowing ring like structures around the ankles and wrists as well as other glowing accessories on other parts of the suit. They usually glow when in flight.

Robes are voice-activated. Once the GEM is unlocked by the master, the Otome can materialize the Robe by saying "Materialize!" The GEM then displays the initials of the Otome and her master, as well as the gemstone-themed code name of the GEM/Robe, and proceeds to materialize it.

Robes provide considerable physical resistance even to the apparently unprotected head but are not completely failsafe. Under sufficient external force, a Robe may break and shatter. Also, if the GEM's connection to the master is disturbed, the Robe will disappear, reverting the Otome to the clothing she had on before materializing it.

GEM
A GEM (Generable Enigmatic Matrix) controls an Otome's access to her powers. The name "GEM" is actually a pun, as GEMs are named after actual gemstones and resemble them. They always come in pairs, one is worn on an Otome's left ear and the other is on a ring of the Otome's Master excluding the Columns, Pearls and Corals. This is purely ceremonial however as physical contact is all that is required evidenced by Mikoto who holds her GEM in her belly.

Except for the Five Columns, the GEM requires authorization from the Otome's master before it allows her to materialize her Robe. It is never clear how Meister GEMs are made however GEMs are preserved when an Otome cancels a contract as is evidenced by the Pure White Diamond, the Sky Blue Sapphire and the Abyssal Green Jadeite. The Excel Elegance White Onyx is never shown after Fiar is killed by Midori however.

REM
Reinforceing (sic) Enigmatic Matrix. A Schwarz-modified version of Garderobe's GEM. Used by Midori. It resembled a large green lense worn on the back of a glove granting its user near Robed Otome like strength through nanomachines before breaking down after a short time. Youko modified it to last indefinitely until depowered.

Element
The weapon of an Otome, which she is able to materialize. Elements can take virtually any form and have multiple special powers.

Butou
Formal ceremonial battles between Otome. Students may also engage in them. All of these special battles must be approved first, as they are subject to strict rules and procedures.

Five Columns
The Five Columns are Meister Otome who do not have masters (their master is Shinso, Fumi Himeno), and can activate their powers at will. They are numbered #1 to #5. The Five Columns are:
 * 1) Sara Gallagher (Galacticamarine)
 * 2) Natsuki Kruger (Ice Silver Crystal)
 * 3) Shizuru Viola (Bewitching Smile Amethyst)
 * 4) Juliet Nao Zhang (Break String Spinel)
 * 5) Mahya Blythe (Swirling Dance Fluorite)

Shinso
A Shinso is a deceased Otome who gave birth prior to her death, acting as the source of pre-Meister GEMs. Prior to the events of My-Otome, the only Shinso was Fumi Himeno, the first Otome, whose body was sealed inside Garderobe Academy. Fumi acted as the master to the Five Columns and to Garderobe students.

During My-Otome, Schwarz creates their own Shinso from the remains of Rena Sayers to power their Valkyries.

Valkyrie
The Valkyries were Meister-level Otome created by Schwarz. Their master was Rena Sayers, Schwarz's Shinso. They used identical black Robes and GEMs, which were referred to as the Obsidians of the Darkness (呪詛の黒曜石 Juso no Kokuyōseki) and apparently modeled after the technology Schwarz used to summon SLAVEs. The Valkyries carried halberds as their Elements and could transform into fighters for speed and agility. In this mode, a team of Valkyries could perform a powerful attack known as the Dance of the Valhalla.

The Valkyries lost their Robes when Rena's body was destroyed for good by Arika Yumemiya, her daughter.

The name "Valkyrie" is a reference to My-HiME, where the Searrs foundation referred to the HiMEs as the Valkyries.

Administar (Guiding Star)
The Guiding Star, as it is known in legends, appears as a blue dot in the sky next to Earl's moon.

Legends said that when the Guiding Star turned red, all Otome would be released from their contracts. In the final episode, Miyu fulfills the prophecy by connecting to the Administar from underwater ruins (resembling Fuka Academy from My-HiME) and reprogramming it, effectively substituting each Otome's master with the Administar itself. When she does this, the star indeed turns red and the moon changes its coloring as well, although it later reverts to its original state.

MAID
Multi-purpose Assistant-type Independent Droid. A series of robots based on Miyu that are being developed in Aries.

Beautiful Power (Miryoku)
A form of energy that powers special attacks by the Otome. Some otome have special charge-up attacks such as Arika's 'Bolt from the Blue' and Natsuki's 'Howling Silver Wolf' but are much different from Miryoku. The special attacks an Otome use that are powered by this are unique to each and usually one Otome only has one, but more powerful Otomes like Arika and Nina have multiple.