Characters

There are a lot of characters in How Best to Use a Sword, so here’s an incomplete listing to help keep them all (not) straight. Because there are so many characters, for now the page is only limited to POV characters and their significant others, but I hope to expand that soon. Because it’s a long page, you may prefer to read the shorter pages focusing on just the main or secondary characters.

Owen: Formerly a helping hand at the inn ran by his parents, Owen heard that a princess had been kidnapped by a dragon and ran off to save her with nothing but a head full of stories and a body full of hormones. Thankfully he managed to find a sword and armour before he managed to find a dragon, which he slew and rescued the…prince. But now he’s dating Prince Gavin, on an epic journey with him, and finally earning his dream to be a knight in shining armour (actually, it doesn’t shine so much as gleam). You can read Owen’s full character profile here!

Gavin: Prince of the kingdom of Dolovai, Gavin ven Sancte was less than impressed when he was abducted by a dragon from his castle (also less than surprised, he’s the first to admit he’s prettier than his sister). Fortunately Owen rescued him, so he could get away from that annoyance and have fun exploring the world–and do a lot of good for it while he’s at it, more than he can cooped up in a castle for all his life. You can read Gavin’s full character profile here!

Ron: After leaving home to get away from his neglectful father, Ron joined a mercenary band for all of ten months before he decided to go off on his own to rescue some children he’d heard had been kidnapped by a woods witch…then he got stuck in the wrong witch’s garden and ended up being his servant for a year. Which, hey, turns out that’s not as bad as it sounds, especially since he really likes following orders and really, really likes the witch giving them. Ron is Owen’s cousin. You can read Ron’s full character profile here!

James:  A witch who was perfectly fine living by himself in the woods, thank you very much, James can’t pretend not to enjoy having Ron (to order) around. He’s lived by himself since an incident when he was younger when his family tore itself in half, and barely sees his grandmother, his cousins or his aunt, or the centaurs and faeries he shares the woods with. But James is in possession of a powerful magical stone that puts him in the centre of a lot of global events he’d rather not be anywhere near, so staying alone in his house with Ron probably isn’t in his near future, sadly for him. You can read James’s full character profile here!

Cal: Cal’s a professional treasure hunter who did quite well for himself and his partners travelling around the world and looting artefacts to sell to the highest bidder. He still does quite well at that, but now he’s also learned that he’s the reincarnation of some guy named Nathen, who might be God, and a lot of people who seem to know what they’re talking about seem to think he’s going to destroy the world. So that sucks. You can read Cal’s full character profile here!

Wes: One of Cal’s partners, both professional and romantic, Wes is the muscle of their outfit, looking like he was born to hold a battleaxe. Wes is the son of a single mother from up north and joined Cal to make something of himself after his mom died. He’s the one member of their team who could claim to being a totally mundane guy, at least until recent events left him with fur, a tail and the ability to walk through walls and levitate. You can read Wes’s full character profile here!

Mick: The team mage, Mick was always the shier of the three, but that didn’t stop him from joining the romantic relationship when it began with Wes and Cal–in fact, it was his idea. Mick was a magical anomaly even before recent transformations gave him powers, tattoos and weird bulbs on his body, which was why he left the mages’ academy as early as he could and joined Cal on impulse, with no plan except that he didn’t want to be stationary. Now he spends most of his time worrying that something is going to kill or kidnap his boyfriend, but that’s fine, he’s happy that way. You can read Mick’s full character profile here!

Sully: Joining Cal’s team as a petty thief who’d decided to be less petty (in his thievery, at least), Sully later revealed that he’s a demon and that in fact, he wasn’t really any less petty for it. Luckily Cal, Wes and Mick like him anyway (for some reason), and Sully’s joined their team and relationship as a permanent member. Sully’s been around the block for about four thousand years and has recently had a falling out with his demon friends over the issue of whether or not to kill his new boyfriend. You can read Sully’s full character profile here!

Isaac: The chosen one of prophecy (maybe), the only thing Isaac wants to be less than the chosen one of prophecy is straight. Isaac has never met a boy he didn’t like, and has never been afraid to express that. He’s been polyamorous since about five minutes after he became sexually active and he’s perfectly happy with that, though he has started to collect boyfriends in addition to sex partners of late. Isaac’s family raises dogs, which might be the only thing he likes more than cute boys. You can read Isaac’s full character profile here!

Nicholas: The chosen one of prophecy (maybe), the only thing Nicholas might want to be more than the chosen one of prophecy is an adventuring mercenary. Nicholas didn’t get along with Isaac at first, seeing him as irresponsible and also in the way of what he’d been told was his destiny, but they’re good friends (with benefits) these days. He really, sincerely used to think he was straight until he met Isaac. You can read Nicholas’s full character profile here!

Peter: The chosen one of prophecy (maybe), Peter doesn’t really have an opinion about being the chosen one of prophecy except that it’s inconvenient on the one hand and will royally piss of his priestly parents on the other. His mother is the recently elected High Presbyter, and Peter has nothing against her except that she and Peter’s dad disowned him upon finding he was a mage. Peter is learning a lot about himself thanks to dating Isaac and is pretty happy to be embracing his own polyamorous side at his boyfriend’s encouragement. You can read Peter’s full character profile here!

Jacob: A mysterious, roguish and debonair thief (just ask him), Jacob is definitely not the chosen one of prophecy, but he’d be good at it if he were. He works for a noble named Dominic in various capacities mostly related to larceny, but accidentally found himself smitten with Isaac and wound up dating him and later Peter, who he bonded with at an orgy. Jacob’s family is scattered across the world and has a tendency to pop up wherever important stuff is happening. You can read Jacob’s full character profile here!

Pax: A former thief turned sailor thanks to a small stowing away incident that he doesn’t like to talk about, Pax thinks that it’s worked out pretty okay since he’s now acting first mate on a ship and has a boyfriend who is the actual first mate Nate. Loquacious and opinionated, Pax is only those first two things because he’s right all the time and grows frustrated when people don’t recognize it. He’s currently on a quest to vanquish the boyfriend-stealing Sea King. Pax is Jacob’s younger brother (in fact, Pax is the youngest of his siblings, but he’ll never admit that), and no longer works for Dominic after a falling out involving Dominic screwing him over rather callously. You can read Pax’s full character profile here!

Nate: The first mate on Pax’s ship and son of the captain, Nate never had much patience for stowaways until he fell in love with one. Nate grew up on the ship, in fact he was born on one, and even losing his dad and his first girlfriend to the ocean hasn’t changed his love for it. He’s happy to listen to Pax’s stories and very good at bringing Pax back down to earth (well, sea) when he gets going a bit too much. Nate is currently on a leave of absence from his first mate duties while he inhabits a medallion. You can read Nate’s full character profile here!

Edwin: Leaving his small hometown near the mountains, Edwin enrolled in the knights’ training school and was made a squire, following in the footsteps of his brother Erik. Edwin isn’t really the most into the idea of being a knight, but unfortunately the world has other ideas for him, because he’s both good at it and keeps ending up in the centre of important things, like Prince Gavin’s retinue of bodyguards. You can read Edwin’s full character profile here!

Erik: Erik never wanted to be a knight either, but here he is in the order anyway, and with the little brother he thought he’d left behind as his squire. The only think Erik wants in life more than to see Edwin safe and healthy and successful is to see Edwin his, and that’s a tension that he just doesn’t really know how to live with at the moment, because he’s increasingly sure that those can’t be the same thing. You can read Erik’s full character profile here!

Sam: The son of the infamous and evil Sorcerer King Solomon, Sam spent his childhood learning how to be an extremely unlovable ball of rage bundled around a core of emotional repression and wrapped in a veneer of sadism. And it worked! Or at least he’s pretty sure it did. Sam has a habit of torturing and maiming people he likes, which is probably why he kept Henry alive when he landed in Sam’s dungeon. He’s learning in spite himself that there are other ways to go about being the evil sorcerer he was born to be, though. You can read Sam’s full character profile here!

Henry: The only surviving member of the destroyed House Arkhewer, Henry went on an epic quest to kill the Sorcerer King, avenge his family and free his home from the clutches of evil. And failed, and got stuck in the dungeon with the king’s evil son to torment him. Fortunately, Henry’s more resourceful than he seems and Sam likes him, so once that dungeon door opens, the mind games begin and it’s not always clear who’s playing, who’s setting the rules or, most importantly, who’s winning. You can read Henry’s full character profile here!

Daniel: A slave in a society in which slavery is legal, Daniel knows he has no rights or status except as the property of his Master. He knows that, but he sometimes forgets to demonstrate it. Theodore’s house is a prison for him and no matter how much the other slaves are his friends and no matter how much he accidentally likes Theodore, he’s determined this isn’t going to be his whole life. You can read Daniel’s full character profile here!

Theodore: A rich, self-made investor, Theodore’s wealth lets him be involved in a number of global affairs, and also affords him several slaves. The system of slavery makes Theodore’s attraction to young boys acceptable and he takes full advantage of that, treating his boys as well as he can, but still expecting them in his bed. Daniel poses an interesting challenge for Theodore, one he’s not sure he can overcome. You can read Theodore’s full character profile here!

Greg: Greg is an old acquaintance of Daniel’s, one who was bought and sold at the same time as he was. Unlike Daniel, Greg wasn’t sold to a master who was inclined to treat him well, and though he’s changed hands again, Greg’s history isn’t going to leave him alone so readily, though now that he’s run away and met a very generous family, he might have a chance. You can read Greg’s full character profile here!

Franz: Prince of the southern kingdom of Kyaine, Franz DiGorre has come north to Dolovai to marry Princess Gabrielle as part of a trade agreement between their two kingdoms. Franz can’t pretend that it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to him, but he’s got his companion and his dog with him and when he stumbles into a mystery amidst the court intrigue of the north, the family Franz has built is his first and best support. You can read Franz’s full character profile here!

Boey: Companion to Prince Franz, both of them will tell you that Boey is his better half. He manages Franz’s affairs and growing household, and even though he’s Franz’s first love and sexual partner, he’s the main one making sure that Franz marries Gabrielle like he’s supposed to. Most of Boey’s work is behind the scenes of what Franz is doing, and he’s okay with that as long as Franz is successful. You can read Boey’s full character profile here!

Gabrielle: Gabrielle ven Sancte is the crown princess of Dolovai and heir to her father’s throne. She’s also Sir Gabrielle, anointed knight of the kingdom’s vaunted order, mostly because her brother Gavin was a hapless child who needed protecting. Honestly she was grateful when she found out that her fiance had a boyfriend on the side–saves her a lot of effort. She likes Franz a lot more than she thought she would, which is good since they’re going to marry and all. You can read Gabrielle’s full character profile here!

Travis: An orphan from a small village near the mountains, Travis set off on an epic quest one day to do the impossible: befriend a dragon. Somehow he actually managed that without getting eaten, meeting a dragon named Joey by chance in a cave and changing his life forever, especially after a friend became a boyfriend and they had to leave the mountains to travel the world and have adventures. You can read Travis’s full character profile here!

Joey: A dragon who has the misfortune of being stuck in a smaller form, unable to transform into a proper reptilian body, Joey has mostly survived in the merciless dragon world through the uncharacteristic protectiveness of his sire and his best friend. That changes when his sire kicks him out to kidnap a prince, then gets killed for his trouble. Joey met Travis during that time and rapidly decided that he’d found the only treasure he cared to have, and the two went off until Joey was strong enough to live properly among other dragons. For his part, Joey mostly just wants wings. You can read Joey’s full character profile here!

Cordelia: Companion to Kyaine’s queen Francesca DiGorre, Cordelia DeThane is a politician despite herself and would very much like it if people could stop vying for power that isn’t theirs at such a troubled time for the kingdom. Fortunately aside from the queen, Cordelia has as an ally her wife Isabella and their three children, Christina, Iago and Carlos, and with those four in her life, she can hardly complain about much at all. You can read Cordelia’s full character profile here!

Isabella: Isabella DeThane is the leader of a Kyainese noble house whose territory is fairly extensive in western Kyaine, covering the huge port city of Bright Harbour and therefore its trade income. Isabella knows that her wife’s position often overshadows hers, but that doesn’t bother her; she’s just happy to have her family close and happy and healthy. Cordelia is the one who finds things to complain about, after all (even if she claims she doesn’t). You can read Isabella’s full character profile here!

Stephan: Thanks to a recent coup that wasn’t really his idea, Stephan Fyrhawk is the king of Kyaine and now has to deal with rather a lot of people who have opinions on what that should mean, including some allies of his who are not quite as loyal as they seem. His companion Neville is up north on a diplomatic mission, leaving Stephan with limited options for who to trust and forcing him to rely on Geoffrey DiSheere, whose father Stephan had killed during the coup, but who is invested in helping stabilize his rule for reasons of his own. You can read Stephan’s full character profile here!

Drew: A castle servant who knows full well what his place in the world is, Drew doesn’t really want much out of life except maybe a minor promotion and for his affection for his fellow servant Frederick to be returned. As a member of Gavin’s retinue on a trip west, Drew ended up staying in a town called Techen’s Stand, where a voice started to tell him he could be a lot more than he was, and that he could have everything he wanted and more. Of course, whether he chooses to listen to the voice is entirely up to Drew…unless it’s not. You can read Drew’s full character profile here!

Lyren: Trapped under a sealing stone for just under four thousand years, Lyren Techen Le’Carden has never once met anyone who could even hear his voice until Drew happened to wander into his courtyard one night. He claims not to want out, to just want a friend, and he’s just beyond thrilled that Drew wants a friend too–with all the benefits that being Lyren’s friend grants, of course. He takes care of the people who are important to him and right now, Drew is the most important person in Lyren’s world. You can read Lyren’s full character profile here!

Hope: A serving boy at the only inn in Techen’s Stand, working as an assistant to his father Magnus, Hope was always a little bit out of place in Techen’s Stand, never quite feeling like he belonged there, because everyone knew he and his dad were from elsewhere. He knew that it was silly to develop a crush on the servant of someone passing through the inn, but it’s working out pretty well for him. He’s in love and he’s found a new calling in life, and he’s happy about that. You can read Hope’s full character profile here!

Ignatius: An apprentice to the wizard Ronaldo Harrow, Ignatius is the strongest wizard in the world by a wide margin, hampered only by his fear that he can’t control his power due to a minor incident with the rewriting of reality when he was younger. Now he’s being sent on a quest to rescue a captured princess in the wake of the southern coup, and Ignatius is without Ronaldo for the first time since that incident. But he’s got Ronaldo’s assistant Gus–who happens to be his boyfriend–with him, so he’s probably fine. Ignatius is Pax and Jacob’s brother. You can read Ignatius’s full character profile here!

Gus: Not a wizard, Gus is Ronaldo’s servant, tasked with cleaning his house, cooking for him, holding his coat, helping his apprentice rescue princesses, that sort of thing. Gus worries more than he should about Ignatius and the burdens placed on him, mostly because he knows how much they weigh on Ignatius. Gus himself is fairly powerful when it comes down to it, he is one of the few people in the world who was born with the innate talent for necromancy, something he doesn’t generally tell people about for obvious reasons. You can read Gus’s full character profile here!

Jude: An angel who’d really rather not spend a whole three days sitting next to someone he used to date, Jude suddenly regrets the fact that he used to date pretty much every other angel he knows. But all the angels and demons have gathered together to have a second synod to talk about the fact that their god Nathen is suddenly back and wants to kill them all, which creates a few rather interesting theological problems for every last one of them. Considering the first synod ended with someone getting killed and all of them fighting for thousands of years, Jude is perhaps rightfully concerned about potential outcomes of the synod. At least the spirit of cooperation might mean he can pick a hot demon to be his next ex-boyfriend. You can read Jude’s full character profile here!

Tam: A hot demon, Tam cooks to keep people in his life and hopes that the second synod will succeed in ending the theological cold war that’s been pitting him against all his former friends for the last four thousand years or so. Fortunately, Tam has a lot of confidence in a certain form of dictatorial authority, and he’s pretty sure that the higher-ups have already decided the outcome of the synod from the beginning, so as long as nobody interferes, he’s free to pursue the cute angel who likes his porridge. You can read Tam’s full character profile here!

Cassius: A dragon who isn’t allowed to talk to the humans of Ech’kent, he figured that meant it was okay for him to visit the empty town of Endlyn in which all the humans were dead. The fact that four humans turned out to be there doesn’t mean he broke the rules, and now they’re his by rights, so of course they’re living in his cave with him. He’ll protect Sean, Sawyer, Gino, Cyrus and later Max and he’ll feed them while they plan their rebellion against this evil King Sam, as long as they remain available to him–and his brothers Castor and Claudius–in the ways he wants them to be. You can read Cassius’s full character profile here!

Gino: One of a small group of rebels against the reign of Samson the Sorcerer King, Gino’s family was completely wiped out in the massacre in Endlyn. The only silver lining is that his three friends survived along with him. Sean is Gino’s best friend and Gino feels slightly guilty about dating his older brother Sawyer without telling him, though he soon finds out anyway. Of all the humans members of the rebellion, Gino minds the least that he now has to be sexually available to a bunch of dragons. More than anything, he just wants the people he loves to be safe and alive at the end of the day. You can read Gino’s full character profile here!

Sean: Sean wishes that things hadn’t worked out this way, but at least his brother and his best friend are alive, even if they are getting fucked by dragons. Sean may not be the most confident person around, but he trusts the people he loves to do what’s best for Ech’kent, and to avenge his parents, both of whom were leaders of the rebellion in Endlyn and were killed for their efforts. Finding out that his brother was dating Gino made Sean’s quiet crush get even quieter. You can read Sean’s full character profile here!

Castor: A dragon who doesn’t give a shit about human politics but is happy to share his siremate’s new humans, Castor mostly just does what Cassius tells him to, because that’s how he and his eggmate have survived up until now and why change what works? Castor wasn’t much enamoured with humans as anything but sex toys until he met one who threatened to kill him, at which time he fell nearly instantly in love and suddenly found his priorities shifting from doing what would make Cassius happy to doing what would make Derek happy. He’s extremely happy with this change, even if it’s caused him endless trouble. You can read Castor’s full character profile here!

Sawyer: Sawyer never realized when he made friends with that weird foreigner that it would literally save his life when the Sorcerer King came to town to murder his parents–and everyone else–but he knows he, his little brother and his boyfriend are only alive because of Cyrus. Cyrus and the dragons are, Sawyer believes, their salvation, even if it’s hard to accept them at times. He wants to do his best by Ech’kent, and Sawyer is well aware that, for all that part of him doesn’t like that this rebellion isn’t the group-led project he wants it to be, he also knows that listening to Cyrus is the only way they’re going to survive, much less win. You can read Sawyer’s full character profile here!

Claudius: Another dragon who doesn’t give a shit about which human rules Ech’kent, Claudius became much more interested in humans generally when he found Max picking through the ruins of Endlyn. As soon as he had a human of his own, he became much more aware of humans’ good points, including how smart they are as a species. In order to protect Max, Claudius would happily just take him and fly away from everything, or failing that, follow him no matter what he does. You can read Claudius’s full character profile here!

Max: A homeless boy from Jdinrma-Hash, Max made money doing odd jobs including sweeping floors, delivering goods, selling his body and translating for the king. When he heard Endlyn had been destroyed, he went to make sure his friend Gino had been properly cremated. He was not expecting to find a dragon who will become his boyfriend, or to be swept up in a rebellion against the king who he really doesn’t think is that bad. But he wants to help his friends and his people, so he’ll work in the king’s castle as a servant and spy, and hopefully he’ll find someone there he can trust to tell him the truth. You can read Max’s full character profile here!

Scott: The collective of giant demonic centipedes popularly known as Scott is the transdimensional concept of hunger given form. Scott is great friends with the Sorcerer King, but that isn’t going to stop it from agreeing to help the funny-tasting rebels dethrone the poor monarch. Scott has its fingers (or mandibles) in many, many pies and more importantly, in many, many people. When inside a person, it can send them psychic messages to tell them what to do, usually at Sam’s behest, and it can also kill them and directly take control of their body until it starts to fall apart. Though humans are only food, Scott loves playing with its food, and recently a human named Derek has gotten Scott’s attention more than anything else on its metaphysical fork. Scott seems to have a larger goal beyond what is known about it, but it’s hard to discern because it tells everyone it meets that it wants something different. The possibility should not be ruled out that its overall goal is just ‘eat everything.’ You can read Scott’s full character profile here!

Derek: One of the Sorcerer King’s many unwilling servants, Derek has decided to take a proactive approach to his servitude to the person who let his sister be raped and had his father maimed. Cheerful, charismatic and ambitious, Derek has learned how to get what he wants with a smile, and is very good at it. Fortunately for everyone else, all he really wants is a peaceful life where nobody has to get raped or murdered or tortured, which really doesn’t seem like much to ask. He is currently in a polyamorous relationship with Castor, Scott and his fellow servant Todd, and has worked his way up to being the king’s personal attendant, all in just a few short months. You can read Derek’s full character profile here!

Cyrus: Cyrus is the only member of the rebellion not from Ech’kent, but in many ways he seems to be the most committed to seeing it happen. Though initially skeptical about the dragons ,he rapidly came to see the potential for how they could help the cause, and slightly less rapidly realized that Cassius had fallen in love with him. The realization that the feeling was mutual was a shock to Cyrus, but a good shock–not that he wasn’t willing to use it to get Cassius to listen to him when he was right. Cyrus’s actual motivations are unclear to his friends, especially since he denies having them at all. Cyrus is another brother to Jacob, Pax and Ignatius. You can read Cyrus’s full character profile here!

Geoffrey: Now the head of his house, Geoffrey DiSheere has a lot to live up to, a little brother to protect and a political climate to navigate that is best described as lethal. The new king regent isn’t to be trusted and Geoffrey knows it, but he also knows he needs to keep Giacomo safe not only from the politics of Hawk’s Roost and the dangers they pose, but from himself, because his brother is too young to be as ruthless as he’s suddenly become, and Geoffrey loves him too much to let it happen. You can read Geoffrey’s full character profile here!

Giacomo: Giacomo DiSheere has two priorities in life: his brother and his house. He’ll do anything to protect them, and already has done anything. His culpability in the fall of the usurper’s government is nothing to sneeze at, and it was him who secured the safety of House DiSheere under the regency of King Hans. The first to admit he’s a bad person, Giacomo doesn’t care, because he’s smarter than Geoffrey and he knows it, which means he has to be the one to make hard decisions. As far as he’s concerned, only one brother in this family is being protected, and it sure as hell isn’t him. You can read Giacomo’s full character profile here!

Juniper: Juniper is a faery in the queen’s clan, and had to be flicked away so he didn’t try to write this bio himself. Having recently broken up with his boyfriend over the small matter of cheating with all three of his brothers at once, he is now single, sad and trying to figure out why the local centaurs are acting so strangely and if it had something to do with all those centipedes nearby. You can read Juniper’s full character profile here! 

Penguin: Penguin is an invisible spirit who gives Junpier both his ice powers and a hard time, and also expects him to do annoying tasks like save the world from various threats, which Penguin claims not to have created. He is also the writer of How Best to Use a Sword, not that that gives him any control over most of its characters. You can read Penguin’s full character profile here!

John: James’s older brother, John went with his family when they exiled themselves to a tropical island, and has pretty much regretted it ever since. He doesn’t think he’s evil, though he does think he’s pretty shitty, and after a few genius but ill-advised experiments that left his soul spread across three people and mostly in the possession of the Sea King, John has kind of been spinning his wheels, though lately he has gotten a lot closer to his dad. You can read John’s full character profile here!

Kyle: James and John’s dad, Kyle is unhappy in his marriage to a psychotic monster and kind of regrets murdering half of her family, because it really stuck him to her for life. But he’s making the best of it and spending a lot of time with his baby boy John lately while he waits for an opportunity to make something better happen for them. You can read Kyle’s full character profile here! You can read Kyle’s full character profile here!

Niall: The crown prince and heir to the eastern kingdom of Neshez, Niall is quite certain that he is the smartest, handsomest, nicest and overall best prince that his kingdom has ever seen, which of course also makes him the overall best person his kingdom has ever seen. When someone tries to kill him and his helpful uncle suggests he take some time to live with the common people, Niall takes this to heart and swaps places with a commoner for a week so he can really know what it’s like to be poor before he goes back to being the best person ever. He sees no reason why it shouldn’t work out perfectly. You can read Niall’s full character profile here!

Russ: A prostitute living in Neshez’s capital city of Hazent, Russ makes a pretty good living in their brothel, which is helped by the rich and regular clients they’ve had for a few years who have weird fantasies that Russ is happy to role play with them. Russ’s life takes a turn for the strange one day when they meet a boy who looks just like them and offers to let them live in a castle for a week, which sounds pretty awesome to Russ, all things considered. You can read Russ’s full character profile here!

Mads: A soothsayer living in northern Narwhal Junction, Mads is a soothsayer in name only, and he’s very aware that the name and appearance matters more than actually having powers, which is why he has the name and appearance and not the powers. The lack of powers doesn’t stop him from having an actual vision, though, which is going to pose a bit of a problem for his con. You can read Mads’s full character profile here!

Nuka: A homeless boy living in Narwhal Junction, Nuka has figured out that the local soothsayer will feed and house him if he’s willing to cook, clean and cockwarm for him, and Nuka is more than happy to do all of those things. He’s also more than happy to help Mads with his clients in any way necessary, and is planning to help Mads save the mysterious person he met in his vision, too, because it turns out he just kind of likes helping Mads with stuff. You can read Nuka’s full character profile here!

Aaron: A spider marching in the Crab Company, Aaron is the most skilled magic user of his generation, and possibly of all time. In the wake of an unspeakable tragedy that took the life of his sister and three million others and for no comprehensible reason, Aaron has drawn too strongly on the Web, the source of all human magic, and is now about to be torn apart by its power. Because he is about to die and the world has no meaning anyway, he has decided to travel to the centre of his enemies’ world, the tower that anchors creation, and destroy it. You can read Aaron’s full character profile here!

Seth: Seth is just an ordinary soldier, but he can’t well let his best friend go off and die alone, not when he, too, has realized that human lives have no meaning as long as they’re controlled by gods. He was in love with Aaron’s sister, never realizing that it was Aaron who loved him, and now that she’s dead and Aaron’s about to die, he has no reason to keep going. He figures at least he’ll die fighting for something that matters, for once. You can read Seth’s full character profile here!

Jesse: A prostitute-oracle for a goddess called the Lady of White, Jesse peddles sex and fake prophecies for devotees in exchange for donations to the temple. Despite being a true oracle, his prophecies are rarely listened to, and despite being a boy, he is barred from working at the temple of the Owl with its male oracles down the street. All that changes when the Owl himself comes to Jesse seeking a prophecy, and offers to change Jesse’s life in exchange for, well, everything in Jesse’s life. Not a hard decision. You can read Jesse’s full character profile here!

Derel: A god of knowledge, wisdom and the moon, Derel Haman Va’Rada is also known as the Owl. His people have lost something important to them and are suddenly not doing well in a war they should be winning handily, and so with nobody to ask for suggestions, he turns to a human oracle in hopes that he will learn something that will help him quell the tide of human uprising. What he learns instead will set in motion a series of events with consequences nobody can foresee. You can read Derel’s full character profile here!

Klaus: One of the last true spiders from before the Web was shattered, Klaus is a general in the fight against the gods, and an old man who was betrayed and now lays dying in a mountain. In his final moments, a god comes to him and offers him a choice–rather than fighting a losing war on a losing side, create a third side and allow victory that way. Taking the god up on his offer will change Klaus, the war, and the world, forever. You can read Klaus’s full character profile here!

Rawen: A fire god who was known as Lord Matchstick in the early years of the war, Rawen Janaj He’Matke does not believe that his people deserve dominion over the earth any longer, and is looking for a way to take that from him. And he knows how to do that, too. By giving a certain power he has found to a certain group of humans, he is sure he can change the tide of history in his favour. You can read Rawen’s full character profile here!

Amy: A Spider in the Crab Company as they march to a peace summit in the city of Thunder’s Falls, Amy can’t help but feel worried even though the war is almost over. All she wants is peace, for herself and her friends, and for her brother, who gets older an older with every battle, and who she knows won’t survive the Web much longer. A chance meeting with a goddess in a field isn’t normal, and it leaves Amy with an even worse feeling. Something terrible is going to happen at this peace summit, she’s just sure of it. You can read Amy’s full character profile here!

Meryan: A nature and spring goddess, as well as goddess of dancing and fertility, Meryan Gendan Do’Rovva is extremely powerful but not particularly interested in the war, especially as it’s being waged in hopes of killing her beloved Nathen. She has come to the peace summit not to negotiate, but to see her love again, though she can tell something is wrong, and must merely hope that this feeling is only a feeling. You can read Meryan’s full character profile here!

Charlene: A disillusioned member of Klaus’s Spider Company, Charlene doesn’t care that her new power has turned her into a monster as long as it lets her kill the gods who destroyed her family and the world. Charlene has been sent to steal the sword of Nathen Jerrel De’Kerken, a powerful symbol that might also be a powerful weapon, but she has become convinced by the growing human opinion that Nathen is a soteriological god who will save everyone when he comes back, and therefore refuses to give the sword to her compatriots and instead hides it–and herself–in a cave, away from everyone, for millennia. You can read Charlene’s full character profile here!

Jocelyn: Leader of the Black Witch clan, Jocelyn and her husband have a plan. On the night of her son’s birthday, which is also her niece’s birthday, she kidnaps the baby in an attempt to bind to her a powerful magical artifact that will allow Jocelyn an unprecedented level of power. But when the ritual goes wrong thanks to her useless son James, Jocelyn, her husband and their other two children are put in a position of having to fight the remainder of their family in order to flee and fight another day. You can read Jocelyn’s full character profile here!

Ian: A slave from a young age, Ian knows his place in the world, and that place is wherever his master wants him to be. It’s nice that he gets to have a friend in Theodore, but it’s at his master’s pleasure and it stops after a while. Until he changes hands, becoming the property of Theodore, and is forced to watch his friend and master lust after younger boys, younger slaves, until the day Ian’s freedom arrives. You can read Ian’s full character profile here!

Darwin: A young man of many names, Darwin, as he calls himself on occasion, is a prodigious wizard, a skilled acrobat, a genius and completely incapable of getting his life together. One bad situation after another pushes him further and further from who he wishes he was, and when everything is taken from him, what other choice does he have but to cling to the hope that maybe, he can still change the world? Maybe this time it’ll be different. You can read Darwin’s full character profile here!

Giles: A young mage, Giles knows the future, so he knows he’s not going to be a young mage forever. He’s going to grow up to be king of Dolovai and more importantly than that, he’s the only person who knows how to stop the world from ending. Unfortunately, that means he’s going to have to make some substantial sacrifices, including closeness to his beloved Yancy. You can read Giles’s full character profile here!

Yancy: A teacher of history and light magic at the academy for magecraft, Yancy has recently concluded his lifelong hunt for the chosen one of prophecy by bringing the chosen one of prophecy back to the academy. As much as he would have liked to retire after that, Yancy has a lot left to do now that magic has been restructured completely. Fortunately, he has a box of love letters from his lifelong love Giles to keep him going and provide him with guidance when he needs it. You can read Yancy’s full character profile here!

Denver: An escaped slave turned sailor who now serves as morale officer on a trading ship called the Coral Witch, Denver sees every problem as a boner and he’s got two holes to help deflate those. With a bunch of passengers on his ship suddenly, Denver has a choice of who to visit first, but he’s got his priorities. One of the passengers is a real, honest-to-God dragon, and Denver is going to fuck him, many times. Any feelings that might arise from that are secondary and will be dealt with later. You can read Denver’s full character profile here!

Louis: A real, honest-to-God dragon, Louis is only on this ship because he went to go save his stupid friend and got stuck, and flying over the ocean is really hard. He doesn’t get his friend’s obsession with humans and he doesn’t do feelings, but he sure does sex so when a human comes up and bothers him to ask for a meaningless fuck, Louis is happy to lay back and let him do all the work. Until he very suddenly starts to understand what the big deal is with humans, or at least this particular human, and by then it’s too late, Louis is in too deep to go back now. You can read Louis’s full character profile here!

Frederick: A castle servant turned page to Prince Franz, Frederick spied on him for several months before switching to spying for him. The fact that he has a vast network of friends everywhere is very useful for that, because they’re all servants and servants see everything. Frederick’s parents died when he was young, and he lacked proper family for a long time until he found Franz and Boey and Dragon and Donovan, and with his best friend Silas there and his girlfriend Abby just a few minutes away, Frederick is happy with the life he’s got. You can read Frederick’s full character profile here!

Silas: An orphan who happens to be Frederick’s best friend, Silas has a chronic illness that, unbeknownst to him, was being leveraged to keep Frederick compliant. Now that he’s in the care of Prince Franz, nobody has to be compliant, and Silas is training as a scribe to pay him back for his kindness. Though chagrined to discover that Frederick had a girlfriend, he’s since made friends with her and is now in the process of trying to make his dumb-as-a-post best friend realize that they’re more than just friends. You can read Silas’s full character profile here!

Benedict: Loyal butler to Theodore, Benedict has made his choices in life and he’s content with them. He loves Theodore but isn’t loved in return, but that’s okay. Someone has to be there to look out for Theodore’s safety and keep him together as boy after boy leaves him, and that’s Benedict’s job, more than washing dishes ever will be. His life may be haunted by the ghosts of all the boys who have left, but Benedict is willing to let that happen if it means protecting Theodore. He’ll do anything to protect Theodore, including hiring a killer to take out his enemies for him when he’s not looking. It’s all part of a butler’s duties. You can read Benedict’s full character profile here!

Ozzy: An assassins with a guild called the Empty Moon, Ozzy has found a new best friend–and a friend at all–in Daniel and isn’t going to let him go, even if it means breaking a rule or two that the guild will never find out about. He’s been a contract killer for his whole young life, and he’s not afraid of anything, but he sure does hate the situation that his new best friend is in. Ozzy plans to stay as close to Daniel as possible because eventually he’s going to need protecting or rescuing, even if he doesn’t want them, and Ozzy will be there when that becomes true. You can read Ozzy’s full character profile here!

Leo: A squire in the kingdom’s order of knights, Leo’s old mentor was killed by a wraith and he finally got his wish: a knight who will fuck him properly in accordance with tradition. Well, not properly, since Wyatt isn’t very good at sex, but some sex is better than none, right? Leo isn’t very good at being a knight, he knows that, but he wants to be, so he’ll put everything he can into these boring patrols in the hopes that someday something cool will happen that he’ll be able to help with. He should have already learned that getting what he wants is never quite the good thing he imagines it to be. You can read Leo’s full character profile here!

Todd: An unwilling castle servant to the Sorcerer King, Todd is not a good person and he doesn’t try to be. In fact, if the king is to be believed, he’s not even a person at all, just a piece of shit. Todd believes that, more and more he can’t help but believe it. He knows he’s worthless and that his life is meaningless, but that’s okay, because there’s one person in the world who he knows cares about him, so he’ll just make that person happy. Maybe that’s a way for him to matter. Maybe that’s a way for him to be something other than the castle butt-boy again. Maybe. You can read Todd’s full character profile here!

Oliver: Oliver is an apprentice to the great mage Yancy, and was on his questing party to find the chosen one. And now, because they’ve brought the chosen one to the academy, something terrible has happened to him, and terrible things are happening everywhere else too, and all Oliver wants is to be able to help fix something, anything. He’s nearly fully trained, so as far as he’s concerned, it’s time for him to stop letting Yancy do everything and actually put some work in himself. Isaac deserves it, after all. You can read Oliver’s full character profie here!

Aria: The daughter of a clan of sorcerers who wasn’t born with potential for sorcery, Aria lived a quiet life until her childhood friend approached her for help in unseating a psychopath and saving the world. Taking on the last name Hammertooth, Aria embarked on a career as a mercenary, where she nearly immediately gained fame and fortune. In living this life with Cleo, however, Aria has never lost sight of her main goal. You can read Aria’s full character profile here!

Cleo: Formerly known as Sylvia of Clan Netzer, Cleo is the eldest child of Solomon the Sorcerer King and is committed to defeating not only him, but his dangerous allies as well. With Aria at her side, Cleo has made allies and alliances that she hopes will help her do this, and has recently reunited with one of her estranged brothers as part of a growing alliance against their father. You can read Cleo’s full charater profile here!

Skip: A student at the mage’s academy, friend and roommate of the chosen one, boyfriend of a sorcerer prince and son of two harbour workers in Suder’s Port, Skip has a lot going on for an ordinary guy. But if his biggest worry is that his boyfriend gets treated poorly sometimes at school, then he’s probably doing something right, even if one of his friends is in a magical coma that turned him into a sex ghost. Skip can sit through an orgy now and then, if the people he cares about are involved. You can read Skip’s full character profile here!

Spencer: Formerly known as Saul of Clan Netzer, Spencer posed as a mage and a student at the academy under his father’s orders, but subsequently had a change of heart, stopped spying and is now making an effort to be a good person for his friends, for himself and most importantly for his boyfriend. He’s working on overcoming his shyness, just a little, and is suffering through his endless interrogations with grace, even if he’s uncertain about being reunited with his eldest sister. You can read Spencer’s full character profile here!

Dragon: Widely recognized as a good boy, Dragon is is a dog whose pack happens to include Prince Franz DiGorre. He has been with Franz through thick and thin to protect him from such things as horses and eating an entire meal, and plans never to leave Franz’s side, though he does also have a lot of his own stuff to deal with, including some impending puppies. You can read Dragon’s full character profile here!

Grey Rain: Known as Darby by most people, Grey Rain is an Enjoni werewolf who was kidnapped by demons and experimented on before being rescued by Prince Gavin’s coalition. Since then, he has ended up adopted by Gavin and Owen as their son. He looks up to Owen immensely and wants to be strong just like him and protect everyone, mostly importantly his Snowball. You can read Grey Rain’s full character profile here!

Daisy: Daisy is a former concubine of Solomon’s and is the father of his child, King Sam’s sister Delilah. Her duties in the castle relate entirely to taking care of Delilah, though most people, including her, would tell you that the king has a strange affection for her and won’t let anything happen to her. Her nephew Derek has been a great help in helping her survive the castle, and she hopes that one day soon they can leave together with Delilah. You can read Daisy’s full character profile here!

Bertrand: A former slave and would-be knight, Bertrand is actually just kind of a gross child molester who is so traumatized by his childhood being kept and used by a man named Theodore that he’s not really able to move on in any substantial way. And when presented with the opportunity to go back to the person who hurt him, Bertrand takes it without even stopping to wonder where that opportunity came from. You can read Bertrand’s full character profile here!

Beatrice: A relic hunter and thief, Beatrice tends towards the less ethical side of her business and has often found that the easiest way to acquire something is to wait for someone else to acquire it and then take it from when when they’re not looking, or when they are looking, but with violence. Surprisingly, this doesn’t always work out for her, and as of recently she’s been working with her old archrival Cal on his whole end of the world project, which is working out much better than she’d thought it would, all things considered. You can read Beatrice’s full character profile here!

Lillian: A sorcerer working with Beatrice for a number of years, Lillan was born Sarah of Clan Netzer. No longer motivated by her father’s goal of collecting the five stones, she is working with Beatrice, who is now her girlfriend, on Cal’s team to defeat her father, among other people. During an assault on a demon fortress, Lillian acquired a pet in the form of a demonic chimera bear named Carrie. You can read Lillian’s full character profile here!

Bob: An officer in the law enforcement arm of the Temporal Bureau, Roberto C. Johnson (he prefers Bob) is the officer assigned to the planet Nova, among others. He spends a good deal of time on Earth as well, where he’s recently been hanging out with Cal and helping him retrieve a series of antiques that have all gone missing, and also an indeterminate amount of time operating in paradoxical times and spaces where his activities aren’t properly monitored. You can read Bob’s full character profile here!

The Sea King: An amalgam of three (now four) souls, the Sea King is a powerful magic user whose collective souls have formed into one identity that remembers only snippets of his past lives. He awoke recently when his regalia was collected, possessing a fourth body, that of a sailor named Nate, and taking over a pirate armada in a bid to control the seas. This unfortunately failed due to a series of unforeseen interventions, and the Sea King now resides in G’djeck Castle with the Sorcerer King at the behest of a dark shadow, plotting with the Sorcerer King to kill their mutual would-be puppeteer, and longing to return to the sea, where he feels whole. You can read the Sea King’s full character profile here!

Belle: A former member of the Spider Company, Belle has been a demon working under Cameron for a good few millennia now. She has carried out many monstrous tasks in service to the greater good she serves, and regrets a good many of them. But she still believes she is on the right side, even now that the side’s goals have changed. She is working with the reunited Spider Corps on a plan that she wishes she understood but has to believe is the right thing to do. You can read Belle’s full character profile here!

Trevor: A slave living in northern Merket, Trevor is one of many owned by Theodore, and is the oldest. This always made him next in line to be freed, but he wasn’t expecting his freedom to some so quickly and with so much cruelty. At least he has his best friend Al with him to help him navigate the wide open world he’s now free to explore. You can read Trevor’s full character profile here!

Al: The second-oldest of Theodore’s slaves, he was set to be freed along with Trevor because Theodore never frees a slave alone. Al is still angry at Theodore and blames him for the death of his fellow slave Denny, and is happy to be away from him. Between that happiness and a need to provide security for Trevor, he is able to overcome his fear about being uncollared and face the world head-on. You can read Al’s full character profile here!

Odin: Owen’s cousin, Odin works as a helping hand around his uncle and aunt’s inn in the small town of Great Scar. He isn’t that good at it and he isn’t that invested in being good at it, but he is pretty sure that if he keeps at it, someone will one day walk in his door while he’s polishing a glass and sweep him off onto a grand adventure involving dashing heroics, legendary exploits, and lots of sex. When someone actually does walk in the door, he responds by accidentally pouring beer all over the guy who seems primed to sweep Odin off his feet. You can read Odin’s full character profile here!

Murph: A visitor to the town of Great Scar, Murph and his family have been travelling for a long time and think they may have finally found a place to settle down. His dads may have been impressed by the town’s welcoming atmosphere, need for their skills and the widespread use of sign language, but Murph’s favourite part of Great Scar so far has been the cute, fumbling innkeeper who greeted them with a bad song and a crash, and he hopes that they can get to know each other better, if Odin will just stop dropping stuff long enough to talk to him. You can read Murph’s full character profile here!

Jay: A member of the Black Witch Clan, Jay is James’s maternal cousin. Skilled in metallurgical witchcraft and not a whole lot else, Jay has recently decided he should try to get his life together a little better than it has been. He’s got his first full-time boyfriend despite himself, and he knows Tanner loves him, which is crazy to him. Though everyone around him seems to know what they’re doing, Jay is determined to find his own way through life, maybe with just a little help from his family. You can read Jay’s full character profile here!

Tanner: A small-time mercenary living in Teown’s Sound, Tanner rescued Jay from an eight-year-old pickpocket one day and they’ve been together ever since. They dated for many months without realizing they were dating, but they’ve now figured that out and Tanner is taking the fact that Jay invited him to an important family event to be an encouraging sign. Tanner knows he can’t take Jay out of the forest, so he’s just quietly taking stock of what he’s going to need when he eventually moves into the forest, because he’s pretty sure he isn’t willing to part with Jay. You can read Tanner’s full character profile here!

Mathilda: The matriarch of the southern Blood Cliffs, Zmnatch’gykldyra’djdzarkyln, or Mathilda as her friends call her, is a very busy dragon what with maintaining her territory, her colony, her hoard, her friendships, the safety of the world, and keeping her cave’s décor up to date. She is content not to let most humans realize the extent to which she is involved in their affairs, and doesn’t feel it necessary to let them know that she is older than their oldest conflicts. Despite being the busiest and most important person in the world, Mathilda still finds time now and then to enjoy a quiet moment with her two favourite offspring, affectionately known as Malachi and Michael. You can read Mathilda’s full character profile here!

Ashton: The fourth son of House Murkwain, Ashton freed his family of the obligation to support him by joining the order of knights. He became squire to Her Highness Sir Gabrielle, who gave him the very best training the order could offer. Now about to be anointed, Ashton is looking forward to his new posting as a personal bodyguard to Prince Gavin and his family, and is hoping that his best friend Warren remembers a stupid promise they made about their future when they were in training. You can read Ashton’s full character profile here!

Warren: A squire of the Dolovin order about to be knighted, Warren was trained by Sir Devin and was a member of Her Highness Sir Gabrielle’s retinue, which was a pretty big step up in the world for him, coming from the lower quarter of Lonely Peak. He’s about to move up more as he’s knighted and put on Prince Gavin’s retinue with his best friend, life partner and secret (so secret he doesn’t even know it) boyfriend Ashton. You can read Warren’s full character profile here!

Percy: Sir Percy is a knight of the Dolovin order, considered a solid knight by all, and one who does his duty well and even tends to go above and beyond the call on occasion. This includes in the training of his squires, who he’s very hard on in the hopes they’ll be better than him. Percy’s most recent squire, his long-lost son Ty, is the best trainee he’s ever had and is pushing him to be better too, and Percy is looking forward to a long future with him. You can read Percy’s full character profile here!

Ty: A squire in the Dolovin order, Ty is good friends with Edwin and Leo and is trained by his father Percy, who fathered him during his own knightly training. Ty is ecstatic to be able to fulfill all the duties of a squire with his dad, and puts everything he has into his training. He has big ambitions, including but not limited to being a battlefield commander, being more than casual about his relationship with Edwin and Leo, and making his dad proud of him. You can read Ty’s full character profile here!

Vinnie: A former slave belonging to Theodore, Vinnie was freed when he developed the powers of a mage, per Dolovin law. He is now a student at the academy for magecraft, where he does okay academically and struggles a little bit with admitting when he wants things, such as wanting to date his roommate Hemi and his friend Moira, who are dating each other and whose repeated jokes about loving him are definitely only jokes. Vinnie isn’t the only former slave at the academy and he feels it’s only right for him to do what nobody was able to do for him, and to make sure that every academy student knows that the academy is a place where they’re wanted and where they belong. You can read Vinnie’s full character profile here!

Helena: The lady of the noble House Quate and an advisor to King Gerard, Helena is Dolovai’s spymaster and maintains a vast network of informants and agents who are committed to helping her maintain Dolovai’s safety and security. Juggling work and her only son Hector, she works tirelessly to keep her kingdom safe from threats ranging from minor lords getting a little uppity to powerful entities with even larger networks of connections than her. She doesn’t yet know who her shadowy enemy is exactly, but she’ll find out soon and make them realize the consequences of crossing her and threatening her kingdom. You can read Helena’s full character profile here!

Ray: Born and raised in a cage under Pelican Bay as part of the Sorcerer King’s experiments, Ray has now been freed by his two heroes and is finally able to go on the adventure he’s always dreamed of to the places he’s always heard about, and he couldn’t be happier with his new freedom. A little confused about why everyone finds his cat ears and tail so sexy, Ray is rolling with it and exploring his sexuality (and the sexuality of several other people) as he explores the world with his new team, making all his dreams come true. You can read Ray’s full character profile here!

Twig: A squire in the Dolovin order, Twig has bucked his family business (crime) in order to reform the justice system. He’s something of a prodigy who has been saddled with an unfortunately mediocre mentor in Sir Stan, who doesn’t see past his big mouth to recognize his full potential, and likes to punish him for being right about stuff. Fortunately for Twig, he’s being transferred to the much less mediocre Sir Owen, a mentor who fits his personality (confidence) and his work style (competence) much more than Stan ever did. You can read Twig’s full character profile here!

Ned: A demon who isn’t that committed to being a demon, Ned has worked with the Spider Corps for centuries, and has been on many critical missions despite his clumsiness, nervousness, and general discomfort with everyone and everything around him. Ned is a widower who still misses his brother and husband Edgar, and hasn’t been overly successful at moving on from his disappearance. Currently, Ned has been assigned to spy on Sir Edwin the Stalwart, who has been gifted an angelic sword, and is doing so by living in his keep and eating his cookies. You can read Ned’s full character profile here!

Garrett: A student at the mages’ academy, Garrett has had a crush on Isaac for a long time and is excited to finally go out with him. He can’t help but feel intimidated by Isaac even if Isaac is the nicest, coolest and generally best person he’s ever met, but it’s okay, because Isaac being the chosen one doesn’t mean he doesn’t need normal people in his life. If anything, he needs a normal guy like Garrett more than anything, and if there’s one thing Garrett wants to be, it’s what Isaac needs. You can read Garrett’s full character profile here!

Robby: A native of Techen’s Stand, Robby has big aspirations to become a knight, aspirations made all the more powerful when he met Edwin, who changed his life. Not long after meeting Edwin, Drew came along with Lyren and changed Robby’s life again. Despite the voices they put in his head, Robby has been enjoying his life as Edwin’s little brother and is loving seeing more of the world than Techen’s Stand. Recently accidentally freed from Lyren’s influence, Robby is determined to make sure he and Drew can’t hurt anyone else. You can read Robby’s full character profile here!

Maple Song: A werewolf in the Sunwood Pack, Maple Song knows that the real measure of a boy isn’t how big he is, but how big a thing he has inside him, and he has a lot of room inside him! He lives in Narwhal Junction’s Horn District with his pack, missing only his beloved Shadowwatcher, the pack’s Smoke Breather who lives in the Cold Quarter and also is sometimes in jail because Imperials are terrible. But Maple Song is going to rescue him and he’s going to take care of everyone who matters to him and he’s going to grow up to lead the Sunwood Pack better than anyone has ever led it before, and he’s going to make Shadowwatcher proud (and horny) doing it! You can read Maple Song’s full character profile here!

Dream Fox: A werewolf in the Sunwood Pack and Maple Song’s cousin, Dream Fox is quieter and smarter than Maple Song, not that either is particularly hard. He loves Shadowwatcher just as fiercely, though, and trusts him just as implicitly as he does the rest of his family. He kind of wants to be the pack leader when he grows up just so Maple Song doesn’t do it, but he actually thinks he’d make a good Smoke Breather and has been watching Shadowwatcher’s work carefully until he’s old enough to formally ask Shadowwatcher to train him. You can read Dream Fox’s full character profile here!

Lionel: The patriarch of an important family in the village of Great Scar, Lionel is grandfather to Owen and Odin, among others. He lives a quiet life with his family in Great Scar, far more interested in the life he’s built there than the one he left behind in the Amaran Mountains dragon colony. Lionel is happily married to his wife Ophelia and has been happy to continue to pass as human for decades, but now that Great Scar and, more importantly, his grandchildren are threatened, Lionel has decided that there are more important things in the world than being what people expect to see, and he will do anything to protect his family. You can read Lionel’s full character profile here!

Natalie: The captain of the Sparkling Wind and then the Coral Witch, Natalie is a sea merchant with a lot of experience and a strong reputation. She is Nate’s mother and now also the mother of a number of other other crew, and she is not at all displeased with this. Her former husband was killed in a storm years ago, and recently Natalie has begun dating former passenger Sharon, a death goddess who proved too interesting even for Natalie to ignore. As she sails to free her son from the Sea King, Natalie knows she’ll succeed, because her whole family is with her. You can read Natalie’s full character profile here!

Sharon: Otherwise known as Sheheren Janaj He’Sseri, Sharon is a death goddess from Clan Janaj and mother of Rawen, with whom she has had an acrimonious relationship ever since Rawen killed her husband Mekran to steal his powers, without success. For many centuries Sheheren has been living quietly, avoiding Rawen and trying to solve the world’s oldest mystery: that of the people who lived on their planet and died out even before the gods appeared. Now dating Natalie, Sheheren is delighted to have a family again, and hopes to even reconcile, however slightly, with Rawen, if only because the world is literally ending all around them. You can read Sharon’s full character profile here!

Neville: Stephan’s companion, Neville has been protecting Stephan since he was a child and plans to keep doing that until both of them are dead. He opposed the coup attempt but supported Stephan when he decided to go through with it, immediately putting together an exit plan to get Stephan north to safety. It went a little awry, but he and Stephan are now safe in Merket, part of Cassius’s hoard, where Neville is content to be as long as Cassius and Cyrus make good on their promises to keep Stephan safe. You can read Neville’s full character profile here!

Javier: Geoffrey’s companion, Javier’s family are refugees from Ech’kent who settled near house DiSheere’s lands. Javier was selected to be Geoffrey’s companion and they’ve been taking care of each other ever since, Javier helping Geoffrey control his impulses and Geoffrey helping Javier feel safe when he needs to. Javier supports Geoffrey unconditionally, even when he doesn’t totally agree with what he’s doing, and wants to do his best to make sure his best friend lives a long and happy life, no matter how unlikely the world wants to make that prospect. You can read Javier’s full character profile here!

Janus: The young lord of southern House DiCrawe, Janus ascended to his position far too young after the death of his mother and has been forced to navigate more than one coup and a civil war since then. He’s ended up married to Geoffrey DiSheere, which was entirely political except that it only happened because he had a huge crush on him from the minute they met. Now living in the king’s harem with most of Kyaine’s other noble boys, Janus is ruling his house and his lands from afar, trying to keep his husband from doing anything stupid, and trying to keep them all alive until things go back to whatever normal really is. You can read Janus’s full character profile here!

Elias: An admiral in the Dolovin navy, Elias Aerchon came from very little and built himself into the man he is today through hard work and a determination to be better. As admiral, he was primarily concerned with the threat posed by the ever-encroaching Empire, and felt that it was his duty to fend off that threat by any means necessary. Unfortunately, others disagreed with his methods, and Elias was arrested in Pelican Bay and stripped of rank, and then brought to Three Hills to await a trial. You can read Elias’s full character profile here!

Matthias: Another knife-sibling, Matthias was brainwashed into being a priest in Lyren’s cult for some time. With Lyren’s death, he has been freed from the cult, and is now seeking shelter on the Coral Witch with his brother Pax. Matthias isn’t totally sure what he wants to do with his life, so for now he’s just helping out his siblings, learning to sail and trying to decide where he’ll be happy, which is a big challenge for him considering he’s never had to decide on his own where to go before. You can read Matthias’s full character profile here!

Pierre: Odin’s little brother and Owen’s cousin, Pierre unofficially helps out at the inn when Odin is too useless or horny to do it. He pretends this is so he can help out his aunt and uncle, and it kind of is, but actually the biggest reason he does it is because Odin has a private room there and Pierre likes to fuck Odin in it, and also to have easy access to his other fuckbuddy Murph. Having recently overcome a kidnapping and some bandit troubles, Pierre now has a group of former bandits to boss around all the time, which he’s decided is an okay tradeoff for not getting horns like his brother did. You can read Pierre’s full character profile here!

Lee: A teacher of mental magic at the academy for magecraft, Lee is dedicated to making sure her students thrive and succeed not just at magic, but at life. She cares a great deal for her students and works tirelessly to look out for them, but also works tirelessly to solve various mind-control related problems, such as protecting the survivors of a sex cult, stopping a spider demon and finding out who at the academy is a traitor. She’s not supposed to have favourites, but she counts the chosen one as her favourite student and not just because he’s the first real protégé she’s ever had. You can read Lee’s full character profile here!

Jerry: A dragon in the Amaran colony, Jerry was fairly dominant as far as the colony’s hierarchy went. He had many offspring that had survived to adolescence and adulthood, and was well connected and had good relations with many of his siremates and the other dragons. Jerry had withdrawn a little from colony politics to protect his favourite offspring, a shapeshifter unable to assume draconic form. Later, he withdrew further as he was affected by a strange magic that compelled him to go to Three Hills and kidnap a human named Gavin ven Sancte, which ultimately ended with his death at the hands of another human named Owen, whose dauntlessness proved to match his skill. You can read Jerry’s full character profile here!

Arky: Ayrkanumone is an imp created of divine magic before the Catechism War to be a librarian, who now serves Mathilda in her quest to own and/or protect (he’s not entirely clear on the distinction for her) everything across two worlds. In that capacity he carries out a number of errands, mostly keeping an eye on people she wants followed. He spends a substantial amount of his time with Cal and his team, partly because they’re important to all upcoming apocalyptic events, but partly because he enjoys their company even if he’s pretty sure they don’t enjoy his. You can read Arky’s full character profile here!

Holly: A squire in the Dolovin order, Holly left home to join the order her father worked for, only to discover he was dead when she got there. Her period as a squire has been marked by the violence of several of her friends dying early on, forcing her to learn early that that’s just how being a knight works. Now mentored by Sir Elaine, Holly is a member of Prince Gavin’s retinue of guards. She doesn’t imagine she’ll stay there for her whole career, but while she’s there she’ll do her best to make sure nobody else she cares about dies. You can read Holly’s full character profile here!

Stuart: A squire in the Dolovin order, Stuart’s uncle is the captain of Three Hills’s city guard, and his father, brother, cousins and are guardsmen as well. When Stuart bucked his family’s expectations and chose to become a knight instead, he was not applauded for this decision, but he stuck to his convictions and went through training. He now squires under Sir David and is a member of Prince Gavin’s retinue, and he’s increasingly confident not only that he’s made the right decision, but in the person who he knows he’s becoming. You can read Stuart’s full character profile here!

Hugh: One of Theodore’s many slaves, Hugh is the oldest after Trevor and Al have left, and is anxious mostly because he wants some structure in his life and doesn’t know what’s going to happen to him. What he does know is that thanks to Daniel upending everything in his life, he now has a boyfriend and fuckbuddy with feelings, and he’s planning to become part of a dragon’s hoard, which he thinks will make him happy and provide him the future plan he wants in life. You can read Hugh’s full character profile here!

Marcus: One of Theodore’s slaves, Marcus was the boy who Daniel replaced, and resented that at first. Now, he’s gotten over his resentment and is trying to find things and people who make him happy without Theodore. He’s got his friends and he’s definitely found a person who makes him happy in Daniel, and another one who makes him differently happy in Ozzy. Now that he’s been freed by Theodore, Marcus is hoping to build a life together with both of them. You can read Marcus’s full character profile here!

Simon: The youngest of Theodore’s slaves, Simon was bought to replace Daniel, but then replaced by Daniel again, and honestly he’s not upset about that in the slightest. Having finally accepted that his family won’t be trying to buy him back, Simon is determined to make his own life, and is forever grateful to Daniel for helping him do that and helping him get away from Theodore, even though it means he has to leave Daniel behind. He currently lives with his girlfriend Ana and her dads and works as a waiter in their restaurant, and is planning to cut all his hair off as soon as he can. You can read Simon’s full character profile here!

Kelvin: The captain of the Temporal Bureau’s Department of Temporal Law Enforcement, Kelvin is a former assassin who now runs the timeline’s biggest and only crimefighting unit with remarkable efficiency. He is known for his exacting standards, his knowledge of the rules and his occasional willingness to break the rules when those rules are inconvenient. He’s currently very concerned about his missing agent, and plans to break whatever rules he can to find him, possibly with the help of his husband Wendel. You can read Kelvin’s full character profile here!

Robin: Another of Pax’s siblings, Robin is Pax’s favourite brother. He lives in Narwhal Junction, where he interferes with local politics and has recently become an advisor to an Imperial prince, and is dating a werewolf who prefers to be called Wally. Robin is content to be the supporting character in the lives of his loved ones, as long as there’s occasional room for him in their storylines, because it’s easier to overthrow the government from the background anyway. You can read Robin’s full character profile here!

Callie: Pax and company’s eldest sister, Callie is currently interfering in Imperial politics at the behest of Dominic, and sleeping with the daughter of a minor Imperial noble house at her own behest. Living in Qoilivar, Callie works most of the time, because it turns out destroying society is a lot of work. She is planning to attach herself to the retinue of the oldest Imperial prince soon, so she can have a chance to return to Dolovai and see her siblings. You can read Callie’s full character profile here!

Roberta: The youngest of Pax’s sisters, Roberta remains faithful to Dominic and is rather miffed that he went missing and told Pax and Prince Franz but not her. She mostly runs information for him and keeps him connected to Dolovai’s criminal underground, in which she remains a major player. Through this network, Roberta has a close ear on everything that’s happening on the criminal side of Dolovai, which is bigger than people like to think it is. You can read Roberta’s full character profile here!

Ariel: The Angel of Unflinching Magnanimity, Ariel poses as a human apprentice mage at the academy in Three Hills in order to maintain a series of important barriers around the academy and the city, which are integral to protecting things far beyond the academy and the city. She runs the academy’s mail room and always makes time to help the students who come in there, while also taking frequent trips to other parts of the city to make sure everything is in good working order. Recently, Ariel has been somewhat bothered by someone trying to destroy the world under her nose, and is enlisting the help of some personages she doesn’t talk to often in service of stopping them, though ultimately she thinks she and her mortal friends can probably handle it. You can read Ariel’s full character profile here!

Hector: The heir to House Quate, Hector grew up with a spymaster for a mother, and got better at politics than he wanted to be at any age. He arranged an agreement not to be political with his friends, but then was the first one to break that agreement, and feels bad about that. He’s likely not going to inherit his mother’s spy network when he inherits her lands and titles, but that’s okay because he knows he wouldn’t be very good at it anyway. He’s very happy that when he does end up inheriting things, though, he’s likely do it with his boyfriend Boey at his side. Hopefully Boey will even be his husband by then. You can read Hector’s full character profile here!

Georgina: The royal consort or, informally, queen of Dolovai, Georgina ven Sancte is a dedicated wife, mother and public servant who believes it is important to do whatever is necessary to protect her family and her kingdom. She handles a few select affairs of the kingdom that aren’t important enough for her husband Gerard to worry about, and tries to make sure her children Gabrielle and Gavin are happy, while also trying to nudge them towards a little bit of pragmatism, as she finds them both way more idealistic than she remembers being at their age. You can read Georgina’s full character profile here!

Gerard: The king of Dolovai, Gerard ven Sancte comes from a long line of kings and queens, and though his succession was slightly contested by his twin sister, who unfortunately died in a fire before her claim could be fully heard, clearing up the succession issue with a personal tragedy. Gerard has overseen two and a half decades of peace and prosperity, but his reign is increasingly marked by a concern over Imperial expansionism that’s going to become a problem very soon. As he worries about that, he also hopes that his children can be happy and healthy, which he’s quite pleased to see that they, at least currently, seem to be. You can read Gerard’s full character profile here!

Devin: A knight of the Dolovin order, Devin spent some time in a mercenary company before joining the order as an older boy, and took a while to come around to the order’s way of insisting on discipline. But he stuck with it and is now a high-ranking knight, and personal friend and head bodyguard of Sir Gabrielle. He is considered to be next in line to become the next knight commander, and though his has experienced a number of personal tragedies including the death of his daughter, Devin remains fully committed to the order, which he considers his family. You can read Devin’s full character profile here!

Alse: The Emvel Prime of the underwater imperium of Ran Errevir, Alse Nonth-Mel is very young for his role and often ends up being bullied by his advisors, some of whom are his siblings who think they should have been elevated to his position instead of him. But he’s now got the support of the sky people in his claim, and is married to Louis and Denver as part of that alliance, who are very happy to have nonstop sex with him but also not get him pregnant, which he isn’t ready for just yet, and he’s very happy to help them fight the Sea King in exchange. You can read Alse’s full character profile here!

Nathen: A river god who once famously went insane and started killing everyone in a quest to purify the world from corruption and evil, Nathen Jerrel De’Kerken was killed at Thunderfall, saving the universe from his attempt to destroy it. Nathen is an incarnation of the Right Hand of Creation, a cosmic entity that partially created the universe, then decided the universe had been made incorrectly and must be destroyed. Since his death, Nathen has been reincarnated forty-two times on Nova, and has been a driving force in the development of the planet across the millennia. His current incarnation is Cal Tanner, and in Cal Nathen appears to be stronger than ever and possibly almost able to come back and take back and finish the work he started in his own lifetime. You can read Nathen’s full character profile here!

Arty: A guard in Sam’s castle, Arty is a little softer than his co-workers, including the former captain of the guard, his older brother. Made to act the thug to fit in with the other guards and avoid seeming weak, Arty began using the castle butt-boy Todd regularly, only to accidentally fall in love with him and start courting him. Arty is now fully committed to protecting Todd as best he can, but also hurting Todd as much as Todd deserves and wants, at least until Todd asks him to leave, which he has promised never to do. You can read Arty’s full character profile here!

Gloria: Niece to the current king, Gloria is a secondary member of the royal family and she knows that, despite also knowing that her mother should have been monarch. Unfortunately her parents perished in a mysterious fire that everyone but her believes was an accident, leaving Gloria with little claim to much beyond her family’s immense wealth, status and power. Not quite satisfied with those things, Gloria has dedicated herself to greater causes with the help of various others, and works behind the scenes to protect her family, which also occasionally has benefits for her, such as in her current plan to marry an Imperial prince for world peace. You can read Gloria’s full character profile here!

Syber Python: A combat android built exclusively to seek and destroy a dangerous interdimensional monster, Syber realized that fulfilling his mission would also mean enacting a genocide against his own people and chose not to do that, instead joining the Temporal Bureau, where he is now a Lieutenant in the Department of Internal Security. He is working on many active and important cases and is also mentoring two promising cadets, while trying to get his best friend to notice him romantically and carrying on a new friendship with a civilian he met on Earth during a day off. You can read Syber’s full character profile here!

Solomon: The former Sorcerer King and head of Clan Netzer, Solomon was an ordinary sorcerer until certain events drove him to cruelty, madness and grandiose delusions of saving the world that may or may not have been true. He murdered his entire clan, set up several experiment sites, made allies of some of Nova’s most terrible people, and conquered Ech’kent as its king, then proceeded to be very terrible to his children as he enacted various plans across Menechit and the world. He was killed by Henry with a little help from Sam, but recently came back as a ghost for a brief period of time, which wasn’t fun for anyone. You can read Solomon’s full character profile here!