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Cast of Characters
(as of the end of Ashes of the Sun)
Yora’s crew in Deepfire
Yora—daughter of the famous failed revolutionary Kaidan Hiddenedge, and leader of a group of thieves and rebels opposed to the rule of Dux Raskos Rottentooth. Killed by Tanax in the centarchs’ ambush of her group.
Gyre Silvereye—also known as Halfmask for the mask he wore to hide his missing eye. See the series recap.
Sarah—an arcanist and scavenger. Badly wounded by blaster fire in the centarchs’ ambush, losing an arm.
Nevin—a thief and Sarah’s boyfriend. Disappeared after the centarchs’ ambush.
Ibb—a scavenger. Abandoned the group for civilian life when Kit’s assignments proved too dangerous.
Harrow—a scavenger and animal handler. Tunnelborn, with a crush on Yora. Killed by a ghoul construct on one of Kit’s assignments.
Lynnia Sharptongue—an elderly alchemist and a close friend of Yora’s, with many connections to the underground.
Kitsraea Doomseeker (“Kit”)—a famous scavenger, secretly working for the ghouls of Refuge. Ultimately traveled with Gyre and Naumoriel to Leviathan’s Womb, and was mortally wounded in the confrontation atop the Leviathan. Gyre transferred her mind into the construct’s analytica, and she currently inhabits its swarm of construct bodies.
Government of Deepfire
Dux Raskos Rottentooth—appointed governor of Deepfire for the Republic. Venal and corrupt. Maya exposed his involvement in a smuggling ring, and he fled Deepfire ahead of orders for his arrest.
Guria Fairshot—head of Deepfire’s Auxiliaries and Raskos’ right-hand man. Arrested after Maya exposed Raskos.
Ghouls of Refuge
Naumoriel—Minister of the Exterior for the city of Refuge. Obsessed with restoring the Leviathan and using it to destroy the Order, he tasked Kit with finding the necessary arcana. Ultimately killed by Gyre to prevent the Leviathan from being unleashed on humanity.
Elariel—Naumoriel’s young assistant and Kit’s handler.
The Twilight Order
Maya Burningblade—agathios to Jaedia, later a full centarch. See the series recap.
Jaedia Suddenstorm—a centarch. Master to Maya and Marn and former agathios to Basel. Kept away from the Forge and Order politics. Ambushed and taken over by a “black spider,” she traveled to Leviathan’s Womb with Nicomidi before being confronted by Maya, Tanax, and Beq. Broke the black spider’s control to save Maya and was saved by her in turn, but lapsed into a coma afterward.
Marn—agathios to Jaedia. Captured by dhakim, and later rescued by Maya. Sent to the countryside to recover.
Baselanthus Coldflame—a Kyriliarch of the Council, leader of the Pragmatic faction. Master to Jaedia. Originally installed the Thing into Maya’s body.
Nicomidi Thunderclap—a Kyriliarch of the Council, leader of the Dogmatic faction. Master to Tanax. Revealed as a traitor to the Order, and allied to the spider-controlled Jaedia. Killed by her at Leviathan’s Womb when he outlived his usefulness.
Prodominus Scatterbolt—a Kyriliarch of the Council, leader of the small Revivalist faction. Has a reputation for eccentricity.
Evinda Stonecutter—a centarch, well respected and politically neutral.
Va’aht Thousandcuts—a centarch, member of the Dogmatic faction. Originally took Maya from her home and destroyed Gyre’s eye.
Tanax Brokenedge—agathios to Nicomidi, later a full centarch. A rival to Maya on their first mission as agathia, but became an ally once his master’s treachery was revealed. He and Beq are the only ones who know about the link between Maya and Gyre.
Varo Plagueluck—a scout and friend of Maya’s. Notorious for his disaster stories.
Bequaria (“Beq”)—an arcanist and Maya’s lover. Went to Leviathan’s Womb with Maya, and knows about her link with Gyre.
Series Recap
At eight years old, Gyre is playing with his five-year-old sister, Maya, when their vulpi farm is visited by the centarch Va’aht Thousandcuts, who announces that Maya must come with him to join the Twilight Order. Maya doesn’t want to go, and Gyre tries to stop the centarch, stabbing him with a small knife. Va’aht cuts out Gyre’s eye in punishment before taking Maya away.
Twelve years later, Maya is agathios to the centarch Jaedia Suddenstorm, with few memories of her early life. While on a mission, she encounters a mysterious black spider in control of a human body, which seems to recognize her and calls her sha’deia. Concerned, her mentor leaves on a secret assignment, while Maya is sent out with a team of trainees including Tanax—a student of Jaedia’s enemy Nicomidi Thunderclap—Varo, and Beq.
Meanwhile, Gyre works with a team of rebels—including the elderly alchemist Lynnia and arcanist Sarah—in the city of Deepfire, fighting against the Dawn Republic and the local Dux Raskos Rottentooth. Privately, he searches for the legendary Tomb, the dead city of the ghouls, hoping to find power to overthrow the Order. Kit, the only person who has ever found the Tomb, comes to offer him a deal: He and his friends will help her secure the Core Analytica, and she will guide him to the Tomb.
Gyre’s group accepts the mission, but the search proves dangerous. Some of his friends are killed, and Raskos’ forces raid their base. To convince Gyre to stay with the plan, Kit introduces him to her handlers, the ghouls Elariel and Naumoriel. The Tomb is the supposedly extinct ghouls’ hiding place, which they call Refuge. Naumoriel promises Gyre power if he secures the Core Analytica.
After a first assignment tracking down slavers, Maya’s group is sent to Deepfire to assist Raskos against the rebels. Maya distrusts Raskos and, snooping, discovers evidence he is working with Nicomidi. She and Beq sneak out into the city and meet with Sarah, who tells them about a secret warehouse that holds the spoils of Raskos’ corrupt dealings. When they return, Raskos asks them to spring a trap on the rebels.
Kit has discovered the trap and convinces Gyre to go for the Core Analytica—stored in the warehouse—rather than help warn the others. Maya attempts to talk the rebels down and promises to investigate Raskos, but his troops start a fight and a bloodbath ensues. Sarah is badly wounded, and most of the rebels are killed. Furious, Maya rushes to the warehouse, looking for proof of Raskos’ crimes.
When she gets there, she meets Gyre and Kit, and they end up fighting. Gyre is no match for Maya’s power, but she lets them escape without the Core Analytica. Excessive use of her power has left her feeling ill, and when Tanax catches up, he tells her that she’s under arrest for treason. Jaedia has gone rogue, killing Order forces, and Maya is under suspicion.
Gyre discovers that the ghouls have abandoned him and Kit has given up hope. He convinces her to take him to Refuge to ask for another chance. They find their way to the city, where they’re captured by Naumoriel. He agrees to give Gyre the power he needs to fight the Order, though at great cost—Gyre receives implanted augmentations, enhancing his combat abilities.