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    The SunSoar Family 

A family of Icarii Enchanters, the SunSoar family has ruled the Icarii since the race's inception.


Tropes Applying to the SunSoar family as a whole:

  • Big, Screwed-Up Family: They have devolved into this in The Wayfarer Redemption due to inter-familial conflict and Axis and Azhure's blatant Parental Favoritism and neglect. Even before that, the SunSoar curse of incest causes a great deal of drama and love triangles within the family.
  • Blessed with Suck: So you're born into the SunSoar family? Congratulations, due to the father of your race cursing your ancestor in exchange for giving the Icarii the gift of flight, you can't find everlasting happiness in a romantic or sexual relationship with anyone outside of your family. And since the Icarii don't have a great birthrate, you're unlikely to have anyone for a very long time, if at all. You can be with someone outside of your family, but the relationship will never last.
  • Kissing Cousins: Due to a curse on their bloodline, the SunSoar family is doomed to only find lasting happiness with other SunSoars. Only Parental Incest and Brother–Sister Incest are considered unclean and forbidden. Any other familial relations are fair game.
  • Theme Naming: Given that many of them are Enchanters, many of them have "Star" somewhere in their names. The ones that don't were either given Acharite names or are not magical.

Axis SunSoar

The protagonist of the first half of the Wayfarer Redemption. Axis is the bastard son of the princess Rivkah and an unknown father. Abandoned to die at birth, he was raised by the Seneschal and became a trained soldier, winning him the command of the Senechal's armies as the BattleAxe. However, when icy wraiths begin to appear at the kingdom's borders, Axis is forced to question his parentage and learn of his place within a great prophecy that threatens to destroy Tencendor.
  • Abusive Parents: Apart from Caelum, who was Axis' favorite, Axis was a terrible parent to his children, ranging from neglectful (RiverStar and Zenith) to outright abusive (Drago, The Unfavorite).
  • Brought Down to Badass: Axis loses his powers as the God of Song at the end of Sinner. It doesn't stop him from being a One-Man Army.
  • Cain and Abel: The Abel to Borneheld's Cain. Downplayed in that Axis, while The Chosen One, is not a very pleasant person.
  • The Casanova: Axis wins the hearts of many a woman throughout the series.
  • Dangerous Forbidden Technique: Axis has a unique affinity to channel the Star Dance, but drawing on too much power risks killing him. He does it anyways to save his men from nearly a thousand gryphon, but doing so not only rids him of his ability to hear the Star Dance, it leaves him as a half-dead charred corpse in endless pain until Azhure heals him.
  • Fate Worse than Death: After failing a Heroic Sacrifice, Axis is left a burnt corpse in constant pain. His generals are in awe that he's not dying of his wounds and even suggest trying to Mercy Kill him before Azhure shows up to save him.
  • Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: His weapon of choice is the sword, contrasting with Azhure's choice of the bow.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: Axis attempts to give his life to save his men from 900 gryphons. Subverted when he's left a shambling, burnt corpse in constant pain, unable to die. WolfStar needed him to fulfill the Prophecy, after all. Azhure saves him with the power of the Star Dance.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Axis is an extremely flawed hero. He has temper problems, he acts without thinking, he is a serial womanizer, and he is brutally honest to the point of cruelty. However, he does have a heart deep down and deeply values Tencendor and its people.
  • Kissing Cousins: Downplayed. Axis and Azhure are vaguely related given Azhure is WolfStar's daughter, but compared to the rest of the SunSoars they are only very distant relatives.
  • Like Father, Like Son: Axis is revealed to be a great deal like his father StarDrifter despite the two having been kept apart for years. They're both blonde womanizers and both great Icarii Enchanters.
  • Magnetic Hero: Axis' charisma and natural Icarii grace enable him to win the hearts and loyalty of many throughout the series and is one of his greatest weapons, as he is a fantastic public speaker.
  • My God, What Have I Done?: Axis' reaction to how he treated Azhure at the end of Enchanter when he thought she was WolfStar and invaded her mind to find out her secrets. He never stops regretting that and makes sure to make things right as best as he can.
  • Offing the Offspring: He nearly kills his son DragonStar because the latter tried to have Caelum killed and only stops after Azhure inflicts Death of Personality on him instead.
  • Physical God: He becomes the God of Song at the end of StarMan, having defeated his rival Gorgrael for the position.

Azhure SunSoar

Supposedly the daughter of Hagen, a Priest in service of Artor, Azhure never fit in with the rest of her village. After killing her abusive father and rescuing two Avar who were captured passing by her village, she travels to the Avar seeking sanctuary. While it was refused to her there, she joined Rivkah in living with the Icarii, learning of her own secret heritage along the way and falling in love with Axis.
  • Action Girl: Azhure eventually becomes The Goddess of the Moon and Hunt and in this role she kicks no small amount of ass.
  • Betty and Veronica: The troubled badass Veronica to Faraday's gentle Betty.
  • Broken Bird: At the start of the series due to how much abuse she's suffered at the hands of her father. She gets better over the course of it.
  • Dark and Troubled Past: Azhure watched her mother get murdered at the hands of her father at age 5 and was physically abused by him for over twenty years.
  • Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: Her weapon of choice is the bow, contrasting with Axis' chosen weapon of the sword.
  • Kissing Cousins: Downplayed. Axis and Azhure are vaguely related given Azhure is WolfStar's daughter, but compared to the rest of the SunSoars they are only very distant relatives.
  • Parental Neglect: Zenith calls her out for having neglected all of her children but Caelum, shipping them off to StarDrifter and taking little interest in them in favor of spoiling her firstborn son.
  • Physical God: She becomes the Goddess of the Moon and Hunt during the course of StarMan.
  • Purple Is Powerful: Azhure has purple eyes and is destined to become the Goddess of the Moon.
  • Rain of Arrows: One of her abilities after she becomes The Goddess of the Moon.
  • Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Azhure is described as pale and dark-haired and has no shortage of admirers once she leaves her village and joins the Icarii.
  • Scars Are Forever: Azhure has massive scarring all over her back due to her father's abuse. It's so bad she's unable to ever grow wings as Hagen dug any last trace of them out of her.

StarDrifter SunSoar

Axis' father and a powerful Icarii Enchanter. StarDrifer, true to his name, is somewhat of a drifter and playboy, uninterested in ruling. He fell in love with the princess Rivkah at first sight, causing the events of the first series to unfold.
  • An Arm and a Leg: He has both his wings torn off by the Hawkchilds. Water heals them in the Darkglass Mountain trilogy.
  • The Casanova: StarDrifter is a very desirable Icarii man who can make women fall in love with him near instantly.
  • Characterization Marches On: In The Axis Trilogy StarDrifter is a blatant womanizer and insensitive ditz. Come The Wayfarer Redemption he has matured into the Only Sane Man in the SunSoar family and has plenty a callout to give to both Axis and Azhure. It's mentioned that becoming a grandfather to several neglected grandchildren and spending time meditating in the south of Tencendor greatly matured him.
  • Everyone Loves Blondes: StarDrifter is blonde and is universally beloved, even in his Jerk with a Heart of Gold days.
  • Happily Adopted: Downplayed. He was RiverStar, Drago, and Zenith's primary caregiver when Axis and Azhure essentially abandoned them to raise their favorite son Caelum. They all seemed happy with his parenting and he loved them all, even though he was uncomfortable with RiverStar's advances on him.
  • Handsome Lech: In The Axis Trilogy he's portrayed as one due to him getting into a love triangle with Axis over Azhure. This is heavily downplayed in the following series.
  • Ladykiller in Love: Despite his Casanova ways he fell in love with Rivkah at first sight and married her as soon as he could free her from the Seneschal. Later deconstructed as Rivkah grew old and they fell out of love with one another, resulting in their divorce.
  • Only Sane Man: In The Wayfarer Redemption he is often the only sane man dealing with the rest of his Big, Screwed-Up Family and their antics.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: He's one of the few SunSoars to not openly hate Drago and give him a chance after what he did as a baby.
  • Will They or Won't They?: After helping rescue Zenith from WolfStar, they have a romantic arc. Ultimately they don't, as Zenith is murdered by the Hawkchilds and StarDrifter is magically transported to Coroleas.

Caelum SunSoar

Axis and Azhure's first son and heir to the House of the Stars. Caelum is both his parents' clear favorite and is poised to rule over all of Tencendor- At least, until rebellion springs. Caelum was kidnapped by Gorgrael as a child, leading him to bitterly despise his younger brother, Drago, who conspired with Gorgrael to have him killed.
  • Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: When Caelum interacts with someone he likes, he's mostly polite and reasonable. But put him in the same room as Drago or Zared at the end of Sinner and he'll turn into a massive prick without hesitation. He even killed RiverStar, his sister, because she claimed to be pregnant and was going to blackmail him, then implanted False Memories into Drago to frame him for the murder.
  • Cain and Abel: The kind Abel to DragonStar's Cain. Later reversed as Caelum grew up into a Spoiled Brat and Drago became humbled into a sour, but ultimately soft-hearted man.
  • The Caligula: His short reign over Tencendor was nothing short of disastrous, plunging the realm into a bloody civil war before things got even worse as the TimeKeeper demons arrived.
  • The Chosen One: Subverted. WolfStar was sure that Caelum was the chosen StarSon, but he was nothing but a decoy for his younger brother DragonStar.
  • Parental Favoritism: Deconstructed. Caelum was adored by his parents, but this only resulted in him becoming a Spoiled Brat Jerkass who was entirely unprepared to take on the responsibility of ruling over all of Tencendor. Meanwhile, his siblings all suffered in various ways due to Caelum obviously being the favorite over them.
  • Spoiled Brat: Caelum got all of his parents' love and attention. It did nothing but turn him into an entitled, spoiled Jerkass.

DragonStar "Drago" SunSoar

Axis and Azhure's second son, DragonStar was aware of his massive Enchanter power since conception and resented his status as second son, attempting to have Caelum kidnapped and killed to take his place as heir to the House of Stars. When this plot was uncovered Azhure reversed his blood order, dooming him to a mortal's life and destroying any sentience he had at that point.

He returns as the protagonist of the Wayfarer Redemption's second half, as he is the prophesized StarSon that must defeat the TimeKeeper Demons.


  • The Archmage: He becomes the most powerful Enchanter ever in Pilgrim after awakening and mastering his Acharite magic.
  • The Atoner: After being manipulated into bringing the Demons from beyond the Star Gate, Drago promises to spend the rest of his days making up for his mistakes.
  • Back from the Dead: He dies twice in Sinner, once by jumping through the Star Gate and then by the TimeKeeper Demons draining his body of all life and magic and reducing it to nothing but a bag of bones. He gets better with the power of the Charonites and Faraday.
  • Because You Were Nice to Me:
    • Drago is extremely protective of Zenith due to her being kind to him despite being kept from him as a young child.
    • The Charonites repay Drago back for allowing their souls to finally pass on by giving him a way to come back to life after the TimeKeeper demons consume his life force and Icarii magic to enter Tencendor.
  • Big Brother Instinct: He's the only person in his immediate family to care for his youngest sister Zenith and the two have a strong sibling bond.
  • Byronic Hero: In Sinner. Drago is a brooding, miserable person who nevertheless is described as handsome and has a heart of gold. He becomes a more straight hero after Character Development in the subsequent books.
  • Cain and Abel: The Cain to Caelum's Abel. Later reversed as they grew up, with Caelum developing into a Spoiled Rotten Jerkass and Drago being humbled into a Jerk with a Heart of Gold Byronic Hero who undergoes character development into a Messianic Archtype.
  • Came Back Strong: After coming back from the dead a second time he becomes able to wield Acharite magic.
  • The Chosen One: He's the true StarSon and the one destined to defeat Qeteb.
  • Contrasting Sequel Main Character: He's the main character of the second half of The Wayfarer Redemption and foils his father Axis.
  • Cursed with Awesome: He had his blood order reversed by his mother Azhure as punishment for having threatened Caelum's life. While this did have real downsides such as making him mortal and locking away his Icarii magic, Drago is only able to activate his more powerful Acharite magic because of the reversal of his blood order, which proves critical to defeating the Demons.
  • Death of Personality: The cruel Enfant Terrible seen in StarMan was essentially destroyed by Azhure reversing his blood order. Unfortunately for him, no one forgot what that child did and Drago ended up suffering for it.
  • Enfant Terrible: As a baby. DragonStar recognized he was meant to be The Chosen One and arrogantly demanded to be made the heir to the throne, going so far as to conspire with Gorgrael to get Caelum killed.
  • Evil Redhead: As a baby. His evil is erased after his mother reverses his blood order and inflicts Death of Personality on him.
  • Friend to All Living Things: Even as a child, animals adored Drago and would come up to him to give him affection when no one else would. This is a sign he's the real chosen one.
  • Hero with Bad Publicity: Justified given his attempted murder of Caelum as a baby. Very few people trust Drago and he was framed for murder, furthering lowering his reputation until he returns from beyond the Star Gate.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Initially Drago is a sour, fatalistic person. However, he has a hidden heart of gold under it all and is especially protective of his little sister Zenith.
  • Karmic Jackpot: His tending to an injured Belaguez is later repaid when Belaguez is brought back from the dead and becomes his steed.
  • Like Father, Unlike Son: DragonStar is unlike Axis in nearly every way. While Axis was a womanizer, Drago has little interest in romance until he meets Faraday. Axis is a blonde, Drago is a redhead. While Axis is a Half-Human Hybrid with music-themed Enchanter powers, Drago's Enchanter powers were locked away from him and he instead becomes a wielder of Acharite magic through the use of written sigils. And finally, unlike his father, who prefers the sword, DragonStar is a sorcerer who sometimes wields a bow.
  • Muggle Born of Mages: Justified. His mother Azhure sealed away his magic by reversing his blood order. Later subverted when he comes back strong from beyond the Star Gate.
  • Names to Run Away from Really Fast: DragonStar, a flat out cursed name to the Icarii given that the first DragonStar was WolfStar's son. Subverted in that Drago becomes a much better person and retakes his name DragonStar after this Heel–Face Turn.
  • Pet the Dog: Even in his Anti-Hero days he would sneak out of Carlon to tend to Belaguez, whom Axis left to die after his leg was injured. Belaguez later returns the favor by becoming his mount after he's brought back to life.
  • Strong Family Resemblance: He looks a great deal like WolfStar, and WolfStar's son DragonStar looks so identical to him that Caelum mistakes the older DragonStar for his brother Drago.
  • The Unfavorite: He is blatantly the unfavorite of the SunSoar family, living his life under house arrest in Carlon and being excluded from all familiar matters.

RiverStar SunSoar

Axis and Azhure's first daughter and DragonStar's twin, RiverStar initially went along with anything DragonStar planned. When he had his blood order reversed, RiverStar nonetheless became an outcast within her family, becoming a cruel and spiteful woman.

Her death sets off the plot of the second half of the Wayfarer Redemption series.


Zenith SunSoar

Axis and Azure's second daughter. Zenith is one of the few people to befriend Drago and considered herself an outcast within the SunSoar family. She is or at least was intended to be the reincarnation of Niah, Azhure's mother.
  • Loss of Identity: Her arc revolves around the trauma she has with her body housing two souls, hers and her grandmother Niah's.
  • Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: She is described as being very pale with dark hair, just like her mother.
  • Reincarnation: Played for Drama. Zenith carries Niah's soul. However, Zenith has her own identity and is horrified at the thought of losing herself to her own grandmother. This drama gets her sexually assaulted, her body stolen, and grief and trauma until she dies.

WolfStar SunSoar

The most infamous of the Icarii Enchanters and SunSoar family. Hundreds of years ago, WolfStar was previously Talon of the Icarii. While he was Talon, he decided to experiment on the Star Gate, the source of the Icarii's magic, by hurling hundreds of Icarii children inside, including his niece and his wife and unborn child after they conspired to have him removed from the throne. He was finally killed by his cousin and his name was cursed ever since.

However, WolfStar has mysteriously come back to life, manipulating events and figures to his own ends...


  • Asshole Victim: WolfStar is subjected to horrific abuse by the TimeKeeper demons when they catch him using Qeteb's residual magic to bring Niah back to life as a living weapon. Given the kind of horrible person he is it's not undeserved.
  • Barred from the Afterlife: Both WolfStar and StarLaughter's final fates see them both banned from entering The Field of Flowers for their heinous crimes, forcing them together in death in the cold void.
  • The Caligula: WolfStar's reign was the worst in Icarii history due to his near-total massacre of all Enchanters due to throwing any child who had magical potential through the Star Gate. He seems to be less insane after returning from death, but it's a very well-crafted Mask of Sanity.
  • Control Freak: While WolfStar believes he holds all the cards, he's Faux Affably Evil and downright charming as he manipulates everyone around him. As soon as anything goes off the rails, he devolves into cruelty, bitterness, and spite.
  • Eaten Alive: He is killed by being ripped apart and eaten alive by the Hawkchilds.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Subverted. For all of WolfStar's flaws, he did seem to genuinely love Niah and Azhure, his daughter. He seems to be so desperate to revive Niah after Zenith forcibly ejects her from her body that he is willing to use the Demons' magic... Only for his inner monologue to reveal that he got bored of Niah and he only intends on turning her into a weapon to curry favor with the other SunSoars. As for Azhure, as soon as she stops blindly obeying him he turns on her as well.
  • Evil Redhead: He has coppery hair and is a sociopathic Manipulative Bastard.
  • Faux Affably Evil: He can be charming and polite enough as long as he thinks he'll get what he want. But his mask slips as soon as people become unwilling to do what he wants.
  • Human Sacrifice: He tossed hundreds of children into the Star Gate.
  • It's All About Me: WolfStar is eager to help Tencendor... Only as long as he's given all the credit and things go according to his plans. The second anything goes off the rails WolfStar stops playing nice and shows his true evil colors.
  • Jerkass: WolfStar's defining trait is arrogance, even more so than the other Icarii.
  • Karma Houdini: In the original Battleaxe trilogy, as none of the heroes are powerful enough to make him face justice for his vast list of crimes.
  • Karma Houdini Warranty: In the Wayfarer Redemption, He's ripped apart alive by the very Hawkchilds that he threw into the Star Gate hundreds of years prior after getting away scot-free in the original Battleaxe trilogy.
  • Karmic Death: The Hawkchilds, the corrupted and twisted souls of the children he threw into the Star Gate, get the last laugh on him and devour him alive piece by piece.
  • Karmic Rape: He's raped for the TimeKeeper Demons for their amusement and to placate StarLaughter, one of his many victims. This takes place after he raped Zenith and was complicit in Niah subjecting her to Mind Rape.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: After raping Zenith he's soon subjected to the same fate by the TimeKeeper Demons.
  • Mad Scientist: In his heyday as Talon of the Icarii he ordered that Enchanter children be thrown into the Star Gate to try to learn more about it and the Star Dance. This seemingly killed each and every child thrown in.
  • Manipulative Bastard: WolfStar is the absolute king of this trope, playing all sides of the conflict against one another and securing his own ultimate victory in the Axis Trilogy. He poses as The Dark Man to manipulate Gorgrael and get him to lose the war, Morrison to raise Axis and groom him into becoming a warrior with little loyalty to the Seneschal, as a prophet to the last of the Charonites so they would sacrifice themselves for his plans and as a god to bed Azhure's mother and conceive her to give Axis a wife with SunSoar blood. That thousands of people died or had their lives completely destroyed due to his manipulation means nothing to him.
  • Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: He came off as a Control Freak with an Omniscient Morality License in the Axis Trilogy. In The Wayfarer Redemption, his true colors are revealed as only caring about his own personal glory and agenda, everyone else be damned.
  • Parental Incest: He almost makes moves on Azhure, his own daughter, before controlling himself.
  • Pride Before a Fall: WolfStar dismisses the Hawkchilds as mere pawns of the Demons. They're the ones who finally do him in rather than the Demons themselves.
  • Purple Is Powerful: His purple eyes denote him as a very powerful Icarii Enchanter. He's arguably the strongest Enchanter who isn't a Physical God.
  • Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil: WolfStar's rape of Zenith is meant to show that he's utterly selfish and Beyond Redemption, a far cry from the Well-Intentioned Extremist he pretends to be.
  • Together in Death: In a Laser-Guided Karma way. He's barred from the afterlife alongside his completely insane wife and forced into a cold corner of the void for eternity.
  • Trauma Conga Line: In the Wayfarer Redemption. He loses his Enchanter powers, is captured by the TimeKeeper Demons and is horrifically abused and raped for their amusement, is left to fend for himself in The Maze, is kidnapped by StarLaughter, and only escapes by nearly killing himself. He is later ripped apart by the Hawkchilds and Barred from the Afterlife and forced to remain with his Yandere wife. However, given how utterly morally repugnant he is and his long list of crimes, these events are less humanizing and more karmic punishments.
  • Villain with Good Publicity: Downplayed. The Icarii loathe him, while Axis and Azhure only respect him because he was instrumental in their ascension as gods. Once they learn WolfStar is using demonic magic to bring Niah back to life, they are revolted and horrified.
  • Voluntary Shapeshifter: He has the ability to take on any form he chooses with the power of the Star Dance.

Niah

A Priestess chosen by WolfStar to bear his child, mothering Azhure.
  • Death Equals Redemption: She atones for her crimes by committing suicide, taking Rox with her. Zenith is shown embracing her in the afterlife after this selfless act.
  • Grand Theft Me: Pulls it on her granddaughter Zenith to gain an Icarii body.
  • It's All About Me: After pulling a Grand Theft Me on her granddaughter Zenith, Niah justifies her behavior by saying she was "owed" it for all the pain she endured, caring not one bit about Zenith's suffering.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: After pulling a Grand Theft Me on Zenith, Niah is punished by Zenith forcibly taking control back from her body, forcing her soul into her unborn child's body, then forcibly aborting and crushing the fetus. Then even later she is the victim of Grand Theft Me from Rox, one of the TimeKeeper demons.
  • Man on Fire: How she died the first time. Hagen threw her into their fireplace and held her down, burning her alive.
  • Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Just like her daughter Azhure, Niah had black hair and very pale skin, making her exotically beautiful to most Acharites.
  • Reincarnation: Played for Drama. WolfStar promised her he would reincarnate her after she died in exchange for the horrific suffering she would endure in her current life. While he keeps his promise, he hijacks his own granddaughter's body to do it, leading to terrible consequences down the road.

StarLaughter SunSoar

WolfStar's wife and formerly Queen of the Icarii. She was killed after being thrown into the Star Gate by WolfStar. However, in the second half of the Wayfarer Redemption, WolfStar hears her voice coming from the other side...
  • Ambition Is Evil: WolfStar calls her out on always having been evil given that she conspired with him to have his brother killed so WolfStar could take the throne.
  • Barred from the Afterlife: Both WolfStar and StarLaughter's final fates see them both banned from entering The Garden for their heinous crimes, forcing them together in death in the cold void.
  • Broken Bird: The millennia she spent on the other side of the Star Gate did nothing to help her sanity.
  • Came Back Strong: After making a deal with the TimeKeeper demons, StarLaughter gains the ability to wield some of their magic, making her a frightening adversary.
  • Deal with the Devil: She willingly made a deal with the TimeKeeper Demons in order to get revenge against WolfStar.
  • Hazy-Feel Turn: After Qeteb takes over her son's body, StarLaughter realizes how awful the Demons are and forsakes them, though she's too insane and full of hatred to properly make a Heel–Face Turn.
  • Heel–Face Door-Slam: She had a Heel Realization seeing how awful of a ruler WolfStar was and was conspiring to kill him With their son DragonStar to save the Icarii people. Unfortunately for her, WolfStar figured this out and threw her into the Star Gate before she could realize her plan.
  • If I Can't Have You…: She and the Hawkchilds murder WolfStar because he refuses to come back to her.
  • Mama Bear: She held onto her mostly-dead son for thousands of years in the cold depths of space and decided to help the Demons thinking they would return her son to life. Qeteb making it clear that she was tricked is what makes her turn on the Demons.
  • Mask of Sanity: She barely holds onto one, and it's fully shattered after Qeteb takes her son's body for his own.
  • Roaring Rampage of Revenge: She just barely holds onto a Mask of Sanity, but the entirety of her mind is consumed with a singleminded desire to take revenge on WolfStar for murdering her and her child.
  • Sanity Slippage: She starts just barely holding on to a Mask of Sanity and it is utterly destroyed after Qeteb is reawakened. By the time she dies StarLaughter has managed to believe WolfStar really loves her (despite him saying to her face that he never did) and that Zenith is keeping him away from her.
  • The Watson: Her main purpose in Pilgrim is for the TimeKeeper Demons to explain their plans to the audience without relying on As You Know. She takes a more active role in Crusader after abandoning the Demons after they betray her. Lampshaded by the Demons, who get annoyed at her repeated questions but deem her more useful alive than not for the moment.
  • Wild Card: In Crusader, where she's just as likely to help the heroes as harm them. All that's clear about her loyalties until she becomes determined to murder Zenith and WolfStar is that she's anti-demon.
  • Woman Scorned: She's come back from death itself with the help of Demons to take revenge on her former husband.

    Acharite Nobility 

Faraday

A young noblewoman betrothed to Borneheld. Faraday falls in love with Axis after he escorts her through Achar, leading to him promising to marry her one day. However, fate has other plans for Faraday...

Borneheld

Crown Prince of Achar and Axis' half-brother.
  • Abel And Cain: The Cain to Axis' Abel of out Rivkah's sons.
  • Arc Villain: Of Enchanter, being set up as Axis' antagonist in that book specifically and being defeated at the end of it, paving the way for StarMan's conflict to be against Gorgrael.
  • Awful Wedded Life: While he initially pledges to be a good husband to Faraday, once he realizes she has no interest in him and wants to marry his brother he openly reviles her and cheats on her.
  • Bastard Bastard: Is the illegitimate child of Rivkah and Serleas and is a real Jerkass.
  • Berserk Button: Comparing him to Axis. The Seneschal easily manipulates Borneheld to do their bidding with that simple comparison.
  • Child by Rape: The reason for his Unfavorite status. Borneheld is painfully aware of this.
  • Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: His hatred for Axis started when his mother apparently died in childbirth, making him resent Axis for taking her away from him. Unfortunately for Borneheld, his mother Rivkah hates him for existing as he was a Child by Rape.
  • The Evil Prince: He's the Prince of Achar and after some manipulation he murders his uncle the King to take over from him.
  • Green-Eyed Monster: Borneheld's worst Jerkass moments all have to do with being painfully aware Axis is more attractive and a better fighter than him.
  • My God, What Have I Done?: He deeply regrets having killed his uncle to take the throne, but he ultimately decides he's come too far to turn back.
  • The Rival: To Axis, his half-brother.
  • Sins of Our Fathers: His horrific method of death is demanded by the Gatekeeper for Axis to bring his cousin FreeFall back to life. Borneheld's father, Serleas, antagonized the Gatekeeper's daughter by trapping her in a jewel and torturing her soul. The Gatekeeper gets her revenge by demanding Borneheld be ripped apart while still alive and have his heart crushed.
  • The Unfavorite: He has the misfortune of learning soon before his death that his own mother, Rivkah, never loved him.
  • Unwitting Pawn: He's manipulated by the members of the Seneschal at every turn.
  • The Wrongful Heir to the Throne: While he's next in line for the Throne of Achar, Borneheld lacks the personal charisma or skill to rule. He's easily manipulated by the Seneschal and is clearly placed as Axis' inferior.

Belial

Axis' best friend and right-hand man.
  • The Lancer: He's Axis' voice of reason and Number Two man.
  • Undying Loyalty: To Axis, choosing to follow him into exile in the frozen North.
  • What the Hell, Hero?: He has two major moments towards Axis:
    • Belial is aghast when he learns that Axis plans to make Azhure and Faraday share him instead of just picking one. Axis tries to reverse it against him once Ysgryff shows up with Cazna (Who Belial had been sleeping with) and it turns out she's pregnant, but Belial claims he's proposed to Cazna already. Belial ends up telling Axis "Find me two more people to witness the marriage and I'll marry her right now." and does so.
    • Belial towards Axis and StarDrifter at the end of Enchanter when Azhure subconsciously used Dark Music and Axis thinks she's WolfStar and is about to kill her. Belial demands proof that she is a traitor or he will rise against Axis. Ysgryff and many others join in and Ysgryff even threatens to kill both of them if Azhure dies.

Timozel

One of Axis' soldiers and Lady Embeth's son. Timozel is desperate to prove himself in battle and pledges himself to Faraday as her Champion.
  • Brainwashed and Crazy: He receives Mind Rape from the Dark Man that forces him into Gorgrael's service, making him more and more fearful and paranoid and forcing him to turn to evil, making him nothing more than Gorgrael's puppet by the end of his life.
  • Evil Makes You Monstrous: He becomes uglier and uglier looking when Gorgrael claims his mind, looking more like a pale wraith than a human by the time Axis confronts him at Gorgrael's fortress.
  • Lady and Knight: What he intended by pledging himself to Faraday's service. It doesn't go so well for him, mainly because he's Locked Out of the Loop when it comes to Faraday's true intentions and purpose in traveling to Borneheld.
  • Mind Rape: He receives it from the Dark Man and Gorgrael both to force him into their service.
  • My Sister Is Off-Limits: Timozel's resentment of Axis starts because he immediately seduced Timozel's mom the moment he met her, leaving the boy with a Broken Pedestal involving Axis.
  • The Resenter: While he hides it well, he resents Axis for a variety of reasons, thinking Axis is shielding him from real battle because he's in a relationship with his mom.

Princess Rivkah

Axis' mother and former Princess of Achar, Rivkah was left to die after giving birth to Axis. However, she was saved by StarDrifter and now lives among the Icarii, occasionally coming down to help an Icarii or Avar in need.
  • Babies Ever After: The last we see of her, she is happily married to Margariz and awaiting the miraculous birth of her third son, Zared.
  • Cool Old Lady: Despite being much older than either Azhure or Faraday she quickly bonds with both of them and becomes their friend.
  • Mystical Pregnancy: Faraday gives her the gift of being able to bear another child after she laments she was unable to raise either of her sons.

Margariz

An old nobleman and friend of Rivkah's.

Prince Zared

Axis' half-brother by Rivkah and Margariz. Prince Zared inherits the Kingdom of the North, but he is later convinced to invade the Kingdom of the West after its ruler, Askam, became an ineffective tyrant.
  • Cain and Abel and Seth: The Seth to Axis' Abel and Borneheld's Cain. Zared was born much later than both his brothers and stood apart from their rivalry until circumstances forced him to take the Throne of the Acharites to restore their pride as a species and overthrow a tyrant, putting him into conflict with Axis.
  • Divine Right of Kings: Discussed. The Guilds in the West prop up Zared as legitimate ruler of the region due to his legitimate kingly bloodline, though they only do this after Askam proves himself unable to fairly govern the West.
  • Love Makes You Crazy: When Leagh loses her mind to the Demons he nearly goes mad with grief himself.
  • Second Love: Leagh is the second woman he loved after his first wife, Isabeau, died in a riding accident.
  • Star-Crossed Lovers: He loved Leagh since they were both children, but they were forbidden from marrying due to politics. Part of Zared's motivations to unite the kingdoms comes from wanting to have Leah as his wife.
  • Wonder Child: He was a gift to Rivkah (who should have been too old to conceive any more children) through the power of The Mother for showing Faraday kindness.

Princess Leagh

Belial's daughter and Princess of the Kingdom of the West. Leagh is forbidden from marrying her one true love, Zared.
  • Back from the Dead: She was effectively dead after being attacked by Sheol, but was brought back through DragonStar's power.
  • Mystical Pregnancy: While the pregnancy itself was initially ordinary, being brought back to sanity through DragonStar's magic transformed her child into a godly being throughout the rest of her term.
  • Star-Crossed Lovers: She loved Zared since they were both children, but they were forbidden from marrying due to politics. Part of Zared's motivations to unite the kingdoms comes from wanting to have Leah as his wife.

Prince Askam

Belial's son and Prince of the West.
  • Brainwashed and Crazy: He's driven insane by Sheol and used to kidnap Leagh in order to weaken Zared's mind.
  • The Caligula: He forgoes effective rule and prefers to gamble and make risky investments, crippling the West's economy after taking a bad debt and driving its people to rebel against him.
  • Crushing the Populace: What drives the people of the West into rebellion against him is Askam forcing crippling taxes on them and refusing to let any tradespeople move away from the province.
  • The Rival: To Zared. They are the Princes of the North and West of Achar respectively and Askam is constantly compared unfavorably to Zared.

    Other Acharites 

Jayme

A high-ranking member of the Seneschal who raised Axis.
  • Fantastic Racism: This is a given as one of Artor's most fervent followers. Jayme despises any of the Forbidden and disowns Axis for associating with them.

Moryson

A high-ranking member of the Seneschal who raised Axis. See WolfStar SunSoar

Hagen

Azhure's father, Mayor of Smyrton, and a fervent follower of the Way of the Plow.
  • Abusive Parents: He was deeply abusive of his daughter Azhure, beating her, treating her as a lesser being, and tearing out any trace of her Icarii wings over and over again until her back was covered in scars.
  • Fantastic Racism: He despises both the Icarii and the Avar.
  • Hate Sink: Hagen is one of the most despicable of the Acharites. He's a disturbed cult leader even by Way of the Plow standards, is deeply racist, and is an abusive monster to his daughter. No one weeps when he's killed by Azhure.

Jannymire Goldman

Master of the Guilds of Carlon and one of Askam's advisers.
  • Back from the Dead: Like Leagh, he's brought back from the dead to serve as one of DragonStar's witches.
  • Non-Action Guy: Justified as unlike a great deal of the cast, Goldman isn't a soldier.

    Icarii 
The Icarii are a race of winged humanoids who live in the mountains. They are capable of wielding the Star Dance, allowing them to cast powerful magic.
  • The Beautiful Elite: The Icarii race as a whole is described as otherworldly and beautiful while they live at the top of a mountain in luxury.
  • Break the Haughty:
    • In Enchanter, Axis gives the Strike Force a stern "The Reason You Suck" Speech when he finds out they're overall used to being untouchable from the air and completely fall apart as a military unit the second they no longer have an aerial advantage. He then teaches them how to properly fight.
    • In Pilgrim after the loss of the Star Dance, Icarii society as a whole falls apart due to the loss of the Star Dance due to their overreliance on it. They go from being The Beautiful Elite to reduced to starving in their mountain dwellings without light and heat, unable to leave for help lest one of the Demons drive them insane during the trip.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Azhure describes the entire Icarii race as this, stating that while at heart they can be good people, they're also really arrogant and are horrible at friendship.
  • Our Angels Are Different: The Icarii are essentially a fusion between elves and angels, taking the wings and divine power of angels and mixing it with the intelligence, long life, and arrogance of fantasy elves.
  • Terminally Dependent Society: In Pilgrim after the loss of the Star Dance, Icarii society as a whole falls apart due to the loss of the Star Dance due to their overreliance on it. They go from being The Beautiful Elite to reduced to starving in their mountain dwellings without light and heat, unable to leave for help lest one of the Demons drive them insane during the trip. If Axis and Azhure hadn't arrived and evacuated them the Icarii would likely have starved to death.
  • Winged Humanoid: The Icarii all have wings, given as a blessing by their race's progenitor.

SpikeFeather TrueSong

A member of the Icarii Strike Force.
  • Deal with the Devil: He swore fealty to The Ferryman in exchange for him agreeing to ferry the Icarii children to safety, becoming the Ferryman's apprentice. The children themselves also became privy to the waters' secrets and became the Lake Guard, the StarSon's personal guard.
  • Secret-Keeper: He becomes one to Orr the Ferryman after making a deal with him to save a group of Icarii children.
  • White and Red and Eerie All Over: While he's a nice person, he's notably striking for his white hair and dark red plumage and his deal with the Ferryman sets him apart from the rest of Icarii society.

WingRidge CurlClaw

One of the children taken to the underground rivers and ferried by The Ferryman to safety during the Axis Trilogy. He became Captain of the Lake Guard, a force sworn to carry out any and all wishes of the StarSon.
  • Enigmatic Minion: He swears fealty to the StarSon but his motivations are shrouded in mystery and he often does things that harm Caelum rather than help him. This is because Caelum isn't the true StarSon and his loyalty is really to Drago.

    Avar 
A race of forest-dwelling people with horns. The Avar are a race of pacifists who engage in Blood Magic and Human Sacrifice and who generally maintain the forests of Tencendor.
  • Blue-and-Orange Morality: The Avar as a whole have a strange morality system. They claim to be total pacifists and reject anyone who has murdered another, even in self-defense, but engage in horrific and nauseating blood rituals that make the other races highly uneasy.
  • Human Sacrifice: The Avar partake in sacrificial rites for the health of the forests, which sometimes includes the sacrifice of their own members.
  • Our Elves Are Different: The Avar are essentially druidic fantasy elves, most closely resembling Drow.
  • Principles Zealot: The Avar are called out on being suicidally pacifistic as well as hypocritical due to their obsessive hatred for any form of violence, including violence performed in self-defense, while they rely on brutal and gory animal sacrifice rituals to appease their god, The Mother.
  • Suicidal Pacifist: At their worst. The Avar have a reputation for never engaging in violence and resorting on letting the Icarii fight their battles for them. This is averted by some of the Avar people as individuals.

Barsabe

A Bane within the Avar.
  • Green-Eyed Monster: It's implied the real reason she rejected Azhure from living with the Avar is due to jealousy over the latent power Barsabe felt from her.
  • Jerkass: She never has anything nice to say about anyone.
  • Ungrateful Bitch: Azhure saved Shae from being killed by her village and was banished for her trouble. Barsabe immediately complains that she has blood on her hands from killing her horrifically abusive father and demands she leave the Avar's grove.

Isfrael

The Witch-King of the Avar. Isfrael is an Acharite, being Faraday and Axis' son, but he has renounced his Acharite heritage and was raised by the Avar since birth.
  • Do Not Taunt Cthulhu: He arrogantly thinks he can stand up to the Demons and goes to fight them with Shae. All it does is lead to her death, which starts his Sanity Slippage.
  • Les Collaborateurs: He willingly betrays the location of Sanctuary to Qeteb. What's worse is he's immediately Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves for it.
  • Love Makes You Crazy: Shae dying to the Demons starts the worst of his Sanity Slippage.
  • Misanthrope Supreme: Despite being an Acharite/Icarii by birth, he hates both of them and considers them inferior to the Avar in every way, shape, and form.
  • The Resenter: He resents his siblings for having had parents in their lives, no matter how neglectful Axis and Azhure were in raising their children. He also grows to resent his mother for her position among the Avar, seeing himself as being unable to escape her shadow.
  • Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: Qeteb rips him apart and eats him, mocking Isfrael for having believed he'd spare any of his people.
  • Small Name, Big Ego: Isfrael is utterly arrogant and egotistical as befitting his part-Icarii heritage, thinking he can stand up to the TimeKeeper demons. He's immediately put in his place and loses Shae, the woman he loves, for it.

    Charonites 
A race of people dwelling in the depths of Tencendor. The Charonites are long-lived and naturally curious, making them the perfect keepers of many of Tencendor's deepest and darkest secrets.
  • And I Must Scream: Their souls are trapped in the Rainbow Scepter after transforming into it, unable to pass on for decades. Drago finally frees them after jumping into the Star Gate in possession of the Scpeter, which they are grateful enough for to help Drago when he needs them most despite his past actions.
  • Riddle for the Ages: The second progenitor of the Charonite race is a mystery that is never revealed to the audience, as Urbeth refuses to reveal his identity.
  • Unwitting Pawn: The prophet they followed was really WolfStar in disguise manipulating them to his own ends. They were not happy when they found this out.

Yr

A playful, seductive Charonite woman with the ability to transform into a cat. Yr accompanies Faraday throughout the Axis Trilogy, becoming her friend and closest confidant.
  • Really Gets Around: Yr isn't at all secretive of her flings. She has many with various palace guards and Timozel over the course of the Axis Trilogy before she must leave and fulfill her part of the prophecy.
  • Voluntary Shapeshifter: She possesses the ability to transform into a cat at will.

Orr the Ferryman

An ancient Charonite who travels the underground rivers.

    Gods 

The Mother

The God of the Avar people. The Mother is a nature goddess who dwells within the forests of Tencendor.
  • Mother Nature: She is in essence the Tencendorian mother nature, representing the health of Tencendor.

    Primordial Gods (UNMARKED SPOILERS) 

Urbeth the Enchantress

A bear who wanders the glacial north, alternately helping or hindering depending on her mood. In truth, Urbeth is a primordial bear-goddess and one of the first living beings to have existed on Tencendor. She met Noah after he landed in Tencendor with the power of the Star Dance and she, along with several of her lovers, created the Acharite, Icarii, and Charonite races.
  • Action Mom: Three of the four main races descend from her and she is a total badass.
  • Adam and Eve Plot: She birthed the progenitors of the Acharites, Icarii, and Charonites. For bonus points, Noah even came from another world after his was destroyed.
  • Bears Are Bad News: Subverted. Urbeth is a fearsome and terrifying force that even ran circles around the TimeKeeper demons and many a seal has fallen victim to her. However, while Urbeth is quite grumpy about having to intervene in mortal affairs and would rather spend her time hunting seals, she helped the heroes several times and asked for nothing in return for it.
  • Grumpy Bear: Literally. Urbeth is a bear goddess and she is fairly irritable and sarcastic.
  • The Hecate Sisters: The Mother to her daughters' Maiden and Ur's Crone.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: For all that she might complain about it, she holds genuine love for the people of Tencendor and protects them however she can when push comes to shove.
  • Mystical White Hair: Urbeth's human form has pure white hair, denoting her as mystical.
  • Star-Crossed Lovers: When recounting Noah she described him as the only man that fully satisfied her. However, he had to make preparations to defeat the TimeKeeper demons and they presumably parted ways over this.
  • Trademark Favorite Food: Seals. Urbeth is often introduced to the protagonists bloodily ripping into a freshly-caught seal in both bear and human form.

Urbeth's Daughters

A pair of enchantresses who live with their mother Urbeth in the north. They have taken great interest in the matters of Tencendor and offered Faraday their help by transforming into her ever-helpful and fearless donkey companions.
  • The Dividual: They are never seen apart.
  • The Hecate Sisters: The Maidens to Urbeth's Mother and Ur's Crone.
  • No Name Given: While they presumably have names, we never learn what they are. Urbeth simply introduces them as her daughters.

Ur

Urbeth's sister and The Mother's mother, Ur is an old crone of a woman with few words and a thirst for violence.

The Sparrow

A primordial Trickster God who fathered the Icarii race alongside Urbeth.
  • Irony: The Icarii race are known for being extremely proud and arrogant people, yet they were fathered by a humble sparrow god.
  • Power at a Price: It's revealed that he's responsible for the SunSoar penchant for incest, as he cursed their royal line in exchange for giving the Icarii people the song that gave them their wings.

"Noah" Dereveaux

The last human. "Noah" came from a planet far from Tencendor, long long ago, bearing the essence of Qeteb split into six parts. He intended to fly them in space forever, but over the centuries in isolated cryosleep he was contacted by the Star Dance, which transformed his ship and imbued it with magic. He crash landed in Tencendor and met Urbeth, and the two became lovers for a while. Unfortunately, Noah needed to prepare Tencendor for the rest of the TimeKeepers' return and returned to his vessel, waiting for the StarSon to pass on his mantle to.
  • Age Without Youth: Cryosleep and the Star Dance could only maintain Noah for so long, and he eventually withered away into a very old man, kept alive by the power of the Star Dance until he completed his mission and was allowed to die.
  • Ancient Astronauts: He really came from an insignificant little blue planet called Earth tens of thousands of years ago.
  • Fling a Light into the Future: Earth and humanity was completely doomed, but he left anyways in order to find somewhere, anywhere, that could permanently destroy the TimeKeeper Demons. The Star Dance ended up giving him the answer he sought out, but it took tens of thousands of years to achieve his goals.
  • Horrible Judge of Character: He made the unfortunate mistake of trusting WolfStar with knowledge about the TimeKeeper Demons and on how to return to life, which led to the events of the Axis Trilogy. By the time of The Wayfarer Redemption Noah regrets leaving WolfStar alive, much less trusting him.
  • Last of His Kind: He is the last human from Earth.
  • Only Known by Their Nickname: "Noah" was just a nickname he was given because of his space mission.
  • Red Baron: He is also known as "The Enemy" of the Demons.
  • Retired Badass: In his youth he was partially responsible for destroying Qeteb and he's responsible for the creation of the Acharite race. In his current day he's an anciently old man who can only contribute advice and pass the mantle to the current generation.
  • Second Love: He fell in love with Urbeth long after his first wife died.
  • Sufficiently Advanced Alien: From the reader's perspective, he's a normal human with very advanced technology to work with. For the ancient residents of Tencendor, he's a godly being with incomprehensible magic.
  • Together in Death: He doesn't mind that he's going to die because he wants to be reunited with his daughter, Katie.
  • The Trickster: In his youth. He left holographic projections of himself along with traps for the TimeKeeper demons to slow them down when they finally reached Tencendor.
  • You Will Be Spared: The Star Dance was initially going to kill all the Ancient Astronauts aboard the spacecraft carrying Qeteb's remains, but decided to spare Noah after he began to understand the Star Dance's music.

Katie Dereveaux

A little girl clutching a book of music. Katie is seemingly Noah's dead daughter brought back to life. However, the truth is more complicated than that.

    The TimeKeeper Demons 

Tropes applying to the Demons as a whole:

  • Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work: They give WolfStar a taste of the abuses and torture he inflicted on others.
  • Bestiality Is Depraved: While they themselves don't engage in it, the madness they inflict upon all life forces it to perform bestiality to create abominations.
  • Care-Bear Stare: What they are ultimately weak to. Positive emotions such as love and kindness cause them harm.
  • Create Your Own Hero: In manipulating Drago and using his power to crash through to Tencendor, they created their nemesis powerful enough to stop them once and for all. They also created most of DragonStar's witches by driving them insane to begin with, allowing them to access their Acharite powers once DragonStar restored their minds.
  • Eldritch Abomination: They are all demons seeking to destroy all life in various ways. While they can take on mostly-pleasing forms, they are just as likely to take on some abominable form designed to make a mockery of life.
  • Evil Makes You Monstrous: Their victims all eventually either become monsters or end up birthing generations of abominations.
  • Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: They all take on attractive forms to impress Drago. In truth, they are demons seeking to destroy and consume all life.
  • A Form You Are Comfortable With: They all take on mostly-pleasing humanoid forms as a default to hide their true natures.
  • If You Kill Him, You Will Be Just Like Him!: A variant. Katie's songbook has a record of the Demons' magic and how to wield it, and this magic was used to incapacitate Qeteb for tens of thousands of years. But in using it, one becomes just as consumed by their evil as they are, and ultimately It Only Works Once and the Demons now know how to counter its power.
  • The Mirror Shows Your True Self: A variant. Mirrors are capable of reflecting a Demon's horrifying power against itself. This is how humanity initially managed to destroy Qeteb and sever his being into pieces. Unfortunately in the current day the other Demons have grown wise to this and won't approach mirrors.
  • Omnicidal Maniac: All of them seek out the total destruction of whatever planet they happen to land on.
  • Planet Eater: While not literally, they seek to consume or destroy all life on a planet, leaving it a barren husk populated by abominations that devour each other until nothing is left.
  • Red Baron: They all have titles that explain which time of the day they strike at, such as Qeteb being the Midday Demon.
  • Removed Achilles' Heel: The Demons are weak to having their own abilities reflected against themselves. This is how the Enemy destroyed Qeteb to begin with. Unfortunately for the heroes, Qeteb knows how to counter the strategy when Caelum attempts to use it again, shrugging it off and killing Caelum.
  • Uncanny Valley: Their usual forms in-universe. While they outwardly appear beautiful, there's always something "off" about them.
  • The Virus: Their madness is literally infectious.
  • Voluntary Shapeshifter: The Demons can shift their forms at will.

Qeteb

The Midday Demon and the most powerful of all the demons.
  • Big Bad: The head of the Demons and the villain of The Wayfarer Redemption.
  • Black Knight: His default form is fully clad in black armor and he is the most terrifying of the demons.
  • Body Horror: The vessel he possesses grotesquely swells to fit his black armor, which should have been too large to fit it.
  • Establishing Character Moment: The very first thing Qeteb does is attack Sheol, solidifying him as a horrible creature and Bad Boss even to his comrades.
  • Faux Affably Evil: He pretends to be pleasant and affable in front of DragonStar while his demons undergo their trials against DragonStar's witches. This is the same Qeteb that devours the souls of hundreds of thousands of victims and seeks out the total cessation of life in the universe.
  • I Lied: He promises Isfrael he'd spare the Avar in return for being given Sanctuary's location. He gleefully admits he had no intention whatsoever of fulfilling this promise moments before devouring Isfrael.
  • Not Quite Dead: He was "destroyed" by the Enemy thousands of years ago, but even using his own power on him couldn't fully destroy him, leading to the events of the book series.
  • Obfuscating Stupidity: He pretends to be duped by Isfrael just long enough for Isfrael to show him the Sacred Grove.
  • Omnicidal Maniac: Qeteb's ultimate goal is the cessation of the Star Dance as a whole, which would destroy all life in the universe.
  • Satanic Archetype: He is a demon that hates all life, can take on a pleasant and manipulative form, and tempts Isfrael using an apple from his garden.
  • Ungrateful Bastard: Sheol spent thousands of years trying to return him to life and the first thing he does is grab her by the hair and throw her into a wall.
  • Your Soul Is Mine!: He feeds off the souls of his victims. Unlike the other demons, he utterly consumes them, leaving nothing to be saved and brought to the afterlife.

Sheol

The Demon of Despair. Sheol leads the charge in breaking through the Star Gate into Tencendor and reviving Qeteb.
  • Despair Event Horizon: Her power involves causing people to feel so much despair and hopelessness they are Driven to Suicide or to harm others.
  • The Dragon: She's Qeteb's second-in-command and the one demon he trusts to perform her tasks most of all of them.
  • Heavenly Blue: Subverted. Sheol has pure blue eyes and presents herself as the kindly leader of the Questors to Drago, but in truth is a demon.
  • The Smurfette Principle: She's the only female amongst the demons, though downplayed as Rox possesses a female body over the course of Crusader, but is referred to with it pronouns in that form.
  • True Blue Femininity: Sheol has pure blue eyes and is the only female Demon.

Barzula

The Demon of Tempests.
  • The Dividual: He and Mot have little characterization, are rarely seen apart, and even share their trial.
  • Weather Manipulation: Befitting his title as the Demon of Tempests, Barzula can create maelstroms. His storms prevent anyone from escaping across the ocean to the lands beyond Tencendor.

Raspu

The Demon of Pestilence.
  • Heel–Face Brainwashing: As a result of losing his trial against Gwendylyr, he loses permission to control his destiny and is made to become the Butler to the Field of Flowers.
  • Psychopomp: He becomes responsible for welcoming souls to the afterlife.

Mot

The Demon of Hunger.
  • The Dividual: He and Barzula have little characterization, are rarely seen apart, and even share their trial.
  • Extreme Omnivore: His victims become so famished they resort to eating dirt, gravel, and rocks. This doesn't mean their bodies can gain nourishment from them, and the resulting Body Horror is described in vivid detail.

Rox/Roxiah


  • Gender Bender: As a result of possessing Niah's body after he's temporarily killed by The Bridge.
  • "It" Is Dehumanizing: When possessing Niah's body through her fetus he's referred to with it/its pronouns, showing how inhuman it was despite possessing a human body.
  • Would Hurt a Child: He gleefully tries to abort Leah's baby with birthing implements.

    Other Villainous Factions 

Gorgrael SunSoar, the Destroyer

StarDrifter's illegitimate son with an Avar woman, destined to attempt to conquer Tencendor.
  • Abhorrent Admirer: He falls in love with Azhure at first sight. Azhure finds him abhorrent.
  • Big Bad: The main antagonist of the Axis Trilogy and Axis' Arch-Enemy.
  • Body Horror: He has giant antlers jutting out of his forehead and a malformed head.
  • Evil Is Deathly Cold: He is evil and has command over ice magic, creating massive storms and blizzards.
  • Evil Makes You Monstrous: Implied, as both his parents were The Beautiful Elite and Gorgrael is described as monstrous.
  • Evil Sorcerer: Contrasting with his half-brother Axis, who wields a sword, Gorgrael is primarily a sorcerer who wields magic far from the battlefield.
  • Fetus Terrible: He ate his own way out of his mother's womb so he wouldn't die alongside her as she succumbed to the cold and being away from the forests.
  • I Have Your Wife: He kidnaps Caelum to try to stop Axis from opposing him, requiring Azhure to rescue their son.
  • A Mistake Is Born: The Icarii and Avar are forbidden from bearing children together due to the Prophecy of the Destroyer, making his very existence taboo.
  • Orcus on His Throne: Justified. Gorgrael was manipulated into remaining in the North and not going to the battlefield directly by the Dark Man so his armies would fail and he would be vulnerable.
  • Psychopathic Manchild: He's much more childish than his age would suggest. Again, this is Justified as he was deliberately raised to be childish and incompetent by The Dark Man.
  • Raised by Wolves: He was raised by Skraelings before being discovered by the Dark Man.
  • Unwitting Pawn: WolfStar raised from birth with the final goal of him failing to defeat Axis.

The Dark Man

A mysterious cloaked man who adopted and raised Gorgrael from a young age. See WolfStar SunSoar.

The Skraelings

A race of icy wraiths in the north and Gorgrael's main armies. They were once another species entirely called River Angels, a nymphlike folk that lived in the waters. Their creator, Water, cursed them into their icy spectral forms after he caught them murdering any other race that ventured near the water. Cursed to endless pain in their new bodies, they wandered the Earth and settled in the North of the world, forgetting their true selves.


  • Always Chaotic Evil: In the first six books they are universally evil. Averted in the sequel Darkglass Mountain trilogy, which expands on their backstories and personalities.
  • And I Must Scream: The Skraelings live in eternal torment in their cursed, frozen bodies, realizing their forms are twisted but unknowing as to why. Reproducing literally kills Skraeling females and they are unable to die by normal means.
  • Ascended Extra: They gain a greatly expanded role in The Darkglass Mountain trilogy, ascending from Mooks into a fleshed out race with a tragic backstory and redemption arc.
  • Being Tortured Makes You Evil: Part of their backstory. The reason they appear to be Always Chaotic Evil is partly due to how much pain they're in; they seek to inflict some of that pain on others to gain temporary respite.
  • Bizarre Alien Biology: Played for Drama and Body Horror in the Darkglass Mountain trilogy; An Icarii woman named SummerStar tried to befriend a Skraeling, which while successful at first ended with her brutal rape. Much to her and the other Icarii's horror, Skraelings quite literally mate for life, and a pregnant Skraeling will continue birthing children until she dies. Due to the Icarii possessing near-immortality, SummerStar died after having given birth to more than two hundred children.
  • Blue-and-Orange Morality:
    • See the above entry. It's unclear whether the Skraeling meant to rape SummerStar or was just following the typical Skraeling courtship/mating process, as it was friendly towards her beforehand and this aspect of Skraeling culture is never brought up again.
    • Back when the Skraelings were River Angels, they thought they were performing a Mercy Kill on members of the other races that approached their waters, thinking their lives must be full of pain and torment due to their perceived "ugliness" in the River Angels' eyes and their inability to survive underwater.
  • Body Horror: Skraelings can be made to fuse together into unholy abominations that vomit out more Skraelings. Furthermore, Skraeling matings are fatal to the females, who will continue to give birth to Skraelings until they die.
  • Death Equals Redemption: Their final fates. Water allows them to return to being River Angels if they drown themselves. Most do so without hesitation.
  • Demoted to Extra: They barely appear at all in The Wayfarer Redemption.
  • Evil Is Deathly Cold: They are icy wraiths and almost Always Chaotic Evil.
  • Our Ghosts Are Different: The Skraelings are icy, immaterial wraiths that can only be killed with certain metals or magic.
  • Pet the Dog: Three of them took Gorgrael in when he would have otherwise died after just being born. While this ultimately causes the world further hardship, it's the first sign that the Skraelings are capable of some measure of empathy, subverting their Always Chaotic Evil nature.

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