Character guide

Corinius

major

Also known as Lord Corinius, King Corinius, young Corinius

Corinius is one of King Gorice's chosen captains, a warlord whose confidence and appetite for action make him a driving force in Witchland's war against Demonland. He bristles at his defeat on Krothering Side yet turns cheerful the moment a new fight is promised, and his blunt counsel — strike now, before the enemy can refresh — sets him against the King's colder patience. His restless ambition and refusal to wait make him a volatile engine in the story's early campaigns.

Lord Gro

major

Also known as Gro, the Lord Gro, Lord Gro of Goblinland, Lord Gro of Witchland

Lord Gro moves between courts as envoy and strategist, returning from Demonland to Carcë with news the King receives in his bath with unnerving calm. He reads men and reports their doings with careful precision, yet the King's warning against glozing shows how much his smoothness invites suspicion. His talent for seeing both sides of a quarrel, and for surviving whichever side wins, makes him a quiet pivot in Witchland's schemes.

Corund

major

Also known as Lord Corund, O Corund, Viglus Corund

Corund stands beside Corinius as one of Gorice's two great war-leaders, raised up to be king over a quarter of the world. Where Corinius burns to strike at once, Corund counsels looking beyond the next turn of the road, and he freely honors Corinius's prowess even in the face of his defeat. His loyalty, patience, and weight in council give Witchland its ballast in the opening moves of the war.

Lord Juss

major

Also known as Juss, the Lord Juss, Lord Juss of Demonland

Juss leads the Demons after Witchland's blow has scattered their strength, and the early chapters find him climbing through frozen, treacherous country where illusions prey on his resolve. On the mountain he passes by a seeming lady's murder rather than be limed by the powers of night, a choice that leaves his heart shaken but his purpose intact. His endurance and the loyalty he commands from Brandoch Daha and his other lords make him the still center of Demonland's answer to Carcë.

Brandoch Daha

major

Also known as Lord Brandoch Daha, Lord Brandoch Daha of Krothering

Brandoch Daha is Juss's peer and companion, a Demon lord whose beauty and daring are matched only by his imperious will. In a shadowy chamber he is offered whatever earthly thing he most desires and chooses the lady herself, heedless of her warning that she is not earthly and that he embraces danger and loss of luck for himself and his friends. His fatal insistence on having what he wants, and the three gifts she grants in parting, hang over the company's fortunes as they press on.

Lady Prezmyra

major

Also known as Prezmyra, the Lady Prezmyra, Queen Prezmyra

Prezmyra comes to Gorice's private chamber to urge an expedition against Demonland, pressing the case for Corund to lead it while carefully balancing thanks to the King against praise of her husband. The King puts her off with falconry and roses, insisting war and policy are not for women, though she reminds him Corund made her his ambassador. Her hardiness in the face of his coldness, and the tension between her ambition for Corund and the King's jealousy of counsel, mark her as a force in Carcë's politics.

Lady Mevrian

major

Also known as Mevrian, the Lady Mevrian, My Lady Mevrian

Mevrian holds Krothering in her brother's absence, a Demonland noblewoman whose composure is a weapon sharper than any sword. When Lord Gro delivers Corinius's shameful proposal, she dismantles him with a memory of sitting on his knee as a child in Goblinland, then refuses with a threat no one doubts she means. Her steadiness under siege makes her the moral counterweight to Witchland's scheming court.

Sriva

supporting

Also known as the Lady Sriva, Lady Sriva

Sriva moves through Carcë's banquet halls collecting secrets the way other nobles collect jewels, and she knows exactly what each one is worth. She plays her father Corsus against her mother's caution, angling for a crown she believes is her due. Her midnight promise to Corinius and her willingness to betray her own family's confidence mark her as one of Witchland's most dangerous young schemers.

Corsus

major

Also known as Duke Corsus, the old Duke Corsus, Corsus Vizz

Corsus commands Owlswick and a seat at Carcë's council table, but he feels the world slipping toward the young—Corinius, Laxus, and above all Corund, whose marriage to Prezmyra has made him the King's favorite. He locks his wife away and drinks with his daughter Sriva, confessing that he sees no profit in striving further. Yet his apparent resignation conceals a calculating mind that understands exactly how power is shifting around him.

Spitfire

supporting

Also known as Lord Spitfire, Spitfire of Owlswick

Spitfire of Owlswick leads his men through rain-soaked nights, visiting captains and setting guards with the discipline of a seasoned commander. When a toothless ancient appears in his camp to warn him of Thremnir's Heugh, Spitfire draws his sword and calls it an illusion sent by Witchland to shake his resolve. His hot-headed certainty and refusal to heed omens may prove either his greatest strength or his undoing.

Goldry Bluszco

major

Also known as Lord Goldry, Goldry, Lord Goldry Bluszco

Goldry Bluszco is the mightiest of Demonland's lords, whose capture by Witchland sets the great quest of the narrative in motion. His brother Juss swears no rest until Goldry is freed, and Gaslark grieves to watch Armelline grow pale with longing for her true love. Though absent from much of the early action, Goldry's bondage is the wound that will not heal, the cause that binds allies and drives heroes across the world.

Mivarsh

supporting

Also known as Mivarsh Faz, sweet Mivarsh

Mivarsh Faz, called "sweet Mivarsh" by those who know him, finds himself caught between the schemes of greater lords and his own fear of what lurks on the Moruna. When Juss and Brandoch Daha invite him to seek Koshtra Belorn, he reasons that being devoured by mantichores alongside two lords is kinder than facing the horrors alone. His reluctant courage and self-deprecating humor make him an unlikely but endearing companion on the quest to free Goldry Bluszco.

King Gaslark

supporting

Also known as Gaslark, the King, O Gaslark

Gaslark rules Goblinland from Zajë Zaculo, a kingdom twice harried by Witchland and once saved only by Demonland's swords on Lormeron field. His reign is shadowed by the foster-brother Gro, who abandons the Goblin cause for Carcë, and by the three champions he sent into Impland who never returned. When Juss and Brandoch Daha need a third ally to strike at Witchland, Gaslark's reckless courage carries them to the gates of Carcë itself.

Red Foliot

supporting

Also known as the Red Foliot, Red Foliot

The Red Foliot arrives at the wrestling ground in an ebony car drawn by six black horses, his blood-stained spearmen behind him, mild to look on yet unmistakably kingly. As chosen judge he binds both Witchland and Demonland to terms that will decide lordship over many-mountained Demonland, swearing to judge justly between two kings who hate each other. His ruling at that contest sets in motion the griefs and vows that drive the whole war, and his name is invoked whenever oaths are weighed.

Heming

supporting

Also known as Heming of Witchland, Prince Heming, young Heming

Heming of Witchland rides among the sons of Corund, raised in Carcë's martial household and eager to prove himself against the Demons who humbled his kin. He burns with the impatience of youth, chafing at counsel and hungry for the kind of glory that gets men killed or crowned. In the middle war he becomes one of Witchland's active captains, carrying his father's weight into the field while the older lords measure every risk.

Gallandus

minor

A Witchland lord murdered by Corsus, sparking internal conflict.

Laxus

supporting

Also known as Lord Laxus, the Lord Laxus, King Laxus

Laxus serves Witchland as high admiral, the man who keeps the fleet in trim and thinks in terms of supply, anchor, and asylum while Corinius dreams of pitched battle. His sad, serious brow and measured counsel set him apart from the swaggering lords around him, though he knows when to yield to a better general. His caution and his command of the sea make him pivotal to how the war moves west, and his fate carries him further than he ever intended.

Lord Zigg

supporting

Also known as Zigg, the Lord Zigg

Zigg stands at Spitfire's side before Owlswick, sworn to bring fifteen hundred men-at-arms out of the west and crack the castle gates. When a shrivelled ancient appears in the torchlight to warn Spitfire of Thremnir's Heugh, Zigg names it plainly as a spirit beyond the reach of weapons, while Spitfire scorns it as Witchland's trick. His steadiness against his captain's heat marks him as one of the quieter pillars of the Demon host.

Gorice XII

major

Also known as King Gorice XII, Gorice, the King, our Lord the King

Gorice XII rules from Carcë, a lean, iron-built king who receives news of disaster with the same appetite as news of victory, and who practices the artificial magic that once served Gorice VII. He listens to Gro's report in his serpentine bath chamber, weighing truth and flattery with a wolf's patience, and demands nothing be kept back. When arms fail him he turns to sending and sorcery, and it is his conjuring that snatches Goldry Bluszco away and sets the Demons on their long, desperate road.

La Fireez

supporting

Also known as the Prince La Fireez, Prince La Fireez

La Fireez rules Impland, a realm whose loyalty to Demonland is tested every time Witchland's fleets darken the southern sea. His position forces him to weigh honor against survival, since open defiance of Gorice invites fire and sword, while submission forfeits the friendship of Juss and the Demon lords. In the war's middle movements his choices help decide whether the Demons find friends or silence along their flanks.

Queen Sophonisba

supporting

Also known as Sophonisba, O Queen Sophonisba

Queen Sophonisba arrives as an honored guest among the lords of Demonland, and Juss himself guides her through lime avenues, herb gardens, and stables where the white sisters of Artemis burn with ichor-light. Her days of pleasure and wonder stand in quiet counterpoint to the war gathering beyond Demonland's borders, and the care lavished on her reveals what these warrior lords value and what they stand to lose. She matters as a measure of the world the Demons are fighting to preserve.

Gorice XI

minor

Also known as King Gorice XI, Gorice XI

Previous King of Witchland, mentioned as a predecessor.

Zenambria

minor

Also known as the Lady Zenambria, Lady Zenambria

A noblewoman, possibly of Witchland or allied realm.

Volle

minor

Also known as the Lord Volle

A lord of Witchland, mentioned in court scenes.

Ravnor

minor

Also known as old Ravnor, O Ravnor

An old lord or sage, possibly of Demonland.

Jalcanaius Fostus

minor

Also known as Jalcanaius, this Jalcanaius

A minor character, possibly a sorcerer or lord.

Cargo

minor

Also known as Prince Cargo, young Cargo

A young prince of Impland, son of La Fireez.

Astar

minor

Also known as Astar of Rettray, noble Astar

A noble lord of Demonland, ally of Juss.

Styrkmir

minor

Also known as Styrkmir of Blackwood

A minor lord of Witchland, mentioned in battle.

Dekalajus

minor

Also known as Gorius, Olis of Tecapan

A minor lord or figure from a list of names.

Zeldornius

minor

Also known as renowned Zeldornius

A legendary hero of the past, often invoked in tales.

Helteranius

minor

A minor lord or figure, possibly of Witchland.

Lessingham

minor

A mysterious figure from the Induction, possibly a dreamer.

Galing

minor

Also known as Galing Castle

A location and sometimes personified as a lord of Galing.

Kagu

minor

Also known as the Kagu

A mysterious being or spirit, possibly a guardian.

Kamerar

minor

Also known as Kamerar of Stropardon

A minor lord killed in battle by Corinius.

Teshmar

minor

A minor character, possibly a messenger or lord.

Hesper Golthring

minor

Also known as Hesper, young Hesper Golthring

A young commander of a foraging expedition.

Thomas

minor

Also known as True Thomas

A legendary figure from the Induction, a prophet.

Philpritz

minor

Also known as Philpritz Faz

A minor prince or lord of Goblinland.

Gorice III

minor

An earlier King of Witchland, mentioned in history.

Gorice VII

minor

Also known as King Gorice VII

An earlier King of Witchland, mentioned in passing.

Hacmon

minor

Also known as young Hacmon, my stepson Hacmon

A young man, stepson of a Witchland lord, sent on a mission.

Bremery

minor

Also known as Bremery of Shaws

A minor lord of Demonland, mentioned in battle.

Zora Rach

minor

Also known as Zora Rach nam Psarrion, Zora

A witch or sorceress of Impland, encountered on expedition.

Thremnir

minor

A location personified or a minor figure at Thremnir's Heugh.

Arnod

minor

A minor character, possibly a servant or lord.

Melchar

minor

Also known as Melchar of Strufey

A minor lord of Demonland, mentioned in council.

Romenard

minor

Also known as Romenard of Dalney

A minor lord, possibly of Witchland.

Cadarus

minor

A minor figure, possibly a sailor or warrior.

Peridor

minor

Also known as Peridor of Sule

A minor lord of Impland, mentioned in passing.

Hilmanes

minor

Also known as Duke Hilmanes of Maltraëny

A duke of a distant land, mentioned in a list.