Mraize

Betd, better known by his title of Mraize, is a member of the Ghostbloods on Roshar. He is a Rosharan born and is in possession of several artifacts from across the cosmere. His title is not Vorin in origin; it could possibly be Thaylen, as Mraize is from Thaylenah and refers to Iyatil as his babsk, a Thaylen title.
== Appearance and Personality ==
=== Appearance ===
Mraize is a tall man with jet black hair and light violet eyes. His face and hands are both covered in scars, including one which crosses his cheek vertically and deforms his upper lip. He dyes his eyebrows black and cuts them short. He is almost always sharply dressed in fine suits, wearing white the first time Shallan Davar meets him. He wears a golden signet ring on his middle finger with the three-diamond symbol of the Ghostbloods.
When disguised as Gobby, Mraize wears a black and gold guard's uniform from the Sebarial princedom. As Gobby, he has a cordial relationship with Jushu, Eylita, and Balat.
=== Personality ===
Mraize has a refined air which seems to conflict with his scarred appearance. He usually speaks quietly and calmly, but boldly, with an accent Shallan cannot recognize. Despite his cultured manner, he is not always serious, growing warm and friendly when Shallan has impressed him. Something about him reminds Shallan of Hoid when she first sees him, though she quickly denies any resemblance when he turns toward her. He never seems to be upset or surprised by bad news.
Mraize thinks of himself as "hunter" in several respects. He has trophies from several notable animals in Roshar on display in his hideout, including a whitespine tusk, a Santhid skull and gemhearts from greatshells. He speaks with disdain of Tyn's supposed fear of meeting with him, stating that the apparent cowardice shows she is acting like "prey", and refers to Amaram as his current prey. Shallan sees him as a hunter, not waiting for opportunities, but going out and finding them. He dreams of the opportunity to explore the cosmere and take trophies from the planets he visits.
Despite his occasional likeable air, he has no problem with killing, or even letting his allies attempt to kill someone he is interested in, as he gives the other Ghostbloods implicit permission to attempt to assassinate Shallan before she becomes a full member. He mentions he likes to learn the local weapons of cultures he wants to understand. He makes use of a blowgun with poisoned darts which is apparently a Parshendi hunting weapon. He also speaks of torturing Shallan for information as "fun." He is also willing to blackmail, persuade and manipulate people in order to achieve his objectives.
Following from this moral compass, he believes that morality is ephemeral and ever-changing, and that it changes depending on how you look at it. Therefore, he considers it an axis he has little interest in, and he pays little heed to it. He occasionally makes moral arguments to manipulate people, such as a utilitarian argument of sacrificing Kalak to improve the lives of many, but he shows no signs of truly believing in any moral philosophy beyond his own interests and those of the Ghostbloods.
He is unforgiving of those that betray him.
As a member of the Ghostbloods, Mraize is seeking a way to get Investiture off-world through Shadesmar. Until the death of Ialai Sadeas, he hunted the Sons of Honor as he feared that they were close to discovering the secret of making this possible. He is not interested in seeing Odium rule Roshar.
He refers to the Parshendi as the listeners, one of few in the warcamps to do so.
== Attributes and Abilities ==
Mraize's power resides primarily in his knowledge and possessions; though he has visited Shadesmar, he has never been allowed off-world. Among his possessions he has a "green chicken" which is known to be an Aviar, though its ability is unknown. He has a seon from Sel. He also has white sand from Taldain, a Yolish branch with weird scripts, a silver knife, and an aether he cannot use. He is also believed to have Tears of Edgli. Many of these possessions and knowledge were gained from trades with beings not of Roshar.
Mraize is skilled with disguises. A frequent disguise of his is "Gobby", an Alethi guard. Shallan appreciates his skill, but views it as lacking. She thinks that he wears the persona, rather than the other way around, which causes his true personality to show through.
Due to his bond with an Enlightened Cryptic, Mraize has access to the Surge of Lightweaving, which he uses to enhance his disguises. It is unknown whether Sja-anat's corruption affects his access to Transformation.
Mraize also seems to have an uncanny ability to sense the presence of others. Whether this is due to his having enough Breath to have reached the Fourth Heightening or to some other, more mundane means is unclear.
== History ==
===Early Life===
Mraize, born as Betd, was born on Roshar in an unknown year in Thaylenah.
At some point, he became a member of the Ghostbloods. He has collected trophies from foreign worlds; one of these is known to be an aether. He also at some point bonded with an Aviar.
=== The Shattered Plains ===
Mraize, as a member of the Ghostbloods, reported to Iyatil, who reported to Master Thaidakar. He was confirmed to be behind the assassination attempt on Jasnah Kholin that took place on the Wind's Pleasure. He had sent a hunter, Tyn, to execute the task. When he sent a spanreed message to Tyn, Shallan, who had killed her, intercepted it and decided to go meet him herself, disguised as Veil. When they met, Shallan kept the pretense of Tyn being alive and managed to get Mraize to trust her with a task. She was to break into Amaram's manor and find the secrets he kept and report them back. Shallan agreed and manages to escape without being followed.
After that, he was also confirmed to have surveilled the site to supervise the task. He was pleased when he saw Veil again; he initially thought she had not completed her task, but she delivered maps and some texts from Amaram. He was also amazed with her drawing skills and deduced that she had killed Tyn. Mraize offered her the opportunity to be part of the organization, but explicitly said that she was not in yet, and that killing people within the organization was not encouraged at all. On her way out, she decided not to take the coach and hid; she later found that they had killed her coachman during a failed attempt on her life.
The second task Mraize asked of Veil (Shallan) was to get information from a madman inside Dalinar’s warcamp, as well as confirm his allegiance. He was aware that Gavilar had learned some information of an extraordinary nature. After Shallan managed to complete her task and deliver information on the madman, who was later revealed to be the Herald Talenel, Mraize accepted her into the Ghostbloods. He also said that “the truth destroys more people than it saves”.
=== Urithiru ===
During the Battle of Narak, Mraize discovered Shallan's true identity. He confronted her days later in Urithiru, stating his belief that she was "herself" when she was Veil. He explained that he had her brothers in custody and would deliver them as reward for her services, but wanted to continue working with her. He revealed deep knowledge of the Davar family and confirmed that they owed him a Soulcaster.
Shortly after, he found a position in the inner circle of Ialai Sadeas to keep a close eye on her as she had interests of her own, without allegiances to other humans or listeners. He was seen wearing a Sadeas uniform, and was likely the scarred guardsman that carried Ialai's chair to the first meeting of the Kholin coalition, defying Navani's order that the participants should carry their own chairs.
Though his whereabouts and end goals were often unclear, he continued to request more tasks of Shallan. The first was to secure Urithiru and to hunt the source of darkness and expunge it. Mraize promised information on Helaran in exchange for the first task, and later complied. He told her that Helaran was a Skybreaker acolyte who probably went to kill Amaram on their behalf. On the day of Shallan's wedding, he sent her brothers to her with a note, stating that they were her wedding gift, and that he was giving her an additional reward for completing her task in Urithiru; he reduced her family's debt owed from the destruction of the Soulcaster. The note also explained Shallan's next task: to find the Unmade who seemed willing to break from Odium and persuade her to join the Ghostbloods.
He also plotted a trap for the Herald Shalash, attracting her with a painting by Dandos Heraldin that depicted her. When she came to destroy it, he let her know the location of Talenel.
=== Pursuit of the Sons of Honor ===
Mraize and the Ghostbloods hunted and killed the Sons of Honor, including Thanadal and Vamah. Mraize infiltrated Ialai Sadeas's camp as Gobby. Shallan, as Radiant, assassinated Ialai, although she did so because she believed the act to be for the good of Alethkar, not because Mraize had ordered it. Mraize believed at this point that the Sons of Honor were defunct.
Shallan brokered a deal with Sja-anat to have Tumi, an Enlightened mistspren, meet with Mraize. Mraize believed the deal included bonding Tumi to a Ghostblood. Mraize expressed interest in bringing Sja-anat to their side, looking to take advantage of her ancient knowledge.
Mraize met with Shallan at Urithiru as Gobby. He asked her to hunt Restares, leader of the Sons of Honor, in Lasting Integrity. In return, he offered to tell her everything, and allow her to ask any question. He also offered her the choice to leave the Ghostbloods, and promised he and his babsk (Iyatil) would not hunt her and would discourage other Ghostbloods from doing so. He implied that he had a spy close to her, a practice he experienced with Iyatil. To aid in this mission, he gives her a rare communication cube containing the seon Ala, allowing them to communicate across realms.
While Shallan travelled to Lasting Integrity, she worked to identify Mraize's spy, planting misinformation amongst her Unseen Court. Mraize mistakenly confirms the misinformation from Beryl, though it is later discovered that he obtained this while spying on communications between Pattern and Wit.
During this time, Mraize hunted and killed Gereh within Urithiru. Lift tried to interfere, allowing Mraize to capture her in an aluminum cage, which was his main goal. He gave her as a gift to Raboniel as part of a request for the Fused to negotiate with his master for the right to utilize the Oathgates. Mraize also gave her a large pouch full of Taldainian sand.
In Lasting Integrity, Shallan sought out Restares, confirming with Mraize for any suspicious humans, and he ruled them out one by one. Shallan was upset Mraize withheld information, when she discovered Restares was actually the Herald Kelek. Mraize had hidden a raysium dagger within the communication cube. Mraize asked Shallan to collect Kelek's soul, and in return, she'd become a full member of the Ghostbloods. He argued that the Heralds abandoned the Oathpact and even though they knew the Fused were back, they either hid or helped hasten the desolation. This would also give Shallan the opportunity to impersonate Kelek to save Adolin from the honorspren's judgment.
Shallan decided not to kill Kelek and informed Mraize that she was quitting the Ghostbloods. With Kelek's help, Shallan freed Ala, who pretended to have the demeanor of abused child from her time with Mraize (although it remained loyal to the Ghostbloods). Kelek believed that deadeye spren did not exist before the Recreance, and this was why Mraize hunted him. Shallan told him to leave Urithiru and that she'd hunt the gemstone containing Ba-Ado-Mishram. She also passed on an insult from Hoid for Thaidakar. Mraize warned her that she'd made an enemy of the most powerful organization in the cosmere. He would later pass on Hoid's message to Thaidakar.
=== Seeking Mishram ===
During the ten days before the contest of champions, Mraize and Iyatil sought to enter the Spiritual Realm and find the prison of Ba-Ado-Mishram to obtain leverage against Odium.
At the meeting at the Ghostbloods' hideout in Narak, he indicated that a "special contact" had told him of Dalinar and Navani's planned trip to the Spiritual Realm and that he and Iyatil would follow them there. Before leaving, he placed Zora in charge of the Rosharan Ghostbloods cell. By the time of the meeting, he had already obtained anti-Stormlight and bonded an Enlightened spren. Although he discussed Shallan as a threat with both Iyatil and Sja-anat, he did not notice her presence at the meeting until Iyatil unmasked her. He briefly confronted her before Iyatil shot her with an anti-Stormlight crossbow bolt and, using her Elsecaller abilities, transferred him and Lieke to Shadesmar.
Once in Shadesmar, the three disguised themselves as guards traveling with some Windrunners from Narak to Urithiru (via Oathgate). They accompanied Shallan, Renarin, Rlain, and the two Windrunners to the Cognitive counterpart of where Dalinar and Navani were preparing to cross over to the Spiritual Realm. As the perpendicularity opened, Shallan realized the ruse, which caused the Ghostbloods to attack the Windrunners. After a short fight resulting in Lieke's death, Iyatil and Mraize lured the Windrunners away by telling them that the guards whose places they'd taken were being held as insurance. Mraize then stabbed the perpendicularity with an anti-Stormlight dagger, collapsing it. This sucked him and the others remaining in Shadesmar, along with Gavinor, into the Spiritual Realm, and cut off Navani and Dalinar's way out.
In the Spiritual Realm, Mraize took the form of various characters within the visions to follow Dalinar towards Mishram. In the first, a vision of humankind first fleeing Ashyn, Shallan recognized him pretending to check animals for wounds because he acted with similar bumbling good-naturedness as in his "Gobby" persona. She tried to stab him, but failed, so she instead feinted another attack and hid her knife when he retaliated. This tricked the characters of the vision into restraining him and keeping him away from her.
In the next vision, which showed the Heralds swearing their oaths to Honor, Mraize took the Shard's place. He imitated him perfectly until left alone with Shallan, Renarin, and Rlain, at which point he attacked her again. The spren of the latter two quickly pulled them out of the vision, leaving Shallan and Mraize to fight alone. As they fought, he pointed out that Mishram remained imprisoned only because Odium wanted her to remain so. He entreated Shallan's help, explaining that Thaidakar feared Odium's escape, and obtaining the prison would provide leverage against the Shard. She disagreed, likening Odium's fear of Mishram to Adonalsium's murder and Mraize's fear of her. She then attacked him one final time, but before she could kill him, Iyatil pretended to be Formless and disturbed her enough to cause her to pull out of the vision.
Mraize was largely uninvolved in the next several visions. In one, he took the role of a soldier, but hesitated to attack Shallan after she spoke with Mishram. However, they did not interact until Shallan entered a vision led by Mraize himself, situated on a beach in Thaylenah. In that vision, he talked to her about his dreams of traveling the cosmere, and how they had been denied because he chose poorly in attempting to recruit her. She correctly guessed both that his punishment would be reduced if he could kill her, and that part of the point of the vision was to distract her while Iyatil searched for the prison. He ended the conversation by warning her that, one way or the other, their next confrontation would be the end.
=== Death ===
Mraize and Iyatil followed Shallan, Renarin, and Rlain to Mishram's prison when Shallan found the mindset that allowed the Connection to summon the vision. Mraize wore his own face, while Iyatil maintained that of Formless. Mraize claimed that Iyatil was still watching Dalinar, but Shallan saw through the lie and realized Iyatil's disguise. Shallan lethally wounded her with her anti-Stormlight knife. Iyatil reflexively breathed in Stormlight, which killed her. Mraize subtly took an anti-Stormlight knife from Iyatil's corpse, intending that Shallan wouldn't notice it. As the two faced off, Shallan Lightweaved a possible future for Mraize, depicting him as the Unseen Court's agent offworld. He considered, but rejected, the offer, deciding either to kill or recruit Shallan instead.
While Mraize was distracted by looking at the illusion, Shallan placed illusions on herself and Pattern to make them look like one another. She then, as Pattern, tried to tackle Mraize, who assumed that Shallan was trying to get him to use up his anti-Stormlight on the spren. When she attacked him with a knife, though, he realized the illusion. He thought that Shallan seemed to have switched their knives so that hers was now loaded with anti-Stormlight and his was empty. This was also an illusion, though; she had never switched the knives, she had just placed Lightweavings on both. Mraize dropped his knife and grabbed Shallan's, stabbing her in the chest while she stabbed him in the stomach. Now full of anti-Stormlight, Mraize reflexively pulled in Stormlight to heal, which killed him.
== Relationships ==
=== Shallan Davar ===
Mraize is Shallan's direct superior within the Ghostbloods, and he gives her most of her missions for that organization. However, Shallan saw him as an enemy who she needs to work against, and that she only does as he asks in order to discover more about him. Mraize originally knew her by the codename "Veil," and saw her as a valuable and competent asset with many skills. He often calls her "little knife" when speaking with her. By the time the Alethi are starting to occupy Urithiru after its rediscovery, he had discovered her true identity, but simply believed this made her more valuable.
After failing to kill Restares, Shallan leaves the Ghostbloods. Mraize notes that this places her as an enemy of the Ghostbloods; however, he personally views her simply as an obstacle. Despite their enmity, Mraise still seeks to convince her to join him until his death.
=== Iyatil ===
At first glance, Iyatil seems to be one of Mraize's lackeys, and a fellow Ghostbloods member, or perhaps his second-in-command. She is the one who follows Shallan while Mraize is investigating her, and presumably reports back to him. However, with Shallan, Iyatil mentions that he is her student, not her master, making her a viable candidate for his babsk. Mraize both respects and dislikes her; he views learning under her as a privilege, but resents her restrictions on his interplanetary travel.
=== Restares ===
Mraize speaks of Restares as an enemy of the Ghostbloods. He sends Shallan to capture Restares with a raysium dagger, believing the Herald to have information that would benefit the Ghostbloods. After Shallan refuses the mission, he has Felt and Ala capture and interrogate Restares more conventionally.
=== Thaidakar ===
Mraize refers to him as Master Thaidakar, and sends the information Shallan manages to get from Amaram to him.
=== Taravangian ===
While Mraize and Taravangian do not interact, Adrotagia, one of Taravangian's companions, makes a note on the Diagram wondering if a section of it refers to Mraize. Mraize seems to be speaking of Taravangian when he says "I'm not worried about that one. The old fool sows chaos, but does not reach for the power offered by opportunity. He hides in his insignificant city, listening to its songs, thinking he plays in world events. He has no idea. His is not the position of the hunter." After Taravangian's Ascension, Mraize shares Thaidakar's wariness around him, especially the potential for his escaping the Roshar system. He therefore seeks to take Ba-Ado-Mishram's prison for leverage over the Shard.
== Trivia ==
* Mraize was previously assumed to be a worldhopper from his habit of collecting trophies from foreign planets and general knowledge of the cosmere, and was stated to have been off-world in several interviews. However, he flatly states he has never been off-world.
== Notes ==
category: viewpoint characters
es:Mraize