Tobias

**Tobias Asonoe** is a Defender working at Kratone and is one of the two protagonists of the Martian Frontier.

*Information is accurate as of Chapter 13.*

## Biography

### Early life

Tobias was born to Nathaniel Musset's wife alongside his twin sister Wren. He was fiery with energy and uncontrollable but predictable according to the nanny. He was still always close with his sister, but their father concentrated more on the Musset Company. Details of his mother are currently unknown, however it is implied that she died or left.

After growing up he and his sister enrolled as Defenders in Kratone, however the Gravedigger took his and his sister's memories of their father (and their father's memories of them likewise), resulting in them beginning to lead a more low-to-middle-class life.

Tobias's memories of his childhood began to come back after some time, and he refused to believe them. He tried to stop the same thing from happening to Wren by taking her memories (this would later result in tension between them, and would ultimately prove to be unsuccessful anyway).

### Tobias's kidnapping (Chapters 1-2)

On the day of the Arrival Day festival which welcomes new migrants from Earth, the Red Planet Riders, led by the Gravedigger, swarm the festivities on their motorcycles, the Gravedigger himself taking Tobias away.

### Red Planet Rider Introduction (Chapters 3 and 6)

Tobias is brought to a ranch and kept in a cell, but is eventually let out and meets Julian and the Gravedigger, who say that the Musset Company is forcing the people into the dirty work of making Mars nice and comfortable. The Gravedigger also explains that the Phantasm Flies can wipe and alter memories.

### The Red Dust Ball (Chapters 8-9)

Tobias, the Gravedigger and Julian attend the Red Dust Ball, which they came to in order to get Wren out of danger. The lights all go out, and they escape on motorcycles. However, at the Rider hideout Syms soon arrives, having installed a tracker in Wren's ballgown. It transpires that Tobias had been keeping the fact that he'd been taking Wren's memories of their dead parents, leading to Wren going with Syms. However, before leaving she secretly mouths the words to Tobias: 'Trust me'.

### The Keystone (Chapters 10-11)

After Tobias returns to the Red Planet Riders' base with the Gravedigger and Julian, the Gravedigger decides to impart more information to him, in particular about how they have been doing autopsies on the Phantasm Flies and that they get information and money from an informant who calls themselves the Keystone. Using said information, they can reprogram the flies into cameras that they can use to spy on their enemies. He also mentions that Francis, one of their three apprentices that they have in the field, has a neural-link implant surgically embedded that enables him to receive and transmit information from the flies.

Tobias and Julian are later watching the footage from one of the flies in the field, which is watching Syms and Wren at the Outcrop as Syms reveals to Wren that she and Tobias are Nathaniel Musset's daughter and son. Tobias, having known this from his slowly-returning memories but never believing them, marches angrily to the Gravedigger. The Gravedigger says he kidnapped Tobias to use as leverage against Musset, and tells him Musset will be burning Mars to the ground looking for him, so he should run to draw them away, and uses Wren's life as leverage against Tobias in order to get him to do so.

Before Tobias leaves he gets Julian to send a message to Wren, saying to tell her that he always feeds his wet dogs. This is a coded message telling Wren to meet him at the Soggy Dog.

### Chanterelle Colony (Chapters 12-13)

Tobias rides through a mountain range while in hiding, however the Gravedigger's men siphoned the fuel from his bike, leading to him walking the bike on foot. He soon comes across a hidden tunnel entrance that leads to an underground town covered with glowing fungus and with a luminescent lake in the centre. He eventually finds some fuel for his motorcycle and leaves the town, determined to find Wren, set everything straight, and bring her back to show her what he'd found.

He dons a disguise and meets Wren at the Soggy Dog, who has Syms with her. He leads them back to the underground town. After looking a bit more deeply into it, they find the town was built by a different company to the Musset Company - named Chanterelle Limited - and then find a recorded hologram message fully revealing that there are many other corporations with settlements on Mars other than the Musset Company, and that a hundred years ago there was an uprising which led to each corporation removing all contact and memories of the other corporations from their citizens. Chanterelle Colony itself suffered great damage, leading to its abandonment and the company's assets being acquired by the Musset Company.