William Savan

William Savan, more commonly known on the Isle of Ruma as Gravekeeper William, is a well-respected ex-naval officer who retired from military service to become a gravekeeper on Ruma. On the island, his past is largely unknown or disregarded, and he is known almost entirely by his occupation: creating coffins, burying bodies, and maintaining the cemetery.

He is the adopted father of Volke Savan and Illia Savan, who he loves deeply, but most of the island considers the pair to be his apprentices rather than acknowledge the trio is capable of familial bonds. The children largely discounted his role in their lives until after they became arcanists and left the island.

> Illia and I lived in a tiny cottage on the edge of the cemetery, apprenticed to Ruma’s sole gravekeeper. We both held the glorious title of *gravedigger*. Like me, she had no family. Well, we had each other, and Gravekeeper William, but he hardly counted.
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> - Knightmare Arcanist
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> Gravekeeper William had once been a naval officer, and he ran our cottage like it was one of the many boats he used to command. The place was clean from stern to bow, right down to the grain of wood. He kept all the doors and cupboards securely closed, like he was afraid of the cottage taking a tumble through the ocean. Everything had a place and everything in its place—that was his motto.
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> And that, along with William’s obsessive need to keep an exact schedule, made it difficult to get away with anything.
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> She motioned to the front door, but as I went to grab the handle, I heard a loud and gruff, “Ahem.”
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> My shoulders bunched at my neck. I already knew. There was no need to turn around, just a terrible sense of dread at the impending conversation. What could I say to William that would convince him I needed to go?
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> “Thought I wouldn’t notice, didn’t ya?”
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> Illia whirled around, her candle held high. “We’re both adults according to the island rules.” She straightened her posture. “We can come and go as we please without your permission.”
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> “If you really thought that, why’re you sneaking around?”
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> William stepped from the darkness of the kitchen door into the flickering light of the candle. I was six feet tall, one of the tallest people around, but he stood a good six inches above me. In truth, everything about him was larger than life—protruding gut, thick arms, tree trunk legs. He kept his face clean, though. A habit from his time as a naval officer.
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> “You don’t understand,” Illia said as she smoothed the hair over the right side of her face, hiding all her twisted blemishes. “We need to leave. Volke and I don’t want to be—”
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> “Enough,” he said.
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> Illia stopped herself cold.
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> Then William exhaled. “Come ’ere you two.”
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> We moved away from the door. My heart beat hard against my ribs. If William tried to keep us here, what would I do? Would I fight him, the man who cared for me the last ten years? Would I give in and stay his apprentice? My whole being wanted to run from the cottage and head straight for my destiny, but honor told me I should at least hear him out.
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> William patted his gut. “It may not look it, but I was once a young man too. I know what it’s like to get in trouble, but runnin’ away isn’t gonna solve anything.”
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> “We’re not running away,” Illia immediately replied.
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> “But that doesn’t mean I want either of you to give up,” William said.
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> I caught my breath. “What?”
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> “Every parent wants a better life for their kids. No one wants to be a gravekeeper—even I didn’t start this way. I lived a life on the oceans, fighting sea monsters with the good ol’ boys. I contributed to the world, even if I wasn’t as amazing as an arcanist. You kids need that, too. A chance to do what you’re destined to do.”
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> Then another part of William’s speech finally hit me. He considered himself a parent? To me? Even though everyone on the island hated my existence? Illia stepped forward and smiled. She threw her arms around William’s wide gut. I stood awkwardly off to the side, shifting my weight from one foot to the other until William grabbed me by the shoulder and pulled me into the group embrace.
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> “Thank you,” Illia said, her voice strained. “You’ve always been like a father.”
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> William patted us both on the back. “Calm down, lass. It’s not like you two are disappearing anytime soon. We’ve still got plenty of time to find some way for you to live out your destiny.”
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> - Knightmare Arcanist
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