Enosh Tar'elian

Born the eldest son of a chief in Agantuan Village. Intelligent, observant, and ambitious, Enosh seemed to have found a way to fulfill his father's dreams for their village when the Kag merchant Gorrhen yn Garr visited the islands. The merchant found Enosh unusually gifted, and planned to take him back to the mainland to apprentice him in the trade.

All that changed when an argument with his brother Ke-if causes an accident. Enosh fell from a cliff, and only survived through Yn Garr's intervention. He spent the next few years recuperating in one of Yn Garr's estates, while learning magic from Jarche, a ka-eng who has served Yn Garr for years--for on top of Enosh's many talents, he was also gifted in the *agan,* with a penchant for enchantment.

As he grew up, he used his skills to deceive many of his master's rivals, including Hertra Ylir yn Ferral. Enosh assumes Ylir's identity and manipulates his way to the upper echelons of Kag society.

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### **Relationships**

#### **Kefier Tar'elian**

Enosh's younger, hot-headed brother. Growing up, Enosh had found him dull and incapable of handling the governance their father had passed down to them after his premature death. This causes a rift in their relationship, which was already strained by their mother's death years before.

Later on, Enosh has a relationship with Sume, Kefier's friend Oji's sister. He abruptly abandons her while pregnant with his child. Kefier steps in to take care of both mother and daughter, standing in as Rosha's father. They kept Rosha's parentage a secret for years.

Enosh learns about his family for the first time and is mildly surprised that Kefier has been taking care of them while he was in prison, *and* that Yn Garr has taken Kefier in to replace some of his duties. He is even more surprised at the insinuation that Kefier and Sume were--at least for a while--in a relationship. His shortsightedness had made him incapable of seeing his brother as a man capable of responsibility--to Enosh, Kefier will always be the little brother, the tag-along.

In the third book, Enosh rekindles his affair with Sume and finds himself falling truly in love with her. This forces him to consider his brother not just as a rival, but as a man worthy of both Sume and his daughter's affections. Kefier makes Enosh realize how his short-sightedness, selfishness, and arrogance has hurt the people he loves, and the brothers make a first step towards repairing their rocky relationship.

#### **Sume alon gar Kaggawa**

Enosh first meets Sume during a series of events when her nephew attempts to steal from him, and she offers herself up in servitude instead. Although he doesn't admit it, her honesty took him aback, and was a refreshing change from the layers of deceit he usually lives with.

His enjoyment of her company doesn't stop him from selling her to a Gasparian k'an as a concubine to further his interests. He changes his mind too late, forcing him to use magic to kill her husband before they could consummate their relationship. Sume is blamed for the event. Displaying a rare case of recklessness, Enosh gets himself injured trying to prove her innocence, nearly losing an eye in the process.

Sume nurses him to health, and they begin a tentative relationship--the first one he's ever known based on tenderness. But Enosh, having earned his conquest, predictably goes back to his old patterns. During the attack on Enji Lake, his thirst for power causes him to neglect Sume. Later, when he finds out she's been living with his brother and seems to be pregnant, he writes her off as a fling, choosing to side with his injured pride.

They don't see each other again until years later, after Enosh loses everything in a series of bad decisions. Sume tells him he has a daughter--a girl who takes after him, displaying a massive connection to the *agan.* She recruits him into working with her to find Jaeth's Eye before Yn Garr does, to protect their daughter.

Three years later, Enosh and Sume sleep together once more, and Enosh begins to re-examine his life and his choices. He thinks that he truly wants to be a family, and that he's truly fallen in love for the first time. He asks Sume to marry him, and she cautiously agrees. Enosh wants to believe she loves him back, even as he is aware that he is fighting a losing battle. Sume cheats on him with Kefier. His devastation is larger than his anger, and later, he finally lets her go. He marries Sume in name only, to allow her and their daughter to reap the privileges he's earned in society, while turning a blind eye to her resuming her affair with Kefier.

Sume is Enosh's foil--a woman who doesn't fit the characteristics of women he normally pursues, and is intelligent enough not to be intimidated by him. With her, he feels like he doesn't have to prove anything--not his accomplishments, talents, or charm. It is unclear whether he loves her for her sake, or for what she makes *him* feel.

#### **Sapphire Orsalian**

Enosh first meets Sapphire at the end of *Jaeth's Eye*, after he launches an attack on Enji Island, where she lives with other mages. He forces her to servitude--or so he thinks. In actuality, she works with him because they are looking for the same thing, the creature they call Jaeth's Eye.

Later, Enosh is imprisoned, but Sapphire continues to visit him and later breaks him out. She now makes *him* her rather unwilling servant.

By *Sapphire's Flight*, they continue to work together, mostly out of grudging respect for each other. They seem to treat each other horribly, lobbing insults without a thought--Sapphire, in particular, loves pointing out that Enosh's lack of training as a mage makes him a danger to himself and everyone around him. But Enosh genuinely admires and enjoys her company, and she seems to reciprocate the same sort of feelings. They have a slight attraction to each other, but this is tampered by their unwillingness to be the first to admit it and the fact that they--especially Sapphire--tends to prioritize their goals first.

Sapphire's death breaks Enosh in ways he doesn't expect, and becomes the catalyst for him accepting Sume and Kefier's relationship at last.

#### **Gorrhen yn Garr**

Enosh's master whom he incorrectly thinks chose him as an apprentice because of his talents. This causes Enosh to over-compensate, to continue to prove himself worthy of the man's trust.

The appearance of another mage in Yn Garr's care, after Enosh's imprisonment, makes him think his master has replaced him and causes him to rebel. Later, he finds out Yn Garr has also made use of the services of his brother Kefier while taking his daughter, Rosha, under his wing.

The end of *Sapphire's Flight* reveals the truth: that far from thinking about him as a mere apprentice, Enosh is actually the grandson of Gorrhen yn Garr--who was once called Agartes, Hero of the Kag. He came to Agantuan looking for his daughter, and instead found him and Kefier, his daughter having long died from childbirth.