Characters

A summary of the main characters around whom the plot of Souls Alighting plays out. Probably contains spoilers but not so much as the individual pages.

## The Heroes

These are the good guys. The things they do are good.

### Zacharias

After the death of his father, this innocent forest ranger emerges to enter a world of magic and heroics, knights and princesses, all of which seems very, very silly to the pragmatic trained killer. He is, at best, an innocent caught in tides of politics and ancient magics beyond his comprehension. However, he has his own mission, to solve the problems which drove his life into chaos, and new allies who seem all too eager to help him along. He naturally falls into a leadership position.

An expert on survival skills and pragmatic self preservation, Zacharias's fighting style has no room for mercy, all of his blows are killing blows, and with the clear sight provided by his instinctive magic, his wide axe swings take out individuals and groups alike, with precision and extreme prejudice.

### Paul

"The hero has arrived!" The only hero willing to describe himself as such, this flamboyant distributor of holy light magic and valiant justice... actually does quite a good job of heroics once you can get him to stop monologuing. Never afraid to man the front lines and defend his friends with his own body, it is those same friends who ground him and help him to stay alive, so that he may follow his dream of becoming a paladin.

A swordsman, a mage, and a natural inheritor of perhaps the most offensively versatile fighting style in all the land, along with a certain helpful bloodline means that Paul is an incredibly reliable, and for that matter, powerful hero, dragged down significantly by his lack of worldly experience.

### Terri

Paul's little sister, a girl from a little secluded village. Free spirited and easily bored, she tags along with the heroes because it would be, well... not boring! There is the other reason that her brother and her twin sister, Tina, are setting out on a potentially dangerous quest. Terri is a kindly individual, though her blase approach to matters of importance masks this. Of all the heroes, she is the one most capable of understanding people, and she has a flair for matchmaking, which causes some chaos, in which she revels.

Terri is an expert hunter and marksman, with survival skills second only to Zacharias and finely honed senses. As such she is an effective provider of food for the group as well as the first to notice trouble approaching, even if the warning is phrased: "Hey, there were some guys over there who looked like trouble, but I broke their kneecaps for you."

### Tina

Paul's other little sister. Tina is a mad genius, and a raw prodigy of magic. Untrained and untested, her magical abilities are defined by the increasingly dangerous experiments she performs in her spare time, earning her the nickname, "The Artillery". Like her sister, she tags along with her brother, in her case to learn more about magic, though as it happens her mastery of four different elements in conjunction with her unique ability to store multiple magical charges at once puts her in the position of a teacher more often than not.

Tina's ability to hurl orbs of fire, water, earth, and air is largely untested, even she doesn't quite know her own limits, too few people around her know enough about this magic. Through trial and error, she has amassed a great repertoire of offensive and utility spells, and she is regularly called upon for purposes of (de)buffing friend and foe alike. Her friends do wish she would avoid using magic for menial tasks though.

### Samuel

Samuel is old... nobody knows exactly who he is or where he comes from. He has a horse, a lance, and a suit of heavy riding armour, with some origin that even the resident blacksmith cannot identify. For a couple of decades he has gone to seed, growing excellent strawberries and caring for his grandson, Herschel. Then, he finds himself babysitting a bunch of reckless youths, one of whom is prone to monologuing. The old bold knight accepts this last role and makes it his duty to keep these young heroes alive.

None of the other heroes have ever been able to best Samuel in a straight one on one fight. Despite his age, the old man is still strong as an ox, with a nigh impenetrable defense and abilities with a lance that seem implausible. Yet... it doesn't seem that this old man is revealing all of the tricks he knows...

### Herschel

Herschel is a skinny wizard, who inherited a lot of spell-books and thus has developed considerable magical powers from his studies. His specialty is dark magic, which often puts him at odds with Paul. Herschel is something of a worry-wart. He's up for an adventure, as the others are, but is the first to recommend a tactical retreat under dangerous conditions. He simply cares too much about the safety of his companions. Always ready with a sarcastic response and a better plan, Herschel is the party's brains, if not the devil's advocate.

Herschel is first and foremost a healer. The best healer, as it would happen. You don't even have to be alive for him to heal you, but that's fine, Herschel has studied ethics. As a learned wizard Herschel has access to some immensely powerful and precise spells, but these all take him a while to prepare.

### Renata

Renata is a little princess, well... heritage gets technical, but since her dad was a guy who was probably called king and she was raised in a castle full of doting noblewomen who never told her anything different, complete isolation from the world and fairy-tale books included, she never had cause to believe anything else. Except... when forced to survive on her own, and waiting for a hero to rescue her grew boring, she made a valiant, though unsuccessful, effort to rescue herself, and immediately came into contact with heroes nothing like the ones in her story books.

Renata has been on her own for a long time, as such her survival skills are very good, especially her stealth, due to her small size. She, however, has no prerogative to use these skills, since being rescued she prefers to don the mantle of royalty and leave the heroics to her new companions, since such endeavors would be beneath her. But... when pushed, she's a devil with a knife and refuses to leave anyone behind, after all, if a princess can't protect her subjects, what good is she?

### Argus

Argus the ferryman has seen a lot in his time, though he's still a whelp compared to Samuel. He's suffered through the end of the Old King's War, losing his right arm in the process, and was forced to guard the boundaries of Dark Island, a dangerous job in exchange for his family's continued survival. Wanting nothing more than to see his wife and son again, he shirks his duties and aids the heroes on their quest. He takes on a fatherly role to all the youngsters, and is eventually reunited with his son, Damian.

Argus is a bulwark of love and protection. With a mastery of defensive magic and a mechanical arm that resists injury and provides immense strength, he outright refuses to allow anyone to hurt the "children" in his custody. He's not the fastest, and he's certainly not as young as he was, but as a voice of wisdom and a loyal protector, he is indispensable.

### Mark

Mark is a mystery inside an enigma inside a dragon inside a pretty boy. Vain, rude, and thicker than two short planks, this "antihero" (that's what he'd like you to think) joins the group on a whim after deciding that they represent the "good guys". His motives unclear, his past... unsettling, there's a lot that Mark doesn't know about himself and the frightening powers he inherited from... somewhere. Mark is a sad character with a sad story. He wants nothing besides a normal, peaceful life, yet he is dragged on by his own destiny.

Mark is... powerful. He has powers. He may even be smart enough to use them properly some day. To start with, he's a mind-reader. Specifically, his power makes an interrogable copy of the target's entire psyche, useful for pressing questions like, "where's the treasure" that the victim would otherwise be unwilling to answer. In a fight, there is almost nothing stopping Mark from obtaining a concise summary of his foe's strategies and precise next moves. This makes it all the more exciting for him when he ends up in a fight he can't win by default.

### Freida

Freida is a swordsman from the empire. After being displaced from her home, she and her brother Nicolas traveled together until they ended up in the Low Kingdom and reacquainted with Paul, with whom Frieda shares a flashy history, complete with catchphrases. Freida is a total tomboy, and highly enthusiastic about weapons. Always eager for a fight, she's liable to act before thinking and charge in to save the day, overly protective especially of her brother, and prone to pessimistic fantasies as a result.

A high speed, katana wielding fighter with a little wind magic thrown in to make her even faster. Not complicated, but a devil to fight against, especially since a wind imbued sword doesn't even need to hit you to hurt you. She can stand against all kinds of foes, and is the only party member who's reliable against fast opponents.

### Damian

Damian is the party's blacksmith. An inventor and a master at forging and enchanting metal of all kinds, he's always ready with a different magical weapon to match the situation. Occasionally forgets about little things like morality when implementing a new idea. Joins up in order to extend his quest for knowledge and is also delighted by the new friends surrounding him. Both he and his father owe them a debt for reuniting the two.

Damian is a thinker, rather than a fighter, but makes an exceptional mage, with precise magical abilities matching even Herschel. He doesn't need a great deal of skill to fight, however, since he arms himself with a wide variety of deadly magical mechanisms, not least a repeating crossbow that fires magical exploding bolts or whatever else he wants! It's the equivalent of bringing a gun to a sword fight. He also has some skill in constructing 3 metre high mechanical armour golems. (size limit not necessarily withstanding)

### Nicolas

Nicolas is blind, however with careful application of his immense magical potential this becomes a non-issue. A well trained soldier and member of an ancient magical order he can be potentially be considered the most dangerous member of the party. Like Zacharias he has a personal mission to fulfil, however he holds little attachment to the group beyond a powerful desire to protect his sister. Calm, detached, he keeps his temper under control, especially since the method he uses to sense the world around him uses most of his concentration.

Nicolas is a deadly fighter, incapable of being surprised because of the wide range of vision his magic affords him. He can tune this ability on a dime, focusing on a weak spot or a far off foe, or disabling it entirely and using his intelligence to think 100 moves ahead, before using wide area magic to take out whatever target he wishes, AND he's a great swordsman with high strength and an unpredictable style. Lucky he comes with weaknesses, otherwise he would seem too strong to be a good guy!