Mars

**Mars** is a primal beast that was shipped out to fight in the War before he knew his true purpose. Originally named Andronikos, he quickly found that it was unproductive to feel emotions, especially around the logical and pragmatic Astrals, and as such buried them for centuries.

Drifting from place to place after the War was done, Andronikos was purposeless for years until Janus, the primal beast of reunions, found him and took him in as a member of the Troupe. Upon joining, he took Mars as an alias, having read about a hero named as such and wanting to embody the same compassion that the original Mars held for his allies in the Fire Emblem fairy tale. Over the course of centuries, Mars gradually “unlocks” his emotions, so to say, and eventually learns that in the new skydweller-dominated age, it is acceptable and even encouraged to have emotions in the first place. The more comfortable with someone he is, or the deeper he is into a fight, the more expressive he will be.

However, this comes with a fair amount of self-doubt. Raised as a weapon, Mars finds it difficult to let himself rely on others, and feels bad when others have to come to his aid or pick up his slack. To this end, Mars sometimes pushes his friends away in cruel ways, and always fears that he will be discarded when he is of no more use to the Troupe. In other words, Mars is self-aware to a fault, and is always looking to improve himself, though he doesn’t always do so in healthy ways.

### Relationships

**Janus**

 Mars looks up to Janus a lot and essentially views him as his older brother, but secretly hopes that he can one day be seen as his equal. A little obsessed with proving himself to be of use to Janus, and harbors some fear that he’s going to be cast out one day, though this fear diminishes with each day that Mars spends with him.

 Janus is one of the few people that knows and uses Mars' Astral-given name.

**Hazel**

Mars met Hazel in the period between the end of the War and joining the Troupe. He found her eccentric and a little intimidating at first, but then he saw Hazel drunk, and decided she was actually great fun to be around. He and Hazel constantly jokingly threaten each other, though it doesn’t look like joking to anybody else. For a long time, Hazel was Mars’s only other primal friend, and as such Mars holds Hazel incredibly dear in his heart, but fuck you if you even imply that he actually cares about Hazel.

As Hazel grows increasingly unhinged as she comes to terms with the Grancypher crew’s role in Arte’s slumber, Mars is increasingly unable to reach her, and perceives this as a personal failing.

**Calliope**

Mars is one of the few people that recognizes Calliope as Robin, the primal tactician that guided the Astrals' every move. Since the formation of the Troupe, the two have been good friends. Calliope often showers Mars in love and affection as penance for sending him to his near-death so many times, and is absolutely adamant that he take care of himself, which Mars does incredibly poorly. Mars wishes she wouldn't come after him so much every time he picked up a cup of coffee, but is beginning to realize that she does so out of care.

Mars and Calliope are both affected by Otherworld memory tampering at some point and share guilt for their actions during the War.