Sume alon gar Kaggawa

The only daughter of a royal, Oneira aron dar Seran, and a merchant, Goran Kaggawa, who in his youth was one of Dragonlord Reshiro aren dar Ikessar's *Seven Shadows.* Sume was born in the island of Akki, at the southern coast of Jin-Sayeng. Her father's bankruptcy later leads to her mother's death and her brother Oji's departure for the mainland to seek work.

Steady, resourceful, and quick-witted, Sume has been able to maneuver through life's challenges while remaining as unobtrusive as possible. Her discovery of her father's past pulls her from her simple life of survival deep into the heart of Jin-Sayeng politics.

### **Relationships**

#### Rysaran aren dar Ikessar

Sume meets the uncrowned Dragonlord out on the streets, and forms a fast and solid friendship with him over the years. The shy young man finds her a trustworthy confidante, and encourages her to participate in his meetings in disguise in order to give him the commoner's point-of-view. She is also tasked with becoming his eyes, ears, and hands out in the real world, where he has more difficulties getting around, in much the same way his own father used hers.

Later, their friendship is put to the test when Rysaran chooses to ride the dragon-like creature Naijwa's Beast/Jaeth's Eye at the risk to his sanity. Even after he disappears, she holds on to the belief that he is still alive. She eventually finds him, years later, a shell of the man he once was.

Out of respect to their friendship, and even at great risk to her life, Sume chooses to be the one to put him out of his misery. She kills Rysaran with a dagger to the breast, a motion that would later allow the War of the Wolves to happen, forcing her out of the quiet life she has carved for herself and back to try and save Jin-Sayeng.

#### Kefier Tar'elian

Sume "meets" Kefier through her brother Oji's letters to her as a girl. He tells her about the adventures and challenges of the boy he picked up, partly as a way to distract her from the difficult life he leads as a mercenary. So when Sume actually meets Kefier--years later, when they are both adults--she feels like she knows him.

The time Kefier spent with Oji means he is fluent in Jinan, which helps him and Sume form a rapport quickly. She finds comfort in his company, though they argue fairly often. He eases her through her difficult pregnancy with Rosha and her anger towards Enosh, and over the years finds herself falling for his reliable, steadfast presence. She appreciates his patience with her daughter and her nephew Dai, as well as with herself.

His confession that he was the one who killed Oji throws her world into turmoil and leaves her feeling betrayed. She ends the relationship. But her own killing of Rysaran makes her realize just how insidious Jaeth's Eye was and how Kefier, like she was, is just a victim of their circumstances. She forgives him, all while admitting to herself she would rather be with him than anyone else.

#### Enosh Tar'elian

Sume encounters Enosh as Hertra Ylir yn Ferral--the mysterious, often-harsh merchant who would have killed her nephew if she hadn't intervened. She offers to serve him in exchange. She is initially intimidated by him, but later grows to guardedly enjoy his company. While she would never admit it to him, she admires his capability as a merchant, skills she felt her father lacked and resulted in their family breaking apart.

Her illusion of Ylir is briefly shattered when he sells her as a concubine, but she forgives him a little too easily when he saves her. She falls in love with him and the two are entangled in a brief but passionate affair.

He abandons her again, not long before she learns she is pregnant. Though she waits for him to change his mind, she later sees how selfish and immature he is, and decides to forget him and return to Jin-Sayeng. She doesn't see him again until later on, when her daughter's connection to the *agan* emerges and she realizes she needs Enosh's help to ensure her safety.

Now as a grown woman, she sees Enosh for who he really is. But with Kefier's betrayal still fresh, she decides to give Enosh another chance, convincing herself that he is at the very least *trying* and that this might be good enough. However, she starts to see that she doesn't really love him anymore, even as she's grown fond of him.

#### Ryia aren dar Ikessar

Sume meets Rysaran's younger sister in *Sapphire's Flight*, where they form a bond due to their shared concern for Rysaran. She has much in common with the just-as quiet, meek princess, who is cowed by her two elder sisters.

So it came as a surprise to Sume when Ryia later tracks her down at the onset of the War of the Wolves, asking for her help in securing the throne for her. The Ikessars had followed the Zarojo way and had passed the throne down to their sons for centuries, but now, without a male heir for the first time, Jin-Sayeng is in turmoil and at risk of being taken over by the power-hungry Warlord Yeshin. Sume, knowing she bears the responsibility for the upheaval, reluctantly agrees.