Elienor (Clan): Elienor was a great Aachim heroine of ancient times, who almost defeated Rulke when the Hundred invaded Aachan. She was the founder of Clan Elienor, the least of the Aachim clans, who, since coming to Aachan with Vithis, have been ostracised for allowing Tiaan to escape with a construct.
Faellem: A long-lived human species who have passed out of the Histories, though some may still dwell in isolated parts of Santhenar.
Flangers: A soldier and hero in past battles against the lyrinx, he is stricken by guilt for his part in shooting down a Council thapter, and desperate to atone.
Fusshte: A treacherous member of the Council of Scrutators, second to Ghorr.
Fyn-Mah: Former querist (chief of the municipal intelligence bureau) at Tiksi and a loyal supporter of Xervish Flydd, she nurtures a secret passion for him.
Ghorr: Chief Scrutator of the Council of Scrutators, and Flydd’s enemy.
Gilhaelith: An eccentric, amoral geomancer and mathemancer who dwelt at Nyriandiol. Because of his dismal early years he is obsessed with controlling everyone and everything in his life. When unable to do this the stress causes him to have panic attacks. His overriding goal is to understand the nature of the physical world, so as to control it too. He was captured by the lyrinx so he could aid their excavations in the tar pits at Snizort, and subsequently taken to their underground city of Oellyll, beneath Alcifer, from which he has since been rescued (against his will by Tiaan) and taken to Fiz Gorgo. There Yggur, mistrusting him, cast him into prison and Gilhaelith’s geomantic attempts to escape led the scrutators to Fiz Gorgo.
Gyrulclass="underline" Matriarch of the lyrinx city at Snizort. A powerful, farsighted mancer, profoundly intelligent.
Haani: Tiaan’s adopted sister, accidentally killed by the Aachim in Tirthrax.
Halie: A scrutator on the Council and a former supporter of Flydd.
Inouye: The pilot of Jal-Nish’s air-floater, stolen by Fyn-Mah and now used by Flydd. Inouye is a sad little creature, terrified that her children and her man have been executed because she was forced to ally with Flydd.
Inthis: Vithis’s clan of Aachim, since time immemorial first of the eleven clans (First Clan). All Clan Inthis, apart from Vithis and Minis, were lost when the portal between Aachan and Tirthrax was opened, to Vithis’s unending grief.
Irisis Stirm: Crafter, originally in charge of the controller artisans at the manufactory; niece of Barkus; one-time lover of Xervish Flydd, now a friend and comrade-in-arms.
Jal-Nish Hlar: Acting Scrutator; Nish’s father. He suffered massive injuries from a lyrinx attack and begged to be allowed to die, but Nish and Irisis saved his life. Now, hideously maimed, he has a bitter loathing for them both, and an unquenchable desire to be the greatest scrutator of all. He stole the tears formed by the destruction of the Snizort node but was subsequently eaten by the lyrinx at the battle of Gumby Marth.
Joeyn (Joe): An old miner, Tiaan’s friend, who died in a roof fall.
Kattiloe: A young thapter pilot.
Kimli: A young thapter pilot
Klarm: Scrutator for Borgistry. A handsome and cheerful man, despite his dwarfish stature.
Liett: Gyrull’s daughter, and a lyrinx with unarmoured skin and no chameleon ability; a talented flesh-former and brilliant flier who yearns to lead her people, even though she is regarded as incomplete. She has a turbulent relationship with Ryll.
Liliwen: Daughter of Troist and Yara, twin of Meriwen.
Luxor: A conciliatory Aachim clan leader.
Lyrinx: Massive winged humanoids who escaped from the void to Santhenar after the Forbidding was broken. Highly intelligent, many of them are able to use the Secret Art, most commonly for keeping their heavy bodies in flight. They have armoured skin and a chameleon-like ability to change their colours and patterns, often used for communication (skin-speech). Some lyrinx are also flesh-formers; they can change small organisms into desired forms using the Art. In the void they used a similar ability to pattern their unborn young so as to survive in that harsh environment. As a consequence, they are not entirely comfortable in their powerful but much changed bodies. The lyrinx were forced to abandon their culture and heritage in the void. Their lives are entirely martial, and now some of them are beginning to regret their loss and wonder what to do about it once they’ve won the war.
Malien: A venerable but ostracised Aachim living in Tirthrax. A heroine from the time of the Mirror (also known as the Matah). She helped Tiaan make the thapter, or flying construct, subsequently took her to Stassor and then on to Fiz Gorgo.
Meriwen: Daughter of Troist and Yara, twin of Liliwen.
Merryclass="underline" A slave who taught human languages to the lyrinx in Snizort; also known as Tutor. He was kind to Tiaan.
Minis: A young Aachim man of high status; foster-son of Vithis; Tiaan’s dream lover who was forced to spurn her when the Aachim came through the gate to Tirthrax. He feels guilty about his treatment of her, yearns for her, but is totally in thrall to Vithis. Minis is so weak and vacillating that he couldn’t even choose to save Tiaan from Vithis. He was maimed during her escape in a construct.
Mira: Yara’s sister who dwells at Morgadis, embittered after the loss of her husband and her three sons in the war. She communicates with a coalition of like-minded people by skeet. Nish fled her home in fear for his life after a liaison which ended with an unfortunate misunderstanding.
M’lainte: Flydd’s mechanician, the genius who built the first air-floater.
Myllii: Ullii’s long-lost twin brother for whom she had been searching all her life. He was accidentally slain by Nish.
Nish: Cryl-Nish’s nickname.
Numinator, the: A mysterious figure mentioned by Flydd when in his cups, said to secretly control the Council of Scrutators.
Nylatclass="underline" A malicious creature created by Ryll and Liett’s flesh-forming. It killed Haani’s aunts and attacked Tiaan. Nish destroyed it after it attacked him and Ullii near Tirthrax.
Orgestre: General Orgestre is Grand Commander of the Army of Greater Borgistry.
Rulke: The greatest of all the Charon, he created the first construct. He was killed at the time the Forbidding was broken.
Rylclass="underline" An ostracised wingless lyrinx who captured Tiaan and subsequently used her in flesh-forming. He was an honourable lyrinx and after Tiaan saved his life he allowed her to escape from Kalissin. He later captured her again when she came to Snizort looking for Gilhaelith, and used her in the patterners. After the destruction of Snizort, Ryll went to Oellyll, where he was put to work to create a flisnadr, or power patterner.
Seeker: Ullii. Also, one who can sense the use of the Secret Art or people who have that talent, or even enchanted objects.
Tiaan Liise-Mar: A young artisan; a visual thinker and talented controller-maker. With the amplimet, she picked up Minis’s cry for help, fell in love with him and carried the amplimet all the way to Tirthrax, where she used it in opening a gate to Aachan, to save Minis and his people. She subsequently helped Malien make a thapter in Tirthrax, departed in it, attacked the Aachim camp and later crashed near Nyriandiol when the amplimet refused to do what she wanted. Her back was broken in the crash. She was taken back to Nyriandiol by Gilhaelith, who began to teach her geomancy. When he was kidnapped by Gyrull and taken to Snizort, she followed in the thapter but was captured and put to use in the patterners, to pattern torgnadrs or node-drainers. This was only partly successful, because of her broken back, so the lyrinx flesh-formed it to repair her spine. After Snizort was abandoned, Merryl helped Tiaan to escape the patterners. She was subsequently captured by the Aachim, escaped back to Tirthrax, and travelled with Malien to Fiz Gorgo, ‘rescuing’ Gilhaelith on the way.