💫Our Protagonists💫

A big thanks to our artist Cam Gonzalez for this GORGEOUS character art. Check out her stuff @camgonzalezart on Twitter!

Zemira Kaltain

On the surface, Zemira Kaltain was just like every other kid from Saltspire... and that's exactly how she liked it. She had no desire to stand out and only wished to be accepted by her peers. She was pretty but not too pretty, smart but hid it well enough- a great blend of averages that she spent her childhood perfecting. Her beauty and charm were a mask that Zem wore. Under the surface, she was terrified of what was there- a darkness and a knowing that made her feel other, like she didn't belong. Her mother let her know in no uncertain terms that Zem would never be accepted or happy if she didn't stamp out that part of her, “Weird girls don't find husbands to take care of them. Nobody likes outsiders. You'll live alone and afraid your entire life if you don't fit in.”

Despite the growing resentment towards her mother and the fact that her mostly absent father disagreed, she crafted her mask and hoped that no one ever breached her wall. They never did. Her performance was too good, and she soon found friends in the popular crowd. She went to parties and dated and had the most delightfully average time in school. Only one person knew her for her true self- a boy, a brother in every way but name. Char. They grew up side by side, and he saw her for who she was from day one. She could never craft a mask good enough to fool him, but Char wasn't concerned about fitting in or popularity.

Gradually, they saw less and less of each other, and Zem sunk deeper into the façade she created around her life, losing touch with who she really was. That's how Zem learned that you can't lock away and ignore power. At some point it will come out, and you can either learn to control it or explode with it.

Charlemagne Vif Brume

What’s in a name? Familial bond? A divine hope for the future? A promise? All may very well be the case, so it’s a shame Charlemagne hates his.

Call him Char. A child of two artists. His father, Finn, a Bard who has performed for royalty and poppers alike. His mother, Amaryllis, a high caliber musician in her own right but a painter by trade. Their love for each other, and their talent, could move mountains and stop armies. It is a shame that Char inherited neither the skill nor desire to walk the path of his parents. Finn and Amaryllis loved their child. They were happy, but there was always an air of dissonance, a brick wall between Char and his future. Luckily, there was a reprieve from Char’s unknown fate- a girl of Saltspire, his best friend, Zemira Kaltain.

Time passed. Priorities shifted. Eventually, Char’s lack of desire to climb the social ladder caused his path to divert from Zem’s. Though friends they still were, Char was alone again. At school, he was an outcast. He didn’t care to mold to the majority beliefs. And what do people do when they don’t understand the actions of someone? I’m sure you can guess. His fellow classmates and their parents refused to believe that he was the child of Amaryllis and Finn. Thus, he was a pariah even outside of the classroom.

Char took a job with a local glassworker and blacksmith by the name of Gideon. It lasted for 4 years while finishing up school. Char worked day in and day out, even skipping school some days because he felt at home there. He enjoyed it, but still, there was something nagging the back of his brain. Was this all there was? Should he lock away his desire for more? Allow complacency because it is easy? And then… a new opportunity. An invitation to train at a monastery: The Garden. The night before he was to leave, Char was ready to decline the offer and instead stay and work with Gideon.

Gideon was more an adult than anyone Char had known so far. Gideon called Char out on settling for a life of mediocrity, and said he had to pursue life, to judge it by the future and to not settle. So, one conversation with Amaryllis and Finn later, Char set off for The Garden- smashing through the brick wall between him and his future, taking his first steps toward his destiny.

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