Jonus is a seventeen-year old boy from Aadenno Village of the Ward Isles. He is apprenticed to Soren as a mussel farmer. He is the best swimmer in the village. His father died when he was a boy from a sickness known as “the fevers,” leaving him to help his mother, Eiriin, and his younger sister, Sheriis continue on with their lives. He has a deep sense of obligation to family and village. He has no dreams of greatness or desire to ever leave his simple life. He suffers greatly from anxiety and panic attacks, but does not let these stop him from fulfilling his obligations to those he loves.

Faarah is a seventeen-year-old girl and one of Aadenno Village’s future Selected. She knows that one day, she will be called to join “the Wards” in their castle far away. She senses the enormity of that responsibility and ceaselessly prepares for it by becoming the best at everything that she does. She has an impeccable singing voice. She is self-assured to a fault and irritates the other village children with her sense of self-importance. She adores being the center of attention. And yet, she often feels alone because she knows that villagers do not get attached to the Village’s Selected that will one day leave, never to return. She has never doubted herself before, but the fate that awaits will test her confidence in herself.

Esra is a thirty-four-year-old lieutenant of the Caradon Empire’s Navy. While he would now no longer be accepted as such, he is indeed the first cousin of Fabricht Durain, the Caradon Emperor. Esra has no interest in court politics and abandoned that life when he ran away to join the Navy at age fifteen. He is an exceptional sailor, trusted by all of his fellow shipmates. He is loyal to the Empire and accepted the call to join an invasion fleet sent to attack the Ward Isles, despite his moral reservations about doing so. He is deeply in love with Senator Sefina Michell, although his love of the sea and hatred of politics has caused him to put off marriage to her for many years.

Eiriin is Aadenno Village’s tinkerer. She makes household items for the other villagers and is also quite clever in creating devices for people’s homes to improve their qualities of life. She is the mother of Jonus, the apprentice mussel farmer of the village. Her husband died years ago from “the fevers.” She misses him dearly and keeps reminders of him around her home, despite village custom to never speak of the dead. She loves her son and her daughter Shariis dearly, but often relies on Jonus for emotional support. Shariis is eight-years-old and is an apprentice goat-herder. She idolizes her brother. She is very eager to become a full shepherd one day.

Soren is an elderly man from Aadenno Village and has been the village mussel farmer for many years. He is married to Josii the Village Elder. He is gruff on the outside, but has a very soft heart. He is also a little mischievous and often flouts village customs, much to the chagrin of his wife. He was once the best swimmer in the village, but old age has decreased his skill. He lost a son to the “fevers,” and has sort of adopted his apprentice mussel farmer, Jonus, as a surrogate son.

Josii is the Village Elder of Aadenno Village. She is very formal in her communication with her fellow villagers, always calling them by their proper titles. She is married to Soren who endlessly vexes her with his rascally ways. She is incredibly kind and loves the village children dearly. She maintains a very peaceful town by holding fast to village customs and ensuring every villager is seen and heard and feels important to the village’s growth and productivity. She is very wise and knows much more than she lets on. She is one of the only village members who knows what the true purpose of “the Wards” is.

Sefina Michell is the youngest Senator ever elected to the Caradon Imperial Senate. She comes from an incredibly wealthy family from the Michell District just south of Sterngard. She is stunningly beautiful and is always dressing in the latest fashions. Much of this is an act as she secretly plots revolution. She is disgusted by the Emperor’s abuses of power and his lack of care for the poor and the alien members of the Empire. She firmly believes in the righteousness of a compassionate Empire. Frightening dreams that foretell the future plague her sleep. She only has eyes for one man, Esra Durain, a sailor in the Imperial Navy. She is frustrated that he refuses to give up Navy life and just finally marry her. She now worries they will never have the chance to be wed. 

The Matrahn is the chief member of the Ward’s Circle. Her true name is unknown, even to other members of the Circle. She dwells within Wardhome of the Ward Isles. Blessed with an incredibly long lifespan, she has ruled the Circle for over a hundred years. She is wise, but arrogant and aloof. The only person she really trusts is the Seer member of the Circle. She oversees the collection of the Selected from the villages and the Sifting whereby a new “Dragonward” is chosen to protect the Waking World from invasions from the Nightmare World. She considers this duty sacred and more important than anything else in the world. She will make any sacrifice she deems necessary to fulfill her duty. 

The Hands are a mysterious group of seemingly immortal men that serve “the Wards” in whatever capacity they are needed. They drive black carriages in their travels. They are responsible for collecting the “Selected” from the villages of the Ward Isles and bringing them to Wardhome to begin their service with the Wards. They all wear black bands of cloth around their eyes and ears and villagers wonder how they can hear or see. All villagers are frightened of their skeletal appearance.