Langley Stormrider (age 23, female, 5'4, 130 pounds, brown hair, green eyes)

The heroine of the story. Langley is the twin sister of the duo and serves as the voice of reason. She is practical, controlled, and yet has a flair for the dramatics. She likes to be in charge and is captain of her own skimmer - Langley's Ark. Like her brother, she dropped out of the Academy during her senior year to avoid being recruited by the Cadre. She prefers the freedom of the ocean and her own ship to anything they could offer. Like all Stormriders, Langley feels most at home while on the ocean.

Langley considers herself a jack-of-all-trades and doesn't really specialize in any one form of 'mancy. She calls herself a technomancer as generalmancy isn't officially recognized by anyone and she does share her brother's knack for machinery. However, she does have a fondness towards aermancy and carries a feather around in her hat to serve as a component for a wide variety of air-based spells.

Physically, Langley is short and lanky with a more muscular build than feminine. Indeed, she is often mistaken for being younger than she really is, or sometimes even a boy if she's wearing the right clothing. Her hair is a little past the shoulder and is usually pulled back into a braid. She wears a sleeveless black jacket trimmed with the crisscrossed gold of a skimmer captain. Her prized possessions are her gray three-cornered hat with the feather and her two rapiers. Other things of note are the sub-class 1 void pouch containing her massive collection of components, two flintlock pistols, and the silver and opal ring she wears.

Sabreur Stormrider (age 23, male, 5'8, 125 pounds, brown hair, green eyes)

The hero of the story. Sabreur is the twin brother of the duo and plays the role of the mad scientist. He is inventive, often absent-minded, and while he does not have his sister's flair for attention, is quite good at attracting it anyways. He spends most of his time in the lab, honing his inventions and trying to find new ways to use 'mancy. He prefers unconventional approaches to the subject.

While he too lacks an official degree, Sabreur goes by the title of both technomancer and pyromancer. Unlike most 'mancers, Sabreur does not practice the controlled and precise manipulation of fire. Instead, he goes for raw power - the "blow shit up" method.

Physically, Sabreur is tall and lanky, just skin, bone, and muscle. He wears a battered labcoat with oversized pockets, torn pants, oversized leather gloves, and goggles on his head. He carries a sturdy canvas shoulderbag with plenty of pockets for his gadgets and components. He carries a rapier and a pistol for weapons. His hair is shoulder-length and pulled into a messy ponytail. He has a pointy beard streaked with gold. Other items of note include his hematite and ruby ring, firebombs, and the devastatingly dangerous voidbombs.

Ajiin Veer (age 37, male, 5'7, 214 pounds, brown hair, grey eyes)

First mate of Langley's Ark. He's a very sarcastic and cynical person with a pessimistic outlook on life. However, he's also very laid-back, which is one the reasons Langley made him first mate. He's not averse to taking orders from someone much younger than him and is mellow enough to take any disaster the twins or luck winds them in without losing his cool. His piloting skills are average as he was not a sailor before he met the twins and they had to teach him everything after taking him aboard. His original profession was a mercenary, his specialty being sniping as he owns a rifle with a 'mancer-crafted scope. The scope is the only 'mancer item he allows around himself as like some people do, he holds a deep distrust in 'mancy. The twins have done nothing to reassure his fears.

Physically, he's slender but strong, very agile and able to balance extremely well. It's rumored that he was trained as an assassin and he does nothing to correct the suspicion as in his mind - it's too stupid to be even worth his attention. His hair is red-brown and reaches his mid-back when not in a ponytail.

Crystal (age 16?, female, 5'3, 110 pounds, varying hair color, very pale blue eyes)

Much of Crystal's past is unknown, for the sole fact that she's too scatterbrained to follow a train of thought for more than a minute. As far as the twins can tell, she was exiled from her homeland and retreated into the southern ice caps where she raised a horde of undead penguins and terrorized the locals until the twins showed up.

Her personality is about as ADHD as they come. She is easily distracted and is fascinated with anything shiny or brightly colored. Her hair color reflects her mood and can be any mix of colors. No one is sure if she does that consciously. She dresses in bright cloth and is exuberant, out-going, enthusiastic about everything, and thinks that everyone is her friend and the grumpy ones just need a hug.

She is also a necromancer - an illegal 'mancy in Alannis. She learned it from her grandmother. Her 'best friend' is one of the 7 guardians of the underworld - Mihos the avatar of vengeance. On the rare occasions she summons him he appears as an oversized skeletal bird with green fire in his eyes. No one knows how she managed that one.

Sparrow (age 17, male, 4’8”, 95 pounds, dirty brown hair, brown eyes)

The skiridian pilot of the Ark. Sparrow is small in stature, like all of his kind, with brown wings streaked with black. His hair is short and usually unkempt. He rarely talks and seems to really only come alive when piloting. The twins suspect him to be some cross between an idiot savant and prodigy when it comes to the skimmers. He often has to be reminded to leave the helm to eat and sleep and does little else outside of pilot and what other people tell him to.

Deeah Stormrider (age 26, male, 5'9, 138 pounds, brown hair, green eyes)

The eldest living brother of the twins. Deeah is as cunning, reckless, and talented as the twins. However, while the twins tend to bull-head their way through everything Deeah prefers to be subtle and only commits to a plan when he knows he has the advantage. Furthermore, Deeah is what he calls a “Stormrider gone bad.” Stormriders tend to be noble which tempers their harsh and unforgiving upbringings. However, Deeah lost that nobility somewhere along the way. He will do whatever it takes to achieve his goal, even if it is detestable and cruel. That’s not to say he enjoys violence – he’s just strong-willed enough to commit it without regret.

Physically Deeah is much like the twins - tall and skinny. His hair is cut short but has longer bangs that often cover his face. He’s very abrupt and to the point in his manner. He dresses plainly in ways that won’t make him stand out from the crowd unless he wants to.

Brin Laughlan (age 22, male, 5'7, 169 pounds, blonde hair, blue eyes)

An old friend of the twins, Brin is in his final year at the Academy, although he figures he'll take another couple years to actually leave, as he plans to pursue either an advanced degree or a second one entirely. Right now, he holds the title chronomancer and uses his time-manipulation powers to stretch due-dates, earning him the title of "Master Procrastinator." He met Sabreur in fencing club and is fond of Langley in the sister sense. When the two visit, he often uses his family's wealth to treat her to icecream in the fancy part of the city while listening to their exploits and updating them on the latest news from the school.





Dog (age 52, male, 5'8, 201 pounds, black hair, brown eyes)

One of the professors at the Academy. His real name is never used by the students. Instead, he goes by a nickname attached to him years and years ago after a lesson in animal affinity went bad. He is supervisor of the fencing club and helped train Brin, Langley, and Sabreur. Enjoys tormenting the students and took particular pleasure in frustrating Langley, who doesn't like being thwarted. Teaches bestiamancy and most of the martial arts.







Omar Descan (age 43, 5’2”, 234 pounds, dirty blonde hair, blue eyes)

The wealthy owner of a small fleet of merchant ships and owner of Kwi, a large gunship/merchant ship renowned for never having lost a cargo. He appears as a flamboyantly dressed man, short and pudgy, with a jovial nature and eye for business opportunities and promising captains to recruit into his growing fleet. He never appears without his bodyguard. Although shrewd and aggressive in business practices, he appears relatively harmless. However, the persona of Omar is only a front for Serpent, the notorious smuggler that has run rings around the Cadre for years. His captains are all pirates and smugglers as well and he often uses intimidation, bribery, and outright violence to achieve his goals.

Jeff Starling (age unknown, male, 5’4”, 205 pounds, dark brown-black hair, brown eyes)

Captain of the Black Pebble (a ship no one dares fire on) and a blatant Jack Sparrow parody. He is half human half elf and so he has weird luck. Things go mostly his way, but usually in the most bizarre manner.

Grandma Stormrider (age withheld, 4’7”, 132 pounds, gray hair, gray eyes)

While the Stormrider clan is quite large, Grandma Stormrider is quite well known among those closest to the Langley and Sabreur branch of the family. This is partly due to the fact that Grandma continued riding out the storms as per family tradition well into her sixties and is still alive, a rare feat, and one her deceased husband did not manage. Grandma Stormrider is the matriarch of the twin’s branch and often manages the activities of all three generations beneath her (Langley and Sabreur are generation two, generation three is still under ten years of age). She spends her time knitting, threatening the children, and making sure everybody honors their obligations to the Stormrider name. No one crosses Grandma’s word. It’s simply not done. The twins, like all their other siblings and nieces and nephews and cousins, all fear and respect their grandmother. In the evening, Grandma Stormrider often retires with some coffee, mildly spiked. For some reason, her and Ajiin get along well, on the rare occasion they meet.

Genoa (age 17, male, 5’7”, 172 pounds, pale wheat hair, red eyes)

A student at the Academy and a fledgling vampire. Genoa was bitten by a rogue vampire who was promptly hunted down and killed by the Cadre. Genoa was spared and taken back to the Academy and put under the mentorship of a vampire that resided there as a professor. He still has a lot to learn until he can take care of himself and expects to be at the Academy for a very long time to come.

Genoa is quiet and dislikes attention or being social, for that matter. He is difficult to bother though as being attacked and turned into a vampire was so traumatizing that everything else seems trivial in comparison

Presleigh Stormrider (age 11, female, 4’2”, 69 pounds, brown hair, green eyes)

The single child of a land-locked Stormrider family currently in her first year at the Academy. Presleigh grew up feeling overshadowed by her more adventurous cousins and is trying to make a name for herself at the Academy and uphold the Stormrider reputation. Growing up an only child has made that a bit difficult.

Aelisha Minerva (age 25, female, 5’4”, 131 pounds, blonde hair, blue eyes)

The owner of a café near the Academy names Liqua’mancy. Aelisha graduated with a degree in literamancy and spent a couple years working for a shipping firm until she made enough money to purchase and open her own business. She uses her ‘mancy mostly to create unique advertisements for her shop and serves some of the best chocolate and pastries you can find in the city. Dated Sino Naite for six months while they were both in school together.

Sino Naite (age 25, 5’11”, 209 pounds, red-brown hair, brown eyes)

A literamancer and gravimancer from the Academy, Sino was made an officer of the Cadre at a young age, barely a year after graduation. His ruthlessness in his methods, skill at suppressing any dissent against said methods, and effectiveness in getting the job done earned him the respect of his superiors and a rank befitting his talents. He now commands a small unit of Cadre with a skimmer and captain at his disposal. Sino is strong, tall, with shoulder-length hair and a small goatee. He wears the four-pointed jacket of the Cadre with the gold braid around the waist and shoulders of an officer. His weapons are only two rapiers and his ‘mancy, as he believes pistols are dishonorable and that if violence is the answer, it should be done up close and with a fair chance to the other person. However, since he is ambidextrous, almost an acrobat in his fighting style, and uses both rapiers and his agility, it’s really a one-sided fight.

Professor Tremanis (age 52, female, 5’6”, 160 pounds, red hair, green eyes)

One of the professors of the Academy. Tremanis teaches history. She is a very intimidating woman, strong, a powerful ‘mancer, and always walks around campus armed. Furthermore, it is common knowledge on campus that she is also a champion of one of the seven rulers of the Underworld, specifically, the avatar of suffering. There are many jokes about this and how it relates to her classes, but they are always voiced in whispers and when she isn’t in sight. Tremanis is actually quite a good teacher, just with high standards. The main reason she is so feared by the students is because about seven years ago she killed someone on campus in full view of witnesses, and not just killed him – tore his soul free and gave it over to her master. The reasons for this are still unknown and no one has ever dared ask, much less reprimand her, as a champion’s actions are closely watched by their lord and if they ever disobey his/her will, the power they borrow off the avatar will be revoked, or worse. Tremanis has a tattoo of a weasel curling down her arm that marks her as the champion of suffering.

Saruwa Kahatuma Tak (age 93, male, 5’8”, 184 pounds, black hair, black eyes)

A high elf from the fortress city of his kind, Saruwa spent most of his life involved in politics as an assassin for one of the leading nobles. Since high elf politics tend to be rather slow-moving, Saruwa spent most of his time being bored or being sent out among the other people on errands that required his unique talents. Mostly, he was bored though.

Saruwa has a nasty temper and rarely interacts with people if he can help it. He’s mean, sarcastic, and dislikes other races. Physically he’s like most high elves – average stature compared to a human, slim but strong, and has small pearly white fairy wings and long black hair.

Clear Brook (age unknown, female, 3’7”, 55 pounds, mouse-brown hair, amber eyes)

An elf of one of the tribes in the elven islands, Clear Brook is not yet recognized as an adult. She is small, fierce, and utterly fearless. The only weapon she carries is a belt knife that is more utility than for defense and she relies entirely on her elven luck and the fact that she’s still a child to protect her. The fact that she’s putting herself into harm’s way also escapes her.

Clear Brook doesn’t speak a word of anything but her tribal language and doesn’t even bother to try and communicate with non-elves. She conveys everything by staring and occasionally pointing. Few people are able to ignore a short girl with pointy ears staring at them cross-eyed over her pug nose.