Cast List

In order of appearance:

Mark, Friend of the People

Race – Human. Nationality – British.

Gender, Male.

At the time the events of this story took place, Mark is the only human to have left the solar system, albeit unwillingly, and the only human to know that the universe is seething with intelligent life. Why haven’t we noticed? Protocols prohibit advanced civilisations from contacting non-star-faring civilisations – and anyway, the galaxy is very big. The universe is even bigger.

An incredibly advanced race called ‘The People’ have given Mark his own starships; the Falcon (featured in this story) and the far larger Swift. They’ve embedded some of their technology in Mark, which includes a super-intelligent Artificial Intelligent assistant that he calls Kate. They had their reasons. The People are not famous for their sense of humour, more for being dour and humourless, so it’s surprising that their AIs, like Kate, are playful with a sense of humour. Mark also carries embedded tech – an environmental protection system which has the property of invulnerable armour, and a couple of weapons. Other than that, he’s just a regular, unassuming and peace-loving human – who just happens to be second-in-command of the galaxy’s most powerful private army. Unwillingly, of course.                                                                                                                                                               

Kate

Race – None, it is an Artificial Intelligence

Kate is the name given by Mark to the AI embedded in his brain by one of the People (Alan, or to give him his real name, Ker Din Ser Forn).

Kate is sentient and self-aware. Its role is to give Mark advice.

Renny.Hilmar Bev, the Explorer

Race – Melandrian.

Gender, male.

Renny is more or less humanoid, but you wouldn’t mistake him for a human.

Given the galaxy has been fully explored and catalogued by The People, you might wonder what Renny’s exploring. He often explains: “It’s true that everywhere has been explored by somebody, but not by me. So every time I visit somewhere new, I explore it.” Lots of people do this—they’re called tourists. What makes Renny famous as ‘The Explorer’ is that he shares informative and entertaining VR recordings with a massive audience. Think of him as a YouTube influencer, but with more reach. Seventy-two trillion subscribers, give or take.

Krin Dak

Race, Krendor.

Gender, male.

Krendors are reptiles. Think of nine feet tall T Rexes, but with no tails and large, powerful arms. They have large heads with a mouthful of razor sharp, dagger like teeth. They look scary and make ferocious warriors, but they are generally friendly and have a sense of humour. But if you ever meet one, don’t offend it.

Fizz Elleran

Race – Vexan.

Gender, female.

Vexans are humanoid mammals, best described as a cross between a fox and a human. Fizz, like most of her kind, has short, light brown fur, a short muzzle, and large, mobile ears – no, they don’t run around her head, but they do twitch constantly, like those of an alert dog. Vexans are generally easy-going, fun-loving people. Fizz, however, is not your typical Vexan. Years spent as a soldier have left her sharp-edged and pragmatic, with little patience for frivolity.

As for her name, in the common Vexan language, it translates to something along the lines of ‘beautiful flower of our loins’.. Don’t blame her; she didn’t choose it. Fizz couldn’t be described as ‘easy-going and fun loving’, she’s spent too many years as a soldier. She’s taking a break now to explore the galaxy with her companions. ‘Friends’ would be too strong a word for her relationship with them.

Boffad

Race, Rendan.

Gender, male.

Rendans are large, bipedal mammals, though not particularly human-like apart from walking on two legs. Boffad stands roughly eight feet tall, and nearly as wide. Rendans are immensely strong and have exceptionally long, powerful arms. They have massive, low-browed heads, and broad flattened noses, which wrinkle and snuffle to express emotion.

As a race, Rendans are deeply family oriented and peaceful. But Boffad, still a juvenile by Rendan standards, is driven by a desire for revenge after outcasts killed his sister. Boffad has vowed to join an army, despite his parents’ protests. Realising he wasn’t ready to become a soldier, he pleaded with his parents to let him explore the galaxy to learn more about other races, other cultures. They reluctantly agreed for him to leave, but only because Mark promised to protect him.

Sally (AKA, Sah Lee)

Race, Aarnth

Gender, female.

Sally is a mammalian humanoid female, descended from a large, predatory, cat-like species. She could pass as a normal and attractive human being, except for her slit-pupilled, feline eyes. She has retractable claws and long, sharp canine teeth which are normally concealed until she draws her lips back. If you see them, hope that someone else has offended her. She has been known to rip the throats out of her opponents in battle, though she tries not to make a habit of it.

She’s a highly skilled and experienced fighter and is known as the most fearsome warrior in the galaxy. She’s also the leader of the largest private army in the galaxy.

(For more about her and her beginnings, see the novel, Hunter, Warrior, Commander.)

Mike (AKA, Hess An Sur)

Race, Herassan

Gender, female.

You might wonder why a female Herassan is called Mike. The story is as peculiar as she is, involving a monumental misunderstanding and an antlike creature the size of a pony. Nothing about Mike is straightforward.

Herassans are humanoid reptiles, standing between five feet eight inches and six feet tall, with short, sturdy tails and a slender build. They’re typically even-tempered and friendly – traits Mike utterly lacks. She’s a ferocious fighter with zero tolerance for wrongdoers, and her personality can only be described as toxic.

Her friends have labelled her ‘an immature, self-centred, foul-mouthed, obnoxious, spiteful, and violent sociopath,’ as well as ‘vile’ and ‘despicable.’ Her enemies, on the other hand, don’t live long enough to form an opinion. Yet, for all her flaws, those same friends would admit that Mike is fiercely loyal, utterly dependable, and willing to take a bullet or a blade for anyone..

Despite her caustic personality, her friends are deeply fond of her – in their own way, which mostly involves hurling insults at her. Mike wouldn’t have it any other way.

Seltet Rass

Race, Thepton

Gender, female.

Seltet, a mammal, is a tall, barrel chested woman with what seem like unnaturally long legs. She is very long lived, even by galactic standards and has followed many careers in her life, including soldiering. She’s warm hearted and caring, and in contrast to her army colleagues, highly cultured.

Simon (AKA Si’ir Monnen Dak)

Race, Harnon

Gender, male.

Humanoid mammal, Just over two metres tall and very solidly built, he has been described as being built like a small building. The Harnon are a peaceful and gentle race. Simon is not. He has a defect that means he needs constant adrenaline rushes, otherwise he becomes depressed and uncontrollably violent. The best efforts of his race have failed to treat him. To keep his behaviour in check, he became a soldier, but needs to see action regularly and frequently to give him the natural hormonal boosts – cortisol and adrenaline (epinephrine) boosts he needs.

Simon is experienced, intelligent and a good soldier, though he’s relatively uneducated and a ‘rough diamond’. He’s a good and loyal friend, dedicated to protecting innocent people.

The People

The People are an ancient race, billions of years old. Most intelligent species don’t last anywhere near that long, typically becoming extinct within a billion years of achieving interstellar travel. The People, however, are unique—not just in their longevity but in their very nature. They are unlike any other known lifeform in the universe, or at least in the vast stretch of it they’ve explored, mapped, and catalogued.

Their technology is similarly unmatched, advanced by billions of years compared to anyone else. Two innovations in particular set them apart. First, they have an instantaneous communications network spanning the known universe. They’re quite open about how it works, secure in the knowledge that no one else has the means to replicate it. Second, they possess the ability to travel instantaneously between any two points in the universe—a method they call “blinking,” because the journey happens in the blink of an eye. They’re far less forthcoming about this one; while the principle behind it is relatively simple, the technology required to make it work is anything but.

Though the People are staunchly peaceful and non-interventionist, they’ve been known to ‘influence’ events now and then when they feel it’s warranted.

One last thing about the People: they are obsessive archivists. They document every detail of every species’ history, filling what they call the Archives. Among the People, being an Archivist is considered the highest and most vital calling. Why the Archives are so important to them remains a mystery—one they guard as closely as their origin. Whatever they discovered about themselves all those years ago, it left an indelible mark, one that shaped their entire civilisation.

The Tolen

The Tolen are a small subset of the People, disapproved of and feared by most of the People because they do not share the same belief in passive non-intervention. They’ve developed a range of weaponry, from the merely frightening to the downright terrifying – up to and including devices capable of sterilising entire galaxies.

The Tolen were formed after what became known as the AI War, when a rogue, self-replicating AI army declared war on all organic life. Initially weaponless, the People eventually managed to defeat the rogue intelligence – but not before it had wiped out millions of civilisations across dozens of galaxies.

This catastrophe led to one of the People’s most unyielding rules: no civilisation should ever allow an AI direct fire control over any weapon system. Except, of course, the People themselves.

The Tolen’s leader – whom Mark has nicknamed ‘Bob’ – has taken a liking to him. Mark’s feelings about this are… ambivalent, at best.