The main protagonist is a young Knight enamoured with chivalric ideals of a long departed heroic age.
Like his father before him he is personal bodyguard to the ruler of Berholme, at this point the young Caitlyn Avangaine.
While the Rothermeyer clan's loyalty to the Avangaine family is well documented, some say Matthias' regard for Caitlyn oversteps
the line required by duty. As the gossips in Berholme's taverns would point out however, Matthias views on duty and chivalry means
he is unlikely to ever act on these feeling's - which is considered a pity as he would make an amazing consort for Lady Caitlyn who clearly
has the highest regard for him.
Of late, the majority of Matthias' time and effort has been taken up by two separate struggles. Firstly he has been responsible for
scrutinizing the Demothean troops deployed close to Berholme's borders and making sure their numbers never reach a suspicious level.
Secondly he has been involved in a legal struggle with Mayor Graviskul, who has been attempting to pass a great many laws through Berholme's
Great Council, acts which Matthias believes are solely designed to reduce the power exercised by the Avangaine family while increasing
the power held by Graviskul.
At no more than twenty one years of age Caitlyn is one of the youngest Avangaine's to ever rule over Berholme.
This is not to say however that she is inexperienced or naive - educated since the age of 12 in the University City of Dierhom, she has
proved, since her fathers death two years past, to be an astute and indeed benevolent politician.
Up until this point she has successfully navigated Berholme through various dangers, both internal and external.
She has travelled to the Imperial Capital Maradem to conclude a twenty year alliance with the expansionist Demothean Empire,
and so far managed to thwart the increasingly powerful merchant class' assault upon the position of the Avangaine family.
The merchant class feels that if certain employment and industrial rules could be changed, profit margins would increase greatly -
the fact that the Avangaine family thwarts these laws in order to protect their poorer subjects causes the merchant class great wrath.
To make matters worse Caitlyn, unlike many of her ancestors, seems highly reluctant to marry one of the city's great merchants.
In fact merchant barons grumble that she has eyes only for her handsome bodyguard.
A vain and pompous man, Graviskul essentially bought the Mayorship of Berholme with his incredible wealth.
For five years he was in effect happy with holding the office of Mayor, and then his arrogance began to eat at him.
"Why should a decadent noble family hold sway over one of the richest towns on the continent - just because one of their ancestors
had served a long dead King of a long dead nation?" the Mayor thought.
Graviskul had hoped to reform Berholme through laws passed by the Great Council, experiencing some initial success,
gathering a few more powers to his person. It became rapidly clear to him however that the people of Berholme had no desire to turn
the enlightened into puppet rulers, let alone depose them. For almost a year since he was thwarted in the courts Graviskul
has raged and plotted.
A ruthless and brutal man raised on a hard diet of battles and campaigning. Ruthlessly ambitious in the extreme,
Mecicar is believed by many to have long had eyes on the Diamond Throne. It is said Medicar believes he will be the man to
revive the Demothean Empire from the torpor of peace and prosperity into which it has fallen in the last twenty years.
As commander of the Empire's Northern front Medicar has access to thousands
of well-trained troops and scores of fortresses. What Medicar is planning
no one knows... all that is known for sure is that the Emperor on the Diamond
Throne's control of him is fast slipping away...
This man's early life is shrouded in mystery. Despite the many rumors surrounding his youth, the nature of his upbringing
is really unknown, although all agree it must have been at least unusual.
He sprang to a position of fame when at age seventeen, for reasons best know to himself, he brutally killed one Marcos Demaner,
a Debusen crime lord.
Since then Samurez's life has been one long orgy of violence. He has literally killed hundreds of men, in taverns, on the battlefield,
in their own homes. If there is a method to his madness it is difficult to discern: all that is clear is that he does not kill women,
children or unarmed men. On occasion he will spare men that have fought bravely, sometimes even going so far as to leave them with
significant amounts of money.
Despite his angelic looks and charming demeanor (even when standing over a dying foe) Samurez has never been linked to any women.
It is almost as if Samurez is addicted to the thrill of combat... certainly nothing else seems to interest him much.