The Dark-Hunters, page 666
Ias was the third Dark-Hunter created after Acheron, and he’s the whole reason there’s an out clause to begin with. Ias, as a human, was killed by his wife’s lover. Trusting that Ias’s wife’s love for him was pure (their first mistake), Acheron entrusted her with Ias’s soul medallion.
However, even Ash can be wrong sometimes. The unfaithful wife, unwilling to bear the pain and bring Ias back to humanity, dropped the medallion and instantly doomed Ias to Shadedom. (And don’t think she just got away with that. Happily, Ash turned Ias’s wife into stone.)
Ash took pity on Ias. He gave him form (of sorts) and took him to live beside him in Katoteros. He bestowed upon Ias the title of Alexion and branded him with Acheron’s mark: a gold sun with three lightning bolts.
Unfortunately, Acheron at the time was still coming into his role and was not aware of the full extent of his powers, so—unlike many Acheron has revived since—Alexion can never be truly human again. As a Shade his senses are muted; his lot is to observe life, not live it.
His duties include watching over Simi and keeping her out of trouble. Alexion can also pass judgment on Dark-Hunter groups that are trying to overthrow Acheron’s authority, but he can’t be outside Acheron’s domain for any longer than ten days. No Dark-Hunter retains a memory of the white-coated Alexion once he has passed judgment and returned to Katoteros.
Alexion, like Simi, can only be killed by an Atlantean dagger from the Destroyer herself. He can explode Daimons with a thought. He can hear the Shades as they wail in their living hell. He does not eat; he drinks Ash’s blood to survive. (Though he does like popcorn … it has something to do with the consistency.)
He currently lives in Katoteros with Ash, Simi, and Dangereuse St. Richard, Alexion’s Dark-Hunter true love who was brought to Katoteros by Acheron after her death.
HAIR/EYES: blond/hazel-green
POWERS: godlike
FEATURED NOVEL: Sins of the Night
Alousius (deceased) A Scottish Dark-Hunter, Alousius was killed by Daimons. Prior to his death, he had lived in Seattle since 1875.
BORN: March 14, 1516
BIRTHPLACE: Aberdeen, Scotland
HEIGHT: six foot three
HAIR/EYES: blond
POWERS: telekinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: deceased
ap-Owain, Ryn Ryn was a Welsh prince whose family was betrayed and wiped out by an ambitious neighbor. In a vengeful rage, he led a suicide charge against his enemy and was left for dead.
BORN: April 25, 1400
BIRTHPLACE: Gwynedd, Wales
HEIGHT: six foot five
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: pyrokinesis
AGE AT DEATH: twenty-four
CURRENT LOCATION: Santa Cruz, California
Arien Arien began her life as the kindhearted daughter of a thief. She dedicated her life to helping others, until a clansman accused her of sorcery and blamed her for the death of his wife. Arien and her father escaped into the hills, where they were then betrayed by her lover. Her father was hanged, and Arien was burned as a heretic.
BORN: A.D. 1052
BIRTHPLACE: Gwynedd, Wales
HEIGHT: five foot ten
HAIR/EYES: dark brown
POWERS: precognition
CURRENT LOCATION: New York City
Baughy, Christopher (aka Rogue) Nickname: Kit. A known Dark-Hunter.
BORN: July 4, 1702
BIRTHPLACE: London, England
HEIGHT: six foot four
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: cryokinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Chicago, Illinois
Belle (deceased) Belle was a tall, blond, gum-chewin’, tequila-drinkin’ Dark-Hunter with a Texan drawl as deep as the Mariana’s Trench. In her heyday, Belle traveled with a Wild West show. Legend has it that she shot the reporter who failed to mention she was a better shot than Annie Oakley, and that she reputedly threw the party that started the Great Fire of Chicago.
Belle was killed by Daimons during an ambush in Seattle.
BORN: November 9, 1869
BIRTHPLACE: Austin, Texas
HEIGHT: six feet
HAIR/EYES: blond
POWERS: atmokinesis
Blade A Saxon peasant who rose to knighthood on merit alone, Blade eventually became a mercenary for William the Conqueror. He was assassinated by his lover during the 1066 Norman Invasion after he snuck her through enemy troops to safety.
BORN: A.D. 1032
BIRTHPLACE: Northumberland, England
HEIGHT: six foot four
HAIR/EYES: dark brown
POWERS: telekinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Atlanta, Georgia
Brady, “Jess” William Jessup (aka Sundown) Orphaned at age five, Jess was a gunslinger, train robber, and cardsharp by age sixteen. He obtained the nickname “Sundown” because they claimed he always did his best work after dark. The bounty on his head was enough to persuade the best man at Jess’s wedding to shoot him in the back. The best man collected … and, thanks to Artemis, so did Jess.
Jess is the only Dark-Hunter that Zarek has ever confided in (they met while playing Myst online). Not surprisingly, he wears a black Stetson.
BORN: August 14, 1869
BIRTHPLACE: Possum Town, Mississippi
HEIGHT: six foot five
HAIR/EYES: dark brown
POWERS: precognition, telekinesis
AGE AT DEATH: twenty-four
CURRENT LOCATION: Reno, Nevada
Cael A Celtic Dark-Hunter whose wife (Morag), brother, washerwoman mother, and sister (Corynna) were all slain by Vikings in 904. Cael’s nobleborn father had sold them all into slavery to save his own wretched life. He probably knew that the Vikings didn’t want slaves—they wanted people on which to practice their fighting skills. Cael was forced to watch as his entire family and his beloved wife were killed before his eyes.
And then came vengeance.
An artist of sorts, Cael makes recycled trash sculptures that he keeps at his home in the basement underneath the Happy Hunting Ground (an Apollite bar) in Seattle. His only friend through the centuries has been the Dark-Hunter/Were-Hunter Ravyn Kontis.
In 2006, Cael’s Apollite-turned-Daimon (by accident) wife, Amaranda, fed him the blood of a Daimon to save him from dying—an act that caused his black eyes to be streaked with amber.
BORN: September 2, 879
BIRTHPLACE: Cornwall, England
HEIGHT: six foot six
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: psychometry, telekinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Seattle, Washington
Callabrax of Likonos Nickname: Brax. A Dorian warrior (Dorians are the forerunners of the Spartans), Callabrax was one of the original Dark-Hunters. He, like many other of his Dark-Hunter brethren, enjoys keeping track of his Daimon kills.
BORN: ?
BIRTHPLACE: ?
HEIGHT: six foot five
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: ferrokinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Dallas, Texas
Campbell, Maxx A Dark-Hunter Highlander currently located in Glasgow. Maxx’s Squire is Keller Mallory’s father.
BORN: June 12, 1419
BIRTHPLACE: Northern Scotland
HEIGHT: six foot four
HAIR/EYES: blond
POWERS: teleportation, telekinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Glasgow, Scotland
Corbin Nickname: Binny (to a chosen few). A Dark-Huntress, Corbin is a former beloved Greek queen who married and was widowed young. Her reign was uncontested until her brother-in-law made a pact with a barbarian tribe to sack the city and burn it to the ground. She died trying to save her servants and their children.
Corbin gets her kicks out of sneaking up on people. Her Squire is Sara Addams.
BORN: January 17, 190 B.C.
BIRTHPLACE: Athens, Greece
HEIGHT: five foot ten
HAIR/EYES: auburn
POWERS: chronokinesis, teleportation
AGE AT DEATH: twenty-six
CURRENT LOCATION: St. Paul, Minnesota
Cromley (deceased) Dark-Hunter killed by Desiderius.
BORN: August 19, 1610
BIRTHPLACE: Liverpool, England
HEIGHT: six foot six
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: pyrokinesis
Danesti, Esperetta Nickname: Retta. The daughter of Vlad Teeş (aka Dracula or Vlad the Impaler), Esperetta grew up isolated in a nunnery in the Caucasus. From the moment of her birth, it was decided that she would be a gift to the Church to atone for her father’s sins. Retta had no desire for anything else … until the day Velkan saved her from a fate worse than death (see Velkan Danesti). Retta fell instantly in love with the handsome warrior prince. They were married in secret and—because he was a sorcerer—Velkan bound her soul to his so that they might remain together for all eternity.
Killed by Retta’s father, Velkan took up Artemis’s deal to become a Dark-Hunter. He swore vengeance upon Vlad, and killed him. But because they had been bound by sorcery, when Velkan was reborn as a Dark-Hunter … so was his soul mate.
BORN: December 25, 1452
BIRTHPLACE: Wallachia, Romania
HEIGHT: six feet
HAIR/EYES: auburn/blue
POWERS: longevity
CURRENT LOCATION: Transylvania
FEATURED STORY: “Until Death We Do Part” in the Love at First Bite Anthology
Danesti, Velkan Velkan was the illegitimate son of a Hungarian sorceress-princess and a Moldavian prince who—like the infamous Vlad Dracul—was a member of the Order of the Dragon. Velkan grew up at his father’s side, fighting invaders. His brothers were captured and enslaved by their enemies.
Rather than be turned into a slave, Velkan sold his soul to the devil for freedom. He vowed that no one would ever enslave or tame him. At age fifteen, he fought and freed his one brother who still lived.
At twenty-six, Velkan captured a band of invaders who had attacked and ransacked a group of nuns on their way to Trigoviste. There in their midst, he found a novice who they had captured with the intent to rape and kill her.
This novice from Wallachia was none other than Esperetta, the daughter of Vlad Dracul, one of his father’s most hated enemies. Despite her ancestry, Velkan took her to his home and cared for her … and fell in love with her. (See Esperetta Danesti.)
Velkan has a scar that runs from the corner of his left eye to his chin. During his days as a Moldavian warlord, he wore black armor bearing the golden emblem of a coiled serpent, and a dragon-shaped helm.
He owns two huge Tibetan mastiffs: Bram and Stoker.
BORN: September 8, 1450
BIRTHPLACE: Moldavia, Romania
HEIGHT: six foot four
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: telekinesis, shapeshifting, pyrokinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Transylvania
FEATURED STORY: “Until Death We Do Part” in the Love at First Bite Anthology
Diego Born the spoiled son of a rich aristocrat, when Diego wanted to be a sailor, his father gave him a boat and the best captain to train him. With the influx of gold from the New World and the stories of riches to be had, Diego turned his attention to the Aztec nation. He was reportedly on his way to El Dorado when his second-in-command decided to hand him over to a group of headhunters. Vengeance ensued, and Artemis got herself a new Dark-Hunter.
BORN: A.D. 1532
BIRTHPLACE: Toledo, Spain
HEIGHT: six foot four
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: aerokinesis, electrokinesis, telekinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: East Los Angeles, California
Dragon Dragon is the illegitimate son of a Western merchant and a Japanese woman. Trained as a ninja by his uncle, he was betrayed by his samurai overlord and handed over to his archrival. Dragon still walks the path of the ninja, making time to take on students—often inner-city kids and women from shelters—and train them in the martial arts. He believes that no one should ever be defenseless. Dragon was the sensei of Susan Michaels.
His real name is unknown. The nickname, Dragon, was given to him because of the red dragon tattoo that marks his left arm. He has a strange fascination for Zoe, and he often talks to Ravyn and Cael.
BORN: January 3, 1332
BIRTHPLACE: Okinawa, Japan
HEIGHT: six feet
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: hydrokinesis, power mimicry, power sensing
AGE AT DEATH: twenty-six
CURRENT LOCATION: San Francisco, California
Eamon (deceased) A Scottish Dark-Hunter, formerly Squired by Celena.
BORN: A.D. 1518
BIRTHPLACE: Scotland
HEIGHT: six foot five
HAIR/EYES: blond
POWERS: divination, clairvoyance
Ephani An ancient Amazon Dark-Huntress stationed in Mississippi. Ephani became a Dark-Hunter sometime around 1000 B.C. She was formerly Squired by Celena.
BORN: circa 1000 B.C.
BIRTHPLACE: Greece
HEIGHT: six foot two
HAIR/EYES: red
POWERS: cryokinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: deceased
Erius (deceased) Erius was a Dark-Hunter who thought he could be a god. He tried to lead the Dark-Hunters to revolt against Acheron. He has been a Shade now for more than two thousand years.
BORN: 2349 B.C.
BIRTHPLACE: Sparta
HEIGHT: six foot six
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: geokinesis
Euphemia (deceased) Nickname: Effie. Formerly a Greek slave woman, Effie was a Dark-Huntress stationed with Viper in Memphis. She was vivaciously funny, and smart to boot. Effie was decapitated by Stryker’s Daimons.
BORN: ?
BIRTHPLACE: Athens
HEIGHT: six feet
HAIR/EYES: blond
POWERS: gravitakinesis
Fitzgilbert, Badon A known Dark-Hunter.
BORN: A.D. 1151
BIRTHPLACE: Hexham, England
HEIGHT: six foot six
HAIR/EYES: blond
POWERS: hydrokinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Columbia, South Carolina
Gallagher, Jamie James Cameron Patrick Gallagher was born in the back of a sweatshop in the Irish slums of New York. Jamie later became a gangster during the American Prohibition era. At the age of twenty he was working for the infamous Ally Malone. His mother disowned him because of it.
Quick to anger, he took nothing from anyone and refused to be tamed until the day a Portuguese immigrant’s daughter crossed his path. Instantly in love, Gallagher defied everyone to claim Rosalie for his own. He adored his wife and was trying to go straight when fate intervened.
Jamie was shot down in the street by police officers when he was on the way to the hospital to see his wife and their newborn son.
He is one of the youngest of the Dark-Hunters and is still getting used to his powers and responsibilities. He is wild, untamed, and extremely unpredictable.
BORN: December 24, 1900
BIRTHPLACE: New York, N.Y.
HEIGHT: six foot four
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: telekinesis, atmokinesis, chronokinesis
FEATURED STORY: “A Dark-Hunter Christmas”
Hawke, Jonathan Jonathan Hawke was the son of an English gambler and a Powhatan mother, so he has both a deep respect for nature and incredibly good luck. Hawke took to the sea at age eleven and won his own ship at age nineteen in a game of chance. When the Revolutionary War broke out, he became a blockade runner to aid his fellow Americans. He died during the fighting when the woman he loved turned out to be a British spy.
BORN: July 4, 1753
BIRTHPLACE: Blue Ridge Mountains
HEIGHT: six foot six
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: geokinesis, gravitakinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: Yorktown, Virginia
Hunter, Kyrian (aka Kyrian of Thrace) An ancient Greek ex-Dark-Hunter. Born prince and sole heir to the throne of Thrace circa 180 B.C., Kyrian was disinherited when he married an exprostitute against his father’s wishes.
As a legendary Macedonian general, he cut a trail of slaughter through the Mediterranean during the Fourth Macedonian War. Chroniclers wrote that Kyrian would break the Roman stranglehold on the known world and claim Rome for his own. The motto on his shield read: “Spoils to the Victor.”
Kyrian would probably have succeeded in conquering the world, had he not been betrayed by his wife (Theone) and delivered into the hands of his enemies. He was tortured for weeks and then executed in 147 B.C. by Valerius (not to be confused with the Dark-Hunter Valerius, who is Valerius’s grandson … but I can see you’re confused anyway. There, there. It will pass in a minute).
A Lynyrd Skynyrd fan and car enthusiast, Kyrian is married to Amanda Hunter and is the father of Marissa Hunter. Kyrian was killed by Desiderius/Ulric in 2005. He was revived soon after and made immortal by Acheron.
BORN: 179 B.C.
BIRTHPLACE: Thrace
HEIGHT: six foot five
HAIR/EYES: blond/green
POWERS: telekinesis, clairvoyance
AGE AT DEATH: thirty-one
CURRENT LOCATION: New Orleans, Louisiana
FEATURED NOVEL: Night Pleasures
Ias of Groesia This ancient Greek Dark-Hunter was one of the first three created along with Callabrax and Kyros. He had only been a Dark-Hunter for two days when Acheron met him. (See Alexion.)
Jean-Luc A pirate Dark-Hunter, noticeable by the gold loop earring in his left ear. He was stabbed once by Tabitha Devereaux. (It was dark, she said.)
BORN: A.D. 1692
BIRTHPLACE: Nice, France
HEIGHT: six foot six
HAIR/EYES: black
POWERS: telepathy, telekinesis, ferrokinesis
CURRENT LOCATION: New Orleans, Louisiana
Kassim (deceased) A Saracen prince in the Middle Ages who fought against the European Crusaders, Kassim was betrayed by one of his own and given over to an enemy who took Kassim’s life in revenge for the death of his son. So Kassim took it back, with interest … vengeance is a vicious cycle.
Kassim was stationed in Jackson, Mississippi, until Ash moved him to Alexandria. He was with Kyrian and Amanda Hunter in New Orleans when Desiderius returned to wreak havoc upon the city. He was killed while protecting Marissa Hunter from the Dark-Hunter Ulric, who was possessed by Desiderius at the time.
