EPICS OF EPOCHS

Glamour. Grimoires. And Grandmamas. The eldest of the Leveau family coven, Clement, makes his family's magical traditions look good, even when the Cult of Erebor makes it difficult. Alongside the rest of the Leveaus, he helps run the family shop - NOLA: Nexus of Occultism, Legends, and Arcana. But what's been taking up most of his time is "Erebor's Diabolicon", the dark Grimoire that he inherited from his grandmother, Octavia Leveau. Not only does the book's dark devilry seem hellbent on coming out, but the Erebor cult wants their book back - at any price. Luckily, Clem also has one final inheritance: a mysterious entity that apparently an ancestor sold his soul to... but at least it seems friendly.

For reasons unknown, when energy of a certain kind concentrates into one single, saturated area, a soul manifests and takes physical form, almost like a tulpa or zeitgeist given mortality. Such was the case when Dahlia and her shadow-sister, Astoria (who is literally Dahlia's shadow), manifested during the tragic Union Wars of Solimar. Though they don't know why they were given life, each day, they find themselves becoming more and more mortal. One thing remains, though: Dahlia and Astoria are death doulas, helping people transition into death (sometimes by force), and so the "conjoined" sisters travel to make sure people know when their time is up.

In Solimar, a company town managed by the totalitarian Solimar Holdings, citizenship is employment, and Daimon has been a star employee. Even after his brother vanished in an anomalous event that made an entire warehouse disappear, personnel and PP&E included, Daimon performed with excellence as a "Senior Asset Warden" in Strategic Acquisitions and Protection. Then he met her, a Lampe agent investigating anomalous disappearances, and fell in love. Before she disappeared herself, she gave him something dangerous: hope. Now Daimon is on thin ice with his bosses because his mission/vision has changed: he will find his brother and his love.

Dorian and Elana share a body but not an understanding. Each thinks it's totally normal to not remember about half of what you get up to in a day, and whatever incident caused their dissociative identities is unknown to both of them. Not to mention whatever event turned their body into Sehvarūnem, undead. While Dorian is a scientist at Yohana Labs with oracular abilities, Elana is a perpetually 16-year-old vigilante alchemist comfortable with spray paint and explosives. Dorian is always questioning his lapses in memory; the mysterious "daughter" evidence indicates he has, but Elana? She doesn't think too much about how her rent is always paid and the fridge is always full; she has injustices to fight.

Though Earnest seems stereotypical at first, with his heirloom guns, his membership in a vigilante gang, and his cowboy chivalry, the golden-eyed gunslinger is far more than meets the eye. Pun intended. Orphaned by Solimar's Union Wars, Earnest's adoptive father and gang leader, Reyes, saved him from the rubble and brought him into the Dawnbreakers gang, where Earnest learned just how corrupt Solimar Holdings really was. In the present day, he works with the Dawnbreakers to oppose Solimar from the shadows. But even vigilante work can become predictable and everyday, so you can imagine how rocked Earnest was when, after an interception gone awry, Earnest woke up from a coma with an anomalous disease.

Once a well-respected academic in spaciotemporal mechanics, Eucaratio was ostracized when he posited a controversial theory: West Kevabario is not all there is; based on archeological evidence, West Kevabrio was "scooped" out of the rest of reality long ago. The academic community's rejection and ridicule left him alone and embittered. Since, Yuke has stubbornly clung to Truth (though his lack of funding makes it difficult to pursue it full-time).

Hailing from a long line of Vitala (that is, druids), Galadhir, who also goes by the nickname "Gil", is a down-to-earth veterinarian, working for his family's Blue Wolf Ranch, which specializes in beasts of all kinds, including the exotic and strange. His favorite animal? His loyal ankylosaurus companion, Gondringtal ("Gondhi"), who Gil found in the hot Sinagua Desert. The thing is, ankylosaurus don't exist in West Kevabrio, and Gil has yet to find out exactly where Gondhi came from or where his family is. And the worst part: Gondhi's come down with an anomalous disease known as "shimmerplague".

For some, darkness is a nightmare; for Itzal, his dream. Growing up during the Union Wars, Itzal escaped its terrors through comic books his guardian, Rick, scavenged. The ones that especially caught his imagination were about anti-heroes who thrived in darkness, and while Rick tried to caution Itzal away from pursuing his dark desires, Itzal's darkness won out. When Solimar Holdings took over, Itzal quickly became one of their best "Personnel Managers", using lethal "management techniques" to "terminate underperforming employees". He found solace in using his natural inclinations for productive purposes, but as he grew, he became both desensitized and disillusioned by his penchant for assassination. Though he still finds home in the dark, recently, Itzal has begun to see the light.

Most musicians can tell you about the miraculous effects music can have. Merric can tell you why. A member of the Ebonaires, an eclectic artist community centered around a magical collection of music called "The Songs of the Evening Lark", Merric and his raven, Velka, know just how powerful music can be. The song-rituals he plays usually require specific rules, strange instrumentation, and esoteric practices, but when the piece is finished, miracles can happen. Merric's current opus is "Migration Sonata", which requires accompanying a traveler on the entirety of a major journey; and the current anomalous adventure seems perfect for the part.

Con artist. Grifter. Charlatan. These titles are accurate and yet too understated for Se'Quin (if that's even his real name). Most words just don't do him justice. They are too small, too simple, and not nearly classy enough. A master manipulator and charismatic figure, Se'Quin could probably convince a brick wall to let him pass through. Yes, Se'Quin's honeyed words and silver tongue can sweet-talk most anything, and when he can't, he finds a way anyways. Now, one might be tempted to think there is more hiding underneath the fitted suits and luxury shirts. If so, no one has been able to break through the facade, and perhaps his secrets are better left unknown, anyways. That's what he says, at least, and he's pretty convincing.

For as long as she can remember, polite (if a little awkward) Vera was raised at Miraishi Manor under Mr. Kreskes, since she was left at the temple's doorstep. Though Vera doesn't know her biological parents or why they gave her up, she knows that Miraishi Manor was exactly where she was meant to be, where she quickly developed her seering. Now a gifted seer, Vera maintains an unusually strong relationship with her shrine goddess, Miraishi, who communicates with her in dreams. Miraishi's dreams are prophetic and are often as much of a curse and burden as they are extraordinary. Yet, Vera, perhaps due to her cloistered naivete, remains faithful, trusting Miraishi will not lead her astray.

Vesper is a nomadic medical doctor with a particular emphasis on field/battle medicine. They run a traveling practice, moving from town to town in West Kevabrio in a caravan, treating and aiding those who may not have other healthcare options. As a Synth, Vesper has also utilized this nomadic lifestyle to gather whatever scraps of information they might find about the Foundry, a soul-forge that gave souls to synthetic beings like themselves - now lost and possibly corrupted.

Brandishing fashionable and tactical clothes that seem appropriate for a city office as much as an ancient tomb, Agent Esperanza is a clairvoyant specialist in the Lampe Agency, known for her ability to find almost anything - which is strange, considering she is blind. Though she is as secretive as all Lampe agents must be, her lantern light offers comfort and shelter to many.

Kanin has been a dutiful security guard at Yohana Labs for a few years, happy to do menial grunt work on the bottom rung and support his friends and coworkers with endless compassion. And yet, when he gets emotional, his teary outbursts can be quite devastating.

When one imagines the clandestine secret agents of the underground Lampe Agency, one would very rarely imagine Mo. Alabaster and albino, as if all his color has been sucked right out of him, save for heterochromatic eyes, Mo's weirdest quirk is how strangely unassuming and imperturbable he is.

Once a practicing medium from the Miraishi Manor, Qanna went into politics at the behest of the shrine goddess Miraishi. She proved a natural fit for handling the politics of the dead, undead, and reborn, but recently, she's been losing her spiritual sensitivity and getting desperate to reconnect.

Clement's more introverted but just as glamorous sister, Tina is a dreamwitch in the Leveau family coven and an avid bookworm. Though she's as sharp-tongued as her brother, her kinder demeanor often makes her the more approachable sibling.

Vincent has literal and metaphorical fire in his veins, for better and for worse. A terrible playboy, Vincent's biggest problem isn't putting his life at risk for his vigilante gang, but his incompetence when it comes to love and romance.

The 13th Count is an arcanotech magnate, miracle, and marvel. His ancient, marble body has been optimized and enhanced with all manner of Arcanotech innovations, the cutting edge from his firm, Ektos Innovations. And he's financing and overseeing the entirety of Dr. Yohana's anomalous research.

A severe workaholic and leading bioarcanist, Dr. Yohana's lab is one of the leading research organizations looking into "anomalous phenomena". Her immaculately kept appearance indicates she might be humorless; such assumptions would be correct.