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Drowtales/Characters/Vel'Sharen Clan


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The Clan as a whole

Background information:

The ruling clan of Chel'el'sussoloth and one of the city-empire's oldest existing clans, claiming direct descent from Sharess through Diva'ratrika, who is both the Ill'haress of the clan and the overall Empress or "Val'Sharess" of the city-empire. The Sharen are a powerful clan both in size and power; although this status has dwindled somewhat after the Nidraa'chal War, a war which resulted in heavy losses for the clan and its power base in Chel. They were the first of the four "Great Clans" ([1]) to rise to power and Diva'ratrika herself was the one responsible for forming the Council of Nine to oversee the city-empire's affairs. Power in the clan is determined by both rank and relation to the Imperial Family; four of Diva'ratrika's five daughters publicly head their own families, also called bloodlines, and each daughter has their own unique role in the administration of both the clan and the city-empire. For example, Sarv'swati, Diva'ratrika's second eldest daughter is the leader of the Sharen army, whereas Sil'lice and Nishi'kanta ([2]) held the position of policing the city-empire.

  • Ambadassador (this essentially seems to be the function of the Imperial Overseers, who visit clans on behalf of the Empress, and all are armed and armored in case they have to fight)
  • Angsty Surviving Twin (one consequence of the protector twin system is that most adult Sharen no longer have their twins, having either killed them out of a desire to be alone or because the twin tried to kill them first, which might explain some of their more dysfunctional behavior)
  • Animal Motifs (The dragon)
  • Authority Equals Asskicking (What they did to the Sullisin'rune in the Sharen-Sullisin'rune War and according to the Orthobbae wiki, one of their own sub-houses, the Xyrrai'zestu. When the Dev'ess of the Xyrrai'zestu built a tower for her house that was even higher than the one for the Val'Sharess, the noble house retaliated by having the Dev'ess and most of her followers all killed.)
  • Chronic Backstabbing Disorder (Ariel mentions that Quain'tana has told her that Sharen backstabbings run in cycles, suggesting that the current strife is only one of a long line of similar incidents. Given what we know about how most protector twin relationships end this isn't especially surprising.)
  • Cool Crown (seemingly standard issue among the higher ranking females. Diva'ratrika and her mother both had a 9-eyed crown, while Word of God is that the Ill'haress (but not Val'Sharess) wears a 7-eyed crown which is eventually worn by Zala'ess when she declares herself Empress and Diva'ratrika's daughters have 5-eyed crowns. In turn their daughters wear 3-eyed crowns once they reach a certain age, and 1-eyed crowns as children. Whether or not protector twins wear crowns seems to depend on the pair, since while Khaless and Yaeminira have been shown in crowns Shinae does not wear one. Male Sharen also don't seem to wear crowns, though Ashu'athama does have a silver circlet that he wears)
  • Dysfunction Junction (Their pride in their bloodline (see below) and their hesitation to mix with others they deem "commoners" has led to major competition between members. In the "Longest Wait" Diva'ratrika notes that one of the ways her own mother tried to combat this was by implementing the current "twin system" and by having spies everywhere in the clan, which she herself then decided to continue in order to maintain balance.)
  • El Cid Ploy (what the Imperial daughters have been doing since the Nidraa'chal War)
  • Gambit Pileup (after the timeskip, Kyo'nne lays out how all five sisters have their own plans, most of which involve screwing each other over.)
  • Locked Out of the Loop (judging by Yaeminira's reaction, most of the clan doesn't know that their own kin were behind the Nidraa'chal War and those that did find out defected to be with Sil'lice)
  • Massive-Numbered Siblings (everyone in the Sharen has an absurd amount of relatives, but Zala'ess' line is acknowledged as having the most. Sil'lice wasn't kidding when she said that Zala had made "an army out of her womb")
  • Meaningful Rename (started referring to themselves as the Vel'Sharen rather than the Val'Sharen after tainting became mandatory in the clan following the War. It's also one way to tell who was in on the Nidraa'chal coup, since Sil'lice and her family still used Val for themselves)
  • Pride (Their major flaw, and as Quain oh so eloquently puts it, it makes them blind to the potential of the people they oppress)
  • Purple Is Powerful (A signature color of the Sharen is purple which follows the Real Life precedent where formerly only members of royalty were allowed to wear purple clothing)
  • The Remnant (Their claim to nobility above the other Val clans is based on the fact that they trace their lineage, albeit through one of her sisters, from the drow goddess Sharess herself. ([3]) This is why the leader of their clan is referred to as the "Val'Sharess" as she supposedly speaks with authority from Sharess. Quain, being Quain, calls them "shameless bitches" for turning one of their own into a goddess.)
  • Royally Screwed-Up
  • Running Both Sides (it's not publicly known but the Nidraa'chal not only contain members that are Sharen, but it was founded by Sharen as well, specifically Snadhya'rune)
  • Slobs Versus Snobs (Very much on the snobbish end of the scale. The Sharen believe that their bloodline is superior to everyone elses and this is part of the reason why they are highly disliked by the rest of Chel. Many are loathe to associate with those they see as commoners and thus "beneath" them.)
  • Squishy Wizard (despite the below Superpower Lottery, (with the notable exception of Sarv'swati's one-on-one fight against Farasank) most Sharen that we've seen get beaten and/or killed on panel have been so in close quarters, which makes sense given that most Sharen seem to prefer fighting via summoning or from dragon back than being "down in the dirt" and hand-to-hand. Also serves to emphasize the Slobs Versus Snobs trope since they may view close quarters techniques as being "beneath" them. Perhaps because of this most Sharen are heavily armored, but in the cases where they do lose this is shown to not have done much good.)
    • One reason the Nidraa'chal War was so devastating to their forces was in part because the Nidraa'chal specifically played off the Sharen's weaknesses, either remotely tainting those who weren't already tainted, moving into buildings and forcing the Sharen to go after them on foot, setting up an ambush, siccing armies of demons on them who overwhelmed them or tainting their dragons.
    • The Sarghress War Meat squadron is also in part specifically designed to help combat the Sharen's usual style of combat, since being made of up non-fae summoning doesn't affect them and they can simply Zerg Rush the Sharen warriors and kill the summoners before the regular Sarghress troops move in to finish the job.
  • Superpower Lottery (One of the reasons the Sharen are such a powerful clan is because members of their bloodline often have access to a variety of abilities. This is best shown by Diva'ratrika, herself a massively powerful dark elf, and her daughters, the latter of which have their own bloodlines all with specialised abilities. The clan also has access to ancient summons that are extremely rare and powerful, as Snadhya'rune aptly demonstrates)
  • Tiger Versus Dragon / Wolf Versus Dragon (The Sharen's first major opponents in the underworld were the Sullisin'rune, but they were eventually defeated and subdued. Currently, the major opponents (at least publically) of the Sharen are now the Sarghress. The Sharen see the Sarghress as an upstart clan and the Sarghress see the Sharen as status-obsessed tyrants. The feud between the two clans is particularly bitter.)


Diva'ratrika

Diva'ratrika Val'Sharen

The Val'Sharess or Empress of Chel'el'sussoloth, a dark elf from the time of Sharess and ruler of the Vel'Sharen clan. Though it is not public knowledge, she has been dead for 16 years due to her daughters' betrayal, but unbeknownst to them she survived for a year, and using a Dangerous Forbidden Technique put part of her soul into her servant, Ragini, who later became known as Liriel . After the 15 year timeskip, Zala'ess at least has dropped the act of Diva being alive and publicly declared that she's dead, though obviously not under the actual circumstances.

For tropes pertaining to Liriel, her incomplete fusion, and Diva, her final reincarnated form see their entry on the Val'Sarghress character sheet.

  • Absurdly Youthful Mother (would you believe that she's as old as she is and a great(times x) grandmother?)
  • Break the Haughty ( The year spent trapped in her own throne room with only one slave for company was not kind to her)
  • Control Freak (Snadhya claims this of her in regards to her daughters, and Diva's own narration considering that she more or less kept control for six hundred years, also suggests it)
  • Curtains Match the Window
  • Dead All Along
  • A Fate Worse Than Death (sure, Snadhya and company could have just killed her, but but decided that leaving her to die in her throne room was a better option)
  • Dying Alone (said Fate Worse Than Death her daughters tried to inflict on her. Notably she does technically die alone after sending Ragini out, but invokes Death Is Cheap via the Fusion Dance)
  • Evil Matriarch (her daughters seem to think this, but there are hints that this image is largely a front)
  • Fusion Dance (with Ragini)
  • God Save Us From the Queen (she's not known to be particularly nice, though compared to her daughters she looks like a saint)
  • Go Mad From the Isolation (she only barely managed to avert this thanks to Ragini, but she was beginning to lose it by the time she separated her aura from her body)
  • The High Queen (in appearance)
  • Hikikomori (technically speaking, she's this, since she didn't leave her tower for years even before the Nidraa'chal War and her daughter's betrayal, which was why their ruse worked so well)
  • I Want Grandkids (a variation, in that she does have grandkids, in fact she has hundreds by her other daughters, but Snadhya'rune, the one daughter she wants to have children pointedly won't seemingly to spite her. Subverted by the existence of Kalki, not that Diva knew it, and considering who Kalki is it's unlikely Diva would be thrilled if she knew, to say the least)
  • Large Ham (she ain't "Diva" for nothing! Especially notable in this scene when she has a Freak-Out over her situation)
  • Locked Out of the Loop (besides the larger issue of the Nidraa'chal War she was intentionally kept in the dark about Kalki, and it's implied that all of her daughters, or at least Sarv'swati and Sil'lice, knew)
  • Not So Different (with Quain'tana. Both are obsessed with continuing their bloodlines and pressure their daughters to have children, both are Control Freaks, both of their children wind up hating them, and they both share a descendant in Kalki)
  • Offing the Offspring (subverted, since while she was extremely angry at Snadhya, Sarv and Zala for tainting themselves, she couldn't bring herself to kill them. In retrospect, she probably should have)
  • Parental Favoritism (towards Snadhya'rune, her eldest daughter. This came to bite her in the ass later, when said daughter and two other daughters betray her)
  • Pimped-Out Dress (what with being an empress)
  • Reluctant Ruler (her dialogue in Longest Wait indicates this)
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here (as Phani'lath relates, during the last Council Diva'ratrika actually left in the middle of it even though she was the one who called it, and things went downhill from there. 15 years later many other clans have come to view Diva'ratrika as being indifferent to the affairs of the Empire, since after that incident she stopped appearing publicly for 15 years which technically wasn't her fault since she was either imprisoned or dead at that point, and the "Diva" who holds a parade is really a double)
  • Shadow Dictator (Played straight by the fact that she's actually dead and subverted. Though the reason she stopped appearing was because of the bickering clans and general disillusionment. The fact that she had become so solitary was one reason her daughters managed to keep up the illusion that she was still alive for so long.)
  • Shoot the Dog (she seems to view her possession of Ragini as this, since it evidently ended Ragini's life)
  • Spanner in the Works (the two things her daughters didn't predict was a.) a slave surviving their massacre and getting into the throne room via the air ducts, and b.) that Diva would use said slave to escape, albeit in a roundabout fashion)
  • Statuesque Stunner (as a Dark Elf she's taller than most drow, and art of her back-to-back with Snadhya'rune shows that she's taller than her daughter, and about the same height as Mel'arnach)
  • The Woman Wearing the Queenly Mask (in reality)


Snadhya'rune and her bloodline

Snadhya'rune Vel'Sharen

The eldest Sharen daughter, current headmistress of Orthorbbae and Mel'arnach's lover, as well as one of the key players in the Nidraa'chal War and the murder of her mother. In story she seems to be the closest thing to a Big Bad considering how many plot points are related directly or indirectly to her machinations.

  • Affably Evil
  • Ambition Is Evil (as more and more about her is revealed it seems she's a case of this)
  • Bad Samaritan (if she offers to "help" you, odds are there are massive strings attached.)
  • Beauty, Brains, and Brawn (in the trio of herself Zala'ess and Sarv'swati she most obviously fits the brains part, as she tends to work in the background, is the one that Sarv'swati goes to for support and was the mastermind behind the whole coup d'etat and Nidraa'chal uprising.)
  • The Chessmaster (big time)
  • Chronic Backstabbing Disorder (technically all three Sharen sisters count, but she takes the cake, especially since she betrayed her mother, Sha'sana, Sil'lice, Nishi'kanta, the former two's entire bloodlines, every civilian who died during the Nidraa'chal War, the entire Dutan'vir clan, almost every tainted character in the setting due to her faulty seeds, and is now apparently willing to turn on Zala and probably others we don't know about yet. The male masters at Orthorbbae are also terrified of her, and the Vloz'ress master says she's wiped them out before)
    • And unsurprisingly she seems to have at least publicly thrown Zala under the bus as of here
    • Fans are now debating whether Mel'arnach has fallen victim to Snadhya's CBD, given how Snadhya convinced Mel to go back to the Sarghress, and things definitely did not go according to plan and given Snadhya's history, up to an including matricide the bar is already set pretty low.
  • Control Freak (heavily implied, considering how much she says she hated being controlled by Diva, but also a bit of Hypocritical Humor when you consider all the trouble she went through to have Kalki without her mother knowing it)
  • Curtains Match the Window (pre-tainting had this naturally)
  • Deal with the Devil (she made this sort of offer to Kiel's mother, which was apparently so heinous that Kiel's mom was considering writing to tell the other clan leaders her plans and had the Sharen attack them when they refused, and during the timeskip approached Kyo'nne about sponsoring her show. Kyo'nne accepted, but it's obvious that there are some massive strings attached. The author even lampshades the second with a chibi of Snadhya saying how she has no sinister motive at all behind it.)
  • Deceptive Disciple (to Sha'sana and her mother)
  • Divide and Conquer (One of the Nidraa'chal's biggest tactics.)
  • Double Standard Rape (Sci Fi) (the way she got Mel's egg to make Kalki is an in-universe example of this, since Mel's egg was taken under false pretenses, even if Mel would've consented under normal circumstances. This also adds yet another Not So Different point between Snadhya and Quain.)
  • Everyone Is Bi (Snadhya is a notable aversion to this part of drow culture, since she seems to greatly prefer female partners to male partners, which is one reason she has no publicly known children)
  • Freudian Excuse (claims this in regards to killing her mother and hiding the existence of Kalki and says that the "death" of her protector twin Khaless made her crack)
  • Good Girls Avoid Abortion (... maybe. She's certainly not a "good girl" by any stretch of the imagination, and Sil'lice references Snadhya "murdering her children while they are in the womb", but there's quite a bit of debate among fans as to what exactly this means. Now that we know about Kalki, it's speculated that if she did abort her pregnancies it was some sort of Xanatos Gambit, possibly to throw Diva'ratrika off her plan, or even something even more sinister)
  • The High Queen (styles herself this way, and in the canon sidestory Empress to Be she brags about the fact that she'll one day be the Val'Sharess, and it's now been confirmed that her ultimate ambition is to be Empress)
  • Hot Mom (this is a spoiler since Sil'lice refers to her murdering her children while they're in the womb in the Prologue, but then Chapter 25 came along...)
  • Hypocritical Humor (In a conversation with Mel'arnach she says "You will need to make peace with Quain'tana" this coming from a woman who murdered her mother)
  • Large Ham (just like mommy)
  • Mad Scientist (she can be seen like this, considering she was Sha'sana's fellow researcher into stabilising seeds)
  • Manipulative Bitch (Hoooo boy. Including fooling everyone up to and including her own mother and Sha'sana, and it's implied that her usual M.O. is to find someone in a vulnerable situation, i.e. Kiel's mother and Kyo'nne, and offer to help them.)
  • My Secret Pregnancy (played with: she herself was never pregnant, but had Kalki with the help of the Jaal'darya)
  • Not So Different (with Quain'tana, and there are hints that Mel realizes this on some level but chooses to ignore it)
  • Pet the Dog (her relationship with Mel'arnach is humanizing, assuming that it's actually real and not just another manipulation...)
  • Pimped-Out Dress (par for the course considering her status, but in Chapter 25 alone she appears in six different outfits in flashbacks, all of which are pretty pimped out)
  • Pretty in Mink (her fur coats have become something of a Running Gag in the fandom, and there's official art of her in the fur-trimmed nightie. Harming her coats seems to be one of the surefire ways to get her mad, too)
  • Self-Made Orphan
  • Shorter Means Smarter (whilst being rather tall herself, Snadhya'rune is noticeably the shortest amongst her trio of sisters and as mentioned above is the brains of the group)
  • Spell My Name with an "S" (is it Snadhya'rune or Snadhya'runes? Recent pages have settled on Snadhya'rune, but the prologue uses Snadhya'runes. Most fans just call her Snadhya or Snads to avoid this.)
  • Summon Magic (she's a very powerful summoner, stated in the Orthorbbae wiki to be the strongest known summoner in Chel'el'sussoloth.)
  • Time Dissonance (seems to have a bit of this as indicated here)
  • Villain with Good Publicity (A true politician in a world mostly ruled over by brute force. In truth, she is the story's closest thing to a Big Bad,secretly responsible for a great deal of chaos and death in the name of her ruthless power grab. But publicly, she is one of the greatest proponents for peace, and has Kyo'nne, and possibly a whole bunch more people singing her praises.)
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist (presents herself as this, at least, believing that drow should be ruled by drow rather than by dark elves. Doesn't excuse basically committing genocide through the Nidraa'chal, murdering her mother, and deliberately tainting people with seeds that will eventually kill them)
  • Wicked Stepmother (even though drowolath do not get married ([4]) she's essentially this to Ariel since early in the story she tries to get Ariel transferred to the female section of the school with the express intent of having the "blood of the Wolf" under her control and later tells Mel'arnach that if the Sharen win the war she'll make a bloodline claim on both her and Ariel)
  • Your Soul Is Mine (along with Summon Magic above, anyone who pisses her off enough and is deemed worth it can expect to become one of her summons)

Khaless

Khaless is (or was) Snadhya'rune's protector twin, though her exact status is a bit unclear at the moment since she apparently lost control of her seed around 50 years ago, and the current Khaless is some sort of demon who can take the shape of the original and apparently retrains some of her memories. Either way, Snadhya refers to having lost the original.

Sin'cani and Svala

Two of Snadhya'rune's Feldian bodyguards. They first appear in chapter 31 escorting Snadhya'rune's carriage, and someone implied to be Sin'cani appears later in Nuqrah'shareh.

Kalki

See this character's entry under Nidraa'chal on Drowtales.


Sarv'swati and her bloodline

Sarv'swati Vel'Sharen

The second Sharen daughter and the leader of their army.

  • Blood Knight (possibly, and the expression on her face when she made Quain'tana barren suggests it)
  • Beauty, Brains, and Brawn (she's the brawn in the trio of herself, Snadhya'rune and Zala'ess, being the one to lead the Sharen army and resorting to action to solve problems, as seen in her fight with Farasank.)
  • Control Freak (has been referred to as one more than once, both times by own her own family)
  • Curb Stomp Battle (Played straight with Farasank, though he does put up a good fight)
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones (the apparent reason she opposes Snadhya's plan to let Zala dig herself in deeper, since she points out that her children are Sharen and she doesn't like the idea of letting Zala's family members get needlessly killed)
  • Hair Antennae
  • Hot Amazon (and how! Even Farasank has to admit how good she is, and that's after he tries to cop a feel on her and gets his ass handed to him)
  • Hypocrite (as Snadhya'rune points out, Sarv'swati's opposition to Snadhya's plan to let Zala dig herself deeper is pretty hypocritical considering the things Sarv'swati's already done)
  • Lady of War (stated to be one of the most powerful war leaders along with Quain'tana, and her fight against Farasank shows that she's good at hand to hand too)
  • Moral Myopia (She disapproves of Snadhya'rune's plan to let Zala'ess dig herself even deeper so that Snadhya'rune and Sarv'swati can elevate themselves cleaning up after her mess, conveniently ignoring that she was complicit in the coup against her own mother and was willing to set up both Sil'lice and Nishi'kanta and their families to take heavy casualties during the War. Snadhya'rune rightfully points out that it's a little late to be squeamish about backstabbing and treachery now.)
  • Multicolored Hair (apparently natural)
  • Self-Made Orphan
  • Statuesque Stunner (given how she compares to Farasank she's clearly pretty tall, and is stated at one point to be the tallest of the Sharen sisters)
  • Wrestler in All of Us (her fight with Farasank ends with her pulling a reversal and slamming him into the ground, face first, and them slamming his head into the ground again with her hand for good measure)


Nihi'liir Vel'Sharen

A younger Sharen of Sarv'swati's lineage, she lost her arm to Faen's psychic attack.

Vidhi'yani Vel'Sharen

An older Sharen of Sarv'swati's lineage and one of the imperial overseers. Makes her first appearance in Chapter 30.

  • Badass (See here.)
  • Fashionable Asymmetry (Her hair, where one sidelock is dyed black)
  • Lady of War
  • Multicolored Hair (Her hair is bluish-purple, with a black tinted sidelock just like Sarv'swati. Despite her mother being second generation, she still has dark hair colour leading fans to speculate that she must be one of Sarv'swati's oldest children and/or that her father may have been a Dark Elf.)
  • Silk Hiding Steel (pretty much literally, both in character type and because she actually wears armor under her silk clothing)
    • Her armor also displays strange lights, indicating she could be a summon as seen in the Tomato Surprise entry below
  • Slobs Versus Snobs (Definitely on the snobbish end of the scale.)
  • Summon Magic
  • Tomato Surprise (Not been confirmed yet, but when Farasank and his men try to strip her to her breasts, she deflects their attempts and does it herself, exposing a strange series of lights across her chest. These lights are similar to the ones displayed by Sateja Vel'Sharen in Chapter 28 when the latter revealed herself to be a summon. Fans speculate about what this might mean. Note that Vidhi'yani always wears a veil across her face and that in the very next panel after she bares her chest, her mother Sarv'swati suddenly appears in the tavern (and Vidhi'yani herself just disappears from panel). Was this by way of summoning? This has yet to be confirmed.)

Sun'ya Vel'Sharen

One of Sarv'swati's sons. Makes his first appearance in Chapter 30.

  • Brilliant but Lazy (It was speculated by readers in the comic forum that the Sharen higher ups must be rather lazy in their policing of the city if Sun'ya's having the time to kiss and flirt with a female commoner whilst on duty was anything to go by. Three pages later however, he proves exactly why he is a member of fake!Diva'ratrika's imperial guards.)
  • The Casanova (If his actions with the female commoner in Chapter 30 are anything to go by. She even appears to be pregnant, though it's uncertain if it's by him or not.)
  • Dude Looks Like a Lady
  • Long-Haired Pretty Boy
  • Multicolored Hair
  • Wild Hair (His hair is unusually styled as thicker and wavier than other drowolath males shown)

Nori'ga Vel'Sharen

Sil'lice and her bloodline

Sil'lice Val'Sharen

The third daughter of the Sharen, and currently in exile with the Sarghress. Was a major player in the Nidraa'chal war, but had to run when she was framed for the attempt on her mother's life.

  • An Ice Person
  • Blue Eyes (piercing ones, too)
  • Break the Haughty (the Nidraa'chal War, which resulted in the deaths of most of her family and framed her for attempted murder. Just compare how confident she is at the start compared to later, where she's visibly distraught)
  • Defrosting Ice Queen (pretty much literally, since she seems to have mellowed considerably since the War)
  • Elemental Eye Colors
  • Frame-Up (why she was forced to leave)
  • Freak-Out (did not react to seeing Nishi'kanta at the Val'Sharess tower during the war well at all)
  • Good Is Not Nice (for a given definition of "good", in this case not being in on the Nidraa'chal plot but she is definitely not nice, and said coup and matricide are really the only things separating her from her sisters)
  • Harmless Freezing (not! Sil'lice proves exactly why ice is as deadly as it is)
  • Hot-Blooded (deconstructed, since her tendency to not look before she leaps and be controlled by her emotions gets her in a lot of trouble, and even Diva'ratrika acknowledges that despite being intelligent and strong, Sil'lice is also nearsighted and petty)
  • Kill It with Ice (what she does to Vy'chriel/Yaeminira, whose fingers literally snap apart as she dies. Ouch!)
  • Lady of War
  • Locked Out of the Loop (Despite rumor and what her sisters would have you believe, she was not in on the Nidraa'chal plot)
  • Middle Child Syndrome (as the third of five surviving daughters she's the middle child, and Diva'ratrika states that she never considered Sil'lice worthy of being her successor, since despite being the most devoted daughter who attempted to emulate her the most Diva felt she lacked the qualities necessary to wear the crown, which makes the fact that she's both the only sister who is not tainted and wasn't in the Nidraa'chal plot doubly ironic since she's technically the only true heir to the Empire.)
  • Noble Fugitive (was forced to go on the run and hide in the Sarghress after being framed for the attempt on her mother's life)
  • Personality Powers (inverted, despite having an ice affinity Sil'lice is hot headed and prone to losing her temper, though she appears to have mellowed out during her exile)
  • Pet the Dog (her twins)
  • Punny Name (it can't be a coincidence that her name is Sil'lice, though the creators pronounce it "Sill-iss" in podcasts)
  • Reports of My Death Were Greatly Exaggerated (what she says to Chrys'tel when the latter says that she's supposed to be dead)
  • Secret Keeper ( Possibly for Snadhya'rune regarding the existence of Kalki. In hindsight it looks like she regrets this-in the prologue and if her own flashbacks are any indication.)
  • Summon Magic (is one of the most skilled summoners in the worldsetting and one of the very few left who is untainted. Its unknown how well her abilities stand up against Snadhya'rune though.)
  • Torture Technician (she's very good at it and uses her ice powers to help)
  • Unexpected Successor (as stated above under Middle Child Syndrome, despite being the daughter Diva'ratrika thought was the least suitable for the position Sil'lice is currently the only legitimate heir to the Empire, since the rest are either tainted and behind the coup that removed Diva or missing.)
  • Unwitting Pawn (to her sisters)

Kadara Val'Sharen

One of Sil'lice's elder daughters.

  • All There in the Manual (fans first figured out her name through process of elimination, since during the canon Daydream story that reveals the origin of her twins Sil'lice lists off the names of those that followed her, and of the two that had no known characters attached Kadara was the more feminine of the two, and it was later confirmed in-story)
  • Badass Boast (what she declares she'll do to Zala'ess when she catches up to her, which spawned her nickname)
  • Bifauxnen (to the point that many fans refused to believe she was female until Sil'lice specifically referred to her as "daughter")
  • Facial Markings (a series of tattoos on her left cheek)
  • Fan Nickname (Fans tend to use some variant of "Piss'in'hermouth" to refer to her, since for a long time she had no name. After her rough treatment of Chrys'tel and Nau'kheol some fans have taken to simply calling her "Bitch")
  • Hot-Blooded
  • Jerkass (fans read her this way, especially after her rough treatment of Chrys'tel and Nau'kheol)
  • The Ladette (definitely gives this impression, especially since she's more stereotypically masculine than several of the actual men)
  • Mama Bear (a rather dark take on this trope, since she says that one reason she adopted her current Jerkass behavior was because she had to see her child die during the War.)
  • Mythology Gag / Expy (Kadara is more or less the worst parts of pre-retcon Sil'lice put into one character)
  • Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs (proves to be quite good at it)
  • Would Hurt a Child (as she aptly demonstrates to Chrys'tel and Nau'kheol, and even Sil'lice seems taken aback by her rough treatment of them since, as she points out, they weren't much of a threat even though they were tainted)

Kau'shala Val'Sharen

One of Sil'lice's sons, he died during the Nidraa'chal War.

Sae'ryne Val'Sharen

Sil'lice's daughter, who died during the war.

Kyne Val'Sharen

Sil'lice's granddaughter, her mother was Sae'ryne. She was a golem pilot during the Nidraa'chal War.

Kau and Shala Val'Sharen

Sil'lice's twins, who were born after the Nidraa'chal War. Their father is Kor'maril as revealed in a canon Daydream story. They're first introduced in Chapter 19.

Nishi'kanta and her bloodline

Nishi'kanta Vel'Sharen

The fourth Sharen daughter, little is known about her except that she was heavily involved in the Nidraa'chal fighting, lost most of her family and became tainted during the War. Her affinity was with fire.

  • The Atoner (she's implied to be this, see this page)
  • Chekhov MIA (after the timeskip, she's apparently gone missing and no one knows where she is)
  • Dark-Skinned Blond (her hair is yellow, and it's unknown if it's natural or not. It makes her resemble Shiori, the queen of one of the dokkalfar nations seen in the Goddess Knight Story)
  • Elemental Eye Colors (before she was tainted she had orange eyes that tied in with her fire affinity)
  • Emotionless Girl (post-tainting, it's unknown what she was like before)
  • Four Is Death (she's the fourth daughter, and has the worst luck of all of them. Besides being forcibly tainted during the War, itself a Mind Rape, she lost most of her family, and some of the survivors are Sate'ja, whose brain was fried by Faen and later turned into a summon and devoured by Naal's awakened glutton demon and Ni'bai, whose twin sister is now a demon and is with the Vloz'ress)
  • In the Hood
  • Lady in Red (to suit her fire affinity)
  • Locked Out of the Loop (Was the only other sister besides Sil'lice not part of the Nidraa'chal plot, yet is the only one Sil'lice actually attacks)
  • Personality Powers (inverted with her and Sil'lice, since despite being the one with the fire affinity Nishi'kanta was apparently the more level-headed one)
  • Playing with Fire
  • Spanner in the Works ( This hasn't come up in the main story yet, but panels show her to silently be furious with her three tainted sisters and their coup. She informs first Sil'lice about their treachery in a roundabout way and then Mikilu after the latter has a freakout about her situation. Both are advised by her to make an escape. Whether or not Snadhya'rune, Sarv'swati or Zala'ess knew about Nishi'kanta's actions has not been stated.)
  • Unwitting Pawn (to her sisters)
  • Wild Card (after going missing after the timeskip, Nishi'kanta's plans are completely unknown compared to her sisters')

Sate'ja Vel'Sharen

A teacher at Orthorbbae and a Sharen of Nishi'kanta's bloodline, she fell victim to Faen's Power Incontinence.

  • A Fate Worse Than Death (thrice! First Faen fried her brain, causing Chrys'tel to essentially quote the trope name, and then she was turned into a summon, likely against her will, and then she was absorbed by Naal's awakened glutton demon. Damn.)
  • Body Horror (see A Fate Worse Than Death)
  • Empty Shell (what Faen's attack seems to have done to her, but she recovered. Not)
  • Facial Markings
  • Karmic Death (stabs Naal, but then gets curb stomped by her since it caused her seed to fully awaken. Quoth the fandom: "Good riddance, bitch.")
  • Kill It with Ice (her powers, ironic considering which Sharen sister she's descended from)
  • Retcon (she was originally referred to as being a Sullisin'rune, but this was changed so that she was a Sharen, which actually makes more sense in the context of the story)
  • Tomato Surprise
  • Unexplained Recovery (subverted. She never actually recovered, and what confronts Chrys'tel and company later is actually a summon)

Ni'ju and Ni'bai

See their entry under the Vloz'ress Clan.


Zala'ess and her bloodline

Zala'ess Vel'Sharen

The fifth Sharen daughter and the chief politician of the family. She has ambitions of being the Ill'haress of the clan and is known for having many children. As of the 15 year timeskip, she's laid claim to the title of Empress, apparently without the consent of her other two sisters.

  • Ambition Is Evil (possibly, though she's the sister we've seen the most of)
  • Beauty, Brains, and Brawn (of the three sisters, Zala'ess fits the Beauty part- as she is the most popular in terms of inter-clan influence and has her huge family for backup. She is the Sharen sister who is the public face of the clan. On a more literal side she is also the sister noted by the fans to flaunt her physical attributes the most.)
  • The Chessmaster
  • Even Evil Has Standards (possibly, since Zala was the only one to express hesitation when it came time to seal the deal and trap their mother in her throne room. Instead, she suggested forcibly tainting Diva so she'd join them rather than leaving her to die, while she had seemed fairly gung-ho about the idea of simply killing Diva and hanging her body from the gate. After the timeskip she at least claims to regret her role in it, but more because of what it did to the Empire than the part where she committed matricide.)
  • Expository Hairstyle Change (after the 15 year timeskip she's done away with the blue parts of her hair, and instead wears it in a braid and a shade closer to Sabbror's natural color)
  • Hot Mom (with many, many children)
  • Insult Backfire (Asira'malika tells her that she's so much like Diva'ratrika that it "makes me sick", but Zala'ess responds that it's an honor to be compared to her mother. For extra irony, Zala was one of the ones who killed Diva.)
  • Ironic Counterpart (with Shimi'lande, another Mama Bear character. Both have seen their biological children killed by their adoptive children. The difference is in the two's reactions. Shimi'lande adopts Chirinide as her daughter and a fellow noble with seemingly no regret for what happened to her original daughter as seen in the Rebirth side story. Yet Zala'ess never forgives Yaeminira for killing Vy'chriel and arranges Yaeminira's death via a Xanatos Gambit. The difference in reaction is odd due to the Kyorl'solenurn desire for blood purity and the Sharen obsession with strength and obedience to authority.)
  • I Want Grandkids (Chrys indicates that she's been pressuring both her and Nau'kheol for grandchildren)
  • Kick the Son of a Bitch (her treatment of Yaeminira, specifically The Uriah Gambit definitely is a Kick the Dog moment if only for the collateral damage it causes, but it doesn't have quite the punch it would normally since Yaeminira did murder her sister in cold blood, and few people blame Zala for being as angry as she was since she was forced to adopt her child's murderer by her own sister)
  • Large Ham (in chapter 8 her verbal spar with Quain'tana leaves toothmarks on the scenery)
  • Mama Bear (one of her redeeming features is that she honestly seems to care about her kids)
  • Moral Myopia (seems to have a case of this. Was furious to the point of wanting to kill her when the original Vy'chriel was killed by Yaeminira, but apparently feels no grief for the guards, said adopted daughter, and the slaves and civilians her actions caused the deaths of in chapter 17.)
  • Multicolored Hair (up until the timeskip)
  • Not-So-Harmless Villain (For a long time, Snadhya'rune and Sarv'swati just saw her as their easily controlled, littlest sister. But after she starts meddling in the Empire's politics on her own initiative, Sarv'swati begins to take notice. As of the timeskip, Zala'ess has the largest family, powerful foreign alliances, has laid claim to the title of Empress, apparently without the consent of her other two sisters, and may have unknowingly disrupted a Nidraa'chal scheme. Snadhya'rune might want to start paying attention to her.)
  • Pet the Dog (horrible things she's done notwithstanding, she at least appears to give a shit about her kids, which is more than can be said for Quain'tana)
  • Really Gets Around (to quote Sil'lice: "You fucked to no end to make an army out of your womb" and even though she has a long time mate in Sabbror, who is the father of several if not most of her children, she's also had children with men from the Ill'hardro clan for political purposes, which Sabbror doesn't seem to mind)
  • The Resenter (a large portion of her motivation seems to involve spiting her sisters for their treating her as their easy-to-control, youngest sister; this is shown when Sarv'swati single-handedly overrules Zala when the original Vy'Chriel died and Zala wanted to kill Yaeminira, and she later says that Zala once cowered before them, and even Diva'ratrika says Zala had always been under her sisters' thumbs.)
  • Self-Made Orphan
  • Xanatos Gambit (after the timeskip, her trip to Nuqrah'shareh is implied to be one of these, since she apparently declared herself Empress on the way there, without telling her two other sisters, and has publicly claimed that Diva'ratrika is dead, even though publicly Diva'ratrika is still considered alive in Chel despite rumors to the contrary. And in exchange for helping Nega'fanae retake the city, some of the Nuqrah troops are going back to Chel with her, suggesting that Zala's plan is to use them against her two other sisters to take Chel.)
  • The Uriah Gambit (pulled one on Vy'chriel/Yaeminira)
  • Youngest Child Wins (she wants to invoke this by becoming Ill'haress of the clan, and as of the timeskip seems to be making a go for it, having declared herself Empress)

Sabbror

Zala'ess' mate and the father of many (if not most) of her children.

  • Morality Pet (seems to be this to Zala)
  • Retcon (was originally so badly tainted that he was trapped in a suit of sealing armor and unable to speak, but when the worldsetting was redone he no longer had this history)
  • The Stoic

Chrys'tel Vel'Sharen

One of Zala'ess' daughters and Faen's roommate at Orthorbbae.

  • Alpha Bitch
  • Character Development (it's telling that a character whose first appearance was slapping Faen and telling her to leave Ariel to die and made fans hate her can now inspire a woobie reaction from those same fans)
  • Curiosity Is a Crapshoot (while Chrys' curiosity is one of her best features, and is explicitly identified by Zala'ess as such after the timeskip, her tendency to not look before she leaps and follow her intuition has nearly gotten her killed on three separate occasions. It also indirectly led to Naal's death and very nearly the death of Nau'kheol.)
  • Defrosting Ice Queen (just compare her first scenes to her later ones)
  • Gender Blender Name (only by human standards, since she's usually referred to simply as Chrys)
  • Girlish Pigtails (with the corresponding Tsundere traits, at least until the timeskip)
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold (isn't as bad as she initially appears, and has quite a bit of loyalty to her friends)
  • I Know You Know I Know (seems to have fallen into this after the timeskip, since she knows Diva'ratrika's dead and her mother's role in it as well as Zala knowing that she knows, which is why she keeps Chrys'tel around as her overseer)
  • The Mole (as of chapter 32, is now working as one for Sil'lice)
  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero (seemingly a pattern with her)
  • Parental Favoritism (even though Zala'ess seems to care for all of her children ([7]) Chrys seems to hold a special place with her mother. Played with after the timeskip, where Chrys'tel is Empress Zala'ess' overseer but it's implied Zala made Chrys this so she could keep an eye on her in light of what she learned from Sil'lice)
  • Pet the Dog (her defense of Faen, and it's the first sign that she's not just a two-dimensional bully)
  • Pillars of Moral Character (she even says that a Vel'Sharen always repays her debts to Kiel after Naal's demise.)
  • Plucky Girl (even Ariel notices how hard it is to keep Chrys'tel down when she's determined. Also crosses over with Villainous Valour, though she's only a "villain" to Ariel by virtue of being a Sharen)
  • Rebellious Princess (if stealing her mother's old crown and sneaking into the Val'Sharess tower and later going to the Sarghress of her own free will to see Sil'lice isn't rebellious, what is?)
    • After the timeskip, there are also several subtle indicators that she's not entirely pulling the Vel'Sharen party line, like the fact that her dragon isn't tainted and she named it Cahal, after the Shrouded in Myth figure Vel'Cahal, whose name literally means "Demon Poison."
  • Rich Bitch (has aspects of this)
  • Squishy Wizard (to a point. Fans have noticed that so far Chrys has gotten her ass handed to her pretty much any time she engages someone in close quarters combat, including against Ariel, Shinae Sate'ja and a mook who takes advantage of her not restraining his arms and likely would've killed her if not for interference. She is shown to be very effective from dragonback and through the use of her blood sorcery, but close quarters seems to be a weakness of hers.)
  • Spanner in the Works (after discovering what really happened to her grandmother)
  • Strong Family Resemblance (after the timeskip, she looks even more like her father and Nau'kheol, since her hair is more obviously silver/purple. In-universe she is also said by Yakuise and Diva to look a lot like Zala'ess.)
  • Too Dumb to Live (nearly crosses into this a few times, see Curiosity Is a Crapshoot. Sil'lice even lampshades it)

I have let you go once and yet you have returned. This is not proof of a great intellect or wisdom.

Shinae

Chrys'tel's protector twin, Shinae's specialty is pressure sorcery.

  • Badass Longcoat (Lavender, no less.)
  • Bob Haircut
  • I Just Want to Be Normal (indicated here)
  • Little Miss Badass (though many members of the cast are, she deserves special mention because it's technically her job)
  • Mouthy Kid (very much so, and seemingly lampshaded by her mask, which has thorns on it)
  • Red Herring (at this point it looks like the parallels between Shinae and Yaeminira are this, since unlike Yaeminira and Vy'chriel Chrys'tel and Shinae have managed to reconcile, and both of them have apparently survived the timeskip without killing each other. One of the longest running theories up to the timeskip was that the two of them would end up in conflict and one would end up dead, but so far this hasn't happened.)
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni (has this dynamic with Chrys'tel, even though the colors they wear are reversed)
  • Replacement Sibling (attempts this after Chrys'tel is captured, even though she knows it probably won't work, but she herself states that it's her only chance. Luckily Chrys'tel escapes, but Shinae is still said to have been lightly tortured)
  • Sibling Rivalry (with Chrys'tel, like most protector twins, though with them it's not yet gotten to the point where they've tried to kill each other)
  • Sir Swearsalot (has one of the foulest mouths of any character, and the foulest mouth of the child cast)

Nau'kheol Vel'Sharen

One of Zala'ess' sons, he used to be Ariel's classmate at Orthorbbae.

"He's her brother, dumbshit."

Yami'ni Vel'Sharen

One of Zala'aess' daughters, she is featured in the side story and animation "Demon Painter". She reappears post-timeskip as part of Zala'ess guard in Chapter 35.

  • The Baroness
  • Berserk Button (it seems that being reminded that she's tainted is this to her, and it's implied that she wasn't entirely willing to get tainted and/or had doubts after the fact, since the word "infested" is specifically used when the Sullisin'rune empaths Mind Rape her in chapter 37)
  • Disproportionate Retribution (her reaction to seeing that a painter had drawn a sketch of her that she thought made her look like a demon? Open a nether gate in his house to drive him insane)
  • In the Back (In chapter 37 courtesy of Kalki, who really needs to stop doing that to her cousins)
  • Multicolored Hair
  • Not Me This Time (pretty much says exactly this when they find a nether gate in Nuqrah'shareh that was actually opened by Shodun)
  • Rich Bitch
  • Yangire (Word of God describes her as "emotionally unstable" which definitely seems to fit. It's also telling that she doesn't seem to have a protector twin.)

Saph'ala Vel'Sharen

One of Zala'ess' older daughters, she seems to hold a high position in the family since she sits by her mother during the Council.

  • Hot Mom (has an infant child and at least one adult son)
  • Like Mother Like Daughter (displays similar Mama Bear traits as her mother. In Chapter 25 her dialogue indicates strong concern for her son's well being, riding out to meet him immediately after getting a distress message from him)
  • Strong Family Resemblance (has her father's hair)

Vy'chriel (originally Yaeminira) Vel'Sharen

Yaeminira was originally the protector twin of Vy'chriel Vel'Sharen, one of Zala'ess' daughters, but killed her when she refused to become tainted. Zala'ess reluctantly let Yaeminira assume Vy'Chriel's name and rank.

  • Braids of Action (after she lets her formerly short hair grow out she wears it in a long braid)
  • Cain and Abel (with the original Vy'chriel. In terms of morality and action, she's Cain, but she views herself as Abel because of Vy'chriel's disobedience.)
  • Human Popsicle
  • Ignored Epiphany (after finding out from Sillice the truth about the Nidraa'chal war does she stop and change sides when it's offered? Nope!)
  • Sibling Rivalry (of the deadly kind)
  • Replacement Sibling (for her own sister... who she killed)
  • Too Dumb to Live (anyone with a working brain could tell that her fight with Sil'lice wouldn't end well for her)
  • The Unfavorite (with good reason. Ironically, the original Vy'Chriel seems to have been one of Zala's favorites, and what exactly Yaeminira expected to happen when she murdered her is a question for the ages. Also adds more to the above trope.)
  • Well Done Daughter Girl (to Zala'ess)

Phani'lath Vel'Sharen

A son of Zala'ess by a male of the Illhar'dro clan. Possesses a quirky sense of humour. He is present in Chapter 8 with his mother, sisters and step-father when they come to confront Quain'tana for Chrys'tel's release.


Other Sharen bloodlines

Ashu'athama Sharen

Diva'ratrika's only son and brother to Snadhya'rune, Sarv'swati, Sil'lice, Nishi'kanta and Zala'ess. He is one of the headmasters at Davya Tower with Kel'noz. Little is known about him and he has so far only appeared in the early chapters chronicling Ariel's stay at Orthorbbae.

The Xyrrai'zestu Sharen

The Xyrrai'zestu are a sub-house of the Sharen clan and make up a large portion of the Imperial Army. The founder of the house commissioned her own building to house her family, and the Sharen retaliated by having her and most of her followers killed through a series of assassinations and "accidents."

  • All There in the Manual (the house's history in the forum written by the co-creator of the house)
  • Authority Equals Asskicking (when the Xyrrai'zestu de'vess built a tower for herself and her followers outside of the main Sharen fortress, the main family retaliated by killing the de'vess and most of her followers. Only the de'vess' daughter (who was in Orthorbbae at the time) and minor members of the house were spared.)
  • Epic Fail / Tall Poppy Syndrome (the Xyrrai'zestu de'vess' decision to build her own tower can be seen as this. By doing this she seemed to be declaring herself and her house as more powerful than the Imperial family and perhaps even as a rival. The same Imperial family that had proved many times beforehand to be controlling, dislike rebellion and utterly ruthless to those they perceive as threats. Things of course went exactly as you'd expect.)
  • Overly Long Name
  • Redshirt Army (after the stunt pulled by the original de'vess, the house essentially became synonymous with "meatshield")
  • Too Dumb to Live (possibly the original de'vess. One wonders exactly what she was expecting given what we know of the Sharen's dislike of any sort of rebellion.)
  • The Unpronouncable (even the house's creators aren't entirely sure how it's pronounced, and usually settle for something close to "Zee-ree-zess-tu")

Oil'loss'lin Xyrrai'zestu Sharen

The daughter of the former Xyrrai'zestu de'vess and a general in the Imperial Army. Oil'loss'lin and the Xyrrai'zestu Sharen were invented by fans of the comic turned staff writers and before the entire comic was remade in 2007, her character was a major part of the storyline. She makes a cameo appearance in the Prologue during the Nidraa'chal War where she slays her tainted dragon, only to become tainted herself. She is also noted as one of the few Sharen to have remained friends with her protector twin well into adulthood.

  • Angsty Surviving Twin (she lost her protector twin in battle, and this was stated in background information to have broken her. She and her twin even shared the same lover and both had children by him. After her twin's death she adopted the latter's daughter as her own alongside her biological daughter)
  • Badass (slaying her own dragon gave her this reputation in-universe)
  • Overly Long Name
  • Parental Substitute (for the daughter of her protector twin)
  • Put on a Bus (hasn't been seen since the Prologue, though her creator continues to roleplay her, indicating that she survived)

Return to the main character index here.

  1. ↑ the four Great Clans are considered to be the Sharen, the Sullisin'rune, the Illhar'dro and the Beldrobbaen, because they are the oldest clans in Chel and in order to become a Val clan and have access to a seat in the Council of Nine, a clan must be sponsored by one of the four. One example of this is the Val'Sarghress who officially became a Val clan with the support of the Sullisin'rune
  2. ↑ according to podcasts
  3. ↑ and if elements from the Goddess Knight story are canon, Sharess herself was descended from the First Empress of the Dark Elves, leading to a doubly noble lineage for the Sharen.
  4. ↑ the drowussu do have something akin to a commitment ceremony
  5. ↑ but still technically in the underworld because of the mist
  6. ↑ For the record, leaning forward on a horse while pulling back on the reins sends two contradictory messages
  7. ↑ except Yaeminira, but that's complicated
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