Sweep of the Heart

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Amphie of the Dominion, girl next door, representing planet Behoun, Team Smiles.

Bestata of Holy Anocracy, vampire knight, representing House Meer.

Cyanide, space snow leopard, representing the Higgra.

Donkamins, visually disturbing, representing Children of the Silver Star.

Ellenda of Uma, same origin as the Sovereign’s mother, representing planet Kyporo of the Dominion, Team Frowns.

Nycati, psionic and elf-like, representing the Gaheas

Oond, jazz fins, representing the oomboles.

Pivor, with easy smiles, representing the Murder Beaks

Prysen Ol, the philosopher, representing the six-limbed Kai.

Surkar of the Hope Crushing Horde, representing the Southern Tribe of the Gar.

Lady Wexyn, she of many precious accessories, representing the Temple of Desire.

Unessa, the blonde master of smothering, representing the Dushegubs.

Full name: Amphie Asturra.

Amphie, who had a privileged upbringing, is the daughter of a prominent Senator from Behoun.. She is an enthusiastic young woman, typical of the majority race of the Dominion, the humanoid Sislaf. She has taupe skin, big gray eyes, and soft, dark gray hair, which she styles in an asymmetric wave. She gazes upon Kosandion with worshipful adoration and tries very hard to come across as practically perfect in every way.

Her planet, Behoun, is one of the Dominion’s core 7 worlds. They are seeking to put her into a high position with hopes of future political benefits.

Full name: Bestata, Lady Emindra, Stratego of House Meer, Daughter of Konrrat and Ulize.

A statuesque female vampire knight of House Meer, with platinum blonde hair and the even skin tone particular to vampires, Bestata is usually sneering at someone. She appears in the black syn-armor, customary to vampire knights, which she dresses up with cloaks and flower hair accessories, as a nod to Dominion fashion. Snarly to the point of rudeness, she is, however, an honorable and agile warrior.

She represents House Meer. House Meer and House Krahr, into which Dina’s sister Maud is going to marry, have a tumultuous history. House Meer refused to honor their pledge to fight on Nexus, which forced House Krahr to return to that war ahead of schedule. When House Krahr, The Hope Crushing Horde and the Merchant Clan Nuan met at Gertrude Hunt in hopes of reaching a peace agreement, House Meer sent representatives to try to derail those negotiations. The three House Meer knights attacked Sean, who was wearing Turan Adin armor at the time, and he killed them in self-defense.

The refusal to fight on Nexus resulted in House Meer being excommunicated by the Hierophant of the Holy Anocracy for the sin of cowardice. While they are still part of the Holy Anocracy and are subjects to its laws and protections, this punishment barred members of House Meer from holding political and military appointments at the federal level until the excommunication is lifted. The cloud of shame has cast its shadow upon House Meer, and they must find a way to banish it if they are ever going to regain their honor.

Full name: Cyanide and then some growling.

Cyanide resembles a snow leopard, although she is larger and looks different enough to where not many people would mistake her for one. She is 3 feet tall at the shoulder and is covered with brilliant white fur splattered with flecks of gold and gray. She has big golden eyes and fluffy paws with very dexterous digits and long claws. Her gums and tongue are a vivid Prussian blue. She is a master weaver and is considered an artisan by her people.

The Higgra are an odd species. Their civilization didn’t follow the established milestones. Instead, they seemed to have leaped over some key evolutionary advances, which caused some people to speculate that the Higgra didn’t evolve but were biologically engineered by some mysterious galactic civilization lost to time.

The Higgra are very spiritual. They believe that their fate is predetermined, but that one should strive to earn that fate. Like a lot of felines, they tend to be mercurial in their social interactions, and they rarely explain their actions.

Full name: unknown.

Eight feet tall, thin, hairless, covered with pale pearlescent skin, the Donkamins set off alarms in most humanoid species. An innkeeper legend says that the first innkeeper who encountered them opened the door of his inn, saw the new visitors, and blurted out, “Don’t come in!” which is how they got their innkeeper nickname.

They appear unmistakably humanoid, with four appendages that resemble arms and legs, 7 nail-free fingers and two rows of pink pseudo-nipples on their torso— however, they are not even mammalian. They have large eyes, nasal openings shielded by a trilobite shell, and wide lipless mouths studded with conical teeth. The ridges protruding from their chest slide and elongate, allowing their necks to stretch in an arc as far as eight feet long.

Donkamins call themselves Children of the Silver Star and very little is known about their civilizations. They are relative newcomers to the galactic power scene. At the moment, they are focused on playing catch-up and trying to further their scientific achievements.

Full name: Ellenda of Sahava Branch, Pride of her People.

Ellenda is an Uma, and she comes from a fierce and reclusive people, like Kosandion’s mother. She is tall and muscled like a gymnast, and she moves with natural grace. Her skin is the deepest indigo, her eyes are black, and her glossy dark hair is braided into a complex crown arrangement. She is defiant, proud and mournful.

The Uma had been discovered a thousand years ago by Earth’s time by one of the slimier galactic nations. The newcomers arrived bearing gifts and sweet promises, and it took almost twenty years before the Uma realized they were not being helped, they were being colonized. The invaders severely underestimated the Uma spirit. In less than a century, the Uma purged them from their planet and shut their doors to most galactic visitors. The lucky few who had been invited told a story of a beautiful world populated by fierce people.

The Uma treasure their freedom above all else and would rather end their lives than be forced to endure against their will.

Full name: it’s a secret.

Nycati is graceful, lithe, with long limbs, perfect amber skin, and a face that is androgynous in its delicate beauty. His hair is very long and deep purple. He has the bearing of a scholar and carries himself with an air of elegance, whether he dons scale mail or robes. Like all Gaheas, he wears a diadem that enhances his psionic potential.

The Gaheas are a complicated civilization. Their world is that of political intrigue and assassination and heartbreaking beauty. They are committed to the notion of achieving a personal completeness and place a lot of emphasis on arts and education.

The Gaheas are fragmented into several kingdoms, which exist either at war with each other or in a state of uneasy ceasefire. Normally this would make them easy prey to other aggressive civilizations, like the Hope Crushing Horde; however, the Gaheas are deadly psionics. They kill their opponents with their minds, and their destructive potential is devastating. A single Gaheas of a prominent bloodline can easily wipe out a battalion of invading otrokars.

Full Name: Oond, born in the ray of light shining through the green waters.

Oond is an oombole, a 4-foot-long aquatic species that resembles terrestrial fish. He is covered in orange scales and has spectacular fins that range from yellow, through orange, to red. When he activates his bioluminescence, he looks painted with fire. Oond is an Ookarish, a being of extraordinary beauty, who soothes the pain of other creatures through his dance.

Oomboles come in all colors of the rainbow. Their round heads with a slight overbite, big eyes and brightly colored snail-like antennae give them hilariously comical expressions. A fringe of tentacles sprouting from under their chin enables them to wield specialized tools.

Oomboles are peaceful creatures, concerned mainly with survival and safety. They rarely leave their oceans, but when they do, they travel in oversized fishbowls. Oomboles communicate with their fins, which their specialized habitats are able to translate into sounds for the rest of the galaxy.

Full name: Wait for it.

Pivor is a remarkably handsome, stocky man with lemon yellow skin and brilliant green eyes. His wavy brown hair is sideswept in an artful curve. He smiles easily and often and enjoys being the center of attention.

Pivor represents the Murder Beaks. He was a last-minute addition to their delegation. Midway through selection preparations, the Murder Beaks discovered that their DNA is not compatible with the Sovereign’s genetic profile, so they scrambled to find a suitable humanoid candidate.

Murder Beaks are avian, flightless, and armed with huge beaks and powerful clawed feet. Their species would’ve given Earth’s prehistoric Terror Birds a run for their money. They have a strong prey drive and kill for sport. The Murder Beaks isn’t a nickname, but a literal translation of what they call themselves. Their ferocity makes them terrifying opponents, but they lack subtlety, and sometimes the nuances of other species’ behavior elude them.

Full name: Prysen Ol, the senior disciple of Great Fiend of Sa Monastery.

Prysen Ol is a lean, beautiful humanoid male with long, silky blue hair, golden skin, and pink-colored irises. He speaks all three languages of the Dominion flawlessly and is possessed of a dignified, quiet calm. He wears a pale blue robe cinched at the waist and a white circlet. Like all Sa Monastery disciples, he is versed in philosophy, history, and other civil and social sciences. He has a tendency to get lost in complex moral debates and spends too much time looking inward.

Prysen Ol represents the Kai, a six-limbed species from a high gravity world. The Kai thrive on ceremony and ritual and are very methodical, which makes negotiating with them rather difficult since they are also highly hypochondriac. They avoid leaving their planet for the fear of contamination and infection by foreign pathogens and their appearance at the selection is one of the very rare occasions when they travel outside of their star system.

The Kai DNA is incompatible with that of the Sovereign, so they sought the help of Sa Monastery, renowned for their scholars, to find a suitable candidate to represent their interests.

Full name: Surkar, son of Grast and Ulde, Champion of Tribe of Gar.

Surkar is a remarkable example of the Hope Crushing Horde’s warrior. He is tall and powerfully built, with stunning muscle definition and a body that communicates superior strength, speed, and reflexes. He would snap any adult human male in half like a twig. He moves like a large predator and is quite arrogant. Like most otrokars, his behavior is dictated by the rich traditions of the Horde, and as the champion of his people, he is under a lot of pressure to succeed at all costs.

The Tribe of Gar hails from the Southern Tribe faction of the Horde. Although much has been done to unify the various otrokar tribes, some internal rivalries still exist, and Surkar and his people have an agenda they prefer to keep hidden from Khan and Khanum of the Horde, who are both from the North.

Full name: Lady Wexyn Dion-Dian.

Lady Wexyn is five foot even and voluptuous, with large full breasts, round butt, and a soft tummy. Naturally pale, she has a glowing tan, long dark brown hair, and big dark eyes. She favors diaphanous clothes in vivid colors and frequently wears several pounds worth of jewelry in the way of bracelets and very elaborate hair arrangements. Despite this, she moves with hypnotic, seductive grace. Some describe her as a “free spirit”, but she gives answers of deceptive nuance and empathy.

The Temple of Desire is an enigmatic organization, one of the famed Temples located in the White Rose cluster within the Cassiopeia constellation. Within the Cluster, entire moons are devoted to the worship of universal aspects. The Temple of Kindness, the Temple of Rage, the Temple of Grief… The Temple of Desire explores desire, the urge to obtain something beyond your reach at any cost. Within its walls and gardens, the priests and supplicants ponder the exact nature of desire, whether it is inherently selfish, whether it is just, if it can ever be pure and selfless.

Full name: Unessa of… Creeeeeak hisss hisss creeeeak knock.

Unessa is statuesque and very pale, with long golden hair in ringlets around her shoulders, and big violet eyes. Wears flowing gowns that show off her frame and assets, and she rolls her hips. Aggressive, straightforward and not prone to intellectual nuance, Unessa is cunning and physically very capable. She is strong, fast, and has no hesitation when it comes to resorting to violence.

Unessa is Dushegubs’ response to “humanoids like sex.” The Dushegubs are sapient trees, unable to feel most emotions or form emotional attachments. They are calculating, homicidal, moving trees that feed on animal life, so they view most other civilizations as potential prey. Their first option is murder, their second option is murder, and if that fails, they go straight to murder.

Dushegubs are banned from most places outside of their solar system due to their aggressive nature.

Kosandion ka ret Maggran, Letero Kolivion — Sovereign of the Seven Star Dominion, in search of a spouse. Caldenia’s nephew.

Resven — Chancellor of the Dominion, who manages the entirety of the Capital palace and is the Sovereign’s right-hand man for all affairs involving domicile and family.

Miralitt — Prefect, head of the Sovereign’s personal security guard, Sislaf with vampire heritage.

Orata — Kosandion’s head of PR, in charge of the broadcast of the spouse selection event and its ratings

Holy Ecclesiarch — religious leader of the Dominion. Required to be present throughout the entire spouse selection process for its validity.

Karat, Lady Renadra – vampire knight of House Krahr, Maud’s best friend.

Dagorkun – a strategist and a general of the Hope Crushing Horde, son of the Khan and Khanum.

Nuan Couki “Cookie” – the rising star of Merchant Clan Nuan, Nuan Cee’s nephew, several times removed.

Caldenia – the lady needs no introduction.

Tomato – green-furred bear-like alien from one of the star nations neighboring the Dominion.

First Scholar Thek – the koo-ko philosopher who first came to the inn during the Treaty Stay.