Characters

ERIC KADE
First Appearance: Homecoming
Member: The House of Jacoby

Eric was raised at the children’s home in Chapel Port, the southernmost city on Bishop’s Island, following the death of his father and abandonment of his mother at the age of eight. Given his circumstances, he was often ridiculed as a child and found it difficult to form bonds with other people. His one close friend was also his first girlfriend, Nickel Warren. They were together when, at the age of sixteen, he was taken by members of a sect that called themselves The Progeny.

Trained by this same group to be a tracker and demon hunter, he roamed Europe and became the protégé of Progeny leader, The Father. Eric furthered his education by learning of the spiritual record associated with demonology. During this time, he witnessed an event so horrific it altered his life forever. It was then, at the age of thirty, that Eric entered into the ministry and became a preacher.

Already a member of The Progeny’s most elite sect, The Three, Eric continued to rise through the ranks and was whispered to be the future successor of The Progeny. It was during that time when The Father announced his ability of prophecy and made a startling prediction that named Eric his greatest enemy. Suddenly, Eric found himself opposed by his mentor and targeted for execution. Though he escaped, the prophecy put Eric on the run and brought him back to Bishop’s Island.

Now reunited with Nickel after eighteen years, he will be forced to balance the life he once knew with the life he has led. Protective of his friend, he will do whatever he deems necessary to defend her while trying to hide the truth behind his return. In an attempt to embrace gentler ways, he becomes the pastor of an abandoned church in the town of Harvest Cove and settles into a quiet life. But when The Progeny tracks him down, he will be forced to defend what is sacred at risk of losing what he holds most dear in what will surely be a memorable Homecoming.

NICKEL WARREN
First Appearance: Homecoming

Born Emma Nichole Warren, it didn’t take long for Nickel’s persona to come shining through as a beauty with a slow-burning temper. The second of three daughters and full of dreams, her imagination led her to become a renowned adolescent dancer who awed audiences across the island. Blessed with natural grace and beauty, she turned many heads but only had eyes for her best friend, Eric Kade. As they grew older, she and Eric became inseparable and solidified their bond in blood and in love.

Her happiness suffered a tormented halting, however, after Eric mysteriously vanished when they were sixteen never to be seen or heard from again. Fixated on finding him, she put her future on hold and became trapped by the past as she refused to let him go. Plagued by misfortune and heartache, a string of bad decisions led her to regrettable circumstances none would have imagined for her as she became a member of one of Bishop’s Island’s most notorious smuggling rings. Left widowed from an unhappy marriage and sentenced to pay for her crimes, she gave up on the idea of deserving to be reunited with Eric.

Isolating herself from the world, she focused on an obscure existence she felt could not unravel out of control and one that none could destroy. The comfort of her routine was soon turned upside down though by the sudden reappearance of her long lost love. With Eric back in her life, Nickel found the desire to live again and immediately attempted to pick up their relationship where it had left off. The secrets of his existence, however, were nothing she could have ever prepared herself for as she consumed herself with the regret of her own past.

Now immersed in the truths of his world, she witnesses the horrific and miraculous elements of creation. But as she regains her relationship with Eric, an inevitable threat of disaster becomes harder for them to avoid. Faced with the most difficult choice of her life, Nickel must decide between what she has always wanted and the safety of the citizens of Bishop’s Island. In those bleak moments, her strength will emerge to define her.

ARYN GREGER-RAYBURN
First Appearance: Pursuit: A Tale of Bishop’s Island
Member: The House of Rocard

Born the day before the traumatic collapse of Hollis Bridge, Aryn is the youngest granddaughter of one of the victims of the collapse, Arthur Rocard. Held by him only a single time, she felt a deep connection to her grandfather all of her life. As a little girl, she would marvel at the stories her grandmother told her about newspaper man Rocard and points to those memories as the foundation of her passion for history. During her time as an Olympiad, she devoured as much information as possible about the places she visited and the histories those nations and cities were built upon.

After returning to Bishop’s Island after retiring from competition, Aryn met and fell in love with Ryan Rayburn. Their romance was a proverbial whirlwind and brought Aryn tremendous happiness and satisfaction. The only hiccup in their relationship stemmed from Ryan’s refusal to rely on God, whereas Aryn herself was a devout believer. Eventually, this disagreement erupted into violence that left Aryn badly injured and their marriage equally fractured.

Even after Aryn recovered, the wounds dealt to their romance were enough to split them apart. Living alone at the family home in Chapel Port, Aryn devoted herself to healing her body, helping her fellow citizens and uncovering the secrets and legends that built Bishop’s Island. Taking on work as a consultant at the D’Erboir Historical Society in Chapel Port, Aryn became a key player in the restoration of historical structures such as the Carolyne Lighthouse as well as helping explore the underwater tombs along the coast of Galilee.

Resolute in her faith and her knowledge of history, Aryn has made it a personal quest to recover the missing journals of her grandfather. They are the only link between the past and the future of Bishop’s Island and the failing memories of her grandmother. Though content in her work, she still holds out hope of reconciliation with her husband as she continues to strengthen her body and spirit. A threat from the past, however, looms and makes itself known in the beginning pages of Pursuit: A Tale of Bishop’s Island!

RYAN RAYBURN
First Appearance: Pursuit: A Tale of Bishop’s Island

A man who harbors deep secrets, Ryan Rayburn has carved out a life for himself by uncovering lies and toppling the mighty. It was a lifestyle few understood yet one that brought a greater sense of purpose to his life than he ever imagined. Raised by a paternal second cousin, Ryan drifted around Bishop’s Island and the American Southwest prior to enlisting in the United States Army. For all intents and purposes, his life began with his enlistment as he turned his back on all he knew before that chapter of his life began.

When he finally returned to Bishop’s Island after his time in the service, he found work at a clandestine organization called Fordham Logistics & Recovery. Becoming a kind of surrogate son to founder Wallace Fordham, Ryan enjoyed both success and wealth while maintaining complete autonomy. Once he was established as a force to be reckoned with, he crossed paths with one of Bishop’s Island’s celebrities, former Olympian Aryn Greger. Head over heels he fell for her, and she for him, and within a year’s time she took his name in marriage.

Finally feeling as though he had it all, he was slow to reconcile with his past as it prevented him from beginning a family with his beautiful bride. Instead of children, she hounded him about his faith and ultimately drove a wedge into their relationship. On a night when he had too little patience and too much to drink, the two butted heads in a violent confrontation and Aryn ran from the house and away from his heated words. When he sobered up, he learned she had been in a terrible accident and found he lacked the ability to make things right again.

Burying himself in his work and longing to be with his wife, he evolved into a better recovery agent, a greater risk taker and a steely negotiator. Rooting out corruption within the ranks of the Fordham staff and squaring off against dangerous opposition, his purpose as a man seemed opposite of the sort who led a quiet life. Some consider him to be one of the greatest adversaries of the future of Bishop’s Island, even if he was unaware of such plans. Just about the time he convinced himself he was ready to move on from Aryn, he received a phone call that turned his life completely upside down and revealed a history he cannot bury.

OLIVIA FLYNN
First Appearance: Pursuit: A Tale of Bishop’s Island
Member: The House of Flynn

Born into wealth and privilege, Olivia Flynn lived the sort of life she read about in storybooks and fairy tales. After the sudden death of her mother, Helena, Olivia was sent to study abroad by her father, Jacob. Attending the best prep schools in North America and university in England, Olivia grew to become a highly educated, highly capable young woman. Obtaining a kind of celebrity status because of her family’s riches, she traveled the world on countless adventures while representing her father’s company, The Flynn Foundation.

Though a young woman, she enjoyed many experiences and immersed herself in cultures few speak of. Her father shouldered the blame for her fixation with the supernatural and the macabre, as he made a name for himself in what is known as ‘the knowing world’. A collector of relics, journals, artwork and weaponry, The Flynn Foundation has afforded the two surviving members of the bloodline unparalleled access and opportunity to understand the tragedy that stole the life of Helena Flynn.

Something of a monster hunter, Jacob Flynn attempted to hide the truth of his wife’s murder from their only child as he became obsessed with ridding the world of horrible beasts few believed truly existed. When Olivia learned the truth at the age of seventeen, she fled from the family home and initiated herself into the underground culture of those who knew and hunted the unimaginable. Agents of the Flynn Foundation kept tabs on her, of course, and those who knew her father knew of the uncanny likeness Olivia bore for her great-great grandmother, Carolyne Flynn.

It was Carolyne Flynn, after all, who established the family name on Bishop’s Island after she helped overthrow tyrannical Nathaniel Bishop from power. A saloon moll and knifesmith, she had a legendary romance with Sheriff Uzziah Archer, the former preacher who took the life of Bishop. While Olivia has enjoyed romances of her own, she has instead embraced the legend and power of her family name. Upon Bishop’s Island, she will become a power player and information source that few can conquer as she seeks to understand her father’s secrets and her own purpose among the Five Houses of Bishop’s Island.

MALCOLM FISK
First Appearance: Homecoming

The son of loving parents, Malcolm had a privileged childhood filled with the finest of educations and culture.  His fondness for reading and his devotion to the church led him into the priesthood at the age of twenty-six.  More a scholar than a shepherd, his fascination with relics and archives prompted him to pen his first historical study while serving as a parish priest in northern California.  At the age of forty-seven, he published his first book, One God: The Myth of Modern Faith, to expose relics the church kept hidden from its congregation.  Though a commercial success, the book noted an end to Malcolm’s tenure as a priest.

Relocating to Bishop’s Island, he toiled away in anonymity until his twin brother also moved to Chapel Port.  Less of a ladies’ man than his twin, Malcolm instead focused on his antique book collection and became chair of the Chapel Port Literary Society.  This led him to other artistic endeavors which fed his curiosity but left him feeling alone.  Working on a series of fiction novels, he ran across cryptic lore regarding a religious leader who called himself The Father.

As the years progressed, Malcolm’s research into The Father and his Progeny exposed him to the world of demonology.  Traveling abroad, he found sites and villages where The Progeny had conducted hunts and missions.  Further research led him to believe that one of The Father’s lieutenants, Eric Kade, was the same man who had been kidnapped on Bishop’s Island several years before.  When a mysterious preacher reopens a church in the town of Harvest Cove, Malcolm realizes he can offer support to the man who has become a legend of his own.

LUCINDA JAMES
First Appearance: Homecoming

Born on Leap Day, Lucinda Dawn James has always possessed a rare brand of luck and misfortune. A sickly infant, she was the only child born to Crystal James, a loving mother and waitress who died of lung cancer before Lucinda was five. Taken in by her grandparents to live on their farm, she had trouble fitting in and eventually ran away at the age of sixteen. While living on the streets of Toronto, she was befriended by a woman who introduced her to witchcraft and, more notably, how to hunt practitioners of evil.

When she was nineteen, she crossed paths with members of a sect named The Progeny and befriended demon hunters Eric Kade and Allan Marshall. Unlike the majority of its members, Lucinda asked to be taken in by the group. Initially accepted, it wasn’t long before she was deemed a troubled soul and made an outcast. Sent away from The Progeny, she sought to wreak havoc for their dismissal and fell in with deadly company. True to the nature of their friendship, Lucinda was rescued by Eric and trained to be a hunter and tracker. Allowed to return to the ranks of the sect, she traveled exclusively with Eric the next two years before being put in-charge of her own hunting packs.

All artwork credited to Stephen A. Schaffer of NorthChavis