A Day of Fallen Night

Glorian is the daughter of King Bardholt of Hróth and Queen Sabran VI of Inys, making her the heir to Virtudom. She is the primary storyteller of the West. As one of the protagonists, many of the chapters focus on Glorian’s point of view, including her journey from a child to a fully realized queen in the short span of four years. At the beginning of the novel, Glorian is aware of and upset by her sole role as heir-bearer to the Queendom of Inys. She is torn between her mother’s image of being a ruler of politics, and her father’s image of being a great warrior. Glorian expresses the constraints she feels on herself to her father: “I want to be like you. […] But a warrior possesses her own body. Inys has mine’” (146). Glorian is aware that her entire nation relies on her to conceive an heir to keep the Nameless One at bay, and this means that she cannot live the life she wants because she must use her body to uphold her family line. Her sense of duty is torn between wanting to provide for her nation and wanting to protect her nation by leading them against Fyredel and his hordes.

This dilemma plagues Glorian throughout the novel. She knows that she can be a capable and prudent leader, but she is consistently constrained by her councilors, who see her greatest use as a mother. She is not 18 for most of the novel, meaning that she does not have complete control of her queendom. However, during the final battle against the wyrms, Glorian not only delivers an heir but also turns 18, freeing her from her councilors and allowing her to have full autonomy. When she charges on to the field of battle with her newborn daughter in hands, she expresses her joy to Wulf: “I have done my duty. I would gladly give my life in battle, as my father would have. I am free to do as I choose. I choose to die with courage” (780). In this crucial moment, she realizes her true potential and can finally live as she wishes. She no longer needs to birth an heir and can now fight alongside her people, fulfilling the sense of duty instilled in her by her father.

Dumai, another of the primary storytellers of A Day of Fallen Night, is the protagonist of the East and one of the sole characters to see Seiiki, Sepul, and the Empire of the Twelve Lakes. She is the daughter of Emperor Jorodu and, despite living much of her life in ignorance, finds herself drawn into the politics of the court when she is named heir to its throne. In many ways, Dumai is a parallel character to Glorian, not only because they share a telekinetic connection, conversing with each other through dreams, but also because she too must grapple with the weight of monarchy, although her transformation through this journey leads her country in a different direction. She resents the notion that she should be empress. When Osipa tells Dumai that “[she] would have [her] own child. Take a consort as far away as possible from Kuposa influence,” she realizes that she never thought of or wished for a child. Dumai is interested in protecting the people of Seiiki over merely protecting the throne.

Dumai’s understanding of leadership leads her to commit to the work of protecting her people, even going so far as to allow Clan Kuposa to take the throne, not wishing to waste her time, energy, and resources on a civil conflict when greater threats are at hand. Dumai has her realm’s best interests at heart and even intentionally sacrifices herself in Seiiki’s best interest: “[…] Seiiki would not survive that bloodshed […] At last, she saw a way. She reached for the light deep within, and darkness accepted it, like an offering” (804). While it is unclear if she dies, her disappearance is an act of selflessness aimed at protecting the people she loves. Her actions change Seiiki as well, as Nikeya, the first Warlord of Seiiki, takes charge. Nikeya suggests opening the relationship with the dragons to people outside of Clan Noziken. This change reflects Dumai’s own perception that power should not be held by the hands of the few; opportunity should be available to all.

Wulfert “Wulf” Glenn, also known as Armul Melim, is the principal storyteller of the North and spends much of his time between Hróth and Inys. He is a childhood friend of Glorian and the father of their daughter, Sabran. Like many of the characters, he goes through a journey of self-discovery and transformation in the novel. His journey, however, is one that changes his self-perception; he believed himself cursed but later recognizes the power and love that he has been given. The rumors surrounding Wulf’s origins make him doubt himself and his worth to others, a sentiment his loved ones, such as his sister, are quick to combat. He survives a series of tragedies that take the lives of King Bardholt and most of his lith, leading Wulf to internalize the “curse” upon him. He begins pushing people away, not wanting to hurt anyone else. It is only when Tuva and Canthe find him that he learns the truth and reconfigures his self-worth.

When Wulf travels back with Tuva from Hróth to the Priory, he discovers a new world. With his history revealed to him, he comes to understand why he survived many tragedies and felt longings for another place. He also discovers that he was not abandoned, but stolen, releasing him of the idea that he was unwanted. As he departs, he expresses to Tuva what finding her means to him: “I would cry myself to sleep, trying to remember you. And I did. […] I never imagined my mother was a great warrior, who loved me so much she would cross the world see me one more time’” (734). He is finally free of his nightmares and insecurities and has found a new family that accepts him as he is. He uses this newfound love and security to protect his daughter while hiding in the barrow. He knows that he cannot raise her and tries to instill her with his love in the precious moments that they have. He is healing from the trauma of his past, shedding the pain that has held him for so long. He understands that his daughter will not be in the same situation that he was as a child, but he still wants her to feel the love that stems from the Priory.

Outside of the fire-breathing wyrms, Canthe stands as the most notable antagonist of the novel. She arrives at the Priory as a mysterious visitor of the West, claiming to have once been the protector of her own siden tree, but departs as a deceiver who used her sterren to manipulate Tuva in her search for a powerful relic. Canthe’s ulterior motives make her unreliable, and once it is revealed that she was the one to kidnap Wulf, any trust Tuva had in her evaporates. Canthe’s manipulation of Tuva begins through bonding over loss. Canthe expresses to Tuva that she also lost a child and seeks to comfort her. In doing this, Tuva opens up to her and seeks her out to help weather the storm of the tragedy. Canthe also tells Tuva about Wulf to manipulate Tuva into letting her into the Tomb of the Mother so that she can steal the stone.

During the confrontation in the tomb, Canthe reveals herself to be the Witch of Inysca, and it dawns on Esbar and Tuva that many of the dangerous events of the past few years were because of her. It was Canthe who tricked Hidat into killing Anyso with the goal of causing Siyu to flee. She was constantly trying to put a wedge between Tuva and Esbar. Even Tuva’s nightmares were her doing. Throughout the novel, the tension that arises between Esbar and Tuva is manufactured by Canthe and, despite her motives and identity revealing themselves, Canthe’s goal does not change. She still seeks the stone, even after she is nearly killed by Esbar and Tuva. She hints at the balance of the world being disturbed and that it is her duty to fix it. While it seems that Canthe wishes to combat the wyrms just as Tuva does, her inability to be honest and reveal her motives make her more of an antagonist than an ally.