Characters / Masks of Aygrima

The Unmasked Army

Mara Holdfast

The main character of the novels. The daughter of the Master Maskmaker who's masking mysteriously fails after she learns that she can see and use all colors of magic. She is taken to the Secret City where she joins the fight against the Autarch.

• Action Girl: She eventually becomes this during her magic training in the 2nd book, giving her the ability to use magic to devastating effect.
• Action Survivor: In the first book and half of the second one, she has little control over her magic, leaving her as just a scared 15 year old girl with no weapons.
• A-Cup Angst: At the beginning of Masks she's jealous of her friend Sala's, "Statuesque" figure.
• Anti-Hero: She turn into this due to her Sanity Slippage making her more aggressive and unstable.
• Berserk Button: Mara doesn't like people doubting her or the power of magic, and not trusting her.
• Beware the Nice Ones: She's normally a friendly girl but is a force to be reckoned with when angry.
• Character Development: She becomes more jaded, cold, aggressive, and mature over the series.
• Daddy's Girl: She and her dad get along very well and she wants nothing more than to be like him.
• Determinator: She gives up once in the story and that's when things get really bad, otherwise she's strong willed and always able to get back up from being hurt.
• Dissonant Serenity: She smiles sweetly when she mentions the possibility of her destroying everything to captain March and Chell, it greatly unnerves them.
• Guile Hero: Especially early on before learning how to control her magic, she has to rely on her wits to outsmart people and survive.
• Heroic BSoD: When the Secret City is destroyed she shuts down and tries to run away.
• Meaningful Name: Her role as The Determinator fits quite well with the last name "Holdfast."
• Power-Strain Blackout: She passes out after using large amounts of magic.
• Sanity Slippage: Her gift allows her to take magic from others which she finds addictive. Absorbing magic from dead people, especially is she killed them, causes her to have nightmares and occasionally hallucinations. She starts to think that Murder Is the Best Solution all the time.
• Spanner in the Works: An unassuming girl who's masking fails who also continuously causes the Autarch a lot of trouble and eventually kills him.
• UnPerson: Mara's involvement in the death of The Autarch is either removed completely or is reduced greatly in the history books.

Keltan (real name Birik)

A boy who Mara runs into while he was fleeing his making, claiming that he's going to join the legendary Unmasked Army. They meet later when Mara is saved by the Unmasked Army and quickly become friends. He has an obvious crush on her and competes with Hayram for her affections.

• Abusive Parents: He had a very abusive father who beat him and killed his mother.
• Anguished Declaration of Love: He gives one to Mara when she tries to leave after the Secret City is destroyed, it convinces her to stay.
• Badass Normal: Has no gift but is one of the best men in the Unmasked Army.
• First Girl Wins: He's the first member of the Unmasked Army Mara meets and the one she hooks up with in the end.
• Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: One of the nicest people in the series also has blond hair.
• The Lancer: He's the kind and level headed, in contrast to Mara's more unstable and aggressive attitude.
• Love Interest: To Mara who eventually becomes his girlfriend.
• Meet Cute: A darker example than most, Mara barges into the coal cellar he's hiding in and he threatens her to keep quiet.
• Nice Guy: He's mostly friendly and agreeable.
• That Man Is Dead: He never uses his real name because his abusive father gave it to him.

Catilla

The Commander of the Unmasked Army who leads them against the Autarch.

• Big Good: She leads the Unmasked Army against the Autarch.
• Incurable Cough of Death: She develops cancer in her throat that likely kills her shortly after the series' end.
• Jerkass: She's very unpleasant and mean.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: At the end of the series she gives Mara a reasonable plan to leave Aygrima so she isn't a danger to anybody and shows sympathy for her plight.
• Nerves of Steel: She's willing to talk down to Mara who she knows can kill her in seconds.
• Red Baron: She's called, "the Commander" in the Unmasked Army.

Edrik

Catilla's grandson who acts as her second in command

• Badass Normal: He fulfills the below trope along with being ungifted.
• The Big Guy: He's one of the best, if not the best, fighters in the series.
• Number Two: He's second in command to Catilla.
• Rags to Royalty: From a criminal, born in a cave, to king of Aygrima.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: He's much nicer and more helpful than his grandmother.

Hyram

Edrik's son who fights Keltan for Mara's affections.

• The Rival: To Keltan who he fights with for Mara's favor.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He helps Catilla with her plan to get Mara out of Aygrima despite still being resentful of the deaths she accidentally caused.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: Becomes a full on Jerkass to Mara after the Secret City is destroyed since it was her fault (accidentally).

The Circle

The Autarch

Main villain of the series. Ruler of Aygrima who commands the Circle. A despot who wants to live forever.

• A God Am I: He even has schools refer to him as "practically a god."
• Asskicking Leadsto Leadership: The Autarch rose to the top of Aygrima through his sheer magical power.
• Bad Boss: He doesn't care about anybody else in the Circle and is willing to kill them if they displease him.
• Badass Longrobe: A regal white hooded one.
• Big Bad: He created the oppressive system of the masks and most of the series is spent trying to either depose him or escape his wrath.
• Classic Villain: Ambition, Pride and Envy.
• Crazy-Prepared: He had powerful magical defenses put up in the mountains in case the Lady of Pain and Fire survived their previous battle. Turns out to be justified since she did survive.
• Dark Lord on Life Support: He's only alive because he is draining magic from gifted people, in particular the Child Guard.
• Despotism Justifies the Means: It becomes increasingly clear over the course of the books how little he cares about the state of Aygrima so long as he rules it.
• Dirty Old Man: When he sees Mara without her mask he is shown to be attracted to her despite being several times her age.
• The Dreaded: The Unmasked Army fears the amount of power he possesses both through the Watchers, and in his own magic. The citizens of Aygrima are scared to even think of defying him due to the Mask's ability to react to said thoughts and the brutal executions given to traitors.
• Entitled Bastard: The narration of the first chapter of the books talks about how a mountain doesn't deserve a name because it's unremarkable, implying that he holds a similar view of people who don't have his special gift or his royal blood.
• Establishing Character Moment: The opening chapter of the first book tells us all we need to know about him. He's seen overlooking a village he's destroyed for harboring the Lady of Pain, he's completely unbothered when the Lady kills his men, he then uses powerful magic to seemingly kill the Lady by closing a valley with her inside before declaring that he'll live forever. This establishes his cruelty, callousness, magical might, and ambition.
• Grand Theft Me: His plan for immortality is to take over Mara's body.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: Killed by his own mask as well as Mara's mask.
• I Control My Minions Through...: He explicitly says that he rules through fear. though this extends into mind control three years before Mara's masking.
• Immortality Seeker: He says so at the end of the prologue.
• Karmic Death: His mistreatment of the Child Guard causes Greff to attack him, and while Greff fails to kill him, the attack leaves the Autarch open to a fatal blow from Mara.
• Lack of Empathy: His most defining trait aside from his ego. He's not actively malicious or sadistic in his actions, and all of the atrocities he commits are done in order to maintain his power with little care for the horrible effects they have on others. The most notable example of this is his response to Chell asking for aid in Korellia's war, he simply kicks Chell out of Aygrima and tells him to never come back.
• Light Is Not Good: He wears white and a gold mask and is the Big Bad.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: He makes Shrela train Mara in magic which only makes her more of a threat.
• No Name Given: We're never told his name.
• Off with His Head!: He's decapitated by his mask and Mara's fake Child Guard mask.
• Older Than They Look: He looks about half or even a third of his real age.
• Orcus on His Throne: We only see him outside the Palace twice ever in the series.
• The Paranoiac: He's terrified of being overthrown like his father and enacts increasingly desperate plans in order to stay in power and live forever.
• Politically Incorrect Villain: While the Autarch never says anything in person to fit this trope, the masks he created are stated to not work on homosexuals.
• Seven Deadly Sins: He embodies all seven to different extents. He's extremely self important and arrogant (pride), he has access to many luxuries that his citizens don't (greed), he rarely leaves the Palace and is content to let others deal with his problems (sloth), he very brutally punishes anyone he suspects of betraying him (wrath), he's implied to be addicted to the feeling of draining magic from others (lust), he drains the magic from others to keep himself healthy and alive, uncaring for the effect this has on his victims (gluttony), and he's jealous of the health and youth of others and literally drains the vitality from children and desires to steal the body of the main character to stay in power (envy).
• Villain Opening Scene: The fist chapter of the first book is told from his perspective.
• Would Hurt a Child: Played With. The people most negatively affected by his actions are between fifteen and eighteen, but in Aygrima people over fifteen are legally adults.
• You Have Failed Me: He had the Guardian of Security who served his father executed after failing to prevent his father's assassination.

Guardian Stanik

The Gurdian of Security in the Circle, leader of all Watchers and the most powerful member of the Circle.

• Chekhov's Gunman: He gets mentioned briefly in Masks and has a big role in Shadows.
• Disk-One Final Boss: Despite being The Heavy of the 2nd book he dies roughly two thirds of the way through with the watchers attacking the Secret City being the main threat after his death.
• The Dreaded: All of the watchers fear his wrath.
• The Dragon: He's the Autarch's most powerful, and highest ranking, minion.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: Killed by magic taken from his watchers.
• Jerkass: He's rude and cruel.
• Mook Lieutenant: Leader of all watchers.
• Off with His Head!: Mara blows his head off with magic.
• Villainous Cheekbones: His unmasked face is described as "angled."
• Would Hit a Girl: While interrogating Mara, he slaps her so hard her mouth bleeds

Shrela

The Mistress of Magic who advises the Autarch on magic related subjects.

• Affably Evil: She doesn't seen to be actively malicious like some of the other members of the Circle and is very civil with Mara while training her.
• The Evil Genius: She's an expert on magic and advises the Autarch.
• Evil Mentor: She trains Mara to be her successor.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Her training of Mara makes her much more effective at using magic which helps her in her fight with the Autarch.
• Offscreen Karma: She and the other members of the Circle are captured or killed by the Unmasked Army.
• Punch-Clock Villain: She seems to genuinely believe that the Autarch is a good ruler and does what he says out of loyalty rather than malicious intent.

Charlton Holdfast

The Master Maskmaker and Mara's father who created all masks for gifted.

• Good Parents: He's a caring and responsible father. to Mara.
• Heel–Face Turn: He betrayed the Autach with Ethelda and intentionally caused Mara's mask to fail to get her out of Tamita.
• Shameful Strip: As part of the law he's stripped naked before his execution.
• When You Coming Home, Dad?: He spends a long time working on Mara's mask to the point that she barely gets to see him. He was actually devising a plan to get her out of the city and is implied to have been distancing himself from her so losing her was easier.

Ethelda

The Autarch's personal healer.

• Heel–Face Turn: She and Charlton betray the Autarch.
• Killed Offscreen: She's one of the various casualties of the magic attacks on the beach in Shadows.
• The Medic: She has powerful healing magic.
• The Mentor: She trains Mara as much as she can in the Secret City.
• Ms. Exposition: She helps to explain Mara's gift and some of the Lady of Pain and Fire's history.
• Nice Girl: The absolute nicest character in the series.

Other Characters

Prince Chell

The youngest prince of Korellia, a country thought destroyed in Aygrima, who came to Aygrima to save his country. Saved by Mara after his ship is destroyed by a storm.

• Ambadassador: He's a Warrior Prince who can kick all kinds of ass.
• "Ass" in Ambassador: He doesn't care about Aygrima and will team up with whichever side will help Korellia. He's not a mean person though.
• My Country, Right or Wrong: He's willing to let the Autarch, a crazy depot, remain in power if he helps Korellia.
• Nice Guy: He's a friendly and funny person.
• Older Than They Look: He's 25 but looks 18.
• The Smart Guy: He's clever and knowledgeable of many topics which makes him very useful.
• Third-Option Love Interest: He's an older and more mature person than Hyram or Keltan and quickly catches Mara's eye. Doesn't work out as he's married.
• Warrior Prince: He's the youngest heir to the Korellian throne and a Badass Normal.
• We Have Reserves: He is confident in the ability of the Korellian Army to defeat the Autarch through sheer number despite seeing how much destruction the Gifted are capable of.
• Word Salad Of Titles: His Royal Highness Chell cor Chell cor Arriken, Prince of the Golden Shore, Duke of the Southern Deep, and Protector of the Holy Fountain.

The Warden

The warden of the Magic Mine who provides Aygrima with magic.

• The Heavy: He's the primary threat in Masks.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: He's killed by one of his mistreated prisoners and is blown up by the rockbreakers used in his mine.
• Impromptu Tracheotomy: Katia stabs him in the throat.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: He agrees to send Mara on a scouting mission to a possible place for a new mine which allows the Unmasked Army to save her which leads to his death.
• No Kill like Overkill: He's stabbed in the throat, has a roof fall on him, and is reduced to ash by an explosion.
• No Name Given: No one ever says his name.
• Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil: While he doesn't rape anyone as far as we see, he condemns female prisoners to the guard barracks where they are raped.
• Wardens Are Evil: He's a cruel and brutal warden.

Grute

The only boy the the wagon of unmasked people. A crazy perverted sociopath.

• Attempted Rape: He gets drunk and tries to rape Mara which leads to his death.
• The Brute: He's very strong and is able to tear a door off its hinges.
• Butt-Monkey: He's beaten up, humiliated, and disrespected by the Unmasked Army during the hike the the Secret City.
• Establishing Character Moment: He gets one when he verbally harasses Mara and threatens the girls in the wagon.
• Hate Sink: Grute is the only boy in the prison Mara is put into. He acts lecherously towards the girls, nearly raping one of them and taking joy in their discomfort. He later kidnaps Mara, planning on taking her to a slave mine to trade for better treatment. Finally dying while trying to rape Mara, he's a perfect example of the kind of people that have no place even in the Autarch's brainwashed kingdom.
• Jerkass: He's arguably the most unpleasant character in the series.
• Not-So-Harmless Villain: Despite being a Butt-Monkey when he gets to the Secret City he breaks out of his cell, hides in the baths, kidnaps Mara, and escapes with her by going down a river.
• Pragmatic Villainy: He decides not to rape Mara because he thinks that he can get better treatment from the mine he's bringing her to is she's a virgin. He gives up on this when he gets drunk and tries to rape her anyways.
• The Sociopath: He's a low functioning example of this, lacking the subtlety to manipulate others but otherwise fits with his desire for power and sex driving him to hurt others.
• Starter Villain: He's the first major villain in the books but isn't much of a threat aside from being strong and clever.
• Your Head Asplode: Mara blows his head up with magic when he tries to rape her.

Greff

A member of the Child Guard who Mara befriends

• Big Damn Heroes: In Faces he bursts into the Autarch's throne room to try and kill him, saving Mara from being possessed by the Autarch.
• Chekhov's Gunman: After his brief appearance in Shadows, he plays an important role at the end of Faces.
• Cruel and Unusual Death: The Autarch super heats his mask so it burns a hole through his head.

SPOILER CHARACTERS

The Lady of Pain and Fire (real name Arilla)

The supposedly long dead rival of the Autarch. She's actually alive and living in the mountains. She saves the Unmasked Army from watchers and becomes their leader.

• Arch-Enemy: She's the Autarch's oldest and most powerful enemy.
• Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Much like The Autarch, The Lady of Pain and Fire is feared and obeyed due to her sheer power.
• Berserk Button: She is quick to anger when people doubt the power of magic.
• Big Bad Ensemble: She becomes this along with the Autarch in Faces due to her plan for defeating him being extremely destructive.
• Big Good: She takes charge of the Unmasked Army from Catilla and leads them in a plan to take down the Autarch.
• Classic Villain: Ambition, Envy and Wrath.
• Dark Action Girl: While she was a straight Action Girl in the past, the Lady of Pain and Fire has become a ruthless withch who will crush any opposition.
• Deader than Dead: Her consciousness is ripped out of Mara and was either destroyed by the Autarch, or was dissipated along with his magic when he died.
• Despotism Justifies the Means: She is fine with ruling Aygrima even if it's a smoldering wreck.
• Establishing Character Moment: She turns down Chell's offer of aid by crushing the Defender with magic as a show of force.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Despite all of her horrible actions, she does lover her father and is heartbroken over his death.
• Evil Gloating: She pauses to gloat to Mara over how she will kill Keltan in front of her, giving Mara time to kill her.
• Faux Affably Evil: All of her friendliness with Mara and the Unmasked Army was a lie so she could use them to take over Aygrima.
• Fur and Loathing: She's dressed all in fur.
• Freudian Excuse: Her hatred of the Autarch is the result of him being responsible for her father's death. Her gift is the only reason she survived the revolution which likely resulted in her overconfidence in said gift and disdain for ungifted people. Despite her attempts to make Mara think otherwise, Her mind is severely warped as a result of her gift.
• Grand Theft Me: She posses Mara after her death and plans to live on through her.
• Historical Villain Upgrade: In Universe. The prologue shows The Autarch destroying a village with the plan to blame The Lady for it.
• I Control My Minions Through...: Mind control
• Immortality Seeker: Turns out she has the same plan as the Autarch.
• Karmic Death:
  • Her boasting about the power of her magic doesn't help when she's killed by a crossbow.
  • This goes for the destruction of her magical life force. She over estimates her power and is dealt a Curb-Stomp Battle by the Autarch. If that didn't destroy her, the Autarch being killed by two masks did it.
• Manipulative Bitch: Plays Mara's emotions like a fiddle.
• Names to Run Away from Really Fast: The Lady of Pain and Fire is a pretty intimidating name.
• The Mentor: She teaches Mara to better control her gift she turns out to be an Evil Mentor
• No Kill like Overkill: She's shot in the head, falls into the mine, is likely crushed by the gears at the bottom and has the mine collapsed onto her.
• Shadow Archetype: She's treated as what Mara could become if she loses control of her powers. Subverted when she turns out to be completely same. Double Subverted when it turns out she was just hiding her insanity.
• The Sociopath: She's highly manipulative, tricking the Unmasked Army into aiding her in her goals to rule Aygrima, she's largely self centered, flaunting her power over other frequently, a the only thing that keeps her from fully counting is her love for her father.
• Walking Spoiler: There's a reason she's in this folder and why most of her tropes are spoilered out despite that.

Hamil

The chief of the village that the Lady leads.

• Brainwashed and Crazy: He only follows the Lady because she controls him with magic.
• The Dragon: He's in charge of the Lady's minions
• Number Two: He's second in command to the Lady.

Whiteblaze

a wolf the Lady gives to Mara

• Canine Companion: To Mara who he defends with his life
• Disney Death: He's supposedly killed by a sun guard but is revealed to have survived.
• Undying Loyalty: He is magically bound to Mara.