Overview
Maric is Xarion's advisor in Teryndal Assembly, a close friend of Renneth, and the bonded companion of Spin. He begins as a potent water mage and administrator, then becomes a shard wielder after making a pact with Renneth in Theryssa.
Maric's lava shard comes from Kharvos / Pyragos, the fire-and-earth god Renneth was before his memory erasure and life in Teryndal. The shard expands his water magic beyond water, giving him fire, earth, ice, heat, lava, dense stone manipulation, and large-scale battlefield power.
Appearance and Personality
Maric has brown or dark-brown hair, which gains red or fire-red strands after the shard pact. He usually wears robes, including navy robes while traveling with Xarion, local robes in Haverloch, and a Kaldaryn-style robe when Azarion's hurricane reaches Kaldaryn.
Maric is witty, sociable, practical, and loyal. He jokes easily with Xarion and Renneth, handles political and administrative work without dramatics, and stays steady enough under pressure to negotiate with hostile powers, suppress his essence, and hold back his full strength until it matters.
Abilities
Before the shard pact, Maric is already a strong water mage. He propels boats with water magic, parts Lythenmere Lake for Xarion, creates a bubble under the lake, rides waves across the ocean with Nero, and takes turns with Spin keeping the northern diplomatic boat alive through storms.
After receiving the lava shard, Maric fights at battlefield scale with fire, heat, ice, earth, lava, and water. He raises land and stone, encases a lake around Raphael, fights through Gabriel's snowstorm near Rimvold, and raises stone pillars as Kaldaryn's earth mages shelter the city beneath Azarion's hurricane. His magic is strongest at scale, while stealth and essence suppression remain necessary when he moves through Rahmavir and around the source.
History
Maric serves under Xarion in Teryndal's Assembly, where he handles lists, permits, recruitment work, and practical organization for the high arbiter. Xarion takes him on the secret trip to Lythenmere Lake, where Maric's water magic opens the way to the ruins and gate beneath the lake.
Maric later travels with Renneth through Erenmyr, where Thalena's frogs bond with them. Spin becomes Maric's frog, while Gin bonds with Renneth. After the village gate and the frogs come before the council, Aldar sends Maric and Renneth north from Xalmyrra to establish new diplomatic ties with unknown nations.
The northern mission brings Maric and Renneth to Shanari, Thiravos, and Theryssa. In Hanamizu, Maric bows to Arashiiwa, answers questions about Xalmyrra's airship plans, and adds diplomatic details about Xalmyrra's mission. In Thiravos and Theryssa, he meets Brontes, Damarra, Kalyx, Lucilla, Nero, and Nerissa, receives Pyragos's history from the island leaders, and accepts Renneth's pact on the beach in Pelagia.
After becoming a shard wielder, Maric travels with Nero toward Rahmavir and Zarephon. He hides the lava shard, suppresses his essence in Rahmavir, enters negotiations around the source, and forces a bargain around Raphael by threatening the guardian while Nero and Alice descend into the lake.
Maric leaves Zarephon after the deal with Eliona, reunites with Gin and Spin in astragon form, and heads toward the Siege of Rimvold. He defeats Gabriel's descended form by countering cold with fire, heat, water, and ice, then wakes in Haverloch among Virel, Nahm, Zayren, and their allies. During the Battle for Cyndarel and Azarion's hurricane, he fights Azarion beside Virel and later reinforces Kaldaryn's underground refuge with the city's earth mages.
Relationships
- Xarion is Maric's superior, high arbiter, and trusted political partner in Teryndal.
- Renneth is Maric's closest friend and the one who gives him the lava shard through their pact.
- Spin is Maric's bonded giant cuddly frog and later astragon.
- Nero becomes Maric's main partner during the Rahmavir and source mission, with Nerissa and Renneth communicating through their respective shard bonds.
- Sarine is Maric's past Assembly relationship from before his long absence.
- Gabriel, Raphael, and Azarion become Maric's direct opponents during the Siege of Rimvold, Battle for Cyndarel, and Azarion's hurricane across central Valrindor.