As I mentioned yesterday, I am rereading and re-editing The Voyage of the Minotaur.  So, I decided I would spend some time this week talking about the characters in that book– my personal favorite.  The reason I like it so much is the characters, and I love them so much because they are so flawed.  Flawed characters are so much more fun to write.

Terrence Dechantagne is on the surface a heroic fellow.  He has a kind of Indiana Jones-esque quality.  At least that’s how those around him see him.  He doesn’t see himself that way though, because he knows what most of them don’t– that he is a drug addict.  His (very real) heroism is at war with his constant self-loathing.  Here are a couple of quick examples.

The first is when Yuah Korlann (one of the few that knows his secret) tries to take care of him.

He woke up with the strange sensation of something right above his face.  Opening his eyes, he saw that it was Yuah.  Her face was less than a foot above his.  They stared at each other for a moment.

“I thought I locked the door,” he said.

“You did.”

“And you’ve taken to breaking and entering?”

“In this case.  I had to make sure that you were all right.”

“You mean that you had to make sure I wasn’t ‘seeing’,” he said.

“Well….” She shrugged.

“Are you going to be my nursemaid from now on, or just for the rest of the day?”

“I haven’t decided yet.”

“Well, what now?” asked Terrence.

“Let’s walk around the deck for a while before dinner,” she said.  “You can be my escort and everyone can start talking about us.”

“See, I knew you still had a crush on me.”

“I don’t have crushes on addicts.”

“I don’t escort flat-chested bints,” he said.  “And I’m not an addict.”

“You’ll have to prove that to me,” she said.  “And I’m not flat-chested, not really.  Come on.  Get your boots on and let’s go for a stroll.”

Yuah continued to talk to herself while Terrence pulled on his boots.  “Some people can get anything they want.  Not me.  I’m just the flat-chested dressing maid that keeps saving his life.  He wouldn’t want to be seen with me though.  I’m just another Zaeri that he wouldn’t give the time of day to.”

“I didn’t say anything about you being a Zaeri,” he said.  “You know that’s not important to me.”

“It’s important to everyone.”

“It’s not important to me.  I learned a long time ago—Kafirite God or Zaeri God, he’s a heartless bastard.”

The second is when Terrence’s sister Iolanthe announces the name of their new colony.

“That’s fine,” said Iolanthe.  “The promontory is going to be the dock, the fort and the industrial area.  We won’t need many trees.  We will need a few though.  I’ll go ashore later and mark those to be spared.  It sounds as though everything is in order.  What are you gentlemen doing now?”

“I have the bridge,” said Staff.

“I’m going to take a bath and a nap,” said Terrence.

“I have to speak to Father Ian about arranging a wedding,” said Zeah.

Iolanthe looked at him and cocked her eyebrow.

“Corporal Bratihn has asked Mrs. Kittredge to marry him.  It will be the first wedding in the new colony.”

“See that it is done right,” said Iolanthe.  “This has to be a big affair with the whole colony taking part—the perfect event to inaugurate our city.”

“What will your new city be called?” asked Lieutenant Staff.

“Port Dechantagne, of course.”

“Of course,” said Terrence quietly.