Main Characters
Ren:
Darren "Ren" Bay, 17 years old, white with a very, very tiny bit of Iroquois blood in him (on his great-great-grandmother's side). 5'11", reasonably fit and a decent baseball pitcher – a Cleveland Indians fan. He used to build model planes as a kid and can still paint miniatures to look nice, but his current hobbies more revolve around physical activities, though he enjoys reading historical fiction. He takes an interest in aerospace engineering as his future field of work, though he's not certain about that and is also a career in the financial sector. He's confident he could do either since he has a knack for mathematics, though his grades in the general sciences and social studies certainly have room for improvement.
Ren likes both indie and classic rock, though he's already past his rebellious phase (he was heavily into Marilyn Manson and Rammstein in middle school, mostly for their shock value). His usual attire reflects that "casual classic" style with jeans and t-shirts, which he combines with either his school's letter jacket or a black leather jacket his grandfather gave him for his sixteenth birthday.
In his personal life, Ren is currently single. He had a steady relationship with a girl named Liz during his freshman and junior years, but that relationship ended consensually when she had to move to Florida (her parents had found a new job there). Both had briefly considered staying in touch but had eventually decided a long-distance relationship probably wouldn't work out, and breaking up on good terms and with good memories of one another would be the sensible thing to do. In the past nine months, Ren has not yet really considered going into another steady relationship, and besides, there's really no one at Clarkson Mound High he feels very attracted to. He still feels kinda lonely at times, especially when he sees other happy couples.
In terms of personality, Ren is a practical optimist. He believes in the Greater Good (though he has no trust in politics whatsoever) and in working for a cause, and right off the bat, he is willing to put an effort into for his future. He likes active people, and he admires competence. There's not really much he despises; he has more than a little empathy for people who feel like giving up (if it's for a reason) or who may have already given up if it is due to experiences he can relate too. However, outright laziness or an entirely carefree attitude don't connect much with him. He can tolerate these people, but he doesn't like them much.
If Ren has one pet peeve, it's getting called by his full name, Darren. The reason for that is that his parents told him he was named after the actor Darren McGavin (whose performance in Riverboat they both loved, and which was one of the first things they talked about when they fell in love) right after getting forced to see A Christmas Story at the age of 13 – a movie he hated with all of his heart. He demanded getting called Ren the next day, and everybody who knows him respects that wish.
Eileen:
Eileen Kerry, 17, 5'9" with a slender, athletic build. She transfers to Clarkson Mound High for her senior year. She was born and raised in Boston, MA, and she has that "Irish Rose" vibe to her. Eileen loves sports and working out (and quickly joins the cheerleaders after transferring to the school), and her favorite school subject (aside from P.E.) is social studies. She's a generally good student, though she has a bit of trouble with mathematics. Outgoing and friendly, Eileen is usually the life of every party and has a knack for cheering people up, even appearing to be a bit of a chatterbox. She loves singing and is able to play the Celtic harp, though she rarely does that.
Or at least, that is how she appears.
Actually, Eileen is an angel. An actual angel, from the ranks of the Ishim, the angels closest to humanity (and lowest in rank of the Heavenly Choir). She was sent to Earth early in the history of the world to guide humanity towards good and order. Her true form is very close to how she appears as a human, though she has very large wings she can make appear or disappear. (Her clothing reshapes to fit her in that form too.) Even though she doesn't look like it, she is physically very strong and resilient, capable of lifting cars with a single arm, and she can summon lightning from her hands, though that lightning isn't strong enough to actually harm people. (In fact, she isn't allowed to actually kill people; she's supposed to protect Creation, not hurt it.)
Eileen and Lucy share an interesting relationship. While they should be enemies (and were, for a few thousand years), they now have a friendly rivalry. (Of course, they try their best not to let find Heaven and Hell out about that.) They enjoy each other's company quite a bit and consider their rivalry a friendly competetive game. Recently, Eileen has been a bit on the losing side (these are chaotic times, after all) and thus sometimes puts a little more effort into winning than it would be good for the people around her, and Lucy has noticed that Eileen's starting to take their game more seriously than she used to in the last hundred years, but she can't really
let Eileen win, can she?
No one told Eileen the world could end with the destruction of Clarkson Mound. In fact, Heaven doesn't expect her to do anything about it. However, Eileen likes her life on Earth too much to not feel like she has a stake in everything should she find out about the impending doom. And while she's not allowed to use her angelic powers to change things, there's nothing to stop her from doing everything
else she can.
Lucy:
Lucy Vanderford, 17, 5'6", with a soft, feminine build. She transfers to Clarkson Mound High for her senior year. Born and raised in Cleveland, she appears to be a very cultured, educated young woman, and her voice and choice of words reflect that. She is not shy but introverted, maybe reserved, and she usually remains quiet, choosing only to speak when she has something relevant to contribute. She's not very physically fit but an excellent student in every other respect, especially in sciences and math. As a hobby, she likes solving puzzles and riddles (though there are very few she doesn't already know), and she loves reading historical fiction, often finding them to be hilariously funny (even if they aren't).
Or at least, that's how she appears.
Actually, Lucy is a demon. An actual demon, from the ranks of the Shedim, the children of Adam and Lilith. She has lived on Earth since the dawn of days, and theoretically, it is her job to guide mankind towards evil and chaos, though she feels this is almost too easy a job considering mankind's natural tendency towards chaotic behavior. Her true form is identical to her human guise, only that her eyes glow red and bat-like wings formed of black smoke appear on her back. Even though she doesn't look like it, she is physically very strong and resilient, able to match Eileen on a good day though, unlike the angel, she's rarely motivated to make a full effort since it's not worth it most of the time. She can summon fire from her hands and is capable of producing impressive flames, but doing so excessively exhausts her and leaves her freezing cold.
No one told Lucy the world could end with the destruction of Clarkson Mound, and even though Hell probably wouldn't mind if it did, Lucy does mind. She likes the easy job she has on the current Earth, and she likes competing against Eileen. And while she has to be careful to make sure Hell doesn't find out she may be working against them, she sure as hell is willing to do whatever she can.
Onyarekowa:
Onyarekowa, or the Great Snake, is one of the forces of nature feared and revered by the Iroquois. It represents the unpredictablity and cruelty of nature, especially of open waters. To humans, it appears as a sixty-foot-long milksnake with a single horn shaped like a thorn on its forehead. (Ren confuses it with a python, which annoys the Great Snake since it doesn't even know what a python is.)
Onyarekowa has existed ever since the dawn of days, even before humanity started to walk, and it is very much a relaxed entity not prone to emotional outbursts (except during thunderstorms, which the Great Snake abhors), and it has no enmity for mankind, even having acted as a spiritual guide to some in the past, though not the Iroquois. It has, however, a very dry sense of humor since it has seen the many foolish things humans are prone to do, and it is not opposed to let that show if adequately motivated.
As for the end of the world, Onyarekowa is very relaxed about that too. It came into existence so long ago that it doesn't really care its existence will end one day. It knows exactly why and how everything will end, though, and it has a lot of wisdom to share, though not really the willingness to actually share it without at least teasing people a little about it. Ren (or "Rejects-His-Ancestors", in Onyarekowa's words) is currently the only human to communicate with, so he gets the brunt of its sarcasm. Ren calls him "Pypy" in retaliation, and the two share a very peculiar bickering relationship.