Brandon "Chase" Carona

The son of a Zarenian slave, Brandon speaks little about the years he spent at the beck-and-call of his Alanuan master. When a friend of his accidentally set the master's bedroom on fire while lighting a candle, fearful of the severe whipping his friend would no doubt receive, Brandon lashed out when they came to collect them. Because of his reaction, Brandon's master decided his rebellious nature was unsuitable for slave and disposed of him. With his arms and legs bound to a block of wood, Brandon was set to be executed by drowning.

He somehow managed to survive execution by drifting. He was eventually picked up a Montafielian fishermen who, upon finding out his slave status, took full advantage. Brandon worked a few years on the man's fishing boat until he managed to stowaway on a smuggler's ship. The smugglers were Zarenian in origin and, like most other Zarenians, weren't fond of the Alanuans' self-proclaimed superiority. The captain was impressed by Brandon's sheer luck and took to mentoring the boy, teaching him how to fish, hunt, defend himself, and other basic skills, all of which Brandon was eager to learn. Unfortunately for Captain Renshaw, Brandon never quite got over his fear of water. The captain did love a good swim.

But as things always went with him, all good things came to an end. A Guardian ship ambushed the smuggler's camp near the Zarenian gulf and arrested them all. Brandon was able to avoid them only because he had stormed off after an argument with Captain Renshaw. He fled into the mountains. His deepest regret was not going after Captain Renshaw.

He would later encounter the Caronas on their move to their new land. He stole their food at first. The Caronas began leaving out food for him so he wouldn't have to "steal". This went on until Brandon had enough courage to hold short conversations with them. He got along splendidly with their son, Jorden, who hated that they were moving. Brandon empathized with Jorden to an extent. When they arrived at their new home, Jorden asked Brandon if he wanted to stay, which he agreed.

Brandon had a hard time interacting with the local youth. "Play" had never been his forte having worked all his life. He was eventually able to befriend Lina who, with everlasting patience, taught him how to relax. Brandon, in turn, regaled the others with stories of his adventures. At first, none of them could tell whether or not he was exaggerating. Then Brandon engineered a scheme to get them on a fishing boat and take them all sailing—and succeeded. No one doubted his stories after that. He also received a lifetime ban from the fishing port for his stunt.

A few years after he joined the Caronas, Daniel was born.

He and Lina would eventually become engaged.

If you ask Brandon nowadays how he and his wife are doing, he will offer a smile and say, "We're good." What he doesn't mention is Lina's death was his main reason for joining the Promise, plus the "nearly dying" the three other times and a few other things.

On an afternoon out with his brothers, they ran across an arguing trio of Spirits: Espor, Curtidagua, and Diaroca. The recent construction of a nearby estate wiped out the creek the Water Spirit Curtidagua lived in. In her desperation, she found Diaroca's den and took it over. Diaroca didn't want his newly dug cave flooded out. Espor lived nearby and wanted a peaceful solution for all of them. Brandon sympathized with Espor greatly: he always had to mediate his brothers' arguments. Otherwise when they escalated into physical aggression, he often received collateral damage. He befriended Espor, who became fond of his adventure stories.

Eventually, during a stupor of grief, Brandon made his way back to Alanue, under the alias "Chase". He runs into Princess Raewynn and inadvertently helped her avoid kidnappers. When asked what reward he wanted, Brandon asked to join the Alanuan Academy as a student, an intangible dream he once held had as a child. Surprised by his humility, the Princess agreed to sponsor his studies. If he gave fealty to the King and impressed the instructors within a 3-month period, he could continue his studies, an honor he duly accepted.

Academy life was difficult for a man who never had a structured education. He had mountainloads of books to read—and he never was a fast reader. He found himself spending much of his time at the library.

The Promise eventually located him and tasked him as a spy. Not only did Brandon send them articles on what he had learned, he copied pages out of library texts, stole the Pledges that Alanuans used as tools, and documented blueprints of technology Zarenians never had. He also wired the soldiers' barracks, the royal palace, and the Academy—all places laboriously built and maintained by Zarenian slaves—with explosives.

During a combat training session with one of his fellow students, Brandon discovered he could absorb and release raw natural energy if he was pushed to an emotional extreme. He calls this a "Suicidal Spirit Bomb" as 1) he has no control over this, and 2) ends up debilitated or unconscious.

. . . cool stuff happens here. . .

As the rebellion comes to a close, the rogue nation is left in ruins. Looting, crime, and desperation set in as the Promise avoids collapsing in on itself. The high commanders of the Promise request Brandon stand-in as the leader of the new nation, which he adamantly refuses.

It isn't until he comes across Penny, her nephew Atticus, and her niece Stefanie who scrape by selling fish that he understands how much they needed someone to step up for them. On the eve of Brandon's birthday, he is sworn in as the new Chief of Zarenia to the wary-yet-hopeful citizens.

Initially, Brandon and Penny's relationship is relatively transactional. She supports him when his trauma response flairs up. He helps her and the children settle into a home. He builds a rapport with Atticus and Stefanie and eventually marries Penny on their insistence.

Brandon plans to retire after 5 years of his service.