This page provides information and commentary specifically about the novel Hopscotch and CONTAINS SPOILERS. Read with caution.
For broader, spoiler-free information about Cislunar and its major institutions, see the World Guide for Across the Line. Each Across the Line novel scholia page provides a more detailed description of the other three protagonists: Arcady Lorencz (Hopscotch), Tegeus Droit (Red Rover), Axton (Twenty Questions), and Michael Aronson (Catch).
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Dramatis Personae: Arcady Lorencz • Elliot Chime • Axton • Ban Jaspin • Tegeus Droit • Michael Aronson •
Miscellanea: Ages •
Captain Arcady Lorencz, Sentinel: F / mid-30s / Short hair, often self-cut and therefore ragged, usually dyed in garish red, orange, and yellow. Wears the uniform of the Cislunar Watch with a Dockside Division badge while on-duty. Wears utilitarian, well-worn, often second-hand trousers, shirts, and sweaters off-duty. Always wears a Vigilance silver sentinel’s pin.
Arcady was born in Ankham, a smaller and poorer port city farther north than Cislunar, and ran with a street gang as a child. She hasn’t explained why she left Ankham, but she’s been living in Cislunar for at least a decade. An unfortunate event led to her balefire getting out of control in Dockside and causing considerable damage, leading to her punishment duty in Dockside and her disrespectful street nickname of “Firebitch.” She still has a bad habit of calling for balefire first and asking questions later.
Despite her age, Arcady still sounds and acts like a loud-mouthed street tough with something to prove. Still, she’s a stubborn, competent investigator who’s trying to patch up her reputation. It’s quite possible that her awkward courting of Hall of Records librarian and archivist Elliot Chime has something to do with that. She’s Progressive in her politics but still holds a grudging sense of respect for the sovereign and the Reverence.
You can read an early version of Lorencz in the short story “Night Shift,” which was published in 2007. In it, her name was DuBaton; I’ve revised the story online to reflect the name change, so to that extent, it’s not quite the same as the original. The story describes one of Lorencz’s first days on the job at the Dockside Watch. It still holds up pretty well; I’ve changed a few terms and Lorencz’s initially very hardboiled narrative voice has mellowed into what you get in Hopscotch, but I’d only make a few small changes if I were to use it today.
Arcady was a non-player character in the Cislunar AD&D game I ran, although I’d made the character, then DuBaton, male in the game. It’s quite likely that Arcady DuBaton was the inspiration for my former player Scott Snyder’s song “F is for Fireball.” I decided to make her female in these novels because the POV characters needed some gender variety, and she was the character who seemed least concerned about the shift. Not that Arcady’s very stereotypically feminine, but then again, neither are any of the RL women I hang out with, so….
Elliot Chime, Librarian and Archivist, Cislunar Hall of Records: M / 30s / Wears glasses. Elliot is the intelligent, studious, occasionally absent-minded head archivist in the city’s Hall of Records, where he enjoys nothing more than spending a quiet few hours poring over some obscure bit of Cislunaran or imperial history. He works the late afternoon/early evening shift precisely to get those quiet hours, which makes him a convenient contact for Captain DuBaton whenever she needs information. Or maybe she just plans her visits to coincide with his hours…. Elliot’s side gig gets revealed in Catch. Jury’s still out on whether I’ll write a fifth Child’s Play novel from Elliot’s perspective, but it’s quite tempting. I think his outsider’s view of the other characters would be fun to explore.
Axton: M / 36 / Very short, “prison-cut” dark hair and pale gray eyes. Short, slight of build, and thin to the point of malnourishment. A former prisoner of Hellsgate, Axton was recently released and hasn’t adapted well to his new freedom, as shown by his poverty, lack of social skills, and disregard for personal hygiene. Nevertheless, he’s bright, a competent medical examiner, and apparently a reasonably successful gambler. Much more about Axton is revealed in Twenty Questions.
Ban Jaspin, Chief of Investigations, Ministry of Security: M / 50s / Burn scars along one side, limp. Ban Jaspin was another Cislunar NPC who made it into this story. When I wrote Hopscotch, I didn’t expect him to be more than a passing mention, but as it turns out, he persisted throughout the series. Good for him. He’s a survivor at heart, a bombing victim who was pretty badly injured but persisted despite that, and he continues to survive despite some setbacks. He’s a character I really ought to write more about; his past might be fun to recount in some side-story.
Tegeus Droit: M / 43 / Long blond hair often pulled back in a ponytail, green eyes. Michael Aronson’s cousin — his father was brother to Michael’s father. As “Yzyrche’s Hound,” Droit was a ruthless general who worked as a mercenary for anyone willing to hire him and his troops to do their dirty work for them. His fixed-balesword Might is a weapon of legend, possibly sentient in its own right or at the very least a channel for Yzyrchye’s will. Some as-yet unrevealed event persuaded Droit to renounce Yzyrche and return home to Cislunar, where his only surviving relative, Michael Aronson, still lives. Sovereign Domenico Lament granted him sanctuary within the city boundaries, although that doesn’t stop assassins from targeting him on a regular basis.
Arcady seeking his help appeals to Droit’s ego, and he’s apparently willing to put up with some inconvenience and annoyance in exchange for feeling useful and dangerous once again.
More about Droit’s past and motivations is revealed in Red Rover and Twenty Questions.
Michael Aronson, Nobilis, Sentinel: M / late 30s / Long black hair and brown eyes. Tegeus Droit’s cousin — his father was brother to Tegeus’ father. Michael has worked hard to restore his lost family fortune and respectability, especially given his cousin’s infamy. He dresses well, lives a comfortable upper-class life, and wants the best for everyone … well, mostly. He’s the third most powerful sentinel in the Cislunar Vigilance and serves on its board of directors. He raises iguanas and hopes to breed a pure blue someday.
Michael is a bit privileged and arrogant, but at heart he’s an essentially good person, determined not to fall into the errors of his parents or his cousin Tegeus. He’s not thrilled that his cousin returned to Cislunar, and he resents and loathes his cousin’s past actions and current personality, although he’ll work with Tegeus for the good of Cislunar if it becomes necessary. Although he staunchly subscribes to a safely Conservative political philosophy, he has a soft enough heart to occasionally make decisions that outsiders might consider Progressive. More of his history with Tegeus is revealed in Red Rover, and more of his personal history and motivations are revealed in Catch.
Michael is loosely based on an AD&D character of mine, but he’s considerably less neurotic than the original.
Ages: Sometimes when I read fantasy novels and romances I feel mildly irritated by the youth of the characters. I suppose this originated as a marketing thing … everyone knows only kids and adolescents read fantasy, right? Or maybe it’s that only kids and adolescents have time to read? I don’t know. But personally I prefer a more experienced protagonist, one who’s already had their share of setbacks and tough decisions and has learned a few important life lessons along the way. The POV characters in the Child’s Play series are still young-ish, in their 30s and 40s, but older than, I think, the typical fantasy protagonist.