The card: The Devil is not necessarily a card representing Satan. Instead it's a card of unbridled desire, ambition, wild behavior, and abandon. Often, the Devil tips into temptation and addiction, choices taken without weighing the full consequences. He is a powerful, persuasive man, hard to resist. He is erotic, rich, aggressive, and controlling.

The man: Azrael Seward is an old friend of the Emperor. He served as a General in the Runic War (and was quite often state executioner, coming up with the most gruesome ways to punish traitors and turncoats). He's very skilled at manipulation and torture to get what he wants and has been used to question informants and prisoners of war.

Azrael's past is something of a mystery, one he intends to keep for himself.

He has one daughter, Fiona. He trained her in the art of manipulation and deviation. Even though he takes much pride in his daughter, he feels a bit hand tied in that it's tradition to betroth her to someone of power and marry her off. He sees her as an accomplice to many of his deeds and doesn't feel she has reached the end of her training. She was engaged to Aragon Seabrooke; Azrael may have had a hand in his death during the Runic War.

He also has one son, Leopold. He attempted to train Leopold in the same arts as his sister, but his son never took to it. He was too much like his mother. Azrael all but disowned his son in their private lives, though Leopold is still in good enough standing to have been engaged to one of King Malcolm's daughters.

His wife, Catherine, died 23 years ago while his children were still young. He was surprisingly comfortable with her death, a wasting disease (partially because it meant he wouldn't have to kill her).

The card: The Tower is a card that warns of serious upheaval. This shit is about to get shook up! The Tower stands in the space between lies and truth; she is part of the structure urging these disparities on toward war.

The woman: Fiona Seward is the sole daughter of Azrael. She was raised as the heir apparent to her father's business (interrogation and execution), at which she has exceeding skill (though this is entirely on the hush hush).

Fiona's mother died when she was 9. Prior to that point she'd been raised to be a perfect lady, a future wife. As soon as her mother was buried Azrael began her training with a secret career in mind.

She was engaged to be married, but her fiance, Aragon Seabrooke, died in the Runic War (and clearly, Fiona's not too upset about that); it's not entirely clear if her father had anything to do with his death, but since his precious daughter's freedom was at stake it's a strong possibility.

Fiona spends a lot of time with the upper end of society. She's particularly good friends with any other schemers, like Princess Yukiko, Alexandra, and Nadia.

The card: A card of knowledge, instinctual, secret, and supernatural. She is willing to share this knowledge with others. The High Priestess is filled with mysterious potential but is often a card of non-action.

The woman: Adelle is the High Priestess, gifted with visions. She is the younger sister to the Empress Eve and Caden. Sadly, Adelle is fairly insane, driven so by her constant visions. She's something of an Ophelia, wandering the halls of the castle singing queer snippets of song, putting flowers in the hair of soldiers, spouting poetry about blood and war.

When she was young she was trained by the Prophetess Orché, along with her sister. Adelle struggled to learn from the teachings, unable to control her visions for long enough to absorb much.

Her sister takes some pity on her and has taken care of her most of her adult life. Eve would love nothing more than to marry her off so that she'll be someone else's problem, but no one will take her with her rapidly shifting crazy moods and reputation as an oddball.

The card: This is a card of letting go, of being suspended in time, offering sacrifices to gain knowledge. This card has the potential to see the world in a new way with new insight. It has to stop resisting and take time for inner reflect.

The man: Brother of Eve and Adelle Nazar. He's had several marriages that ended about as quickly as they began. He's gotten to the point where he doesn't bother with the pretense of marriage to get into girl's skirts.

Caden is generally a fuck up.

He's at the point of his life where he's stuck. He can't carry on in the same old way and he's smart enough to know it. The problem is that he doesn't care enough to change it.

The card: The King of Cups has one priority, his kingdom, which includes his family. He has old fashions ideas (which is why he won't accept a female heir and is hoping for a grandson to take over his throne). He has a soft and sentimental side, but it usually only comes out where his family is concerned.

The man: Harith was hand chosen by Malcolm and Varvenis to be the husband for his first born daughter, Aiko.

The card: The Queen of Cups always has the right answer. She is a wonderful mother, "the neighborhood mom." Her intuition is strong, her temper even stronger (you do not want to get on this queen's bad side).

The woman: Emi is an open and sympathetic woman. She is a calming force in the House of Cups, balancing her husbands emotional swings.

She had a very even hand in raising her four daughters (which was a bit of a disappointment that she never had a son for her King). Even so, her daughters turned out drastically different, Yukiko the most. Emi is very wary of her third daughter. She has the most pride in her last born, Yuna.

Emi was born into the House of Cups, a Sato before a Westerveldt. Her family were the most prominent supporters of King Malcolm; this position made Emi the most obvious choice to be his wife. Her personal bearing and skills as a learned woman convinced Malcolm to marry her.

She was always at his side in the house, always trying to help her husband in his most difficult decisions. Since his death she has struggled greatly, though has kept a serene and respectful public image.

She doesn't like the Emperor and his wife lording over her home and has done everything she can to maintain her own power over the House of Cups.

The card: The Knight of Cups is deeply loyal, a bit moody, a warrior for love. He plays music, writes poetry. When he falls in love he falls hard and he will dwell on his love even when it goes away.

The man: Isamu is the son of Dastun. He is in the service of the King and Queen of Cups. He still pines over his former lover Nimue, who left him after an argument over their unborn daughter. He mourns her death, which occurred a few years ago. He assumed his daughter was stillborn after Nimue wrote him a letter; he doesn't know that she's still alive and grown. The woman goes by her mother's last name, Hyun Hale and grew up in the brothel with her mother.

To fill the hole in his heart where his daughter might have been he adopted Ume Tanaka. After the death of her parents and her elder sister's inability to care for her, Isamu took the girl in.

Despite that his personal life has been a mess, he has always been a wonderful knight. In his service he has earned more medals than all but one man before him (that man being his father). He served well during the Runic War. At present he is making every effort to ensure that the House of Cups is ready to serve the Emperor should another conflict arise.

In the absence of his King, his loyalty has shifted to the Emperor, out of duty and obligation more than personal choice.

The card: The page of cups relays messages, often about family and heartbreak.

The woman: Ume is the younger sister of Midori Tanaka. The girls grew up in the House of Cups. When Ume was still young, they were orphaned. Midori was much older than her little sister and with a child of her own to care for Midori didn't feel like she could care for her sister too. Ume was sent into the service of Isamu, who essentially raised her.

This has created a lot of tension between the sisters; Ume never quite forgave Midori for abandoning her. On the other hand, being raised by Isamu provided her with tremendous opportunities and she used them to her advantage. She greatly admires Isamu and agrees with his values and morality. She is very much about honor and serving the House of Cups with the best of her abilities.

The card: The Seven of Cups is a card of illusion, deception and the fight for control. There are many choices to make, some are not what they seem to be.

The woman: Princess Yukiko is the third born of the royal daughters. She is married to Jung Shin, though she often views him as useless. She keeps trying to shape him into a proper heir to the throne.

She enjoys scheming and one day hopes to surpass her older sisters to become queen and perhaps one day Empress.

She is perhaps the most devious of the princesses, absolutely the most grasping. There are few things that Yukiko wouldn't do to gain power. She's friends with Fiona Seward and Nadia Westerveldt.

The card: The five of cups is a card of regret, focusing on the negative. There is opportunity for this card to open his/her eyes and see the good things that remain in spite of the bad.

The woman: Pearl is a handmaiden of the Empress. She is saucy, gossipy (though she is the soul of discretion when it comes to her mistress), and just too fabulous for words. What no one is aware of is that Pearl isn't anything like what she claims to be; she's hidden in plain sight, exactly in the lap of her enemy.

The card: The Four of Cups has reached a stagnant stage, though there is room for reflection.

The man: Dastun was the former Knight of Cups, but is now far too old for battle. He guided his son Isamu's more strategic moves during the Great War. He hates that he is considered too old and that his body betrays him. He trains every day, but even he must admit that his range of mobility has decreased dramatically.

The card: The Two of Cups is a card of young and reckless love. The 2 is finding his/her soul mate, swelling in emotion, finding that deep, unending connection.

The woman: Aiko is the eldest daughter of the King. She was married to Harith from the Pentacles Kingdom. Harith was handpicked for Aiko by Emperor Kingston himself, as the man would be next in line for the throne of Cups in the event that his marriage to Princess Aiko did not produce an heir.

Aiko herself is quiet and well behaved, but her mind is quick. She pretends that she has no interest in the throne, but quite the opposite is true. She has been quietly manipulating her way into power, attempting to direct her husband in a way that will ensure them the position. Since the death of her father and the disappearance of her husband she has worked very hard to maintain her mother's control of the House of Cups. Ultimately she wants to claim that control for herself, but she hasn't figured out a good way around Kingston's insistence that only men can rule in his Kingdom.

She doesn't agree with her husband that his place is away from the House of Cups until Kingston can be back on his own throne. She's not convinced that Kingston would dethrone him since he was the very person who chose him for the position.

The card: The Empress is a card of creation, fertility and vivaciousness. She gives form to ideas. She is abundant, almost to the point of extravagance, but when angered she is not above withholding her gifts and wealth until she gets what she wants.

The woman: Born Evelyn Nazar. She is sister to Adelle and Caden.

In her youth she was secretly trained by the Prophetess Orché in the dark, old, pagan arts. She holds the prophetess in high regard and often seeks her advice when she believes something is afoot.

Eve was a grasping, devious little beauty from a very young age. It was clear that she'd make a fine candidate as wife to someone of power and was groomed from the time she could walk until she was fifteen. It was then that Kingston Westerveldt was of an age to marry and no time was wasted seeing that Eve would become his wife.

She gave birth to four sons and a daughter: Varvenis, Malcolm, Christoph, Louis, and Elizabeth. Each son was given his own, smaller kingdom to rule over. Eve fought for Elizabeth's right to have her own kingdom, but Kingston would not budge on the matter (citing that should she ever get married her husband could then claim 1/5 of the kingdom, which did not sit well with the Emperor). Louis was willing to split his kingdom and share it with his sister, an awkward compromise between the Emperor and Empress's wishes.

Eve is clever, a quick study, and quite gifted with the Black Arts (which is her little secret). She uses everything at her disposal to ensure that she gets her way, unless of course Kingston disagrees (in which case she attempts to sneak around and get her way anyway).

The card: Charming, self-confident, daring, adventurous, passionate. Popular, the center of attention, this card is someone who comes up with crazy ideas that somehow manage to work despite how wild they are. Not always sensitive to others feelings. Rarely on time. Very loyal to friends and his/her cultural upbringing.

The woman: Annegret, otherwise known as Anne is the fraternal twin of Jessika and younger sister of Odilia. Her younger brother Emil died. She has one other, younger brother Olie.

She served in the King's army during the Great War. She is the most responsible of the Ishild sisters.

She is a headstrong, confident warrior. She has a strong sense of what is right and what is wrong.

She lost one of her eyes in the Great War, but hasn't let it stop her. She trained and practiced regularly to balance the sudden loss of her depth perception and change in vision.

The card: Overextending, burdens, struggle. This is a card that started off strong but burned off all it's energy. It carries heavy burdens. Though this card has the strength and control to carry all it's burdens the effort leaves it drained.

The woman: Jessika, usually known as Jess, is the fraternal twin of Annegret and the younger sister of Odilia, the older sister of Emil and Olie. The twins fought in the war under the service of the King. Jess developed a reputation as a skilled warrior and a fearsome drunk in this time. Her drinking began when her mother and father died, it got worse when Emil died.

Now that the war is over, Jess is left to her own devices which include frequenting the local bar and training for more battle.

The card: Self-Interest, Strategy. Through persistence this card has conquered the odds and come away clear. Its beliefs are intact, though some have been left by the wayside so that the card may survive. This card is willing to rid itself of anything that doesn't serve its purpose.

The woman: Joanna was the middle sister of five children. Her entire family died in an outbreak of Cedar flu just before the Great War. Being a resourceful girl she sought court service and became a handmaiden.

She worked her way into the service of Queen Elizabeth and has been serving her for several months.

Joanna has a sneaky side, an ability to listen and seem as if she's not paying attention at all. Very few details escape her grasp. She particularly loves listening to the ladies gossiping in the kitchen.

She has been a spy for some time, but in whose service it's not clear.

The card: This rune embodies mental, physical, and personal growth. It signifies new beginnings, renewal, new growth, the power of light and spring. It's merkstave (reversed meaning) signals family troubles, anxiety about those close, carelessness and loss of control. It also points to stagnation, blurring of consciousness, and deceit.

The man: Ívarr is a Rune (Berkano, the rune of renewal). He's the uncle of Sveinn and brother of Úlfr Randarson.

He fights in the Runic military. He has a knack for surviving the most unbelievable situations, in which anyone else would definitely have died.

He is at present unmarried and not certain if marriage is a good condition for a military man to be in. He adores his nephew however and would one day like to have a son of his own.