The Jasad Heir

Arin of Nizahl is Sylvia’s love interest in The Jasad Heir. He tall and handsome, with white hair and a scar across his neck and lower face from Soraya’s assassination attempt. He is the son of Isra, who died in the Blood Summit, and Supreme Rawain, leader of Nizahl, making him the Nizahl Heir. He serves as Commander of the Nizahl armies, a position in which he is known for his military mercilessness. Sylvia notes that if he had led the march on Jasad, she “doubt[s] a single Jasadi would have made it out alive” (17). Arin lingers in the background of the narrative, leaving a looming presence, until his arrival in Mahair for the waleema. When Sylvia first sees him, she thinks, “I had encountered death in every incarnation of my life, but I had never looked it in the eye until now” (65). To Sylvia, Arin is death embodied. If he discovers that she’s Essiya, he will kill her quickly and brutally, making him a direct threat to her survival. Despite the danger he poses to Sylvia, she finds herself drawn to him, and the feeling is mutual. Arin can sense magic by touching a magic-user, but when he touches Sylvia, it activates her magic and makes him lose control of himself, symbolizing their instantaneous and mutual romantic attraction. When he considers Sylvia’s magic, he thinks, “It mystified him, and he loathed being mystified” (150). Arin is a political operator who bases his identity on always being in control. Sylvia punctures this self-image and sparks a process of development in which he learns to expect and even enjoy uncertainty. Though he “loathes” his failure to understand Sylvia, this doesn’t deter him from forging a closer relationship with her. He strives to understand her, her magic, and her past, though at first only in hopes of tracking the Mufsids and the Urabi. As Arin grows closer to Sylvia, he begins to understand her on an emotional level, which lets them build a bedrock of intimacy.

Arin’s patience is a key aspect of his characterization. No matter how Sylvia tries to rile him up, he remains impassive, as she notes, “Arin did not rise to the insult. I wondered at it, sometimes, this imitation of patience. The coiled quiet of him” (161). Sylvia’s use of the term “coiled” illustrates her perception of Arin; he knows that his emotions are buried beneath the surface, and she seeks to “agitate him—to draw a reaction from the most reserved man in all the Awaleen-damned kingdoms” (221). Sylvia wears her heart on her sleeve, and in contrast, Arin keeps his feelings hidden. His emotional state, though subtle, becomes more visible as the narrative progresses. Sefa notices the way Arin looks at Sylvia, which she describes as “like you are a cliff with a fatal fall, and each day you move him closer to its edge” (341). Arin loves Sylvia to destruction, as they fall on diametrically opposed sides of a seemingly immovable conflict; they are heirs to kingdoms at war. By the time Sylvia and Arin fully realize their feelings for each other, the revelation of Sylvia’s past shatters the trust they’ve built, leaving them with an ambiguous future.

Sefa and Marek are Sylvia’s closest friends. When they were both 16, they fled Nizahl. Sefa, who was born Sayali, fled to escape her abusive stepfather, the High Counselor of the Citadel. Marek, who was born Caleb, comes from a prominent Nizahl military family, and all his siblings died while serving in the army. Marek didn’t want to die in military service, so after Sefa confided in him about her abuse, they both left together, changed their names, and settled in Raya’s Keep in Mahair. At first, Sylvia doesn’t know about Sefa and Marek’s past, though she notices a few odd mannerisms they each have. Arin is the first to inform her about their hidden identities, telling her, “The Citadel’s High Counselor has searched long for his stepdaughter and her blond lover after they left him for dead and emptied his coffers” (122). Arin believes the High Counselor’s lies, that Sefa and Marek attacked him unprovoked and left with all his money. Arin doesn’t question that narrative, but Sylvia does. She knows that Sefa and Marek are not lovers; Sefa doesn’t feel romantic desire, so their bond is platonic. Marek has temporary romantic flings with others, but his core relationship is his friendship with Sefa.

Sefa and Marek extend their friendship to Sylvia when she arrives at Raya’s Keep two years after them. Sylvia reflects on their relationship, thinking, “My friendship with these two had happened against my will. I had worked hard to prevent myself from forming any attachment that couldn’t be severed at a moment’s notice. Tonight would change everything. Tonight, I was trusting them” (30). Despite nearly five years of friendship, Sylvia doesn’t place her trust in Sefa and Marek until she needs their help hiding the dead soldier. Sylvia describes her friendship to them as “an attachment” that she could easily “sever,” but the disposal of the dead soldier serves as a turning point in their friendship that later inspires Sefa and Marek prove themselves to Sylvia, showing their love for her, a love that shapes the ending of the novel as Sylvia sacrifices her freedom and safety for theirs.