Andros

Andros, the Right Hand of Chaos, also known as ‘Glitch,' is Lathan's murderer and the enemy that he must overcome in the future. We are introduced to Andros immediately in the book although, most readers don't realize it yet. When Lathan has a sword thrust through his back, that is Andros' doing. Lathan's ‘relapse memories'—from the beginning of the book—is building up to this confrontation with Andros.

While Andros is still a mystery, we do understand a few things about his abilities, personality, and goals. We discern that Andros is one of Abaddon's Generals, whatever that implies. At this point, it is assumed that Andros is part of the Chaos Lord's inner circle. However, that doesn't mean he is always on the correct side of Abaddon's temper. He is tasked with burning away powerful souls on the primary planets that souls ascend from, specifically Earth. And he does this by utilizing Soul Fire, a calcified sliver of soul. Andros peddles the Soul Fire as a drug and the effect that has isn't fully realized in The Last Soul. I will be digging into the damage this causes Earth in the sequels.

We also learned from Mother that Andros' abilities have something to do with destabilizing systems that govern control. That is purposefully vague and to provide a bit of insight, this destabilization can take place at various levels and depths of control. Take, for instance, you are walking along and Andros Wills his ability to make you trip. He could have destabilized your balance, the ground under your feet, or the pressure that your foot encountered when passing through the air. The effect could also be a little more abstract. Maybe, he messed with the structure of a nearby object, causing it to fall into your path. The possibilities for his touch are limitless. The nuance to his skill is based on his understanding and the amount of Will he will therefore have to exert.

For instance, to affect your balance, he is required to comprehend how an equilibrium functions. The less understanding he possesses, the more Will he has to exert. So, when doing something small like causing you to trip, he wouldn't require much understanding or Will to affect the action. In fact, he could accomplish this feat with no understanding and it would still require minimal Will. On the other hand, to topple a building would require considerable knowledge and Will to accomplish. With no knowledge of the structure of the building, he would require an incredible amount of Will. So, there are limitations to his power. Andros' can utilize Soul Fire to bridge these gaps and his deep understanding of how it behaves considerably limits his risk when manipulating it. He can also utilize his ability to breakdown the negative side-effects of Soul Fire within his own system, allowing him to manipulate the stuff with little to no adverse effects.

Generally, Andros is abrasive and power-hungry. He enjoys crawling under other's skin and riling them up. This fact is evident when all four of Abaddon's Generals immediately argue after Andros baits them. He is a personification of Chaos and personality-wise, I am mildly inspired by Randall from Monster's Inc. Which fits due to his reptilian species and ‘cold-blooded' nature. I also imagine that he retains a scientific mind and there is a major reason for that. However, you'll have to read more on that in the sequels to follow, I don't want to give too much away.

I will mention this regarding his past; Andros is from the same world that Bumper is from. I haven't permanently named this planet yet but I have a solid understanding of how society behaves. At the bottom of this backstory, I'll paste a rough scene that presents the hyper-technologically advanced society he came from.

Also, readers may have missed the cowed Andros when Abaddon's anger is directed toward him. He isn't simply bullied by Abaddon, he is legitimately frightened. This should insinuate something about how terrifying Abaddon is now that readers are aware of what Andros is capable of. It's clear that Andros is below Abaddon in their interaction but I never clearly lay out the hierarchy of the group. Abaddon is obviously at the top and directly below him is Pazuzu, who wears the hats of general, assassin, and personal assistant. Directly below Pazuzu are Bale and Andros who are also generals but to Abaddon, they are less, viewed as valuable tools. Nova is also a general but he holds more of a specialty role among the others. I don't state this in the book and I'm not sure if I'll ever explain it outside of this background. Nova is more of a contractor and he is lending his services to Abaddon. He is not under the service of the Chaos Lord as the others are.

A rough-draft insight into Andros’ past:

Their ship descended through the quantum gate, smoothly approaching the planet Cepsum Prime. Andarcus was old enough to remember when quantum gates didn't exist and when the exterior of a starship was exposed to the harsh, destructive forces of the atmosphere. At each of the seven planets within the empire, quantum gates were installed around their respective globes. Around Cepsum Prime, Andarcus' homeworld, there were fourteen total gates spaced evenly in a grid around the planet.

Of course, when Andarcus was on a mission out of the empire, he traveled in a stealth ship that infiltrated a planet's atmosphere as smoothly as was available. Those ships were costly though and his twin brother Rosalta—who spearheaded the creation of the technology—was still busied with constant repairs and maintenance on the device. The device was named H.A.L.O., and it effectively manifested a quantum gate around a vessel. However, the oversimplification missed out on the massive differences between the two technologies.

Andarcus always got like this when returning home. Once, a simple scientist bent on providing helpful technology, he was now a mercenary of destruction. The twins had walked on a different path but now, they destabilized whole societies and brought the outer worlds to their knees. It all started thirty-two years ago when an outer world decided to crash a star freighter into Cepsum Prime. Afterward, most of Cepsum Prime's citizens signed up in the crusade against the long-necked Gildarians that inhabited the outer world.  Andarcus couldn't remember what the Gildarians previously called their world before the empire relinquished its control of it. Now, it was named Cepsum Tsugi, or CT-2 for short.

While Andarcus and his brother were in university, they were developing the early schematics for the quantum gates. They just didn't know it yet. After the attack, their sights became fixed on ensuring the safety of the planet and their project naturally focused its vision. Flash forward two years and the war now raging, their project was complete. The military was increasingly interested in new ideas coming out of university and their Pegasus project was hot news. Following the successful unveiling of H.A.L.O, they could fill a storehouse with signed contracts to their new employer, the Cepsum Prime Military.

Rosalta was interested in the tinkering of things, how to construct and secure them. Andarcus was focused on the breakdown, how could things be dismantled and analyzed further? How could he understand this process more deeply to exploit it for use in the war? Naturally, this extended toward weapons development and damage output. In turn, the military was focused on his insight over Rosalta's.

So, Rosalta toiled away, perfecting their initial design and implementing it on Cepsum Prime. The Pegasus Project provided a way to channel all incoming traffic to one port, a harbor among the stars. While he spent years doing the good work, Andarcus played with his weapons. Once he learned to handle them, he got permission to obtain combat training of his own. Soon, the day arrived when Andarcus was rewarded with his first mission.

Obviously, he welcomed the opportunity to deploy to the field and claim vengeance for what those savages had wrought on his planet, on the empire. With the stipulation that his brother would join him, the brothers were traveling the stars shortly thereafter. High Command allowed Rosalta the time he needed to delegate his responsibilities before departing. The Pegasus Project was almost complete when the opportunity arose. They were already off-world when the device was finally installed around the planet. Rosalta had to advise and troubleshoot remotely from their captured cruiser while en-route to the front lines.

Traveling in a captured enemy ship, the twins were destined to infiltrate the Gildarians' World Security Branch. But before the brothers could alter the war together, Andarcus had to convince his brother to join the mission. It wasn't hard once Rosalta realized that he would be doing more good work. They would be liberating the innocents of CT-2 from their corrupt government, freeing them from slavery. Then, Rosalta signed on enthusiastically, eager to help the innocent Gildarians.

Oddly, the first mission was executed perfectly. The brothers destabilized the World Security Branch, freed millions of enslaved people, and brought the planet under the new empire's rule. CT-2 was the first planet to enter the fold and six more would follow it over the next thirty years. The thought brought Andarcus back to the present. He was arriving home now, six planets brought into the fold and few remaining to be conquered or converted.

The twins were currently working on the potential seventh world but each was more difficult than the last. Their efforts were grim and chaotic, eating at their spirits. The first world, CT-2, fell so easily. Its citizens were ready for their imperialistic rulers. The rest of the worlds, they resisted. Of the six worlds that joined the empire over the years, another thirteen were lost. The lost planets were bombed from orbit and twisted to glass, their surfaces now so toxic with radiation that even the oceans evaporated to shallow pools of green. The seas that once covered the shattered planets were now thin glowing rivulets that could be seen from space. The spiderwebs of green were reminiscent of poisonous veins pumping the dead planets with necrotic venom.

They had just departed the seventh planet and it appeared that it would also have a violent disposition. Andarcus had long since hardened himself to this outcome. This was war and sometimes, they would suffer losses. His brother, however, was not a hard man. He hadn't come around to the same ideology as Andarcus. The murmuring of his anti-empire rhetoric was droning in the background, like static. Finally, Andarcus turned away from the porthole and his nostalgia, acknowledging his brother. He was beyond tired of the dissent and drivel spilling from the saurian's lips.