A Curse So Dark and Lonely

Rhen is the other protagonist and point-of-view character of the novel. At one point, Harper thinks he looks younger than he seems, “like life has injected age into his eyes, but the rest of his body hasn't kept up” (75). This perception symbolizes how the curse has changed him and is relevant to the theme of The Burden of Leadership. After killing his family and countless others throughout over 300 seasons of becoming the monster, though Rhen still appears 18, he is much older in terms of suffering and loss. In addition, he blames himself for everything that has happened since Lilith set the curse and is unable to see beyond his perceived failures to the successes he’s had. Rhen is therefore something of a paradox. While he is scared and uncertain, he is also arrogant and self-absorbed. His desire to do better, coupled with the fear he cannot, causes him to focus on himself and neglect his subjects, something he cannot overcome until he’s forced into action by Harper’s insistence on doing better by Emberfall’s people. Rhen’s complex characteristics and arc symbolize how no one is just one thing and how emotions make unexpected links.

Grey is Rhen’s only surviving guardsman and sworn to obey Rhen’s every command. At one point, Harper observes that “his patience is always endless” (30), indicating how Grey is a calm, sturdy force throughout the book. Five years ago, Grey broke his oath to the royal family for the first and only time when he gave Lilith the key to Rhen’s room. Because of this mistake, Grey blames himself for the curse; Grey believes that he created the circumstances under which Lilith decided to cast her spell on Rhen. Grey’s loyalty is both his best and worst quality, and he exemplifies The Benefits and Drawbacks of Loyalty. As a guardsman, Grey was trained to protect the royal family, and since Rhen is the only royal left, this training has transformed into a personal mission. Combined with the guilt he feels for allowing Lilith close to Rhen, loyalty and Grey’s self-blame strain the relationship between him and Rhen, which is yet another aspect of Emberfall’s situation that Harper helps to alleviate. For Grey, Harper becomes a confidant because his interactions with her are not steeped in guilt. Their closeness is not forced, which helps Grey remember what it means to be loyal to someone without obligation. Remembering that feeling allows him to heal his relationship with Rhen so that his loyalty to the prince is once again voluntary, not obligatory.