Torak is the main protagonist of the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series. Originally a member of Wolf Clan, Torak's mother named him clanless. He was born a spirit walker, his souls capable of inhabiting other animals temporarily. After his mother died when he was an infant, Torak's father placed him in a wolf den so that he may survive. Torak was able to understand the wolf language. As a boy, Torak and his father lived alone in Forest away from the other clans. After his father was killed by a demon bear, Torak traveled to the Mountain of the World Spirit with Wolf, his pack-brother, and Renn, a girl from Raven Clan. Torak's destiny would be to destroy the Soul-Eaters, a group of Mages who sought to take over the Forest. After defeating Tenris, Seshru, Thiazzi, and Eostra, Torak and Renn left Raven Clan to live as mates with Wolf and his family.
Appearance[]
- Torak has black hair that reaches down to his shoulders and silver-gray eyes like a wolf.[2] He has flecks of green in his eyes.[3] He has a patch of wolf fur sewed on the shoulder of his jerkin in honor of his clan.[4] His clan-tattoo is a pair of dotted lines on each cheek. He has a small scar between them.[5] Following the events of Soul Eater, Torak received the mark of the Soul-Eaters on his chest,[6] which he later cuts off and it forms a scab on his chest.[7] When he is outcasted, Torak received a small black ring on his forehead and his clan-creature skin is torn off.[8] His forehead tattoo is later divided into four quarters to represent all four groups of clans: white for the Ice Clans, green for the Forest Clans, blue for the Sea Clans, and red for the Mountain Clans.[9] He has a scar on his forearm from when the demon bear attacked, a scar on his calf from the boar, and a scar across his cheek.[10]
- During Soul Eater, Torak created a White Fox Clan disguise. Renn cut his hair short with bangs across his forehead and created the clan-tattoo across his nose.[11]
Skills[]
- Torak is a gifted tracker and hunter in the Forest, having been taught to read the Forest by his father. Torak can speak wolf, allowing him to communicate with his pack-brother, Wolf, and other wolves. Torak is also a spirit walker, capable of loosening his souls so he can inhabit another creature. On Torak's father's side, his grandfather was Wolf Clan and his grandmother was Seal Clan. They had two children - Torak's father and Tenris, the Seal Mage. On Torak's mother's side his grandfather was Oak Clan and his grandmother was Red Deer Clan. They had one child, who was Torak's mother.
Biography[]
Wolf Brother[]
Torak in Wolf Brother
- Torak is twelve summers old, and he and his father live alone in the Forest as isolated members of Wolf Clan. Torak's world is changed forever when his father is killed by a savage bear. Before the bear returns to finish him off, Torak's father tells him that it is no ordinary bear: it is possessed by a demon from the Otherworld. He then makes Torak swear to find the Mountain of the World Spirit where the bear can be destroyed before it grows too powerful in a moon's time. He also warns him to stay away from men, in fear that they could "find out what he could do." Shortly after his father's death, Torak finds an orphaned wolf cub and discovers that he can speak the language of the wolves. Despite initial wariness, Torak forms a strong bond with the young Wolf, who becomes his pack-brother. However, Torak is soon captured by three hunters from the Raven Clan after he hunts and kills a roe buck on their land. Brought before Fin-Kedinn, the Leader of the Clan, he is sentenced to death for his action but protests that he can prove his innocence through trial by combat. He fights Fin-Kedinn's nephew and his own captor, Hord, eventually defeating him using a trick involving steam. This act leads Hord's sister, Renn, to deduce that Torak is the prophesied Listener who is meant to save the Clans from a great evil. She also tells him that the bear has been terrorising the Clans for moons. While a clan meet gathers to discuss the bear and the discovery of Torak, he learns the truth of the bear's existence: the bear had been created by a mysterious wanderer for the single purpose of hunting down his worst enemy: the former Mage of the Wolf Clan, Torak's father.
- Escaping from the Ravens with Renn's help, they head north under Wolf's guidance to find the Mountain of the World Spirit, as the powerful entity was the only one who could destroy the bear, which grew stronger with each passing day. Renn also tells Torak that the Listener would have to give the spirit his "heart's blood" and provide the three strongest pieces of the Nanuak, the world's essence which sometime formed into material objects. Torak finds the first piece, river eyes, who he takes from the Hidden People of the river, when he falls over the Thunder Falls. He finds the second piece when they encounter a mysterious madmen named the Walker who points them towards an ancient cave which contains a door to the Otherworld and a stone tooth which Torak takes. However, the demon bear finds them as certain animals are drawn to the Nanuak. Wolf takes the river eyes to lead the bear away. While Torak howls for his pack brother, Renn makes a spell to conceal the stone tooth from the bear. They later found Wolf before the Ice River over Lake Axehead and crossed it to reach the Mountain before the bear grew too strong. Separated from Renn, Torak and Wolf find a dead man who is clutching the last piece of the Nanuak: a strike fire. He later braves the snow storm to rescue Renn. When they return to the Forest, they are recaptured by the Raven Clan who had followed their trail North. After Hord tried to convince his clan to kill Torak and allow him to take the Nanuak to the Mountain, Renn is able to convince them that only Wolf and Torak can find the Mountain. That night, Fin-Kedinn reveals to Torak that the demon bear was the creation of a Soul-Eater, a group of seven Mages who turned evil in their desire to increase their own power. Torak's father had tried to stop the Soul-Eaters before their had been scattered by a Great Fire thirteen summers previously.. Torak also learns that his father believed that only he could destroy the Soul-Eaters and that was why he had raised him apart from the clans. The next day, Torak and Wolf find the Mountain where they draw the bear using the Nanuak but their efforts to kill him are impeded by Hord. Hord revealed that he had been the one who caught the bear for the crippled wanderer and that he wanted to end the evil he had helped to create. As Torak and Hord fight, the bear reaches them and Wolf takes the Nanuak. At that moment, Torak realizes what the prophecy meant by his 'heart's blood': his pack-brother, Wolf. Torak makes Wolf go to the Mountain with the Nanuak while the World Spirit responds by destroying the bear, killing Hord in the process. Torak leaves but not before swearing that he would see his pack-brother again.
Spirit Walker[]
Torak in Spirit Walker
- Six moons later, a mysterious illness threatens to wipe out the clans. Believing that a Soul-Eater created the sickness, Torak sets off alone to find a cure in the Deep Forest, but he is followed by a tokoroth. The Deep Forest Clans tell Torak to search the Sea for the cure. However, when he arrives, he is taken captive by three boys from the Seal Clan; Bale, Asrif and Detlan. He is taken to the Seal Island where he encounters the Seal Mage, Tenris. Tenris promises to help him make a cure if he obtains the necessary ingredients. Torak agrees and with help from Bale, he successfully gets the ingredients. During his time on the Seal island, he discovers he is a spirit walker and can enter the bodies of other creatures while keeping his own souls. Meanwhile, Wolf and Renn, who were following Torak, begin to search for him only to discover that it was a trap and the Seal Mage was the one that was causing the illness by poisoning juniper berries. With help from Renn, Wolf, and Bale, Torak defeats the Seal Mage and warns the others about the berries.
Soul Eater[]
Torak, under White Fox Clan disguise in Soul Eater
- When Wolf is captured by the three hunters, Torak and Renn followed the tracks to the Far North in an attempt to rescue him. They find the White Fox Clan, who provide them with shelter, food, and clothes. The White Fox Clan warns him to turn back. Ignoring the advice, Torak finds the Soul-Eaters' hideout where he discovers their plan to unleash demons on the world by sacrificing hunters and they plan to control the demons with a fire-opal. Torak eventually rescues Wolf and escapes. Renn, meanwhile, finds she has the fire-opal and realizes she has only one life to give it: her own. Nef, one of the Soul-Eaters, grabs the opal from her and sacrifices herself, to pay back Torak's father, who saved her life, just before Renn is going to jump into a stone chasm. Both Torak and Renn escape with Wolf, but the Soul-Eaters have marked Torak against his will as one of them.
Outcast[]
- Two moons later, Torak is outcasted by the clans when Aki of Boar Clan notices his Soul-Eater tattoo. Fin-Kedinn attempts to summon Torak's clan, Wolf Clan, to help, but Maheegun, the Wolf Clan Leader, claims that Torak is clanless as his mother decreed when he was born. Together with Wolf, Torak is hunted by the other clans. He manages to remove his tattoo with Renn's instructions. However, Seshru the Viper Clan Mage finds his pebble with his clan-tattoo on it and uses it to stricken Torak with soul-sickness. As he and Wolf flee towards Lake Axehead, Torak begins to forget how to track and how to speak Wolf, eventually confusing his pack-brother for a predator. On the Island of the Hidden People, Renn uses Magecraft to summon Rip and Rek to help Torak, and he slowly begins to recover while caring for the two ravens.
- After reuniting with Wolf, Renn, and his kinsman Bale, Torak learns that Renn is Seshru's daughter, shocking his faith in his best friend. He discovers a piece of the fire-opal in his father's knife hilt. Together with Bale and Renn, they manage to defeat Seshru and destroy the fire-opal shard. Torak is welcomed back into the clans, and Fin-Kedinn declares him his foster son. He also transforms his outcast tattoo into one representing all the clans.
Oath Breaker[]
- Enraged by the death of his kinsman Bale, Torak heads out with Renn to track down Bale's killer - Thiazzi, one of the seven Soul-Eaters. His search leads him to the Deep Forest. He swears an oath to kill Thiazzi, and he discovers Thiazzi's plot to control the Deep Forest Clans, unite them and wage war against the Open Forest. It is up to Torak alone to use all his will to stop this brewing war, with the help of Renn. Will he succeed in stopping the war? Or shall he endanger the lives of his friends to avenge his kinsman? He and Renn are separated, while Wolf struggles to come to terms with the fact that Torak is "not-wolf," which devastates him. Renn attempts to fight Thiazzi, but Thiazzi, the huge and dangerous Oak Mage overcomes her and ties her up inside a hollow tree. As smoke chokes her, she cuts herself free on the tip of a knife and climbs to the top, where she aids Torak in getting rid of Thiazzi.
Ghost Hunter[]
- At the age of 15 summers Torak's only foe is the last Soul-Eater, Eostra the Eagle Owl Mage. Torak, Wolf and Renn make their ascent on the Mountain of Ghosts. They brave hordes of tokoroths, evil demon children sent by Soul-Eaters, packs of demon dogs and the merciless winter ice. Torak uses all his knowledge, all his skill in hope of defeating his foe. But, the prophecy does not tell of his victory. Renn, who was left behind, struggles to catch up with him and help, and does so with the assistance of a strange, ghostly boy named Dark. Torak must fight Eostra head to head in a battle that ends both of their lives. Shortly after his death, Wolf chases Toraks soul and puts it back in his body, bringing him back to life. Renn must also decide whether she wishes to take the path of becoming a mage, but declines it when Dark shows signs of being a mage. Instead her, Torak, Wolf, Darkfur and Pebble venture into the forest to discover what lays past the Mountains.
Viper's Daughter[]
- Coming Soon
Skin Taker[]
- Coming Soon
Wolfbane[]
- Coming Soon
Relationships[]
Torak's father[]
Torak is very loyal to his father, which is no great surprise as he grew up with him away from the clans in the wild. It broke his heart when he had to draw the Death Marks upon his father when he lay dying, fatally wounded by the Demon Bear. He takes great pride in his father and his father's knife. The entire first book details his loyalty towards his father as he tracks down the demon bear which killed him. He does not allow the memories of his father to be tainted when he discovers of his past with the Soul-Eaters.
Torak's mother[]
Torak has no memory of his mother as she died three months after he was born and his father refused to speak of her, as it saddened him. So for much of his life she was merely the woman who had made his medicine horn and who later declared him clanless. She only became more real to Torak when Fin-Kedinn told Torak that he is like her in many ways and reassures him of her love for him. Fin-Kedinn also reveals that he loved Torak's mother as any man loves his mate but she chose his father. This made him bitter and he refused to help Torak's father, who was once his best friend, to hide from the Soul-Eaters. Tracking was his mother's skill which she taught Torak's Fa, who later taught Torak.
Oslak[]
When Torak first entered the Raven Clan camp, it was Oslak who took him in and shared his home with Torak. He was generous and kind to him, traits which Torak greatly admired in the man. When Oslak became ill, Torak tried unsuccessfully to help him, Oslak later dying. Torak, torn by guilt, vows to find a cure to the mysterious illness. Even though he had only known the man for several months, he clearly felt a strong bond with the man and was greatly influenced by him.
Renn[]
Torak and Renn have a mixed relationship. At the beginning of Wolf Brother, they are mistrustful of each other, and only after travelling with each other and assisting each other throughout the first book do they begin to trust each other. Renn is Torak's best friend and team-mate, being proficiently compatible in skill to fight all the Soul-Eaters together. They care about each other deeply and would do anything to protect each other. Although Torak never really shows that he likes Renn (his emotions about her are mixed until Outcast), he says that she is a good pack-sister to himself and Wolf. Renn mentioned a few times that Torak was handsome and that he was tall, strange and slightly frightening, while Torak portrays his feelings for her as naive and confused as they develop. They are shown to grow beyond best friends in Oath Breaker, as Renn kisses his jaw. They shared their first kiss in Ghost Hunter, and it was mentioned that Fin-Kedinn was trying to keep Torak and Renn apart, most likely feeling threatened about their growing feelings for each other. Also in [Ghost Hunter], Torak admits that he likes Renn a lot when Dark asks him. Also, in Ghost Hunter, when Torak leaves Renn behind, he almost tells her he loves her before simply saying that the Guardian flies with her. Before Bale is murdered, he asks Torak what he would think if he asked Renn to be his mate, Torak argues with him in a fit of jealousy and confusion and walks off, leaving Bale on his own. Torak and Renn make a strong pair and together they save the world from the dangerous, cruel, and menacing Soul-Eaters. The characters that they have are amazingly strong which helps them to battle the Soul-Eaters. At the end of Ghost Hunter, Torak decides to leave the Clans to return to the life he knew with his father, at which Renn also decides to follow. With her uncle's blessing, they depart with Wolf, Pebble (Wolf's only living cub, depression I cried for hours) and Darkfur, Wolf's mate. It is strongly implied that by this point that their relationship is romantic.And in Viper's Daughter, you can see that Torak and Renn are mates. In Viper's Daughter, Renn has left Torak to protect him from herself. And when Torak has find Renn in the far north, he had said that he wants to kiss Renn. And Torak was also jealous, when he was seeing that Renn was traveling with Naiginn. And when Renn has explained Torak why she was traveling with Naiginn, Torak and Renn immediately touch each other, because they had missed each other so much. And at the end of Viper's Daughter, Torak and Renn kissed each other well… Renn kissed Torak it says but Torak kissed her harder, it is also mentioned that after a while they drew apart.
Bale[]
Bale was Torak's only living relative (by the end of Spirit Walker) and one of his closest friends in the series. Torak's grandmother was Seal Clan making Bale his Kinsman, but not directly related. Despite this the two disliked each other upon first meeting and Torak was reluctant to befriend him. Circumstances however forced the two to work together and they ended up with a good relationship. Torak found Bale to be a good companion and a loyal friend despite their rough beginning, this is proven when Bale travels up the Crag to retrieve Torak's knife in Spirit Walker, and when he comes to help him in Outcast. In Outcast, Bale comes up with a plan to get Torak back into the Clans, again showing his close friendship with him. However, Bale fell in love with Renn (Bale was at first condescending to Renn and then developed respect for her strength and determination, and ultimately he fell deeply in love with her, but Renn showed more love for Torak in the end). In Oath Breaker, Bale asks Torak what he thinks if he (Bale) asks Renn to stay with him at Sea when Torak heads back to the Forest. Torak answers Bale that he didn't care and it was up to Renn herself. As Bale keeps pressing the matter into Torak and insists on an answer, Torak storms off and leaves Bale on his own. Bale later dies, though not at the hands of Torak but of the Oak Mage Thiazzi, who killed Bale when he was alone. When Torak finds out about this, he is filled with regret and rage and blames himself heavily for the death of Bale. So much so that Torak swears an oath to kill Thiazzi and avenge Bale. Their relationship is mainly based on mutual respect for each other and their respective elements (the Sea and the Forest), as well as their love for Renn.
Fin-Kedinn[]
The extremely wise Fin-Kedinn acts much as one would expect of a foster father, he gives Torak advice on the issues facing him and he is always there to help him when needed. Fin-kedinn always showed a type of love for Torak though it was always hard to find. As one would expect, Torak has great admiration for him and respects him, and he feels honored when Fin-Kedinn fosters him. However, Torak never could read Fin-Kedinn's character as Fin-Kedinn had always hidden it with his unreadable expression. Torak is sometimes unsure of what the man thinks of him and doubts his feelings. In the end however, Fin-Kedinn embraces Torak as his foster son and makes him promise, after he told him that he and Renn were leaving the Clans, that they would return one day to celebrate with him and the Ravens.
Wolf[]
Wolf started as a cute, mischievous, wobbly, and innocent wolf cub in the beginning of Wolf Brother. Like many others whom he meets in the series, Torak initially disliked Wolf when the two first met, because he was hungry and wanted to eat the cub but too kind to kill Wolf, and Wolf licked him all over, annoying to the then moody Torak. However, Torak later grew fond of the cub and raised him. Wolf is often described as his guide and as his pack-brother. Torak is dedicated and loyal towards Wolf (and vice versa) and is very protective of him, perhaps more so than anyone else. Torak can communicate with Wolf in wolf-talk (howls and body language). Wolf and Torak are like brothers and are each other's pack-brother. Wolf is the most important thing in the world to Torak, besides Renn. They look out for each other and have an extremely strong bond. Wolf helped Torak get through his Fa's death and Torak helped Wolf get through his pack's death and cared for Wolf when he was a cub. Wolf protects Torak from dangers that he doesn't hear or notice. When Wolf or Torak is in danger, they can howl to each other in their heads. As Torak's guide, Wolf has a strange knowledge about him sometimes. They are always connected and will always be pack-brothers. Wolf states that Torak's purpose is to fight "Bad Taillesses" (Soul-Eaters, or bad people in general) and Wolf's purpose is to chase demons. Together they fight the evil, along with Renn. Towards Renn, Wolf was less warm at first, even after he developed a strong love for Torak and Renn was Torak's friend. He hated her in the first book, though he admitted she was "clever and smart". In the second book, he is wary and distrustful, but through the rest of the books, Wolf and Renn become friends based on respect. At the end of Ghost Hunter, Wolf manages to guide Torak's soul back into his body thus basically bringing him back from the dead.
Rip and Rek[]
These two ravens befriended Torak after a storm where they dropped out of their nest onto Torak's shelter and for them. They were sent by Renn via her doing a dangerous experiment with magecraft to help Torak recover from his soul sickness. Unlike most ravens, Rip and Rek don't mind humans and enjoy playing tricks on humans and animals alike. Torak doesn't mind and enjoys the raven's company, though he tends to avoid making a fuss over them when Wolf or Renn is around, in case Wolf gets envious.
Gallery[]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ Outcast, chapter 38
- ↑ Wolf Brother, chapter 3
- ↑ Oath Breaker, chapter 38
- ↑ Wolf Brother, chapter 30
- ↑ Spirit Walker, chapter 6
- ↑ Soul Eater, chapter 40
- ↑ Outcast, chapter 30
- ↑ Outcast, chapter 3
- ↑ Outcast, chapter 38
- ↑ Outcast, chapter 5
- ↑ Soul Eater, chapter 15
| Characters | |
|---|---|
| Main characters | Torak • Renn • Wolf |
| Supporting characters | Fin-Kedinn • Dark • Saeunn • Bale • Darkfur • Pebble |
| Soul-Eaters | Eostra • Thiazzi • Seshru • Nef • Tenris • Torak's father • Narrander |