The heir who wouldn't stay behind

THE MOUTHY HEIR

Fun-loving on the surface, dead-serious warrior about a hand's-width down.

Granddaughter of the hearth-mother Houlun and hearth-sister to Prince Sartaq, Borte is a young rukhin rider being groomed to lead the Eridun clan one day. She flies the great ruk Arcas, and the first thing she does when Nesryn arrives at the aerie is needle the prince — hinting, loudly, that this newcomer might make him a fine match. That's the read on her in about a second: irreverent, wicked, fond of poking anyone above her station. But it's all sitting on top of a genuine warrior and a fierce loyalty. She is the light in a heavy book, and she means every reckless thing she does.

SHOW ME

The heir doesn't get to be too proud to be taught.

She watches Nesryn put nine arrows into three dummies in a shifting mountain wind — three flawless rows, neck and heart and head — and she doesn't sulk about being outshot. She elbows past the prince and says two words: 'Show me.' For days after, Nesryn teaches the rukhin how to read wind and weight and air, and the rukhin teach Nesryn how to fight hand-to-hand and ruk-borne. As heir, Borte has to learn a dozen disciplines beyond the blade, and she takes the archery dead seriously. It is the whole of her in one gesture — the girl who refuses to be spared the work.

YERAN

She beat his face in, and then his father announced the engagement.

Her betrothal to Yeran, captain of the rival Berlad clan, is a running war she wages at full volume. They met as the last two standing in an inter-clan contest; near the finish Yeran cheated in a way that nearly got Arcas killed. Borte saw it coming, dodged it, won clean — and then tackled him off his ruk and pounded his face for endangering her bird. Yeran's father announced the match. She claims to loathe him and insults him at every turn, and anyone watching for half a minute can see she cares. It's the funniest, most obviously doomed feud in the mountains, and she is not apologising for either half of it.

THE BURNING FENS

Told to stay safe, she chose the people over the rule every time.

When Sartaq and Nesryn ride for the kharankui-infested Dagul Fens, Houlun holds Borte back — the clan can't risk its heir. Borte resents it, and when the party is cornered by the spiders and escape looks impossible, a dark ruk drops out of the sky: Arcas, and Borte, come anyway. She dives into the fight, turns the escape, then fires the flaming arrow that signals the riders to torch the Fens — burning the webbing and clearing the way out. And on the return it's Yeran who has mustered his Berlad riders and flown to the Fells for her, watching her come home with a worried face he can't hide. She ends the war pledging her flank to Aelin over Orynth.