“ | I will make a house for you in the Vale of your fathers. It will be beside my own. Join me there when you die. But I am no builder. So take your time. We will wait. | ” |
— Morning Star, Chapter 30
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Ragnar Volarus is a Stained, one of the strongest and deadliest of the Obsidians. He is the son of Alia Snowsparrow, the Queen of the Valkyrie and the leader of the Obsidians, and brother of Sefi the Quiet. He had been a slave to the Golds for more than 25 years, during which his sister Sefi had vowed to remain silent, thus earning her nickname.
Appearance[]
Being one of the largest characters in the Red Rising universe, Ragnar is likely to be anywhere from 8'6" (260cm) to a little over 9' (275cm) tall in height and weighing 551lbs (250kgs). He is bald except for having a white meter long shock of hair that goes to his mid-back. His face is covered in tattoos and calluses. He has a skull tattoo on his right hand to symbolize him being blood brothers with Darrow O'Lykos and Sevro au Barca, to whom he gave the same tattoo. He wears a suit of bone-white pulseArmor with a red slingBlade painted on it.
Personality[]
When Darrow first meets him, he is much like any other Obsidian, unswervingly loyal to the "Gods", and thinking of himself not as a free man, but as a slave to their will. After Darrow frees him and explains his own upbringing as a Red, Ragnar follows Darrow with fierce loyalty, and a newfound desire to free his people from their bondage. He is stoic and wise, aiding Darrow and their other friends through helpful advice and kind acts.
Abilities[]
Ragnar is known for his exceptional size and strength, easily outclassing Golds and some Peerless Scarred with minimal effort. He served as Magnus au Grimmus's personal gladiator for more than 20 years, earning him quite a reputation. He is able to tell the Color of a person based on their breath.
Ragnar is very agile and stealthy, able to kill entire groups of enemies within mere moments. He is able to sneak up on Darrow without detection, and can easily avoid detection in even the worst of situations.
He is skilled in a multitude of different weapons, as within mere minutes of picking up a Razor he was able to kill multiple Peerless Scarred, including one (almost two) Olympic Knights. While he is very dangerous, he relies mostly on his incredible size and strength, allowing him to easily overwhelm most opponents of smaller stature.
Equipment[]
Ragnar, when first, introduced used a pair of white ionBlades that extended three feet from his hands and were built into his armor.
He later went on to use a pair of Razors of unknown design.
Involvement[]
Pre-Saga[]
He was born to Alia Snowsparrow, Queen of the Valkyrie and leader of the Obsidians. To display her loyalty to the Gold rulers, his mother gave away all but one of her children to them as slaves, keeping only her daughter, Sefi the Quiet. Ragnar spent much of his life a slave to the Ash Lord, fighting against beasts and those of his own kind in gladiatorial combat, simply to amuse Golds.
Golden Son[]
He was freed by Darrow in Golden Son. Darrow explained to Ragnar that he was a Red. He explained how he was carved into a Gold; this caused Ragnar to declare loyalty to Darrow and his cause. During the Lion's Rain, Ragnar led a group of Obsidians, including both Wulfgar the Whitetooth and Valdir the Unshorn, at the command of Darrow.
Morning Star[]
Ragnar aids in the rescue of Darrow from the hands of Adrius au Augustus. According to Narol of Lykos, Ragnar is the only reason that Darrow survived the escape. Ragnar aided Darrow in capturing Kavax au Telemanus and Quicksilver. He led Darrow, Virginia au Augustus, and Holiday ti Nakamura on an expedition to his clan's home at the polar regions of Mars in an attempt to rescue his clanpeople from slavery to the Golds, but was fatally wounded by Aja au Grimmus during a fight before being able to do so. He managed to meet Sefi one final time before his death.
Trivia[]
A civilian restaurant at the spaceport on Phobos has a dessert named after him, called Ragnar's Vast Hunger. The dish consists of an ice cream dessert, slathered with fudge, peanut butter, walnuts, cherries and bananas. The restaurant boasts that the dish is so large that only its namesake could eat it one sitting, and advertises that any customer who can accomplish said feat doesn't have to pay for it.[1]
Gallery[]
Quotes[]
- 'I am and always have been son to the people of the Valkyrie Spires. Born free to Alia Snowsparrow on the wild pole of Mars, north of the Dragon's Spine, south of the Fallen City.' - Golden Son, Ch. 50: The Deep
- 'Mortals who plan die a thousand times. We who obey die but once.' - Golden Son, Ch. 34: Blood Brothers
- 'Forty-four scars have I earned for Gold since the slavers of the Weeping Sun came from the stars to take my family to the Chain Islands. Seven scars from others of my kind when they placed me in the nagoge, where I was trained.' 'One from my mother. Five from the talons of the monster who guards Witch Pass. Six from the woman who taught me to love. One from my first master. Fifteen from men and beasts I fought in an arena for the pleasure of the Allmother and her guests. Nine I earned for the Reaper.' - Golden Son, Ch. 50: The Deep
- ‘Fear and serve the men of Gold. Or they will come with iron from the sky. Gold will treat you with fire of the Sunborn. For they are not bound by love. Not bound by fear. Not bound to earth, but to sky and sun. Fear and serve the men of Gold.’ - Golden Son, Ch. 34: Blood Brothers
Notes & References[]
- ↑ Light Bringer - chapter 34