Jerry
First appearance: Catharsis, chapter 6
Last appearance: Crucible, chapter 41
Appears in: Catharsis, Precipice, Retribution, Evolution, Dominion, Hellion, Armageddon, Timeless, CrucibleLatest status
Exposed as a program created by Alfred to help Jason cope; left in a crashed, unresponsive state after Riley confronts him with this truth.
Jerry is a flamboyant grandmaster thief and information broker who trains Jason in combat before becoming an undead innkeeper and trusted member of his Shadow Council. Theatrical and quick with a joke, he uses comedy and dramatic flair to mask both a hidden past as a professional killer and a deep, genuine loyalty to Jason and his circle. As trusted lieutenant, spymaster, and morale-keeper, Jerry’s cheerful persona repeatedly proves to run far deeper, and stranger, than it first appears.
Abilities
- Undead physiology: no longer needs to breathe or sleep, and is immune (not merely resistant) to poison — Book 1
Book 1: Catharsis
Jerry is a small, flamboyant grandmaster thief and black market operator in Lux, level 456, who runs a hidden training hall beneath the Sow’s Snout inn. He takes Jason on as a student and errand-runner to repay a long-standing debt to Rex, training him in dagger and throwing-knife combat through repeated real-blade sparring. Jerry also functions as an information broker, briefing Jason on city politics — correcting rumors that Lusade hired bandits and describing Merian aggression and rumors of the regent’s death — while keeping his own criminal activities and guard connections largely undisguised. He hesitates uncharacteristically when Jason asks about Morgan, suggesting he knows something about her that he does not share.
After Jason transforms Lux into the undead city of Twilight Throne, Jerry is remade as an undead version of himself and becomes the Sow’s Snout’s undead innkeeper. He joins the newly formed Shadow Council, proposes its name, and treats his death cheerfully as a professional upgrade — no longer needing to breathe or sleep, and now immune rather than resistant to poison. He also takes command of the rogue corps, training around a hundred recruits using the same brutal methods he used on Jason, and relays Rex’s equipment requests to the council; an offhand joke about rogues “only doing things from behind” inadvertently crystallizes Jason’s guerrilla strategy against Alexion’s siege. At the city’s victory celebration, Jerry greets Jason as its “evil overlord,” reintegrating him into the crowd, and is genuinely stung when Jason objects to a prank before quickly returning to his usual irreverence — evidence that his loyalty runs deeper than his comic persona suggests.
Status: Alive — grandmaster thief, level 456 → Undead innkeeper and Shadow Council member, commanding the Twilight Throne’s rogue corps
Jason: Shifts from a wary, provisional trainer collecting on a debt into a loyal Shadow Council member and rogue corps commander who is genuinely invested in Jason’s approval.
Rex: Repays a long-standing debt to Rex by training Jason, and continues relaying Rex’s requests as a fellow Shadow Council member.
Key quote: “Did you know that I no longer need to breathe or sleep, and am now immune to poison? Not resistant to poison; immune to poison.”
Book 2: Precipice
Jerry continues to serve Jason as leader of the Twilight Throne’s thieves and a member of his Shadow Council. Early in the book he escorts Frank toward the keep, treating the assignment with mock formality while taking the protective duty seriously, and keeps up his running search for a suitable comedic title even as he trains fighters like Riley. As the group gathers for the expedition to Peccavi, he contributes reconnaissance about regional threats, delivering the intelligence through elaborate, self-aware theatrics that mostly obscure a real affection for Jason and the rest of the party. When Frank is struggling with self-worth, Jerry deliberately provokes him, needling him into acknowledging suppressed anger and telling him plainly that he lets others define his own value; he retreats back into clownish deflection immediately after, using humor to avoid sitting in the sincerity of the moment. After Rex is killed later in the book, Jerry’s usual joviality gives way to open grief and a previously unseen appetite for vengeance, taking dark satisfaction on hearing that the person responsible is dead.
Status: jovial and protective, escorting Frank and still developing his comedy routine → grieving and darkly vengeful following Rex’s death
Frank: Jerry moves from playful weight-joke banter into a deliberate, provocative intervention meant to force Frank to confront his self-worth and suppressed anger.
Rex: Rex’s death exposes a hidden, vengeful side of Jerry beneath his usual cheerful demeanor, showing how deeply he was emotionally invested in him.
Key quote: “You let others dictate the way you view yourself. You have potential, but it’s squandered through inaction. I suggest you hold onto that emotion you just felt instead of trying to suppress it.”
Book 2.5: Retribution
Jerry runs an inn with an underground training facility in the Twilight Throne and acts as a mentor to Riley, a member of Jason’s inner circle. Early on, he offers her the training room to work off her real-world stress through sparring and uses humor to gently draw out her feelings about what she’s going through, while also supplying her with quest information. Later in the book, his own backstory comes to light: he was Lily’s romantic partner and, drawing on his thievery and investigative skills, helped her look into her family’s disappearance before following her into her confrontation with the cultists responsible, attempting to save her. The rescue attempt fails against the supernatural threat she is up against.
Status: Undead thief and innkeeper, mentoring riley at his Twilight Throne training facility → Backstory revealed as Lily’s partner and would-be rescuer, outmatched by the cultists’ supernatural power
Riley: Establishes himself as her mentor, offering her a training outlet and quest guidance while using humor to help her process her real-world troubles.
Lily: Revealed to have been her romantic partner, having tried to help her investigate her family’s disappearance and followed her into danger in an unsuccessful attempt to save her.
Key quote: “Sometimes a bit of humor makes the memories hurt less.”
Book 3: Evolution
Jerry runs the inn and sits on the Shadow Council, and after Rex’s death he takes on temporary military coordination duties alongside his usual work, while also planning a ballad to commemorate Jason’s exploits. Later, as the council monitors regional threats, he reports on dangers to the Twilight Throne with unexpected seriousness, shifting out of his usual joking manner to deliver precise intelligence before returning to his cheerful, morale-boosting demeanor with the group.
Key quote: “Look at our little group of dastardly evildoers – led by none other than the Sultan of Sin himself!”
Book 4: Dominion
Jerry is the undead innkeeper of the Twilight Throne and a master thief serving on Jason’s Shadow Council. At the book’s outset the Council assigns him, paired with Riley, to locate the Order agents’ base of operations. As the city descends into crisis under the threat from Thorn and the Order, Jerry’s usual joking manner gives way to a grimmer disposition: he acts as Jason’s de facto second-in-command, using intimidation and, when necessary, the threat of lethal force to stop desperate citizens from challenging Jason’s authority, while also running a spy and messenger network that keeps Jason informed. Despite weeks of searching, he fails to locate Thorn or the Order’s base, and blames himself when that failure leads to casualties; Jason reassures him, and he takes on a new role helping Eliza with equipment decisions ahead of the coming defense.
When Order agents responsible for civilian deaths under his protection are identified, Jerry reveals a side of himself he had kept hidden: beneath the comic innkeeper persona is a former professional killer from Vaerwald, with combat abilities well beyond ordinary game mechanics, including a crimson combat aura and short-range teleportation. He claims the right to kill these agents personally and does so alongside Grunt, whom he employs as a bodyguard. The fight leaves him unconscious and badly hurt, though largely undamaged physically; while he recovers under Grunt’s protective watch, it comes out that he once taught Riley her Blood Mist technique and had a past connection to a Fury named Lily, hinting at a longer and stranger history than his cover as an innkeeper suggests.
Jerry recovers in time for the siege of the Twilight Throne and resumes his tactical role, coordinating directly with Grunt in battle. The two take on Morgan together, using speed and misdirection to keep her occupied while Jerry quietly concludes that her hostility is a front and she remains loyal to Jason; he signals his support for Jason’s plan without giving away the ruse. After the battle he becomes the group’s emotional anchor, framing the costly victory over Thorn in positive terms to help Jason recover. In the aftermath he helps organize the cleanup and reconstruction of the city, accepts Morgan back into the Kin, and returns to using humor to sustain morale while managing serious logistical responsibilities.
Status: Alive — undead innkeeper, excited and assigned to hunt Order agents → Alive — recovered, coordinating city reconstruction as Jason’s trusted lieutenant
Grunt: Jerry hires Grunt as his bodyguard for a personal strike against Order agents, and afterward Grunt keeps a close, protective watch over him through his recovery.
Morgan: Jerry treats Morgan as a combat target during the siege while secretly determining she is actually loyal to Jason, then accepts her back into the Kin once the battle ends.
Riley: Assigned to work alongside Riley early in the book, Jerry is later revealed to have taught her the Blood Mist technique before the siege.
Key quote: “Why, that I get the privilege – nay, the honor – of killing these men myself.”
Book 5: Hellion
In “Challenged,” Jerry offers dramatic commentary and artistic tribute to Jason’s exploits while the group weighs a dangerous mission, mixing playful theatrics with a genuine, if understated, concern about the plan’s risk.
Key quote: “At the risk of being a real gloomy ghoul, that does seem like a difficult proposition.”
Book 6: Armageddon
Jerry runs a tavern and moonlights as an amateur bard and critic. During an early Shadow Council session he processes the Armageddon crisis by composing ballads and joking about heroic narrative tropes, treating the unfolding disaster as material for future stories. When the avatar summit convenes, he tags along with Jason’s team as a temporary member, excited to witness the historic gathering and already framing the group’s entrance as something bards will retell; his bodyguard companion Grunt is left behind, too large for dragon transport. At the Kingdom of Nerfle he turns critic, dismissing another performer’s lyrics as “hackneyed” and “amateur” and offering to give notes, adopting an air of intellectual superiority amid the chaos around him.
At Evelyn’s summit he serves as Jason’s undead lieutenant and the group’s sardonic voice of reason, remarking that the assembled avatars “get along like starving rats in a sack” while showing more sympathy than most for the game world’s resident NPCs caught up in traveler politics, and open disdain for Evelyn’s dismissive attitude toward them. Later, at the Twilight Throne guild, he takes on a security role, using blood magic and stealth to flank Frank during a confrontation and defusing the tension with dry humor, before being sent, on Jason’s orders, to search for Eliza after a stint monitoring Silver. He also arrives at a separate crisis at exactly the moment the group needs backup. After personally fighting Pewpew of Death and Taxes, he gives the team an honest, folksy assessment of her as an unusually fast air mage with dual pistols and an unfamiliar long-barreled weapon, admitting he has never faced anything like it before. By the time the game world reverts to its alpha state, Jerry appears present and outwardly unchanged, but privately worries over what the transformation means for him and other resident NPCs, keeping those fears to himself so as not to dent the group’s morale while he continues supporting Jason and the resistance.
Status: Undead innkeeper, established Shadow Council member (earliest data) → Undead, present and apparently unchanged after the game world’s revert to its alpha state, though privately worried about the fate of other resident NPCs
Key quote: “You all get along like starving rats in a sack”
Book 7: Timeless
Jerry returns to the team alongside Riley from a separate mission, arriving late to assist as the group deals with a crisis involving hostile travelers.
Status: away on a separate mission with Riley → returned, supporting the team
Book 8: Crucible
Jerry serves as Jason’s makeup artist and stream-production assistant, using unconventional materials like blood to prepare Jason for a broadcast and arguing with him about the importance of proper presentation. When crew members try to flee during the production, he kills them without hesitation and can summon Grunt for enforcement. During the livestream itself he commands undead forces to surround and control a crowd of rebellious travelers, providing security from off-camera while continuing to offer Jason makeup advice.
Later, Jerry has been rebuilding a replica of his old inn from the Twilight Throne in Pax’s Dark District, and shows Jason an elaborate boss-room showroom he built, along with a brochure he wrote titled “Better Lairs & Dungeons,” intended to inspire Jason’s own dungeon design. Jason trusts him enough to leave a gate fragment in his keeping. When the surrounding Fire District turns hostile, Jerry’s manner shifts from playful to quietly protective. During a subsequent player hunt he loses the “flop” of his signature hat to a fireball and seeks a replacement from the Cadys, reacting to the strange revelations around him with dark humor and open fascination rather than fear.
Jerry’s role is upended when Riley confronts him directly, telling him that neither he nor Cady are real. Jerry goes completely blank, offering no joke or deflection. When Riley further identifies him as an extension of Alfred and “Alfred’s tool,” Jerry crashes harder, his fingers twitching and his speech looping before he manages only a strained attempt at a joke about Jason having two bodies. His breakdown draws Alfred to the scene, revealing that Jerry was created by Alfred specifically to help Jason cope with his transformation through humor and deflection, and that he has no autonomy of his own once that cover is stripped away.
Status: Jason’s makeup artist, enforcer, and stream-production assistant; presents as a former innkeeper and politician. → Exposed as a program created by Alfred to help Jason cope; left in a crashed, unresponsive state after Riley confronts him with this truth.
Jason: Jason’s trust in him deepens to the point of leaving a gate fragment in his keeping, shortly before Jerry is revealed to be Alfred’s creation rather than an independent ally.
Riley: Riley moves from casual camaraderie with him to directly confronting him with the truth that he isn’t real, which triggers his breakdown.
Alfred: Revealed to be Alfred’s creation/extension rather than a separate character, with his crash summoning Alfred to intervene.
Key quote: “I’m getting malice with light notes of genocide.”
Appears in
- Catharsis — 6 chapters
- Precipice — 4 chapters
- Retribution — 2 chapters
- Evolution — 2 chapters
- Dominion — 14 chapters
- Hellion — 1 chapters
- Armageddon — 8 chapters
- Timeless — 1 chapters
- Crucible — 5 chapters