Severin Cale

Severin Cale, a character in "The Crown & The Flame" series, is the leader of the mercenaries. He is first seen in Book 1, Chapter 4.

Appearance
Severin has black eyes, long, black hair in dreadlocks, an extended goatee, and tan skin. He is a very tall man and well-built enough to wield dual battle axes. His attire consists of a red and light brown leather breastplate and shoulder pads with mesh armor underneath.

Personality
Severin is belligerent, cunning, cruel, and selfish. He is a bully towards Kenna at first and once looked down on her. A typical mercenary, he cares only about money as he prioritizes three thousand gold coins over Kenna's life. He would even justify money over his own camp's resources, as he tried to sell his group's cargo to Nevrakis soldiers without the others' consent or knowledge.

Being the leader of a huge band of mercenaries, Severin has an inflated sense of pride, scoffing at Gabriel for his old age when the latter challenged him. He views strength in battle as the only determinant to survival, and holds on firmly to his creed: "the strong lead, the weak bleed". He was also forced into fighting against Kenna to preserve his ego when she challenged him publicly. He is overconfident in battle, which Leon deduces is his weakness; during his duel with her, he easily succumbed into rage when she taunted him, and lowered his guard when he thought he had outmatched Kenna.

Severin is noted to be a dishonorable fighter, tripping Gabriel before their duel, then attempting to blind Kenna with dirt when he was knocked down. He also talks too much, as Kenna and Gabriel observed. He, however, does have some form of morality, as he refused to plunder Aurelia, his provider of income.

However, if Kenna chooses to recruit him, Severin is willing to assist her in performing duties. He is friendly to Kenna and her compatriots whenever they communicate with each other.

Oddly, Severin requires anger to fight harder; in Book 1 Chapter 15, he told Kenna to instigate him as payment for rescuing her, whereby he went on a rampage and charged at several enemies. Speaking of which, Severin relishes the thought of battle, fighting Nevrakis soldiers with glee during the invasion of Stormholt, saying they die easily. He also intimidated Kenna and Dom with his sadistic anticipation about using a ballista, making even Kenna herself wonder how she defeated him in the first place.

Background
Less than two years after the Five Kingdoms fell under Nevrakis rule, Severin was caught by Val Greaves and Leon Stirling intending to sell their cargo to invading Nevrakis soldiers. Leon then tricked him into inebriation by negotiating the idea over drinks, then drinking Severin under the table to deal with the trespassers.

Book 1

 * Chapter 4: The Mercenaries
 * Chapter 5: The Challenge
 * Chapter 6: The Duel
 * Chapter 7: The Gilded City (Mentioned; Physical Appearance Determinant)
 * Chapter 8: The Gilded Cage (Determinant)
 * Chapter 10: The Battle for Aurelia (Determinant)
 * Chapter 15: The Return to Stormholt (Mentioned; Physical Appearance Determinant)
 * Chapter 16: The Cannon (Determinant)
 * Chapter 18: The Queen of Stormholt (Determinant)

Book 2

 * Chapter 1: The Battle of Thorngate (Determinant)
 * Chapter 2: The Burning of Thorngate (Mentioned, Determinant)
 * Chapter 3: The Shipbuilders (Mentioned, Determinant)
 * Chapter 12: The Storming of Lykos (Determinant)
 * Chapter 13: The Wolf's Mouth (Determinant)
 * Chapter 14: The Battle of the Bay (Determinant)

Book 3

 * Chapter 3: The Sacrifice (Mentioned; Physical Appearance Determinant)

Axemanship
Severin displayed his skills with his double axes numerous times during the series; he managed to overpower Kenna temporarily during their duel back at his Mercenary Camp, forcing the Queen to fight defensively. However, one of his most famous achievements is during the Battle for Stormholt (If he was recruited) in which he managed to slaughter numerous Nevrakis Soldiers on his own with an incredible amount of savagery and strength, dismissing them as weaklings who die easily.

Physical Prowess
Severin is a powerful, muscular man who with his physical strength is able to lift two heavy weapons at the same time and swing them with ease. His strength is also the reason why Kenna had to use her speed to outmaneuver him, as his size indicates he is not an agile warrior. However, he compensates for this with his sheer power and bloodlust in every blow, and would have won had Kenna not used his arrogance against him.

He is also physically fit enough not to get exhausted after traveling half the realm and back with Jackson to look for Dom under Kenna's orders. As Jackson was panting heavily, Severin sneered at him and said that the trip was just "a little stroll" for him.

Kenna Rys
After defeating Severin in a duel, Kenna can either choose to decapitate Severin, banish him, or form an alliance. If she forms an alliance with him, they become friends, seeing Kenna as a queen worth fighting and dying for.

Trivia

 * Even if one were to import Book 1 choices all the way to Book 3, Severin does not appear in the third book in person, only in a premium scene flashback during Leon's wake in Chapter 3.
 * He shares this fate with all premium Book 1 recruits except Tevan, i.e. the Bear and the Mechataur.