Willard seems a simple man, when compared to the chaos that makes up the day-to-day of Never. Seeming mundane is his greatest weapon. Going unnoticed due to his somewhat aloof or even willfully ignorant disposition afforded to him by way of his isolated ranch, Willard holds machinations to undermine both fiends and the divine, alike.
Mr. Howl is a freshly minted demon, crashing into the outskirts of Never straight from Hell. With partial amnesia about how to be a human and no knowledge on how to be a demon, Howl is a hot mess and a nuisance and terror to the community. Most of all, he is a danger to himself. Will he figure it out or be smote back into the underworld?
Boone straddles Never’s two worlds with a quiet intensity. A sheriff’s deputy, he is known for his stoic demeanor, keen tracking skills, and an unsettling ability to “hear the dead wind” — a supernatural talent passed down through his mother’s bloodline. Though he keeps his craft hidden from most, whispers of Boone’s eerie intuition and uncanny luck haunt the town’s saloons and prayer circles alike. His most valuable possession is a charred silver pocket watch that once belonged to his late mentor. The watch ticks only in the presence of lies, and sometimes, when Boone holds it, it speaks with the voice of the dead man who gave it to him.
A wrathful spirit that haunts the streets of Never. Ishan’s trust in humanity was broken when he, as a Pinkerton, was brutally killed. He still hunts for criminals, but he no longer does it to make the world a better place. His hopeful worldview died with him. Now he hunts simply to punish.
Hattie is a strange witch, having come to Never on her own, she wishes to prove to everyone and anyone that she can make it in this world without help. Even if she does secretly enjoy the companionship of others. Hattie doesn’t fully understand the limits of her powers or everything she can do, but she’s in the process of figuring it out while attempting to protect herself from the past.
Currently, she uses her time to write under a male pseudonym in hopes of making more money than if she were using her real name. It works. Now it’s up to her to determine if she wants to curse or welcome people with open arms. Who knows where she lies on any given day?
Juniper Quill is a vibrant, eccentric witch who runs the Green Jar Apothecary in Never. Though she appears in her early 30s, she’s lived nearly twice as long, with a past as tangled as her perpetually windblown red hair. Barefoot more often than not, June dresses in bright, flowing clothes adorned with herbs and wildflowers. A “miracle” allows her to feel what others feel, making her both deeply compassionate and often overwhelmed.
‘Blessed’ to wander the earth until he’s sought redemption, Jasper Koskinen has made a habit of simply living. Worn by the three and a half centuries he’s lived, his survival is one of a matter of habit. Never is the latest place his feet have carried him to. Like the many nameless villages and towns he’s settled in before, he plans on licking his wounds, making what money he can, and seeing what this place holds for him.
Della learned early to let go of everything that doesn’t matter–you need both hands to hold on tight to anything you want to keep. Don’t get bogged down by the weight of inconsequential bullshit, or somebody or something will snatch what matters right out of your hands. She’d lost two daughters and a son before she’d seen twenty years. When she finally escaped the misery of her past, she promised herself that she’d never again lose anything she truly loved. She built the Silk Rose Saloon in St. Louis with blood money taken from the last man who’d laid a hand on her. That seemed like a square deal, but Missouri was still a dangerous place for a woman to openly defy the expectations of gender, race, and society. When the Silk Rose went up in flames one night, taking most of its staff with it, the neighbors shook their heads and clucked their tongues and whispered What else could she expect, living like that? Evidence of arson was brushed under the rug. But Della had made a promise to herself, and she knew her soul would never rest easy anyway, so she bargained with the only thing she had left to lose.
Twelve years ago, the Silk Rose unfolded itself whole on a street corner in Never, New Mexico, with Dellaphina Jones on the deed as sole proprietress. Customers may find that the rooms have a whiff of smoke–or maybe brimstone–now and then, but everything is otherwise circumspect.
Reverend Hawthorne Lichfield is the reverend of the House of His Eternal Glory, a small parish church and source of shelter located on the Hawthorne Homestead. The church has the unconventional belief that one cannot abstain from sin if they have never sinned. Questionable activities often unfold at Eternal Glory that serve as an outlet for one’s deepest or darkest desires. If Eternal Glory sounds like a cult, it is. But it entices members with the promise of a better life and the constant reminder that it is never too late to repent for the sins weighing on one’s soul.
Once a notorious outlaw, Alasdair Keary rode the legends of his death at the hand of bounty hunters all the way to freedom. He and his father found safety and community in the town of Never under new names and a new way of living, but Alasdair will always be an outlaw at heart.
