Meet the Character -- Dr. Cian

Name: Dr. Zared Cian
Age: 59 Sex: M
Family: Son (Chance, 31)
Infection: Immune / OFAR 'hunter' gene

Zared Cian is a doctor for one reason: a stable income for himself and his son. Fortunately for those under his care, he is naturally gifted at his job. A smoker for years, he is almost always trying to light up. He is often foiled in his attempts by Dr. Ophie. He is affable and hard working, but a little more self-centered than the average doctor. Dr. Cian's speciality is genetic abnormalities. So when the FLI set up its first agency in the state of Alabama, he was called upon to make sure that the lycanthropes were properly identified, both by type and infectivity.

We don't know much about his past, but he must have had one because he has a son older than many of the others in the book. Zared talks about his son a lot, but not much else concerning his personal life. His role in the story is as the pathology lab director. He does genotyping for those wanting to join the FLI in Alabama, as they are required to have the OFAR 'hunter' gene. He also determines which strain of Hensen's disease patients have, as well as their level of infectiousness (or how long they have been infected). He job sometimes also requires him to determine the type of lycanthrope and their 'age' (how long they have been infected) that may have injured or killed a patient/victim. Grim, but someone has to do it. When he can, he aids Dr. Ophie with the patients in the clinic, but he usually stays behind the scenes.

His first name, Zared, is a derivation of the Hebrew 'Jerod,' meaning verdant or of strange descent. Dr. Cian is an African American of the Jewish faith. I really don't know why I decided to do this, other than as a small nod to Sammy David Jr., but I am sure it will come out in the wash eventually. A close relative of a name in the dead sea scrolls is "Yar-rod" which means perpetual leader, something Zared feels like he always is.

The name Cian (pronounced "Kee-an") is Gaelic for ancient, which speaks to his age. 59 isn't ancient, but he is older than his counterparts in the book. Because he is older, he feels that he must be a leader to them, although he doesn't really want to be a leader. If he had his way, he would just be allowed to do his job, and leave the leadership to ALF and Dr. Ophie.

Meet the Character -- Alf

Name: Aiden "Alf" Fillin
Age: 42 Sex: Male
Family: None
Infection Level: Immune / OFAR 'hunter' Gene
Race: Caucasian Height: 5'8"
Eyes: Dark brown, large eyes, well hooded but not deep set
Face: Slightly arched brows, well separated; prominent nose, fairly Romanesque, square face, flat hairline, thick jaw
Hair: Rust colored hair in a shaggy, mop-top style hangs just over his ears
Body: Well tanned skin; very muscular, especially arms and upper legs

Alf is the no-nonsense leader of the Federal Lycanthrope Investigation unit stationed in Birmingham, Alabama. He reeks of former policeman, and I love him that way. He likes to keep a tight ship, but with people like Ranulf under his command, a tight ship is unlikely. When it comes to the small section of the FLI that he commands, he is very protective of them. Even when they retire, he keeps watch over them as much as possible. Alf doesn't ask his officers to do anything he isn't willing to do, and they love him for that.

Having been an officer for both human and lycanthropes for decades, Alf doesn't really do field work anymore. He prefers instead to control the situations from the main office, rounded out with visits to the FLI clinic for newly infected and occassional trips to Ran's desk for a chewing out.

Alf's call sign is based on his initials, A. L. F. His first name, Aiden, is sometimes used in the story, but being that he is the boss of this unit, they usually just call him Alf. The name Alf is a diminuitive of Adolf, which means noble wolf. He does try to be noble, forcing his unit to do the right thing, even when it may seem better to do something else. His first name, Aiden, means little fire. I believe this is fitting, because he has a passion for his job of upholding the law, even when it comes to werewolves.

Fillin is English for little wolf, and is a derivation of the Celtic name Faelan. I picture Alf as a beefy Irish guy, like a prize fighter. I didn't want his name to sound too Irish, so I chose the English name instead of the other. It doesn't give him more respectability, just sounds a little less stereotypical. As for his middle name... well, I haven't actually decided what it should be. All I know is that I want it to start with an L.