Kalevi Carter is the son of Ransu and Lynne Carter, coming from a long and moderately distinguished family nine, but not one that has historically or in the current generation been attended by good fortune. At some point in the past, of course, they must have had some luck, for the old money that long kept them solvent through lean times was great in its initial sum, though it was gained so long ago that no one rightly knows how.

Kalevi, rather specifically, is the youngest child of his family, having three older sisters who now largely attend to the failing family lands and dilapidated home with the passing of their mother and the growing senility of their father. Despite being the only boy, Kalevi was very much his mother's son, and in several ways followed after her, including being prone to vivid, lucid dreams that feel as though the dreamer is in some other world -- though some Carter ancestors were also known to have some similar sort of strangeness, Ransu was not one of them. Eventually, these nocturnal voyages lead Kalevi to discover a talent for magic.

Kalevi, though by no means a great mage, is now obliged to make his way in the world with his talents, the state of the family being such that remaining to tend the ivy-covered walls and mist-shrouded grounds of his home is not a desirable option. He does have an acceptable way with spells, and a way with words, some knowledge of the world.

Dreams have guided him onward, farther than he might have expected from familiar climes, but at least until now they have not steered him wrong. Kalevi has prepared for travel and endured hostilities, but found himself ready for both.