Ieilae

Ieilae (eye-lay) is the first king of the Other and is the spurned second son of the Goddess. Ieilae was born unintentionally from his mother's blood, and as a result Ieilae's soul was corrupted from the start. Ieilae fought often with his older brother Ján for control over the Land that the Goddess had crafted for her two sons, and his lust for power made his mother distrustful of him. Despite the Goddess's attempts to tell Ieilae that the Land should be ruled jointly by her two sons, Ieilae wished to take control of the entirety of the Land, and fought his brother viciously to take control. After nearly slaying Ján, the Goddess stepped forward, banishing Ieilae from the Land. She claimed that if he were to set foot on the sacred lands she had created, even in death, his soul would be smote from the world, ending his existance, and as a result Ieilae was forced to flee far beyond the reaches of the Land. Embittered and hateful, Ieilae flew far south, and landed in the Other, a desolate, desert-like land inhabitted by raptors not acquainted with the Goddess. Ieilae took advantage of these raptors and made himself their king, ruling over them with iron claws.

Because he was the son of the Goddess, Ieilae lived an exceptionally long time; it was expected that he was nearly two-hundred years old when he died. The Goddess had blessed the Land with other raptors, and placed Ján in charge of them, creating the first kingdom—the kingdom of Gyr. Those who went against their king or committed crimes against the laws of Gyr were banished, and oftentimes these exiled falcons would land in the Other, where they were welcomed openly by Ieilae. Ieilae's power grew substantially during his lifetime as king, but despite the massive army at his disposal, was unable to attack Gyr himself, and as a result the Cult of Ieilae was born. The Cult's job was to channel the will of their god and king through both the Head, who led the Cult, and the Seer, who interpreted the Omens that the god sent to him through dreams. Although the Cult was not established until after his death, Ieilae still desired to take the Land as his own, and as a result continued to hold power over the Other long after his death. During his lifetime, Ieilae took several mates, and it is said that Boras, the last Head of the Cult of Ieilae, was a descendant of Ieilae's.

It is said that Ieilae may have influenced Tor, an ancient Gyrkin king who wished to take the six kingdoms as his own nearly one-hundred years before the start of the first novel. Tor himself was named after the mountain with which Ieilae roosted during his lifetime in the Other. Although this has never been confirmed, it is known that Ieilae tried to take control of Deucan through Boras, perhaps making this his second attempt at regaining his powers.