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- "You may address me as Reynard the Fox. Trickster of the faithful, the pure of heart – the very stupid."
- ―Reynard the Fox
Reynard the Fox is the son of Persephone, and a former Trickster god. In the years following Persephone's disappearance from Earth, Reynard grew to resent his mother for abandoning him, causing him to target her followers in retaliation.
History[]
Early Life[]
Reynard was created by the goddess Persephone thousands of years ago. When Persephone left, Reynard felt that Persephone abandoned him and began targeting the Magicians that prayed to his mother.
Rampage on the East Coast[]
During the 1970s, Reynard's crusade against Persephone's followers brought him to the United States of America, where he would slaughter hedge witches along the Eastern coast.
Banishment from Earth[]
While attacking one of the Hedge Witch groups in the United States, Reynard sexually assaulted Dana Wallens, who became pregnant with his child. In the dawn of the 19th of August 1979, she gave birth to Reynard's son in Hoboken, New Jersey. Harnessing the magical energy from the childbirth, she banished him away from Earth. This created a massive fire in the Hoboken Industrial place and only the building where the woman was remained intact.[1]
After banishing Reynard, Dana gave the baby in adoption, unable to raise him as her son. He was adopted and grew up to be US Senator John Gaines.[2]
Return to Earth[]
Reynard stayed banished for nearly 40 years until a group of Hedge Witches named Free Trader Beowulf learned about gods and goddesses and tried to contact Persephone. Reynard tricked them into believing that they were casting a summoning spell for Persephone, but it instead summoned him, breaking the banishment spell and bringing him back to Earth.
Murder of Free Trader Beowulf[]
He first appeared to Free Trader Beowulf disguised as Persephone and blocked the group's ability to use magic. Reynard then removed Richard Corrigan's heart from his chest before taking his appearance. He then killed Silver, Bender and Menolly with one slashing spell, leaving only Kady Orloff-Diaz and Julia Wicker alive.
As he tried to approach Kady Orloff-Diaz, Julia Wicker put herself between the two of them to protect her. With Reynard's attention focused on Julia, Kady fled the scene.[3] Reynard then raped Julia, who became pregnant with his child, the same as Dana Wallens.[4]
Senator John Gaines[]
Reynard goes to see Dana Wallens to find about his child, as well as get his revenge for his banishment. [1] Dana never says who or where the child is, despite the torture inflicted on her.[5]
Eventually, he discovers that his child is he senator John Gaines and tries to get to him, only to find that he is protected inside of Brakebills' wards. Reynard tries to talk to John in his mind, so that he comes to see him of his own will. When he refuses, Reynard breaks through Brakebills' wards. While trying to get to his son, he faces Julia Wicker who attempts to get Quentin Coldwater to release the Niffin Alice Quinn he has inside him to kill Reynard, but Quentin refuses to free Alice. As Reynard moves to kill Quentin, John Gaines shows up and agrees to go with Reynard if he doesn't hurt the other. Reynard accepts and they leave.[2]
While with his son, Reynard inserts himself into John's close circle, even showing up in the background as staff during press conferences. He explains to John the range of his power, and how to use it to manipulate and trick people into giving him what he wants. This culminates in John trying to mind control Senator Cowden, who then dies of a heart attack. The day after this, John confronts Reynar about his power, and who else he might have used it on. Reynard admits that one of his powers is persuasion and he might have used it all his life without noticing, including on his wife.[6]
John is distraught by the news and confronts Reynard about his actions. This provokes an argument that brings up Persephone and reveals Reynard's true colors to John. The truth of what Reynard is terrifies John, who runs to Brakebills and commits suicide.[7]
Persephone's Return[]
Kady Orloff-Diaz and Julia Wicker trick Reynard into showing up to the center of a series of meteorological events that usually announce the return of Persephone on Earth. As Julia Wicker has him at gunpoint with a god-killing bullet, Persephone freezes time and shows up for the first time in centuries. She asks for Julia's mercy towards her son, which Julia eventually gives. Persephone then takes Reynard with her as they disappear from Earth.[7]
The Punishment[]
As a punishment for all the atrocities he committed, Persephone removed his magic and give it to Julia. She then abandons him back on Earth, powerless, but still immortal. His step-father Hades visits to give him the gun with the god-killing bullet so he could commit suicide.[8]
Instead of killing himself, Reynard started to live as a mortal in a small apartment, paying his bills by working as a pizza delivery worker. Julia, Kady and Penny 23 find him in order to learn about Castle Blackspire. During this encounter, he discovers Julia is on the path to becoming a goddess using the power Persephone gave her. He tries to use the god-killing bullet on her but she overpowers him and escapes with Kady and Penny.[8]
Personality[]
- "You looked me up, says trickster. See, that's honest. Yes, I fuck with the weak. You know what that does? Improves the herd."
- ―Reynard the Fox
Reynard the Fox is a conniving and deceitful god who delights in causing mayhem. He's sneaky and violent, capable of doing heinous actions without remorse. He has been shown to have an appetite for human flesh, a trait he relishes. He is filled with immense anger towards mortals that revere 'Our Lady Underground' - the goddess Persephone, his mother. This is due to the love he once had for her and the pain from her abandonment of him, and he believes that he is 'teaching' mortals worshiping her.
Magic and Abilities[]
Given his nature as a trickster, Reynard is a master of disguises and transformations. His magical abilities were very advanced, allowing him to be almost omnipotent. Like other gods, Reynard is able to bestow upon a magician a boost of magic via absorption of his Essence, making them as powerful as a Master Magician. However, his divinity doesn't mean he is invincible, as he is able to be banished or killed by powerful spells, as well as other gods. Also, he is shown to be susceptible to The Beast's Paralysis spell, though he was fighting against the spell, and eventually would've broken free.
- Divine Physiology: As a Deity, Reynard possessed an unfathomable degree of physical and magical ability. He has since lost his divine magic as a result of his mother transferring his spark to Julia Wicker. By his own a admission, he is still a god, albeit a powerless one, that still requires extreme means to be killed.
Former Powers[]
Magic Manipulation: Reynard has shown to be above the capability of even Master Magicians, able to execute magic with slight movements. Reynard uses his magic as a natural extension of himself, able to inflict harm on others and invade and control humans minds. As a Trickster god, this usually manifests as a sadistic game of cat-and-mouse with the victim of his choosing, though he notably uses his magic for minor tasks, such as restraining and cornering his prey, while he maims them physically. He's capable of slaughtering a group of people in a matter of seconds and is currently inhabiting the body of Richard Corrigan, having killed him and devoured his heart. The limits of his abilities are not yet known, if there are any.
- Magic Augmentation: Reynard is able to boost a Magician's magic for a limited time to a level equal to Master Magicians.
- Possession: After killing Richard Corrigan, Reynard was able to possess his body to use as a vessel.
- Shapeshifting: Reynard could assume the form of others, such as when he appeared as Persephone to fool Julia Wicker.
- Invisibility: Reynard was able to conceal his presence from mortals, notably doing so to follow Marina Andrieski, revealing himself after she sealed her apartment from the inside with protective wards.
- "So they're following your orders now?"
"Have been for a while now. I controlled their minds." - ―John Gaines and Reynard the Fox
- Telepathic Compulsion: Reynard was easily able to project his thoughts into the minds of others and overpower their will, able to dismiss John Gaines' campaign party from Gaines' office with a single command.
- Enhanced Senses: Reynard possessed enhanced senses, allowing him to detect Quentin Coldwater hiding behind a tree while confronting Julia, and later track his son to the campus of Brakebills University due to the school's wards failing. Reynard can sense the inner workings of a human soul, as he was able to tell that Julia's Shade was missing, as well as to detect the presence of Alice Quinn within the Cacodemon Trap on Quentin's back.
- Prayer Tracking: Reynard was able to detect and intercept the prayers to Persephone, whom he masqueraded as to kill her followers. After Julia and Kady unmasked the presence of Dana, Reynard was able to quickly pick up her location.
Abilities[]
- Gifted Intelligence: Reynard is extremely cunning, to the point that, Martin Chatwin suggested to Julia to change her tactic for summoning Our Lady Underground, as he deduced that Reynard would recognize the workings of the ritual as being the same as the one performed by Free Trader Beowulf, and wouldn't fall for their trap. Reynard was able to utilize Martin Chatwin's paralysis technique on others after having it performed on him. He often uses his intelligence to fool mortals, ultimately to their demise.
Equipment[]
- Leo Blade: Reynard obtained the Leo Blade after Julia Wicker dropped it in Marina Andrieski's Apartment during her assassination attempt.
Relationships[]
Family[]
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Enemies[]
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Trivia[]
- Reynard The Fox is a legendary character found in a famous cycle of tales in Dutch, German, English and French during the medieval period, known for his cunning and for being one of the most important literary examples of the "trickster" archetype. In modern literature he is primarily known for being used in anti-Semitic propaganda, contributing to create a negative reputation to the character.
Appearances[]
Appearances of Reynard the Fox |
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In chronological order: |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Magicians: 2.06: The Cock Barrens
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Magicians: 2.09: Lesser Evils
- ↑ The Magicians: 1.13: Have You Brought Me Little Cakes?
- ↑ The Magicians: 2.05: Cheat Day
- ↑ The Magicians: 2.08: Word as Bond
- ↑ The Magicians: 2.11: The Rattening
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The Magicians: 2.12: Ramifications
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 The Magicians: 3.12: The Fillorian Candidate