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Character guide · first on-page appearance: Red Rising
Who is Tactus au Rath?
Tactus au Rath is a House Diana student who later joins Darrow’s army. He is a skilled fighter, but his cruelty and desire for recognition make him a difficult ally to trust.
Current status
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Alive
Deceased
Deceased
Deceased
Deceased
Deceased
Appearance and personality
Tactus is lean and wiry, with dark honey-brown skin, high cheekbones and bronze hair spiked with sap and red berry juice. He threatens and mocks people, including members of his own House. He craves recognition and resents taking orders.[1]
Attributes and abilities
Tactus is a capable fighter and infiltrator. He spots concealed tracks, takes part in Sevro’s infiltration and helps the army enter a fortress through its latrine. His usefulness makes some soldiers willing to overlook behavior Darrow cannot accept.[1]
History
Book 1
Red Rising
Tactus helps deliver Diana into defeat, but Darrow refuses to reward demonstrated betrayal with immediate freedom. Later, his attempted rape of Nyla forces Darrow to choose between enforcing the army’s law and keeping a useful group of followers satisfied.
Darrow has Tactus whipped, then takes lashes himself because he is responsible for the army. Tactus is surprised that Darrow will punish him while still offering him a place among his followers. He pledges his loyalty and helps with the next infiltration.[1]
Book 2
Golden Son
Tactus serves with Darrow’s Lancers, mixing military courage with cruelty, drug use and mockery. He fights during the gala escape, but later takes the captive Lysander and returns him to the Sovereign. Darrow’s trust has become another opportunity for him to seek a more powerful protector.
On Europa, Tactus arrives with Aja and takes Lorn’s family hostage. He admits to Darrow that he wants to escape his shadow. Darrow forgives him, and Tactus releases the children and drops his weapon. Lorn then kills him.
Roque later tells Darrow that Tactus secretly kept and played the Stradivarian he gave him. Darrow had thought the gift meant nothing to him. Lorn eventually admits that killing Tactus was a mistake.[2]
Book 4
Iron Gold
Darrow confronts Apollonius about abusing Tactus as a child and destroying his violin. He sees more of the family cruelty Tactus grew up with.[3]
Book 6
Light Bringer
Darrow and Cassius visit the place on Europa where Tactus died and remember the friend they lost.[4]
Relationships
Darrow
Darrow punishes Tactus for attacking Nyla, then takes lashes himself as the army’s commander. Tactus is startled by his willingness to share the pain and begins to follow him.[5]
Tactus betrays Darrow, then accepts his forgiveness on Europa and releases the hostages. Lorn kills him before they can rebuild their friendship.[6]
Roque au Fabii
Roque knows Tactus kept playing Darrow’s gift in private. He tells Darrow after Tactus dies, helping him understand that the gift mattered.[7]
Lorn au Arcos
Tactus threatens Lorn’s family. Lorn kills him even after he releases the children and surrenders. He later tells Darrow he should not have done it.[8]
Apollonius au Valii-Rath
Apollonius bullied Tactus as a child and destroyed his violin. Darrow confronts him about that cruelty.[3]
References
- Red Rising, chapters 30, 32, 36–38. ↩1 ↩2 ↩3
- Golden Son, chapters 1, 5–6, 10, 12–13, 17–20, 29, 32, 34, 36. ↩
- Iron Gold, chapters 34, 46. ↩1 ↩2
- Light Bringer, chapters 77. ↩
- Red Rising, chapters 36–38. ↩
- Golden Son, chapters 19–20, 29. ↩
- Golden Son, chapters 32. ↩
- Golden Son, chapters 29, 36. ↩