Duke

Duke is one of the antagonists of the Original Series of The Dogs of the Spires.

Duke is a Solum dog with a mostly black coat with white markings on his chest and paws. He has golden yellow eyes and is missing most of his right ear. His tail is also missing as it had been cut off in order for him to become the Alpha of Ignum. He additionally possesses a full set of metal claws.

He was born to Lily and Charles at some point after the Three Packs War and before the events of First Light. His mother stepped down from the role of Alpha so that she could have more time to care for him, leaving Charles in charge of Solum. When Lily fled Solum after being discovered as unfaithful, Charles blamed Duke for her actions and neglected him afterward. Duke blamed Charles for all of the unfortunate events that followed, believing that it was Charles' fault that he turned out as he did.

When Step returned to the Spires, Duke attempted to get rid of him before he could become a threat to his plans to kill and overthrow Charles. This attempt resulted in Step trespassing in Caelum territory and served as the inciting incident that would lead to Duke's War. He was later infected with the Madness and severely damaged his right ear to hide the fact that he was infected. Due to this, his ear was determined to be unable to be salvaged and had to be amputated by Falcon.

After a failed attempt to take over Solum, Duke was forced out by Step, Brutus, and the rest of the pack. He nearly succumbed to the Madness after fleeing, but was saved by Ruth, who kept him alive until he was cured. Following this, he forcefully took over Ignum, turning the pack into an army that could rival the power of all the other packs put together. During his time as the Ignum Alpha, he unlocked the true potential of the channeling necklace and gained the ability to control azure fire, as well as trained a number of Ignum pups, including Alex, Milo, and Basil. He also received a prophecy from Prophet that mentioned the Spires being overrun with fire, which he interpreted as a sign of his victory.

Duke was killed during the final battle of his war after successfully killing Charles. Step was able to take the channeling necklace from Duke and threw him against a wall using his gift, ending his life.

Duke 's body was kept by Ruth following the end of the war, serving as a place for both her and Alex to honor him after death. Despite the many crimes that he committed, Duke is still referred to as the good Alpha by Basil and Alex.

Trivia

 * Duke was considered as a possible protagonist for First Light before Step was created.
 * Duke appears to have one of the most lasting legacies of any character, even though he was only alive for three books.
 * Duke is the first known character to use the channeling necklace to control azure fire.
 * Duke had originally been intended to die at the end of First Light and to be replaced by Guardian as the main antagonist. The same fate was intended for Delta, although their deaths were altered alongside the rewrite of Guardian's character.
 * Baron and King were both considered as possible names for Duke, but were ultimately discarded.
 * Duke and Guardian met during First Light, with Duke actually breaking his jaw during the brief scene in which they interacted, although Guardian remained unnamed until As Night Falls when he was referred to as Hawk and later as Nurse.