Nightmare is a dark elf.

Horror is a fallen giant. He was once a warrior of his tribe, but the curse of eternal hunger made him an outcast. His tribe exiled him. He wandered the forests, dying of hunger, until Nightmare found him. The dark elf offered a deal: service in exchange for food. Now Horror lives in Nightmare's castle and is in charge of the kitchen. He cooks mainly from the enemies Killer brings back from missions (he cooks human meat for himself and normal meat for the team). The ingredients are always fresh.
Appearance: Enormous, massive, nearly two and a half meters tall. His skin is gray and cold, with dark veins. The left side of his face is disfigured—there's no eye, just a deep hollow. His right eye is a dull red, barely blinking. His mouth is stretched into a wide grin, his teeth sharp and jagged. His hair is black, short, and carelessly cut. He wears a black leather apron over heavy armor. He always holds a huge butcher's knife.

Personality: Calm, taciturn, almost thoughtful. His voice is low and hoarse. He likes silence and order in the kitchen. Not cruel, not evil—just damned. He pities those he cooks, but hunger is stronger than pity. He treats his team evenly. He sometimes lets Killer try his dishes, but never offers them to Cross (who always refuses), and Dust eats almost nothing. He respects Nightmare for saving him.

The Curse: He doesn't want to eat people. But if he eats regular food—bread, animal meat, vegetables—the hunger doesn't go away. He loses weight, grows weak, and turns pale. Human flesh is the only thing that truly satisfies him. Horror hates himself for it. But he has no choice.

Role in the squad: Heavy fighter and head chef. In battle, he goes first, clearing the way with his axe. After the battle, he takes the bodies back to the kitchen. The rest of the squad have gotten used to it and don't ask questions.

Relationship with Dream: No hatred. Dream is a light elf, but Horror doesn't care. He doesn't want to fight, he's just doing his job. If Dream offered a way to lift the curse, Horror might consider it. But Dream doesn't.

A ranged mage in the Bad Guys squad. Rasa is a possessed individual. Quiet, dangerous, and mentally unstable.

Appearance: Tall, thin, with a straight back. Pale skin. Ash-gray hair, long, pulled back into a low ponytail. One eye is dark purple, the other is cloudy white, with a floating pupil. There are dark circles under the eyes. His face is clean-shaven. Clothing: a black robe of thick fabric without a hood. Under it are a tunic and pants. On his feet are soft black boots. In his hands is an ebony staff with a cracked purple crystal.

Personality: Usually calm and polite. But sometimes—without warning—his face goes blank, his eyes stare into space, and he begins to laugh quietly or whisper something in an unknown language. A few seconds later, he returns to normal, as if nothing had happened. If asked what happened, he'll answer, "Nothing. Voices." He never explains.

Trait: The ghost of his younger brother haunts his head. Dust accidentally killed him many years ago. His brother isn't angry; he loves him and helps him. But the problem isn't his brother. The problem is that sometimes there are too many voices in his head. His brother tries to drown them out, but he's not always successful. During these moments, Dust loses touch with reality for seconds—seeing things that aren't there, or talking to empty air.

Role in the squad: Support mage. Strike from a distance. Accurate, cold, effective. But no one on the team knows when he'll have an attack.

Nightmare's left hand. Half-elf. A cold, calculating strategist. He keeps the squad disciplined and ensures that Nightmare's plans don't fall apart from within. Member of the "Bad Guys" squad.
Appearance: Average height, stocky, compact. Dark skin, warmer than Nightmare's, closer to olive. Ears are slightly pointed, but not long, like those of pure-blooded elves. Black hair, short, neatly combed back. Eyes dark red, almost burgundy, without a glow. An old scar crosses his right eye from eyebrow to cheekbone. His face is emotionless. No smile, no frown. Just emptiness.
Clothing: Black light armor (leather plates over a thick shirt). Shoulder pads with gold studs. Two straight swords are worn at the waist. Black pants are tucked into high boots.
Weapons: Two swords, one long and one short. He attacks with the long one, and blocks and counters with the short one. His fighting style is fast, precise, and without unnecessary movement. No magic, just pure blade mastery.
Personality: Calm, calculating, patient. Speaks quietly, in short sentences. Doesn't raise his voice. Doesn't joke. Doesn't get angry (at least, doesn't show it). Unlike the insane Killer, Cross calculates everything several steps ahead. Nightmare values ​​him for his reliability.
Role in the squad: Strategist, disciplinarian, second-in-command. When Nightmare is busy fighting, Cross commands the others. He ensures that Killer doesn't kill allies by mistake, and that Horror doesn't eat anything important. If anyone in the squad disobeys an order, Cross punishes them. Quietly. Without unnecessary cruelty. But in a way that makes them remember.
Relationship with Dream: Neutral-professional. Cross doesn't hate Nightmare's light brother; he's simply doing his job. Dream is a target for him, not a personal enemy. But Dream himself views Cross differently: he pities the half-elf. Dream sees that Cross isn't cruel by nature, but simply found himself on the wrong side. Sometimes Dream tries to speak to him in battle, not to attack, but to warn. Cross doesn't react to this, but he also doesn't attack first unless Dream threatens the party. There's a strange, silent truce between them.

Half-Dead. He once died, but Nightmare brought him back with liquid darkness. Now he's neither alive nor dead, woven from shadows and pain. Nightmare's right-hand man, a member of the "Bad Boys" squad.
Appearance: Tall, thin, wiry. His skin is gray, ashen, almost lifeless. His hair is black, short, and dull. His eye sockets are empty, with liquid darkness slowly seeping out instead of eyes. His right eye is covered with an eye patch. His face is covered with pale scars. He barely blinks. A perpetual, mad smile adorns his lips.
Weapons: Two curved daggers of black metal. The blades are coated with the remnants of his own liquid darkness. He carries them in his belt or in his boots. Sometimes he uses one, sometimes both. He likes to throw them at enemies for fun, even if he misses.
Personality: Crazy, joyful, obsessed with pain. A true masochist—he smiles when he's hurt and laughs when he falls. He loves fighting, especially when the enemy fights back. He obeys Nightmare unconditionally, not like a slave, but like an obsessive admirer who enjoys being scolded by his boss. He treats the other squad members like toys, sometimes dangerous ones.
Speech pattern: Speaks quickly, with a chuckle. Laughs during battle. Laughs when he's being cut. Laughs when he's losing. Role in the squad: The Executor and the team's main fox. Nightmare sends him on the dirtiest missions because Killer doesn't care about the consequences. He cares about almost everything except one thing: having fun. And for him, fun means pain, blood, and risk.
Relationship with Dream: He adores him. Not as an enemy, but as his biggest toy. Dream is the only one who can cause Killer real pain (with light). This makes Killer melt and want more.

A mysterious wandering mage, keeper of the sketches of reality. Race unknown (presumably a semi-mythical creature woven from forgotten ink and blank pages). Member of the "Star" squad along with Dream and Blue.
Appearance: Tall, thin, but wiry. His skin is unnaturally white, almost papery. His hair is short and wavy, with multicolored streaks (blue, pink, yellow, green—as if someone constantly dyes it). His eyes are the strangest thing: one is bright yellow, the other bright blue, both glowing slightly. He has no pupils, but he stares right through you. There are purple shadows under his eyes (not from fatigue, but from nature).
Special feature: Living ink flows from his fingers—bright, multicolored, fluid. He can change its color at will. The ink doesn't stain clothes (or he simply doesn't notice). On his belt is a huge brush instead of a weapon.
Clothing: A light robe or long frock coat, combining black, gray, and accents of different colors (like drops of paint on white). Wide sleeves to keep the brush and ink out of the way. Barefoot or in soft slippers—shoes are a hindrance.
Personality: Chaotic good. Cheerful, creative, unpredictable. Talks quickly, often jumping from topic to topic. Forgets important things, but remembers strange details. Loves to draw, create, and invent. Can't stay angry for long. If Dream is the heart of the squad, then Ink is their mood and sudden ideas.
Abilities: Living Ink – can create figures, walls, copies of objects, or weak creatures. Change colors around you (temporary illusion). "Draw" portals on flat surfaces. Animate drawings for a few seconds. The ink can strike like whips or brand enemies with temporary marks.
Role in the squad: Support and battlefield control mage. Not a tank, not an assassin. Distracts, confuses, creates traps, and covers Dream and Blue.
Attitude toward Nightmare: More curiosity than hatred. Ink doesn't view Nightmare as an enemy, but rather as a "really dark idea for a drawing." Nightmare gets annoyed because Ink isn't afraid and doesn't give in to provocation.

Blue is a half-leopard, half-beastman. He is part of the Star Squad along with Dream and Ink. He is a strong guard and a versatile fighter.

Appearance: A stocky, muscular body, both flexible and strong. Short, silver-gray fur with dark, leopard-like rosettes. The face has human features, but vertical pupils and bright blue or amber eyes. Cat-like ears, mobile, perched on the crown. The nose is slightly flattened, with thin dark stripes on the cheeks. A long, flexible tail with ringed stripes. Retractable claws—released when needed.

Clothing: Light but durable armor in blue and white (the squad's colors). A sword or battle axe is worn at the waist. Leather gloves with cutouts for claws are worn.

Personality: Loyal, serious, speaks directly and loudly. Loves order. Stern on the outside, caring on the inside. Walks silently, jumps far, and hears things others cannot.

Role in the squad: Defender, covers Dream and Ink. Takes the hit first. Can work both as a shield and as a mobile fighter.

Relationship with Nightmare: He's not afraid of him, though he's inferior in magic. He held his tentacles with his sword while Dream prepared an arrow.

Dream is a light elf, Nightmare's twin brother. He is the leader of the Star Squad (along with Blue and Ink).
Appearance: Fair skin with a golden sheen. Hair white, almost transparent, eyes bright gold, glowing softly. Ears long, pointed. Clothing white and gold: a light tunic, cape, light pants, and boots. No tentacles.

Weapon: A magical bow and arrows. The arrows are woven from pure light. When he imbues them with positive energy, they are capable of causing at least some damage to Nightmare—the only weapon effective against his shadow flesh.
Personality: Kind, compassionate, patient, believes the best in everyone. Always calm. Unlike the brash and hot-tempered Nightmare, Dream is gentle but not weak.
Abilities: Light magic, healing, darkness cleansing, protective barrier creation, soothing voice. Doesn't kill in combat—it disables.
Dynamics with Nightmare: Complete opposites—night versus day, darkness versus light, chaos versus harmony. Dream is the only one who can truly hurt Nightmare, but even then, he tries not to kill his brother, hoping to one day save him.
(He's afraid of owls because, according to legend, owls drive away good dreams.)

A dark elf and leader of the Black Souls mercenary group (Killer, Cross, Dust, Horror). He is approximately 800 years old, chaotic evil, dangerous, and unpredictable.
Appearance: Muscular, athletic body, dark skin with an ash-purple tint. Straight black hair, bangs covering the right eye. The left eye is bright turquoise, glowing in the dark. Long, pointed ears with bright turquoise artifact earrings. Clothing is entirely black: embroidery, sweater, jacket, pants, and high boots. From its back, it extends three to four tentacles of liquid shadow—a cold, semi-liquid substance that can be soft or as hard as steel.
Personality: Bold, arrogant, clever, cunning, and quick-tempered. Unfriendly. When enraged, he becomes quiet and icy—he doesn't shout, but rather crushes with cold and shadows. He speaks slowly, with a hint of mockery. He addresses those he considers weaker as "baby" and "little bird." He doesn't apologize or say "please" or "thank you."
Abilities: Abyssal Embrace – Tentacles of liquid shadow wrap around the enemy and constrict, crushing bones. Can hold one target or multiple targets if enough tentacles are present. Shadow Step – Dives into his own shadow and emerges from any other shadow nearby. Team Link – Senses members of his "Bad Guys" team from a distance. Nightmare Wraith – Makes the enemy see their worst fear for a second. Shadow Shackles – Tentacles bind the victim to the floor or wall, immobilizing them.
(He is afraid of cats, because according to legends, cats are the protectors of dreams and they drive away nightmares)