Prandine

Prandine was a Grade 3 Ol who was disguised as the chief advisor for King Alton and later King Endon but secretly served the Shadow Lord.

History
Prandine was the chief advisor under King Alton, having held the position since Prince Endon and Jarred were young boys. Prandine crowned Endon King of Deltora after Alton's death, placing the Belt of Deltora around the boy’s waist. When Jarred confronted Endon after reading The Belt of Deltora, insisting that he put on the Belt immediately despite the Rule, Prandine confronted him, calling Jarred a traitor. Prandine called for the guards, driving Jarred from the palace, and eventually received word that the boy had drowned.

In the seven years following Endon's coronation, Prandine selected a wife for the king, Sharn. It is implied that Prandine orchestrated Min's death, as the old nurse had tried to warn Endon of the evil in the palace. On the night that the Belt of Deltora was destroyed, Prandine confronted Jarred, Endon and Sharn, admitting that the Ol had been responsible for the deaths of Endon's parents. Prandine gloated, explaining how the chief advisors had weakened the royal family for generations. As Prandine was talking, Sharn tricked Prandine into thinking that she had seen something outside the tower and when Prandine went to the window to see for itself, the queen pushed it from the tower to his death.

The Forests of Silence
Endon and Barda managed to discern where the gems from the Belt of Deltora had been hidden partly because of Prandine; the Ol had told Endon that the gems were hidden in places where no one would dare search for them. Endon and Barda learned from travellers that Ak-Baba were seen flying above seven of the most dangerous places in Deltora, ideal places to hide the gems.

Dread Mountain
Endon mistook Fallow for Prandine because of their identical appearance, though Fallow corrected him, revealing that the Ol had taken Prandine's form because the Shadow Lord wanted him to. Fallow indicated that the Shadow Lord did not know the exact circumstances surrounding Prandine's death; while it was clear Prandine had fallen to his death, Fallow did not know who had caused the fall.

Return to Del
Recalling what he had heard Fallow say, Lief realised that Fallow and Prandine were both Grade 3 Ols. Lief recalled that Prandine had died from a fall, leading him to conclude that Grade 3 Ols could be killed in the same way as any human.

Dragon's Nest
Prandine's conversation with the Shadow Lord immediately after Endon's crowning was recorded by the Shadow Lord's crystal and a small bit of that conversation was spat out by the crystal as it was being destroyed.

Physical appearance
Prandine's chosen form was that of a tall, bony, thin, sour-faced man, the Shadow Lord's preferred shape. His arms were long and bony and his mouth was thin. Prandine wore long robes – their colours varied, including black and purple – and resembled a bird of prey when the Ol walked. As an Ol, Prandine could potentially take any form it wished, ranging from any living to nonliving things.

Personality
Prandine initially maintained the air of a serious, grumpy man, but one who was loyal to the Rule and the King of Deltora. In truth, Prandine was a cold, cruel individual with unshakeable loyalty to the Shadow Lord. Prandine took great pleasure in doing his master's bidding and manipulated the royal family's trust in it. Prandine looked down on Endon and Sharn as being spineless and foolish, though that arrogance ultimately led to Prandine's death, as the Ol underestimated Sharn.

Abilities
Prandine was a Grade 3 Ol, capable of shapeshifting perfectly into any form the Ol wished, including inanimate objects, allowing it to be the perfect spy for the Shadow Lord. Prandine was an expert liar and deceiver, maintaining the same control over the royal family as all the chief advisors before it. He also had a small degree of magic, as he was able to heat Jarred's sword when he tried to stab Prandine.

As a servant of the Shadow Lord Prandine could not directly touch the Belt of Deltora and was very careful around it as a result. As a Grade 3 Ol in the form of a human, Prandine could die in the same way as a human and was ultimately killed by falling from the palace's highest tower.

Possessions
Prandine owned a large collection of differently coloured robes. The Ol also owned a poisoned knife, which it claimed could kill with even the smallest scratch. Prandine used this knife to murder King Alton and his wife. It is possible the poison on this knife was from Gellick, another servant of the Shadow Lord, though if so, it used a more diluted form on King Alton and his wife, as this poison kills instantly.

Deltora Quest 1

 * The Forests of Silence
 * Dread Mountain (mentioned)
 * Return to Del

Deltora Quest 3

 * Dragon's Nest

Supplementary books

 * The Deltora Book of Monsters

Anime
When inside Thaegan's Mirror of Fear, Pik and Snik transformed into a copy of Prandine. They dueled with Barda while taunting him about his mother's death until Thaegan told them to offer Barda a trade of his life for Lief's.

During the battle of Del, Barda mistook Fallow for Prandine and battled with him to get revenge for the death of his mother.