Adin

Adin was the first monarch and king of Deltora and the creator of the Belt of Deltora. He was once a blacksmith, living and working in the forge of Del, until the sinister Shadow Lord invaded Deltora. Adin made the fabled, magical Belt of Deltora, with which he united the tribes of the Land of Dragons, who then drove away the Shadow Lord's forces in the Battle for Deltora, while the magic power of the Belt drove the Shadow Lord itself away. After that, Adin was crowned as king of the united tribes of the renamed land of Deltora, named after each of the first letter of the names of the tribal talisman gems in the Belt. Adin lived about 1,000 years before the time of King Lief.

Early life
Adin's father, who had been blacksmith before him, was a great storyteller and told many stories of Adin's ancestors. These included the story of Silas the Strong who had built the forge, his ancestor Primus who died in a fierce border war with the Jalis, Adin's great-great-uncle who argued with his parents when he was sixteen and ran away to the Forests of Silence to never be seen again, and Opal the Dreamer. As a young boy Adin loved these stories.

Tales of Deltora
Adin was born in the city of Del, presumably to the city's blacksmith, who raised him to be his successor. Adin was a direct descendant of Opal, a Plains woman who had a clairvoyant ability that let her see into the future. Opal dreamed that one day the Shadow Lord would invade Deltora and that a "man of steel and fire" would one day unify Deltora and drive the darkness away. As an adult Adin wondered if he could possibly be the man Opal had spoken of, but dismissed it as nonsense.

The Belt of Deltora
Shortly after the Shadow Lord began his invasion of the Land of Dragons, Adin had a dream, night after night, similar to one his ancestor Opal had had, of the Shadow Lord's dark army and the land's salvation: the Belt of Deltora. Adin, filled with an overwhelming sense of destiny, decided that he should do as the dream had guided and created the Belt in his forge. He then secretly set out from Del to travel to the territories of the other six tribes, tell them of his dream and hopefully persuade them to add their talismans to his 'dream belt', thus uniting them against the Shadow Lord. To aid him in his quest, Adin also forged a sword.



The Jalis
Adin decided to go to the Jalis first, as he realised he would have to face them at some point, so he may as well visit them first. On his way to the city of Jaliad, Adin decided to stop for the night at a seemingly abandoned hut. However, it turned out that the hut was not abandoned at all, but belonged to Greel, a Jalis warrior and leader of his tribe.

Greel challenged Adin to a fight, and though Adin managed to hold Greel off for some time, he was eventually disarmed. His skill with the sword impressed Greel, who decided to take him to Jaliad to feast with his people before he was killed. At the feasting hall of Jaliad, Adin finally got to tell them his story about the Belt. Much to his surprise, Adin found that the Jalis not only listened to his story carefully, but believed it too. Adin was gobsmacked when the Jalis storyteller Tatti recited a Tenna Birdsong Tale named Opal the Dreamer, which was identical to the story Adin had been told as a child of his Plains ancestor. After the story was over, Greel announced that the Jalis believed Adin to be the saviour Opal had spoken of. The Jalis agreed to give Adin the Diamond and he parted with them on good terms, with Greel even giving Adin lessons in swordplay.

The Dread Gnomes
With the Diamond on his belt, Adin left the Jalis to enter the realm of Tora. He had high hopes of the Torans, and hoped they would understand his dream. However, no sooner as he had crossed the border, he felt cold pain in his mind. Despite using the Diamond's strength to reach the River Tor, the Torans' magic was too powerful and forced Adin all the way to Dread Mountain. Adin then decided to try and recruit the Dread Gnomes that lived there.

As Adin climbed Dread Mountain, he met the Dread Gnomes, who accosted him and made him remove the Belt and his weapons. They intended to use Adin as bait for a green beast that had been plaguing them, but the monster ambushed them and attacked the Dread Gnomes' leader, Az-Zure. Adin took action to stop the green beast, killing it with two arrows to the throat. For saving Az-Zure's life, the Dread Gnomes were very grateful, and they befriended Adin, adding the Emerald to the Belt of Deltora.

The Mere
The next stop on Adin's journey was the territory of the Mere. As he arrived in their capitol of Rithmere, he came upon a scene of civil unrest, in which the Mere peasants were clamouring loudly for the addressment of their grievances with their current leaders, Dorkin, Loosely, and Zillah. Adin stepped forward to request the aid of the Mere in completing the Belt of Deltora, but was taunted by the Mere until Zillah suggested a wager: If he could venture into the Shifting Sands and return with the head of a Sand Beast, the Mere would gladly hand over the Lapis Lazuli.

Accepting the bet, Adin ventured into the Shifting Sands. Shortly after entering, he was attacked by a Sand Beast, and only survived thanks to Greel's training. The monster was far too large and fierce to fight, but just as Adin thought he was done for, the Sand Beast was attacked by a Lapis Lazuli dragon, who killed and ate it. Said dragon was remarkably amicable to Adin, and gave him the uneaten head when asked. Upon his safe return, the Mere were surprised by Adin's survival, but Zillah admitted that he had won their wager, and gave him the Lapis Lazuli.

Returning to Del
Adin knew full well that asking his own people for the Topaz first would be insane. Thus, he decided to disguise himself, and use the pseudonym "Archer of Azzure", which he had been given as a title by the Dread Gnomes in gratitude for saving Az-Zure's life. He appeared to the people of Del in a cloak and helm to disguise his appearance, frightening many. However, as he slowly began to win over the people of Del, his cover was blown by Violet, who recognised him as the friendly blacksmith who played with her when he visited her family's bakery. Master Gabb, one of the leaders of the city council at the time, grew furious with Adin, calling him a "common, ignorant, dirty-faced blacksmith", but was met with disdain from the people of Del and from Adin, who explained that the disbelief of people like Gabb was precisely why he did not ask his own people for their gem first. He was given the Topaz in short order, and departed for the Plains to seek the fifth gem.

The Plains
As Adin ventured towards the city of Hira, the capital city of the Plains territory, he came across a river that he could not cross. However, a mysterious old couple in a boat rowed him over, and took him to their tiny house, where he spent the night and had a strange dream. When he awoke, the couple were nowhere to be seen, and the house was nothing but a decaying ruin infested by bees. Confused and surprised, Adin made his way towards Hira, where he discovered that due to the killer bees and the rumours of being haunted, not even the fearsome Greers were willing to pass near the ruin. Because he was able to sleep in the house, the masters of Hira listened to Adin's story, and willingly added the Opal to the Belt of Deltora.

The Ralad Wilds
As he prepared to venture into Ruby territory, Adin was warned by the people of the Plains that the Ralads were ignorant savages who had let their land go to ruin. However, he soon found this was not the case: rather than let their land be wild and untamed, the Ralads had taken advantage of their territory and used it to construct traps to defend themselves against unwanted intruders and Greers. However, the Shadow Army had already managed to make it part of the way through the Ralad Wilds and Adin soon arrived at a Greers camp in the ruins of what he believed was Raladin. He spied on them and their leaders, two humans named Wrass and Sheela, who willingly joined the ranks of the Shadow Army.

As he listened to the two discussing their master's plans, a ruby dragon swooped down and attacked the Greers. In the confusion, Adin was captured by the Ralads, who had sent the dragon, and was brought to the true town of Raladin. the other being a decoy town constructed by the Ralads in order to protect the original town. The Ralads explained to Adin that they knew who he was, and willingly gave him the great Ruby for the Belt of Deltora.

Second visit to Tora
With six gems now on the belt, Adin once again travelled to Tora to try and gain the great Amethyst. He found he was able to travel safely through their lands, and soon arrived at the marble city. Inside, he was greeted by the leaders of Tora and was allowed to plead his case. However, the Torans were unswayed by Adin's proposal, since Tora provided all that the people needed to live. Adin warned the Torans that the enemy would invade them sooner or later, but they countered that no evil could live within Tora, and that they did not care for the fate of those who chose to live in their territory.

After leaving Tora, Adin was followed by Zara, daughter of one of the city leaders. Zara pleaded with Adin that she agreed with his view on the land, even if the other Torans did not. Just then, an Ak-Baba flew overhead, but the city leaders created a magical fog to repel it. Zara's father chastised Adin for inspiring his daughter to leave the city, and requested that he leave their territory. Adin agreed, and departed for Hira, though he felt the tug of the great Amethyst until he left Tora's borders.

Battle for Deltora
When spring came and the snow melted, the Shadow Lord send a fresh army of Greers into the Land of Dragons to finish conquering the land. Adin knew their first target would be Hira, so he had the armies of all six tribes loyal to him gather within the city. On the night before the battle, he had the Ralads dig trenches around the battleground as a trap for the Greers to thin out their numbers.

On the day of battle, Adin commanded his forces from the walls of Hira. The Greers' commander, Trell, fell right into Adin's trap, resulting in over half of his army falling into the Ralad's trenches. They eventually filled up from the number of Greers, but their numbers were thinned so badly that Adin's combined army easily cut down the rest. However, the Shadow Lord used its magic to send in fresh reinforcements, along with the seven Ak-Baba and seven Vraal. Realising that their cause was lost, Adin descended from the walls of Hira and joined his army, while an opal dragon arrived to do battle with the Ak-Baba.

Somehow Adin found himself on the edge of the battle, were he was met by Zara and the Torans, who had finally come to pledge their loyalty to Adin. He added the great Amethyst to the belt, and together the seven gems created a magic strong enough to banish the Shadow Lord from the land, leaving the remnants of his army to die.

With all seven tribes united behind him, Adin was crowned king of the land, which was named Deltora after the first letter of each gem on the belt.

Later life
After Adin's coronation, Del was made into capital city of Deltora, and the land became peaceful and prosperous under Adin's rule. He ruled from the forge where he grew up, and eventually married Zara, thus binding the cities of Del and Tora together. They had five children together.

Adin kept the Belt with him always and never forgot that its power stemmed from the people of Deltora's faith in him. He taught this to his children and warned them that if the people ever lost their faith and trust, then the Belt's power would fail and the Shadow Lord would return. Adin wrote in the first volume of the Deltora Annals and presumably ordered for the other volumes to be written as well, so as to leave behind a detailed record of Deltora's history for future generations. Adin was also present, along with his wife Zara, when the Torans swore allegiance to Adin, promising to help him and his heirs should danger or treachery ever befall them.

Adin ruled long and wisely over Deltora, eventually dying peacefully of old age. His eldest child succeeded him as king or queen of Deltora and wore the Belt of Deltora as their father did.

Physical appearance
Adin had long dark brown hair, white skin and blue eyes. He was strong from having worked in the forge for most of his life.

Personality
Adin was a very brave and compassionate man, more than willing to risk his own life to protect others. He actively himself in harm's way to defend the Dread Gnome Az-Zure from a Green Beast, even after she had attempted to kill him, and cared deeply for the members of his army, even though members of the Jalis and Mere tribe had tried to execute him in one way or another.

Adin was a wise and thoughtful man, though also modest and sometimes doubtful about his role as the land's chosen savior. Adin's peers knew him to be an honest man of common sense, "with nothing fanciful about him". Adin was mostly a mellow, even-temprered man, but could become fierce when angered; his temper was usually revealed if he witnessed or experienced some kind of injustice. For example, Adin, for a brief moment, was overcome with hatred and was even willing to kill two human servants of the Shadow Lord, after discovering the seemingly destroyed Ralad village. He despised the servants for betraying Deltora and serving the Enemy. He also became angry when the Jalias mocked him and accused him and the people of Del of being "weaklings".

Adin was a good and just king, and was admired and respected by most of Deltora.

Abilities
Adin was a competent swordsman, able to hold his own against the chieftain of the Jalis for a considerable amount of time before being defeated. After training with the Jalis for a while, he was able to detect miniscule movements in battle, saving his life when he hunted a Terreocti in the Shifting Sands. He was also a skilled bowman, able to launch several arrows directly into a Green Beasts throat.

Adin was also adept in matters of diplomacy, as he was able to win over the people of Del and Hira to his cause without having to prove himself first.

Zara
Adin first met Zara when he went to Tora a second time to try and convince the Torans to give him the Amethyst and join his cause. Adin was instantly attracted to Zara, whilst Zara was equally fascinated by him. Zara was disturbed by what Adin had told her people of the Shadow Lord's invasion, which, along with her attraction to him, lead to her leaving the city with her brother, Shim, and his friend, Kayan, to find out more information. Zara, Kayan and Shim later used their magic to save Adin from an Ak-Baba, resulting in all three becoming gravely injured. Adin was very upset and deeply concerned for Zara's safety, fearing that she might be dead. He was greatly relieved when he later learned that she was alive. Zara presented Adin with the Amethyst and persuaded him to take it and unite all seven tribes at last, even though Adin now felt that it was pointless, as their army was being overwhelmed by the Shadow Lord's forces. After successfully defeating the Shadow Lord's armies and becoming king, Adin and Zara's feelings for each other blossomed into true love - she is described as being "the love of his life". They eventually married and Zara became Deltora's first queen, bearing Adin five children.

Greel
Adin met Greel by mistake, as he was making his way to the city of Jaliad, in order to convince the Jalis tribe to add their talisman, the Diamond, to the recently created Belt of Deltora. Adin however stumbled upon Greel when he noticed a seemingly abandoned hut, which he intended to use as shelter. However, Greel upon realising that Adin was present at his door, suddenly attacked Adin. Nevertheless, Adin displayed to Greel his fighting abilities, and Greel, impressed by Adin's skill, brought Adin to Jaliad. There Adin presented his case for a united Deltora to Greel and the other Jalis. It was however his story regarding his ancestor, Opal, that convinced the Jalis of his cause, persuaded in part due to Adin's story matching perfectly with the Tenna Birdsong tale known to all the Jalis. Greel thus presented to Adin, the great Diamond, and gave Adin some instruction in swordplay. The friendship between Adin and Greel, is the first recorded instance of friendship between any man of Del and the Jalis. During the Battle for Deltora, Greel personally led the Jalis warriors in defence of Hira, attacking the Greer flanks and several green beasts.

Az-Zure
Although Adin had attempted to gain the trust of the Torans, it was the Dread Gnomes that were the second tribe to add their great talisman to the belt, the Emerald. Az-Zure was the current leader of the Dread Gnomes during the time of Adin, and it was Adin's great heroics in saving Az-Zure's life from a ferocious green beast on Dread Mountain, that convinced her and the rest of the Dread Gnomes of Adin's intentions. Az-Zure had initially shown hostitlity towards Adin, much like Greel, however after she was attacked by the green beast and Adin help kill the monster, Az-Zure swore a life-debt to Adin. Az-Zure also granted Adin the title, Archer of Azzure, in gratitude for saving her life. During the Battle for Deltora, Az-Zure led the Dread Gnomes in firing their arrows from the walls of Hira into the lines of Greers and later, Ak-Baba, and some Dread Gnomes accompanied Mere horseman by firing their arrows from horseback. Towards the end of the battle, Az-Zure was among the first to see the Torans arriving.

Deltora Quest 1

 * The Forests of Silence (mentioned)
 * The Lake of Tears (mentioned)
 * City of the Rats (mentioned)
 * Dread Mountain (mentioned)
 * The Maze of the Beast (mentioned)
 * The Valley of the Lost (mentioned)
 * Return to Del (mentioned)

Deltora Quest 2

 * Cavern of The Fear (mentioned)
 * The Shadowlands (mentioned)

Deltora Quest 3

 * Dragon's Nest (mentioned)
 * Isle of the Dead (mentioned)
 * The Sister of the South (mentioned)

Other

 * Tales of Deltora (only actual appearance)
 * Secrets of Deltora (mentioned)
 * The Deltora Book of Monsters (mentioned)

Anime
Adin appears in flashbacks several times during the anime, and the story of how he united Deltora was told to Lief during the first few episodes. Strangely, when Adin is seen in flashback, he is shown living in the palace, even though in the books the palace was not built until many years after Adin's death.

When Lief places the gems in the correct order on the belt, a bright light shone from them and forms into a giant likeness of Adin that forces the Shadow Lord back to the Shadowlands.