Who and What is Plintheus Morticum?

Plintheus Morticum the First, otherwise referred to as General Morticum or My Lord, is the leader and guardian of a race of sentient rodent-type creatures known as the Griny-Plinth.

He lives in the Griny-Plinth burrow (which was constructed around and on top of an ancient burial mound) past the river Eridanus on the magical continent of Thosea. He has a long-standing hatred of humans, although he used to be one himself, and has made it his life’s goal to protect and defend the Griny-Plinth race by teaching them to make war on any human that wanders into their territory. He also makes repeated efforts to infiltrate and spy on the Kendra convent on the opposite side of the river, without success.

Though he thinks of himself as a great and educated war-lord, Plintheus has a soft spot for luxury and the finer things in life. His claws are covered in gold and he likes to wear silk dressing-gowns, which looks odd given the fact he is a talking lion walking on his hind-legs!

General Morticum was once the half-human child of a nefarious Witch who controlled every aspect of his life and treated him like a servant and test subject. As he broke away and ran from her at last, she cast a spell which changed him into leonine shape. He wandered lost for some time, becoming dangerously ill before ending up at the Griny-Plinth barrow, where the Griny-Plinth took care of him and raised him.

A little subtext for you here: there is an undercurrent of forbidden – unrequited – love for Plintheus in Captain Rossa’s heart, though they were of different species. More about Captain Rossa next week.

To find out more about Plintheus and his unfortunate fate, read “A Dark Heritage”, the first tome of the Nighthunter series.