Dust World characters

Also known as McGill

Appears from the start

A repeatedly revived Legion Varus veteran who feels displaced during shore leave. As Earth enters an economic crisis after losing its alien contracts, he leaves civilian life behind and returns to the legion.

Appears from the start

A returning member of James McGill's unit and one of the former comrades McGill seeks during shore leave. His connection to the legion makes him part of McGill's route back into military service.

First appears in chapter 3

The commander of McGill's Legion Varus cohort. She briefs the troops on a secret mission to expand Earth's territory and insists that the legion answer its damaged reputation through action rather than publicity.

Also known as Harris

First appears in chapter 3

A stern Legion Varus noncommissioned leader present at the briefing for the legion's secret deployment. He acts as a disciplinarian and displays open hostility toward James McGill and Carlos.

First appears in chapter 4

A returning Legion Varus soldier and former intimate partner of James McGill. She reunites with him after both pass the hegemony's harsh screening, though their assignments may place them in different specialties.

Also known as Natasha

First appears in chapter 4

A returning Legion Varus technical specialist and former intimate partner of James McGill. During the mission briefing, she identifies the historical Hydra Project behind the lost human settlement.

Also known as Graves

First appears in chapter 4

A Legion Varus officer who briefs the troops aboard Corvus. He explains that their destination is a long-isolated human colony in Zeta Herculis and that the mission may require force as well as assistance.

First appears in chapter 5

An experienced Legion Varus weapons specialist assigned to train James McGill after his transfer into heavy armor. He coaches McGill in handling the plasma cannon and the demands of his new battlefield role.

First appears in chapter 6

James McGill's direct Legion Varus officer during the emergency aboard Corvus. He redeploys troops away from a congested bridge approach as the legion organizes its response to the alien boarding.

Also known as Drusus

First appears in chapter 9

The overall commander of Legion Varus during the crisis aboard Corvus. His command faces a sabotaged ship on a fatal course toward Zeta Herculis while the fate of the human colony remains unknown.

Also known as Grant

First appears in chapter 10

A Legion Varus bio specialist associated with the force's revival capability. James McGill considers whether her expertise could reconstruct members of the dead Skrull crew, though legal and technical barriers make the idea impractical.

First appears in chapter 11

A Legion Varus officer present at the landing briefing after Corvus is abandoned. Toro questions why personnel were left aboard the doomed ship while the legion evacuates to Dust World.

First appears in chapter 12

The point man in Adjunct Leeson's squad during its first survey of the crater lake. He scouts an unfamiliar environment where the legion must identify water, food, local hazards, and signs of the lost colonists.

First appears in chapter 13

A leader among the armed crater colonists who confront James McGill during his attempt at peaceful contact. Believing he is connected to their cephalopod enemies, she kills him after a nanite weapon invades his body.

First appears in chapter 13

A hostile crater colonist who argues that James McGill should be killed during first contact. He fires a sophisticated nanite bolt that penetrates McGill's protection and leaves him facing a lethal internal attack.

First appears in chapter 21

A Legion Varus soldier assigned to reconnoiter the shielded enemy ship with James McGill, Carlos, and Kivi. Humanoid trackers capture the entire team, and Hudson is carried away alive when the others die.

Also known as Hydra's principal investigator

First appears in chapter 23

The scientist who leads the hidden Hydra colony from within its dismantled colony ship. He receives James McGill, studies the legion's revival system, and considers cooperation against the forces abducting his people.

First appears in chapter 27

A Legion Varus soldier on the small team searching the colonists' tunnels for an approach to the enemy ship. He joins Veteran Harris, Kivi, and James McGill on a mission constrained by a strict time limit.

Also known as Alders

First appears in chapter 29

The leader of a Hydra scout team encountered during Legion Varus's assault on the grounded enemy vessel. He agrees to bring six colonist fighters into the operation and guide the legion through the ship.

Also known as Xlur

First appears in chapter 36

A Galactic official present when the Nairb hearing initially sentences every legionnaire and colonist to permanent self-execution. Although James McGill recognizes him from earlier encounters, Xlur does not recognize McGill.