By Kayla Matt
Selenia Hamilton is the founder and headmistress of Hamilton Military Academy. She is an ex-mercenary and a very stern figure in Beginning of a Hero. The most obvious role for her is as a mentor for Luke and as a minor obstacle since he is trying to keep his mission a secret from her. In later books, their relationship changes, which is part of their shared themes.
Student to Equal
At the beginning, Luke is the student and Selenia is the mentor who is trying to help him mature. They butt heads and he gets in trouble instead of it being smooth sailing. As he leaves and finds himself occasionally returning, Selenia slowly treats him different. There will always be a sternness, but one can use her reactions to him to gauge his growth. It even becomes evident that Luke cares a lot about getting praise from Selenia because she is a well-respected figure among warriors. Her presence shows how a student/mentor relationship can evolve even when apart.
Paving Warrior Women Way
The above picture is remarkable close to what Selenia looks like. She is calloused, toned, and not very feminine looking. Due to her elven blood, she moves with grace and agility, but she’s rather plain and weathered. In fact, most female warriors from her generation that you meet are going to have the same ‘butch’ (as one person put it) look. This is because they are from the earlier generation of female mercenaries who did more than magic and range weapons. Having to gain respect from stronger men, Selenia did make herself a bit more manly than characters like Sari, Kira Grasdon, and Kellia. It gets hinted at or told flat out that the efforts of Selenia and those like her are why there is a lot more respect for female warriors. This is actually an unintentional theme because the ones that appeared in the series all had some level of trauma. The old male warriors too, but I’ve noticed that people seem to pick up on when a female character is in this state more than the males.
Retirement Option
Selenia is one of the few adventurers or mercenaries who made it to retirement without being insane or barely able to physically function. Disasters befell her during her battle days, but she stands as an example of what the young heroes of the story can do if they make it to the end. Many times Luke, Nyx, and the others will wonder what happens after their final battle. Do they settle down or spend the rest of their life seeking another adventure? Selenia stands as the option of being a mentor and trainer to future generations. For any who wish to pass their knowledge on, she is the character for them to emulate.
Legends of Windemere 
Every time I read one of these posts, I realise how little I actually know about your work. However… it sounds amazing, I love the imagery and you can bet that she is not someone that I would mess with! 🙂
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Nope. She’s one of the dangerous characters. I don’t get to use her enough though since she’s also location specific.
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Warrior Woman as plain, calloused and weathered..love the description..weathered. That’s spot on. I should have used that to describe Jan…dang.
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Not too lot, is it?
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I really like that your series has many strong female characters. They aren’t damsels in distress, but highly motivated, skilled warriors and adventurous.
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Yeah. Though they do have moments of needing rescuing. Then again, the guys need that too every now and again. I think Nyx still holds the record for rescues among the heroes. Luke holds the record for needing rescue.
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But that’s real. We all need each other 🙂
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Very well put. 😀
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Selenia is a well-realized character. It makes sense that she would veer toward the masculine side, since her profession is traditionally masculine. She’s had so many battles, so weathered is good. That means she’s good.
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I like how younger female warriors are going to look and act less masculine, so it turns Selenia into a trailblazer too.
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I’d like to train with her. I could lose my bum and learn to whoop some arse.
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Unless you incorporate your bum into your fighting style. 🙂
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I am trained in booty warfare
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Flying derriere attack!
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Cheeky aren’t I
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We wouldn’t have you any other way.
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