Numinator

The Numinator is an as yet unseen character in Ian Irvine's The Well of Echoes quartet. All that is known about the Numinator is that they are an extremely powerful mancer who guards their power and secrecy ruthlessly and has little regard for humanity. It is known that they inhabit the Isle of Noom in the frozen sea of Kara Agel, far to the south of Santhenar.

The Council of Santhenar was once in control of Santhenar, but when the war with the lyrinx began, it struggled to create a united front against the enemy, so the shadowy Numinator stepped in.

The Numinator battled and killed many mancers and eventually usurped control of Santhenar. The surviving mancers were formed into the modern Council of Scrutators and the Numinator set down the rules in which the world was to be run. How much the Numinator influences the daily actions of the Council is unknown. It was revealed in a blurb for the latest novel "The Curse on the Chosen", that the Numinator is female. Some Scrutators think "The Numinator" stands for "The Numinous One".

The Council sometimes chafed under the rule of the Numinator, but those who rebelled were always taught a painful, brutal lesson.

The identity of the character, sometimes speculated to be a familiar face from the previous books, has been carefully guarded. As yet, the only possibility that Mr. Irvine has deigned to deny is that Yggur the sorcerer is not the Numinator, however certain events that happened in the series 'The View from the Mirror' have lead some readers to believe that the Numinator is in fact the triune Maigraith. The fact that the Council kept meticulous records of births and lineage is the major keystone to this speculation, as Maigraith was pregnant with Rulke's child, and so would wish to keep track of the surviving Charon blood on Senthenar. Maigraith would also have little regard for humanity since it was humanity (Llian) who killed Rulke, and being part Faellem and part Charon, would be long lived enough to still be on Santhenar after the Lyrinx war, even without renewal.