Merrin is continuously looked down by DomDaniel who always expects him to do brilliant magic (thinking him to be Septimus), which he fails to do. As a whole, Merrin is an unhappy, nasty boy. He was once Consumed by DomDaniel and almost died but was Revived by Zelda. After DomDaniel is destroyed he became Simon's apprentice but ran away from the Badlands to take revenge on Septimus. He took a job in the Manuscriptorium and joined hands with a ghost, Tertius Fume, to send Septimus on a deadly Queste. He is the main villain in Darke and wears the Two-Faced ring only to have his thumb chopped off and him reunited with his mother. Stanley (Rat 101) Stanley is an ex-Secret Service Message rat. His association with the Heaps began in Magyk when he was sent by Sarah to give a message to Silas in the Marshes. From then onwards circumstance had it that Stanley became involved in the adventures of Septimus and his friends. This led to his separation from his wife Dawnie, who went to live with her sister. At present, Stanley is working to set up the Secret Service Message agency again by taking Jenna's permission. Stanley adopted 4 baby ratlets he found on the long walk and claims that he will love them 100 times more than he will ever love Dawnie. Jenna returned from the island of the Syren with rats available for employment. The rats were aboard the Cerys. Queen Etheldredda The Substantial Spirit of an ancient queen with a history of filicide, Etheldredda wreaks havoc on the Castle when her spirit is accidentally released by Silas in Physik. Etheldredda, being an ancient queen is described having the typical dressing sense and looks of a somewhat Renessaince period. Etheldredda was a tyrannical ruler during her rule. Having already murdered her two unnamed twin daughters, she was on the verge of killing her daughter Esmeralda, who was the successor to the throne, when she was thwarted by Septimus and the others back in time in Physik. After getting released, Etheldredda makes a plan to kill Jenna and reclaim her throne again. Marcia defeats her and destroys her forever with help from Snorri Snorrlesson and her father Olaf. Katie Dickinson of Waterstones was impressed by the character and said that "Queen Etheldredda leaves you shivering". Rebecca of Fantasy Literature said that Etheldredda is quite an unnerving