Geryon
Geryon is the protagonist, and a young boy when first introduced. The book spans his childhood through his early adulthood. His character is inspired by the traditional Greek story of Geryon, a winged monster. This version of Geryon is a lonely, introspective boy who conceals his wings, fears his own monstrosity, and wants to be loved and understood.
Geryon's brother
Geryon’s older brother takes advantage of Geryon’s innocence and betrays his trust, sexually abusing Geryon as a child. He makes Geryon's home environment unbearable.
Geryon's mother
Geryon’s mother is affectionate, but negligent in the ways that matter; wrapped up in her own problems, she doesn’t protect Geryon from his brother’s abuse. Geryon adores her as a young child, but one she fails to protect him, he pulls away from her as a teenager.
Herakles
Herakles is Geryon’s first lover as a young man. He has a brash and bright personality. While Geryon is introverted and insecure, Herakles is loudly extroverted, and Geryon loves him but doesn’t feel understood by him. Herakles gently pushes Geryon away, saying that they will “always be friends,” and so breaking Geryon’s heart. When they reunite years later, Geryon learns that Herakles has a new lover. Geryon is still drawn to Herakles, but that love is mixed with wariness and hurt.
Ancash
Ancash is Herakles' new lover. He is a gentle soul, “a man as beautiful as a live feather,” and despite his and Geryon’s competition for Herakles’ affection, they sometimes share an unspoken kinship in the face of Herakles’ alienating brashness.
Herakles’ Grandmother
She lives with Herakles’ family in Hades and was a photographer whose photo of a volcano titled “Red Patience” Geryon finds both magnetizing and disturbing. She accompanies Herakles and Geryon on a visit to the volcano she photographed.
Ancash’s Mother
She is a quiet Peruvian woman who lives on the rooftop of her employer’s house, and whose favorite place in the world is her makeshift greenhouse where she grows marijuana for selling and herbs for cooking. She accompanies Geryon, Ancash, and Herakles on their road trip to the high Andes to see a volcano.
Lazer
Lazer is a philosopher who Geryon meets briefly at dinner one evening in Buenos Aires, and with whom he talks about distance, and Lazer's daughter.
Yellowbeard
"Yellowbeard" is what Geyron calls an unnamed philosophy professor from Irvine, California who Geryon meets at Cafe Mitwelt in Buenos Aires. He studies ataraxia, the philosophical suspension of judgment, and is interested in the erotics of doubt. He gives a lecture that Geryon attends on Pascal.
