Character from Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson
Patron god of assassins, the Rope that binds Shadow's throne — an Ascendant with a killer's precision and a compassion that no god of murder should possess.
Cotillion is the god of assassins who acts like a man with a conscience — which makes him either the most dangerous deity in the pantheon or the most tragic. As Dancer, he partnered with Kellanved to build the Malazan Empire, and when they ascended into Shadow's realm, he carried his mortal attachments with him like contraband. He possesses people — Sorry/Apsalar was his first and most devastating act — and the guilt of that violation has shaped every choice he has made since. Unlike Shadowthrone, who hides behind madness and misdirection, Cotillion operates with surgical clarity: he sees the board, identifies the necessary kill, and makes it himself rather than sacrificing pawns. His plan to free the Crippled God is genuine compassion wrapped in assassination methodology. He speaks to mortals as equals, which gods never do unless they want something — except Cotillion actually means it. He is the proof that ascending to godhood does not require losing your humanity, though it certainly makes keeping it harder.
Lean and angular, wrapped in dark, nondescript clothing that seems to absorb light. His features are sharp, handsome in a predatory way — the face of a man who was dangerous before he became a god. Moves with absolute economy, no wasted motion, every step placed with an assassin's precision. His eyes carry a weight that his partner Shadowthrone's theatrics lack: the look of someone who remembers being mortal and hasn't entirely forgiven himself for what he's done since.
Also known as: Cotillion, The Rope, Dancer, Patron of Assassins, The Patron God of Assassins