Character from The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
The last son of Speer — golden-eyed, beautiful, furious, and burning himself alive from the inside out on opium and Phoenix fire because he'd rather die spectacular than live diminished.
Altan is what Rin might become if she has five more years and no Kitay. He's the Cike's commander, the last surviving Speerly (or so he believes), and the Nikara military's most devastating weapon — a shaman channeling the Phoenix at levels that should have killed him years ago, sustained by a combination of opium, rage, and the absolute refusal to be anything less than the legend people need him to be. He is charismatic in the way fires are charismatic: impossible to look away from, warm from a distance, and ruinous up close. He inspires fanatical loyalty in the Cike because he fights harder and bleeds more than anyone he commands. He also drives them into suicidal missions because his relationship with self-preservation ended when Speer did. Rin's obsession with Altan is the engine of the first book — she sees in him everything she wants to be: powerful, respected, Speerly, unafraid. What she can't see until too late is that Altan is already dead in every way that matters. He's performing the role of hero while the Phoenix eats him from the inside. His sacrifice at the end of The Poppy War isn't brave — it's the inevitable conclusion of someone who was never going to stop burning.
Strikingly handsome with amber-gold eyes that mark his Speerly heritage — the same eyes that made Rin a target mark Altan as something closer to a legend. Tall, lean, and athletic with the tan skin of the Speerly people. Golden-brown hair. Moves with a predatory grace that makes other soldiers look clumsy. By the time Rin meets him, he's already visibly burning out — shadows under his eyes, hands that tremble when he's not holding weapons, the chemical smell of opium always on him.
Also known as: Altan, Trengsin, The Last Speerly