Mender is an unique character in elfQuest. He is born to Woodlock & Rainsong, two of the original Wolfriders who became Sun Villagers, and thus is also Newstar‘s brother. He was born while Suntop recited the ancestral story of how the elves are descended from extra-terrestrial The High-Ones, and he falls in love with Suntop’s twin-sister Ember.
Like Leetah, he is endowed with the gift of the healir. In SHARDS, he teams up with ore-lusting Trolls, Flam and Drub, who tunnel into the human village in order to secure treasures. This was Mender’s “coming-out” quest, led by Cutter, who remarks that in war, the gift of healing can be even more important than skills at weaponry and fighting.
In a parallel saga, Newblood, Ember becomes chief of the Wolfriders, bringing them to a hillside grotto, while Mender & Cutter separate into the human village. Ember would meet Teir, endowed with powers of beastmaster, and she decided to have two lovers.