Red Rising Saga · Character

Julian au Bellona

Also known as Julian, Julian Bellona, Julian au Bellona of House Bellona

Minor
First seen · Book 1 · Ch. 16

Julian au Bellona is forced to fight Darrow in the Passage in Red Rising Saga (Book 1).

Gender: male
Age: teenager
First appears: Book 1 · Ch. 16
Books: 3

Julian au Bellona begins as the gentle, curly-haired twin of Cassius, a fragile youth whose death at Darrow’s hands in the Institute’s Passage becomes the spark for the Bellona vendetta. Across the saga his memory shifts from a living casualty of Gold brutality to a haunting symbol of lost innocence, invoked by Cassius in his final moments and remembered by Lysander as the brother Cassius never stopped mourning. Though he appears only in the first book, his absence reverberates through the Bellona family’s tragedy and Darrow’s lingering guilt, turning a single act of violence into a generational scar.

Description

Slender tall teenage boy with an open gaze and pretty smile, build feeble like bent hay, thinner and prettier than his twin with delicate features and pretty hair. Fair skin glows with Gold perfection, frame elongated and vulnerable. He wears simple Institute garb or stands naked, exuding a proud yet fragile demeanor. A tall, slender young Gold boy with golden hair, an open gaze, and a pretty smile. His hair falls toward his eyes and can be brushed back; his face is delicate and attractive, and his posture and build give him a feeble, vulnerable appearance rather than a powerful one. He is shown unclothed in the stone-room scene, with no distinctive clothing established. Julian au Bellona is a young man with tousled curly hair framing soft, kind features. His build is gentle, lacking the hardness of his kin, with an air of quiet warmth. Dressed in fine Gold attire, he carries an innocent presence that stands out sharply. A human Gold boy with curly hair. Other physical features and clothing are not described. The text provides no visual details for Julian au Bellona. His build, coloring, hair, eyes, facial features, clothing, and distinguishing marks are unspecified.

Connections

Family & partnersFriends & mentorsRivals

Cassius au Bellonaconflicting source relationships
Twin brother whose death leaves Cassius grieving and vengeful; Cassius’s grief persists into Iron Gold, where he occasionally projects Julian’s memory onto Lysander.
Darrow of Lykosconflicting source relationships
Initially an amicable acquaintance on the shuttle, Julian becomes Darrow’s first kill in the Passage; the guilt haunts Darrow, who conceals the truth from Cassius, turning Julian’s death into a hidden wedge between the two Golds.
Sevro au Barcachallenger
Sevro insults the Bellona name and accepts Julian’s challenge to duel after the Passage, establishing an immediate feud that underscores the Bellona family’s combative reputation.

Story so far

BOOK 1Red Rising
- Arrives at the Institute draft seated proudly at House Mars, beaming with fraternal theatrics.
- Exchanges friendly conversation with Darrow on the shuttle, unaware of the coming conflict.
- Is forced to fight Darrow in the Passage and is killed—nose broken, sternum shattered.
- His death immediately fuels Cassius’s grief and the Bellona vendetta against Darrow.
BOOK 2Golden Son
- Is recalled as the kindest of his savage brothers, taught to fish and gentle by nature.
- His death is cited as the catalyst for Cassius’s hatred and the Bellona campaign against Darrow.
- Becomes a symbol of innocence crushed by the Institute’s brutality.
BOOK 4Iron Gold
- Mentioned as his mother’s favorite and part of the devastated Bellona legacy.
- Cassius recalls him in his dying words, giving Julian a final, intimate presence in family memory.
- Lysander senses Cassius sometimes treats him as a replacement for the lost twin.