Scherzo, the Trickster Immortale
October Character Interview
Patricia Parrington ~ October 22, 2026
Hello my lovely readers and fellow booklovers! For those of you new here, I, your curious host Patricia Parrington, have the pleasure of interviewing characters from books all over the world.
Today, Scherzo the Trickster Immortale is here with us from the young adult fantasy novel Tales of the Immortali by M.M. Orozco. Orozco is a Filipino writer and college student who self-published her first novel, Tales of the Immortali, at 19. Find her on Instagram @mayumiswriting.
Meet Scherzo
Welcome to Fable Features!
[Patricia frowns at the carved pumpkins on the coffee table between her and her guest. She moves them onto the ground.]
I love decorating for Halloween, but I like being able to see my guests more! What’s your favorite holiday to celebrate?
[Scherzo leans back, kicks his boots up on the table, and crosses them at the ankles.]
Personally, I don't mind those mortal-made celebrations. They invent new ones every century! Year by year, they hold such ridiculous rituals for the Divines—all this candle-lighting, praying, parading, and dancing for a full week, I tell you. But I do enjoy sneaking into the festivities and swiping a few bottles and cakes under their noses.
Oh fun! I think it would be nice to experience new celebrations and holidays each century if I were immortal. The food would be my favorite.
[Patricia licks her lips and laughs.]
Growing up, what was your favorite thing to do when you were a child?
Growing up?
[Scherzo laughs.]
Listen, grass-haired mortal, you are speaking to the immortale Scherzo himself! Haven't you heard the legend of the twin immortali? Three centuries ago, my sister and I emerged from painted wall and music hall in our forms today. We enjoy an eternal childhood with no yesterday or tomorrow. My favorite activities are the same back then as they are now—playing the lute, singing tales to crowds, hopping taverns ’til dawn.
My apologies! I had heard tales but didn’t realize you were one of the twin immortali.
[Patricia leans forward curiously.]
An eternal childhood to enjoy your favorite activities—that sounds amazing. Are there any negatives, though, to being immortal?
The seguaci.
[Scherzo sighs heavily.]
Divines, I could rant about those fools forever. Listen here: when you’re an immortale, people either want your gift or want you dead because of it. I prefer meeting hunters like the former—straightforward, selfish, and usually too scared to do us any serious harm. I understand them, because who wouldn’t want to escape old Thanatos’ cold claws?
[Scherzo flicks his wrist, and a stiletto slips out of his sleeve. He twirls the tip of the blade on his finger.]
Sadly, Fresca and I usually run into the latter—zealous folk who think we’re demons or souls who’ve made demonic deals to become immortali. We’re bad omens. Monsters. Cursed by the Divines. So, out of great love for their precious Divines, these seguaci track us down and try to end our endless lives. Over and over, generation after generation, blade to blood and back again. Luckily, over the centuries, Fresca and I have gotten better at running and hiding from them.
[Scherzo shoves the stiletto back into his sleeve.]
And dealing with the stubborn ones.
That’s terrible they see you as bad omens and monsters! I can’t imagine having to always be on the run and hiding from people who mean you harm.
Moving on to something a little less heavy, what do you do when you’re bored?
Hum a tune, pluck my lute, bicker with Fresca, anything to fill the silence. But I'm usually never bored. With hunters nipping at your heels in every town, you learn to drink the wind until it roars in your head at all times.
And so, Fresca and I hop to the next town before any hunter—or tinge of boredom—catches us.
That’s a good way to avoid boredom. Tell me, when was a time when you surprised yourself?
For an immortale, surprises are scarcer than the hairs on most Chief Priests' scalps.
But I suppose the most recent was a few weeks ago. Fresca and I were performing a show at San Carlo, and it was the usual affair—I sang a tale with my lute while she painted upon a large wall. The crowd was amiable enough, but one man came up and started squawking at us.
“Immortali are devils in disguise! Cursed be whoever lends ear to their tales! The Divines shall one day strike these accursed creatures—" On and on and on. Although my hand itched to swing a blow at his rotten mouth, I couldn't silence him in front of such a large crowd.
Instead—and here's the surprise—I inserted him into my tale. Right there! I told of a pious squealer who runs up to the heroes and calls them monsters of nature because their old priest said so. He squeals so much that it awakens the ravenous orco beast, who then chases him to the hills! Everyone in the crowd burst into cackles as the man slinked away in shame. And Fresca—oh, Divines, she surprised me too. That’s why, if you ever visit San Carlo, you can stop by a mural of a man in the arms of a lovestruck lady orco caressing his face.
[Patricia chuckles.]
I’ll have to visit sometime—I’d love to see that mural.
You’ve mentioned Fresca a couple times now. I assume she’s your twin, yes? What is she like? Do you two get along well?
[At Fresca’s name, Scherzo’s expression softens briefly. But he soon straightens in the chair, guarded.]
Indeed, she’s my twin sister. A master painter who adores the Divines more than anything and anyone. She’s cheerful, childlike, and quick on her feet. We’ve traveled across Cassaria and performed in shows together for 300 years. There's no one I'd rather have as my co-storyteller.
And frankly, that’s all I’m willing to disclose. You'd have to find Fresca and ask her for the rest. But believe me, she'll probably have more questions for you than you'd have for her.
[Patricia chuckles.]
Good to know! I think she and I would get along well.
Onto our next question, what’s a problem you’re struggling with right now?
Nothing that a visit to the taverns can't fix.
[He chuckles, but the sound trails away.]
Ah . . . I suppose if there's one thing, well, my sister can be . . .
[He pauses, then gives a quick shake of his head.]
Next question.
[Patricia frowns with concern but nods.]
Certainly. How about a more lighthearted question? If you were a superhero, what would your name and superpower be?
Superhero? Superpower?
[After Patricia explains, he cackles.]
Ah, so you mean a gifted hero from a fantasy story! Listen, I can craft a tale like that in my sleep. Anyone, whether child or dimwitted donkey, could invent a story like that for themselves and create whatever gifts they want.
I don't need a superhero name or superpower. I'm already Scherzo, storyteller and trickster immortale, and I already have the best gifts of all—my music-making, my enhanced hearing, and above all: my gift of eternal life.
I suppose if I were in your shoes, I wouldn’t need an additional superpower either!
[Patricia considers him quietly for a moment, thinking.]
What are your thoughts on hope?
[Scherzo rolls his eyes.]
Divines. What is this dull question for? If you wanted a saccharine speech, Fresca could've given one.
[Scherzo tilts his head back and fixates on a ceiling window. After a while, he gives a relenting sigh and speaks in an indifferent tone.]
If you really want to hear about it, then listen. Hope is man’s cruelest wine. Lovely in the night, lonely at first light. In clutching hope, I see mortals clasp their hands together to pray to gods with no eyes, ears, or bodies to help. I see mothers prepare homecoming stews for soldier-sons at the frontlines. I see fathers driven by poverty to gambling dens. I see children with plague holding out for one more day of pain.
After three centuries in this world, one thing became clear to me. To hope is to stretch the joke further and make the punchline funnier.
[He smiles thinly at Patricia.]
Hope is no help in the dark.
[Patricia nods, accepting the answer.]
You’ve gone through a lot and seen a lot, haven’t you?
[Patricia absent-mindedly taps a finger on the arm of the couch.]
Aside from your shows, do you and your sister ever hang out with mortals? Is it hard to make friends given their short lifespan compared to your immortality?
My sister befriends mortals all the time—gods know why, really. She always cries and goes quiet for a while when they inevitably pass on. I don’t understand it. Why bother with these fickle, shortsighted humans at all? Why twist the knife with each memory of the past? Why carry an endless cemetery in your heart? She says she’d rather dig into the flesh of her heart and look after that cemetery than lock up all her love in a coffin forever.
[Scherzo coughs and studies the pumpkins farther away.]
Artists and their odd sense of imagery.
Hmm that is a different way to view it, isn’t it? Accepting pain in order to not lock away emotions.
We are almost out of time, so let’s end with this last question: How would you react if your greatest wish were suddenly granted?
Greatest wish . . . Between receiving an endless supply of wine or the skulls of our most bothersome hunters, I'd be very happy indeed. I might even thank the Divines! But that's a story more unbelievable than most.
[Scherzo laughs.]
Perhaps, but it’s nice to dream, yes?
[Patricia stands.]
Thank you so much for coming here today, Scherzo. It was an honor to meet you and I hope that whatever trouble you’re going through swiftly resolves itself.
[Scherzo stands and gives a slight bow.]
I hope so too.
End of interview.
Want to Read More?
Scherzo’s author, M.M. Orozco, can be found on Instagram and at her website, www.mmorozco.com. You can purchase Tales of the Immortali here.
Cover image by LM Orozco
See Ya Next Time
Aaand that's all the time we have today. Thank you, readers, for coming. And thank you, Scherzo, for letting us get to know you! See y'all next time.
If you would like to submit a character to be interviewed for a future issue of Fable Features, please send an email to linnae.writer@gmail.com with the subject line: Fable Features.
Please note that erotica and content with excessive vulgar language will not be accepted.
If you have questions you'd like Patricia Parrington to ask in a future interview, please submit them to linnae.writer@gmail.com with the subject line: Interview Questions.
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