Matthew E. Bankey – Called “Matt” for short; the main character and supposed “leader” of the group soon to be known as “The Magnificent Eight”.  He’s just your average adolescent, does what’s right, but has his own, unique interests.  He wields a powerful, fire-powered bat that changes into a sword.

Samuel Paddington Bankey – Called “S.P.” for short; Matt’s younger brother.  He’s young and naïve, pretty much believes anything told to him.  He’s pretty much the pure innocence of the entire group, and can sense the good in others.  He wields two Earth-shaking yo-yos that change into shields.

Knuckle – A member of an, as of yet, unknown species.  Although he’s human-like enough, his appearance has caused some misfortune.  Still, he’s a very reliable friend to Matt and co.  He acts as an older brother figure to Matt and S.P. and has affection for alcohol.  He wields a wind-producing bō (pole) that can be extended.

Mr. Cartoon Man – Full name “Sheldon Norrington Jackson Cartoon Man”, but called C-man for short.  He is a “Cartoonian” and a close friend of Matt.  Like S.P., he’s a bit naïve, but always does his best for the group.  He always tries to have a positive outlook on things and acts as the comic relief.  He can be emotional at times…

Mr. Mime – Real name “Ephraim Momarkers”, but nobody ever calls him that, anymore.  He’s had a rough past and is the kind of “tough guy” person of the group.  He’s got a short temper, and will quickly lash out at someone with swearing and violence.  Despite that, though, he’s a nice person deep down and will gladly help out his friends.

Susan Viper – Some sort of anthro lizard woman who is Knuckle’s main love interest.  She’s one sexy lizard girl, and she’s very seductive, but at the same time, she’s a genuinely nice person overall.  She specializes in stealthy moves and uses her fangs and claws to attack.  She typically acts as the neutral party when the group is fighting.

Bill Rivalis (pronounced ree-va-les) – Matt’s old rival who was once a big bully who would always tease and taunt Matt and his friends.  After a mysterious disappearance, though, he returned a more serious person, but still held a fierce rivalry with Matt.  He wears a special pendant that produces lightening, as well as two lightening blades.

Sheila Odegaard – The princess of the mystical land of Mitteleutopia, part of the continent of Thaumaturia.  She is a dragon, but usually remains in her human form a majority of the time.  She originally came off as a very shy individual, not speaking to anyone, but after befriending Matt and his friends, she’s begun to open up more.

Orin – Full name “Orin Seaman Johnson Cartoon Man”, he is C-man’s older and more serious brother.  He is very intelligent and knows much about things Matt and his friends can only guess at.  Immediately after the incident at Tower Rosa, Orin tell Matt and his 7 friends to hid from the law, while he tries to settle things down with their government.

Footnotes

-The Black Rose is a large organization whose length stretches out throughout the entire world.  They are a group of assassins that will do just about any job a person asks them.  However, should anyone get involved in their assassination attempts, those people are "marked" by the entire Black Rose, and its up for grabs for any member out there.  That's how Matt first got involved with them, and to this day, they've been after him.  The Black Rosa also has connections with the Government of Matt's home country, so they don't do anything to stop them.  They don't even really know about what the Black Rose does, or at least if they did, they turn a blind eye at it.
-A "Cartoonian" is a specific kind of race that I made up; C-man and Orin are members of this race, but there are others out there; however, they're known to be extremely rare, because of a Holocaust-like even that took place, nearly wiping them all out.  They resemble poorly drawn cartoon character, usually 3 circular body parts (like a snowman), arms, legs, an eccentric face, and most importantly, a special hat that gives the Cartoonians life hat.  When C-man first appeared, people thought that he was just Matt's "imaginary friend" and never actually saw C-man…  until he appeared in from of everyone.
-Dragons in this world have the ability to change into a more human-like appearance, as well as a human/dragon hybrid.  Most of them stay in their human forms to blend in with society, while others choose to stay in their dragon form, or at least their human/dragon hybrid form.
-Just so you all know, Knuckle IS based on Knuckles the Echidna from Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog series, and Mr. Mime is based of the Pokémon of the same name in Nintendo's Pokémon.
-C-man's hat acts as a storage device of sorts and it able to keep numerous things within his hat.  Sometimes he's able to take them out at will, while other times…  well, he's not.
-Before this scenario takes place, Matt and his friends had just fought their way through one of the Black Rose's main strongholds, Tower Rosa.  It was known for being completely impenetrable, and not one as ever attempted to attack the Black Rose there and survive.  Not to mention, it's home to the Elite Eight assassins of the Black Rose, who are the eight strongest assassins within the organization.  The members of the Elite Eight change from generation to generation, but it's been said that this generation is, or was, the strongest Elite Eight there has been.  I say this, because Matt and his friends, after a long struggle, eventually defeated the Elite Eight and escaped Tower Rosa, and this is where the story begins, after their escape.