His mother, a vixen Being, was killed shortly after his birth in a religious purge. His father, one of Jakob's descendants, died a few years later of natural causes. Through some freak of magic and/or genetics, the 'Cubi factor went dormant for about two generations. Niall remains the only known 'Cubi among Jakob's progeny.

Although not his immediate biological father, Jakob adopted Niall as his own son, not least because it was more convenient than saying 'great-great-grandson'.

Niall has a warp-aci named Kirian whom he summoned as a familiar during his stay at SAIA, the 'Cubi academy.

• Niall is fanatically anti-death-penalty, having narrowly escaped execution himself when his headwings appeared. After leaving the Academy, he took a vow to help as many 'Cubi as he could to escape from persecution.
• In times of great distress, Niall may bless himself with the Sign of the Noose, regressing to the bizarre religion he was brought up to believe in.
• His clan-mark is on the left side of his body, between his hips and his ribcage.
• Niall finds the idea of devouring souls to be repellent and may be physically sick if he hears it has taken place.
• Like many 'Cubi, Niall has a love of flash clothes and shiny things. His wardrobe contains a prized collection of designer leather trousers.
• Niall plays electric bass and has a doctorate in servo control systems. He is also a certified Otari service engineer.