Luene was a Talunic noblewoman during the Godless Times. She was a fifth daughter of five, and thus, she had few prospects. She was to be married to a merchant's son, and she hated it (and him). Knowing that if she got pregnant by another man, the marriage would be canceled and she would be forced to marry the father of her child, she seduced another minor noble. When the results became known, she was married to the nobleman and freed of her obligation to the merchant's son. Her family was shamed, the merchant's son was outraged, and the noble she seduced was embarrassed.

He also turned out to be broke, so shortly after her son was born, she found life much harder than she had anticipated. She began seeking a source of fortune, and soon she found a foreign nobleman with money. She seduced him as well, and when she got with child again, she tried to blackmail him. Instead, he called her bluff, leaving her with another child and even less time and money for her own comfort.

She turned to the local banks, seeking loans. She got a few small ones, all of which she defaulted on rather quickly, losing money to speculation, gambling, and extravagance. Her husband tried to curb her behavior, but she rebelled. She wrote letters to her father saying she was abused, to the local Alabastrine Church telling them he was unfaithful, and to the nobleman's family saying he had spoken ill of them. In the aftermath of the chaos she wrought, her husband was sentenced to five years hard labor. She was sent back to her own family, and they sent her to a convent.

At the convent, she hated it. She sewed trouble everywhere, and soon she was kicked out. Alone, penniless, on the streets, she had nothing. And that is when the cower found her. One cold night, a cower woman came to Luene and shared with her a bit of food and a blanket. By morning, the cower woman had Luene eating out of the palm of her hand.

The cower woman soon turned Luene into an agent. She arranged a series of meetings and betrayals that put Luene in power, and destroyed some of the cower's foes.

Years passed. Luene became a socialite and seductress and a Servitor of the Champion of Betrayal. In a decade or so, she had risen to the rank of Hand. She became a competent spymaster as well, serving as the Champion's most talented agent and trusted servant.

But nature will eventually win out, and Luene is one to bite that hand that feeds. Ages passed, and an opportunity presented itself:

The fallen angel Iscariel came to her and told her that a man would meet her and offer her a job. She listened and liked the prospects. Five months later, she met the Dealmaker at a midnight crossroads. He took her into service, and she gave him access to the Court of Sable Knives.