Post by Templar Alban Winters on Jan 17, 2007 2:11:50 GMT -5
The Winters portion of Alban's lineage is descended of the noble paladins of Trinsic, sworn to protect first and foremost the virtues, and secondly, the throne at all cost (including one's life). His father, Magnus, formerly a renowned swordsman and paladin like his predecessors, mysteriously left home one day, with little word of where he was going. All he said was that Yew was in trouble and that his arm was needed to defend the people. It was not until two weeks later, when the town guards came knocking on the door that his wife and child knew something was wrong (Magnus often left on expeditions for extended periods of time). The guards asked for information to help their investigation into Magnus's wherabouts. He was being investigated for desertion of his duties to Trinsic. Katja Winters said nothing. Later that afternoon, the young Colin Winters (Alban's brother) found a flyer pinned to a wall in Trinsic: [WANTED: This man is wanted for desertion of his duties and for aiding and abetting an unlawful militia in its violent overthrow of the government of Yew. Report directly to a town guard or magistrate with any information that could lead to his arrest. Reward: 10,000 gold pieces and a free child's education in Magincia's finest school of Magery. (A portrait of Magnus Winters is attached with a pin.)
Magnus, now a very conspicuous criminal in his homeland, would not be able to return to his family for quite some time, if at all. In the meantime he was stuck with his new companions, the Yew Militia. He was not exactly warmly welcomed at first, as Trinsic, along with Britain, had all but forsaken the town of Yew to an oncoming Orcish and Undead invasion from the south. Even the town guards were too terrified to keep their posts, and fled to Skara Brae (or what few actually made it. the majority was slaughtered in their panic by brigands on the crossroads. Britain officials assumed the Militia captured or killed them). Over time, however, he fit in as well as anyone could in such a ragtag militia. However, communication between the towns and cities of Britannia was becoming more and more difficult due to brigand and orc raids. Especially in Yew, it was difficult to hear news from such a place as Trinsic. One day, the town crier received a message telling of a devastating invasion by savages from the jungle... into Trinsic's outer residential district, which is outside of town walls. The Winters home was in that district. Magnus considered whether or not he should return, but physically he could not do so. It was the rainy season, and an extra-rainy year. The roads within the valleys between Yew and Trinsic (a very long stretch) would be near-impossible to traverse. If at all possible, it would take longer than usual, at least a month, to reach Trinsic, and that's if he were a skilled ranger, which he wasn't. A good friend of his that he had made recently also pointed out that savages held that territory, which would be suicide for a well-known militia member during the savages' advance. He had no choice but to pray to the Avatar that his family would survive. Several months later he received notice of the death of his family.
Five years later, in the somewhat-settled-down war of attrition in Yew, a baby boy was born to the now not-so-young Magnus and the lovely 100 Lily Winters, his new wife. The couple had some physical complications to deal with in the pregnancy because the baby was large for Lily. The reason being that she was but a halfling, with a half-human child. Luckily Yew still had quality healers, who had been trained well for the war. The baby, dubbed Alban, was born in October, with no complications.
The war had changed Magnus's style of fighting, due to a change in enemy, and because of the terrain. A forest is no place for a slow-moving hulk of armor with a blade and a shield to charge one's enemy. The forest demanded the use of more... cunning tactics, to beat orcs. The ways of the ranger would be Alban's training as a child. He learned to camoflauge in vegetation, how to shoot a bow and arrow, and very basic fundamental magics. Alban was also trained in the piety and loyalty of a paladin. The virtues of Viglance, Fortitude, and Compassion were heavily enforced into his learning. It looked as though he would grow up a fine fighter for the militia, and make his father proud.
As Alban reached his later teenage years, the cruel hand of fate took his father from his mother and him. Magnus had been growing older, and although he was still in the service, his health was deteriorating. Unfortunatley the fading of his immune system was coupled with a new, vile tactic by the undead hordes to the north. A terrible sickness overcame Magnus, along with many other older militiamen. This sickness was created by a powerful evil warlock of the undead, who was infamous for his power over the dark arts. This sickness would claim Magnus, along with the great majority of the skilled militia. In order to save itself, the militia seeked aid from a sorceror from Wind, who had helped them before... for a price. This sorceror agreed to help the militia by sending it to a new land, safe from contagion. His cost was the most he could possibly ask from the people of Yew: Yew itself. Forced into the agreement by circumstance, they agreed, and were send into a strange-looking moongate to salvation. Unbeknownst to them, the sorceror had been in a demonic pact with the undead for some time. That would no longer matter, however, because the militia found itself in a new land... that was strangely very much like their old one. Somehow the sorceror had either sent them into a different stream of time, or another dimension of the same world. Either way, the people of Yew were safe for the time being.
The only family that Alban had left at this point was his mother. He could not consider himself a worthy man and abandon her in this new world, even if the winds of youthful travel were calling him. He stayed with her, and cared for her needs. However, the militiamen did not follow the virtues as strictly as a soldier of Lord British would, which is natural considering they had severed themselves from British's law. The sick and dying were desperate at this time. The illness had not magically disappeared; it had simply stopped spreading. The sick were forced to steal and plunder at times, and even raid, if necessary. They had become brigands of a sort, separate from the main militia. Late one summer night, the Winters family was sleeping peacefully in their tent. That night, they would become the first in a series of robbery victims from the brigands. All would have been fine, except for the next day, when Lily needed to take her daily potion for the undead's plague (she had been partially infected) the potions were gone! Lily, over the course of the following week, would slowly wither away into dust before her son's eyes. The youth learned the virtue of Vengeance that day, when he snuck into the home of who he knew to be the leader of the raiders, and slit his throat.
Alban had reached a critical point in his life. What would he do? Would he follow in his father's later footsteps and defend Yew with his life? Or would he create new ones of his own? Yew was seemingly safe compared to his old version of it. The orcs were a threat, but they were not encroaching upon the town of Yew itself. He took the chance to venture on his own for a while, to find his place in life. His first stop would be Skara Brae, where he knew that he could pick up a new quality bow from the Ranger's Guild, and possibly even inquire about a job. It was that fateful day, that the nineteen-year-old boy would meet a missionary from The Disciples of Fire and Shadow...
Magnus, now a very conspicuous criminal in his homeland, would not be able to return to his family for quite some time, if at all. In the meantime he was stuck with his new companions, the Yew Militia. He was not exactly warmly welcomed at first, as Trinsic, along with Britain, had all but forsaken the town of Yew to an oncoming Orcish and Undead invasion from the south. Even the town guards were too terrified to keep their posts, and fled to Skara Brae (or what few actually made it. the majority was slaughtered in their panic by brigands on the crossroads. Britain officials assumed the Militia captured or killed them). Over time, however, he fit in as well as anyone could in such a ragtag militia. However, communication between the towns and cities of Britannia was becoming more and more difficult due to brigand and orc raids. Especially in Yew, it was difficult to hear news from such a place as Trinsic. One day, the town crier received a message telling of a devastating invasion by savages from the jungle... into Trinsic's outer residential district, which is outside of town walls. The Winters home was in that district. Magnus considered whether or not he should return, but physically he could not do so. It was the rainy season, and an extra-rainy year. The roads within the valleys between Yew and Trinsic (a very long stretch) would be near-impossible to traverse. If at all possible, it would take longer than usual, at least a month, to reach Trinsic, and that's if he were a skilled ranger, which he wasn't. A good friend of his that he had made recently also pointed out that savages held that territory, which would be suicide for a well-known militia member during the savages' advance. He had no choice but to pray to the Avatar that his family would survive. Several months later he received notice of the death of his family.
Five years later, in the somewhat-settled-down war of attrition in Yew, a baby boy was born to the now not-so-young Magnus and the lovely 100 Lily Winters, his new wife. The couple had some physical complications to deal with in the pregnancy because the baby was large for Lily. The reason being that she was but a halfling, with a half-human child. Luckily Yew still had quality healers, who had been trained well for the war. The baby, dubbed Alban, was born in October, with no complications.
The war had changed Magnus's style of fighting, due to a change in enemy, and because of the terrain. A forest is no place for a slow-moving hulk of armor with a blade and a shield to charge one's enemy. The forest demanded the use of more... cunning tactics, to beat orcs. The ways of the ranger would be Alban's training as a child. He learned to camoflauge in vegetation, how to shoot a bow and arrow, and very basic fundamental magics. Alban was also trained in the piety and loyalty of a paladin. The virtues of Viglance, Fortitude, and Compassion were heavily enforced into his learning. It looked as though he would grow up a fine fighter for the militia, and make his father proud.
As Alban reached his later teenage years, the cruel hand of fate took his father from his mother and him. Magnus had been growing older, and although he was still in the service, his health was deteriorating. Unfortunatley the fading of his immune system was coupled with a new, vile tactic by the undead hordes to the north. A terrible sickness overcame Magnus, along with many other older militiamen. This sickness was created by a powerful evil warlock of the undead, who was infamous for his power over the dark arts. This sickness would claim Magnus, along with the great majority of the skilled militia. In order to save itself, the militia seeked aid from a sorceror from Wind, who had helped them before... for a price. This sorceror agreed to help the militia by sending it to a new land, safe from contagion. His cost was the most he could possibly ask from the people of Yew: Yew itself. Forced into the agreement by circumstance, they agreed, and were send into a strange-looking moongate to salvation. Unbeknownst to them, the sorceror had been in a demonic pact with the undead for some time. That would no longer matter, however, because the militia found itself in a new land... that was strangely very much like their old one. Somehow the sorceror had either sent them into a different stream of time, or another dimension of the same world. Either way, the people of Yew were safe for the time being.
The only family that Alban had left at this point was his mother. He could not consider himself a worthy man and abandon her in this new world, even if the winds of youthful travel were calling him. He stayed with her, and cared for her needs. However, the militiamen did not follow the virtues as strictly as a soldier of Lord British would, which is natural considering they had severed themselves from British's law. The sick and dying were desperate at this time. The illness had not magically disappeared; it had simply stopped spreading. The sick were forced to steal and plunder at times, and even raid, if necessary. They had become brigands of a sort, separate from the main militia. Late one summer night, the Winters family was sleeping peacefully in their tent. That night, they would become the first in a series of robbery victims from the brigands. All would have been fine, except for the next day, when Lily needed to take her daily potion for the undead's plague (she had been partially infected) the potions were gone! Lily, over the course of the following week, would slowly wither away into dust before her son's eyes. The youth learned the virtue of Vengeance that day, when he snuck into the home of who he knew to be the leader of the raiders, and slit his throat.
Alban had reached a critical point in his life. What would he do? Would he follow in his father's later footsteps and defend Yew with his life? Or would he create new ones of his own? Yew was seemingly safe compared to his old version of it. The orcs were a threat, but they were not encroaching upon the town of Yew itself. He took the chance to venture on his own for a while, to find his place in life. His first stop would be Skara Brae, where he knew that he could pick up a new quality bow from the Ranger's Guild, and possibly even inquire about a job. It was that fateful day, that the nineteen-year-old boy would meet a missionary from The Disciples of Fire and Shadow...