My origins are so far behind me now that even the most significant of details are now vague. I know I had a family once, a home too, but over time the details have slipped, All but a few.
I was born in a small town, my father was a blacksmith and, although we were never rich, we were always able to get by. I remember sometimes sitting, watching, listening to the ring of steel, feeling the heat of the forge, transfixed as my father worked his craft. I also remember that this was how I met her.
One of my father's customers was a minor noble. He commissioned a single perfect sword, and it was my duty to deliver. I remember being curious, I suppose that has always been my curse. I hand delivered the wrapped sword to this pompous, arrogant man who always looked down his nose at me, but as he was examining the blade, that was when I saw her.
Selene, that was her name, it was his daughter. I knew from the moment I saw her that it could never be, any kind of romance would be doomed from the start but I was young. I remember the look she cast my way, she was not like her father at all. She used to slip away from time to time, and we would rendezvous around the town, dangerous maybe, but we didn't care, as I saw it I was the luckiest man alive.
This went on for months, secret meetings, excuses, we were in love and, though it pained her to leave, we had decided to run. Her father would never allow us to be together, he was trying to gain standing and his daughters hand in marriage was no more than a bargaining chip.
Well that was the last I ever saw of my family, the last words my father ever heard from me was in a note I left for him. We ran far, we married and we eventually settled on a farm. We were fed and clothed in exchange for labour. I would work the fields, some small smithing work and Selene would help in the kitchens, it was a good life. We had friends, a life, and a family on the way.
Life was good, we were happy, until one day a stranger arrived at the farm. He was sick, and Selene was one of those who helped nurse him back to health, she was like that, a caring soul. One day though, when he had nearly recovered, the stranger attacked her. She was brutally raped and murdered, and with her went our unborn child. His life was the first I ever took.
This unknown stranger, the destroyer of my whole world, his face still haunts my nightmares. The blood covering his clothes, the scratches from the struggle, even the pleading look on his face as I choked the life from him. I fell apart. I had lost everything. It hurt just to breathe.
I left the farm. She was buried there, I made sure of that, but i could not stay. There were too many memories. I wandered, never stopping. I soon ran out of money, food, and my clothes were falling apart. I began to steal food. I begged for money. I had hit rock bottom. It seems, even though I had given up on life, life hadn't given up on me.
I feel in with a crowd of thieves and cut-throats, I trained myself, it was a thrill. I didn't care any more, would you? As it turned out I was naturally agile. I was well muscled from working the farm, though a lot of it had gone to waste, and I was smart and able to think under pressure. I cut purses, I stole from stalls, each time the challenge growing larger and larger. I began to rob houses, locating trinkets and jewellery stashes. I even gained some proficiency with weapons.
I was after bigger and bigger thrills, but I had bitten off more than I could chew. The 'boss' of the underworld, the king of the thieves I suppose he could be called, had a problem with some of the officials in the city. He wanted them silenced an I was gaining a reputation. I had only ever killed one person, now he wanted me to kill 3. He sold me out. I killed them, I had succeeded. I had entered their homes in the night and cut their throats in their sleep. The problem was the 'boss' needed a scapegoat. I had fallen into his trap. I ran, left the city and never looked back. I was back on the run and I didn't plan to stop.
It was around my 40th winter when I came across a city, Thalek. I settled over winter here. I stole to get by as any thief would, I even made my own place in the City's underworld. I had been running for nearly two decades, it was time for a break. I hired out my services, I stole things for people and I got paid, I liked the arrangement. It would seem, however, that wherever I go misfortune follows.
I was hired to steal a ring, just a small trinket, from an old man. It was fabled to give long life to its owner but that was just a myth. Stealing the ring, that was easy, the old man slept soundly so I just walked in and took it. When I went to get paid, I was ambushed. I killed my ambushers and kept the ring, though I never wore it, I hung it on a chain around my neck. I stayed in the city of Thalek, I could still make my way, a few extra bodies raised a few eyebrows, but they were the least of my problems.
The ring around my neck began to change me. I could see better at night, and I never seemed to tire, but despite these advantages, It came with a downside. My eyes began to glow, softly at first, but later more pronounced. By the time I realised what was happening I destroyed the ring, but it was too late, it had already left its mark, I was changed.
I was cast out of Thalek, the city thought I was cursed, and I felt it too. It is hard to be a thief with such a recognisable feature, I learned to hide it, but I was once again a wanderer, destined somehow to always wander alone. I wandered for the next Ninenty years, never ageing a day, stealing to get by, killing if necessary, never staying in one place long.
I became curious of new lands, I had always been curious, and my pain of loss had never gone. Over 130 years I have lived, and the pain of losing Selene was still as fresh now as it was then. So the next six months were no different, I travelled through strange kingdoms, stole stuff, and moved on, but I began to hear rumours of a land called Aegis. My natural curiosity won over so I decided I wanted to see this land for myself.
That pretty much brings me up to date, there are only so many ways to describe travelling, and i'm pretty sure you don't want to hear about every tree I passed and every day cooped up on the ship that led me here, only that I reached Aegis. This is where the next chapter of my story begins.
2010-02-23, 02:30