Gabriel History

Character History, written by Mike A, with some passages by Ernie B.
The Beginning
Gabriel was born and bred in Gesnor. His parents operated a gem cutting business in the foothills near Greyspire. Growing up in the shadow of the mountains, and that great city, Gabriel chaffed against his 'wilderness' upbringing. As soon as he was of age, Gabriel left home for the city. There, he soon learned that a youth, with no trade and no skills, was useless. After only several weeks, he ran out of money, and started on the road to home.
Gabriel found that a caravan was leaving the city, and he quickly bartered his way onto one of the carts. In exchange for the ride, he would water the mules, and help with dishes after the meals. This agreement was very hard for Gabriel to make, for it proved once again that the only role he was capable of was servant, or stable-boy.
The travel on the road caused Gabriel to become bitter. On a cold, rainy day, Gabriel was walking along beside the wagons. The wagon master always made the people walk when it rained, for the carts became heavy with water. There, in the cold rain and mud, Gabriel made himself a promise. Once home, he would learn the family trade, and live a quiet, dull, warm, prosperous life, as had his father. This promise lasted about ten minutes.
As Gabriel trudged, fumed, and made foolhardy resolutions, he heard several horses galloping towards them along the path. About one hundred yards ahead, around a curve, came a light-rider, a standard bearer for the Gesni Army. As soon as the rider saw the caravan, he let out a whoop, and pushed his mount even harder towards them. When he reached the first wagon, he reined in his horse, and commanded the Wagon Master to pull his carts to the side. Of course, the master immediately sounded the 'yield the road' signal on his horn.
As the carts began to rumble to a stop, Gabriel continued to look down the road, trying to figure out what was going on. To his surprise, rounding the corner were Gesni cavalry, four across and ten deep. And riding in the middle of the column was the man they were escorting.
Standing out amidst the grey day and rain, was a man in brilliant white, riding a massive silver warhorse. He was a Veldron Knight, a legend come to life and riding down the trail. Many times over his 14 years Gabriel had heard of the mysterious knights from the mountains in the south, but never had he seen one.
As the first wave of cavalry passed the amazed Gabriel, he was shocked back to his reality by wave after wave of mud and water thrown up by the horse's hooves. Gabriel was knocked to the side, into even deeper mud and water. As he sputtered and floundered, he heard a horse whinny, and a man call out "HALT!"
As Gabriel recovered, and rolled onto his back, he saw the Knight, climbing down from his mount. The huge man stepped confidently across the space between them, and offered his gauntleted hand to Gabriel.
"My apologies, kind traveler. My comrades have been in the field too long, and forget their manners."
Gabriel could see the fifty battle-hardened warriors waiting. The breath of the horses and men created a strange mist behind the Knight.
"Thank you." Gabriel mumbled as he accepted the hand. Gabriel would never forget the feel of that massive, leather covered hand grabbing his, and the easy strength that then lifted him to his feet.
With a twinkle in his eye, the Knight started back towards his horse. "Be safe, and may your travels grant you fortune. And dry clothes."
Again, Gabriel was speechless. He stood there, dripping mud and cold water, and watched the Knight remount his warhorse, and call the column back to motion.
That day forever changed Gabriel. He returned to his parents home, his pledge of gem-cutting forgotten, and became focused on becoming a warrior, and soldier, and hopefully one day a Veldron Knight. Over the next 15 years, Gabriel learned that wanting something and getting something were quite different.
After convincing his parents that he wished a life as a soldier, they became very supportive. They sponsored him into training with sword and shield and the use of armor. He learned quickly, his desire fueling a successful two years of training. Once complete, Gabriel again headed for Greyspire, now convinced that he could begin his life as a soldier, and his path to becoming a Knight.
Just after his 16th birthday, he arrived in Greyspire, and was hired by the city guard. Gabriel was ecstatic. After two days of living in the barracks, being uniformed and equipped, and eating the hearty rations of the army, Gabriel was given his posting orders. And, his dreams collapsed.
The City Jail
Starting that day, and, for the following decade, Gabriel was assigned as a guard at the Greyspire Jail, and it was nearly his undoing. After only six months at his post, he discovered the process by which he could submit his name to the Knights. He wrote a letter one night, speaking of his military training, and his position within the city guard. He sent the letter to the Citadel with the next messenger. Over the following two years, Gabriel sent a letter every six months. None of these letters were ever answered.
During the ten years in Greyspire, Gabriel contacted the worst that mankind offers, every day. He was forced to touch, fight, feed, wash, and kill the scourge of society, the dregs. The image was gone completely of that shining Knight, stopping to show respect for a simple stable boy. He learned, or at least came to believe, that mankind was either good, or bad. Evil was a pure thing that could consume a man and forever taint his soul. He so rarely saw redemption, that he lost his faith in forgiveness. Men had choices in life, and to not pollute yourself the right decisions must be made. If you ever gave in, and chose wrongness, you were forever lost.
Gabriel became the type of man who can survive in the prison. He developed a callous over his heart, and, his belief in goodness. He became known as the guard you did not mess with. His punishment was quick, and ruthless. Never was he admonished for excessive force or unfair treatment. But, never was he promoted, or, commended. His superiors knew that he was a successful guard, but, could not see him being successful outside the Jail. In a way, in order to survive it, he became as much a prisoner as the thieves and cut-throats that he guarded.
So, on his tenth anniversary at the Jail he was confused by a message telling him to clean up and report to the Captain's office. Usually a message such as that meant a transfer, or a promotion. Gabriel had lost himself there in the Jail, and, could not believe in or dream of anything else.
He was replaced at his post in the Jail, and returned to his quarters to change. He donned his best uniform, and reported as ordered. What he saw when he arrived placed him back to that day on the trail, mouth agape with amazement, the awkwardness of youth holding his tongue. For, there with the Captain, was a Veldron Knight.
"Gabriel, your captain wrote the citadel of your wish to join the knighthood. We found the letters you wrote a decade ago. Are you still a Knight in your heart?" the Knight asked.
Swimming up from the depths of his hardened soul, it took several breaths for Gabriel to shuck ten years of filth. At last, he was able to speak, "Yes. Yes. Yes."
"Then, come with me."
The Veldron Knighthood
For the next two years, Gabriel was trained by the Knights. He was taught both martial skills, as well as the talents of the mind, including letters and numbers, history and honor. The lessons of morality were easily bent to fit Gabriel's world-view. He knew that the Knighthood was Right, and fighting against those who were Wrong. After the training, Gabriel was given a test as is standard to all initiates of the knighthood.
Gabriel had heard stories of certain knights who took years to complete their test, while other initiates finished their test after only a week or two. Some tests, it is said, have driven knights from the order, while other tests have been so profound and life-changing that initiates were forever transformed. For Gabriel, the days leading up to his test were tense with nervous excitement, as though the outcome would forever define his path as a Knight. He was determined not to just pass the test, but to excel beyond the expectations of the entire Veldron Council. Gabriel was called to meet with members of the Council for his test. He was brought to a small antechamber within Citadel -- a modest room, actually, nothing as austere as the castle setting seemed to demand. Gabriel was introduced to the Council members who evaluate his test, but he knew each from his studies: Daven, a stern and serious administrator, oversaw the Central Region of Xaria; Pierre, distinguished by his strong Galluran accent, represented the coastal regions of southwestern Xaria; Talvan, a blind mage, governed Veldron interests in northwestern corner of Xaria; and finally, Koyla, the most outspoken of the Council and overseer of the Desert Regions of Xaria. Gabriel sat in quiet anticipation, waiting for what he knew would be a difficult challenge, perhaps the painstaking of his life. He was almost stunned when Koyla stepped forward with a single sheaf of parchment, quill and a bottle of ink.
"Complete this," she said without intonation of any sort. "You have 20 minutes."
On the sheaf of parchment were 10 questions. At a glance, Gabriel could tell they were fairly simple questions, i.e. "In what order is a Knight to prioritize his actions? "Easy," Gabriel thought, "too easy... Code, Council, Quest."
Gabriel answered each question in turn, overthinking each question to deduce whether the question might be a trick to expose some personal weakness. Each question, however, was basic. "Should you give your life to complete a Task?" "Recite the basic tenants of the Veldron Code." Each simple. Each standard. Each direct.
Gabriel complete the test in 9 minutes, but spend another 10 minutes pondering the ease of the test. Perhaps all the talk was just that -- talk. The wild exaggeration of curious initiates.
Without dismissing Gabriel, the Council Members reviewed the answers. "He misspelled 'Accede,'" was the only comment before Koyla said, as matter-of-fact as she could possibly be, "Congratulations, Gabriel. You are a Knight of Veldron."
Gabriel was given the familiar Veldron tabard, a sword and a firm and hearty handshake from each Council Member present. "Well done, Gabriel of Veldron!"
"Nice penmenship," came from Daven, the same Council Member who pointed out the spelling error. "A good first step on your path, Knight," from Talvan, who never actually served the Veldron as a Knight, choosing instead to focus his assistance with magikal enchantments.
After another of week at the Citadel, Gabriel was sent to Irroquin, on his first task for the Knighthood. He was instructed to deliver a parcel to an Irroquin ambassador, who had recently visited the Citadel as part of a diplomatic envoy.
Having just arrived in the strange and foreign city of Kessid, Gabriel wandered the market, seeking a meal, and enjoying the looks his tabard brought him. While standing in front of a cart selling fried fish and potatoes, Gabriel's arms were seized from behind. His instinct to struggle was surpassed by his Knightly training, and he stopped to see what was happening. All around him citizens began to point their fingers, while the shouts of "thief", and "brigand" rose up across the crowd. A few people threw debris. Gabriel was bound, and led away from the market. The sheriffs refused to answer his questions, and stripped him of his tabard, sword and shield. He was placed in a small holding cell.
Over the following two weeks, he was vaguely aware of the politics swirling around his situation. At the public court he learned more of what had occurred. The sheriffs had been led by a shopkeeper into the market, in pursuit of a thief dressed in a bright white tabard with black trimmings. As they rounded the corner, the man pointed out Gabriel as the culprit. By Irroquin law, the mere identification by the shopkeeper warranted imprisonment, until the charges could be verified. To the amazement of the constabulary and the government, many other citizens stepped forward to accuse Gabriel. He knew that his tabard was all that had saved him from an immediate trial and sentencing.
After nearly nine days in a cramped jail cell, Gabriel's patience was stretched beyond measure. For him, a freshly knighted Knight of Veldron to be treated as a common thief, was an affront to justice, honor and simple logic. He was innocent. On the tenth day, however, Gabriel was visited by a fast-talking, rather high strung barrister who claimed to be acting on behalf of the Veldron Council.
"I am Lord Cochrane, young Knight of Veldron," said the trained voice of one who obviously hailed from Kessid. "and I will be representing your interests as directed by your Veldron Council, who have granted me bargaining powers to assure that you are released back to their care with a trial."
"But I am innocent!" declared Gabriel. "I did not steal anything from..."
Before Gabriel could even finish a sentence, Lord Cochrane silenced him with a barrage of legal reasons why Gabriel should never seek a trial to prove his innocence.
"...So you see, Veldron, a trial would only lead to the removal of your hands as well as your indefinite incarceration in the Kessid Dungeons," summarized Lord Cochrane. "I will argue that justice is best delivered by the Veldron Council as outlined in the Charter of Tronoth. It may take some time to convince my worthy Irroquin contemporaries, but I assure you, I will endeavor to make certain that your time in the dungeons will be as short as possible... under the circumstances."
"But I am innocent!"
"Of course you are..."
The Dungeons of Kessid
Gabriel had a distinct advantage over many of the prisoners in the Dungeons of Kessid. He had spent much more time behind thick stone dungeon walls than most. The average life of a prisoner in the Greyspire Jail was about seven years, but Gabriel had managed to survive quite easily for over ten. In his current circumstances, Gabriel would not fair so well as he did at the Jail, but still many things were familiar to him. The smell was certainly the same. The stench of misery, of humanity's dregs was the same -- a smell Gabriel had hoped never to smell again. The food was the same -- a taste Gabriel had never bothered to sample at the Jail and now he knew, with absolute certainty, that his initial instinct was the correct one. The guards, as Gabriel well know, were also the same -- cold, cynical and apathetic to notions such as "wrongfully accused."
Captain Volt
In the Kessid Dungeons, inmates feared and respected one man above all others -- the captain of the guards, Volt. To Gabriel's way of thinking, Volt was a kindred spirit. A guard very much like himself. Unfortunately, such a comparison drew derision from the captain, who secluded Gabriel as punishment for making such a insulting comment. Volt, as he expressed it, was certain that the comparison was intended as an slight.
Five Months Later...
The time in the dungeon destroyed Gabriel. He traveled a road which led him to despair, despair so deep and total that even suicide seemed beyond his reach. He spent each day barely moving, sleeping simply to escape. He lost much of his weight, strength, and spirit. It was only through the rough and merciless treatment of Volt that kept Gabriel alive, forcing food and water into the increasingly frail and listless body.
After five months, Gabriel received a visit from Lord Cochrane, who gleefully informed him that his time in Irroquin was finally at an end. The Irroquin government had decided to turn him over to the Veldron Council on the condition that he recuse himself as a knight for his thieving.
Gabriel, bound in chains, was placed aboard a Demekrium frigate on its way to Gesnor. Ironically, Captain Volk was Gabriel's escort the entire route to Gesnor.
Now, the in-game portion:
After five months in the jail, Gabriel was finally brought before a council. There, they stated that he was to be turned over to a man, who would be bringing Gabriel back to the Citadel for recussation. Gabriel, broken by his time in jail, simply followed the commands of the men in charge.
The trip to Gesnor was tedious, however, Gabriel paid it no attention. He had surrendered his self, deciding that because he too was now a criminal, his life was lost. He had become that which he hated most, and it ruined him.
The Veldron Council, though, had other plans for him. At the meeting, they questioned his soul, and his thoughts. They asked how the experience had changed him. And, through their questions, he realized that it had changed him, not destroyed him. There, before their eyes, his confidence returned, and the lesson that was so dearly bought, finally struck home.
It took several months for Gabriel to rebuild his body, and training. When he was ready, the council sent him to Halgudar to research the language and history of Orcs in that area. Though it seemed a strange request of one such as Gabriel, he had learned that the complexity of thought within the council was far beyond his ability to understand. So, to Halgudar he went. Once there, Gabriel made contact with the Veldron mission, and was directed to a library in the south. There, two things of note occurred.
Gabriel was approached by an old man, who gave to him a book. He told Gabriel that this was a magikal book, and that only people that the book selected could read it. As Gabriel looked at the tome, he could see an illuminated page, in common, declaring the book to be The Book of Quests. The man said that each page, as he turned to it, would provide for him a task, or quest, that he must complete. As each was completed, another would appear on the next page.
He said that he had reached the end of what the book would allow him to do. The man believed that he was not virtuous enough, and that the book desired to be passed to one who was stronger than he.
When questioned, the man said he had done some research on the book, but all that he could find was a scrap of knowledge, really, a myth, that a dragon had been involved with the creation of the book.
The second event that occurred that night at the Library was of equal import. Gabriel was introduced to Doctor Prova, and the adventure she is currently trapped within. She is following the plans of a demon from Sha’thraem, and his quest to use a magikal item that controls time to elevate his position. He has collected an army of sorts, and moved it into the wilderness of Halgudar, thinking there he will be ignored until his plan ripens. Add to the story a now undead Terrel, menace to elves, who appears to be walking the earth attempting to foil the demon.
At the library two of the demon’s minions were captured, and interrogated. During the night Prova demanded and received Gabriel’s assistance with the military aspects of the evening. The next morning, Gabriel took his leave of Prova, realizing that the tome and information were more vital to the Knighthood than orcan history, and took to the roads heading north.
Back out of game:
The council was indeed fascinated with the Book, and decided to keep it in their study. They gave Gabriel the task of returning to Halgudar to learn more of the demon, and to report to the council any findings.
BIG BREAK - LOST TRACK
In this break Gabriel was at Robin’s back to the future game, an early part of the Book of Days storyline. Gabriel also was on Aaron’s Future Xaria game, but did not go to the future, something about the Book of Quests preventing my travel with the Mad Mages. He was part of the Elven Court Inn, the Akkorian Archery Contest, and he appeared at the Mike Parker bring-a-plot game, though I don’t remember a darn thing about it. No momentous things happened at any of these games, as far as I can remember.
STUFF BELOW IS IN-GAME
Quite honestly, I have lost track of all that has happened. Gabriel was assigned an accede by the Council to investigate the murder of a royal ornithologist, and the killing of a Phoenix. Then, Elunarra, a black rose herbalist played by Kasey was sent to travel with me, as the Queen was interested in our findings. Since then, about three years ago, Gabriel has been in and out of games, following Aaron’s phoenix plotline.
After years of traveling the continent searching for the fire birds, and those who killed one, he has little to show for it. Jordan of Veldron suggested the best theory, that the Sequestrum may be trying to rebuild their flying cavalry, but, the information Gabriel has gathered suggests otherwise. He at one point met a collection of pissants who called themselves the East Lindora Trading Company. That group stole from Gabriel a phoenix feather, and, if ever he runs into that group again it will be an interesting reckoning.
In the past year or so Gabriel has encountered on two occasions, and heard of a third incident, involving large groups of invisible zombies. They always appear to have come from the ocean, or at least perhaps the bodies harvested for use as zombies died at sea. Anyhow, it is a more interesting topic than magik birds, so Gabriel has paid it somewhat more attention. Remembering a story about a fleet of men and ships destroyed in a bay in Shorn, Gabriel requested the council use its resources to see if those men could be the source of zombies. That request was made in October 503, as of today the answer has not yet come back.
The winter of 503-504 was long for Gabriel. Cooped up in the citadel with a group of adventurers who killed a dragon, waiting for word to return from Shorn, he became quite cabin-mad. During the first not-freezing day of the late winter, Gabriel decided enough was enough. Seeing a caravan forming up in the courtyard, he collected his and Elunarra’s belongings. Finding her in the small courtyard, looking at early buds on the Snowfrost trees, Gabriel took her arm and told her they were leaving the citadel. Because of her elven patience or perhaps her growing understanding of Gabriel’s nature, she did not protest, or for that matter even ask to where they were going. It’s a good thing, because Gabriel did not know either.
Entering the courtyard, he found the caravan master and explained that they would be traveling along. He was of course glad to have two more experienced swords along, and was able to give them space on one of the lighter wagons for their belongings, at least until they made Palrim and loaded up with grains and other foodstuffs. The final destination would be Halgudar, but Gabriel knew that somehow, before they made it that far down the trail, something or another would have distracted them…
And, that is way out of date. But better than nothing. Maybe someday I will add. It is highly unlikely I will play him again, as it is just too hard to play this screwed up and pissed off a person.