Marcus Atrianis

### Relatives

Antony Atrianis (Father, Deceased), Cecilia Atrianis (Mother, Deceased), Lucius Atrianis (Grandfather, Deceased)

## Physical description

### Eye color

Blue

Marcus Atrianis (born October 10th, 601 K.C.), is the Lord Castellan to Ashland Whiteraven. A well-composed, stoic knight of Stromic descent, Marcus prides himself on being fair, humble and caring. A life-long soldier, Marcus knows his duty is to the people of Caerseren.

## Birth and Early Life

### First Years

Marcus was born in the northern foothills of the Arathi Highlands as a member of the landed gentry of the Kingdom of Stromgarde. His father, Antony Atrianis, was a knight in service to the local lord and his mother, Cecilia Atrianis, stayed at home to manage the estate and educate Marcus. While Marcus was an only child, there was a fourth member of the household that kept him company and influenced him greatly in his early years: his grandfather, Lucius Atrianis.

Marcus enjoyed the company of his grandfather more than any other, for the old man had far more free time than his father did. Lucius had retired from the life of a knight and handed over the running of affairs to his son, deciding instead to enjoy his twilight years. Marcus would consistently find himself playing with his grandfather in the fields of their estate and all his memories of the old man were good and full of joy.

### Life in Lordaeron

Marcus did not stay for long in the land of his birth. In the year 606 K.C., Marcus and his parents left the family estate. Even though Lucius Atrianis had handed over the responsibilities and duties of the estate to his son, he still preserved ownership. Along with this, Lucius had a penchant for drinking and gambling. One unfortunate night, these two vices mixed in a gambling den in the capital city of Stromgarde and the family estate was lost due to chance.

Marcus' father was so outraged with Lucius that he forbade him from ever seeing Marcus again, then the three of them took their belongings and immigrated to the Kingdom of Lordaeron. Marcus would not see his grandfather again for another five years.

Marcus' parents moved onto a small piece of land that his father was able to purchase, just west of Brill. There the family raised horses for the knights of the kingdom, giving Marcus ample opportunity to see the same knights every time they'd come to the Atrianis homestead to acquire their mounts. He became infatuated with them, even at such a young age. Their shining armor, stoic personalities and chivalric manner was enough to make the boy dream of becoming a knight himself. Antony would often find his son out in the fields swinging a stick, pretending to save some damsel in distress from an orcish marauder, and although he knew that his days as a knight were long gone, he knew that his son could some day be one again, even without the lands and titles of Stromgarde. So he let the boy play.

### Flight from the Scourge

Marcus' joy was not to last, nor was the joy many people of Lordaeron felt during those years of peace and prosperity. The Undead Scourge brought untold death and destruction upon the kingdom and Marcus' family was not spared. Shortly after Prince Arthas' return from the frozen lands of Northrend, the undead cut a swathe across the Tirisfal Glades slaughtering any who got in their path. While Marcus was able to hide from the monstrosities, his parents were cut down mere feet from his hiding place. After the undead beasts had gone, Marcus fled into the wilderness. He did his best to navigate through the woods, but he was only ten years old and had rarely been far from the homestead.

Just when all hope seemed lost to the poor boy, he was rescued by the last person he expected to see: his grandfather. Lucius had heard of the terror growing in the north and despite having lost himself to alcoholism and loneliness, decided to go and make sure his family was safe. He took his horse and sword, two of the last things he had to his name and rode north to where he heard his son had settled. Unfortunately, it was far too late to save Antony and Cecillia, but he had happened upon his young grandson Marcus who told him everything that had occurred. The old knight took the boy and rode eastward to the bastion of Tyr's Hand where they stayed for some time.

## Life and Career

### The Argent Knight

   Marcus' grandfather wasted no time ingratiating himself with many of the knights of the, then, Scarlet Crusade. Yet it was clear that after the death of Alexandros Mograine, a divide was forming. Lucius decided to go with those that would eventually become the Argent Dawn and settle in and around Light's Hope Chapel with the young Marcus.

It was here that Marcus grew into a young man, each day spent in constant contact with the martial men and women of the Argent Dawn. He was trained from a young age by both his grandfather and the other soldiers around him to always be on alert, always be cautious of his surroundings and how to defend himself from the Undead. As the years passed, Marcus became a rather competent Squire to his grandfather, who had asserted himself as a capable and fearsome knight in the Argent Dawn's ranks. Gone were his days of gambling and drinking, for now he had a purpose: to raise his grandson and teach him the ways of being a Knight.