Lucréus Verdaniger

**Lucréus Verdaniger** (pron: Loo-Kray-Us, Ver-Den-Uh-Jer) was the first and last Lord-Imperator of the Askeldian Empire under Emperor Diskella Obalenia. Before the rise of the Askeldian Empire, Verdaniger held the title of Lord of Sempir Vertus under both King Elaron II and Diskella Obalenia. Although he was not a member of the Knights Defixius until shortly before the Collapse of Askeldia, Lucréus worked hand in hand with the order of knights for several years and was responsible for many of their campaigns, including much of the organization concerning The Demiurgic Ravaging. Verdaniger played a large role in assisting Diskella Obalenia with the commanding of the Askeldian Military during the Radoran War of Divinity.

Although Lucréus held a very high title in the Askeldian government, he was still officially employed as the court jester of the Askeldian Castle. Since the position of Lord-Imperator was not yet established within the first months of the reign of Emperor Diskella, and since Lucréus was relieved of his authorities in Sempir Vertus to be invited to stay in the city of Althoria, he served as the court jester due to his profound sense of humor, wittiness, and constant telling of jokes and riddles. Once Lucréus was promoted to the position of Lord-Imperator, he was allowed to maintain the position of court jester, which he took much pride in. Verdaniger, not unlike a clown, enjoys incorporating humor, mostly dark of nature, into many situations of his everyday life including combat. It is clear that Lucréus is very mentally unstable and suffers from antisocial personality disorder. Lucréus had a total of four ex-wives and several more lovers before his death, all of which he is suspected of murdering, however, this has never been investigated or proven true.

## History

### *Birth and Childhood*

While Lucréus' mother was pregnant with him, she was kidnapped in secrecy by the Knights Defixius. A curse was placed around her womb that was intended to tamper with the mentality of Lucréus and eventually make him gullible to the persuasion of agents within the Defixius. Lucréus' mother and father were entirely unaware that this had taken place, and on the last day of Crylunthus, moments before the new year, Lucréus was born.  Although Lucréus was the first son of the lord and lady, he had four older sisters and would eventually have a younger brother. As a boy, Lucréus was very mentally acute, and was considered by his tutors to have a very adept intelligence level for his age.

At the age of seven, Lucréus befriended a jester working in the castle named Edward Ledgey. Although Edward was secretly an assassin hired by the Knights Defixius, he developed a sincere relationship with Lucréus and his younger brother Napiamus. The Jester would play a very large role in the two boys' lives over the duration of their childhood, secretly teaching them not only many magic tricks, but also fighting and killing strategies, essentially preparing them to become serial killer clowns. Overall, the plan established by the Defixius Knights was to slowly have Edward persuade Lucréus into understanding and adhering to the ideals and values of the order, and then eventually assassinate his parents under the guise of an accident when he came of age to take the throne.

### *Early Life/Lord of Sempir Vertus*

Lucréus was approached by Ledgey two months after his fifteenth birthday about the benefits of his parents' death for the first time. Although skeptical at first, Lucréus soon agreed to the plans after some thought, and even convinced his brother to join the conspiracy. On a cold Emylyresus night, with the help of both of the boys, Ledgey bound and set fire to the master chambers in the castle of Sempir Vertus, killing both Lord and Lady Verdaniger. After the culprits fled the scene, the guards' attention was caught and the fires were extinguished. The truth of the crime was not discovered by the guards, resulting in Lucréus' ascension to the throne.

Ledgey had left the castle by the middle of 4184 once Lucréus had settled in comfortably with being in the position of lordship. Ledgey's involvement with the Knights Defixius was still unknown to Lord Lucréus, and was intended to remain that way. The Defixius were dramatizing their involvement in the governing of the neighboring kingdom of Karpatia and had officially started a war with Althoria four years prior when they claimed Leinettes for themselves. Although there were very few physical confrontations in the war, the state of rivalry remained strong. After Edward Ledgey returned to Karpatia, the Defixius sent an invasion force into Sempir Vertus with mostly untrained and unskilled warriors, resulting in a landslide victory for Sempir Vertus under Lucréus' command. Many more conflicts came to follow against Althoria, eventually leading King Elaron to go on the offensive, recruiting Lucréus and other lords to assist.

### *Service in the War on Karpatia*

Come the end of 4185, Lucréus was appointed as a commander of the Althorian Military, placing him in charge of the defense of most of the southern kingdom. Although fighting had slowed down almost to a halt in Althoria, enemy invasions were still almost guaranteed to be in the works, leading Verdaniger to go to much higher lengths in training, equipping, and up-sizing the infantry in the Althorian military.

Verdaniger was well prepared when he was asked by King Elaron to help him lead the frontal invasion of Karpatia. After several months of planning and upgrading equipment, on the 4th of Wyndesimus, 4188, Elaron led the forces of Althoria City and Sempir Vertus into the Rhodes District of Karpatia. Being the second largest settlement in Karpatia, the Rhodes District proved to be a large challenge for the Althorians after putting up supple amounts of defense and resistance. The Siege of the District of Rhodes lasted a little over two days and one night, with an ultimate victory at the hands of the Althorians. Lucréus and his order of knights performed remarkably during the siege and were awarded with a badge of valor.

Over the next ten months, Lucréus both fought alongside King Elaron and even led his own attacks on both major and minor targets in the nation of Karpatia, eventually exhausting the kingdom's military and resources enough to act on the Leinettian Plateau. The Surrender at Leinettes took place on 8th of Hearthforus when King Elaron II surrounded the entirety of the plateau with his military, forcing Uwchben Elenvyss Undeprydus to stand down and surrender her authority to the kingdom of Althoria. A meeting was held in the Temple of Leinettes in order to establish a new form of government for the future of Karpatia. Several propositions were brought up, many involving the termination of the the government and the expansion of the lands onto the kingdom of Althoria. It was Lucréus who suggested that the nation be returned to its people and a new leader elected as permitted by the traditional democracy of Karpatia.