(Archive) Knoss Nightcloak

*"The world is big and vast. You'll need someone to defend you if you explore." - Knoss*

"But then who'll protect you?"

## Early Life

   I began life in the burrow, just like most mice. It was a week after Nuru was born that Papa and us got exiled from the burrow for our.... so called... dangerous experiments. We traveled from place to place, Papa having grown silent and cold. He barely spoke to me anymore. I was only 1 at the time.Papa would often leave Nuru and me in settlements we came to, venturing out to slay some threat to the settlement we were in or go find this and that. He basically, for lack of better words, was your typical adventurer. My brother and I were just the unlucky duo who tagged along. Once Nuru reached the age of 3, the age where many in the burrow were thought to be capable at home by themselves, Papa began to teach me about the guns again. He neglected to take me with him, and in order to keep up with Nuru's growing apetite I began to desperately find work anywhere in the settlements that we could. The pay sucked, but it was something.

Well, one day Papa got recruited to go take care of some sorcerer. The group said they wouldn't be long, and that it should be easy. After all, they had guns. What could possibly go wrong? I waited, scrubbing the tavern we stayed at. Days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months. I eventually saw one of the adventurers Papa had left with enter the tavern. At the sight of him my blood boiled, but then I saw them. Rosemary and Thyme, Papa's favorite pistols. He'd never part with them. In a frenzy I pounced onto him and began to claw at him, yelling obscenities. My boss pulled me off of him, but not before I pocketed the twins. I ended up being fired, but did I care? Heh.... No regrets.

## An Adventure Begins

With the realization that Papa had passed, I figured our best way to survive is if I took up what he had been doing. We moved from town to town looking for work where we could, and if I heard there was someone or something that needed an adventurer's meddling, I took the job. I always went alone. Partners? They'd betray you eventually. At least that's how I viewed things before... she showed up. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Nuru and I were running low on funds one night and I need coin, fast. I overheard a local noble talking about how he needed protection, and so I hopped on board.My one condition was to bring Nuru with us, since we were traveling to another settlement. Couldn't leave him, you know? That's when things went... Down hill.

First it was goblins. No problem. But then the hobgoblins came and the bugbears. We were over run.... Slaughtered We fought until it was just Nuru and myself, backed into a corner by the three bugbears. Nuru... He took one of Papa's pistols, slamming a strange bullet into it and firing. The bugbears caught a flame and Rosemary? It broke due to the cartridge. He was 12 and I was 13.

### Missing Rat

We managed to get our companions, 2 dead, to the next town over. The Noble was still alive, thankfully. Upon arrival my brother and I were confined to the jail under the premise of suspected kidnapping of the young lord seeing as he wasn't a reliable witness, having passed out at just the sight of the goblins. It took 2 days before we were let out and given half the pay for the entire group. I heard that the other two adventurers were given a proper funeral, but aside from that the noble parted way from us. What we had could get us by for a while, enough time to go find another job. I asked the guard if he could keep my brother there until I found a tavern or more work. Agreeing, I left my little brother in the care of that guard, who actually found a tavern for us to stay at.

Turns out we had come to a port settlement. Lots of fish, or one would have thought. Instead the place was running low on their main source of income and it was due to a serpent. I signed up to be a part of the party to go take care of the problem, since the reward was 50 days of fishy rations. Should've been easy. I returned to the tavern where Nuru had been left studying Papa's journal only to see that he was missing from the building.

Fearing the worst I searched port to gates for my brother, taking the full day to find him. I eventually did, and I was not happy. The third time I had been to port I saw him, rosemary to his side, reading as the ship he was on began to sail away, towards the area the serpent had been. I went to my captain and yelled at him that we needed to go, now. But to my dismay the captain was firm about waiting until the next day, as he still needed people.

When we did set sale to the spot, the lookout saw shimmering. And as we got even closer, we found a huge corpse floating in the water. Fishing it out we identified it as the serpent, and me? I found gunpowder in the thing's mouth. My little brother was one of two things, alive and shaken or dead. I held onto the hope of the former.

Beyond that there's not much to really tell. My crew and I eventually ended up sailing into fiend's reach, of which I departed from and eventually ran into Greentooth and my brother.

## Appearance

In contrast to Nuru, Knoss is a grey furred ratfolk. In the light of the moon her fur shimmers a blueish grey, captivating a few as it shines.

## Personality

Knoss is all about laws and regulations. There's a certain way to do things, and you have to follow the rules to survive. She cares not for anyone but Nuru and herself, and so will only break a law if it is necessary for either of their survival.

### The Code

Don't go wandering off. Stay with the group.

Don't eat something unless you're absolutely sure it's safe. Unless it's pink.

Always carry a pouch of dried fruit.

Never run when you are scared.

There's no such thing as a coincidence.

## Relations

Nuru Nightcloak - Brother

Gazeck\_"chompy" - A reoccurring annoyance she calls "Greentooth"

Sabrina - Burnette, elven worker for the Serpent's Tail

Gerald - A human man who sucks at cooking, also a worker for Serpent's Tail