Lance

Lance is an immortal boundless worldhopper. He is a recurring mysterious character in the larger history of many stories and worlds. It's unknown how old he is, or his world origin - though it is confirmed for sure that his world was already destroyed. He is also known to be a drifter and a storyteller.

He is one of the first humans created during the events of the Shattering. He has went through several incarnations, with the one described here being the most recent. However, his Cognitive Record always stays the same.

## APPEARANCE

Generally, Lance is often described to have short black hair and yellowish white eyes. He has a sharp face, with a sharp nose, delicate eyebrows, keen watchful eyes and a sly smirk as if he just got away with insulting your whole family pride then getting applauded for it. Lance used to have dark hazel eyes but it faded in color after he became a worldhopper.

He is tall slim man with a relaxed posture, and has statuesque qualities about him. He wears a sleek black uniform with silver white linings and buttons. He has on white pants and tall black sturdy boots. He usually wears his cloak and his thin longsword at his side or strapped onto his back.

His Cognitive Form is just him with white hair and a cloak that fades into a sea of stars and galaxies. Whenever exposed to a rift (ex: standing near one, worldhopping, or using a Shard Item), his hair turns white and his cloak has the same starry affect, The brighter stars being the worlds he's in or nearer to, and the dimmer stars being the worlds he's further from.

### ELSYRION

In Elsyrion, he goes by the name Vaeril. He is described to have short white combed hair. He is often seen wearing dusky grey short robes with dark grey sleeves. He wears fingerless gloves with tight leather bound around his wrists up to his elbows. Vaeril has on dark pants and high boots. His uniform is ornamented with gold swirling patterns reminiscent of vines and flowers. The patterns on his clothes sometimes move around.

Vaeril has a golden leaf ornament/accessory around his temples (and it's mainly just for looks). There is a silver gold ring on each of his fingers with a different engraved runes (these are magic items that lets him conjure puppet illusions without having to use his spells). He sometimes wear an additional separate hooded cloak that always shades his eyes.

Vaeril's appearance generally looks more professional than Lance's as he got a job at a royal court (this is also how he met Elyssar). During the Blood Moon Ball, he wears an extravagant bardic outfit with a large feather hat and a white half-mask that covers his right eye.

### VALIDRA

In Validra, he goes by Aelrindel. He is described to have short black hair with many streaks of whites in it, and the hair at his temples are white. Sometimes he has a tiny ponytail tied. He is described to have judging yet playful eyes and still holds his bastardly smirk. He wears blue eye contacts. His outfit changes often, but he generally wears a dark and blue adventuring outfit with a fur cloak.

He always carries a lute and an additional instrument (usually a flute or fiddle).

## ACCOUTREMENT

Lance is usually seen carrying around a thin black longsword with golden patterns on its blade at his side or strapped onto his back. The sword, he claims, has no actual magical properties nor does it have anything special to it. Though this holds personal values to Lance even if he uses it sparingly. In many cases, he uses his sword as a sign of authority or as a threat.

Some other items he carries around includes a flute, sometimes a lute or a fiddle, and the Reliever's Token (which he got later into his story). His flute is designed to be versatile and able to channel magic from as much magic systems as possible - mainly so he can play music with casting illusion spells to accompany his stories.

## PERSONALITY

He's a very charismatic, witty, intelligent, and cocky person. He has a tendency to insult people, and likes to show off his cleverness that way. He admits that he's frequently silly, but he's always honest despite phrasing his honesty through means of insults. Because he travels around many worlds, he knows a lot; this often unsettles people as he knows things he shouldn't. He is an intelligent individual, though he would not give up information so easily.

Most people just find him rather annoying, but helpful at unexpected times, then annoying again because he likes it that way. It isn't uncommon for people to describe him as a cheeky bastard or a lunatic. Lance's the type of background character that knows almost everything but just decides to sit in a corner and giggles to himself.

Despite his tendency to cleverly insult those around him, he always seems to know what needs to be said or done to help and encourage those who need it. He tells stories to get his point across.

However, he would not describe himself as a good person. Even though he proves to be incredibly empathetic, he is more self-interested than one thinks. Lance follows his own goals, and will gladly encourage people in need, or see the collapse of a universe if it meant achieving what he wants.

## CHARACTERISTICS

Lance's immortality comes from the fact that his world is destroyed, thus his origin and bounds are destroyed with it - effectively making him ageless. Lance is able to travel through rifts much easier and able to worldhop with less severe side effects.

However, this also grants him several disadvantages. He is unable to consume anything from any worlds or else it'll bind him to it. This is also tied to why Lance refused when offered a flask during one of his encounter with Michael. Lance admits he almost forgot the cool feeling of water down his throat. He is also unable to physically harm anyone, and even the mere action of the intent to harm could make him incapacitated and in severe pain.

Lance claims he doesn't remember his true name. He described that after he collapsed his own world, memories suddenly slipped from him like a fleeting wind.

Whenever Lance is killed through means that aren't worldhopping accidents, he gets reborn at the nearest rift. He would be reborn with white hair that would slowly grow back into black (he generally cannot afford the time so he usually dyes it if he can). During the first years after being reborn, he'd be weak and mostly unable to use magic.

He typically likes music and stories. He tends to tell symbolic myths and tales (sometimes from other worlds) and likes to leave it blurry to have the listener interpret the story for themselves and their lives. He often pauses his story (leaving it open ended to symbolize the listener's upcoming journey) and has the listener continue to tell it some later point in time when they meet again. Lance usually accompanies his stories with music. Skipping a section or not ending a story is something he'd never do.

Lance can know where he's supposed to be, though doesn't always know what he's supposed to do. He always appears randomly at certain moments. He has a way of being where he shouldn't, but not being where one would expect.

Lance's true name and origin have always been unknown even to him. Though it's proven that Lance's world was already collapsed and destroyed. Lance often drop hints that he himself collapsed his own world by opening a rift linking to the magic realm after he became a worldhopper. He feels no regrets, and said that it needed to be done.

His age has never been confirmed. He is speculated by Dusklight to be one of the first humans, though his altered Record and destroyed Origin made it impossible to prove so.

His goals remain unknown even to the closest people to him. Though he is interested in (and fears) the New Dawn's goals, and has always have a profound curiousity to what lays beyond the Shattered Clusterverse (he is hinted at this clue when in possession of the Reliever's Token). He values freedom and understood the limits of Godshards - thus he refused it.

## ABILITIES

Lance is known to be a multi-talented individual, though is the jack of all trades/master of none type.

### WORLDHOPPING

Lance is very good at travelling and worldhopping, so he can travel between worlds in the Clusterverse effectively and with limited side effects due to the fact that he's boundless. He also proves to be quite skilled treading in the Cognitive and Spiritual Realm, and doesn't seem really fazed much by it.

### STORYTELLING

Lance is proven to be a very talented storyteller. His methods generally revolves around reflecting his stories off of people's lives and making it as personal as possible. Lance told the story of Alvan to Mirelind when they first met, the story of the Seawonder and the Starcatcher to Darren, and the story of the Past Shadows in Little Lands. He also uses illusion magic a lot in his tales, and told the story of Qwui's fall while hidden behind thick curtains in the streets in Rajamerak.

### ILLUSION

Lance is proficient in illusion magic. Although he most often uses this in his performances, he also often use this to disguise himself behind an illusion to hide his identity. Lance said that he feels a personal intimacy to his illusions, and it's determined that there's something more organic to what he does. His images *live*.

## ALIASES

* Lance: This is the most common name he is referred to. This isn't his true name though.
* Vaeril: The name he goes by while in Elsyrion. The name Elyssar and Rayhana calls Lance.
* Isheren'Tal: Is reffered to as the "The trickster god of stories" though Lance claims to be nowhere near being a god.
* Taudred: The feys tend to call him this. He seems to be offended by it.
* Wayfaring Bard: A common nickname for the common folks.
* Hooded Horseman

## BACKGROUNDS

Throughout his many journeys across various worlds, he takes on many different jobs and backgrounds, and known to many as differently each time.

### WAYFARING BARD

When known, he is most often associated with being a master storyteller and a bard. When associated with this background, he is known to be a drifter. As a storyteller, Lance does quite a bit of investigative research to verify important details of the stories he tells. He has done his leg work and is telling a story the best that he can, which is better than any normal storyteller could.

### JESTER/ADVISOR

Lance would probably want to get a high-ranking job, and in this case, being a jester or an advisor. He gets the permission to insult nobles without being challenged or executed for it, and gets access to valuable information and learn of the more intricate workings of any courts or organization. Lance is a good jokester, and an even better insulter.

### HOODED HORSEMAN

Lance also appears riding a black stallion while hooded. When associated with this background, he is often seen as a messenger or a "curse" - as in he often appears to warn people of incoming threats or dangers. Lance's eyes are always hidden under the shadows of his hood, and always seem to be smiling to himself. Lance rarely appears in this background unless absolutely necessary.

## RELATIONSHIPS

### VALENTIN

Valentin is one of the closest friends within Lance's social circle, and Lance doesn't like him at all. Valentin doesn't find him annoying, and just thinks Lance is lonely. Valentin is the only reason why Lance doesn't smile, but Lance knows that Valentin's very trustworthy. They talk about worldhopping whenever they can, and Valentin is just there to ease the tension whenever Lance insults a noble. Valentin usually offers Lance some moral advices, Lance always retorts back.

The two obvious have a big differences on perspectives and morality. Valentin is a simple person who has a grounded moral view of life. Lance reaches for his ambitions, and sees morals as something that men created - thus making him very neutral.

### ELYSSAR

Elyssar is Lance's first apprentice out of two. Elyssar is a court scholar who has a lot of potential and aims for a larger understanding outside of what she is enclosed to. Lance describes her to be stern and serious, with a brilliant and confident mind yet stubborn and sometimes devoid of humor and favors intellect more than faith. Elyssar would describe Lance to be an odd and often silly yet a fascinating person.

During the Blood Moon Ball, the two decided to court each other and Lance decided to take her in as his first apprentice. It later became apparent that the two are romantically involved as rumours spread, but Elyssar just wanted to ask Lance more about worldhopping. The two's relationship would later stop when Elyssar was able to worldhop successfully, and went her own ways afterwards. They still meet often by chance, and Elyssar always comments on how Lance is a wisecrack. Overall, they're just seen as acquaintances now.

### REGINALD

Reginald is Lance's second apprentice out of the two. Reginald came from Terra Avium, and was around during the Great Desolation. He was forced into slave labor until he met a wind spirit, Jay, that came from a different world. Following this spirit, Reginald accidentally worldhopped and then was bounded to the spirit. After several very confusing years, Reginald came across Lance who mocked him for his stupidity but was willing to take him in as an apprentice.

That said, Reginald now butts head with Lance. Reginald is graduated, and is currently travelling worlds on his own with Jay. Although Lance admits he does misses Reginald, and wishes to send him a message if he "knew where that bird would get in trouble". Lance describes Reginald as a keen and decisive ave.

### UTHERTH

An old friend. The two personally knew each other during their first years in the Farseeker's Guild. Lance knew him to be a discreet and sneaky person, and advised him not to take the Godshard when Utherth found one. Nevertheless, it didn't work and Utherth disappeared into history.

### EIVENDREL

During the youth time of his immortality, he had rather good relations with Eivendrel because it's a good hideout and neutral territory. He was a student at one of the universities in Eivendrel. Before the events of the Khaidan'Shi Expedition, he was solely there for a big heist to steal secret histories. He later dropped out and escaped, then was pursued afterwards by Last stance.

Lance feels like Eivendrel has been too sided recently, and chose non-interference over mass destruction - just like the Farseekers.

### FARSEEKER'S GUILD

The Farseeker's Guild is the first he organization joined. Back when things were relatively new, he was a Farseeker and travelled a lot. This travelling takes up most of his early life, though he has defied several oaths before by interfering. He doesn't have the greatest reputation amongst the Farseekers because he is seen as too much of an agent of chaos.

He only joined to be able to travel far and discover things. He would later leave this organiation, and was pursued by the Last Stance sent by Eri'Shal. He would become a stowaway in the Starstrider.