Prince Johan Wilem

Johan Wilem upon his return to Fleur, circa 114 M.E.

**Prince Johan Wilem, Lord of Skjol** and Lily Knight to Queen Guinevere Wilem of Flowers, is a member of the Fleurian royal family. He was born in 67 ME in Evermere at Wilemberg, Fleur. He is the uncle to Queen Guinevere Wilem of Flowers and son of the late Queen Lorelai Wilem of Flowers.

## Biography

Johan was the second child to Queen Lorelai Wilem of Flowers and her husband Prince Consort Nikolas Wilem. Born in 67 ME Johan was a healthy baby and enjoyed a peaceful childhood, often hunting with his father and brother, attending military councils, and even squiring for his uncle Silas Wilem. It was on these trips in his teen years that he began to show great interest in his cousin Lady Helena Wilem of Flowers. In 85 ME he begged his uncle Silas for her hand in marriage and, while granting him permission, left the choice up to Helena. Helena was disgusted by this offer and the heartbroken Johan returned to Wilemberg in shame.

In 90 ME his father arranged for him to be married to Lizbeth of Perseum, a daughter of one of his military friends. They were married in 92 ME after great deliberation. The two got along fine, though Lizbeth would increasingly more agitated by her husband's focus on his duties. The two had great difficulty conceiving, some in the court beginning to believe that Lizbeth was infertile. In 96 ME Johan's mother died and his sister Princess Minerva Wilem II of Flowers became the new queen of Fleur. In 106 ME his daughter, Grace Wilem was born, his only child. For many years Johan served in his sister's court and army without issue. However, as Minerva grew older she began showing signs of a wasting mental sickness, one that became apparent after the death of her husband in 102 ME

In 109 ME Johan as well as several other prominent members of the Fleurian court were caught by Minervan loyalists plotting a coup to seize power from Queen Minerva, in hopes of transferring the crown to her daughter, the then 15 year old Princess Quinevere Wilem of Flowers. As punishment, many members of the coup were executed but Minerva, in an act of mercy influenced by her daughter's pleas, spared Johan's life. Instead she exiled him to Sikkud, without the chance of return, stripping him of his titles in the process. Devastated, Johan took up his arms and left the country by horse, eventually leaving to Uruk by boat via Dragon's Head. His wife Lizbeth fled Fleur with their daughter Grace, settling in her home at Perseum, and annulling their marriage.

For four years Johan lived in exile in Sikkud. For most of this time he worked for various mercenary companies or as a body guard. He was welcomed among the ranks of the Fithali, a mercenary company in Uruk owned by his distant relatives, the grandchildren of his great uncle Prince Kyle Wilem. There he was called the Lonesome Prince, a Sikkudian phrase that is much less flattering than its translated counterpart. He did not seek fame or glory in Sikkud, never attempting to regain his lost status. Many in the North assumed him dead until in 113 ME a letter from Queen Guinevere Wilem reached him in Uruk. Answering her call for his return, Johan once again road to Fleur arriving at the end of 113 ME to receive a full pardon from his niece. Soon, she appointed him a member of the Lily Knights alongside his brother Prince Persepolis.

In 114 ME after the events of the Last Party, war was declared against Korevna and her allies. Prince Johan played a key part in Guinevere's decision and was one of her advisors and generals throughout the Two Years War. When Guinevere was captured in 115 ME by the Korevnans, Johan ruled over Fleur with his brother and Guinevere's inner circle. He began to see the usefulness of Lady Cassandra Wilem of Flowers during this time, beginning to groom her for the possibility of leadership. Following her execution in 116 ME it was Johan who sent Alexei Rhodrin to escort Cassandra out of the country at to safety in Skjol. Upon the peace with Korevna, Johan was dismissed from the Lily Knights by the newly crowned Queen Persepina Wilem II of Flowers.

Currently, Johan is somewhere in the wilderness between Fleur and Skjol, en route to meet Cassandra at Kalda where she is being kept in secret by the King Sjolbringr.

## Appearance

Johan is a middle aged man of a muscular build. He is dark for a Fleurian, with near black hair and a darker complexion, highlighted by his time spent outside in Sikkud. His hair is receding, mostly bald in the back and kept fairly short. He wears a dark beard. Johan has several scars upon his body from fights throughout his life. He is known for his bright green eyes, one of the few features one could call handsome about him.

Johan typically wears his armor or quilted northern clothes, more suited for Skjol than Fleur as he claims he finds the country too cold after his time in Sikkud. When he was allowed, he wore the Processional Tiara, the traditional crown of the firstborn son of the Queen of Flower's. His personal crest is a dead oak tree on a teal field with a yellow bendy. His preferred weapon is a great sword, though he sometimes fights with spear and shield.

## Relationships

**Alexei Rhodrin Wilem** - Alexei is one of Johan's trusted fellow Lily Knight's. The two, while not personally close, trust each other greatly when it comes to matters of state, especially of the safety of Cassandra. Johan believed greatly in Alexei's ability to keep Cassandra safe in their exile.

**Cassandra Wilem** - Johan saw the potential in Cassandra to become a ruler. In her youth, she was largely afraid of him, something that she still expressed to a much lesser extent in her adulthood. However, she currently feels indebted to him for his part in saving her life and looks forward to his arrival in Skjol.

**Grace Wilem II** - Johan's only child, his daughter barely knows him. He has not seen her since she was three and longs for nothing more than to apologize to her for his absence from her life. Grace resents him for leaving her, but secretly wishes for him to contact her again.

**Guinevere Wilem** - Guinevere and Johan have been close since she was a child. When she was younger, she would often prank him, considering him much too serious and preferring his brother to him. However, as she grew older the two became much closer, confiding often with him in her early teens before his exile about her feelings towards her mother. She pardoned him from his exile and trusted him greatly during the war. Despite his stoicism, Johan was incredibly distraught upon the news of her execution.

**Helena Wilem II** - Johan never moved past his love for her. In his youth, the two were very close, spending most of their time together sailing or riding. Despite her rejection of his marriage proposal, he still harbored feelings for her. When she went missing in 106 ME he proposed leading his own search party to rescue her but Minerva and Lizbeth would not allow it. Johan is one of the few people who still believes Helena is alive somewhere.

Hestos Wilem - One of Johan's distant cousins from the Persepina line of the Wilem family, Hestos was madly in love with Johan in their youth. He never had eyes for her, instead interested solely in his cousin Helena, much to Hestos' dismay. In fact, Hestos had become so distraught after learning about his proposal to Helena that she flung herself from her balcony, breaking her leg and nearly drowning in the sea below before a fisherman rescued her. Johan still does not care for her much, considering her disturbed like his sister. He did not feel much upon her death in 114 ME

**Lizbeth of Perseum** - His estranged wife, Johan no longer cares to see or hear from her. He feels some remorse for his mistreatment of her in the time before his exile, but mostly regrets ever marrying her.

**Minerva Wilem II** - Johan was never extremely close to his sister like his younger brother was. The two often fought, being very close in age and even he in his seriousness found her boring. As she grew older they only became more estranged, especially as her illness began to show. Despite his attempt at a coup against her, Johan specifically asked for her life to be spared at all costs. After his exile, when news of her death reached Sikkud, he felt regret in not being able to be with her as she passed.

**Silas Wilem** - Silas is Johan's uncle and a mentor figure to him. Despite his embarrassment over the rejection by Helena, Johan has still been able to regularly communicate with Silas via letter. Silas considers Johan to be like a son to him and supports him in all his endeavors, even if that support must be kept secret. Silas even visited Johan in Uruk while he was exiled.