Zaigan Teo'dian

Zaigan Teo'dian is a fallen aasimar Oath of Conquest Paladin played by Ronan in Among the Bones of the Second Age.

## Backstory

Zaigan was born to Akeio and Lani Teo’dian in the city of Arendel. His parents were religious people with Akeio, Zaigan’s father, serving as a Paladin in the Knights of Winter’s Snow and adopting the role as a prominent figure within the army as a Holy Knight. As such, Akeio was hardly around the home, leaving Lani to raise Zaigan on her own. Zaigan missed his dad greatly, but understood the importance of his work. He grew up idolizing and admiring his father, completely engulfed in the work that he did. When his father did return home, he would tell Zaigan of his travels, the battles he fought, and the victories he achieved, all of which Zaigan drank up eagerly. The life of a Holy Knight was mystical and mesmerizing to young Zaigan and he knew that one day, he would strive to follow in his father’s footsteps.

From an early age, it was clear that Zaigan was different from other children. Zaigan would receive visions nightly when he slept, see an angelic figure that spoke to him. This figure was named Myiana and she spoke to Zaigan every night as a child. First as just a voice, then as an image. Zaigan assumed this was natural, but when he spoke about it to his parents, they assured him he was probably just dreaming and to make nothing of it. Zaigan than began speaking with Myiana herself during the night but only briefly through dreams. She let him know that he was not crazy nor dreaming, she was real and had vital information to share with him. She told him about the world, about who he was, and about what he could become. She told him he was touched by the gods, sent to this realm as a beacon of hope, a being known as an Aasimar. She would tell him stories about the deeds he was destined to do and how much of an impact he could make on the world. Zaigan was amazed and captivated by the stories she weaved and what his destiny could become. It only helped that these stories were in line with what he heard from his father during his time as a child. Zaigan knew that this was the path he was destined to travel. Throughout his daily life, he strove to embody the qualities the spirit told of. She would give him advice on how to

So, when he was of suitable age, Zaigan journeyed to join the Holy Order of the Knights of Winter’s Snow. He was accepted upon recognition of his family name and through his father’s blessing. He was immediately thrust into training, learning the ways of combat and the teachings of the order. Zaigan fell into them wholeheartedly, admiring the sense of duty and devotion the holy knights he trained with had for their cause. He valued the degree of justice they would be serving, the fact that they could right the wrongs of the world and make a difference. He also enjoyed the time he had to spend with his father, who acted as his superior. While a different relationship than the warmth and love of father and son, he respected his father even more for the sense of righteousness and humbleness he exuded on a daily basis. He learned much from his father and appreciated the lessons immensely.

Zaigan eventually completed training and became a full fledged member of the Knights of Winter’s Snow. He was sworn in as a Holy Knight and joined a legion under his father. For years, he served under his father and fought the good fight against evil doers that might plague Arbante. The work was hard and intense with Zaigan constantly having to put his life on the line, but it mattered little to him. All he cared about was serving justice throughout the land. Over time, he grew to enjoy the thrill of battle, thirst for the defeat of his enemies. More so than his companions, he reveled in victory and hungered for the complete conquest of anybody rivaling his judgment. He was often criticized for this side of himself, but he shut them all down. He knew he was doing the right thing and following the right path; it was meaningless what they said.

Zaigan and his legion were tasked one day with eradicating a group of bandits pillaging the town of Ovalar, a simple job yet one that had to be done. They journeyed to the town rather uneventfully, getting intel as they got closer. It appeared that it would in fact be an easy day’s work. The legion moved in on the town to dispose of where their intel said the bandits were to be located. Only instead, they found nothing. Suspicion arose from the members of the legion but it was too late; they had walked directly into a trap of magical proportions. Sorcerers and wizards attacked them and they were forced to defend. It was only a matter of time before over half the legion had been wiped out, Zaigan’s father being one of them. That childlike wonder and awe for the world vanished instantly as the remaining members fled for safety and managed to escape back to their home turf.

Mourning the death of his father, Zaigan approached the High Priest to demand retribution. He was denied, being told that they should pray to their deity for answers. Day after day Zaigan returned, but was continuously shot down. He was mortified and outraged by this reaction; how could this Order that claimed to be holy and righteous turn their back so quickly on their own? How could they ignore such blatant disrespect and not wish to conquer their enemies? Their deity clearly didn’t know what happened or else he would have told them to put a stop to this. Obviously he wasn’t meant to be trusted or followed. Myiana continued to appear to Zaigan as she always had, but he ignored her. She was a liar and flat out wrong about everything she had said. What did she know if she couldn’t tell him that his father was going to die? She was just as bad as the rest of them.

With malice and despair growing in his heart, Zaigan’s mentality broke one day. He appeared before the High Priest, issuing a duel for his position. The winner would assume role and the loser will forfeit their life in exchange. The High Priest was appalled and disgusted, expelling Zaigan from the Order, only sparing his life on behalf of his father’s passing. This only enraged Zaigan even more than before and he waited, plotting his revenge on those who had wronged him. He lied in dormancy, brewing in hatred and disgust until one night, he made his move. He knew the best way to get back at the Order was to crush their spirit and remove their figure of power. So he snuck into the temple and defiled relics of the deity before moving to the High Priest’s chambers. He quickly and without remorse stabbed the High Priest, watching him pale before fleeing, unsure of whether he had killed the man or not. It was in that moment that Zaigan swore vengeance upon all who did him wrong, that he would annihilate those who stood in his path until they crumbled under his power. Zaigan fled the city and Arbante as a whole so as not to be discovered for his crimes. Zaigan, focusing on the ever-growing rage boiling inside him, barely noticed the fact that Miyana no longer appeared to him during his dreams.

Zaigan traveled for quite some time upon his excommunication from the Holy Order. He eventually found himself in **\*INSERT CITY WITH MERCENARIES\*** where he noted work as a mercenary for hire. Having nothing else to do and craving the thrill of the fight that he experienced before, he accepted the job. Having great success and enjoying the rush of victory, he continued to take work, operating independently and taking what jobs he could handle on his own. Slowly but surely he rose in notoriety until he was a respected name in the underground. The fame and clout were worth practically nothing to him; all that he cared about was the satisfaction he got when he saw his enemies crushed completely and the lust to continue. Zaigan’s reputation grew so much so that he was approached by a local mercenary league, **\*INSERT MERCENARY LEAGUE NAME (IF THERE IS ONE)\***, and recruited to join their band. While the idea of working closely with a group did not appeal to Zaigan, he recognized the benefits this group could offer and signed a contract. Zaigan worked alongside others when necessary, set on growing his power so that he could conquer any foe in his way. Despite his attempts to remain distant, he found himself forming a bond with the leader of the gang he was a part of, a goliath by the name of Bauldor the Mighty. He looked up to this man, admiring his strength and unyielding nature no matter what he came across. Zaigan refused to admit it, but he began to view Bauldor as a father figure in a sense. A piece of Zaigan constantly longed for the praise and recognition from Bauldor, drawing inspiration from that in addition to the malice brewing within him. For Zaigan, defeat or death of others was not enough; he sought to eliminate the will to fight from any enemy he came across. A sense of euphoria spread over him whenever he say the courage drain from the eyes of his enemy before he slaughtered him. Working as a mercenary gave him the means to experience this constantly.

On one of his jobs, he found himself in a bitterly familiar situation. This particular job took him to the city of **\*CONQUEST ORDER CITY\*** in Zentite, a strange location considering their general distrust to outsiders, but one that he thought would satisfy his needs and paid well. It was there that he discovered the client was a group of paladins requesting additional support as their caravan travelled with goods to another city. Begrudgingly, out of integrity and not wanting to soil the name of his league more than anything, Zaigan continued through with the job. As he guided the group along their journey, he began to realize that this one was far different than his previous experience. He was amazed to find that they shared his values and views of the world, holding similar opinions and outlooks. Asking questions and gleaning information, he learned that they were more devoted to battle and the defeat of enemies. They followed the god Taranis, one centered around the domains of war and battle in addition to the volatile element of thunder. They told him how they use their battle prowess not to hold influence or control, but to do good deeds for those who could not and make a difference by their own hand. While following a path of beliefs, they did not abide by an honor code per say, making anything fair game to an extent in the eyes of their deity.

Through Zaigan’s conversations with this group, he slowly realized just how empty his life felt in comparison to these others. He had lived and travelled and slain countless enemies, but for what? The rage only continued to boil inside him and he remained cold and bitter. It was then that it hit him: Zaigan had nothing to live for. It struck him that his outlook of the world was flawed; while he had been bitter and angry at the exterior environment, he only sought to harm out of revenge and anger. Hearing the conversations around him, he suddenly realized that he could use his skills for the benefit of others, allowing them to live in a world devoid of the suffering he experienced. He could use the rage inside as a fuel for a productive means to better others and live a more fruitful life than his prior existence. They all agreed that it was important to be powerful and to destroy enemies at whatever cost necessary, but this order viewed the pursuit of strength as the most important factor, not the pursuit of wielding power. This realization struck a chord within Zaigan as he realized the truth behind this philosophy. As a result, he decided then to turn away from mercenary work after the six years as a member of the league and join up with this new group of paladins, eager to see where it would take him.

After training and teaching for approximately a year, he was accepted into the Order. Zaigan stayed within the city for another year or so before finally deciding to embrace the freedom associated with this Order. He lives as a traveling member of the Oath of Conquest Paladins, seeing where life takes him as he seeks to follow his tenets faithfully and devoutly while looking for the familiar thrill of victory along the way. He spent years traveling the continent of Wyreval with no set destination in mind, simply going where he felt Taranis was leading him. He fought battles and helped countless along the way, doing deeds he felt were right. One evening, Zaigan received a vision in his sleep, a voice booming in his dreams. He knew immediately the voice was Taranis and listened intently to the words. Taranis said a simple message, repeating constantly throughout the night. *To Greyheart. Go.* The next morning, Zaigan packed up his things and began the long and treacherous journey to follow the word of his god. He bought passage along a vessel and sailed across the Sea of Sapphires and through the Ruby Sea to the continent of Kal’dein, seeking the adventures and source of whatever message Taranis had sent for him. He has been within the city of Greyheart for six months now, doing odd jobs here and there as he diligently searches for why Taranis had called him here.