Fenric Kane

Fenric Kane, also known as the Bull of the North and Fenric the Bull, was a bastard of King Centrus I Aryes which the king had in his early adulthood. He participated in many wars on the side of the Aryes dynasty, including the War of the Crown, War for the North, and Reconquest of the North. He is revered by the Kingdom of Northbra and is seen as a folk hero among them.

## Appearance and Character

Fenric was large and shaped like a bull, as commonly described by the smaller framed New Calmeerans of the south even going so far as calling him Fenric the Bull. He was seen as sad since he was stoic in nature and carried a frown. He was born with light brown hair that dulled out as he got older with brown eyes. He embraced his Northman heritage and always dressed apart in simple tattered discolored robes, a long braided beard, and uncut and unkempt hair.

Fenric was a strong fighter in the Empire of Thanthris because of his foreign fighting capabilities. He was taught by the exiles he ruled over in the north how to fight, which gave him the upper hand in combat against opponents in the south. He believed in keeping perfect shape and would actively work out his body to always be prepared in a fight. While he never held official tournaments in his rule, he did commonly hold melees which he fought in.

## History

### Early Life

Fenric was born in Fort Apron in 42 GI to King Centrus I Aryes and an unknown Northwoman. He was a bastard of the realm. He had three half-brothers, Tyler Apron, Avery of New Calmeera, and Benny of New Calmeera, who were also bastards as he was. He had three half-sisters, Vendi I Aryes, Vinna Aryes, and Viona Aryes, who were legitimate children of Centrus. Fenric grew up in Caste Longwatch away from his father's legitimate family and with his bastard siblings, though he would never grow close with them. He never liked his father, but Centrus favored Fenric the most out of his bastards as Fenric was a capable fighter and matched his father in melees.

During Fenric's youth, Fenric was able to beat his father in a melee. After defeating his father, Centrus awarded the village of Alfrick to the young Fenric. The village consisted primarily of exiles of the north, and these exiles would help teach Fenric northern techniques of fighting.

### War of the Crown

When Vendi began slaughtering hers and Fenric's kin, he rose in rebellion against his tyrant half-sister queen in favor of his cousin Vincent Aryes. However, Fenric's army would never be able to aid the rebel forces, as Vendi destroyed it in a blitz attack on Alfrick. Fenric managed to escape capture and evaded Vendi's forces for a year. When Fenric finally reached Fort Apron, Vincent was already slain by Vendi and now his other cousin Vindictus I Aryes was in charge of the revolt. During the siege, Fenric would manage to sneak his way into the city. He presented an idea to claim the throne to Vindictus who believed the rebellion was all but winnable. His idea was to sneak into the capital and defeat Vendi in the throne room with her queen's guards. He had also enlisted the help of Northmen to aid in the plan. Vindictus reluctantly agreed to the plan.

Vendi has never seen Vindictus in person nor Fenric, which proved useful for the two. Both of them, with the aid of the remaining Northmen, snuck their way into Ashermark. Inboard daylight, their party forced their way into the throne room of Ashbeak, where they found Vendi in her golden full-plate armor. She challenged Vindictus to a duel to the death for the throne, but Vindictus declined so Vendi and her royal guardsmen charged their party. The small battle raged on for well over an hour inside the throne room. Vendi was a well and capable fighter, but her guardsmen were no match for the Northmen. In the end, Vindictus and Fenric defeated Vendi together but only injuring her, since they didn't want to share in the kinslaying like her. When the throne room's doors were finally opened, her soldiers rushed into the room only to find Vindictus sitting on the throne. However, instead of wearing full-plate, he wore his royal garments and held a flower in his hand, a symbol of peace. The War of the Crown was over with Vindictus reigning as the new king.

### War for the North

With King Vindictus I Aryes on the throne, he would offer a political marriage with one of his daughters if they claimed a kingdom in his name. Fenric and his exile army would lead a campaign across the tribes of Northbra. He would either assimilate them into the forming empire or force their hand into war. With Fenric's army growing by the day, most tribes peacefully surrendered to him and were allowed to continue their way of life unhindered. The further north Fenric went the more hostile the tribes became. Tribes began unifying against Fenric and his army to the point of a standstill. The last major battle took place on the Island of Death, where Fenric emerged victoriously and slaughtered many Northmen. After this battle, the remaining tribes agree that Fenric would keep the lands he has taken and the unified army would return home, in order to bring peace. Fenric would marry his son, Aldric Kane, off to Valena Aryes, daughter of Vindictus.

### Reconquest of the North

After the defeat by the hands of Fenric, rage and anger was bubbling in the north. This anger led to the creation of the faction known as Primordial's Chosen, where Northmen would compete to see who was the chosen of their gods to fight against the invading Empire. After many trials and melees held, the chosen uniter of the Northmen was Torin Weaver, or the Stag Lord. Torin unified all of the northern tribes under his banner and lead a multi-pronged invasion of the Empire. Torin's main host army would lead its first and only battle at the Island of Death, where Fenric had built a castle known as Fort Baldric. The venerable Fenric would still lead his army against Torin in a pyrrhic battle at decided the fate of the war early on. The 70-year-old Fenric fought against the magically imbued Stag Lord in a one-on-one duel during the battle, and after minutes of fighting Fenric defeated and killed the Stag Lord. After the hard-fought battle, Fenric led the rest of the Empire forces against remaining northern armies and quickly dispatched them. Since his victory, he was dubbed the Bull of the North by the proud people of Northbra and his enemies of northern tribes.

## Death

Fenric would live a couple more years after the Reconquest of the North and continued participating in melees like his father. In 120 GI, he died of natural causes. Many statues in the north were erected in his honor. The most notable one being at the battlefield of Fort Baldric that is large enough to be since for miles as a reminder to the Northmen that are attempted to invade Northbra again.

## Legacy

Fenric would live a long life of war and hardships that lead him from being a bastard of the realm to a vice-king of a kingdom. He is a revered hero of Northbra with their bards and poets writing many songs and poems in his honor. His legacy has even garnered the favor of the northern tribes who view him as a great warrior and hero.