Ertonius

- **Ertonius**

**Ertonius** (Ehr-toh-nē-uhs) is what remains of a Human male, named Erto Blackwell, who has survived contact with the Medusa Fragment, a dangerous artifact housed in the vaults of the Arcane Academy in Ironwall. His most distinct feature is the condition of his left arm, which has been eradicated and replaced with a magic-imbued material similar to that of what the Medusa Fragment is composed of. This left him with the ability to manipulate certain materials, along with improvement to his normal magic. However, He suffers from chronic pain, and he often refers to a voice, although he refuses to elaborate as to what the voice is or where it is coming from.

He previously served as a "Persuader" for the Arbiters, although he would often meander from his missions. This lead to a few conflicts with his commanders, and eventually to Ertonius going rouge. He now prefers to do vigilante or mercenary work, when he's not practicing his magic.

It is unknown if Ertonius remembers anything from before the accident, since he states that it's all clouded and obscure.

## *Personality*

Ertonius is often referred to as "Reckless", "Immature", or "A pain in the ass to take care of". He has rather impulsive actions, one of which lead to his current status. Others are usually hesitant to work with him again if they've done so before.

## *Appearance*

Ertonius has pale skin, due to his fateful interaction with the Medusa Fragment. His left arm and a part of his upper torso have been replaced by stone, along with his left eye and hair. Extensive exposure to the fragment has left cracks over the left side of his body, which emit a bright blueish-green light. When he uses extensive amounts of magic, similar cracks form along the stone that now makes up part of his body.

He wears a faded purple vest, with silver lining and two tail points. He will generally wear a hood, two metal-plated cloth gloves, and sleeve over his left arm. He also sports brown pants and plated boots. He chooses to hide his "condition" with a hood and armor, afraid that townsfolk will consider him a monster if they see him.

## *History*

Erto Blackwell was a young student with an affinity for Magic and Arcane Powers. He was raised by his father, Iro Blackwell, who never talked about his wife. As much as Erto wished to know about his mother, he knew better than to ask. He studied in the Arcane school of Ironwall, and maintained a good reputation. That was, until the his father was killed in an arcane accident that left half of a wing a crater.

Unable to cope with the loss of his only family, his education began to suffer. His actions became less thought through. He started to get into more trouble with the Academy Board, although most cases were dismissed due to his traumatic experience.

Eventually, Erto learned of a Vault located in the Academy that housed dangerous and mystical objects. Using previously learned spells, some of which he practiced outside of the Academy, he managed to sneak into the vault. He only planned to "browse their collection", when something caught his attention. Out of the corner of his eye, he could make out a green glow. He moved some tomes aside, making his way over to the source.

The source seemed to be a large rock, covered in odd symbols radiating with cracks. It seemed to emanate magic of some sort, but otherwise seemed like just another rock. Erto figured that they wouldn't noticed if he took it for studying, seeing as they kept it hidden all day. However, this decision would change his fate.

Upon grabbing the stone, Erto was overwhelmed by excruciating pain. The stone bound to him, spreading across his hand and up his arm. His screams of pain echoed throughout the vault, but luckily for him, they were also his saving grace. Surprised to hear something coming from within the vault, one of the Vault Guardians rushed in.

**Guardian** - *"What's going on- Holy hell."*

**Erto** - *"G-go get the Grandmaster!"*

**Guardian** - *"You don't have the time. I'm going to have to break it."*

**Erto** - *"...T-The stone?"*

**Guardian** - *"Your arm. Sorry, kid"*

The guardian raised his weapon above his head, preparing to break the stone that now made up the entirety of Erto's arm. As soon as the weapon made contact with the petrified arm, a blast of magic came from the impact point. The shockwave pushed the guardian back, and Erto was flung into a nearby crate and knocked unconscious.

When he woke up, the man known as Erto Blackwell was gone. He had no recollection of anything that had happened up until his awakening. He was been informed that he had been asleep for a week, and that the academy wasn't sure if he was still alive. He was kept in confinement while they tried to reverse the damage done, but it was to no avail. During treatment, he would mention a voice giving him guidance, but other than that, and the memory loss, he functioned normally. He would only refer to himself as Ertonius, and wouldn't respond to his former alias

He was eventually released, but not before the King was informed of his **unique** condition and skills. He was offered a position among the ranks as a form of leverage, which he took up on after a few months. He wasn't a big fan of King Earnet, or the way his army was run, and eventually left to do things his own way.

On various adventures and expeditions, he might find clues or objects from his past, allowing him to regain a small, blurred fragment of his previous life. He has be told about his former self, but is unsure if he'll ever be able to recover entirely. Ertonius has been known to take Mercenary work with company. One person he commonly works with is The Iron Warden, a female human who's stern personality varies greatly from his own. Somehow they still manage to get along, with occasional fights and disagreements.