Hullen Hull

## Early Life

Born in 240 AA to scions of House Poole, Hullen was a brat of a boy. This was not helped by the example that his father had set. Shouting, swearing, laying with any woman he saw fit - these were habits Hullen could have picked up from his father had it not been for one factor.

Hullen's father would beat his mother regularly, causing Hullen to despise him. At the age of ten, Hullen would get in to such a rage about his father hitting his mother again that he beat him to death with a copper chamber-pot. Knowing that he would be killed for kinslaying, Hullen kissed his mother farewell and left for Essos.

## Essos

As with most Northerners fleeing for the East, Hullen arrived in Braavos first and decided to settle there for a while. Begging on the streets of the free city, the young Poole saw many things. Corsairs docking in the dead of night to trade with blackmarket dealers. Smugglers crawling up dark alleys to stow away precious cargo. Faceless Men claiming the lives of their targets.

After three years of begging and stealing, a mummer group recruited Hullen to help set up stages and to even participate in the plays at times. It was here he fell in love with a young actress called Doreah. She had hair like silken sunshine and eyes like pools in the moonlight. Eventually the feeling would become mutual and the young actors would be inseparable.

The group of mummers became quite famous and decided to try their hand in Volantis. On their way to the great city they were captured by bandits. They killed the older men that Hullen had seen as father figures but kept the women, Hullen and another young boy alive. Soon the bandits got bored of the older women and killed them too, keeping alive only the three young girls - including Doreah - and the two boys. They would be forced to put on shows and made to be cupbearers and bedslaves to them. The bandit leader had become quite fond of Doreah and Hullen knew he had to get the group out of the grasp of their captors.

One bandit was fond of coating his weapons in a toxic venom that he would keep on him at all times. Waiting until he slept, Hullen stole the venom and poisoned the wine he was to serve that evening. Little did Hullen know that Doreah had become accustomed to drinking wine to forget what was happening to her. The group would be free that night but Hullen felt like he would be forever trapped when he saw Doreah's body among the rest.

Taking a horse, Hullen rode onwards to Volantis only to be stopped again, this time by the travelling Company of the Cat. Hullen, despite being no good with a blade, decided to join and take out some of his anger. For three decades he would stay with the Company serving as a medic and negotiator - only leaving with his King.

## Serving a King

Hullen was impressed by Cregan Stark when he first met him but knew there was much to improve on. Hullen took it upon himself to educate the exiled Prince further and help him see the error of his ways. Cregan was all too happy to have another of his countrymen help and the two became fast friends.

Seeing how much Cregan had changed, Hullen was proud and decided to leave the Company of the Cat when the Prince did to start up their own little group of sellswords. When Lord Karstark wrote to Cregan telling him "the King is dead, long live the King," the group left Essos for a grand return to the North where Hullen would continue to serve as Cregan's most trusted adviser.

Soon, he would be appointed Chief Steward of the North and - after the Whitehill Incident - would be named Lord of Highpoint as head of the new House Hull.