Alex

## Personality

Alex is a relaxed, easy-going man with a lack of self-control or sense of danger. He likes to do whatever he wants, which usually doesn't tend to harm others, as it's mostly irresponsible fun. Although he never means to hurt others, it happens from time to time, and he isn't afraid of hurting or killing others, should they deserve it. He likes meeting new people, bantering, and can often be found in a tavern, drinking and singing with strangers, without a care. Since leaving the Dunes, he's been looking for work, mostly for entertainment, but has unable to find anything that he really enjoys. From smuggling, to being a messenger, nothing can hold him down for too long. He's resolute, determined, and set on improving his skills by any means possible, for an unknown reason. He claims he does it because he likes the thrill of being pushed to his limits.

## History

### Early Life

Alex was born in the Negronde during October, when people took advantage of the warmer weather and the approach of summer to have kids, since winter nights are still too cold for an infant. He was born to a wealthy family of textile merchants who's ancestors earned their wealth by selling weapons to Miornafing's rebellion 400 years prior. During his early years, he was often travelling across the southern parts of the continent, as far west as the mouth of the Winespring River, on occasion, depending on the movement of the market. Although he lived in a caravan, he couldn't complain, as he lived better off than most. Because of pampering as a child, he never really got a sense of responsibility out of his years, and by the age of 12, he was spoiled and a bit of a brat. All of his needs were taken care of by the family's servants, and quickly, a sense of superiority grew in him.

### Teenage Years

At 14, when a servant failed to bring him his food as he liked, he ordered them flogged with a metal tipped whip, scarring them for life. After hearing about it, Oweyn sent him away to the north, furious at his behavior and attitude. In Frostfell, far from home, he would be taught discipline, and be brought down a notch. When he first arrived he was impetuous and insolent, thinking that because he had wealth, he was untouchable, but came to know the truth during his stay. Not only did he suffer from the cold, which was the polar opposite of Negronde's blistering weather, but suffered from his lack of tact, more than once getting beaten senseless by both his caretakers, and the people he happened to offend, which were many. At 16, no longer high on his air of superiority, nor stupid enough to think himself higher than he really was, he was taken to the Iron Mountains, to be taught just what his actions had brought to him. As punishment, he was forced to live on the peaks along his master, Andrieu Parsefall, a retired Captain of the Fedorian military, infamous for his harsh treatment of troops. For the next 3 years, he would train under the man, learning how to live in the mountains, shelter himself from the wind, and fight with a sword, spear, and bow.

### The Accident

As time passed, he began to show proficiency in each of his weapons, and was taught the discipline required to maintain his skills, and keep them from deteriorating into mindless killing artifacts. He began to value human life, and realized that money and power didn't give a man the right to do what he wanted to; one's rights cannot interfere with another's. As his training continued, and he showed improvement in both his outlook on life and his skills as a warrior, he contemplated joining the Fedorian Military, and serving for a few years before returning home, to prove to his parent's that he'd changed. He felt shame over his actions in the past, and wanted to prove his resolve and that he was different.

In December, 414 AT, he stumbled onto a mountain village, and found it struggling to keep it's mouths fed. He decided he would help feed the village, in secret, as his master forbid him from making contact with others, claiming he was dangerous, and not ready to be let back into society. He thought this would be a chance to prove to his master that he was ready, so he set out to hunt some , which were rare, but not rare enough to be hard to find; it was much less dangerous than mountain lions, anyways. He found and killed a large goat, enough to keep a family fed for over a week, if rationed properly. Hauling it back, he didn't pay any attention to the trail of blood he was leaving on the snow, which lured predators back to the village. The slaughter was terrible. The wolves attacked anything that moved, tearing apart kids, women, and men alike, too many to fight off. Alex escaped back into the mountains when he realized that the defense of the village was hopeless, as almost no one was left alive. When his master interrogated him, asking where he had been, he said he'd been training, preparing for his descent into the cities of Fedore, back into society, but his master saw through his lie. He accused him of being a fiend and too dangerous to be let leave the mountains. His master had been prepared to end his life should Alex become a danger, and thinking he'd slaughtered the village, attempted to bring him to justice. Alex was angry and hurt that his Parsefall of all people wouldn't realize he'd changed, but once swords were drawn, all that was cast aside. He lashed out at his former master, refusing to die in the mountains and not see the world again. Blades clashed, and in the end, the apprentice overcame his master, killing him in anger during their duel.

### Guerillas of the Narrows

Lost in depression after the death of his master, and wallowing in regret, he decided to go to Earnwold, to start anew. He couldn't return to Negronde; if he showed up without his master, he'd quickly be blamed for his disappearance, and arrested, or worse. His parents had no faith in him, and they hadn't spoken in almost 7 years, so they knew nothing of their son, apart from the fact that he was training under Andrieu Parsefall in the Iron Mountains. Earnwold seemed like the only place he could go to. The city was large, and far from home; no one would know of him there. He got a job as security on a caravan headed to Earnwold, warding off several groups of bandits. Due to his skill, he quickly rose up the ranks to Sergeant, and was rewarded with silver and women. When the caravan arrived in Earnwold, all his colleagues expected him to sign on for another trip, as he had a promising future as a guard, so it came as a shock when he refused, and left the group, into the city.

He had no skills that would help him survive in a city, other than his martial prowess, so he soon fell victim to gambling what little money he had, and in turn working for not-so-reputable men. He quickly began to work odd jobs to pay off his debts. Through smuggling, illegal weapon dealing, burglary, and banditry, he managed to pay off his debts sooner than his collectors would have wanted, so their increased the interest, in order to keep him in their pocket, and earning them money. When Alex refused to pay more than was originally agreed on, the crime lords sent a group of men to scare him into working for them for longer. The 5 men were promptly killed. This both outraged and humiliated them, making them look weak to their clients. As the underworld watched with interest, they decided it would be best to remove the nail that couldn't be hammered down, and ordered a hit squad to eliminate Alex, as an example to all those who would defy them.

The first two attempts were foiled by sheer luck, the men mistaking their target, and leaving corpses lying among the Narrows, and notes written with the victims' blood on the wall, stating "We are the law." The news quickly spread, of the crime lord's setting examples around the city, further repressing those in need. Alex, oblivious to the fact that he had been the target of both brutal murders, decided that he couldn't let this abuse slide, or his master had died in vain, failing to reform him. Angry, and thirsty for any sort of redemption, he toured the several taverns in the Narrows, giving promises of large rewards in silver to anyone who looked capable, and over the next few months he formed the Guerrillas of the Narrows: men willing to stand up against the crime lords who'd oppressed them for long enough. Their reasons for joining were mixed, some doing it for justice, while others were just tired of living like this, and even more doing it for no other reason than the amount of money and property that could be "redistributed" after the hit. Alex made an example out of the crime lords, butchering them in their homes, the street, and taverns, in plain view. He had declared total war on the crime lords.

There was talk among the real bosses of calling a truce, since this war was hurting them financially. Crime soared in the area, since the crime lords no longer regulated it, and the devastation of the war was visible in the streets. Alex realized that what he'd done was worsening the lives of those around, and was forced to negotiate with the men. In August, 415 AT, they were able to reach an agreement: the crime lords would no longer be hunted like animals, and the Narrows would return to the "order" that it had before, since without them the place became anarchic. In exchange, no more hits would be sustained, and a sum of 100 gold coins would be paid to him, to account for the promised riches the guerrillas. The Narrows went back to belonging to the crime lords, and the wealth was equally distributed to all those who'd stood up against the mob, and the rest dealt to the citizens, for reparations for the damages caused to their homes and shops. Soon after the incident, Alex left the Narrows, now with enough money to try to start over in the less crime-filled parts of the city.