Desolas Arterius I

Desolas with his son, Desolas Arterius II

Desolas Arterius I Praetinus was the bonded husband of Maea Abrudas and father of Desolas Arterius II. He was also a Palavenian general of great renown and a veteran of the Relay 314 Incident, having personally lead a special operations division responsible for sabotaging the human resistance on Shanxi. He was killed in an orbital strike orchestrated by his younger brother, Saren Arterius, after Desolas unwittingly triggered an unsecured bioweapon emergency in the heart of Cipritine.

## Biography

### **Childhood**

Desolas was born to Gaius Arterius and his wife, Malaena Praeton in Cipritine, Palaven, in 2118 CE. Unlike other couples of their social strata, Gaius and Malaena were a love match, the pair having been childhood sweethearts. Desolas was their first child and they both doted upon him, his father always taking the opportunity to proudly show him off.

From the start, Desolas had to grow up fast. As the only child of his house's parriarch, he was expected to live up to his father's reputation and be the living embodiment of his family's legacy. In addition to these social pressures, Desolas' mother was often unwell and relied upon her son to care for her during periods of prolonged illness whenever his father was away on duty. She suffered from a rare autoimmune disease that became progressively worse as she aged, rendering her extremely fragile.

When Desolas was twenty-one, his mother died a few days after giving birth to a son, her body too weak to recover from the ordeal of childbirth. Her death left Desolas' father a distraught widower, unable to cope with his loss. In his grief, he refused to have anything to do with his newborn son, blaming them for his beloved wife's death. Desolas took it upon himself to raise his younger brother alone, whom he named Saren. He attempted to reconcile his father with Saren but ultimately failed. Gaius died later the same year, his grief utterly consuming him. Desolas oversaw his funeral and laid his body to rest beside that of his wife so that his parents could be together forever.

Desolas dealt with his grief by focusing on raising his brother. However, being the sole guardian of an infant took its toll on his military career. He made the difficult decision to transfer from his position as an officer in the legions to a non-combat desk job planetside to give Saren a more stable upbringing, though his mood suffered for it. He found himself desiring a wife to help him raise his brother, which would allow him to return to work.

### **Marriage**

Desolas began to look for a wife within his social circle, as tradition dictated. As a dashing young army officer with a prestigious bloodline, he had many suitors from several prominent families. Of all the women he courted, one, in particular, caught his eye - Maea Abrudas, of House Abrudas, one of the most eligible young brides in the empire. Maea was pushed forward by her brother, Markus Abrudas, who sought to make an advantageous match for his beloved sister. As parriarch of his house, Desolas interacted with Markus directly, the two men discussing the specifics of the potential union face-to-face on several occasions.