Eduard Bennet Mayfield

### Relations

Ed (Companion), Jara (Companion), Zack (Companion), Modus Tollens (???), ??? (???).

### Occupation

Librarian at the Library of Queen Lida (former)

## Appearance

### Hair

Red-brown, a greying streak on his left temple.

Eduard Mayfield was born into a large family of both humans and aarakocra living within the walls of the Capital City. From a relatively young age he began working as a scholar at the Library of Queen Lida.

His appearance is that of a rather frail, 5’6" young adult. Despite his family being almost exactly half aarakocra, he has no feathers to show yet. His skin is pallid and his hair is long, brown, and unkempt with a greying streak on his left temple. Despite all this, he has a sophisticated air about him; if he cleaned up and took better care of himself he may even appear noble.

He was only 25 at the start of the Dungeon Era campaign, and was still a relative novice within the Library the year before, so when he was given an unmarked book brought in from one of the Dawn’s expeditions for screening it was by complete accident. Usually he would never be given artifacts that could hold any kind of power, but this one slipped through the cracks and made it into his hands. Suffice to say the book had unexpected effects on Eduard. When he opened the tome he had some of his time erased. He remembered opening it and reading it's contents, but no time had passed and he couldn't remember what was within the tome. It also spurred on his spellcasting despite having no former training or prowess, and overall sent him into a panic. Immediately after reading the book’s contents he fled the Library with only the book and the clothes on his back, making his way to the Keflands a year later.

He stops briefly at a town called Waterside, feeling himself unconsciously tugged in the direction of Modus Tollens' Dungeon. It is here that he meets with the bounty hunter, Oswin, and the cleric, Sophie, to whom he agrees to join a small group to find a few scouts that had disappeared into a cave nearby the town in exchange for pay to help him continue to travel.

Outside of this cave is where he meets a small crew of Black Rose members, Ed, Jara, and Zack. After some discussion, Eduard convinces them to send Ed to help him and the group with scouring the cave--a fortunate tactic given that the three of them had planned to rob the small adventuring party blind of any magical items they had picked up within the cave, and this had saved them a step.

Within the cave the group encounters the necromancer, Paxton, who mentions that he serves Modus Tollens, and animates several piles of flesh and body parts to protect him as he does his necromantic work. Eduard distracts Paxton for a while by flashing his accursed, chain-bound tome, but eventually the encounter does dissolve into combat. However, it ends as quickly as it had begun as Ed breaks Paxton with a single swing of his hammer.

After scouring the cave for the lost scouts and any magic items Paxton had left, Eduard discovers a series of symbols on the ceilings of one of the chambers corresponds to a constellation that would pass overhead during the night. He then speaks with Jara and Zack about his findings and is able to convince them to let him stay at their camp during the night until the constellation aligns with the symbols within the cave.

Zack enters the cave with Eduard shortly before the predicted time, and they discover some magic within the cave reveals a huge Serengray greatsword intended for slaying dragons. Zack decides to let them keep the sword as it was not part of the necromancer's arsenal--which is what the Rose was here for--and Eduard, having no use for a sword, offers it to Pyre who was part of the adventuring group that accompanied him on Oswin's request.

Ed accepts Eduard into his tent for the rest of the night when they return from the cave, as the warlock had arrived rather unprepared. When they awaken, the small party from Waterside and the Black Rose part ways, only to surprisingly meet again in town.

Eduard stays in Waterside for a few days, deciding there was more to this town than met the eye after his meeting with Paxton and their discussion of the Lich, Modus Tollens, who supposedly could grant power and understanding. He sticks around long enough to join in a Keflands-specific holiday, the Forebears' Fête. Though he spent most of his time there alone, he did end up participating in a few of the celebrations; including a friendly duel with Pyre. He also spoke with the town's magic item merchant, Lucain, who Eduard understood was much more knowledgeable and powerful than he let on, and got to know Ed a little better--the two even danced together at the end of the Fête.

Shortly after the celebrations, Eduard headed almost directly over to Lucain's shop to meet up with the merchant. He believed that Lucain could give him some answers to what his tome contained, or could at least point him in the right direction. When Eduard opened up about his situation, Lucain invited him into the secret pocket-dimension in the backrooms of his shop to speak about such serious topics, and Lucain reveals that the book Eduard holds may be a rite of power, but despite this revelation, Lucain cannot help much more in this department and warns Eduard not to stride down the dangerous path of cursed rites of power--he does, however, point Eduard in the direction of Zack. Lucain states that Zack is rather knowledgeable when it comes to rites and has quite a few theories on how such things work. Eduard thanks Lucain and quickly takes his leave, eager for more answers.

Out on the streets, Eduard meets with Ed who is headed back to the Inn where he and the other two Black Rose members are staying, and he states he would like to meet with Zack. Ed takes him there, of course, but all three of them seem rather on edge. Their room is covered in papers that were hastily flipped over when Eduard entered, and Ed stands guard by the door with his hammer in his hands. Eduard reveals what he spoke to Lucain about, and asks Zack in particular if there is anything he may know about such artifacts and experiences.

Zack reveals that he believes Eduard's tome to not only be a rite of power, but also a god relic authored by an individual with the intent to ascend to godhood before garnering the notice of Pharom. Zack, ever curious, asks what the cost of the rite may be, to which Eduard explains that he doesn't know, he only knows that he should be dead. Zack then comes to the conclusion that the price must the be volatility of the information, and states that if Eduard has truly survived a chance encounter with such powerful information, he can attempt to help him cultivate the knowledge into something he can access in his mind once again. Eduard, of course, accepts, and Zack shows his hand: a rite of power that the Black Rose had taken from Paxton. Zack offers it to Eduard, but Jara reminds them that they have important business to deal with in the dungeon and cannot afford any more delays. Ed explains to Eduard that the three of them are hunting down a rite of their own that was stolen from them and is currently within the depths of the dungeon. Jara solemnly speaks as if she fully expects to die down there, but Ed comforts her and assures her that they will prevail. It appears as if Eduard would have to wait for any more revelations from the Rose.

Eduard doesn't sleep much that night after he met with the Rose, and in fact is up early before sunrise, sitting at a table in the corner of the tavern. He watches the Rose ascend the stairs from their room early in the morning and head out the door, and he decides then and there that he would ask to join them. He runs out the door to catch up with them, and begs Jara to let him come too.

There is much deliberation, the conversation even breaks out into an argument at one point as Jara is trying to keep Eduard at an arm's length. The truth is that Jara, Ed, and Zack technically are betraying orders to retrieve the rite that they had lost. If anyone found out that they were out here it could put them all in danger as well and leaving the rite in the hands of Modus Tollens and endangering so many more lives because of that. It is also revealed that Jara had a soft spot for Eduard even though they had only met a handful of times, and she felt bad even considering bringing him along with them on a suicide mission. With all their grievances suddenly aired and the full truth now shared between the Black Rose and Eduard, Ed is able to convince them to accept him by reminding the other two that they "...know how to fight with a fourth".

Eduard had left an impression on the crew for a number of reasons; Jara in particular was able to relate to his feeling of being alone and aimless because of her past, Ed understood that Eduard had no where else to go, and believed it truly would be good for all of them--Eduard included--to have an extra pair of kind hands in their venture, and Zack was fascinated with the tome he held and his potential as a subject of arcane research.

With a new fourth member, the small Black Rose crew watch one last sunrise and descended into the Dungeon.