Cassiel

Cassiel’s parents, Mari and Dorian Caerseth, are common working folk. So I’m sure you can imagine their surprise when their first and only child was born with a strange complexion and pearly opalescent eyes. They had been trying for a child for so long though--they were beginning to think that one of them was infertile--that they ignored their child’s strange appearance and focused on their joy at finally having a child of their own. At least, they tried. The older Cassiel got, the more his oddities became more difficult to ignore. He had a very steady moral compass from a very young age. He was intelligent and discerning, and he worked hard. He had a difficult time communicating with other children his age. His poor social skills combined with his strange appearance caused the other children and the adults in town to avoid him. Even his parents weren’t sure how to interact with him, but at least they loved him and tried to protect him from the cold, confused stares of his elders and the concerned whispers of his peers. No one was outright cruel to him. His parents were well-respected in their tiny village, and Cassiel never behaved in a way that would have warranted harsh words or actions. He was simply *different*.

At age 8, his wings began to become more noticeable. His parents could no longer hide the odd bumps protruding from his back with baggy clothes. Still no one said anything. The townspeople had long accepted that Cassiel was different. They continued to grow until Cassiel had beautiful wings with large white feathers that draped over his shoulder like a cloak. He rarely spread them out, but when he did, they spanned almost 10’.

When he was 12 years old, a strange man came to town. He said very little and seemed to be passing through in somewhat of a hurry. That is, until he spotted Cassiel in the market with his mother. The townspeople may not have commented on Cassiel’s wings, but this stranger had no such reservations. Cassiel used his very limited social skills to either deflect or bluntly answer that stranger’s probing questions, but Mari's concern grew the longer they stood there, trapped by the stranger’s words.

The next day, the stranger was in the tavern drinking and trading stories when all of a sudden, he brought up Cassiel. The other patrons were immediately defensive. The stranger thoughtlessly mentioned that Cassiel was probably worth a lot of money--enough to afford all the townspeople comfortable lives. He cruelly suggested selling him to the highest bidder, sure that the townspeople would feel no loyalty toward someone so different. But the townspeople were angry. They ran the stranger out of town and told him he would never be welcome back.

Two days later, however, the stranger returned, unbeknownst to the townspeople. He broke into the Caerseth’s home, incapacitated Mari and Dorian, and attempted to kidnap Cassiel. But Cassiel fought back. He kicked and bit the stranger, and still the stranger dragged him out of the house. Then, for the first time in his life, he spread his wings and beat them mightily. A gust of wind blew the stranger backward. It was then the stranger realized that he would never be able to travel with Cassiel in tow. So instead he ran at Cassiel and hit him on the side of the head with the butt of his knife. Cassiel dropped, dazed. Once Cassiel was temporarily incapacitated, the stranger took his knife and began carving into Cassiels back. He hacked and sawed brutally at where the flesh and bone of his wings met the flesh and bone of his back. The pearly white feathers at the base of his wings were stained dark with blood. Cassiel was in shock and still dazed and so did not realize how much pain he was in until one wing had already been ripped away from his body and the other had nearly suffered the same fate. The stranger continued sawing as Cassiel began screaming. He screamed so loudly, his voice cracked and cut off and blood vessels burst in his eyes. He tore himself away from the stranger's grasp and in doing so tore his remaining wing away from his body. Cassiel collapsed in a pool of his own blood, while the stranger took hold of his expensive prize and fled.

Cassiel was never the same after the night. Who would be? He was even more quiet than before. He would never trust another creature without very good reason. But he knew that the townspeople had defended him. He understood that some people were capable of good. Some had compassion for their fellow creatures. And others thought only of their own selfish desires and would resort to all manner of cruelty to satiate their greed. He took a personal vow to protect those with good hearts from those who would harm them.

Cassiel decided that even though some people were good, he would be better off avoiding interacting with them. So he left home to live on the fringes of society. He had been walking for days when he began to feel the effects of hunger, dehydration, and exhaustion. He began to stumble, and eventually, he collapsed. It was then that he noticed that the wounds on his back had opened up and were bleeding severely. It was then that he was found by EGOS--a construct. EGOS brought Cassiel water from a nearby brook and did their best to tend to the child’s wounds. As soon as Cass could sit up on his own, EGOS picked him up and walked for miles until he found a hut deep in the forest. There lived a reclusive Ranger who agreed to take Cassiel on as his apprentice. Cass learned a lot from his teacher and from others he met while wandering. He even met someone who knew what he was--an aasimar. Though his social skills remained quite rough, he did become more well-spoken. Cassiel continues to follow his own moral compass and protect people from those who don’t have one.

Cassiel became very good friends with Roxy and her wife Evee. Roxy was an orc, and Evee was an elf, and they had a child that was half-orc half-elf. Children like Ellie were difficult to take care of, and Roxy and Evee didn’t have enough money. Cassiel agreed to join a heist in order to acquire money for Roxy and Evee--in a slightly less than legal manner, but his moral compass valued helping his friends over the law anyway. Cassiel, EGOS, Caspian the Tiefling, Alfredo the Dwarf, and a very ancient, sentient tree sneaked into a high-profile elven party and located the box which they were supposed to steal and turn over to the man with the money. But Cassiel had noticed he had an odd connection to the box--or whatever was in it--and decided to break the magical lock and then pick the physical lock and discover just what was in the box. What he found was none other than his stolen wings. Cassiel refused to give his own wings back to the man who had ripped them from his back, but Caspian--who knew the man quite intimately--insisted they do just that. It turned into a fight, in which Caspian took Harnan’s side. Cassiel, EGOS, Alfredo, Godtree, and Nex the Bug Bear then had to fight their former ally and Harnan, the leader of a crime syndicate and the stranger who had stolen Cass’s wings. The battle was gruesome: both Cassiel and Caspian almost died. But in the end, only Harnan’s life was taken. Cassiel and EGOS gave Roxy enough money to provide for her child and then left with Cassiel’s wings, hoping to find someone who could give Cassiel back what he lost so many years ago.