Raeluna Characters

Full Description 

Paetro grew up on Vaaris in an isolationist Uldan community, the son of an orn keeper in a proud family with a long legacy of warriors and pioneers. Despite family expectations, he longed to see the wider world like his aunt Thalina, his father’s island-hopping black sheep younger sister who left Vaaris as a young woman and occasionally returned to visit and relate exciting tales of her adventures to her impressionable nephew. Paetro idolized her, much to the chagrin of his conservative parents.

As he came of age, his father began attempting to instruct him in the family business but to no avail. He had no interest in orn keeping and was constantly being scolded for the dereliction of his chores. For his twelfth birthday he’d received a small crossbow, which instantly became his most prized possession, and he preferred to spend most of his time alone in the woods honing his marksmanship instead of shoveling orn shit. As he and his father became increasingly antagonistic, he longed for the day when he could leave Vaaris and would no longer have to endure his father’s tyranny.

By age fourteen, Paetro’s relationship with his father had deteriorated to near-constant hostilities, and during one of his aunt’s visits, he decided it was time to make his escape. Thalina departed for the Gate one evening just after supper, and soon afterwards Paetro and his father got into one of their typical nightly arguments, culminating as they often did with Paetro being sent to/storming off to his bedroom. This time, however, he waited until the household was asleep and crept quietly from his room, his trusty crossbow and a carefully packed knapsack slung over his shoulder. On his way out of the house, he stopped at the hearth, quickly removing the family’s ancestral sword from its mount and buckling its ancient scabbard to his belt. As he stealthily hurried after Thalina, he wondered bitterly which his father would miss more, him or the sword. Just before dawn he found his aunt near the Gate, waiting to cross, and pleaded with her to take him with her. She refused at first but soon reluctantly agreed, obviously seeing some of herself in him and sympathizing with his familial discord. In wide-eyed silence he followed her through the shimmering portal, and before his absence was even discovered, he was gone.

They passed through several more Gates over the next few months before finally arriving on Anvard. Every new island Paetro saw was a wonder to him, but he had never seen a sight as impressive as the sprawling spires and warrens of Anvard City. They took up residence in a cozy little inn on the edge of the Traverton, and it was there that Thalina first mentioned her affiliation with the secret organization Paetro would later come to know as the Alshekal. She began disappearing for days at a time with the cryptic excuse of taking care of business for this mysterious group. Paetro had never quite pinned down exactly what his aunt’s profession was, and at his age he really hadn’t thought much about it previously. Her odd disappearances and puzzling secrecy, however, began to trouble him.

One day as they sat at breakfast in the otherwise empty common room of the small inn, Thalina told Paetro she had to leave on an important errand and didn’t know when she would return. She was not clear why, but she said he could not accompany her. She placed a small sack of coins on the table in front of him and said that if he wished to return to Vaaris, it should be enough to cover the journey. She apologized for her secrecy but said she had no choice. With a quick glance around the room to reconfirm their privacy, she then reached into some secret pocket and produced a curious green coin, the color of spring grass, that seemed to glow with its own weird light. She passed it to him, and he examined it in stunned amazement, having never seen such a thing. She told him to keep it close and secret, and should its glow ever dim, if he wished and was able, he could take it to another inn in Anvard City, the name of which she gave him, and simply wait. “There and then will answers be revealed,” she told him. “I’m sorry I cannot say more, but until then your destiny is in your hands,” and with that, she bid him farewell and left.

Although somewhat shocked by this turn of events, Paetro immediately dismissed the idea of returning to Vaaris. He was not about to go crawling back to his father and admit defeat. He used Thalina’s money to extend his stay at the inn for a few more weeks while he began to explore the area. He soon met a tall black-haired boy a few years his senior who everyone called Crow. Crow was the leader of a small crew of young Clanless thieves and thugs who operated in and around the Traverton, and he was quick to spot Paetro’s potential as a fighter and archer. They took a liking to one another, and eventually Paetro earned a spot as one of Crow’s most trusted lieutenants. In the shadowy back alleys of Anvard, Paetro quickly learned to use his stolen blade and gained a fearsome reputation for his deadly aim.

After a few years, he had grown accustomed to his new life, and though it was not full of the island-hopping adventures he had hoped for, it was much more exciting than that of an apprentice orn keeper. Then one day Crow was arrested by the city guard and sentenced to hang for thievery. Paetro and some of the other members of the crew helped him escape, but he was forced to flee Anvard and the crew splintered. Late one night soon after, Paetro laid awake, unable to sleep, unsure of his next move, and wondering if he’d ever see Thalina again. He fished the strange green coin from its secret pocket and held it up gazing at it, turning it in his fingers, when its light slowly faded like a dying ember…