#Kevan Stalgust

[fortunatowrites]

The Life of a Simple Guard

Many years ago, a high ranking member of a guild came into some trouble due to botched plans. The trouble incurred was mostly financial, but also caused internal affairs within the guild. Because of these actions, Fintan Stalgust, the high ranking member, was kicked out of the guild and fell into poverty.

Fintan Stalgust took his pregnant wife, Elfrieda, and their two children on a short journey through the neighboring woods to find a new place to live. Forced to leave the city and a life of luxury behind, the hard times continued to fall upon them as Elfrieda began labor for birthing their third child. Thankfully, under the graces of a nearby druid, the child was born without complication. This was when Kevan was born.

Utilizing his entrepreneurial skills, Fintan secured some livestock and the family became herders within a poor village. Unlike his eldest brother and elder sister, Kevan had not known the luxuries of the life beforehand and readily adapted. Meanwhile, his siblings struggled with their new lives in squalid living and helping take care of the livestock. The eldest brother opted to become an adventurer and was often out “making connections.”

As Kevan grew older, he looked to his brother as a role model. While his sister was proving to be incredible at handling animals, his brother saw it more as a chore. Their family believed all the dragons were wiped out in an ice age event, but his brother believed that there must still be living dragons out there. So he would often regale young Kevan with tales about how he was going to find what was left of the dragons and find the last living dragon.

Hard times fell on the Stalgust family once more with low livestock starting to leave them in perilous finances. Eager to protect his family, Fintan saw to making a special deal in the city that would help them make a lot of money. Unfortunately, the lord of the city was part of Fintan’s former guild and learned of his deal. Using his connections, the lord had Fintan locked up. Elfrieda was left alone to care for their children and herds.

Kevan tried to help as he could with the herds and wanted to try to work for the lord to help get his father released, but his older brother always assured him that he was doing enough at home. While Kevan helped in his place, the brother became a mercenary and took up as many hunting quests as he could. Often he would choose the adventure promising more treasure to bring home to his family than that of the Dragons’ Fate.

Sometimes, he’d bring back some extra treasures for his siblings. One of the first gifts he brought back was a spear, said to be a sacred weapon from a fallen warrior that he “found” while taking out a cave of goblins. More often than not, his treasures included another tale to regale Kevan with; since his sister found them boring and his mother found them too worrying to hear.

Kevan’s favorite tale had been about how his brother worked with some druids to hunt down a Gnoll warband that was terrorizing a city known as Blackkey. It was from the leader’s treasures that he found a special amulet.

“We divided up the treasure, as per the usual protocol,” his brother would tell him. “But when I gazed upon this bronze amulet, inset with a glowing crystal, I could feel something calling out to me. It knew I just defeated Punkrip, the strongest gnoll in all of Shitlordia and recognized me for a warrior true! The others wanted it of course, even if didn’t call out to them. There was a squabble but what they really wanted was the crystal, so we took turns trying to get it out. Now, I managed to pry out the crystal after everyone else failed to, so I earned this trinket! But, because you’re my favorite brother, I want you to keep the amulet. I’ll keep the crystal safe with me and you keep the amulet safe with you. I’m about to take a big job that’s going to see me far away for a long time, but I’ll be back before the next winter. You just hold on to this and they’ll draw us back together.”

This was how Kevan got his treasured amulet. It was bronze and engraved in the center, where the crystal once stood, was an image of a dragon beneath six stars. He held out hope for two winters before it was apparent that his brother was not coming home. In his honor, Kevan named the treasure after his brother: the Amulet of Kavin.

With his brother gone and his father locked away, Kevan couldn’t help but feel more guilt as he watched the stress take its toll on his family. The final straw was when half the livestock had been taken while Kevan was out getting supplies.

A couple of goblinoids had passed through the woods recently, but a hobgoblin and goblin were left behind. Left to their own devices, they came across the village and demanded tribute. When Kevan returned and found out what happened, he immediately took up the spear and challenged them.

The hobgoblin sneered at the challenge, but with a grim delight, agreed to fight him. Kevan was not a very experienced fighter, but the occasional spar with his brother had helped him mostly hold his own. As the hobgoblin pressed upon him, the goblin also joined in the fight; the both of them eager to destroy the rebel. In this courageous act, Kevan inspired some of the other townsfolk to help him drive them off. It was when his sister came rushing through with a pitchfork and impaled the hobgoblin that they truly won. The goblin survivor immediately fled into the woods and Kevan’s reputation began.

Finally, feeling he couldn’t bear another tragedy to befall his family, Kevan sought out the lord to plead for his father’s release. Having heard of Kevan’s heroic stand against the goblinoids, the lord had an offer for him: In exchange for being a soldier and having very limited pay while living in any squalor base he was assigned to, Kevan’s father would be released. Kevan accepted the offer without second thought and so, starting at an early age, Kevan was impressed into the lord’s military forces.

With his father out to help take care of his family, Kevan eagerly worked his way up through the ranks of the lord’s guard. Starting with portside work and loading cannons, Kevan eventually found himself becoming a strong guardsman as well. Finally, after the debt was fully repaid, Kevan moved on to Blackkey to become a member of the town’s guard.

For years he worked in Blackkey, sending any extra bonuses and the occasional copper he could spare back home to his family. It seemed to be a mostly uneventful life for him now; stopping the occasional criminal, escorting the usual noble, and breaking up many tavern brawls.

But then one day, he noticed a bard with a strange angelic grace that charmed him, and stepped forward to offer her assistance. Kevan had always had a weak spot for a pretty face. His former “girlfriend” had been a con artist that used him to help rob the armory. Thankfully, the connection was never made by the town or Kevan.

The bard told him of her plight of getting to a specific point in town that was in the shadier and rougher parts of Blackkey. She was accompanied by a tiefling fellow and a man who seemed to carry a similar angelic grace about him. The three of them had just fled from a mugging brought on by a half-ogre who lived in garbage.

“Fear not, fair maiden,” Kevan boldly declared. “I’ll help escort you and take care of the half-ogre ruffian that blocks your path!” “Gee, thanks,” she half-heartedly replied.

And thus began an eventful journey for a simple guard.