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The World of Teréth End |
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"...[name] stood in the [name2] Hall, a hundred peers watching from the galleys above. She called her Provider's name, and all could feel the power she commanded. [name3] summoned his wards, but all that watched knew his efforts were in vain. The next name she offered was his, and the misery of [name3] was legend." translated from Dekàlan fragment found in ruins of Ilduùn  |
Portrait of Grun Karuçuk Dates: 627-now DR Grun was born to a Talàdan woman named Ulla Murúborn in the summer of 627 DR. A gentlewoman of a small walled farmkeep in the shadow of the Tor'n Gorgyn, Ulla was raped in the winter of 626 DR during that year's seasonal Ortori raid. She knew her baby belonged to her Ortor assaulter because she was showing within the first month and Bu-Ortor are usually born in six; a fact that regrettably is well-known in the borderlands of Taldàna. In the region, there were three possible choices. The first (and most common) choice was the use of a local abortifacient elixir, brewed with jurog bush leaves and the boiled skins of sapen worms. The second choice, chosen by desperate women and those who did not reveal their state until the late second month (when the elixir would have no effect) was to carry their babies to term and then sell them into slave labor. The third and rarest choice, which was to carry the baby to term and raise it like an Uren child. The stigma this choice brought upon a family in the region cannot be understated. it was this last choice that young Grun found himself in when his mother and her two Uren children were exiled from the farmkeep. Ulla wandered the foothills with her young children for days before finding an abandoned stone house at the foot of the mountains. It was here that she met an elderly man who took her and her family in and provided them with food and a roof to shelter them. When the next winter came the Ortor returned but when they found the young mother and her Bu-Ortor son the old man's house was marked with the Ortori symbol of passover and the Ortor that came in the future did no harm to them. In 634 DR, a visiting Ergzru gave him his father's surname. His father had died earlier in the season during a raid to the west. In this place Grun grew swiftly to adulthood and soon was strong and able enough to provide the man's work when old Wurgrûn grew weak. When Wurgrûn died, Grun buried him in a wide cairn at the mountain's base. He returned to his mother and sisters and told them to return to the family farmkeep, for he would leave into the world alone. He told his mother that he would see her again, someday. After a time his mother and step-siblings departed and Grun wandered through the lands of Taladàn seeking his fortune. He looked far, but found no fortune. In the Warring Coast he found a dockmaster that would pay him a decent wage (half that of his Uren co-workers) and he worked there for more than a year. In that time he met many unsavory people that worked the docks and traded in illicit goods. He was invited into a company of thieves that moved stolen goods between Taldàna and Ezmir. They were looking for a 'tough' that could be brutal and discreet. He was both. After showing himself more than adequate for the work given him, he was contacted by an Uren that people called 'Thorn'. Thorn offered Grun extensive training near Boronon. He would not be required to work for his room and boarding other than adhering to a heavy regimen of practice and learning. Soon, Grun became proficient with swords and poisons. During training another thing was revealed. Grun had arcane potential. He was sent to Comlan to learn under a new master and learned after some years some 'tricks'. In the years to follow Grun became a ruthless and efficient assassin, venturing as far south as Saranth for his jobs. In 652 DR his company informed him of a job in the City of Taldàna. A captain had arrived into the port of Nyr Alúrin who was wanted by certain people in the region. The captain knew he had few friends and so stayed on his ship while in port. One night, Grun sneaked onto the ship and found the captain waiting for him in his quarters. The captain explained that he knew of those who wanted him 'removed' and further explained that the reason for this was two-fold. He admitted to having crossed them on more than occassion, but explained that was just business, something everyone did given the chance. The real reason he was so hated was because of his dealings with the Sorbur Ort. Grun stayed his hand for a moment, giving the captain a chance to explain himself further. The captain continued saying that not everyone treated the Ortor as animals. At that time the door to his chambers opened and a crewman entered. The crewman was Bu-Ortor. They spoke well into the night about many things. The captain offered Grun a job on board but the assassin declined. The captain then spoke lengthily about the benefits of self-employment for the wily. Before dawn Grun left the ship and returned to his contact within the city. Weeks later word was received in Comlan that their Taldàna contact was missing, as was Grun. Grun fled south from Taldàna into the borderlands of Saranth. There he met a warrior and wizardress from parts farther south, places with names he'd never heard. The three joined together and traveled through the region avoiding military outposts and the City of Taldàna until they were given an irresistable offer; the kidnapping of one woman for fifty talam a piece, half up-front. Grun and his new business companions accepted. Following the mission, Grun was captured and placed in heavy restraints below a city barracks. His life lay on a dagger's edge. He reasoned that since no-one was killed he might be released, in time. The prisons of Taldàna were notoriously inadequate and under-staffed. On the other hand, if his old company were to learn of his capture, his life would be forfeit. He has thought heavily on all these things and refuses to accept a fate meted out by others. When the opportunity comes, and it will come, he will escape and leave this city behind. If the chance presents itself, he will also retrieve the sword he misplaced during his capture. But in the meantime he will wait because he believes one thing above all others, that with few exceptions Uren are weak and prone to making deadly mistakes. As the night grows long and the guard beyond his cell grows sleepy, Grun mutters some Ortori words that startle the guard (who only hears the bark and growl of the Ortori tongue). "Mother, I will see you again".
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Navigation Class Index Adept (Adp) |
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Ref. PHB (Player's Handbook), © Wizards of the Coast  |
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