• Blood and tears. These were the mortar for what would be the downfall of the dark king Tarsis. Tarsis, the murderer. Tarsis, the destroyer. Tarsis, the rapist. Tarsis, betrayer to the Paragons.

    King Tarsis had done something wicked on a day he was particularly vulnerable to the sways of fortune. He had made a pact to grant him power in exchange for his humanity. Bound by the chains of an immortal force, he would be granted the power to do this dark thing's bidding. And so he did.

    And as the people came to see their king, his family and their land warped by this evil presence, they grew fearful. When the royal magistrate showed its own corruption and sought out to digest all the knowledge of all the seers, magi and spell-savants in the land, people feared that there would be no hero to save them.

    And, in truth, no one man or woman could take the credit for such a task as it was the joint efforts of many.

    One such soul was a young man, blessed with unimaginable power and a vibrant spirit, who'd recently witnessed first-hand the carnage this kingdom brought down upon its people and that of nearby nations. He watched his friends butchered and, fearing for his best friend and lover, fled to start work on the dissolution of this tyrant leadership.

    Setting his sights on the Mind Mages that the king utilized to maintain control of the people, he spent the next ten years working to destroy every last wicked one of them. And when the task was finally complete, a horrible tole had been taken on him. For in this process, he had given up his own family in his efforts to protect them and this was time he would never have back.

    But that wasn't all he'd lost.

    The last and greatest of his hated enemies had scarred him at his very soul. The scar ran deep and the damage was immense. His magic, his power was forever tainted with the evil of that man that had inflicted such a grievous wound upon him and he could feel the wicked taint working its way through his veins.

    He let the mage destroy his mind in hopes it may relieve some of that poison. Much to his credit, this worked and worked well as the scar mended well enough so as not to spread any further through him or his being. Damage done, he mulled about aimlessly, seeking a way to unravel his fairly cryptic notes as to his own origin and to regain the thoughts and memories he had lost.

    Upon meeting his daughter and being granted his wish of understanding his past and present, he took pride in what he had accomplished and sought to spend the remaining years of his life making amends for his absence from the family he so loved.

    Years passed under warm summers and snowy winters, the forests and the fields gave dream-like home to the hero and his wife as the young girl, unsure of her father or who she would become, grew into a young woman. A young woman with hopes and dreams and an insatiable appetite for adventure. She hoped to find her own place in the world, to discover her own powers and limitations.

    And so, with her pack held tight with supplies and the blessings of her parents, she stepped forth into the world.

    A world recently freed of the dark king Tarsis.