/: note: this character development thread will mention incidents that happen in game as Marin progresses. Where possible, permission to refer to in-game characters will be obtained.//
Marin Le’Mondt –
The Nature of FearCHAPTER 1: The Idea
Marin gazed through the smoke at his reflection, his long boots resting on the table in front of him. Mirrors were rare enough to find in these lands, and the mirror behind the bar was large and ornate. Marin loved how it made him look in the smoky haze, how his eyes glittered mysteriously in the dark. It was like a shadow of him, a secret confidente that he could share his innermost thoughts with.
He smiled to himself. Well, it was easier than keeping a diary.
Quite a week you’ve had my man.It had been quite a week indeed. He had quite unexpectedly run into an old family friend and physician, Dr Alandric Vensk. To be honest he hardly knew the man, but he remembered him as a learned and scholarly figure that seemed know a little bit about everything. It had not surprised Marin to find that the good doctor had spent the intervening years becoming an accomplished mage. How accomplished Marin had no idea, but even his slowly developing senses could feel the power radiating off the man.
Power, and something else.The two of them had trekked the long journey from New Hampstead to Leringrad, a journey that Marin had been longing for. Leringrad was an austere, quiet town, but the people were good, and in years past Marin had made a bit of gold there performing the odd magic trick in the streets. He had a vague notion to write a book, but did not really know what he would write about. At the very least, he thought, I could pass myself off as a researcher. He Smiled. Leringrad Ladies seemed to have a soft spot for learned men…..
….From performer to trickster….Trickster to conman…….What mask will you wear next, I wonder.However, it was the journey itself that was to the most interesting. The meandering path north was always fraught with danger, and this time was no exception. They were attacked by creatures ranging as common as vagabond bandits and mercenaries, to a family of myconids that took exception to a couple of warm-bloods passing by. In all of these encounters, the Mysterious doctor obliterated his enemies without thought or regret. Such unforgiving violence shocked Marin, but he could not help but be excited at the thought of wielding such tremendous power.
But Marin had to be honest and admit that it was not just his magic that had left its impression on him. No, it was the incident with the fighter…….
At one point a ragtag group of bandits and ne’er-do-wells had attempted a clumsy ambush around a tree lined bend. Alandric had responded quickly, and most of the bandits had died before they knew what hit them. Marin’s reflexes were almost as good, and had dazed several bandits with a magical fog that clouds the mind and dulls the senses, a power he had only recently taught himself. One survivor, a swordsman, had been blasted to the ground by Vensk’s power and was lying prone. At that point, the Doctor had gloated:
“See boy, under all the ego and bluster, they are as helpless as a newborn babe!”
A crash from behind the bar broke Marin out of his reverie. He looked around sharply – The barmaid had dropped a tankard. He wet his lips with his wine and sank back in his chair, losing himself to reverie again:
A trained and armoured warrior, a killer, cowering at the foot of a scholar. Not unmanned at the thought of what was coming, but at the fear itself. His own fear, ultimately robbing him of his last chance to escape: to reason, to plea, or strike back. The mage had already won the fight, because the fear of him was his greatest weapon. What happened next was ultimately irrelevant.
Fear. Terror. Despair. Consequences of an action, or the most powerful action of all? After all, what is really the nature of fear?
The nature of fear……Marin sat bolt upright in his chair, his eyes shining, a toothy grin of delight was on his lips. This was the sign he was looking for, this is why he had been carrying a blank scrollcase for a parchment for what seemed like months. This was why he introduced himself as an author, and when people would enquire as to the nature of his work he would simply shrug.
He had found his subject matter.
Fear. The nature of fear, it’s consequences, and its application. It seemed such an obvious topic, something that had been understood since the first human climbed out of his cave and cowered at the dragon flying overhead. Or was it? He certainly had not heard of any formal scholarly work on the subject. His mind flew with the possiblities……. He looked at himself in the mirror and grinned.
One thing is for sure, I think I will need to speak to the good doctor again.He drained his glass and stood, flicking a coin onto the bar. Smiling to himself, he walked out into the cold night.
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The only decent shot I got was this one... showing one of the black wizards opening fire with a weird (I think). Shortly after this appeared an army of Demons......
Its great to see the layo community still healthy and vibrant, look forward to being a part of it all once I can decide what I want to play.