+- Thay - Realm of the Red Wizards (https://thaypw.com)
+-- Forum: Realm (https://thaypw.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=7)
+--- Forum: Character Backgrounds (https://thaypw.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=9)
+--- Thread: Meinhold de la Roses (/showthread.php?tid=4691)
Meinhold de la Roses - OldBear - 10-28-2023
Meinhold is a Tiefling and orphan of the Street of White Roses in Bezantur. But he is not the normal type of orphan one finds on the streets. Let me tell you the tale of his youth while the story of his adulthood unwinds in the future.
His mother was, or so he believes, was a promising young apprentice, but not one of a family of power or that could provide her a semblance of protection. Once she was apprenticed to of a Red Wizard, they were told there would be no further contact with her.
While he was still young, he would see her a few times a year. It was then, that he would learn bits and pieces of his past from her in quick guarded moments. It is his belief that she was bound by the Master in a ritual summoning circle and given to a devil in some ceremony. Nine months later he was born. One of her hints was that master was trying to increase the power of his circle magic by the use his birth and growing him into a virtual slave for the circle. However, when at a young age he showed no real magical aptitude the master lost interest in the project and basically cast him out.
In desperation, his mother found shelter for him in a place that served soup to the poor near the Street of White Roses. It was here she hoped to hide him. A place where he might survive to grow up. Nor was it an area her master was likely to frequent, or so was her prayer. As the early years passed, she would send gold when she could not come in person. Then one day it all ended. She left with him one cold day with a quick kiss to the cheek and a hug. She said she would be back, but she never returned. Fortunately, by that time, he was old enough to run errands and deliver messages for Madame Pearl and other on the street. It was from the one that had been receiving the gold for his care, that he heard the rumor that his mother had not passed her master’s trial. But on the streets, there was another darker whisper. They spoke of her master trying again with a summoned fiend and that she died being foully used by the fiend.
So, he spent few years on the Street of White Roses and elsewhere in Bezantur learning to survive. It was not until sometime close to his 18th birthday that latent powers seemed to be forming. Vowing never to be a servant of one of the Red Wizards, he turned to the temple of Garguath for power and control of what was happening to him.
RE: Meinhold de la Roses - OldBear - 10-28-2023
The one known as Meinhold in normally easy to recognize. One will usually see him in a carefully tailored, dark suit sporting a fresh while rose in his lapel. It is especially designed to allow his tail full and free movement. But what one will find that is even more distinctive, are his overall looks. He has solid black eyes that seem to pierce those that he concentrates on. The eyes are framed by black hair and skin tones of a burnt red hue. He stands about six feet tall and weighs about 190 pounds. Those that around him for long would most likely think he has fast reflexes and a keen mind. For most people, being around him, makes them feel a bit unsettled but not necessarily something they could put their finger on. Is it those piercing sold black eyes or the redness of his skin? Some unusual odors in the air, does something perhaps smell faintly sulfurous? Who can tell for sure?
RE: Meinhold de la Roses - OldBear - 10-28-2023
It is said that one of the early books that Meinhold read after his mother left was by the famous author, Conner Smithson. One paragraph always stuck in his mind as the years passed.
“The first lesson you need to learn is that devils and demons are not at all alike. See, demons—they’re predictable. They come right at you, like bundles of white-hot rage given fangs and claws. But a devil—he’ll be your friend, and like a friend, he’ll help you out of a jam, see. Need a few coins to get by? The devil’s got a few to spare. Need a warm body to fill your bed? The devil knows the best ladies. Want status? Riches? Property? Magic? Power? The devil has the answers. He’ll give you all you want and more. And what does he want in exchange? Just a little thing— a trifle, really. And it won’t affect you in the slightest. All he wants is your soul.”
Conner Smithson, Seeker of Virtue on devils