Cassius Mordayn

Appearance
Cassius is a Raveloc of darker than usual complexion, with long, elegant limbs and medium-length, straight, black hair. He's of average height and is fairly thin for his squared frame. For protection, he wears an armored headband, padded and absorbent to keep sweat, or blood, from his eyes. His robes are a dark crimson well tailored to his body, wearing his armor fitted over his robes, all perfectly calculated for freedom of movement and casting. His eyes are calm, and gray; that is, until the manipulation of Ether changes the color of his irises as he manipulates the magical weave, resonating with the school of magic drawn from.

Personality
Cassius is ambitious, curious, introspective, friendly, and loyal (sometimes to a fault). The Mage can be seen just as frequently partaking in extravagant dining with other characters (affectionately referred to as "Lavish Meals") o make good impressions or promote bonding, as he can be in a dark dungeon or fortress, seeking powerful relics. His good nature, natural adventurousness, and naivety has gotten him into some sticky situations, including inadvertently toppling an entire mountain, a run in with unfriendly Shadowcasters, and a floppy situation involving raving nudists in a pub.

Early Life
Born in an ordinary home, Cassius’ parents were constantly working to provide him a better future. With no siblings, nor friends to play with, coupled with his parents’ long hours of work, Cassius was often left alone, with only his imaginary friends to keep him company. Many a solitary hour did he spend pondering the world around him, as well as another world he did not yet know, grasping at Ethereal straws he could not yet understand.

One day, lamenting his intense loneliness, his mind finally stumbled across the void he'd for so long unwittingly prodded into. He summoned a spectral wolf; blue, translucent, beautiful. This was quite a feat for an unrealized mage without training, one that did not go without notice when he brought the wolf home. Wanting to nurture this special ability, and without a moment lost, his parents enrolled him in the Mage Academy, where he developed his natural talent for magic far away from the home he knew.

The Mage-in-training found purpose and excitement in his classes, with his interest peaked, in particular, to the schools of Casting, Cantrips, and Summoning. Cassius was captivated by the crimson-orange dance of Ethereal fire, fascinated with curious tricks of the mind, and drawn to spirits and demons of other planes or generations past. He studied well and dreamed big, growing into his lofty ambitions. After years of dutiful study and training, he graduated top of his class.

After graduation, Cassius's wasted no time, as his natural curiosity of the world outside his homeland, coupled with the desire for fame and fortune, got the better of him; thus he set out on his own journey to grow in power and renown among the masses and make the name for himself he always dreamed of. He packed what small personal belongings he decided may be useful, and unceremoniously bid goodbye, just as he had to every home thus far, and started his quest in a land far away from Home and Academy, to the capital city of The Kingdom of Icritha, Yrille.

The Great Serpent
Cassius' first true adventure was a momentous one to be sure. Rumours had been spreading that the Great Serpent had been spotted once again and was wreaking havoc along the coasts, and that Icritha had been readying the grand fleet to try and deal with it. It just so happened that Cassius had recently arrived in Icritha and while looking for work found himself offered employment to help combat the beast. The Icrithan Navy had been hiring freelancers in anticipation of the confrontation and Cassius found himself working with a few of them; Slyvën Talta (or "Sly") the elven assassin, Conrad Walker the Runewarrior, and Ogrun Bogukk the Giant Adventurer. This fortuitous meeting would prove the beginning of a longstanding friendship between Cassius and Sly.

Prelude to Slaughter
The Navy had sailed out to meet the great beast of the sea, but first they had to deal with the fishmen. The sea-dwellers attacked suddenly, dragging sailors from their ship to a briny death and attacking others with their keen claws. The sailors and adventurers both fought valiantly, Sly and Conrad stabbing a punching while Cassius rained fire upon them, vanquishing many a fishman and driving the rest back to their watery homes. However, the true battle was yet to come.

Leviathan
For all it's size the Serpent is still a swift creature and not even volley after volley of cannonfire could impede it. The beast tore into the fleet, sinking any ship unfortunate to be near it, frigate and warship alike; with only it's first thrash it succeeded in destroying numerous ships, suffering only minor wounds in retribution.

From the decks Cassius and his fellow adventurers could do little but to assist in reloading and enchanting the cannons - at least, until the fishmen returned. They were tired and shaken, but they still had valour enough to fend the scaled fiends off, and not a moment too soon; the Admiral had called a retreat. A Vanguard force was required to fend off the serpent whilst the rest of the fleet escaped. It seemed he expected the freelancers to be part of this doomed bulwark, but Cassius' had no interest in meeting his gods that day. A quick witted fellow, the Mage was easily able to convince their Captain they were promised safe passage home.

By the time the battle had concluded the Icrithan fleet was in shambles, reduced to a third of it's strength.

Fall of the Great Serpent
Cassius would later take part in, what would prove to be, the final offensive against The Great Serpent. Enlisting in the battle with his most trusted ally, Sly, and joining the company of Mercenary Captain Bjorn Bayerman (now also a trusted friend and ally), the Third of Foot was tasked with defending a front against an inevitable Fishman invasion, while Lord Warden Arthur Saxe lead a naval assault directly against the Great Serpent itself. The battalion fought through several waves before casualties and Cassius's lack of mana forced a break in their line. Shortly before the line fell, the batallion was contacted by a lieutenant of another batallion headed by then-Mercenary Captain Oryn Hawthorne. The Third of Foot retreated to a nearby town in conjunction with Oryn's troops to regroup and attempt to fortify the town.

As the crew regrouped and mustered their forces, the Fishman army did the same. Even after conscripting any fighters left in the town, the amassintng Fishman army was obviously too overwhelming. The leaders quickly devised a plan to save the inhabitants of, not only this town, but the other 2 towns between the invaders and Icritha. The plan was to trap the village, then send Sly, Bjorn, and the rest of the town on a caravan ahead to the next town in the path of the invaders, and continue until safely in sight of Icritha. Meanwhile, Oryn and Cassius, atop Oryn's steed, would detonate the traps and engage in guerilla style attacks on the massive army with arrow and magical fire.

The plan was so successful that by the time Cassius and Oryn were visible on the horizon to the bolstered forces of Bjorn and Sly, the Fishman force was an easy fight for the large group of defenders. Exhausted beyond all measure, Oryn and Cassius collapsed at the city's gates. Cassius, having his first chance to freely test the limited of his power, had pushed past those boundaries and became immensely more powerful after the fight. With the bounties Cassius earned from his incineration the fishmen, he spent a sizeable purse on training and study to hone in on the power he had recently tapped into, becoming a master in the school of Casting.

The Naval Assault was successful in ending the Great Serpent's reign of terror on Icritha's seas.