Investigator Arcanist

• Name: Cal Volsung (Also known as Calennig, Kl'erill, Calen)


• Race: Half-Drow (Passing as Human)


• Class: Arcanist / Investigator


• Origin: Cheliax & Darklands


• Affiliation: Sleepless Agency (Ustalav), the Ruinlords

 
 

Appearance & Traits:

Cal Volsung appears nearly human, with pale skin and unusual pink-hued eyes that he claims are due to albinism. Sensitive to bright light, he typically covers his eyes during the day. Though he conceals his heritage, subtle hints—his eye color, magical aptitudes, and a faint otherworldly presence—suggest something more than simple human lineage.
 
 

Early Life:

Cal's earliest memories trace back to a halfling village within Cheliax, where members of the Bellflower Network raised him. The halflings named him Calennig (“gift for the new year”) and taught him the importance of cooperation, freedom, and cunning survival. Born with crystal-blue eyes sensitive to daylight, Cal worked alongside his adopted family, training to help free slaves. Yet he never learned how he ended up with them, only that he was delivered as a baby to their care.
 
 

Captivity in the Darklands:

As a teenager, Cal was abducted and taken into the Darklands, where he discovered a twisted truth: he was the half-blood son of a drow noblewoman, Eilistraee, and a human father who once smuggled him to safety. In the depths below, the drow tortured him, called him Kl'erill (“useless”), and sought to break him. They recognized his intelligence, arcane talent, and gift for uncovering truths.
 
During these grim years, Cal’s memories of his halfling upbringing began to fade. Enchanted whips, carrying the trapped soul of his murdered father, tore at his flesh and spirit. Still, something within him resisted total submission. Decades slipped by, yet he did not physically age as expected—likely a result of drow alchemy or dark enchantments.
 
 

Escape & Wandering Years:

One day, without explanation, Cal awoke on the surface. Disoriented but free, he fled the region and traveled ceaselessly, working odd jobs and never settling long enough for pursuers to catch him. He avoided certain places rumored to host powerful enemies or sleeper agents, and he learned to hide his heritage behind the guise of a human albino. The cold, cloudy climes of Ustalav appealed to his light-sensitive eyes, and the presence of the Sleepless Agency—an investigative organization—drew him in. He believed their watchful eyes and detective methods would help keep him safe, and perhaps give him a purpose.