Theo Stillwater

Many say Theolin Stillwater, Theo to his friends if he had any, was born under a bad star. And for him it isn't an expression. Theo's mother, Brunil, and Father, Trin, were devout followers of Ehlonna despite the near eradication of her faith after her fall from the higher plans and supposed death during "The Rending." They prayed often for her, the goddess of life and Birth, to bring them a child. But as the years passed it seemed their window had closed. Then one night Stillwater Deep was struck by a great light that seemed to tear through the fabric of the sky. This falling light struck with such force that peoples of 5 kingdoms heard it and felt the ground shake. The homes of the town of Stillwater on the shore of the lake, where Theo's parents resided, however were miraculously unharmed despite local forests and mountains being leveled as if by the finger of a god. When people went to investigate the Deep it appeared that whatever had struck the body of water was gone but had left a series of craters in the sediment. These craters increased the depth of the water considerably but notably didn't lower the water line of the lake. Perhaps most striking though, was that when viewed from above the lake now appeared as a giant unblinking eye. It didn't take long for people to redub the Stillwater Deep as the Peering Deep. Many believed it to be cursed and refused its bounty which ironically became even more robust after the incident. But it was on this night that Trin and Brunil Stillwater would have their prayers answered. 9 months later Brunil went into labor. It was a difficult birth, both because of her age and because of the events of the night. As she began to bear down great howling wind blew through the town, spoking horses and beasts making them run from their ties and pens. As her body tore to make room for the birth the ground of the town tore open leaving jagged chasms in the streets. As her fever grew and sweat poured down her face, sizzling rain fell from the sky. But as soon as the midwife had Theo in her arms everything stopped. Some thought this a bad omen but most thought it was a sign from the gods that this child was special, at least until they discovered that all the liquids in the town had turned to brine; all the ale all the wine all the mead water, milk, juices, even potions were now thick salty nearly green brine. 3/4 of the town fled fearing a curse. Those that remained were mostly the Stillwater family, Theo's aunts, uncles, cousins, and more distant relations, who's ancestors had founded the town, refused to give up their birthright. It took some time to clear the wells and other water sources but the water was made drinkable again and the Peering Deep, a fresh water lake, was strangely unaffected by whatever force had struck the area, so that had remained potable. Despite the town being now almost entirely relatives there was still a healthy fear and hesitance directed toward Theo. And as the town repopulated this attitude rubbed off on the new residents. Which left Theo very much alone most of the time. which he didn't mind because when he associated with others things often seemed to go wrong. For example when he was 6 he was with a group of kids who were playing in a hay loft when the railing broke and one of the kids fell, breaking his hip. On another occasion he was playing in the rain with a group of children when one of them was struck by lightning leaving the child without the ability to see. As events like this happened The perception became that if he was around anything bad that happened was because of him, if two kids began to fight, If the baker dropped a tray of pastries, if someone bit their tongue, they'd ask "oi, where's theolin" and if they saw him within 100 yds it was his fault. People began asking him to leave before starting work if they saw him nearby. "hey Theolin, Maybe you can go for a walk" they'd say. Theo would oblige not wanting to be a bother to anyone. He spent vast amounts of time in the forests reading. His parents didn't have many books but they did have one about a druid princess who went on adventures. He loved that book and wanted to follow in the footsteps of Keylith the Air Ashari. If only he could get the trees to speak to him. He spent half his time in the woods and the other half on the lake. Brunil had been a master fisher, sailing 3 of the 5 seas of Al'Uvium before marrying Trin, and had come to Stillwater to study with the Stillwater family about inland fishing techniques in the Stillwater Deep. So she tried to fill her sons time with lessons in her trade. Theo was an apt pupil quickly mastering anything he was taught about fishing or seamanship. But he'd always rush back to the forest trying to figure out how to be a druid. Shortly before Theo turned 16 Trin returned from a trip delivering fish to Crown Peak, a special order for the mages of the Enlightened Eye who had been studiying the Peering Deep for years. Upon his return Trin grew ill, a wasting disease that no healer recognized or understood, upon his deathbed he gave his son a message, "When your path becomes clouded keep your head above the fog, you must reach above your station to know the way. Beware of the light, it lies, if you would truly see you must turn to the dark, follow the dark path my son(Wheeze) follow the dark,(Cough) turn the k... (Cough, wheeze, cough, exhale)" as life left his body a key fell to the floor having been held in his hand. The key had a strange eye at its head and seemed very old. Theo searched for a lock around their house that the key fit but nothing. despite Trin being 66 years old there were some in the town who thought Theo's curse might have caused Trin's sickness but most just thought it old age. Brunil was heartbroken and her health declined quickly after the death of her husband. Before Theo was 17 he found himself alone in the world and trying to maintain his family fishing business. For the next couple years he excelled. making steady profit and gaining a small amount of respect in the town. He wasn't fully accepted but he also wasn't as separate as he once had been. By this point though he had become accustomed to being alone, he still would speak to the forest everyday, hoping for an answer. And one day it came. Absentmindedly speaking with a tree he was shocked when the tree answered back. But it wasn't the tree it was a werewolf standing behind the tree. It asked him not to run away, telling Theo that it had lost its pack in the woods. Theo felt sorry for the creature so alone as he had been for so long. Theo would return to the forest every day to talk with Kark often bringing fish or other food. They would talk about all sorts of things but the werewolf seemed particularly interested in the town and how it had treated Theo over the years. Theo reveled in having someone to vent to so he exaggerated his abuses and talked of the utter evil of the town that hated him. The more horrible the stories the more Kark empathized with him, Theo had never had this and he wanted more so he continued to make up tales. One day Theo came to their meeting spot but Kark wasn't there. Disappointed Theo went out to fish instead. While he was out there he heard screams and saw smoke coming from the shore. He rushed back in, Once he docked his boat he realized the town was being over run with werewolves and they were killing everyone. He saw the werewolf he thought of as his friend waiting on the dock for him and thought he his time had come but the creature just clapped him on the shoulder and said "I found my pack, and before we moved on I wanted to do you a favor for all the help you gave me, I know what it's like to be shunned and I wanted to give you the satisfaction of blood I could never have in my home. My Friend" Theo was speechless, he had caused this, he wasn't cursed... he was the curse. Once the destruction was complete Theo wandered the streets of the town seeing all the faces. The men, women and children now dead because of him. He lost track of time but he spent what seemed like years collecting all the bodies and burying them in individual graves which he dug with his bare hands. When he was finished he took a boat out to the Peering Deep tied a rock to himself and dove in with it. He didn't struggle he let the water fill his lungs and in one violent shudder Blackness. He felt himself floating in an infinite blackness, he looked at his hands and could see himself. He had just begun to wonder if this would be what death' was going to be like forever when in front of him opened a giant pair of bright blue eyes, no face no mouth, just eyes. And a voice seemingly coming from everywhere but nowhere said "Live" at that Theo felt his heart start to beat, Thump Thump. "Serve" and an image of the oceans and water but also blooming plants and babies being born filled his mind., "Use" at this word a flood of knowledge filled his brain of spells and powers he never knew before, "Learn" this time the image was of the peering deep itself, the eye of the deep became the two eyes of what Theo assumed was the entity speaking to him, his vision spread back even further until he was looking down on all of Al'Uvium as if all the land and water were part of a spinning ball, the image plummeted downward toward the ground until his eyes were filled with the vision of the Atheneum of the Enlightened Eye within The city of Four Points in Initia. "reward" at that Theo felt his memory of the massacre begin to fade not completely but enough to lessen the pain. As he acclimated to the new condition the voice spoke again "soon" which brought all the memories and pain back, the Final word said was "Druid", suddenly Theo was staring back into his own face except they weren't his eyes. Theo jolted awake on the south shore of the peering deep, more than 100 miles from where he had been. Unsure how to do what he was instructed to do or go where he was instructed to go Theo made his way south to the Yadril Ocean where he arrived half starved. Every night he dreamed of those eyes and the dead and sundered bodies of everyone he'd ever known lying at his feet. A young woman found him in the streets of a port town he never learned the name of and took pity on him, her name was Julie Baliqua and she was the cruise director for the Passenger ship The Flying Dutchment. She got him a job as a galley hand to pay for his passage across the Dutchmen sea. He arrived in Initia with no better idea of how to proceed but disembarked in Zenimole anyway. He took a few odd jobs before being hired by a local businessman to be part of his escort party through the mountains to a town called Loredale.