Mikard Jorhann Character in Jerde | World Anvil
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Mikard Jorhann

Mikard was a powerful, well-known Seer in the seventh century AEA who wrote many prophecies before succumbing to Downside-induced madness in his thirties.  
The Queen of power, the King of fear, the daughter the Lady of Reality.
— One of Mikard's vaguest prophecies

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Mikard was born in Mechalaria in the late 500s. His family was poor and lived in a small town. From a young age, Mikard had visions of the future and the past. His neighbors and siblings were skeptical that he actually had Prophecy, but his mother believed him. When he was nine years old, he had a terrifying vision of his father being attacked by bandits. Thanks to the vision, villagers were able to find and prevent the man from dying.   News of the young seer spread to the local lord, Earl Harran, who requested that the boy come to see him. Mikard spent a few years with Harran and his family and then moved closer to the capital city. He shared occasional visions with people he met. He met the local ruler and offered some of his advice, then joined a religious order and stayed with them for most of his life.  
by Lilliana Casper
During Mikard's years in the order, he wrote several prophecies and had many visions. He gave advice to most who came to see him and built a reputation as a kind and well-meaning young man who tried to help people despite the ferocity of his Downside attacks. Eventually, he left his order and married a young woman he'd given advice to. They lived in a small house close to the city walls so that Mikard could tell his visions and prophecies to the king. They lived there for years.
  Mikard supposedly went on several trips when he was able to leave, and stories claim he went to find the Temple of the First Imaginer after seeing its location in a dream. Since the time period when he would have gone looking for it is not covered in the available journals of Mikard, no one knows whether this is a true story or whether it was made up.   In 610, Mikard's visions were gaining strength. He moved to live with the brothers of his former order so they could provide help when needed. At first, Mikard attempted to continue giving prophecies, but he was beginning to lose control of his gift and his words would often spill out frantically. This continued to worsen, with Mikard finally giving up trying to use his power and focusing on his wellbeing.   Despite Mikard's attempts to abstain from his power, his Downside attacks continued at the same rate and his visions continued to grow stronger. According to his wife, he started obsessively writing down prophecies that came into his head and even trying to draw some of what he saw. His decline continued until he could barely tell the difference between the past, present, and future. The brothers wrote down much of what he said whenever he had a particularly vicious episode. Eventually, sometime in 614, Mikard had a mental breakdown that caused his death.

Mental Trauma

Like many Seers, Mikard's mind slowly deteriorated under the weight of his visions. He is regarded as the
I see her. I see her. I see her! She's standing in the dark, in a temple, talking, and... wait... there's something else there. Multiple somethings. They're surrounding her, touching her, holding her back... pushing her... No! Stop it, stop it, please! Please! She can't take any more! Don't you know what she is? She'll kill us all! Get it out, get it out, get it out! Let her go! Let her go!
— One of Mikard's last visions
 
most powerful Seer of all time, which added extra pressure to his weakened state. Because of his ability to see so much of the past, present, and future, Mikard was traumatized by the amount of death, pain, grief, and overall suffering that existed in the world. According to the brothers of his order, Mikard was convinced he could see events that had nothing to do with the Gifteds, or even with Jerde. This would have made him even more unstable. As time passed, Mikard's visions grew stronger and more frequent, causing him immense pain. Unable to distinguish the present from the future, his mind collapsed and he slowly wasted away from the stress.

Social

Family Ties

After moving to the city, Mikard rarely had contact with his parents and siblings. According to his journals, he had two older brothers that he disliked for teasing him often. His father was busy with work, and his mother had a pair of twins after Mikard left. He sent her occasional letters, to which she always replied. One of Mikards's strongest relationships was with his wife, a Telepath he refers to in his journals as "Nira", although she is never named in the histories. They had two children, a son and a daughter. Neither child inherited his power and neither of them was seen often.

Hobbies & Pets

Mikard kept multiple diaries in which he wrote a mix of thoughts, feelings, visions, drafts for prophecies, and day-to-day affairs. He reportedly had so many that they filled an entire shelf, although only a few remain to this day. One of Mikard's last wishes was for his journals to never be seen by the public, for fear of what they would do with the information. Some speculate that his wife destroyed them, while others think his children took possession of them and kept them hidden from the world.
I can only hope that those who do read this, Nira included, understand that I am not someone to be idolized, at all. I am just a man, with human failings, and I hope everyone knows that in the future. Perhaps I can be emulated, but never idolized. May God never make it so.
— Mikard's journal
Mikard never kept any pets. He claimed that after helping take care of family animals, he despised being around them. His one concession was to his wife's request for a songbird.

Other

Mikard's (Important) Prophecies

Bandit warning: Not exactly a prophecy, but Mikard's first major vision was important for his future life and career.   The King's Heir: This prophecy solidified Mikard's place as Seer to the king. It was first given to the king upon Mikard's arrival to the city, and was not fulfilled for a few weeks, although compared to his other important prophecies, it might be considered quick. In the prophecy, Mikard warns the king that someone is plotting to kill his heir.  
The Trousard Prophecy: One of Mikard's most mysterious prophecies, this work is considered fiction due to the confusing language and setting.
  Gravitron Rebellion: This prophecy was left unfulfilled until the 1600s, when the main Gravitron house of Everlian rebelled against the rulers. The revolt led to the extinction of all Gravitrons.   The Assassination of Blood: Written almost fifteen hundred years before this event took place, Mikard predicted that the beloved king and queen of Whirlan would be killed in a brutal coup orchestrated by another country. Mikard did not name the country and its rulers, which allowed the prophecy to be fulfilled and not prevented.   An unknown Imaginer's rise: One of the Seer's vaguest prophecies predicted a royal Imaginer would rise to fight "darkness hidden within the mind".  
Let this be a message to Seers. You are not alone with your visions. I have been with you all the way. I know your pain, and it is not your end.

Related Articles

Current Status
Dead
Honorary & Occupational Titles
Seer
Mikey (by his mother)
Brother Mikard (temporarily)
Life
582 AEA 614 AEA 32 years old
Circumstances of Death
Went mad from Downsides and visions; actual cause of death unknown.
Children
Gender
Male
Eyes
One brown and one blue
Hair
Short and curly
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Light tan with some freckles
Trust can always be mended, but hearts will never heal.
— An excerpt from the Trousard Prophecy

Mysterious Family and Journals

Mikard Jorhann, aside from being known as one of the strongest Seers ever recorded, is also known for the extremely limited amount of information about his family. Historians know that Mikard was married to a Telepath he called Nira in his journals, but her name, including her maiden name, is not mentioned in any history texts. The same can be said of their children, who are briefly mentioned in Mikard's later journals.   Some historians believe the lack of a maiden name is due to illegitimate or unknown parentage, while her personal name was considered unimportant. Others believe that Nira, with her power of Telepathy, manipulated writers into removing her name from texts, as well as the names of her two children.   One of the other mysteries surrounding Mikard is that of his journals. Mikard is well-documented as having many journals that he filled with his thoughts. However, very few of them are found in museums and academies. In fact, the journals known to the public make up less than a quarter of the books Mikard owned. The missing time periods are from 597 to 603 AEA, 605 to 610, and 612 to 614.
The only existing image of Mikard Jorhann's wife by Eleni LaFond

Religion & Social Attitude

Mikard is known to have joined a religious order when he was young. He later left this order but returned to live there when his visions became unbearable. Very little has survived about what order it was and what the brothers believed and practiced. Mikard's journals and the few remaining documents from his brothers reveal that they were monotheistic, but nothing else is known for certain.   In historical texts, Mikard is described as being shy and nervous. According to his journals, he had severe social anxiety and absolutely loathed presenting his prophecies to the king. Many of his entries are filled with complaints and worries about these presentations. He enjoyed being alone or with a few loved ones and rarely, if ever, attended social functions.


Final Days

The exact month, day, and time of Mikard's death is unknown and carefully kept so. A daybook by one of the religious brothers does, however, mention certain events that preceded his death. According to the journal, which is kept locked away in a museum and barely seen, Mikard suspected when and how he would die. Because of this, he began to try drawing information from time to answer his longest-standing questions. The journal reveals that at least one of these caused him to start screaming about monsters, and these probably hastened his death.

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Cover image: by Lilliana Casper
Character Portrait image: by Lilliana Casper using Artbreeder

Comments

Author's Notes

Welp, I finished it. I meant to do it on Thursday, but I was exhausted and had a headache. I hope you like it, it's taken me so long to finally do it. Tell me what you think! (I personally think it's kind of wordy, but I like it.)


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Apr 23, 2022 20:00 by Dr Emily Vair-Turnbull

What an interesting man, despite his relatively short life. I like that there is so many mysteries about him, like his wife and the missing journals and exactly how he died.

Emy x   Etrea | Vazdimet
Apr 25, 2022 00:26 by Lilliana Casper

Yeah, I ended up creating a lot more about him than I expected, haha. Thank you for the like and comment!

Lilliana Casper   I don't comment much, but I love reading your articles! Please check out my worlds, Jerde and Tread of Darkness.