The Blood Mage Ectar

The great and noble house of Storm-Hammer, a powerful Jot'Akan family that once stood proud and strong. Until the day the Blood-Spear family decided to war with them. For a decade, the two families clashed blades until the Storm-Hammer's fell. Their house defeated, they were sold into slavery. For another decade, they were forced to fight in the arenas, to fight and die at the command of the masses. But that all changed with Ectar.

The boy was born different from the others, but none could tell why until he turned twelve. It was made clear then that he had a rare blood taint, one that drove him mad, unable to tell friend and foe alike. At first, it was thought to be a bersker rage, like that of the barbarian tribes to the north, but it was soon made clear that this was not the case. The rage never left him, his owners made to keep him separate from the other slaves. In the dead of night, he was heard screaming as pain shot through his every joint. It was months before they discovered what it was.

Thousands of years ago, a powerful mage cursed his bloodline. A small percentage of children would be born with this rage, tearing the family apart from the inside. It was a curse that had been inflicted upon others in the course of history, a condition that came to be known as the Venom. It was a mage who discovered this in Ectar, and said that the boy should be killed in order to protect the rest of their cattle. But the Arch Mage said there was a way to not waste such a valuable asset to the pits.

Ectar was put through a ritual, one that would strip the Venom from his blood and awoke an ancient power. For weeks, the ritual went on, and his pain increased until the Venom had been transformed, and his blood awakened.

After a few weeks in isolation, to see if he would survive, he was taken to the Arch Mage and told his fate. The ritual awoke dorment blood that was inside all mortals, though it was unknown to most. Celestial, Demon, Devil and Fey blood ran through them all, and his was that of the Fey. From then on, his shadow moved different from his movements, as if a life of its own, and he was trained to use his new blood and the power it held. He became a Blood Mage, able to fight both with weapons and magic. As such, he became a valuable fighter in the arenas and he won many fights with his new power.

After a time, his owner, a man called Vicose, saw that in order for Ectar to progress further, he needed more training, training he could not receive from the Arch Mage. So, Vicose called the College and asked for one of the few Blood Mages there to come and teach Ectar further. But the Blood Mage, Secto, refused to teach a slave, and said he would only teach the boy if he were free. Vicose, though not happy about loosing his prized fighter, had no choice but to relent, and Ectar was freed into the hands of Secto.

Ectar was told then that there was three paths for him to further his training, but he could choose only one. The Path of the Sun, the Moon or the Eclipse. Ectar choose the Order of the Sun, and so his training continued. It took him many years to progress, fighting in many battles and learning new skills and techniques that would otherwise forever be lost to him. By training, he longed to see his family name restored. He earned coin to win their freedom and soon began the process to restore house Storm-Hammer. But it was not to be.

After some time, he earned the family tattoo, a mark over his right eye, that would identify him as a Storm-Hammer. He was told that the fist Storm-Hammer members infused the mark with great power, but that was now thought to be lost.

On attempting to restore the family name, Ectar decided that the Blood-Spear family must suffer as they did, and he lead an attack against them. Unfortunately, he came up against the House Mage of Blood-Spear, and he was no match for her. She hit him with a powerful spell that should have ripped his body apart and sent him to the Gods. Instead, his Fey blood allowed him to survive, and his body was torn from his world, his existence, and sent some where else. He awoke in village, being treated for his injuries. He tried to explain everything to those who cared for him, but the names Storm-Hammer and Blood-Spear were not known. He was no longer in his world.

Now, he seeks a means to return home, to continue his mission to see House Storm-Hammer revived to its glory.