Basic Information Race: Human (Ravokian) Birthday & Age : 484 AV (26 Years Old) Gender: Male Physical Description Athum is not an overly large man; standing at a height of 5'10" and weighing 180lbs with a medium build. His skin is pale though not unnaturally so and he wears his dark hair short in most instances. Dark, intense eyes and an almost serpent-like smile dominate his face; a face otherwise baring sharpened features that hint at something more in ancestry. In his mid-twenties, Athum looks his age despite having experiences that have aged him considerably inside. Character Concept Athum is a devoutly religious man; dedicated solely to the god, Rhysol. He is usually soft-spoken; preferring to handle situations with diplomacy, seduction and deceit over strong-armed combat. Athum is quite fond of jasmine that when dried and burned, gives off a disarming, somewhat erotic scent. Jasmine, along with its many other uses and symbolism, is often used by followers of Rhysol to remind them of their lord. The appearance of Rhysol is often followed by the scent or sight of jasmine. Though stopping short of fanatically religious, Athum is not one to vocally recruit followers to Rhysol. He is well aware of what trouble that could bring thus he prefers to spread the word of his lord in much more subtle ways. Weaving webs of lies upon lies, Athum considers himself more than proficient at deception; going so far as to immerse himself fully in a role in order to achieve a goal that isn't necessarily easy to conquer. Character History Athum was born and raised in the city of Ravok, home of The Black Sun and Ebonstryfe; two religious orders devoted to Rhysol, God of Chaos. He was born to a merchant family of modest renown and knew little of Rhysol beyond the basics taught to every child of Ravok. Growing up, Athum displayed little enthusiasm for the family trade. Instead, he immersed himself in religious texts on Rhysol and developed what he considered a close relationship with the god. Whether or not Rhysol actually spoke to the boy is between Athum and the Defiler but one thing was certain, Athum was willing to give his entire being to Rhysol. When he was old enough, his father sponsored his apprenticeship to the Temple of the Black Sun. A teenager when he was taken in by the Temple, Athum began his service as a simple attendant. His initial duties involved little more than cleaning the Temple's central worship chamber after daily services. When he wasn't cleaning, he was busy with religious studies. His studies included the history of Ravok, Rhysol and The Black Sun. As a child, Athum had been taught that Rhysol and The Voice built Ravok as a refuge from the chaos of the outside world. His studies at the Temple delved deeper into the concepts he learned as a child. Each and every day, Athum attended the services held by The Voice. Her teachings along with his own studies, led Athum to do anything and everything he could to please Her and Rhysol. For the next couple of years, Athum worked to gain the attention of The Voice. He quickly discovered a unique talent at reading people and used that talent to learn as much as he could about The Voice. He observed how people acted around her and how she responded to others. As a result, he began to model the behavior of those who seemed to get the most favor from The Voice. He changed his posture, the tone of his voice and the things that he said within earshot of her in order to look as appealing as possible. Eventually, after an exhaustive effort, Athum was noticed. The Voice, impressed with Athum's attempts at gaining her attention, offered him the opportunity to show his true worth. She presented him with a special task. If successful in proving his worth to Rhysol, he would gain the gods favor while also ensuring his status as a Chaon. His task was to corrupt find an otherwise innocent, pure individual and bring ruin to their lives. This led him to lands outside of Ravok since almost every soul in that city already belongs to the dark god. Athum found his opportunity in a small village not far from the great city of Syliras. The village was made up of little more than a hundred people. One of these people, a widow whose husband had been killed a few seasons earlier, proved to be a choice target. Athum took the guise of an injured traveler who had been separated from his caravan. He went so far as to thrusting a broken tree-limb into his gut and breaking several ribs with a large stone. His story was that he had been thrown from his horse and fell down a steep ravine where the rest of his caravan were unable to find him. He pulled himself along the forest floor for over a mile before collapsing on the outskirts of town. He was found by a few villagers who brought him to the widow for healing as she was the only one with any knowledge of such things. Though limited in ability, she was able to nurse Athum back to health which he outwardly vowed to repay her for. Athum spent nearly three years in the village after that while getting to know the widow who saved him as well as the rest of the village. During that time, he gradually planted words and thoughts in her mind about how and why her husband had died. Though he had no no real knowledge of the event, Athum was adept at reading people. The talent came at a young age and he nursed it to greater proportions as he grew older. In reality, the widow's husband died from disease during a harsh winter but the way Athum spun it, it was the gods of nature who wreaked havoc on humans who were seen as a plague upon the land. The past couple of harvests had been meager which only added more meaning to Athum's words. His poisonous words gradually wore through the woman's defenses and degraded her mind. In time, Athum was able to connect, in the widow's mind, all of the hardships the village had suffered, to the gods of peace and nature. He convinced her that the now dead god, Sylir, had betrayed the people and was struck down for his traitorous ways. Through Athum's words, the woman concluded that the chaos that surrounded them, the chaos that destroyed her life, was a result of the Gods of Light abandoning the humans. She soon believed that the only way to save herself and her village was to turn to Rhysol, the only god who truly understood chaos and who could lead her to peace. Whatever happened to that village is not known. In fact, few even know of it ever having existed and those who do, choose not to speak of it. Athum returned to Ravok claiming success and declaring that Rhysol knew of his deeds and that the god would decide how best to judge him. In a ceremony performed by The Voice, herself, Rhysol, God of Chaos, appeared before Athum and blessed him with a drop of divine blood. The Defiler appeared in the form of a winged, humanoid creature composed solely of mist. The misty form embraced Athum, wrapping its smokey wings around him. Placing its wispy lips upon his flesh, the burning, defiling kiss of Rhysol seared Athum's flesh and burned him deeper than any flame. It left a crimson scar over his heart looking much like the kind left by a blade piercing the flesh. From that point forward, Athum has been a Chaon, servant of Rhysol and child of Chaos and deceit. |