O'Ways Family

Family Coat of Arms

The Family Values are: Honour, Service, Truth.

                                       "STAND UP AND FIGHT, AND I'LL STAND UP WITH YOU"

Family History

A common family, they referred to themselves as 'Seekers' as they saw life itself as a way to seek the Truth in all things. They revered the Great Dragon, a creature they consider to be a manifestation of wisdom, knowledge and courage. To them, the Dragon represented all those capacities of human nature that can elevate the mind and soul to the highest levels, bringing wisdom, compassion and light into the world but can also bring them down to the deepest ignorance, cruelty and darkness.

When the last days of Drachenwald were afoot, some of the family were caught up in clashes with take-over forces and were killed. With Only Kay, Micha and Megistos left alive, the latter sent his two sisters to the north, to find a new home for the family. They never made it there as they were ambushed during this journey. Megistos occupied a nobleman's estate that had fled Drachenwald, and the family was recognised amongst the Noble classes of the Cagilan Empire. Megistos returned to studies and published several tomes on the nature of matter and the immaterial.

Several years on, Megistos had gotten in touch with a young man that lived with his brother in the woods. He had never lived amongst men, therefore the boy did not even speak English. He was able to communicate with anything around him through some kind of universal language. Intrigued, Megistos took the boy home with him and started with teaching him to speak. The boy learned fast and was very eager to, so Megistos kept on instructing him, until the young man could be considered some kind of scholar through his knowledge and wit. He had a natural gift for mathematics, physics and logic. Megistos decided to adopt him officially, to be his heir to the family seat.

When Cullen came of age, Megistos disclosed the entire family's history, including the macabre faith his sisters had suffered. But now he also revealed that in Kay and Micha's company were also their two young daughters, Deirdre and Siobhan, and where his sister's bodies had been found months after they had disappeared in the Alaise mountains, there had never been any sign of his nieces. Cullen swore to find them and became a Knight of Alatol at the age of 17.

He soon had tracked one of them, Deirdre, back to Hidale. The two young girls, age 8 at the time, had been taken by the bandits that had raided the coach in Alaise to be sold as slaves in territories overseas. One of them seemed to have been more a burden than an asset to them and they dumped Deirdre at a pharmacist's practice in Hidale. There, she had learned about healing and surgery, and she could be considered a healer by her own right. When Cullen passed through the region he immediately recognised the strong-willed redhead to be his foster-father's niece. She immediately travelled to Alatol and was accepted by Megistos as his own daughter, therefore granting her equal position in the family to Cullen.

The family’s values are Honour, Service and Truth. Honour as a form of self-respect and of others, accepting that differences between people and all things are actually there to enrich the experience of life and make it an enriching voyage, and also as a statement that every person is as valuable as anyone else. Service, for those who hold knowledge and wisdom have the sacred duty to share them with all who are worthy. Truth, as the one, incomprehensible reality, that brings both fact and speculation, empirical evidence and intuitive self-interrogation together into a sustainable theory of life and beyond.

Cullen

Cagilan Empire, Atamara

Knight of Alatol, charged with authority in the County, 'Knight of the Bronze Lotus' in 'Est Solarus Oth Mithas', 'Blue Lantern' of 'The Order'.

At the age of 15, Cullen was living in the woods together with his younger brother Cynon, both orphaned some years before in the Drachenwald wars. They had been brought there by their mother in order to hide them from both the own troops as the enemies, who were always looking out for strong boys to use for free labour, which usually meant slavery ‘till death. Unfortunately she didn’t return one day she went looking for food. She had been trapped by troops, raped and killed. Finding her body had made Cynon turn more to himself, and the brothers had to grow up struggling for survival. Cullen had never left home before and could only speak the Drachenwald dialect, now outlawed by the governments of both Tara and CE. Cynon went out for days to Skalk and Foda, where he operated as a petty thief, thereby able to keep both of them alive. When Megistos came into contact with both boys he helped them out and Cynon was able to better himself and found a job working in a smithy. Cullen learned how to read and started passing this knowledge to his brother. As Megistos' foster-son, he became the heir to the family seat in the Noble ranks of Alatol. Megistos was advised that having Cullen as a foster-son would cause trouble when Megistos would die, for opportunistic people would dare to question his nobility. Therefore, because there was no official family history before Megistos, Kay and Micha, they put Cullen into the books as his real son. Cynon went away to Beluaterra to avoid any trouble for his ‘little’ brother (Cynon stands 6’3…), landed in Enweil but emigrated to Avalon when he found out Siobhan was there.

Cullen is a skilful man, sometimes a bit overzealous but his intentions are always good. As his prime interests lay in mathematics, physics and astronomy he has a natural affinity with archer-units, because their battle-effectiveness depends on knowledge of ballistics, fast calculation of arc and trajectory. Both Cullen's units so far have been known for their deadliness on the field and their very disciplined character.

A medium-height man of no impressive posture, but his dark blonde hair tends to make him stand out of the masses and unlike most of his peers, he wears an impressive moustache and beard. His clear blue eyes seem to see more than others. He is considered as arrogant or a snob by some, but he is always himself and will always defend the one who he deems in the right, regardless of their social class. He is very loyal, and thoughtful of his friends, but also he does not change his views upon (former-) enemies lightly. Who was once his enemy will never be his ally. Therefore, he often has a hard time to adapt to changes in politics. Even though he guards his honour as one of the most important things in his life, he focuses most of his energy on finding Truth. His favourite pastimes are study, training with his troops and he often disappears into the woods for extended periods of time. He avoids questions on that topic. As all true Alatolians, he also likes good food and drink.

Commands

Cullen's first unit called "Dragonfire Archers" where ambushed in Etoge, en route to Cagil, after they left Alatol for the first time. They were attacked by a Carelian commander named "wei", commanding the "Honour"-unit, killing every man standing exept for Cullen , who sustained heavy injuries but managed to reach Cagil. He reformed the unit under the same name, leading them to numerous victories, the last one at the battle for Nida, where the Carelian "Honour"-unit was wiped out. wei barely escaped, severely wounded. Cullen left his unit at Nida as a militia as ordered. He then recruited the "2nd Alatol Dragonfire", originally 25 strong. They have seen many battles and he was in command of the 2nd for over 5 years. They grew into a strong unit with a disciplined mentality. They considered their honour to be their most important asset. When he was given the responsibility of law and order in Alatol he left the 2nd to operate from his Estate, as local militia. Now, after a recent invasion of CE's long-standing enemy Abbington, the unit fell in the defence of the County. They will remain in spirit as inspiration for all Dragonfire-units to come. He has recruited the "11th Dragonfire Archers", a longbow unit with very advanced weapons and armor, which suffered heavy losses in the 2nd battle of Chasnoff, where Cullen also was severely wounded, which eventually nearly cost him his leg. The unit has refitted and Cullen is slowly revalidating and getting ready to add another honourable page to the family's history.

Deirdre

Kingdom of Darka, Atamara

Dame of Bisquez, charged with authority in the Duchy's Capital. Warrior of Sigrid. Member of 'Les Femmes Collusoires'.

She is one of Megistos' nieces, who he as adopted as his own daughter. Raised in a pharmacy by a healer named Gilles, she is skilled in both the arts of war and the art of healing. She was found there by Cullen as he was recruiting a healer in the region, and was brought to Alatol to be a part of the O'Ways family.

Flashy, long red hair and emerald green eyes, freckles all over her body depending on the season and perfectly shaped, she is a breathtaking young woman. Her more timid nature changed abruptly after the Second Battle Of Dontow, where several units where slaughtered by attacking Carelians, a day after they suffered a crushing defeat. Several units were ordered to keep the grounds, in order to allow the main battle force time to regroup. The futility of the fight and the fact that she saw nearly every unit slaughtered to the man changed the way in which she percieved war.

After a short while of battle-weariness she decided to strike back at the Carelians, right when CE signed it's peace- agreement with them. She moved to Tara for a short time, to carry on the fight from there but after a few days they also decided on peace. By that time she had become convinced of her dedication to the warrior's code, therefore she moved to Darka and became an avid follower of Sigrid, Darkan Godess of War and Death. She also joined the "Les Femmes Collusoires"-Guild. If anyone wishes to understand how she thinks, they need only know this: She lives by Honour. No higher ambitions or secret agenda, just honour.

A fiery, passionate young woman, which is accentuated by her appearance, she charges into anything and anyone, often against better judgement. Somewhat rejected by her family because of her leaving the Empire and setting up an estate in the northern region of Bisquez, she still is very fond of her brother Cullen. Her favorite passtimes are training her men and playing with men in general.

Commands

Her first unit was simply called the "Alatol Dragonclaws", a medium-sized infantry unit. She too left this unit as militia in Nida during the Carelian war. She went on to recruit the "4th Alatol Dragonclaws", a mixed infantry unit, 42 strong. After two battles in Garnagi this unit was also left to defend Nida and one month later she left the "5th Alatol Dragonfire", a smaller archers - unit as a militia to defend the then freshly recaptured Duchy Capital of Skalk. She then recruited the "6th Alatol Dragonclaws" and carried on the fight. She took this unit with her to serve Tara, and then on to Darka. She then changed to Cavalry and raised the "'9th Bisquez Dragonriders", who were all killed on contract to Eston. Her next unit, the "10th Bisquez Dragonclaws" was eradicated just as fast and now she is in command of another Cavalry unit, the "12th Bisquez Dragonriders".

Siobhan

Avalon, Beluaterra

Druid Priestess of 'The Order Of The Druids'.

Cullen was never able to track Siobhan's steps beyond Calis harbour, where she had been sold, but no clues where left what had become of her. Word from her came years later, when the sea captain she had been sold to years before disclosed her true origins to her as he lay dying, asking her to forgive him. He had always led the girl to believe she was his own daughter. It is very unlikely she did forgive him, as unlikely as him dying of natural causes.

She grew up at sea, which has naturally had it's impact on her personality. It was a hard life in the merchant fleet, surrounded by not always the most sophisticated company, most of the men she met in her young life were naturally sailors and merchants. She was taught to read by the ship’s cook, a former scribe to a noble of Ash Sea Islands who had fallen from grace. He was her best friend during her younger years and was eventually killed in a bar fight in Wayburg by a sailor from Fontan. This motivated Siobhan to learn how to handle a knife, in order to defend herself against those with less ‘honourable’ intentions. Due to her good looks, sharp wit and – knife she became known, or rather, notorious, in the maritime community. She loves the sea and the freedom it provided but her interests in spirituality were always bound to lead her to a life of religious service, but she found monastery walls way too limiting for her.

She got in touch with Megistos from Light of Fountain, where the ship had landed on the eve of the Captain’s death. After a while Megistos sent her some gold for her upkeep and explained the family values of Honour, Service and Truth.

Dark, curly hair and blue eyes, a face one who has laid eyes on it will never forget. Like her cousin Deirdre, in bond her sister, she has a striking appearance and astonishes many that a young woman of this elegance could be such a hard worker. She became a troopleader of Light Of Fountain for a short while after she recieved her letters of nobility, she soon found more fullfilment in serving the people by preaching and comfort. After political disagreement, she and her best friend Kara Dairinn, also of Atamaran descent, both emigrated to Beluaterra. Siobhan then ventured off overseas to the Land Of The Standing Stones to study at the mistery-school led by Guillaume, where she studied the Arcane Arts, the Sciences Of The Skies, the Book Of The Gods and the ancient lore of Magic, shape-shifting and energetic domination. When she felt ready, she travelled to Avalon and after a brief period commanding infantry she decided to join the Order Of The Druids and carry on her mission of spreading the words of the Gods. Her main focus is therefore Service.

She has contempt for politics, although she often gets caught up in the middle of it as one of the voices of the Order of the Druids. Her convictions tend to lead her into conflict with politicians, because of her non-compromising nature. To her, doctrine is and ever-moving thing, subject to constant re-evaluation but immune to the needs of diplomacy.

Commands

Siobhan commanded the "3rd Alatol Dragonclaws", an infantry unit, in Light of Fountain but after she left the East Continent she wanted to start on a new slate and renamed the unit "7th Alatol Dragonclaws". After a couple of skirmishes and a foreign mission in aide of Avalon's allies she ended her military carreer.

Cynon

Avalon, Beluaterra

Druid Assassin of the Order of the Druids

Cynon is Cullen's natural brother, very much like him but also very much unlike him. He is not a noble of the family, but has emigrated to Beluaterra to live the adventurers' life in order to protect his brother from any accusations concerning his descent or birthright. He tries to be an asset to his new home and he is an avid hunter of undead and monsters, especially in the County of Sheja, where he also takes care of a Druid Grove. He is also an expert on gems and stones. If he and his dog Amaroque are not out hunting or on merchant business he is usually found at the 'Dark Dog', one of the more 'colourfull' inns the County has to offer.

Credits

OOC: A big thanks to my lovely wife Kelly for the great shield.