Thnktfthbx/Kern

Name: Kernunnos Takai, Kern to his friends
Caste: Dawn
Nature: Leader
Anima: Rearing King-Stag, ready to protect its herd from any threat, even unto death.
Concept: Honorable Solder. Heavily Armoured Powerhouse. Destined Leader-to-be.

Physical Details

• Round honest face, large blunt nose, & very dark/almost black eyes
• Heavy, Dark Bronzed & weatherworn skin
• Straight shiny black hair, long to waist, tied in tight braid.
• Very large (wide) frame, shoulder to shoulder, with ample muscles in evidence from wearing armor & doing heavy lifting
• About 6 foot even (but looks a bit shorter because of proportions)
• Dawn Caste mark permanently bleached milk-white into forehead, even without essence expenditure, normally covered by a headband or his helm
• Several small sword-scars on limbs & back, one large clawed scar running down left arm, tattoo of broken skull on sholderblade

Pre-Exaltation History

Kern was the third son of the Harbourhead Takai’s, a well-to-do family involved in Tapestries (particularly depictions of famous battles, by consignment only, made by the most talented weaver-slaves in all of Harbourhead…)

As a child born in Harborhead, he learned the use of weapons very early, as all children in Harborhead do, right along with any other education they might receive regardless of background. He was pushed towards the more mercantile aspect of life, but his ears burned with the grand tales of martial adventure and military victory that his grandmother told whenever showing a client their halls of tapestries. As he grew, he quickly developed into a very strong young boy, and with both his older brothers & younger sister showing much more skill in bookkeeping as well as slave management, he was finally allowed to pursue a career in the nation’s guard. Showing great strength & fair potential, & was accepted into standing army after his second time through the recruitment tryouts, around the age of 17.

He was trained for Cavalry and Heavy Infantry fighting for several years, and then upon completion of his 4-year basic instruction, he was placed with one of the 5 standing companies that Harbourhead loans out to their close contacts in the Blessed Isle, part of their treaties with the Realm, in particular with House Sesus.

The first campaign he was involved in was fairly simple & straightforward suppression of an uprising in one of House Sesus’s holdings, a lumber & logging region that felt it was being unfairly taxed. There was only minor fighting, as the locals weren’t at all as adamant in their position when facing down the 5th Wing of the 27th Legion backed by the Harbourhead Infantry. The following year they were temporarily recalled to Harbourhead to assist in an ongoing campaign against the Jackal Tribes to the south, part of Harbourhead’s continuing attempts to expand it’s boarders, as well as keep it’s slave markets full of new meat. During this operation Kern displayed to his superiors a commendable ability to think on his feet and to deal swiftly with the sudden changes in strategy that became necessary when opposing varied tactics of the tribes. They earmarked his file as a potential officer in training. It was at this point that he began to wear his hair long along with several of his compatriots, as a sign of skill (long hair can be a serious difficulty in battle), as well as a personal symbol of time spent in the military. After two years fighting through the Jungles south of Harbourhead, Kern’s company was again requested by house Sesus, and sent to a Satrapy on the North-West coast of the Inland Sea that was in danger of being swallowed by a newly developing Shadowland. His company was one of several non-Imperial regiments supporting a full Legion of Imperial troops engaging in full-out war with the forces of a Deathlord aggressor. Casualties were high, and the non-Imperial units tended to be used in the tighter spots, since the Dragonblooded generals in charge wanted to keep their own citizens as intact as possible. During this conflict, Kern was given a battlefield promotion to Stotora (like a Sergeant), in charge of a squad of 20 men, when their previous commander was killed in action. He also received a long claw-mark scar down his left forearm from the bony hand of a corpse-soldier. At the end of the conflict (which resolved after a year and a half in an uneasy truce, the deathlord holding a quarter of the disputed land, the Satrap holding half, and the remaining quarter remaining as a sort of buffer between the two sides), all of Kern’s company (those that survived, about 2/3rds) got tattoos on their right shoulder-blade of a skull broken in half.

Kern’s company was refreshed with new troops from Harbourhead (his squad increased to 25 men), and was assigned to a five-year round-trip through a series of House Sesus’s holdings & garrisons with a contingent of Dragonblooded & Imperials, with the intent to reaffirm Sesus’s hold on it’s tax-donating lands as well as to assess the accuracy of prosperity reports. Most of this time was spent breaking in the new recruits, training in maneuvers, and fighting with the occasional desperate bandit groups or hostile locals of the in-between lands. Kern also took the opportunity to learn as much as he could from the Equietus (equivalent of a Major) of his company’s mounted units, who was a veteran leader and well respected by the entire company. He wanted to make sure that those under his command got the sort of commander they deserved.

At the end of this tour of duty, Kern’s company was sent to the Nation of Colborn in the Eastern Scavenger Lands. South of the Meander River

Some Backstory and His Exaltation

Once a great Solar Exalted Armorer held lands in the far East of what is now called the Scavenger lands. At the center of his domain was a modest (for the time) Citadel, with a great Earth Manse at its heart. In life, he was greatly respected most particularly by Earth spirits & elementals, who flocked to his Manse for both the energies present as well as a chance to work & socialize with such an Exalt. When he was killed in battle in the Usurpation, his body was whisked away by spirits, interred in citadel, which was reclaimed by spirits of the earth (read as: Buried beneath stone & earth, swallowed by the ground itself.)

In more modern times, most of the land that exalted once held is now part of the Nation of Colburn, a land of much mining and trade in Metal ores & coal. A scavenger lord, (found a map in another set of ruins elsewhere in the Scavenger lands) discovered existence of Citadel, knew it to be a larger task than he normally handled, & sold info to an Agent of House Sesus.

Members of the Chenow line of the house, who’s strong and brutal forces are often sent into the Scavenger lands, decided that an untapped first age Manse full of potential wonders would tip their house’s bid for control of Realm, so they sent out a huge caravan of Excavators & Archeologists & several contingents of solders to take it by force. Along with the imperial wings were the troops from Harborhead with Kern.

The intrusion was brought to the attention of the leaders of Colburn, who resented the intrusion, wanted no part of Realm, & felt ancient Manse should be theirs. They took their nation’s army, & began a minor war to defend themselves.

This war lasted about 6 months, much longer than most predictions would have allowed for. The major reason for this was that on the way to the site, the Imperial troops indulged in many of the depreciations that Chenow Sesus enjoy (looting & generally treating local populations roughly, something they aren’t given free reign to do in the Realm), which out of poor planning managed to indirectly interfere with an investment made by one of the Guild members who was in control of their supply lines. Understandably upset, the Guildsman hefted his influence to cut off the troops from their salary & food, while the leaders of the expedition scrambled to contact other sources of goods & renegotiate with the Guild, either by placating the one who they had angered, or else by finding another sufficiently placed member who would work with them instead. This gave the forces of Colburn the opportunity to turn the conflict into a drawn-out skirmishing, where their home-field advantage and local troops could be put to the best advantage.

Kern and his fellow officers from the Harborhead contingent quickly became rather disgusted with the lack of respect & mercy for civilians, and from generally foul practices. But they were following orders, and there was little chance of superiors back in Harborhead being able (or wanting) to do anything about it. So they gritted their teeth, and attempted to do what they could for the civilians when they could, and followed their orders like good soldiers when they couldn’t.

After the six or so months of drawn out fighting, the Imperials had suffered losses & were very unruly, but were poised for victory, their negotiations with the Guild finally restoring their full supply lines. This provoked the General in charge of Colborn’s militia into making a last-ditch effort. He got volunteers for a nearly-suicide mission, a sneak attack upon the Imperial headquarters tents after dark. That night, Kern was to meet with the Equietus to talk and was on his way to the man’s tent, next to those of the Dragonblooded commanders. Kern noticed the enemy soldiers sneaking into the camp, sounded the alarm, & ran off into battle to protect his commanders (as unworthy as many of them may have been). With this display of loyalty, bravery, and alertness to danger, he was exalted by the Unconquered Son, becoming a child of the dawn, blazing forth in golden light. Unfortunately, having been roused by his call, the Dragonblooded commanders freaked & attacked him from behind as he fought for their protection, seeing a newly exalted Anathema as the greater threat. Facing off, the Dragonblooded and the new Dawn caste fought, lights from their anima banners brightening the night, while most of the mortal troops hesitated, confused by the sudden changes. The opposing forces of Colburn saw the commotion and confusion & used it as a distraction to take the bulk of their forces up in a flanking maneuver while Kern fought for his life against the Dragonblooded, still in his rush from Exaltation. There were too many Dragonblooded for him to defeat alone, and was reaching the very end of his strength when the opposing forces crashed in. The opposing general (who had previously had a positive experience with a solar exalted) saw the solar faltering and formed his wing into a wedge to reach Kern & back him up. Between them, the were able to finish off the remaining Dragonblooded together, while the commander-less Imperial troops fell into confusion & were completely routed.

Post-Exaltation in Colburn: The Citadel

Kern was understandably a bit lost. He certainly couldn’t go back home, and his career as a soldier of Harborhead and of the Realm was by necessity out of the question. Thankfully, the general of Colburn took Kern aside & offered him the limited hospitality of his Nation, on the provision that he keep as low of a profile as possible. He was introduced to the rest of the rulers of the Nation (of whom, it turned out the General was one). He attempted to request to be part of Colburn’s Army, but they didn’t feel comfortable with him being as obvious as such a position would make him, despite the obvious benefit such a power as he would give. Instead, they offered to let him help with their project to uncover the ancient citadel. They wanted him to help protect the people at the site from sabotage from others who were covetous of the treasures, as well as back-up incase there were dangers inherent in the ruins, like there often are with such places of power.

In the end, it was decided that the only way to gain access to the citadel in a reasonable amount of time & use of resources was to negotiate directly with the spirits who had buried it in the first place. Several sages experienced with bargaining with spirits and elementals were brought, sacrifices were made, and a dialogue was opened. The spirits of the place were initially stoic and taciturn, loath to even speak with the sages… right up until they were introduced to Kern. The presence of a Solar Exalt changed their demeanor dramatically. While a great deal of time had passed since they owed direct loyalty to that Solar Armorer that they had so loved, most of the spirits in the area still held a significant nostalgia for the golden times of the First Age, in particular the rule of the Solars.

After a great deal of debate, the spirits agreed to raise the citadel and allow it to be occupied by the men of Colburn, but only after many concessions. Firstly, the citadel would be held by Colburn only in trust, awaiting the day when it would be reclaimed by a Solar worthy of it (Kern, feeling uncomfortable with the whole situation, made it clear that he did not want to hold lands, nor could he take advantage of the citadel fully, not being anything of a craftsman like the previous Solar had been). Second, should Kern ever meet a Solar Exalt who has skills as a smith, he must be directed to the Citadel. Thirdly, to honor the memory of the one who came before, the Armor & Daiklave that the previous owner died in should go to Kern, that it may serve the Solars once again. Fourthly, Kern must do several small favors for the spirits. And finally, Colburn must begin a tradition of a yearly festival honoring the local Spirit court.

Once preparations for all of the conditions were underway, and Kern’s promises made, the Spirits, nearly a hundred of them all told, manifested one evening, and with an enormous display, raised the citadel from the depths of the Earth, and opened its doors to the men of Colburn. Within, in the entry way, was the body of the Solar who once called this place home, still in his heavy, Oricalcum armor, his Daiklave at his side. These artifacts were cleaned & given to Kern, as per the Spirit’s demands, and the body was given proper burial. The majority of the building was completely intact, the years having made little impact without air or nature to influence it. In the heart of the Citidel was a great manse, carvings of stone, marble, & metal surrounding the walls, ornate iron works forming banisters, sconces, stairs, and doors… In the two larges chambers were two great forges. One was a superb forge, setup to craft the finest of armors and weapons. In the walls and the floor, even over the bellows and the anvil, were traceries of Oricalcum. And set in the wall at the center of an ornate mandala was a socket for a hearthstone. Some basic investigation by the sages proved that one of the two hearthstones produced by the manse would power the forge, making it literally hum with energy. Some smiths were quickly sent for. When they began to use the forge, they found that it became pure simplicity to work their craft, every move they made fell just right, every material they worked with more pure than expected, every piece they crafted more sturdy and finely honed. The second Hearthstone that the Manse created was much smaller, and was found to only function for an Exalt, and was delegated to Kern.

The second forge was confusing to the sages. It was obviously built for much more specific purposes, more arcane purposes. It had a series of large mirrors inscribed with occult symbols, some of which were broken, and a system to allow sunlight into the chamber, despite it being many floors below the roofline. It also had a large well of sorts, which seemed to be filled in smoothly with blackish stone, almost as if it had been poured in.

The men of Colburn quickly set about using the first forge, appointing their best smiths to work in shifts producing superlative arms for their army. Kern was now armed very impressively in near-impervious superheavy armor and two Daiklaves, one from the citadel and one from one of the Dragonblooded he defeated in the battle in which he Exaulted. However, he felt very exposed, with all of the Oricalcum drawing attention to him as a Solar. So he had one of the armorers working in the Citadel to Laquer over the armor in white, making it look much like white Jade. Between the Jade-looking armor and the one Daiklave being Jade, he felt that he could probably pass himself off as a Dragonblooded. Thus prepared, he went out and performed the list of tasks the Spirits had set for him. To his surprise, most of the tasks seemed more random and esoteric rather than difficult. Collect five star-shaped stones from this quarry in this valley, then take them to the top of this peak there, and smash them one by one using a brass mallet… not exactly epic tasks. It took only about a month to finish them, and to return to Colburn.

Live Moves On

Kern quickly became restless, without a chance to serve in Colburn’s military, and without a proper goal, he didn’t feel at home. He soon decided that if he couldn’t have a place there, then he had to look elsewhere. The Scavengerlands are full of mercenary companies, and Kern figured that at least one would be able to give him a place. So he left Colburn, promising that he would “check in” periodically incase the nation was in dire need, and began investigating mercenary companies. Keeping to his disguise as an Exile Dragonblooded, he was able to narrow his search down after some time wandering. First, he wanted a well-established group. One with principals, and which wouldn’t force him to bend his morals. The group would have to have a leader of power, likely a Dragonblood, to stand up to Kern. And of course, he couldn’t keep his being a Solar from his commanding officer, so it would have to be a merc group who’s leader could accept him as he was. That led him fairly quickly to Lookshy, with it's high levels of Dragonblooded where he wouldn’t stand out, and where many Mercenary groups had permanent quarters. Kern approached several of the smaller companies, demonstrated his skills, and tried to gauge the leaders. He finally settled on the Steel Jackals. He arranged to speak privately with its commander, and delicately explained that he wasn’t exactly exalted by one of the Elemental Dragons…. The commander was quite surprised, but was quickly accepting of the situation, knowing that a single Solar Exalt would be an order of magnitude more powerful than even the most experienced Dragonblood. So, he immediately upped Kern’s pay, and agreed that it would be best to continue to give others the impression that Kern was a Dragonblood, even to the rest of the company.