Seth Notteel - Lathanderite Paladin
Nov 15, 2015 20:51:48 GMT
Post by Tweek on Nov 15, 2015 20:51:48 GMT
Seth Notteel | Human | Mixed Tethyrian Bloodline | Aged Twenty-Four | Six-Foot-One | One Hundred Eighty Four Pounds | Dark-Red Auburn Hair | Celadon-Green Eyes
Physical: A handsome young man who appears to be in his early-to-mid twenties, Seth stands at just over six feet tall with a stalwart build that easily bears the heavy armor he so frequently wears. His hair is a deep red auburn and though he evidently attempts to trim it and keep it in-check, it is stubborn and misbehaves at the slightest breeze or tousling. Warm, bright celadon eyes match the near-perpetual smile that is at his lips. He is full of life and optimism in spite of Siranda's encroaching darkness and this manifests in a pleasant, welcoming countenance. His body is free of the bedrock of scars one would attribute to a martial leaning, save for a jagged discoloration on his right shoulder.
Personality: Seth's mannerisms are not what someone might expect when one learns that he is not only a Lathanderite paladin, but also a man who served as a Sirandian knight for several years. He is exceptionally friendly, quick to laugh, easy to please, and he takes delight in the simplest of pleasures - a delicious sweet treat, being witness to a radiant sunrise, and even something as basic as a day well-spent. Some might jump to judge him as unreliable due to his tendency to flirt and and his love of a good drink, but in spite of his passion for life's pleasures he is deeply committed to the betterment of the world and to the assistance of those who need it. Sternness is an incredibly rare facet of his demeanor and as such he can sometimes be difficult to take seriously. He is prone to naivety, largely untested and lacking worldly experience. He believes that there is some good in everyone and will assume the best of others until proven otherwise - and even then he might attempt to rationalize those truths away. Though he is nigh-constantly displaying positive sentiments, he struggles with negative ones, bottling these up for who knows how long. One will rarely see Seth shout or cry or rage, as it takes a truly terrible act to earn these reactions from him. His discontent with most situations will manifest only as some strain on his face and fewer words coming out of a usually-chatty individual.
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History
Seth is a native to the small island of Siranda, born in Ludor to a pair of academics involved in the pursuit of medical research. The work was of interest to the city and consequently afforded the couple a relatively affluent lifestyle. Seth would fail to learn much about his mother, Arianne Notteel, as she became afflicted with child-bed sickness during his birth. She eventually succumbed to the infection one week later in spite of efforts to restore her to health. Seth’s father Aaron Notteel was a man guided by reason over passion, prone to optimism over despair, and harboured no grudge for the death of his partner. Instead he was thankful for the health of his son and taught him to deeply respect mothers – child-birth is a difficult endeavor, and all imminent mothers put their lives at risk to give another the chance at life. His ambitious father made certain to provide all the love and care a child requires, which left Seth untarnished by the lack of one parent.
An energetic and rambunctious youth, Seth enjoyed befriending and tearing around with other children in his neighborhood. He excelled at all manner of athletic pursuits and games but was humble about this - Aaron was certain to teach his son humility and respect. It was not uncommon for him to hold back in sport to intentionally lose to a new member in his circle of friends, along with other gestures of the sort.
Sometimes his energy would get him into trouble, but with his pleasant demeanor and good nature it was difficult for anyone to get truly angry with him. He'd often assist neighbors with whatever help a young boy could provide. He enjoyed the breadth of experience it provided him day-to-day, and particularly looked forward to the gratuitous smile he would receive when the work was done. It meant pulling up well water one day, assisting a farmer with grooming his horses another, and sometimes helping his father organize his notes and books.
Aaron was a scholar and wanted his son to eventually assist him in the field, lacking a partner since Arianne had died. Unfortunately for him, as Seth moved into his teens it became apparent that he found no passion in scrawled notes and esoteric readings. Instead he was drawn to the Lathanderite faith. He appreciated their joy, their passion, their songs, their athletics, and general love of life. Lathander’s followers set out to enjoy the gift of life that they are granted and to leave good deeds in their wake, which resonated deeply in the young man's heart. He began spending less and less time at home and more with the Morninglord's faithful, be it assisting the monks in the garden or enjoying a drink at the pub with his fellows after a productive day.
Eventually Seth wished to provide more than being an assistant and friend to the Lathanderite faith, requesting to be trained to join the ranks of the Morninglord's paladins. Given his compassion and selfless nature along with his physical strength, the Dawnbringers were content to oblige. Thus began the first chapter of Seth's life away from home. The nature of his upcoming duties prevented him from visiting his father as much as he'd wished, and he would not learn of the man's eventual fate prior to the darkness that overtook Siranda.
Shortly after his training was complete and he swore to bend the knee to the Morninglord forevermore, news of a shortage in enlisted knights circulated around Siranda. Due to a combination of the profitability and brutality of the Annedhellian Wars, the royal family faced desertions and struggled to convince lords to send their sons and daughters for service. A call was put out to various faiths - Tyr, Torm, Ilmater, all these lawbearing and morally-inclined faiths - for them to provide holy warriors to bolster the faltering knight ranks. The Lathanderites obliged and sent their newly ordained paladin to meet the request.
Though the organization was filled out by grace of this decision, it sowed discontent among many of the knights. Many felt betrayed that the entry barrier to their brotherhood had been relaxed in such a manner, allowing these holy hedge-knights to wear the same uniform as their own. The knight-commanders did not trust these newcomers as they did proper lords and nobility and as such went out of their way to keep them out of their own regiments. The result was that these paladin-knights were given few desirable or romantic duties. For Seth, this meant being stationed as a guard in Castle Siranda.
Initially this was a difficult post for him to fulfill. Standing alert and alone in dusty castle halls left him starved for pursuits out of doors in the daylight, and craving friendship and any sort of socializing. Fortunately this discontent would not last. Siranda's youngest princess, Lenora, began to take note of the handsome young red-haired knight she would see on a daily basis. Just entering her teens, Lenora faced a difficult life. A persistent muscular sickness left her weak and prone to collapse and fainting. She was rarely able to leave the castle and her frequent fainting spells caused her to struggle to maintain friendships, embarrassed by her weakness. Seth's ready smiles, jests and compliments would brighten her day, and eventually drove her to request having him as one of her personal guards.
The pair became close friends, and her trust in Seth enabled him to show her some of the world she so frequently missed out on. With his assistance they would go out of the castle to see shows, festivals and markets. Seth carries a memento of one such occasion - while at the market, Lenora found a pendanted necklace that she adored and purchased as a gift for the knight. Seth protested heavily given that the jewellery likely cost months of his salary, but Lenora was as stubborn as she was frail and would have none of it.
As Seth approached his mid twenties and Lenora went from her teens to young womanhood, he could not help but notice the rare flush in her cheeks he would sometimes cause. Delighted as he was - what young man doesn't enjoy making a beautiful woman blush - he was also concerned by this development. He was a landless knight whose vows to his god superseded any loyalty to the crown, which placed him in a awkward predicament. This quandary would never come to fruition though.
Just prior to Siranda's undead devastation, unmarked assailants found their way into the castle under the cover of night. It must have been an attack years in the making, for they knew the layout of the castle like the backs of their hands. Much of the resident royalty and nobility was targetted, and the motivation of these attacks is still unknown to this day. Seth stood before the door to Lenora's chambers and attempted to fend off four intruders but was outmatched. A deep cut to his shoulder left him reeling, and in that moment was dealt a terrible blow to the head which stole consciousness from him.
When he would eventually be capable of opening his eyes once more, it would be in a dim cavern he does not recognize, cold and sweat-slicked. Nearly blind in the gloom, his groan of confusion as he tries to sit up would alert a nearby elven woman. "Oh, you're finally awake! Thank goodness..." she exclaims.
