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Tales of Aphal: Aeton of KnightsBane

Vengeance.png Aeton had lived by a blade for most of his life by the time the Rothian wars had begun in earnest, he had grown up the son of a minor mercenary Bravo who was always struggling to find work since the peace established by the good king Verrim had stabilised much of Aphal, but nonetheless there was always fighting to be done, and so Aeton stuck by his fathers sides at the caravans and when he grew old enough helped aid the smiths and maintain the camp, by the age of 15 it was already as if he was the defacto captain of the band whenever his fathers party went away, until one day his fathers party didn't return from what was meant to be a basic shakedown in Nexun, it seemed a Gimsonian knight had taken notice to his father's operation and had lured them into a trap, purchasing them to intimidate a banker then slaughtering the men with crossbows as they entered. The few men remaining with Aex when they got this news from the one bloodied man to escape were not but smiths and squires, but nonetheless somehow even at just the age of 15 Aeton showed such tremendous leadership and such a passion for vengeance that he managed to rouse the men to take up hammers shaping tools and whatever proper weapons they had left, he himself taking a woodsman's axe, and they marched back towards the Knights retinue, the fight that ensued was long and brutal, even though the knights men were clad in plate, they had no idea this rabble of smiths lead by a child were about to engage them until Aeton blade first cleaved through the first knights breastplate. At the end only Aeton and the Knight stood, both bloodied and bruised and tired, The knight offered Aeton a proposition, wheezing through his broken ribs, he said that if the boy promised to set on the right path, and train to use his natural leadership and passion
for battle for good then he would lower his guard and let the boy strike the killing blow. Aeton refused, and knocked the half dead knights guard aside anyways, but as he raised the axe above his fathers murderer prepared to bring it down with all the fury he had killed so many others with that day, the rage finally subsided, he let his axe drop to the ground, and left the knight to die alone. As the boy grew he sought to recreate his fathers mercenary band anew, greater than it had been before to mock the foolish knight, and so he did, eventually creating the most well known band in Gimson, the KnightsBane Band, but always the knight's words lingered in his mind, as much as he hated the man and was glad he had met his end, he did somewhat admire his commitment and honor in his final moments. This is when news of war in the east broke out, a king of Grayle had lead a massive campaign and conquered all up to Rivea in a matter of months, with word of this Aeton took the Knightsbane Band to the fight, prepared to accept a compromise in his eyes, he would fight in this war for the side he believed to be true, not for the money or the admiration it brought, this he thought would finally leave him free of the nagging thoughts the knight had seeded in his mind, this he thought, would let him die with honor.

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Centinuus
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