The Fallen

Age:
   17

Characteristics:
    Erinyeh is a young seventeen year old human who has experienced more in his short life than many do in their entire existence. His once vibrant and joyful blue eyes have turned into a pained, cold and icy blue stare that seems to ignore everything around him and focuses on something that is no longer there. They resemble the eyes of someone who has just lost something dear to them that can never be replaced, and they also carry the look of someone who is waiting for death. No longer due they flicker with life and a golden tint. His mouth, once locked in a shining smile, rarely moves except to order drinks or flash the occasional forced grin. Even the barmaids at the tavern that he frequents to drown his miseries have learned not to try and flirt with him because of his depressed look. The only part of his face that still carries a trace of his once energetic self is his hair, which strongly resembles the lightning that strikes down from the skies. Even the way his hair falls into jagged bangs and seems to defy gravity as it rigidly spikes upward.
   
    He is by no means a strong or athletic man, but his body is still wrapped with muscles. His slim frame is no match against a trained fighter, but he can hold his own in a fist fight until someone can intervene. The most valuable physical characteristic Erinyeh has is his astonishing agility and speed, which he uses to his advantage every chance he has. He wears common clothing that was given to him by the priests that found him and brought him back from the brink of death, but he keeps a carefully folded white and golden robe in his knapsack, as well as a similiarly designed shirt and pair of pants. A slightly tattered brown overcoat gives him the look of a traveller. An intricately carved staff that he carries out of habit more than necessity can always be found either in his hand, stretched across his shoulders or used as a walking stick. It gives the impression that he is proficient in fighting with a staff, as his slender build would imply, but he has only a passing knowledge of hand to hand combat.

Possessions:
    Erinyeh has only a small amount of possessions, but they are very dear to him. Most of them are kept in a plain knapsack that he slings across his right shoulder. He keeps a small pouch of gold at his right hip, and has common items in his knapsack as well. A simple, somewhat tattered brown traveler's cloak hangs off of his shoulders. He has the appearance of a traveler more than he does the appearance of a drunk.
   
    Mage's Robes:
    As a memento of what he once was, Erinyeh still keeps the once prized white and golden robe, and pair of pants and shirt that signified his rank as an elemental wizard. The hem of the robe is golden in color and matches the distinct color of his hair, while the rest of the outfit is purely white. They are carefully folded and placed with care at the very bottom of his knapsack and then covered with a plain shirt to protect them from dirt or from being seen. They are unenchanted but they increase Erinyeh's agility and mobility due to their lightweight nature.
   
    Mage's Staff:
    Erinyeh still carries his staff, a handcarved stave that was presented to him by the Archmage of the academy, a man that he respected immensely. It is of a soft, incredibly resistant make and a light wooden color, but traces of golden runes outline his staff. He still prizes it greatly, despite the recent events that tore his life apart. The staff is mostly a symbol of power and skill, but it enhances Erinyeh's magical energies slightly. He does not need it to cast spells however, but he is never without it.
   
    Amy's Locket:
    Amy was and is the only love of Erinyeh's life. For as long as he can remember the two of them were best friends and training partners, and her death left Erinyeh shattered and lifeless. As she lay dying in his arms after the battle was done, she removed her locket, a simple golden locket with a perfect sapphire gem in the middle that hangs off of a gold chain, and gave it to him before taking her final breath. She told him that he would know when to open it, and Erinyeh has not yet decided to open her locket to see what was inside. Stacy always wore her locket, ever since she was a child and she was never seen without it. She never told Erinyeh anything about the locket, only that she had always had it and treasured it. He only asked about it once out of respect for her. Erinyeh is incredibly protective of the locket as it is his only memento of his love, and when her is nervous or depressed he strokes the locket absentmindedly.

Strengths:
    Master of Electricity:
    Erinyeh is an incredibly talented wizard, and has complete control over electricity. Even as a child his blood was rich with magical energies, and his power has only grown over his years of training at the academy. He can only wield spells of an electric nature, but that is more than he needs to wreak havoc. The strength of the magical energies rippling throughout his body are so intense that he could cause slight shocks just from a touch at the height of his powers. Because the energy flows naturally through him and even alters his appearance and movements, Erinyeh does not need to channel his energies through an orb or staff. However, since the death of Amy he has not cast a single spell. He is also afraid of combat iself and will not fight unless forced to.
   
    Magical Awareness:
    Because he has spent his life studying and training in the art of magic, he has developed a natural resistance to magical energies. Erinyeh is especially resistant to electricity but can still be damaged by it, especially in large amounts. He can almost see magical energies flowing through the air, and is very alert to the presence of all forms of spellcraft.

Weaknesses:
   
    Physical Weakness:
    Erinyeh has spent much of life studying magic and as such has not had the chance to increase his strength as most men his age have. Compared to the average peasant Erinyeh is physically weak, and would not be able to defeat a fighter in combat without the use of his magic. He knows enough only to defend himself, and will use his staff to block incoming attacks or strike at his opponents weakly.
   
    Fear of Magic:
    Irony has followed Erinyeh through his entire life, and although it vanished for a few perfect years it came back in full force to make his life hell. Since the events at the Academy and the death of Amy, Erinyeh has been terrified of magic and the power he possesses. He has not had the will to cast a single spell, and is fearful of magic in itself. He hates and fears himself while wishing that his magic had been enough to save his love at the same time. Erinyeh's fear of magic causes him to panic and grow agitated to the point of insanity, and he will attack anybody in the way of his escape.
   
    Fear of Water:
    Because of the electric current flowing through his veins, Erinyeh has developed a slight fear of large bodies of water. He will not approach lakes, ponds or oceans, similar to a boy who crawls up to a cliff's edge to get a glimpse of the view but is terrified at the same time. Although he is resistant to electricity and carries it's power within him, if he were to fall into a lake and release any of his magical energies he might cause a fatal shock to himself.

Past:
   
    "Imagine that one morning, you wake up next to your love and everything is perfect." The young man who has been sitting in the back corner of the tavern's voice is low and slightly pained, but it hints at a happiness he once knew. His eyes are slightly lifted from their typical downcast and dead stare. This is the first time you had spoken to the man besides taking his nightly orders for drinks, and although he was physically attractive and had a charming air to him, the aura of sadness that lurked heavily around him had pushed away most of the barmaids. "You're respected," he continues, "powerful, and for once you are perfectly happy. Your peers respect you and come to your for advice because they see you as just and wise. The junior classmen see you as the older brother they never had. Your teachers come to you seeking friendship and share with you the knowledge that they themselves have just learned. You are their equal, if not their superior. And the person who you fall to sleep with and wake up n ext to is your best friend, and the two of you have known each other always." His voice picks up and he feebly smiles, his eyes slightly delirious as if he was looking at someone far away yet close at the same time.
   
    "Now imagine that the very next day you wake up to the sound of screams and sobs." His voice is once more pained and heavy, but more than it has ever been before. "The air around you is screaming with magical energy and everything is enveloped in chaos. The sounds of spells of every type can be heard tearing through both the walls and bodies. The home that has been your solace since you were a child has erupted into a civil war, and the people you love are dying all around you." Stopping to take a large drink out of his ale, his eyes shut quickly and stay closed until he has drained a fourth of his mug. "A faction of your teachers has rebelled against the rest of the faculty out of fear of us, the students. They had felt that we, their elite handpicked prodigies, had grown too powerful and must be slain. After they murdered the rest of the faculty in their sleep and executed the Archmage, the teachers came for us." He stops to take another drink and his eyes change from immense sadness to a hidden ang er. You notice his right hand moves, trembling, to a concealed locket that he brought out from inside the simple shirt he wore and began to stroke it for comfort. "Some of the student body had heard the fight between the surving faculty and the rebels, and had awoken to inspect it. They were slaughtered. Rather than come for us, the strongest mages, they started with the junior classmen and worked their way up. They knew that we would feel them come near, we could feel the malice in their hearts poisoning their magic, and so they cast a spell that would hinder our senses. We were only awoken by those who had managed to escape the rebels. By the time Amy and I awoke many were dead and the academy mostly ruined. Our small academy of less than a hundred students and staff was reduced to two small groups."
   
    "Amy and I, as well as the rest of the students in our wing were the strongest students, as well as the oldest. We took it upon ourselves to stop the rebels and to protect the remaining junior classmen. We were able to kill the rebels and barely escape with our lives, but not without many casualties. Only Amy, myself, another senior classmen and two junior classmen were able to escape as the Academy began to collapse from the strain the magical energies had put on it's now ruined walls. The two junior classmen were slightly hurt but more mentally scarred than anything else, and Amy and myself were for the most part unscathed. The other senior stayed inside the academy to finish off whatever rebels still lived, but he was slain as well." His voice finally cracked with that last sentence, after it had built up strain throughout the last few minutes of his story. By now you are regretting talking to him, and wish that you could forget his entire story and ignorantly return to serving drinks and being har assed. After his third, and largest, gulp of ale he continues once more. "He was killed by the last remaining rebel, who had managed to survive and escaped the collapsing Academy. We had ran away from the gates of the Academy, fearing a magical whiplash when it fell but had been followed by the mage. From behind, he tried to kill me with an ice spell, but Amy felt it come near and pushed me out of the way... and.." The man's voice broke as his head dipped downward and his eyes completely died, they were even hollower than they had been when the man was sober. Glinting tears fell off of his chin and onto the dirty table, and seemed to shimmer with an unnatural light even in this dark corner.
   
    Rising slowly with his head bowed the man slung his knapsack over his right shoulder and propped his staff up against his shoulder while he dug inside a small pouch for a few gold coins. He places them inside your hands and folds your fingers around them, his hands are rough but strangely warm. Without even looking at your face he keeps his eyes downcast and leaves the bar, his steps slow and haunting as he heads for his room in the inn. When you ask him his name before he leaves he simply shakes his head and replies that he has no name that he wishes to hear. As he lies in his bed trying to fall asleep the ghosts of his past haunt his thoughts. The last things he thinks of before he falls asleep is the memory of his love dying in his arms and the priests that helped him bury her and took in the junior classmen as orphans. As his eyes finally close to go to sleep his right hand flashes briefly with an electric surge, the same that struck his love's murderer down.