Ben Stahlmann

Born to a life of renown, prestige and luxury but also one of impossible expectations, Ben is the son of General Martin and Marquess Beatrice Stahlmann. Related to the most powerful people in the Kingdom of Accia, his father is the right hand of the king and his uncles are the dukes of two of the Ten Houses! However, this left Ben with impossibly huge shoes to fill. Between his many advantages, his kaithur and his family's influence, Ben is sometimes referred to as the Golden Boy, a moniker he ardently abhors. Despite the influence of his family, Ben himself is generally disliked--always trying too hard as he arrogantly postures and preens yet still manages to fail in every endeavor. He paints himself a heroic figure when in reality is is an insecure coward!   It is Ben's most recent failure which has earned him a humiliating demotion. While on a mission to escort Duke Allen Minx and his family to the capital, he became responsible for an accident which purportedly killed the duke's wife. In reality, it was the life of his only heir Tia Minx which he nearly ended while Mina Minx mysteriously slipped away into the night! Now, rather than serving on his father's prestigious unit, Ben is just another grunt working as Security Staff within AMTP--much to the distress of the newly recuited Tia and her allies. Is his legacy to be written by his mistakes or does Ben have a greater role to play in the kingdom's future?

Ben is an average height with a frail and lanky build. Fairly handsome but ever sour faced, freckles dust his face often covered up by or converted into glittering gold. He resembles his mother far more than Martin, only having his father's eyes and Aura. In his magic form, he can change any or all parts of his body into gold and he has bright orange markings from his fingers up to his shoulders.

Ben was born into a lofty position, having an overbearing mother and a volatile father with impossibily high standards! He very much grew up in Martin's massive shadow, his father ever disappointed in how utterly different his son is from him or his expectations--he was never enough. There were even rumors of Ben being a bastard until he developed his kaithur, Ben ecstatic to inherit his father's form. Yet at the same time, even this was a disappointment. It is Vokda's Blade his father had hoped to pass down, not Corrust's Aura. Without his father's dark magic, Ben couldn't even be considered to one day replace Martin as a member of the King's Shadows!

While Beatrice doted endlessly on her only son, Martin was harsh and vocal with his disappointments. It was all Ben could do but continue to push and try and prove himself to avert his father's heavy hand or blatant drunken violence. He worked harder than anyone else and gave the kingdom everything he has, often trying too hard and pushing away his peers with a snobby word or delusional prejudice. And it didn't help his mother pumped his head with so much hot air! Ben can behave like an entitled snob and often acts without thinking things through, all too eager to prove himself in any way can. Seen as a disingenuous, spoiled and naive screw up, very few get close enough to Ben to appreciate his earnest, loyal nature. He is very much a mishappen product of uninhibited nepotism, rampant nationalism and an unhappy marriage.

Despite his mother dragging Ben around the capital in his childhood as her greatest treasure, he was often a victim of his father's alcoholism and nasty temper behind closed doors. While Ben could use his kaithur to protect himself from ordinary abuse, nothing could defend against his father's void blade . Ben's limbs and torso are littered by these scars and Ben still suffers from PTSD despite his continued reverence for his father. In fact, these scars are tinted gold by Ben himself, glimmering beneath luxurious fabrics but never forgotten. A childhood of abuse has left him jumpy and fearful, many perceiving Ben as a coward. However, he has a hidden strength and bravery that will surprise those who look down on him, that surprises even Ben himself.

Surrounded by the wealthiest and most powerful members of the Accian court throughout his life, Ben has been utterly drenched in nationalism and prejudice. He fully believes every concept of Accian superiority and the greater purpose of their kingdom's expansion. He fancies both himself and especially his father as valiant heroes! Even his cousins find his head full of fantasy and delusion, often taking advantage of Ben's naivity when it suits them. After all, he has spent so much time trying to prove himself worthy that he never stopped to question any of the values he has been spoon fed!

Ben is a proud member of House Stahlmann, nephew to Duke Gunther Stahlmann and Duke Marcus Aquila. While his father holds the title of Marquis, he is most known as General Martin Stahlman, the King's Blade and core member of the King's Shadows. Both house heirs Andrea Stahlmann and Martia Aquila are his cousins.

Far more recently, another cousin he was wholly unaware of has been all but adopted into Ben's household: Euan MacFheargus. While these two get along well enough at first, Ben quickly develops jealousy towards Euan who effortlessly gains his father's approval, potentially stepping into the role of the son Martin always wanted!