Yanni Caberas

Biography

Early Life

Yanni was born in the modest sized town of Castelaga to Nikaris and Olina Caberas. He was the second son of a blacksmith, and it seemed that his path in life was laid out for him. His grandmother, Vaiya, was a close figure and helped in raising the two young boys. But she took a particular liking to Yanni, and that bond only strengthened when his older brother began his apprenticeship at the smithy. She died when Yanni was seven years old, and among her possessions, she had a Fandalite medallion bearing the insignia of a charging bull with a wreath. The medallion was a family heirloom passed down from her great-grandmother who received it as a gift from her merchant husband who got it from a hobgoblin trader from Evirs. The silver metal never tarnished in all those years.   His brother, however, became jealous of the gift and thought it was wasted on Yanni who didn't understand how rare and valuable the medallion was. Fandalite was a rare metal in Kos, and anyone would pay a premium price for such a large piece. In the following months, the two brothers often fought and argued over the heirloom, and Yanni insisted that it should never be melted down as the only real reminder he had of his grandmother. The two never saw eye to eye again.   A year later in 401 IA, he met Rui Manchesa, the son of one of the local gunsmiths, Arnau Manchesa. At first, the two boys despised each other for being from different smithing families. It was fairly common in Castelaga for the various artisan guilds to have bitter rivalries with one another even though the exact craft wasn't in direct competition. They antagonized each other constantly and swore that they'd be arch enemies forever.   But in 403 IA, all of that changed. The children, as part of their education prior to entering apprenticeships, visited with the various artisan guilds to see what all was possible. It was a formal courtesy, and most of the children knew that they'd be apprentices in the same guild as their parents. One of the artisans was Arnau Manchesa. And for Yanni, seeing the guns and how they were created was love at first sight. At first, he didn't even realize that it was Rui's father. But afterwards, enamored with the fine craftsmanship, the two made up and became friends. Yanni spent as much time as he could with his new friend and relished the afternoons when he could just watch Arnau work. As the two grew closer, he also met Eneida, Rui's twin sister.

Apprenticeship

Eventually, the time came to chose his path, and Yanni made waves by declaring that he wanted to apprentice with Arnau. His father was ready to disown his son on the spot, and even his mother was distressed by the news. But Yanni held firm, and even the threat of being blacklisted from the guild had no impact on his convictions. He wanted to be a gunsmith, and he was willing to risk being abandoned by his family for it. For weeks, the family was fractured, and Yanni was forbidden from going anywhere but the smithy in an attempt to make him reconsider.   His mother relented first, and while she couldn't give her blessing to the unusual choice, she promised that Yanni could return home if he ever changed his mind. Nikaris was more set in his ways, and he watched his son leave to live with the Manchesa family without a word or second glance.   For the next six years, Yanni studied hard and learned his new craft. His friendship with Rui only grew stronger, and he developed feelings for Eneida who was often hanging around the shop. The two developed feelings for one another, but Arnau forbade any kind of marriage until Yanni could pass his journeyman exam with the guild. In 410 IA, he was tasked with repairing and modifying a customer's pistol. Though it was an unusual test, the Fire Moth Arms Association which oversaw all the gunsmiths in and around Castelaga was known for being innovative and capable of working on all manner of firearms.   It took two months of constant work, but Yanni was able to pass the exam with full marks and an extremely satisfied customer. With that, he was promoted to journeyman and granted membership to the guild.

Career

He married Eneida shortly after in 411 IA, and he left for Daleros to work under a close friend of Arnau's. Rui stayed behind, and despite many promises to stay in touch, it wasn't long before the two fell out of contact. He enjoyed the change of scenery and working for Sorolla Arms, though Eneida was often homesick and was responsible for looking after their son, Milo. Yanni promised her that once he was a master gunsmith, he'd move back to Castelaga with her so she could be closer to her family.   But promises were often hard to keep. In 416 IA, Arnau Manchesa died, and Yanni and Eneida returned to Castelaga early. As a journeyman, he wasn't eligible to take over the store, so it was sold by the guild to an older master Gellam Iscanha. As a courtesy to the grieving family, he agreed to take Yanni as his employee, but Iscanha was set in his ways about building guns, and he never let Yanni near the back of the shop nor did he put the young man's name forward for her masterwork exam.   On the side, Yanni continued to work his trade at home, and he was eager when the imperial army put out a notice for a competition in search of a better musket for the infantrymen. Iscanha had no interest in helping Yanni despite his many years of experience. And so, the young smith worked tirelessly in his free time to design and craft a musket capable of winning. He was determined to make his mark somehow. And after lengthy correspondence with the guild, he secured an agreement that if he won, he could be promoted to Master without being vouched for by Iscanha.   Finally, the day came when he traveled to Polta to show off his musket. It was judged for accuracy and handling. The musket would be used in the field, and thus, it couldn't be so complex that the soldiers were unable to effectively clean it and put it back together. Until then, Yanni had never been to the capital city. Many talented and well known gunsmiths had entered the competition. Tension ran high, as each smith was required to fire the first few rounds before passing it off to an officer would would also shoot the musket. Any misfire or malfunction was grounds for immediate disqualification.   Yanni's musket performed well for marksmanship. It was more accurate than the current musket, though it wasn't the most precise entry. Rifling was more accurate, but it also proved harder to load and clean. The Caberas musket won for its overall high marks in all categories. It was easy enough to handle for the average infantryman, and the overall construction remained practical and aesthetically pleasing. He received the official results stating that he won in early 420 IA, and with that, he was officially raised to Master Gunsmith.   The guild was eager to turn over ownership of the shop to Yanni, and Iscanha was encouraged to retire. He also welcomed in the birth of his second son, Giormo. And with that, Caberas and Sons was officially his.   The new musket was officially released in 421 IA. Initially, it was only adopted by the royal guard units, and older muskets were steadily phased out with the new ones. By 427 IA, the line infantry had entirely switched over to the Caberas Musket. The cavalry units also took notice and requested if a variant could be made for them. Their initial request was just to have the barrel shortened to make it easier to fire and manipulate from the back of a horse, but Yanni took the request as a challenge.   It took over a year of testing and redesigning to come up with a pattern that he liked. And the process left him irritable and frustrated as seemingly nothing worked well. With encouragement from his wife, he finally submitted the new design which included improvements to make the musket better suited to the cavalry's needs. A month later, he received the military council's letter of review and agreement to adopt the new design.   The popularity of the Caberas musket continued to grow, and it became the primary item that Caberas and Sons produced. However, Yanni was never satisfied with just one creation. He also created the first rifled pistol and designed varmint rifles which were among the early small caliber rifles. Most other rifles required a larger caliber to prevent the weapon from jamming along with being easier to maintain. For Caberas' rifles, the barrel could be fully detached to be cleaned and had a unique method of threading into the gun stock to ensure a sealed chamber and barrel when the small musket ball was rammed home.   His final design came in 440 IA when he developed what would later be known as the Sea Pattern and Short Infantry Pattern muskets. Though not released for a few years after their creation, they were both approved in 441 IA. Political tensions in the military council delayed the adoption of any new arms until the following year.

Later Life

In 442 IA, Rui Manchesa returned to Castelaga after many years without word. It came as a surprise to everyone, Eneida and Yanni most of all. He was a colonel in the Otorim army and had been stationed in the colonies. At first, he was welcomed back to feasts and open doors, and with him, he carried a unique musket that Yanni created. Years prior, he'd received a request to construct a musket using Kingwood for the stock. Unbeknownst to Yanni, it was meant as a gift to Rui. The two friends quickly reconnected, and Rui was delighted to hear that he held something so special in more ways than he initially believed.   But the strain of the war took its toll. At first, Yanni did what he could to keep his friend's spirits up. They went into the countryside where some friends had a hunting lodge. Though unsuccessful at hunting anything, this trip spelled the beginning of the end for Yanni. He lost his grandmother's medallion while out in the field, and despite returning to look for months, he was never able to recover it again. That winter, Rui was found dead with his musket still in his hands. The tragedy broke something inside of Yanni, and he never truly recovered.   He lost all interest in his weapons, and he left his eldest son Milo to run the shop. Yanni couldn't even bear to look at his own wife due to the memory of her brother. In his daze, he took on a mistress and fled to Lisavi with her. In early 444, he died from an unknown infection and left a letter to his sons expressing his regret that he couldn't see them one last time. His body was sent back to Castelaga for burial.

Legacy

Yanni remains to be known as one of the best gunsmiths from Otorveia, and the Caberas Musket is widely known and commonly found among both the military and civilians. His story about being a young gunsmith with bright ideas and going against his family's profession to find fame and success is an inspiring story to young people. Due to his contributions to the Otorim military, when it became known that he had died, there was a day of mourning, and he was given a memorial service as an honorary service member.   In 448 IA, a statue was erected of him in the courtyard for the imperial armory in Polta. He's shown holding the original Long Infantry Pattern musket at his side with looking glass in his other hand signifying his commitment to making improvements for the future.   The company he started, Caberas and Sons, continues to be operated by his grandson, Iustin Caberas, who is committed to preserving and continuing the family tradition. A painting of Yanni hangs in the main showroom, and the shop is still in its original place in Castelaga, Otorveia.