Vaeril

Very few know Daxius well enough to know that isn't even his given name. Even among the locals of the city in which he resides, none know more than jokes, rumors, and speculation. If one were to ask around about him, they would gather that he is a tall and slender elf who constantly studies and often loses track of time. Keeping to his tower in the aristocratic Feyfane district in Galren, he seldom leaves unless it is to seek an audience with current leader of Galren, or obtain supplies to lock himself away in the tower again for an unknown amount of time. Some have reported that there have been times where no one has seen him leave for years. The only indication he was still alive during those times was some would see a peculiar looking owl leave from the top of the tower carrying what looked to be scrolls. Adding to many locals confusion about the elf, Daxius is the eldest in the entire city, and though his hair has fully grayed, his other physical features haven't seemed to age past that of a younger elf.   5th Age   As a young elf of 56 years old, Vaeril found he had magical abilities when he was imitating something he read in a supposed fantasy book. He had grown up on stories of the Three Ascendants and wished we be like them. Magic was returning to the world and he had been one of the first few to exhibit any magical abilities. So he picked up every book he could that was similar to the one he first learned from and studied to improve his magical prowess. A few decades later, magic was no longer something new and nations had devoted much of their resources to becoming a magic using nation. Vaeril had become a teacher of sorts, passing on his magical knowledge to others in the great city of Galren. Though the return of magic also meant the return of mythical creatures, undead, demons, unusually large beasts, and more. At first, the threat from these monsters were manageable, but over time the hordes of creatures grew in size and overwhelmed the smaller villages and towns. In response the remaining nations formed an alliance and formed a group of their most talented individuals known as the Ildari.   The Ildari quickly found that the return of magic and mythical creatures were connected to three stones, each representing a different factions of the gods: the heavens, the wilds, and the hells. In researching further, the group was able to conclude that these were the legendary stones of Rin and these stones also matched the description of those wielded by The Companions in their adventures. The stone containing the wilds was cracking and the Ildari found a way to seal it, though the same process did not work to seal the other stones. The Ildari then sought out new high potential members to serve as apprentices to the original group members. Among them, Vaeril, Belramo, and Leander joined apprenticing under Daxius, Sorath, and Taimael respectively. Vaeril idolized Daxius who had become the most powerful wizard in the lands. Studying under Daxius, Vaeril's own abilities grew even stronger.   The group was split up into three teams, each building a temple to guard and study an individual stone of Rin. In studying and experimenting on the hells stone nicknamed Hellrin, the stones began to deteriorate at such a rate that it looked on the verge of collapse. The armies of the Hells marched on the great nations and one by one they began to fall. The Hellrin team called for an emergency meeting of the entire group, they would meet halfway at the Faerin temple. With Hellrin crumbling, the masters studied the stone while leaving the busy work to the apprentices   The masters would limit their time in direct contact with the stones as they said prolonged exposure, especially in the state it's in, would have adverse affects on their psyche. Ever wanting to impress his master, Vaeril snuck into the room with Hellrin while the masters were taking a break hoping to find something out. After some time with the stone an idea formed in Vaeril's mind, a way to seal the stone, though it would take more than just him to complete the sealing ritual. Vaeril asked his two closest friends Belramo and Leander to help him with the ritual during the master's next break. The three of them drew the symbols and runes, chanted the words, and used the components that Vaeril had come up with for his plan. A flash of purple light filled the room and energy poured in from all directions into the room pooling above the stone. The ball of energy split and entered each of the three friends. The ritual was complete, however, the stone was still in its crumbling state. The three left the room to check on the rest of the Ildari, but the temple was empty. They checked the village the temple was in, but not a soul was found. It was as if everyone had just vanished, no signed of a struggle or of anyone leaving. Even the surrounding forest was void of life, no animals, no insects, nothing.   The three went back to the temple and waited. Days passed and only enemies ever arrived. Fighting for their survival, the three cast an illusion to hide the village and temple from the outside world. After many sleepless nights and almost succumbing to the forces of hell, with the notes of their masters, the three were able to complete a true sealing ritual for Hellrin. Once sealed, all the creatures and magic associated with the stone started to dwindle. They sealed Celrin when it first showed any signs of degradation and then they split up. Each one of them was to guard and protect one of the stones; Daxius guarded Faerin, Leander guarded Celrin, and Belramo guarded Maerin.   6th - 7th Age   Decades which led into centuries which led to millenniums and the three of them had not aged and were far passed their races life expectancy. Vaeril, filled with guilt and shame couldn't bring wished that he had died with the rest. He knew however that being one of the few with the knowledge to seal the stones, he had to continue on though he wouldn't want any good deeds to be attributed to himself, so he took his masters name hoping to honor him and hope to make up for what he had done. Vaeril became Daxius and continued on to try and protect those who didn't even know they needed him. A they lived into a new age, they knew then that the original ritual they had completed not only killed all those around them, but they seemed to have absorbed their life energy. The only tell of their age was the graying of their hair. Each of them tried to train apprentices for when they finally passed away, but they continued to outlive them and as they passed through the ages, the general public had lost knowledge that magic ever existed. Eventually, they weren't believed when they told of magic and creatures that come about every 2000 years and no one came to help their cause.   So they stood alone and every 2000 years hoped that the stones wouldn't degrade too far that they couldn't reseal them. Daxius had protected his home city of Galren from many threats, including the magical threats that would come when the stones seals started to fail. For this he was awarded the title of Archmage and given the deed to Feyfane Tower by the ruler of Galren. Every 2000 years, the three would individually quell any magical threats when the stones needed to be resealed and would then seal them normally themselves. This happened normally about every 2000 years until the end of the 7th Age where Faerin was degrading unusually fast. Daxius called Belramo and Leander to the Faerin temple to help seal it, but something went wrong. As they were about to finish the seal a burst of yellow energy struck out and enveloped Leander and changed his form to that of an Owl. Belramo and Daxius continued the ritual and just before they completed the sealing, they heard a faint playful giggle. Daxius then took in Leander at his home is the tower at Galren.   In Leander's absence, his temple was raided and the stone taken by the Arruce Kingdom. Daxius had held Faerin in his possession at Galren's Tower and Belramo continued to stay at Maerin temple. Daxius eventually traveled to the Arruce kingdom to try and find who had taken the stone, but no one knew nor would talk to him about its whereabouts. Upon returning home to Galren, he found that the previous ruler had taken ill and passed away leaving his young and inexperienced son Luren to lead.   8th Age   Under the early reign of Luren, Daxius had been the object of ridicule for many in the city. He claimed the title of 'Archmage' and spoke of great magical powers that he possessed though none believed him. His books written about the magic cycle, the Ildari, and the three stones of Rin collect dust in the city's library. He even claimed to have been appointed by long dead ancestors of Luren to be the protector and keeper of the Crown Jewel which he called Faerin and kept it within his walls much to the discomfort of the Crown. When the War of Severance occurred, Daxius was in another one of his lock downs. He was called upon to fight in the war, but with no way to contact him, he never would answer the call. When he finally emerged, the war had been over and he was immediately seized and brought before Luren. Had there been any real titles Daxius held, he was stripped of them and told they would be taking his tower unless he gave possession of the crown jewel back to the ruling family.   Forced to lead the royal guard to the stone, he walked them to his tower and to the room in which he kept it. He led them to a door and told them not to touch it while he waved his hands in front of it and spoke words in a strange language that sounded almost like an ancestral version of elvish. He then opened the door and pointed to the crystal in the center of the room. A couple of the guards bagged the crystal while the ones near Daxius kicked him to the floor and restrained him. Daxius tried to struggle, but the more he did, the harder they beat him. Lying on the floor bruised and bleeding, he watched as the royal guard drew warhammers and started to smash the many instruments, tools, and relics they saw. Daxius pleaded with them to stop, screaming that what they were destroying was needed to save the countless lives. Angered by the pleas, the guards finally took out their tinderboxes and forced Daxius to watch as many lifetimes of work turned to ash. It was from this point on that any time he left his home and was in public, he was faced with more extreme contempt and mockery from the guard and the aristocratic public. They would spit in his face, threaten him, and even chase him with weapons drawn.   Decades passed and Daxius was frequently leaving the tower to go to the library, checking out many of the ancient history books and books on magic now labeled fiction and taking them back to his home. He would study and copy them into copies of his own, create notes, and run experiments based off finding in the books. It was during this time he would often walk by a beggar in the streets asking for alms and often being ridiculed much in the same manner that Daxius has been. After passing by him for so long, he finally decided to stop and talk to the elven beggar. The beggar was a veteran of the War of Severance and upon returning home had found that his home had been taken from him and when he asked for an audience with Luren, he was cast aside. Struck by the similarity of their stories, Daxius shared what has happen to him and much to his surprise, the beggar elf listened. He gave the beggar a silver and asked for his name to which he responded, "Rydel".   Now each time Daxius went to the library, he would find Rydel, give his a silver piece and talk for a while exchanging stories. Moved by the struggles and the good heart Rydel possessed, he wished there was some way to help him further. An idea came to Daxius, while he had been attempting to rebuild some of which he lost, many day to day tasks became a hindrance to his progress. He offered to Rydel, "Why don't you come and live with me in my tower, away from these cruel and insensible folk. You could be my steward of sorts. You would have a roof over your head and I would pay you well. We would even have more time to share our stories.". Rydel agreed, and for the first time in centuries, Daxius had made a friend. He introduced him to Leander and found him a room to stay and call home.   Many years later, Daxius continued his studies while Leander flew messages and Rydel kept his schedule and completed life's daily tasks. Being the laughing stocks of the city, they very rarely had visitors. That's why they were shocked to hear that a strange group consisting of an elf, a human, a gnome, and a Dragonborn had entered the city asking to see the Archmage called Daxius. When Rydel told Daxius they were at the door to the tower asking to meet him, he begrudgingly told him to allow them up, fully prepared for it to be another prank at his expense. Little did he know that while he was lost in his studies, the end of another cycle was near.