JoS/Kanna/Karim's Backstory
First Entry
My life's been full of ups and downs since I was forced to leave my childhood home, but now, more so than ever, I feel like every day could be my last. That's why I want to write this down now because there's no chance I will live to see another sunrise, and my greatest fear right now is to just fade away and be another nobody, forgotten.
My name is Karim, and I've been orphaned ever since my parents were murdered in a bandit raid in the Midyear of 423. I was ten at the time, while Kanna, my little sister, was four, almost five. Now, she's the only family I have left, the light of my life and the only person I truly care about in this world besides myself. We were both taken in by the bandits, who raised us from that point onwards. In truth, we were little more than hostages though… It wasn't a relationship of mutual respect. I hated the chief, while he saw me as nothing more than a useful tool. His name was… No, actually, never mind… He's now dead and I don't think his corpse deserves a courtesy of having a name.
I was forced to do many things in my life, starting with simple thievery and banditry, highway robberies, targeting innocent, defenseless civilians, women and farmers, merchants… Then, by the time I reached my adolescence, I took my first life, and eventually, even participated in sexual assault… Nothing I'm proud of. I was motivated back then by only one thing, and that was survival; not only mine, but also my sister's. I knew he had Kanna at the end of his blade, so I just had to do it all… I couldn't bear the idea of something bad happening to her.
I knew it couldn't go on forever though. I was still hungry for revenge, salivating at the idea of making those people pay for their countless crimes. Well, I succeeded, but at what cost?
After leaking information about an upcoming bandit raid to the guardsmen of Chorrol, telling them the clan's travel route and battleplan down to the last detail, they set up an ambush. I thought that would be the end of it, they would all die in this ambush with me and my sister finally gaining our freedom… But things just didn't go as I anticipated.
Before I could go on my own way to tell the bandits to go ahead with their plan, two guardsmen blocked my path and drew their blades. The man I had just told about the plan, the captain of the guard, said that he knew about raid too, and said that he's very thankful of me, but more than anything, thankful that he will finally be able to get his just revenge against the bandits who had taken his family away from him. He insisted on me facing justice as well.
I tried reasoning with him, telling him that I'm motivated by revenge as well, and my family's lives were taken by these same bandits as well, but he didn't believe me. It left me no choice but try to escape, and I failed. My unwillingness to take a life cost me dearly, and I allowed myself to be captured. All I could do was feel the iron tighten around my wrists as the two guards held me down against the floor. "We'll meet again soon", is what captain told me next, as he prepared to leave for duty. "I'm finally able to retire after today…"
I was so angry at the time. I was supposed to be on my way to battlefield. I was naïve enough to think I would be able to join the fight by the side of the law, but now the only thing on my mind was Kanna. I so, so wanted to get to her, to save her. There was no telling what could happen to her now. Those damn fools mistook me for an enemy even after me helping them and leaking them info, so they could also mistake my sister for a real bandit as well. For fucks sake, a little girl wouldn't be a bandit. I struggled with all my might, trying to tell the two guards holding me that I was on their side, but they weren't having it. They said that I was going to be hauled straight to jail.
I couldn't let it happen.
Somehow, I managed to escape. I freed myself from their grasp after tackling one to the ground, and I ran away. Still bound by the steel I knew I couldn't fight, and there was no doubt in my mind that they wouldn't hesitate to kill me at this point, especially with them all alerting everyone in the city about an escaped criminal. People made way, looking scared, horrified of me. I guess they must've really thought I was a bad guy… Not like it matters. I was able to make it away.
Still, the matter of chains on my wrists still persisted. They weren't made from top grade material, and I felt that with some struggling and maybe even some violence, grinding against stone and wood, I would maybe make it out. It took so long, I was grinding my teeth trying to muffle my rage and swearing. My wrists were sore, hurting and bloody, but damn it, I was going to make it out to take my sister and escape with her even if it meant losing a fucking hand! It must've taken ten, maybe fifteen minutes, but I struggled myself free from the chains.
Now, in the middle of the woods, in an unfamiliar part of the city outskirts, I ran like mad for a short while, trying to figure out a way back to the camp. I kept praying please, to all the gods, even though I had never seriously prayed for anything before, to please just let me be in time, let my sister just be safe. I didn't even have a weapon on me anymore, so all I could do was pray!
And then, finally, by the time I made it back to the camp, all I found were imperial officers and guardsmen from Chorrol looting the bandit camp and searching for evidence. No bandit was left there, and based on my extensive survey, neither was my sister.
It was at that point that I realized, I had failed in protecting her.
Second Entry
Three months have passed since that day, and now I'm truly alone in this world. I now live my life as a traveling mercenary, picking up any jobs I can just so I can eat well and sleep peacefully. In that sense, I'm still motivated by the same thing as before, and that's survival. I'm just doing anything so I can survive to see tomorrow.
I try my best to not do anything illegal. Other than that, I'll do any job. Pest control, hunting down goblins or bandits… There sadly isn't much use for people like me in these lands, and people scoff at me when I reveal my "profession" to them in local inns and taverns. According to them, it's strange for someone to be an independent mercenary when there's the Fighter's Guild to take care of jobs like this, and suggest that I must be some kind of criminal or other reject for not being part of them.
I guess they are right in that part. I am both a reject and a criminal, but hey, at least I'm working to clean my name, as difficult as it may be. Either I gain enough reputation to clean my name and become someone worthy, or I die trying. Live by the sword, die by the sword, as they say… I treat my every day, my every single battle like my last, and you'd better damn believe you will follow these same rules if you cross blades with me.
If you are someone who killed me, well… First of all, congratulations, I hope I proved to be a worthy opponent, someone worth remembering, and second of all… Actually, never mind, just don't let me be forgotten like so many warriors before me.
Still, more than wanting to be somebody right now, I want to reunite with my sister. I know she's out there somewhere. She was arrested, that much I'm sure of. I've heard rumors of a special detention center for children and youngsters somewhere in the Imperial City prison, and those rumors aren't very pleasant. The conditions there are - according to what I've heard - very strict, if not even abusive, but I guess there's nothing illegal going on there. Still, can't help but to have this sick feeling in my stomach…
My guess is that she's there, but there's no way for me to know for sure, and saving her from there just isn't an option. It's impossible. Just trying it would be a suicide, no matter how mighty of a warrior you may be. Besides, it would go against my vow to not commit any crime. If I tried to "save" my sister through crime, I can't see that helping me or her long-term.
As for paying up her bounty? Well, I doubt she even has one… Money can't buy her freedom, and even if it could, there's my own bounty to worry about. Not exactly sure what my bounty would even be, considering all the killing, thieving and banditry I've committed… Even rape, that one time… Forget about a bounty, if they know about everything I've done, I'm probably wanted dead. My only hope is that I'll never be recognized. Has served me pretty well so far, especially when you consider that the clan I was part of is gone, with all of its members dead. I get dirty looks from guards in the cities I go to, but nobody has ever even thought about arresting me for anything.
That's about everything there is to me right now. I'm just a bitter, directionless mercenary worried about whether I can eat a hot meal tomorrow or not.
Let this journal also be my will, you know, in case I die. Everything I own, now belongs to you, whoever you might be, the person who killed me… I hope you're a person… Wouldn't want to be killed by a damn beast… It probably isn't much, but you'll get a cheap armor, a sword and a shield, maybe even some pocket money if you're lucky.
That's it. That's my story.
WIP
Backstories
- Aliya's Backstory
- Kanna's Backstory
- Karim's Backstory