Talen

Talen was born within the towering walls of an oppressive tyrant's kingdom. As a child, he was often a target for others due to his unsociable attitude and stoic nature. Out of desire to protect himself, he found an interest in both sword fighting and hand to hand combat. He spent all of his free time perfecting his skillset, and soon enough he was no longer a target. His stoic and unsociable nature that was once regarded as weird and worthy of mocking was now seen as terrifying. Even catching his gaze made others fearful of him. Despite this, Talen still tried to make friends, though it was usually to no avail. While practicing his swordsmanship one evening, he was approached by a younger girl who had come to praise his skill. His gaze left her undaunted, and she soon challenged him to be her sparring partner. Truly excited by this, Talen was more than happy to agree, and the two were starting to become friendly as they worked to better their skills together. Through their fleeting conversations, Talen found that she was gearing up to train with the royal guard, and desired to serve the dragon prince once he took his reign. Talen didn't quite understand her fascination with the idea, as he'd much rather do more practical things with his skills than to just sit in a castle and babysit. However, Talen was never able to enquire further about her passion for the royal guard. On his way home that night, a massive dragon soared through the sky burning with rage, setting fire to the outskirts of the kingdom. His home was lost to the flames.

The next morning, the whole kingdom was gathered to hear the glorious announcement of their prince's triumphant efforts. The royal line was famed for having the so-called divine blessing of taking the form of a dragon, a right bestowed upon them by the heavens in order to protect their citizens and as a testament of their right to the throne. This gathering was called to celebrate their prince's mastery of his power, and to proudly proclaim that the prince's form was the largest and most powerful in the kingdom's entire history. While the crowds cheered for their prince and the royal family's continued devotion to protecting them, Talen seethed. Though he remained quiet and presented no hint of anger externally, his blood boiled. The prince that was supposed to protect this kingdom had instead destroyed the only home he'd ever known, taken away his only family, and expected him to cheer and celebrate the honor of it all having happened. Talen decided that night that he'd escape this cruel kingdom's oppressive walls. Seeing as how his home had burned, packing for the journey really wasn't difficult. With only the armor on his back, the sword he'd been carrying that night, and his disdain for dragons as a whole, he made his way to leave the kingdom.

Escaping was not an easy task. Talen managed to sneak passed guards and knights alike, using their shift changes to his advantage. However, it would be foolish to believe that he'd avoided all prying eyes without assistance - Talen used his only money to bribe one of the more senior patrolmen, denoted by his outfit, to assist him in his escape. Once he'd left the kingdom, he travelled as far as he could, desiring only to put more distance between himself and the kingdom he'd once called home. Being fully grown at the time, he had no issue intimidating most people who'd wish single travelers harm, and those that he didn't intimidate with looks alone he was able to fend off with his blade instead. While it wasn't a comfortable life, Talen managed to survive on odd jobs from the villagers in towns he passed on his journey. One evening, Talen was asked for more than he usually was - an elderly rancher and his family were struggling to make ends meet, as a beast continually worked to pick off their livestock one by one. Talen had never been asked to deal with monsters, nor did he have any experience, but he accepted the job anyways out of a desire to help.

Talen soon found he actually had a knack for monster hunting. Having lived nomadically for a fairly long while, he was familiar with hunting and tracking prey. He found the beast easily, but slaying it... that was another matter entirely. He'd initially approached with his sword, but his approach had been too hasty for such a creature, and his weapon was knocked away in the process. Leaving him to resort to hand to hand combat, Talen sustained many small injuries, but he managed to regain his sword and take the upper hand, slaying the beast and returning with its head to the elderly couple. He was rewarded handsomely for the work, and was offered medical attention as an additional thanks for his efforts. Once he was on his way, he got to thinking. Monster hunting sure paid better than the odd jobs he'd held thus far, and... well, dragons counted as monsters, didn't they? He decided then and there that he would become a monster hunter and kill every last dragon there ever was or would be, and that he'd stop at nothing until they were all purged.

Word soon spread of a skilled monster hunter who would take on any and every job, for the right amount of money. Talen had no allegiance - he'd simply work for whoever offered the most money, and he'd usually take every job he could get his hands on. His skill grew exponentially by the day, until it was thought that there was no monster he wouldn't be able to slay. It was at this point that he started getting requests to slay dragons, starting small at first, and slowly growing in scope to more medium-sized ones. At the same time, word was spreading about Silvain slaying any and all dragons he'd found, though his intentions were not known. Talen did not stop to think about this, nor did he care if Silvain was slaying dragons as well. After all, the only good dragon was a dead dragon, and Talen didn't mind if Silvain made his work easier. After all, Talen would kill him as well soon enough. Talen became well known for his skill in slaying any and every type of beast, and received lots of work and lots of money in exchange for it. However, after slaying something as exciting and satisfying as dragons, he found himself growing bored with the missions that involved every other kind of beast. They were too easy, and quite honestly he wasn't invested in them as personally as dragons. They were quick, unexciting work and often took him too far for too little satisfaction. So, Talen sought out dragon related work relentlessly, and with rumors brewing around a small tavern in the woods starting to plan an attack on Silvain, the allure was too much for him to pass up.

Making his way to the tavern, Talen was greeted by a familiar looking girl, one who was strong and kept a sword under her bar's counter. Wary, Talen pried, only to find that she was the very same girl who desired so strongly to fight to protect the tyrant king. After some strong words and a few cleared misunderstandings, Talen found that Eris had escaped Sil's kingdom and desired to bring him to his knees. While still withholding his trust, he decided to hear her out, and was invited to a meeting that night to learn more about their plan. At this meeting, Talen met many new faces, including the king of a kingdom bordering Silvain's who desired his downfall as well. Seeing as how Lyndon's kingdom was well known for taking in displaced people from Silvain's regime, Talen began to trust the team. He was offered a spot on the battlefield with them, and he agreed. After all, he couldn't possibly turn down the chance to kill Silvain, it was the opportunity of a lifetime.

In the meantime, Talen was recognized by name by king Lyndon, who had heard of his prowess and skill with slaying monsters. Seeing as how his kingdom often had too many requests for his knights to handle on top of their duties, Lyndon made him an offer. He'd provide him with lodging, meals, and anything else he may need, in return for staying in his kingdom and helping to deal with his citizens' troubles. Talen agreed, and now resides in quarters that are small, but homely, within the castle grounds. While his assignments are never truly too difficult for him, he's still getting used to working on teams together with others on the same assignment. Really, though, he's just waiting for the time to come for him to kill Silvain once and for all.