Character Back-story, Part 1

Aug 04, 2006 05:37

I ended up writing this to introduce my character, and thought it might be interesting to some of those here. Comments or critiques are most welcome!


Hello there! I am Toranin, an owl-gryphon traveler. I wander, both because I seek out wisdom, and because I am no longer welcome in my homeland.

(Forgive the awkwardness in some of the following explanations, but our words for many of these concepts do not translate well to this alphabet, and so my expression is somewhat limited.)

Allow me to provide a bit of background. My home was a place full of gryphons. Though we are all one species, at least those of us in my land, and have no known physical relation to the 'pure' felines or avians, each individual appears to be a mixture of traits from one avian species and one feline species. These associations are not inherited directly, although some families have a tendency toward certain varieties. It is believed that a person's personality and aptitudes are determined largely by these traits.

In fact, our society's caste system is based on them. One's caste is determined by one's avian counterpart, and one's profession within that caste by the feline. Owls like myself are our scholars, teachers, and philosophers. However, my feline counterpart is the black panther, which marked me for something slightly different -- I became a keeper of secrets and a dispensary of hidden knowledge. I was taught many things, but also severely circumscribed in how I could share that knowledge. I was only to truly teach others like myself, although I was also to provide general counseling and advice to youths of other types.

The only problem with this was that I did not agree with the rules I was taught. While too much knowledge in the wrong hands can be dangerous, many of the secrets I was to keep were truths about our own nature and our place in the world. As dangerous as such can be, I did not feel it was right to keep such information from those who were placed under my care. I began teaching these 'secrets' to the brightest of the cubs assigned to me for counseling, rather than simply fulfilling my other duties toward them.

In the end, one of my secret students was too much like myself; he tried to teach a friend of his, as I had taught him. They were caught, and pressured into exposing both what they had learned, and from where. The resulting outrage was tremendous, and for my actions I was labeled a betrayer of trusts and corrupter of the innocent. I have been sent from my home, never to continue my studies, never to have the chance to spread what I have learned thus far any further.

I do regret deceiving my own teachers, and keeping my opinions hidden. I am not sure whether I would have made any more of a difference had I openly expressed my views, or would have simply been exiled so much the sooner -- but morally it would have been the better path to follow.

I will not share with all of you exactly what it is that got me in all this trouble -- that knowledge is still a closely guarded secret even among the gryphons of my homeland, and would be of no use to anyone not of my kind in any case. However, since my exile I have traveled long and far, and I still find satisfaction in the spreading of wisdom and truth.

That is, of course, not all that I am. But it is the beginning of my story, and I hope that you have found it enlightening.

character story

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