Morgans Rook

Morgans Rook, also known as Rook, was the first Commander of the Order of Vilikshol, the first Vice-Commander of the Order, and a member of the Rebels of Upperhand, who lived at the outset of the Second Age of the Third Era. He was famously known as the Revered Grandson of legendary Lorhêni Chieftain Steph Endaras, the only son of his daughter, Syra Nodâra.

Youth
Morgans grew up in Lorhên in the land of L'har. From birth, he shared a special bond with his grandfather, Steph Endaras. Steph trained him from youth in Manu-sho and fire magic with mixed martial arts, a tradition of Lorhêni warriors since Chaiyo Aotuyen. Steph was a patient, forgiving teacher, and showed clear preference for his grandson over his other students, including and notably from his protégé, and someone considered in line to be Chieftain, Malyinn of the Undermarsh. Due to his closeness with Steph, he was dubbed, unofficially, the Prince of Lorhên.

When Morgans was 7, he was training in kunai throwing, but could not hit his target. He broke down crying. Steph approached his grandson and assured him that he could hit the target. With another two tries, he was able to hit his target. Steph praised his young grandson for his success, but warned him that he would face much greater challenges in his life. He imparted him the advice to always stand back up when he's pushed down. This would become his mantra to the end of his short life.

Steph's Death
At age 15, Morgans was caught stealing a pastry delicacy from a chef's outdoor market near closing time in Lorhên. He was chased by the chef and local authorities into the mountains near the village. When confronted about the theft, Steph chose to search out his grandson and deal with the matter himself. Steph ventured into the mountains, sensing his grandson's location. Before long, Steph approached Morgans' hideout in a cave. Morgans had been hiding out here to get away from his parents.

Steph confronted Morgans to get him to realize the error of his ways before an avalanche began tumbling down the side of the mountain. Half the hideout was destroyed, and the two were trapped inside. Morgans passed out and Steph injured his left arm. Steph carried his grandson through the snow, managing to break a hole with his expert fire magic. However, his injury made his trek difficult. They returned to the village, but both had contracted frostbite. When Steph was asked to treat his wound, he said to treat his grandson first.

Steph would go on to contract pneumonia. Due to the late treatment, he would slowly succumb to his illness. Morgans, however, was saved from death. On his deathbed, Steph encouraged Morgans to live for something and have a purpose, regretting that he could not live to see his grandson surpass him. Morgans held his grandfather's hand until he died, just three days after Morgans' 16th birthday. Syra did not weep after Steph died, nor did Mayinn or Amos. Morgans, however, was beside himself with grief. Hyte took him home, leaving the other three to deal with succession, which Malyinn insisted he was not yet prepared to take Steph's place. Instead, the job went to Odai Tsenketsama, son of Steph's friend, Oda, and Steph's top student.

Morgans Leaves L'har
Steph's funeral was held in Lorhên and attended by many world leaders. Notably, Kenamas Aláriso, Steph's aged mentor, was called up from A'li'ra, where he was acting governor on behalf of Steph. Also present were Ana II Tyrragus, Julian Ardris, and his son Cassian, and the young Kyrcius Tyrragus, who would go on to befriend Morgans later in life. The Alder Thresmond Amiadi, in his accelerated age, would name Inai Nodâra as his successor at the funeral, claiming he had been planning for Steph to take over eventually.

Morgans attended the funeral and famously stayed there until the wee hours of the night, long after everyone had departed. His mother came to him, begging him to move forward with his life and stop grieving. Morgans took offense, insinuating she did not understand his grief, and clearly didn't love his grandfather the same way. Syra would later say she never expected her son to hurt her so much, but bit through the pain. She pleaded once more, but he simply walked off.

Morgans would remain in L'har, but many claimed he was a recluse and never emerged from his home. Odai took over and L'har largely remained the same as it was under Steph, but Morgans saw everything Odai did as wrong. Once he turned 17, Morgans left L'har forever, departing from the City of Fire in late Osune's Harvest 47 2A 3E. His mother watched him as he set out. Syra hired Gragnon Orthak of the Upperforge, son of legendary dwarven warrior, Regnon Orthak, who fought at the Battle of Liàndas during the Ra'jahadi Invasion of L'har, to follow Morgans and keep tabs on him for her. He accepted and left from Ceria just a few days after Morgans arrived in Traferia.

Rook's Adventures
For two years, Morgans travelled throughout Osunia under the name "Rook". While in Towers, Morgans developed a close working relationship with the local guilds. He did odd jobs and worked up a decent sum of money to help finance his next excursion: Jokonora. He left Towers at the end of 48 2A 3E. He arrived in Jokonora at the end of Aske's Eminence 49 2A 3E, spending a great many days on the sea.

Morgans visited Hana, Jokonora, seeking enlightenment. He sought purpose from the Numani. They offered him nothing of substance. They simply told him "a man with no direction can hardly find purpose." He insisted his lack of direction was from his lack of purpose. They saw in him a man tortured by grief. They told him to shed his grief and he will no longer be blind. Frustrated by the lack of assistance, largely derivative of his own lack of understanding, he departed Jokonora after just a few months and travelled to the Sunset Archipelago, where he was taken prisoner by pirates. Gragnon watched over him, but Morgans demanded he not interfere and that he may accept his own consequences.

While a prisoner, he worked his way up to crewmate for Captain Johen Dario's ship. The Wolf Pirates, during a raid on Jericho, were ambushed by Captain Medeus Sulla, the Crimson Banner, and the Crimson Red Pirates. They slayed Dario and amalgamated his crew into their fleet. Morgans managed to escape with Gragnon's aid and took refuge with a small family in Jericho. He hid out there until Sulla and his fleet had left Jericho. He thanked the family, left them some money, and left for the Sunrise Archipelago. He arrived in Merchants' Watch, where he was a mercenary for multiple merchant guilds as an intimidator and arsonist.

For two years, Morgans worked in the guilds, concurrently with Gragnon, who was a competitor as a mercenary of the same work in the same market. Although, Gragnon never actually tried to compete and often forfeited jobs if he thought they'd benefit Morgans more. An incident for one guild led them both to a cave in the Hallowed Marshes. They were attacked by a team of ruffians. They worked together to fend them off, before being driven into said cave. There, they encountered the head of the ruffians, a man by the name of Howyrd. They both managed to fight him off and kill him by using a tactic they would bring back for their fight against Syracho Bryant just three years later.

After this endeavor and near-death victory, Morgans decided his purpose would not be found in the Sunrise Archipelago and ventured north to Avalen. There, he would work humbly as a fisherman and trader. Gragnon played as his bodyguard, much to Morgans' dismay. But after just a few months, he desired something greater and travelled to A'li'ra, where Kenamas was living. He lived with Kenamas for a short time in Ra'jahad, where he met the newly-formed Order of Ra'jahad, who would be taking over operations of the land as a locally-appointed power balance to the governor, installed by Lorhên, one of Ken's ideas. Morgans learned under the Order of Ra'jahad new arcane abilities. From his new garb he adapted from the Order into Lorhêni fashion, he gained a new nickname: the Scarlet Wanderer.

Steph remained in A'li'ra until Kenamas' death on 17 Osune's Harvest 53 2A 3E. Ken claimed he was happy to die next to the face of Steph Endaras. Morgans was not overwhelmed with sadness, but simply continued his stasis of mourning for his grandfather's dear friend and mentor. He departed the Port of A'li'ra on 4 Isar's Chill 2A 3E for Ceria, where he visited Revais and Rhodopolis before arriving at the Port of the World where he intended to cross paths with some great sage or someone seeking fulfillment, such as himself, so he was no longer searching by himself, even if Gragnon had been following him ever since. He worked with some great scholars, historians, mages, and nobles and amassed a small fortune working as their attendants. He gained a great reputation in the city as eager and hard-working. However, he found no sense that any of them could help him.

Rook Ventures Far and Away
Near the end of Ester's First Light in 55 2A 3E, word of Kankiri Beldyn's departure from Greenhill a little under a year prior reached the Port of the World. High Chieftain Emiri Beldyn died at the end of 52 2A 3E, but the issue of succession that fell upon his son, Kankiri, persisted since Kankiri refused the title. The succession crisis lasted a year before Kankiri up and left, leaving the matter to be decided by the Glenwood elders. They, under leadership of Ashfall Rodyn, nominated Trantyn Andys as acting governor, someone quite loyal to Escyreania, who treated him as the governor on their behalf, though publicly simply in mutual alliance, following the Treaty of Greenhill. Rumor was Kankiri had been travelling west from Caldenheir in Akrsfold.

This entire fiasco fascinated Morgans, believing Kankiri's loss of purpose and the fact that he had such a purpose waiting for him back home might lead him to realize what he was missing, and so he left the Port of the World for Land's Edge in Isaria. He arrived in Trotokaniki with Gragnon at his back. He began pioneering through the mountains into Gracehill. He arrived in Grevyl on 24 Aske's Eminence 55 2A 3E. Having heard nothing of Kankiri's being in the city, he elected to venture north. Ironically, Malyinn would arrive in the city just five days after his departure in search of the Order of Ra'jahad, which had gone rogue after one of their members had been murdered. It would take him three days to arrive in Vilikshol for the first time. There, he would meet Saoirse MacTavish, along with Leon Lionsbeard, Karnelus Artulos, Mognus Avidius, Sharlea of Effengrove, and, most importantly, Kankiri Beldyn for the first time.

Kankiri was in Vilikshol attempting to avoid any notice, but had been subconsciously drawn there by visions he kept seeing of the tetyrar seal located beneath the village but unable to understand why he kept seeing them, as Ashfall wiped his memory before his departure through his subordinate, Merk the Shaman. And, Morgans, having procured enough information from his travels, he learned that Kankiri was entitled to a great power called True Sight and that his own mother wanted nothing more to see his face again. Longing for his own mother and his own home, he wanted to see that reunion more than anything else, and it would answer for him whether or not what he truly desired was to be home again, and that perhaps his purpose was in L'har. He also desired to see justice for Glenwood and believed Kankiri was a way to see if his purpose was bringing peace to the world as a vigilante hand of justice; a sort of arbiter of Steph's legacy.