Thorrak

Thorrak is a fallen dwarven paladin who found truth in the teachings of the Raven Queen.  The Fist and Bulwark 

Thorrak grew up in a wealthy family. His father a member of the council of the paladin order. His mother a princess of a large dwarven kingdom. Like most dwarves he was taught to follow the teachings of Moradin the god of creation and artisans. Feeling the creative spark from a young age Thorrak knew he was destined to create something of lasting impact on the world.

After adolescence, with the financial and political support of his parents, Thorrak enrolled in the academy of justice. The academy of justice is the most prestigious training facility of the paladin order only accepting 1% of applicants. The academy of justice focuses on training the best young minds to interpret and enforce the laws of the paladin order. Thorrak quickly proved himself to be more than just the privilege and reputation of his family, demonstrating an aptitude for reading and interpreting the law. After many years of diligent study Thorrak graduated at the top of his class.

After graduation Thorrak had his pick of postings inside and out of the paladin order. His father used his influence on the council to secure Thorrak a high level position at the Fist of Righteous Justice, the prosecutorial arm of the paladin order. Much to the surprise of everyone, Thorrak requested to be posted to The Bulwark. The Bulwark is tasked with providing legal defense to those who cannot afford private representation. It is seen as one of the lowest stations inside the paladin order. Most of the members of the Bulwark are dropouts from the academy looking for a place to be forgotten. However, Thorrak knew from his in-depth studies of the founding documents of the paladin order, The Bulwark is the lynch pin of justice in the paladin order. Without a strong Bulwark the paladin justice system had drastically favored the wealthy and well off. Thorrak intended to change this.

After almost a century of work Thorrak had restored the principles of fairness and equal application of the law to The Bulwark and the paladin justice system as a whole. The Bulwark now consisted of the best legal minds in the land. Thorrak had become the chief defense council and administrative head of The Bulwark known as “The Spike”.

One day Marsay L’Boont, the bastard son of the king of Yawning Hold, was arrested by the Fist of Justice and charged with torture and murder within paladin protected lands. Yawning Hold was a large kingdom known for major “human” rights violations. However these violations were turned a blind eye because Yawning Hold was needed for its political stability in the region. Although Marsay could afford his own defense team of the best legal minds around, he requested to be represented by The Bulwark. After reviewing the case against Marsay, every single lawyer in The Bulwark refused to represent Marsay due to the grotesque nature of his crime and the overwhelming evidence proving his guilt. All knew the case would be a simple one with no reasonable defense. No one was willing to represent this arrogant evil man. However Thorrak knew this was the exact case The Bulwark needed. He decided to take the case. He would hold it up as the pinnacle of the principles of The Bulwark. He planned to show no matter how innocent or guilty, rich or poor, good or evil a person was they deserved the best legal defense possible and The Bulwark would provide it.

A simple case that should have lasted a day dragged on for months with Thorrak using every bit of his legal knowledge and court room experience to mount the best defense possible in the hopes of avoiding the death penalty for his client Marsay. Finally the case ended and the judge tribunal adjourned to deliberate the facts. During deliberations two of the judges knew Marsay was guilty. The third, a professor of ancient precedent at the academy of justice, knew Marsay was guilty but believed the case was not presentable due to a loose interpretation of an ancient document Thorrak had presented. During a recess in deliberations the judges were approached by a diplomat from Yawning Hold. Using a combination of bribes, direct threats, and threats of political instability in the region, the diplomat convinced the tribunal to dismiss the charges against Marsay and send him back to Yawning Hold. The tribunal returned to the court room to render their decision. Using the loose interpretation of the obscure ancient document, the tribunal dismissed the charges against Marsay. Thorrak was shocked. He had thought Marsay would be found guilty and sentenced to life in prison just barley avoiding the death penalty. His confidence in the paladin judicial system was shaken.

Several weeks later Thorrak heard rumors of his tribunal accepting bribes. He took his concerns to his father who still sat on the paladin council. He made an impassioned argument for an investigation and a retrial of Marsay. After Thorrak had finished, his father explained to him it was he who had suggested to the Yawning Hold embassy that they use all means necessary to secure the release of Marsay. He feared the conviction of Marsay would destabilize the delicate balance of power in the region. He confessed he had told the embasy to seek defense from The Bulwark, knowing Thorrak was the best defense lawyer in the land and could not pass up this case. Thorrak was crushed. He knew now the bureaucratic web of the paladin order could never bring Marsay to justice.

Thorrak immediately resigned his position as Spike and requested a leave of absence to investigate Marsay in Yawning Hold. In a vain attempt to save face with his son, Thorrak’s father granted his request. Thorrak left the next morning. He would never see his father again.

 Yawning Hold 

After arriving in Yawning Hold Thorrak found residence among the poor people of Mud Alley, the poorest district of the kingdom known best for raw sewage collecting in the streets. No one would believe a high borne dwarf paladin would reside in such a location. This allowed him moderate cover for his investigation. Over several years Thorrak’s investigation exposed many crimes committed by the bastard prince. However he could not make any of the charges stick due to the rampant corruption in the Yawning Hold legal system. As his investigation continued, Thorrak started investigating the plight of the poor in Yawning Hold focusing on the people of Mud Alley. He quickly found a link between Marsay’s crimes and organized activities directly responsible for the repression of the poor citizens of Yawning Hold.

After years of living in Mud Alley, Thorrak became known as a local with a generous heart and open home. He quickly became loved by the people of Mud Alley. One day while investigating Marsay he was pointed in the direction of a local bakery run by Bastien Boulanger. It was a local secret that Bastien was a member of a small but growing resistance movement known as Erathis’ Conflagration. The goal of this resistance movement was to overthrow the corrupt governing monarchy with a civilized representative government of the people.

The first time Thorrak saw Bastien he knew he was in love. Bastien was a dwarf around the same age as Thorrak with a jolly demeanor and a smile that made anyone feel welcome. He had built his bakery in Mud Ally to feed the poor and listen to their problems. Because he cared about the people of Mud Ally and his business took him into the wealthier parts of the kingdom he was a critical asset to Erathis’ Conflagration.

Thorrak introduced himself to Bastien and politely questioned him about Marsay and the poor of Mud Ally. This piqued Bastien’s interest and the two had a long conversation. It was evident Thorrak could be a great asset to Erathis’ Conflagration. They agreed to meet on a weekly basis to discuss Marsay and Thorrak’s investigation.

Over the course of a several months Thorrak and Bastien fell in love. What started out as conversations about Marsay and Erathis’ Conflagration always ended with personal stories and dreams for the future.

Over the next few years Thorrak and Bastien helped Erathis’ Conflagration gain popular support. Thorrak also started publicly accusing Marsay of his crimes avoiding the corrupt legal system altogether. The first few accusations were a minor nuisance to Marsay and simply ignored. However the accusations continued and Marsay noticed all the facts in every accusation were true. He used his criminal contacts to discover the source of these surprisingly accurate claims against him. He was shown a picture of Thorrak and immediately recognized him as the dwarf who had defended him at the paladin tribunal almost ten years ago. Marsay ordered his men to keep a close watch on Thorrak. Marsay quickly discovered Thorrk’s relationship with Bastien and Erathis’ Conflagration. Marsay knew he had a problem on his hands.

The next week Marsay used all his criminal contacts and several hundred mercenaries to thoroughly destroy Erathis’ Conflagration. As a warning to the people of Yawning Hold Marsay had Bastien publicly executed. Fearing the wrath of the paladin order Marsay spared Thorrak’s life and declared him persona non grata. Marsay told Thorrak to “give my regards to your parents.” Thorrak fled back to the paladin order.

 A Crisis of Faith 

Thorrak’s journey home took longer than usual. His trek across the lands of Yawning Hold was slow because the citizens were forbidden under penalty of law from helping Thorrak in any way. Upon returning to the paladin order Thorrak rushed to find his parents. At his parents’s home he was stopped by a pair of armed guards. He was told by a paladin investigator his parents were poisoned less than 12 hours ago. Thorrak knew immediately Marsay had had his parents covertly assassinated as a warning to not interfere with Yawning Hold ever again. Thorrak tried for weeks to find a link between his parents’s death and Marsay with no luck. Thorrak’s investigation failed and the paladin order banned him from pursuing it any further. The order feared Thorrak would fabricate evidence to prove his point or worse find real evidence that would lead to all-out war. Thorrak was all but excommunicated from the paladin order.

In the last week Marsay had killed both Thorrak’s lover and his parents. This sent Thorrak into a deep depression. He started to attend daily prayer services at the temple of Moradin. He prayed for answers as to why all his loved ones were taken from him. He continued to pray for 30 days and nights. In the prayer service of the 31st morning he heard the voice of Moridan clearly I his head. Moridan said one simple sentence. “Death is not my domain.” This threw Thorrak into a rage. He had just been told the god he had worshiped his entire life had no answers for him. Thorrak’s life had been turned completely upside down.

Later that night Thorrak decided to go for a walk outside the city to clear his head. He walked for several hours until the sun started to set. Just before he turned around to return to the city he came across a humanoid figure draped in a raven feather cloak. The man looked cold and near death. He realized he was standing in front of a revenant. Thorrak had heard stories of revenant but had never met one. Revenant are souls of the dead allowed to return to the land of the living by the Raven Queen. Most revenant are known to be direct agents of the Raven Queen. Allowed to return to life only to aid the Raven Queen with a specific goal.

The revenant approached Thorrak and examined him with a cold dead stare made more intense by solid black eyes with red pupils sunken into a pale ashen face.

“You are Thorrak.” Said the revenant.

“I am.” Said Thorrak. “Many people know me around this city. But I have never seen you or any other revenant around here before. Who are you? And what do you want?”

“I have long since forgotten my given name. I have not been on this plane in many centuries. I am known as Vax to my beloved Queen. I am here because you have questions.”

“Many people have many questions.” Quipped Thorak with false bravado.

With this Vax vanished. In his place appeared a ghostly image of his father. “How are you my son?” His father wisped away to be replaced by his mother. “My beautiful boy. I am glad to see you.” She smiled as she receded to nothing. Thorrak looked to the ground in shock. As he looked up he saw the loving grin of Bastien in mid chuckle. As the locked eyes Bastien simply said “It is not your fault my love.” This brought Thorrak to his knees, crying into both hands. When he gathered himself he looked up to see Vax standing over him.

“How? Why? How could anyone…?” stammered Thorrak.

“As I said, you have questions. And I have a way to find answers. Please stand up and follow me.” Vax lead Thorrak to a small grove just off the main road. The grove was surrounded by large dead trees that seemed to stand defiant to their lack of life. In the center of the grove was one small bench in front of a grave stone sized shrine of a raven.

“Here I can teach you how to find the answers you seek.” Said Vax. “Return here every night after dusk to find me. If you are truly worthy you will have your peace.” With that Vax vanished and Thorrak found himself back on the road. There was no sign of Vax or the grove. Thorrak returned to the city unsure of what just happened.

The next night Thorrak returned to the spot where he had met Vax the night before. As before Vax sat waiting for Thorrak. “Please follow me.” Vax moved into the woods in the direction of the grove. As they entered the grove, Vax motioned for Thorrak to sit on the bench “I am here to tech you of the Raven Queen. The goddess of winter, faith, and death. She will have your answers.” Thorrak studied with Vax all night until just before dawn.

Thorrak’s education continued on for over a month. Starting just after dusk and ending just before dawn every night. He quickly took to the teachings of the Raven Queen, understanding the sanctity of death and the purpose of fate. The three major tenants of the Raven Queen were drilled into his memory. To this day he still hears Vax’s voice “Hold no pity for those who suffer and die, for death is the natural conclusion of life. Bring down the proud who cast off the chains of fate. As an instrument of the Raven Queen, you must punish hubris where ever you find it. Orcus, the Demon Prince of the Undead seeks to claim the Raven Queen's throne. Be ever vigilant for the cult of Orcus.” He studied the history of the Raven Queen and how she became the caretaker of the dead. Finally he learned of the vast web of the Order of the Raven Queen. A simple network of small groups and lone agents to be the eyes, ears, and when needed, the fist of the Raven Queen.

Thorrak was finally ready to ask his questions. He eagerly awaited the coming evening to finally ask Vax his questions. He returned down the road out of the city as he had done every night for last month. He quickly walked to the spot where he met vax every night. However this night Vax was not there. Thorrak moved into the woods to where the grove had always been. He found the grove empty with just the bench and the shrine. He called out for Vax but there was no answer.

Thorrak decided to meditate. After a few hours he asked his questions out loud to no one. “Why me? Why my family? Why is this my fate?” With his last question the clouds parted and a bright full moon shown on the raven shrine. Slowly the shrine transformed into a female form wearing a black cloak with the hood pulled over the head. No matter how Thorrak moved his head or changed his perspective a shadow always covered the woman’s face.

“Thorrak, I have heard your cries of pain, I have seen your loved ones, and I am here because I need you, they need you.” Thorrak was looking at the corporeal form of the Raven Queen.

“Are you here to take me?” asked Thorrak.

“No, that is not your fate. Tonight is not the night. I am here to answer your questions. But first you must pledge yourself to me.”

“Why should I blindly follow you? You did take my family from me.” spat Thorrak.

“It was not me who took your family. But I do look after them now. I can tell you who is to blame and offer you vengeance. But first you must pledge yourself to me.”

Thorrak was intrigued and knew from his studies the Raven Queen is a just god. He took his vows and became the first paladin to ever serve the Raven Queen.

The Raven Queen explained to Thorrak how he could still channel his holy magic using her limited connection to life as life and death are inseparable. She explained his purpose in life would be to spread the faith and start the first holy magic using branch of the order of the Raven Queen. Finally she detailed why his family had been killed. It stems from her failed attempts to kill Marsay L’Boont. She has been trying to indirectly kill him by putting him in dangerous situations and infecting food in his stores. However Marsay has used his wealth and influence to foil these indirect plots.

“The time for direct action has come, Thorrak.” Declared the Raven Queen. “I need you to kill Marsay L’Boont. I have an invisibility potion that will make you undetectable to sight, magic, and you will not trigger traps. The potion only acts for five minutes. And you must kill Marsay in public so all know what happens if you try to break the chains of fate. You have two choices. Use the potion to enter the city, kill Marsay, and be captured and killed by the guards. Or draw Marsay out, kill him, and use the potion to escape. If you choose the former you will be killed and see your family shortly after. If you choose the latter you will live to serve me for the rest of your life. The choice is yours. You must know I will always watch after the souls of your family”

Thorrak chose to live a life of service to the Raven Queen knowing he will eventually be reunited with his family. The following week Thorrak traveled back to Yawning Hold and demanded Marsay answer for his crimes. He coerced Marsay to hold a public meeting in the city center to address his crimes. Marsay agreed to a public meeting as he also wanted to make a public statement by executing Thorrak.

At the meeting Thorrak publicly declared all of Marsay’s crimes against the people of Yawning hold and against the Raven Queen. As Marsay began to boisterously refute the claims, Thorrak drew his claymore and decapitated Marsay. He then dawned a black cloak with a raven’s head symbol on the back, drank the invisibility potion, and made his escape.

Thorrak never returned to Yawning Hold or his home city with the paladins. He began his life dedicated to the Raven Queen.