(Yay, quick and dirty mugshot. I'll do a better one later.)
Name: Calathes Evers
Age: 26
Soulforging Specialty: Cal's most latent abilities lie with his ability to communicate with nature and his ability to manipulate the wind.
Abilities: Cal can manipulate the air around him for different purposes, be it to guide his arrows or stoke the flame of his forge. He also has a pact with a wolf spirit which he can bring forth through a soulforge summon.
Skills: Cal is a tempered tracker and hunter - a skill set he uses symbiotically with his smithing trade. He sells the meat from his hunts and uses hides to craft leather goods which he also sells in town. Calathes also dabbles in brewing beers and hard liquor which he sells to the local pubs. You might say he's a bit of an entreprenuer.
Cal has yet to dabble in forging anything serious out of bronze, but has nearly mastered his steel craft. Aside from Bronze, iron was the chief element of weapon and defense engineering. While steel does not have the ability to channel one's spirit, it is far more more durable than iron and capable of sundering such constructs. His steel is nearly 100% free of imperfections due to his ability to stoke his flame hotter than his competition.
His martial prowess is also impressive. He is well versed in basic martial practices and can quite effectively defend himself with both bow and blade. His top skill would have to be his tracking ability. Be it through brush or tundra, he will find his target's spoor.
Equipment: Other than the standard issue gear the cadets receive, Cal has his own compound hunting bow that he crafted with his own two hands. He also wields a scimitar that was passed down to him from his mother. The armor he wears was also crafted by hand. Bound leather with small, snug steel plates along the length of his left arm.
Backstory: Calathes hails from what used to be a small human settlement, far to the north of Ashnator. Due to the higher elevation, the climate was cooler than that of the First Human Kingdom. He carried out the first twelve years of his life in this small town. This was a tight-knit community who's inhabitants depended upon one another for survival. Calathes' mother taught him how to handle a bow and a blade - knives and scimitars in particular. She was one of the core members of the town's militia and hunting party. Fierce in her ways, she imparted memories that would not easily be forgotten.
Cal's father was away with the trade caravan most of the time, so he did not see him often. Instead, he picked up most of his interest in his more articulate skills from his uncle. He was the village smith, as well as an artist. There were many a day where Cal and his twin sister, Ixilly (ick-shill-y), would sit in awe and watch his hands work wonders. The two kids both seemed to have a inborn talent for communicating with nature. Soulforging, while not terribly uncommon, had yet to manifest itself in such a way within the community.
Time went by as such for a number of years until just after the twin's twelfth birthday. What started as a warm, ordinary summer night quickly changed into a terrifying ordeal as a nomadic group of barbarians raided the town. Cal's father was away with the caravan, leaving his mother to defend them. Cal and Ixilly lost their mother that night before their very eyes. Their mother did not submit before laying many of their numbers to rest. To call the scene barbaric would be an understatement. She pleaded with her children to run between her screams and struggling and, with tears of uncertainty and confusion in their eyes, they complied. The children made off into the forest and descended the hills with the sound of clanging metal and screaming behind them...
The twins spent the next year wandering south together. What initially began as a sense of disillusion and state of mourning grew into a desire to survive, and they did just that. The two sharpened their hunting and gathering prowess and their bond with nature bolstered further. This too, however, was not meant to last. After finding a large settlement they could do some bartering in, the two decided that they should stay. Weary from a year of living in the wilderness, this seemed like a great idea - and it was, for a time. However, a few months into their stay saw the village brought to it's knees by a dragon. The Brigade had driven out most of the draconic beasts, so suffice to say such an appearance was shocking. No one knows why it struck - perhaps one of the villagers crossed the beast, or it simply lashed out. The resulting chaos separated Cal and Ixilly and sent them fleeing in different directions.
Cal searched for his sister incessantly for weeks, but came up empty handed. More time passed, and eventually Calathes found his way to the outskirts of Ashnator. Cal's spirit was all but gone by this point in time. His mother was gone, and he had no idea where his father and sister were. His motivation had simply evaporated. He stood outside of a blacksmith forge almost religiously, day in and day out, and watched the man work. Eventually the man asked the young Cal if he'd like to give it a try. Lo and behold, the disenchanted kid seemed to have some experience and skill. The man took Cal in as an apprentice and continued Cal's training where his uncle had left off. After some time, the glint in his eyes returned, along with his will to live. For the past thirteen years Cal has worked the trade, and has since taken over since the old man passed away. He has grown the business to include leather wares he crafts from the fruit of his hunts, not to mention a few brews he's concocted. To this day he lets himself get lost while out on those hunting trips, hoping to come across his father or sister.
He joined the Bronze Brigade shortly after the old blacksmith's passing, some two years ago. They had need of a tracker in order to hunt a monster and Cal decided to volunteer. While Calathe's fighting talent was somewhat impressive, it was his ability to keep tabs on his quarry that warranted notice. The Brigade offered him a place in their ranks and Calathes accepted. Up to this point it has been an extremely part time venture for him - lending his tracking skills when needed. As such, he is still a Cadet. But he has a growing interest in the Brigade, mostly due to the hope that it could lead him to his family - or the barbarians that drove a blade through his childhood.
