Faalendrel Ebonwood Extended Background
Faalendrel is a fourth generation Ebonwood. Born to parents Faalantis and Sylviana Ebonwood. Faalantis and Sylviana both met during their time service in the Imperial Rangers. Most are drawn to the Rangers due to the solitary nature of its work, and that was even the case for Faalantis and Sylviana at first. Faalantis and the rest of the Ebonwood bloodline hail from Northern Woodlands, Sylviana, and her kin, the Greenhearts, from Vardenshire to the south. The two of them trained under the same instructor, and were assigned to be partners on patrol while they underwent their training. The partnership was tenuous in the begining, that was until Sylviana came to Faalantis’s aid on patrol. Up until this point the two were more of rivals than partners, always competing, “who can make the farthest shot? Who can get the closest to a deer before it hears you?” Things of that manner. Then, just like that, it all changed for them. While out making their rounds Faalantis wasn’t paying attention when stalking a bear he stopped paying attention and lost sight of it( we will learn that Drel gets his woodwalking abilities from his father), lucky for him, Syl was there when the bear came back into view behind him. The bear managed to knock him to the ground, but as he hit the dirt, an arrow hit the beast and ended its life. She chastised him for being so careless, told him he'll never make it it as a ranger, if he doesn't stop being so foolish. He was embarrassed, but she was right, and on top of that, Faalantis was awestruck that she was so quick to come to his aid, he respected her for it maybe for the first time, admired her even, for he didn't know if he would have done the same for her. She never told anyone in the Rangers of the incident and afterwards he began to take the job more seriously and then just like that she began to respect him too and in time they became inseparable. Now It is not unheard of for Rangers to work in pairs after they complete their training, but it is uncommon, but they didn't care, and quite frankly, they worked damn well with one another. For years they patrolled the border of Frostvale together, but as they reached their hundredth year and true adulthood, they began to feel that something was missing from their lives. So, they finished out their service with the empire and settled down in the Western Wilds a few miles out from Haven and were married and shortly thereafter they birthed their first child, a son, Lithandros, whom they named after Faalantis’s father.
The day Lithandros was born was one of the happiest days of their lives, Faalentis and Syl love each other, but they have never loved another as they loved their son. Finally, they were a family. Lithandros was everything you could ask for in a son, he was respectful, and very loyal towards his family and on his twentieth year, he, with permission from his parents, joined the Haven Guard. Lithandros even as a child very much respected the chain of command and always listened to his parents without question, so he was perfect for the service, and within four years advanced to the rank of Captain.
Fifty years after they had their first child, Faalentis and Sylviana decided they were ready to have another child. Lithandros was a man now, though maybe not in the traditional Elven sense, so, once again the couple started trying to have another child. After a few months of trying they were successful and Sylviana was pregnant with their second child. Or so she thought. As it so happened she was carrying twins.
Same as Lithandros, Faalandrel and Sylvanthia were born in the spring. Thia was born first, and she always made it a point to remind Drel that she was older. Lithandros was a very calm and mature child, not too much of a handful. Faalentis and Syl were not ready for these children. Drel and Thia both were so much like their father, they weren't bad kids, but they were a handful. Always getting into mischief and constantly messing with their older brother, who as stated was very much everything these two were not. As they grew up, it didn't get much better, but no matter what happened, they always stuck by each other’s side, it was hard not to envy their relationship, they even gave themselves nicknames that only they used. The two of them, Drel and Thia, were always close, never going through the confrontational phase that many siblings go through. They had this bond that their parents have never quite seen before, maybe it had something to do with them being twins, maybe something else, they were always there for each other. They both, just as their parents did, volunteered to be Rangers in the region. Their service was short lived though, Thia, just like her mother excelled in the Rangers, Drel though, even though he is a crackshot, and the the better marksman of the two, he ended up failing out, and even though Thia was doing quite well in the program opted to leave before she had to make the commitment to stay, not wanting her best friend to face his failure alone. Drel, underneath all of his bravado and feigned indifference, was worried very much about what his parents thought of him and Thia knew this, so she returned home with him to break the news. Upon their return they were expecting their parents to be disappointed by what happened, they having both served, and their older brother still serving, but to their surprise they were supportive, and expressed that they didn't care what they did with their lives, as long they were both happy. So Drel and Thia moved back home, and for a while things were great. Their parents loved having them around and Lithandros would visit whenever his schedule would allow it, they were a very close family, Drel and Thia would still mess with Lithandros, they would often hide his sword and steal food off of his plate while he wasn't looking, but even though he pretended to hate it, he loved that his baby brother and sister included him in their shenanigans. Drel would go out hunting with his father, even though he had no desire to become a Ranger, it did still bother him that was not so great at hunting and tracking, so his father trained him, and over time, he go quite good at it, eventually no longer needing Faalentis to assist him, though to this day, some of Drel’s fondest memories of his father come from those hunting trips. Sometimes Thia would come with Drel when he went out for game. He was a decent tracker, but she was still better, and even though she was a decent shot, he was better still, so they worked well together. Everything about one complemented the other. Often Drel and Thia would take trips out to Haven to get supplies that were not as easy to come by in the wilds and soon enough Thia caught the attention of an Elven highborn by the name of Folis. He was a charming enough fellow, always respectful, even asked Faalentis for permission to court her. She had suitors before, but none that could hold her interest. She was not unreasonable though, and and gave Folis a shot, well into her 30’s they were seeing each other, and for a while they seemed to make each other happy. They were together for six years. Everything was fine save for the fact that Drel and Folis did not get along. Drel did not trust him. There was something behind his eyes that he did not like, something dark, but he ignored his suspicions, because the fact was, he hated most people who pursued his sister. Folis’s problem, and his downfall was that he didn't care for how close she was to her brother, and finally his jealousy got the better of him and he tried to make her choose him, or Drel. Much to his dismay she chose family. For a few years he would come by begging for another chance, but she scorned him each and every time, and finally Faalentis had enough and forbade him from disturbing his daughter further, and that was the last they saw of him.
During the fall of Faalentis and Sylviana’s 250th year, they had their fourth and final child. A baby boy named Thendriel, a boy that they loved, but that they would never know. At this point Thia no longer liked to go to Haven, she felt as if she was being watched, so Drel would often make his supply and trade runs out to the city solo. The last time he saw his sister alive was when he left for one of these runs, it was also the last time he saw his parents alive as well. Drel went out to trade some furs that were left over from his last hunt, and as he was heading back towards home he saw a group of ten human males walking from the direction of the wilds, he thought it strange to see this many men having been in the area, but did not question them, instead hastening his pace.
The scene upon returning home was a horror. His home was up in flames, his father tied up with his throat slit. His sister and mother, bound and beaten to death. Baby brother nowhere to be seen. Something broke in him that day, he broke down and wept at the sight of His family, but his sadness quickly turned to rage as he recalled one of the men had been carrying something under his arm, it had to be the child. Drel rushed back towards Haven to seek out his brother for help, when he found him at the guard barracks, he quickly told him what happened back home. Lithandros, loved his family, and he was visibly distraught, but when Drel asked him for assistance in seeking vengeance, he told his younger brother that they would investigate, but that is all he can do, his hands were tied without proof. The two fought. Drel knew damn well who did it, but Lithandros told him there is a difference between what you know, and what you can prove, Drel called him a coward, and struck him in the face before leaving. Drel and Thia had some money saved up to buy their parents a gift that they had hidden in a tree, Drel hoped it was still there. In this regard, the Divines smiled upon him, and they had not looked for anything outside of the obvious, so Drel took the 100 gold and sought out the only people in Haven he knew would be able to get the information he needed, the Thieves Guild. Normally, they don't assist in murders, hard to keep a low profile that way, but Drel has a few connections with them, and has done a little work for them, that his family did not know about, so they said they would find the people who did this, and they were true to their word. They couldn't find the locations for all ten men, but they did have their names, and the location of one of the men. That was all Drel needed. He snuck into the man’s home during the night, he lived alone, this would be easy, no family to worry about, no need to move him to a different location and he knocked the man out cold and strung him up from the ceiling. When the man awakened he did do upside down, and to the sight of a maddened elf sharpening a skinning knife. It was already sharp, but Drel thought it would up the intimidation factor. He asked the man where his friends were, and where they took the baby. He tried to act tough, so Drel removed a piece of him and asked once again. This back and forth happened a couple more times, but the man finally squealed like a pig, and when Drel got everything he could out of him, he gutted him like one. A few more of the gang were in town, he killed them too. The rest of the gang were in a cabin south of the town, towards the Peaks Guard Mountains. It took him a few days to find the place, there no roads where he had to go, but sure enough, there were seven of them, all accounted for, and they still had Thendriel, who they were waiting to find a buyer to sell him to for slavery. He Drel waited until they were all passed out from a night of heavy drinking, and crept into camp to rescue his the only family he left, and to avenge the ones he had lost. Drel boarded up the doors and windows and lit the cabin on fire with everyone inside. By the time any of them had awakened Drel had already seen to it that they had no escape. No words were exchanged, he didn't ask them why, he didn't care, there was no excuse that would justify what they had done, and it wouldn't bring back his family. Drel waited for the cabin to completely burn, ensuring nobody escaped, and when he was sure he returned to the city, with Thendriel. Drel returned to the guild, thanked them for their help, and asked if they would do him one more favor and deliver a note he had written, to the guard captain. They did so, and this willingness to help him is probably what drove Drel towards the thieves guild later on down the road. The note appeared on Lithandros’s night stand one night. It said that his family was now at rest, and that he found Thendriel and was leaving the city and that in sending this note he fulfilled the last obligation he had towards him and no longer considered him his blood.
Drel gave Thendriel a good life, made sure that he wanted for nothing, went to a good school, and made sure that he knew the history of his family. He was always honest with Thendriel, which was part of the problem, by this point Drel had joined the thieves guild, raising a kid is expensive in the capital, and Drel didn't want Thendriel to think this was the only way to get by in life, so he sent him to live with Lithandros, who Drel hated, but he would be a much better influence. Drel would stop stop by from time to time and leave letters so Thendriel knew that he was on his mind, but he has not seen him for the past 125 years. He is not an influence Thendriel needs in his life, and Lithandros made sure that he had a good foundation and eventually Thendriel bought an Inn in Haven, and had a family of his own.
