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 Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 5:05 pm
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Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 8:17 pm
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iiiiiiiiiName
iiiiiSizwe Magoro
iiiiiiiiiAge
iiiii24
iiiiiiiiiRegion of residence
iiiiiThe village of Erlend in Auvinus
iiiiiiiiiAlliance
iiiiiPanymese (for now)
iiiiiiiiiOccupation
iiiiiFarmhand
iiiiiiiiiAppearance
iiiiiSizwe is a man rather short for his age and occupation, standing at 5'6 with a muscular solid build. He has thick curly black hair that he doesn't really know how to take care of. He has warm grey eyes, topped with eyebrows that are as thick as his hair. Sizwe is very tan from working under the hot Auvinus sun, his clothing is relatively simple consisting of a shirt, slacks, and worn down boots.
iiiiiiiiiPersonality
iiiiiA reserved but otherwise good-natured man. Unlike other men his age that he works with, he's not brash and loud and doesn't go out of his way to try an impress a lady. Moreso, he's the type of the guy that's completely fine being the wallflower while his other friends chat up the dames in his village. He enjoys helping out other farmers in his village if he's done with his duties for the day.
Living on a farm all his life, Sizwe's never had the opportunity to go to school, and only learned basic arithmetic (how many bales of hay he sent out, counting money etc.). He's able to recognize bits and pieces of words, like his name and towns, but everything else is a no-go. Being illiterate isn't much of a big deal in his area, as it is more important to cultivate crops under the hot Auvinus sun than it is to discuss politics and other lofty ideas.
He's an easy-going guy, as he's never really been angry or ticked off by someone or their comments. He'll usually just laugh or shrug it off, knowing that they didn't mean it to be mean, and if they did, it wouldn't really bother him as he wouldn't know how to react to it properly as he's pretty quiet. Everyone in the village (including his family) call him 'Mouse' (which is short for 'field mouse') because of his short stature, and not being seen in the tall wheat. He almost always has a small smile on his face as he works.
As an easy-going guy, Sizwe is pushed around a lot, especially by his peers. If anything sparks into a debate or even an argument, Sizwe will always back down first to avoid conflict. Even though it has never happened, it is probably very easy for someone to take advantage of him and have him do whatever s/he wishes.
He's also a hard worker, knowing that most of the money that he and his father make off the farm will go straight to paying the medical bills for his sister and grandmother. To him, they are the two most important priorities in his life and everything goes to them first, than him and his father. He doesn't even stop working when he's ill, and at that point he has to be strapped down to a bed in order to rest up in order work again. Even though he and his father don't make much money to begin with, he still knows that every cent counts towards keeping his family healthy.
Ever since the death of his sister and grandmother and the chaos that ravaged through his village, Sizwe closed himself off, trying his hardest to ignore the villagers. He knows what they did to his family was very wrong, but it is not in his being to hold grudges and to retaliate harshly. To his misfortune however, Sizwe is unable to ignore someone who is in need of help no matter how hard he tries. If he happens to see his neighbor who is in need of assistance, he will go to help them out, resenting himself in the process. Since Sizwe has retreated into himself, this has impacted his work ethic negatively, much to his father's distress.
iiiiiiiiiFamily
iiiiiCurrently, Sizwe's only surviving family member is his father, Lungile.
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Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 8:21 pm
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iiiiiiiiiiiiiiGenerations before Sizwe and his family, his ancestors settled on Auvinus' fertile farmland, starting up a farm for themselves. Back then they were on the wealthier side of life, building a large manor surrounded by fields of wheat and other crops. As time went on however, his ancestors and their surrounding neighbors grew poorer as technology in the other regions advanced. They were still able to hold onto their farmland, though the many acres they used to own were now cut to only a few. His family had to now work for their money and lived a hard life.
Sizwe was born to Leila and Lungile Magoro. It was a warm breezy spring day the day of his birth, but there was no happiness to be had in the household. It was a tough childbirth for Leila, and soon after the birth of their son she passed away due to complications from the childbirth. It was a sad day in Erlend, Leila was liked very much in the village. Instead, he was raised by his grandmother Angola, and his older sister Inaya. Sizwe has no recollection of his mother, and doesn’t know how to react when the villagers tell him how wonderful his mother was.
Being the only son in the family, it was decided that he would be the one to inherit the farm when he was old enough. It was a tradition in the village; the eldest (or only) son would inherit the farm from their father when the boy was of age. As soon as Sizwe was able to walk, Lungile took him around the farm teaching him about their livestock, their crops, how to chop firewood (he was barely able to lift the axe when he was thirteen) among other chores that had to be done around the farm. Lungile was intentionally hard on his son, wanting to instill a good work ethic in his son. Sizwe lived a Spartan life, getting up in the early hours of dawn, eating a quick breakfast and helping his father around the farm and surrounding lands until dusk since he was a toddler.
He grew up to be a healthy young man, the complete opposite of his older sister Inaya who was born frail and weak. She was a big worry for the family, her sickly nature causing her to be bedridden for most her life. Most of the money they made went straight to her medicinal needs, though the medicine did very little to relieve her ailments. It got harder when Angola, their grandmother got older; as she began to succumb to the hardships of old age. Everything now depended on the efforts of Sizwe and his father.
On that fateful summer day, nothing in Sizwe’s life would ever be the same again. A group of Obscuvians had come into Erlend, come to spread their ideals and beliefs to the farmers. One of the members of the group was ill with the plague, had managed to keep it hidden from the other members of the group. The villagers, though suspicious of the group’s motives, listened to what exactly the Obscuvians wanted from them. Suddenly, the man fell down, dead from the plague.
Almost instantly, the farmers grabbed their heaviest farming equipment wanting the cultists out from their village. The chaos lasted for hours, people on both sides of the opposition dead. They had burned the dead bodies, in fear that the plague would fester in the bodies of the rotting dead.
A few days later, when the village found out the blacksmith also came down with the plague, the whole village erupted into chaos once again. Who would get it next? Suddenly no one could trust one another anymore. They stubbornly refused to believe that they themselves would come down with the Black Death, and the blame was all on their children, their parents, their spouses, and their neighbors. One by one, some of the villagers came down with the plague, and were immediately thrown out of their houses and onto the street left to fend themselves against the villagers.
Sizwe and his family naturally took the precautions of protecting themselves against the Black Death through the superstitious methods of posies and garlic hanging over their doors. Their family was most at risk from the insanity of the villagers because of Inaya and Angola. They were frail, and the easiest targets for the plague. Sure enough, they found black lesions all over Inaya’s back and Angola was coughing up blood as black as ink. Lungile, fearful of the terrible treatments that the villagers would inflict on his daughter and mother hid them underneath the cellar even though he knew it wasn’t the best place for them because of their current state. Sizwe tried his best to keep his sister and grandmother safe from harm, but to no avail when word got out that Lungile had hidden his sickened family from view. The villagers came in the middle of the night, approaching their house with pitchforks and torches setting their house on fire.
The father and son had managed to escape the house unscathed, but it was too late to save Inaya and Angola. As much as Sizwe struggled against his father’s grip to dive into the cellar to grab them, it was too late for them. They were gone, and nothing could be done about it.
It took a month for the plague to run through its course through Erlend, taking one-third of the population with it. Both Sizwe and his father had to start all over again, building a new house after they had cleaned out all the rubble from the fire. His father never really did forgive the villagers for what they had done, and Sizwe wasn't sure if he should either, but was finding it hard to harbor a grudge towards the whole village.
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Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 8:25 pm
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iiiiiiiiiDescription
iiiiiContrary to what one might think, the icon is in fact quite small. It measures to 3 x 3 inches, and has definitely seen better days. The icon is carved from a small square piece of limestone, and though much of the relief has eroded away, the general imprint of the lamassu still exists. It is said that when it was first created, it was painted in bright hues of yellow, red, purple, and blue. Around the edges of the icon are a series of black marks that resemble finger smudge marks. No matter how much one rubs at it with soap and water it does not rub off.
iiiiiIt gives off quite a stink, too.
iiiiiiiiiItem History
iiiiiThe lamassu is a mythical creature created by a nomadic tribe in Yirui centuries ago. Not much is known about the nomadic tribe, who are called the Cahlians, but it is known that they are the ones who have created this creature. To them, the lamassu was a protective deity usually hung over entrances, or carried around by the Chalians for protection. The artifacts of the icon usually found are small, as an icon too large would be hard to carry around. The nomadic tribe was known to have traveled along the west coast of Yirui, coming into contact with Panymium and other sailors. The sailors liked the idea of a powerful creature that was thought to protect them. They too took the lamassu icons with them overseas as a charm that would protect them and keep them safe for the long months back and forth between the continents.
Though, suddenly, all traces of the Cahlians have vanished a couple centuries later, leaving the stone icons and other artifacts behind. Scholars still debate over what exactly happened to the nomads, but a concrete conclusion has not been reached yet.
This particular icon was one that was brought overseas by a Panynium sailor that happened to reside in Auvinus. There, it was sold and exchanged between many people. Overtime, the lamassu lost its true purpose and was just an old relic that was kept by collectors. Ever since the outbreak of the Black Plague, the icons have made a small reappearance to the the superstitious citizens of the continent, hoping that as a protective deity, it will protect them from sickness and death. The original image of the lamassu has been lost, as the stone icons have been worn down overtime, but the general concept of a benevolent and powerful deity has been the same. The current image of the lamassu looks more menacing and dragon-like, probably as means to 'scare' away the black death. This particular icon sat at the deathbed of many victims who have been inflicted with the plague. The victims prayed and gave offerings to this icon, wanting desperately to live. As an icon it could not do much, and merely hopped around from one inflicted person to the other.
It finally came into the hands of a radical priest part of the Obscuvians, who traveled in a group throughout Auvinus praying with the locals to the lamassu to spare them from the plague.
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Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 8:29 pm
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Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 8:48 pm
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Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 8:50 pm
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1.
