Legends of Belariath
Xanus Albrecht
The forest home of the black furred Vulpine lay upon the valencian borders opposite of Nanthalion. A part of a family of vulpines all raised by a single mother, Xanus was the youngest of the group, and perhaps the most timid and kind hearted. All in all the children were 8 in number, 5 males and 3 females, with their mother as well the entire group composed of nine. A number the mother fox made sure was maintained, only mating to replenish or fulfill that number. Any beyond that were cast to others for raising.
Their younger years were marked with learning as one, growing a common foundation of skills and abilities of which Xanus typically measured about the middle of the pack.Being of the Dark Tribe each of the cubs became well adapt to stealth and combat, prefernig to stalk and pounce upon their hunting prey. However their paths would all soon take a divergence. As the cubs grew into adolescence each began to train in the ways that most benefitted their individuals strengths. Three became assasins, two rangers, two warriors and one mage. The eldest, a male, was the only one to take upon the path of a magic user, the only to show any skill at such. Xanus along with the eldest sister both strode as warriors and as such were sent to train under the same teacher. And for the next 5 years that was their life, seperated from each other for the most part and seperated from their mother they all learned their rolls within the dark tribe, each honing their skills in pratice, trials, ordeals, and then real battles.
But apparently not all of the fox children went away to learn, the eldest, the mage stayed and learned at the foot of his mother, studying the was of magic and power. His learning was the fastest, of that there was little doubt, an unnatural talent combined with a keen mind for learning. His talents were only exceed by his greed nd dark inner lusts for power. One that would show itself in horrid fashion soon enough.
At the end of the five years, Xanus and his sister Zemia, made their way back to their forest den, it would be their first time seeing their mother or other siblings in quite sometime. However what they found was an unwelcome sight. The dun was painted in blood, the both of their mother hung from a tree lack a sack of meat, for the insects to feat upon. Two of the brothers that had gone off to learn of being assasins also lie dead beneath their hanging matron, their weapons littered over the area.Wounded and hurt the last of the three assasins, the youngest female, Vala, called to them from within a hiding place amidst the leaves and earth. She would tell them of their brothers treachery, how he had been sitting in wait for them under the hanging body of their mothers. His magics cut down one of them before they even knew to defend themselves and the other fell during an ensuing battle. She had only managed to hid because of the distraction afforded by such.
Unwilling to linger each of the three made their way from the den, seperating off as Zemia, pledge to find their other two siblings and deal with the eldest. Xanus took upon the task of finding just where his brother had fled and to get word to Zemia and his siblings. And so he wandered, land after land, learning what he could, increasing his own strenght and power as he searched for the traitor that he once called brother.