Appearance

Physical Description

Taller masculine built male

Body Features

Hair that waves about like fire
A set of long bull-like horns
Bronze skin
Scars tattering their body

Facial Features

Clean shaven
Confident facial features
Minor scar across nose bridge
Major burn scar down left eye

Identifying Characteristics

Facial scarring, Hair, Horns, and general knightly attire

Physical quirks

Carries himself with distinguished confidence

Apparel & Accessories

Full set of knightly armor and a long 10 foot Lance

Mentality

Personal history

The trials and tribulations of becoming a member of a king's guard are some of the most gruesome and physically tasking of jobs one could undertake.
To be given the honor of defending someone of such high status and regality, you must first prove that you can uphold the responsibilities that come with it.
 
The Knight’s Code of Chivalry is as follows:
1.To fear the God’s and maintain their Church
2.To serve the liege lord in valor and faith
3.To protect the weak and defenseless
4.To give succor to widows and orphans
5.To refrain from the unprovoked giving of offence
6.To live by honor and for glory
7.To despise pecuniary reward
8.To fight for the welfare of all
9.To obey those placed in authority
10. To guard the honor of fellow knights
11. To avoid unfairness, meanness and deceit
12. To keep faith
13. At all times to speak the truth
14. To persevere to the end in any enterprise begun
15. To respect the honor of women
16. Never to refuse a challenge from an equal
17. Never to turn the back upon a foe
 
 
Many in this world break more than one of these rules and even strictly oppose them. It is therefore a knight’s responsibility to uphold them and enforce them not only in the presence of the one they serve, but in their regular day to day lives.
Luka Yulis was born to a lineage of knights. His Father Giri and his Mother Unru both served in service to a great king by the name of Nicomedus Raluca of an eastern empire known as “The Vroniel Empire''. Even before them, many in his bloodline served under the same king. For centuries their family served as close allies of the royal family, often being involved in their private affairs as advisors.
The strength of the Empire was immense, the entirety of the royal guard was a regiment of 3000 strong, made up of expertly trained dragon riders, mages, and fighters of all sorts. Displays of power were all that was typically necessary to show how disciplined and strong these men and women were. Even a crazed blood raged barbarian would have second thoughts about approaching a member of the royal Vroniel High Guard. Every member of the High Guard was put through intensive service to the military, and had to receive many proofs of combative expertise and chivalry on the battlefield as well as a more intense training regiment to be considered for promotion.
One could not inherit the rite of passage into the High Guard, they had to earn it.
It was because of the King’s deep understanding of knighthood and the requirements that come with it, that his personal guard was considered one of the most strict and fearsome, rivaling the strength of a full army.
The King himself was no man to scoff at either however. He was everything that a leader should be and more. He commanded the highest of authority to his people, governed the entirety of his land with stern yet caring conviction, sent fear into those who opposed his nation, and hope to those who were protected under his banner. The soaring mountain of towers and walls that represented his capital perfectly encapsulated the man himself. A truly upstanding man, and an even greater ruler.
The Empire of Vroniel which he ruled was expansive to say the least. The capital stretched out for many miles, it’s architecture resembling that of both wondrous ancient marble pillars and new modern cultures of castles and magical technologies. The peak of the castle resembled the peak of an entire mountain, and it was not uncommon for those who approached it to mistake it as such. Both the King and it’s country was known for its grand military strength and might. Conquest of the lands was the definitively set goal ahead, to bring law and order to lands of unjust rule and chaotic disarray. As many would correctly guess, the kingdom had it’s fair share of allies and foes.
 
Luka had a deep admiration for the knight’s and their code of honor since he was a boy, and even more admiration for the king that his parents so often talked about. Many boys his age would often play the roles of knights, swinging branches wildly and defending themselves with pot lids; but Luka not only was able to properly defend himself, but knew the knight’s code of chivalry by heart. He would study different kingdoms and memorize their different cultures and forms of “knighthood” from regal imperial guard to barbarian warriors. His parents recognized his passion and began training him young while he was able to learn fast. While there was much trial and error with some of his abilities, the boy began to show very promising skill as a rider.
When he became of age, he enlisted in the army as cavalier in the war against the Eliquis Empire. It did not take long for the young man to shine brightly on the battlefield, as many commanders took notice of his prowess and confidence in battle. While it did bring great moral to those who served beside him, it was very unnatural to find someone enjoying themselves amidst the stench of war as much as he did, much less a recruit. While some shook in fear of death, Luka smiled brightly. He was not blood crazed or inherently violent, but rather seemed comfortable and inspired. One could say that what brought Luka so much joy was the fact that he was finally serving his nation. He was protecting something with his own two hands, and he wanted to continue to protect those who he cared about. It wasn’t until later that Luka experienced the true nature of war, and what it’s horrors could bring.
It was a simple mission. Secure the watchtower at the waterfront. An open field with not a tree in sight, just a sizable tower fortress near the shore of a large river. Securing this watchtower meant securing the river itself, which would bring supplies to the front much faster.
A simple mission, but a very important one. Up until this point, Luka had experienced nothing but crushing victory after victory, and he expected no less from this battle as well. In fact, given the terrain, he was more confident than ever.
The charge on the tower went without fail. It’s defending force was strong and had excellent strategic placements, but the Vronielian division had the upper hand with its size and sheer presence. Victory was in sight. That is until the Drakengard Unit had appeared.
There was rumor amongst the men that the enemy also had a unit of dragon riding warriors that melted the flesh of men clean off and turned their bones to dust. Many did not believe it because it was very uncommon for dragon riders to serve in great numbers unless the kingdom was incredibly wealthy, but even these rumors sent chills down throughout the company. They had seen what their own rider’s were capable of and it was frightening to say the least whenever they descended upon their foes. This, in addition to how uncommon it was to encounter them, no one beyond elite veterans knew how to even begin to combat a rider and their dragon.
When they arrived, there wasn’t a chance. At first, the sky darkened as a cloud of flapping wings approached, and then a blinding white. The echoing screams of men he had fought beside and the crashing of brick stone is all that could be heard in those few moments. They say that those who witnessed the slaughter from afar saw only a blazing horizon, and felt the heat from even their great distance away. The tower was lost, as well as half of the 10,000 strong who gathered at that hell.
Many of the remaining men deserted and never returned, leaving only a few thousand left. Luka was among the remaining, and not only was he not discouraged, something had changed. His eyes burned differently from then on, even as they pulled him from the rubble, and amputated his completely mutilated leg, his eyes screamed with a passion. His destiny was to ride through the skies. That was where true glory resided. It was in the sky that he would attain his dream to protect the kingdom he cared so dearly for.
 
Due to his injury, Luka was sent back to the homestead, where both his mother and father greeted him with open arms. When he told them on the same day that he returned with a pegleg that he was going to search for a dragon to ride, even they looked at him with bewilderment. Their expectations were to see a crushed man with no dreams left to speak of, and yet here Luka was standing seemingly prouder and more enthusiastic than he had ever been, which was saying something.
While glad to see a non-disheartened son, they also opposed the idea of helping him for a long time. They had almost lost their only son to war, and now he wanted to come face to face with a dragon. However, his constant perseverance for months on end made them cave in eventually, and so they asked one of their longtime friends, and fellow high guard, Pascal Vronilian where Luka could go to obtain such a bond.
Pascal was one of many dragon riders in direct service to the king, and was one of the very few responsible for training others in the way of dragon riding. He was a legend amongst even the ranks of the High Guard, rumored to have single handedly fought off entire companies of men by himself. Before he was even interested in dragon riding, Luka looked up to Pascal in admiration and viewed him as a sort of role model. The man displayed absolute loyalty to the king and served him closely. Just as Luka’s Family, Pascal was more than just another member of the guard, he was a close friend to the King.
Pascal told Luka of the dangers of obtaining a bond with a dragon, warning that these commitments do not come at small costs, and that bonding with one was a rare and indefinite conclusion whenever encountering such beasts. Just as his parents however, Pascal was beaten by Luka’s persistence and gave him what he knew. There was rumor that deep in the old ruins of a now forgotten kingdom, there resided a dragon with scales shining like gold. Many who entered those ruins failed to return unfortunately and those that did were too shaken to take another step onto a battlefield again.
 
Despite the warnings and pleas of his parents, Luka went out to this now forgotten kingdom. Thanks to the King, through favors he had attained through recognition on the battlefield and promises of coming back as a dragon rider, he was given a strong, military issued horse and enough supplies to last him a week on his own. Though they had not conversed much personally before, the King respected Luka’s wishes to serve him so closely and trusted him because of how close their families had been throughout the centuries.
For days he rode out in the direction Pascal told him the ruins would be, but he found nothing. As the days turned to weeks, Luka had to travel from village to village relying on rumors and purchasing what supplies he could. Supposedly, this city was once a grand kingdom, rivaling that of the Vroniel Empire in strength and size. The names of this kingdom bounced every which way, but the one that kept recurring the most was “Tarith”. Some say that it fell due to some curse that was placed on the land; others said it was due to instability in the kingdom’s foundations. But as far as anyone knew, it seemed that the fall of Tarith was lost to the past.
A month passed before Luka finally happened on sage advice from an elderly man telling him that the ruins were but a few days' travel from where they were. Just as Pascal had told him, the old man warned of rumors of a dragon with scales glittering like gold residing there. Luka ventured off toward the ruins, and just as the old man had said, there it was. Even by looking at the ruins which must have been many centuries old by this point, he could tell that this place was once magnificently grand. Pillars of black marble stretched out high into the sky, and a very interesting culture was hidden underneath the foliage that consumed most of the ruin. The architecture reminded him much of his own kingdom in some unsettling ways. It did not take long for him to recognize the familiar sound of wings pushing massive currents of air, the crunching and crashing of stone, and the heavy beastly breath. There was most definitely a dragon residing in these ruins.
Pascal told Luka there were two ways to convince a dragon to join your service, to beat one into submission, or to strike a convincing deal with it if it was willing to. His new leg wouldn’t allow for the movement needed for regular combat, much less one with a dragon, and Luka was never talented in the ways of bargaining and deal making, so he did the only thing he could. Luka would simply approach the golden beast.
Approaching it was much different from the time Luka had last seen his kind on the battlefield. An aura of nobility radiated off of them. It did not snarl or prepare itself as a normal monster would, but rather stood tall and looked down expectantly at the rider. It felt just as if Luka was approaching a grand King in his court. A single wrong movement or action that would insult this ruler would mean an instant death for the knight. Just as the rumors had said, the dragon wore a beautiful coat of glimmering gold, it’s neck stretched out high, with large wings settled at either side. It’s head bore a magnificent set of 4 horns and eyes that gleamed a magnificent red. The Dragon spoke not a word, but Luka felt a presence in his mind, “What is it that you seek?”
Luka responded in kind, “I seek to protect the weak and attain glory forever more”
The dragon lowered it’s head for a moment, as if telling Luka to continue his explanation.
For hours, Luka talked about his life. His dreams of becoming a High Guard worthy of the King as a boy, his experiences in combat, the slaughter at the watchtower, and his several month journey to find the dragon.
After he was done telling his story, the dragon paused for a long moment. And once again spoke briefly in his mind, “The ruins you see around you are of a grand kingdom my siblings and I had laid to waste. It’s existence tainted these lands and put many in danger. Many lives were lost and needlessly thrown away on both sides. I wish to reconcile the losses both I and my brothers caused, but if your kingdom is but a mirror image, I will not hesitate to lay it to ashes as well.”
The burning conviction in both Luka and the Dragon were clear as day. One had complete and utter faith in his kingdom, the other had the same belief in his role to keep the peace in the lands.
The Dragon recognized this, and with a lowering of his head, the bond was made. Memories and experiences of the two rushed through each other’s heads. Luka saw the past of the Dragon dating back to when they were a hatchling. He saw the wonderment of beautiful skies filled with dragons, the warm dens filled with treasures of both the world and man, the view of the horizon that was below, village elders and even children approaching the dragons and having friendly conversation. But then a vision of a dark kingdom wall that stretched far. Ballista and trebuchet shots taking down brother’s and sisters, torched forests, charred corpses, those towns with his man friends being pillaged and raided. It was atrocity in its purest form.
He also learned the Dragon’s name at this moment. “Quevon”
It was extremely apparent that the two understood each other much more in that moment, and it seemed that while they lived very different lives, they both had a strong sense of wanting to bring a form of true order to the world, and overwhelming want to bring peace to those who were too weak to attain it.
 
Becoming a rider of a dragon felt much more personal than becoming a rider of most other creatures. There was a deeper understanding that came with it, and felt less like a master servant relationship and more like a soul pact. Luka knew that becoming a dragon rider would be different, but he had no idea the depth in which it would go. He experienced what felt like an entire lifetime of memories of Quevon’s scarred past. The dragon’s emotions became his own, and he too now had a strange distrusting feeling in many kingdoms now. He still had unwavering doubt in his own, but it made him wonder just how deep the roots of righteousness went before there was corruption.
The two would ride the skies back to Vroniel in a week's time thanks to Quevon’s flight and Luka’s knowledge of the land. Even though he had the memories of the dragon’s past, Luka was amazed by the sky’s view and what it had brought to him. The burning horizon of the setting sun, the cascading clouds, the wind blowing waves like the ocean through the fields of grass. It was a beautiful and free feeling.
What Luka saw when he returned to his home was not cheers and tears from his parents and fellow knights however. The grand city he loved and cherished was gone. Everything was burnt to ashes. A battle must have transpired days ago by that point, but it didn’t make sense. The frontlines were in enemy territory by his understanding, so why was it that Vroniel fell? He searched his parents home to find nothing. It’s walls collapsed and not a trace of either his mother or father remained. He searched the throne room, and what was left of the King’s Castle itself, but it was completely abandoned. One thing was for certain, dragons were the cause of this destruction. Nothing would be able to bring such unrivaled destruction and charred stone the same way.
Quevon, experiencing Luka’s emotional bond to the kingdom, felt uneasy. They hadn’t met a single one of it’s people before, and yet still felt this overwhelming devastation. It was just like the battle on Tarith, from the destruction of man’s creations to the death of innocent civilians. The Dragon comforted Luka for days as he sifted through the burned wreckage of his home, trying desperately to find any remaining survivors.
To no avail, he couldn’t find a single one. There were answers that needed to be found and so Luka did what he could to unravel the dragon attack on his home. He rode to local villages to come and find that many of the remaining civilians had become refugees. They all despised his dragon, and seemed just as confused as Luka to what had happened. From what he gathered, the attack was sudden and happened without warning. For an entire fleet of dragons to just suddenly show up at the doorstep of a kingdom, it would be unheard of. But that is what the civilians consistently swore up and down.
It took many weeks to sift through the information he had gathered, but eventually he found an old member of the high guard, Melodeus. He had known Luka’s parent’s well and trusted him, even being as kind as to offer refuge to both him and his dragon.
It was then that the truth was revealed to Luka. Pascal was an agent of the enemy nation, the Eliquis Empire. He had been planting seeds of rebellion amongst many of the dragon rider ranks since his time there, and staged a large scale attack on the kingdom from within. There wasn’t nearly enough time to counter their assault and with most of Vroniel’s military forces in enemy territory, the battle quickly went to their hands. Soon after the war was won, and Vroniel was considered no more.
Luka could not believe his ears. The Kingdom he cherished so much was brought down by one that he admired so dearly. He knew not if his parents survived or even the king that trusted him so much was living or ash, and it was all because a member of the High Guard destroyed everything.
For many years, Luka traveled with Quevon, still staying true to the code of chivalry, traveling from town to town helping out the refugees and warding away bandits and the like, but knew not what to do next. It wasn’t until the Dragon finally spoke once more that Luka reawoke-
“You have fallen knight of Vroniel. When will you stand once more?”
Many thoughts had been brewing in Lukas mind at this point. He was keeping to the code, and the code is what makes a true knight, so why did Quevon’s words cut so deep? It was because they were true. Luka had fallen. For years they had been low on the ground, not progressing even a bit. The beautiful sky Quevon showed Luka had turned gray, the people of Vroniel suffered for a while, but had now healed and had to become content with their lives, but Luka was stuck in the past. Glory still called to him. A higher purpose of protecting all, and bringing order still waited for him as the world around seemed to plunge itself into chaos, and Luka was just sitting around dwelling on the past.
 
It was time that he began to stand once more. Thanking his friend for reminding him who he once was, Luka discussed a plan with Quevon.
He would reestablish order in his life by finding a ruler worth serving once more so that he could bring about peace. Perhaps find rumors of his parents or King Nicomedus if they were still out there.
He would then see about finding Pascal, the High Guard who brought an end to the entire great kingdom of Vroniel, and bring justice unto him; as well as seeing about bringing an end to the Eliquis Empire.
Once he could bring about those two things, He would work the rest of his days side by side with Quevon in bringing complete peace to the lands once again.
 
AND SO, The rider went forward, searching for one whom he could truly call a ruler of the lands.

Education

Vronilian Knight's Academy-
Study's mostly on nobility and the makings of what it means to be a Knight.

Employment

Served in the military for a few years as a Cavalier and was in training to become a High Guard

Accomplishments & Achievements

Served in the war against the Eliquis Empire and aided in the success of many battles
 
Became a newly fledged Dragon Rider

Failures & Embarrassments

Lost many of is comrades of the battle for the watch tower as well as his leg
 
Was not present during the fall of Vroniel which he desired to protect

Mental Trauma

The loss of his parents and king scar him. He never found any remains of either so he is torn between his knowledge of knowing how strong the dragons are, and his pride that won't allow him to let go of his loved ones without evidence.

Intellectual Characteristics

Courage, Integrity, and Perseverance would be the defining intellectual traits of Luka.
True to the knight's code of honor, being steadfast in the the face of danger to protect others with true honor is what matter to Luka.

Morality & Philosophy

Lawful order is the only true path to lasting peace
It is knight's that bring about this peace to the world and in order for a knight to be successful at their job, they must always follow this Code of Chivalry:
1.To fear the God’s and maintain their Church
2.To serve the liege lord in valor and faith
3.To protect the weak and defenseless
4.To give succor to widows and orphans
5.To refrain from the unprovoked giving of offence
6.To live by honor and for glory
7.To despise pecuniary reward
8.To fight for the welfare of all
9.To obey those placed in authority
10. To guard the honor of fellow knights
11. To avoid unfairness, meanness and deceit
12. To keep faith
13. At all times to speak the truth
14. To persevere to the end in any enterprise begun
15. To respect the honor of women
16. Never to refuse a challenge from an equal
17. Never to turn the back upon a foe

person.gender_identity

Ifrit Male

Taboos

Luka will never engage in underhanded tactics himself. Direct confrontation is what he enjoys

Known Languages

Common and Ignan

Personality

Motivation

Find out more on what happened to the Vroniel Empire,
Track down Pascal,
Find a worthy ruler to serve under once again,
Bring Quevon’s vision of a peaceful haven for dragon kind again

Savvies & Ineptitudes

Savvies:
Nobility
Riding
Knighthood
 
Ineptitudes:
Most forms of Knowledge
Wilderness survival and direction seeking
Hearing well

Likes & Dislikes

Likes:
Proof of one's honor
History
Examining Nobility
Knighthood
Capitals of Kingdoms
Large open fields
Meat Stew
 
Dislikes:
Underhandedness
Dishonor
Bandits and their lifestyle
Narrow caves
Raw produce

Virtues & Personality perks

Justice
An overwhelming sense to bring about order to a world where everyone is at each other's throats

Vices & Personality flaws

Pride
Believes in himself and his kingdom so much to the extent that all that are in direct opposition are in the way to the right path. His path.

Hygiene

Generally cleanly kept, however maintains armor and equipment more than himself sometimes

Social

Birthplace

Vroniel Empire