Dimitris Tethren
Dimitris Tethren was born in the military ruled lands of Isenfeur in the city of Sterschmid, the son of a stone mason. His father was human but his mother was a tiefling. Normally children are hard to conceive from such a mixed union but it is possible. Dimitris was born with almost human colored skin, though it was a few shades paler and whiter than normal and his eyes were human-like instead of the usual singularly colored eyes of a tiefling. This allowed him to fit in a little better with the larger human population of Sterschmid. As with all people of Isenfeur, Dimitris was educated in the ways of combat and self-defence, taught how to spot a monster, how to track in the deadly and dangerous forests of the land. When he was a young man, shortly after turning sixteen, the gift of magic bloomed in him and one of the wizards of the army suggested to his parents that he attend the Arcanum.
While he was initially hesitant, his parents assured him they would be fine without him, plus the military would pick up the cost of his tuition. After all, a trained wizard was always welcome in the upper ranks of the military. So it was that Dimitris made the long sea journey to the Arcanum and began his studies. He found the atmosphere at the Arcanum to be vastly different from what he was used to. People in Isenfeur were ever vigilant, out of necessity. People in the Arcanum were so carefree, so blissfully ignorant and unaware and frivolous. He made friends with some of his fellow students, while others, those largely from rich and powerful families, he made enemies of.
Dimitris studied and worked hard learning the craft of wizardry. He was, to put it simply a prodigy, the rare combination of both genius and determination along with a strong work ethic. He soon mastered whatever he put his hand to, learning how the various schools of magic worked and interacted. However, when the time came and he challenged for his rank, he found himself failed by his teacher. But not simply failing due to lack of ability. The test he had been given was beyond his ability, for it was advanced theorem that had not been covered yet. His teacher would hear no case for a retesting. He was told he would need to continue his studies and try again the following year. Meanwhile other less talented students were risen above him…and his teacher was suddenly flush with coin.
Dimitris could not allow this injustice to stand, so to the other students like himself he went. He talked to them, and word spread…more and more of the students felt persecuted against simply because they were not wealthy or had influential families. Two months to the day of his failed exam Dimitris lead a revolution within the Arcanum. Despite its name, the Docent/Pupil Conflict was brutal and bitter war. Men and women died, but in the end Dimitris and his followers held the Administration Building along with the High Administrator and a dozen other faculty members. Reforms were negotiated and a treaty signed to end the hostilities. Dimitris was immediately raised to his proper ranking and worked with the High Administrator in developing an impartial testing system. The Arbiter’s Tower was the result of this.
Dimitris spent several more years at the Arcanum, finishing his studies before returning home to Isenfeur and taking a position with the military. He threw himself into his work, for his time at the Arcanum had given him an idea, an idea that consumed him. He worked with wizards and engineers and even with his father and other stone masons. He brought his plans before the War Council and outlined his theories. They agreed to allow him to build one as a proof of concept and should his theories be correct they would look into others. The work was long and hard for not only was there monsters to contend with but also the forest itself rebelled from time to time. When he had finished his work he knew what he had done would change life within Isenfeur forever. His work was a tower built upon the road, a place of refuge for those who travelled but also a barrier a boundary for the forest.
Dimitris called it a Watchtower and it was not just a structure of stone, spells were worked into the stone and along the stone road that ran to it. Strong spells to allow the stone to resist and repel the advance of the forest, to protect against the creatures of darkness that so often pillaged the land, but also to allow the military to see what was going on around it. His theories proved sound and he was put in charge of building more of them. Though he never lived to see them built across all of Isenfeur, others took up his task. These days there are Watchtowers placed within a day’s travel of anything else, stone roads connecting them all preventing the forest from reclaiming them and allowing the military to near instantly know what is going on along any stretch of road within Isenfeur.
Dimitris died as he lived, defeating a vampire lord and making his home a little safer place to live. There is a statue to him in front of the military academy at Sterschmid and a small plaque honoring him, posthumously, as General Dimitris Tethren, Lord of the Watchtowers.
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