Bandar al-Akbar
Bandar al-Akbar is a short man clad in rough-spun brown robes. He speaks little when dealing with people, but is endlessly patient when dealing with animals, especially horses. His eyes are deep-set in his narrow face, dark skin casting deep shadows in his eyesockets.
Starting as a young man, he worked as a camel herdsman in caravans, gaining a reputation for his ability both with individual camels and long strings of them. He was soon allowed to carry some of his own goods in with the caravan's trade goods, and did so for a number of years before striking it lucky with a consignment which met with great demand. Investing his newfound funds in other caravans soon netted him enough money to purchase and renovate the ramshackle buildings in Ka-Tepi which would become the Al-Akbar Stables. Within a few years his reputation for treating and training animals had spread to such a point that he could hire additional staff and expand the stables.
Bandar speaks little when dealing with people he does not know, rarely even looking them directly in the eye, thanks to his shyness and reticence. He leaves most of the dealing with new customers to his head groom, Najeem al-Shah, whom he hired as a stableboy and has worked for him ever since.
al-Akbar's clothing is usually rough and often patched, especially when he expects to be working with the animals in the stable. His hands are rough, worn and scarred, and his wiry form is ropy with muscle from years of manhandling balky draft animals. When dealing with stroppy camels in particular, is is not unknown for him to abruptly burst out in a torrent of profane verbal abuse, which causes much hilarity amongst his grooms and stableboys, but his hands are never ungentle.
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