jgrsas2000

Gevard Freeholder was raised in a small freehold in the lands of the Holy Oren Empire. His father, Jacob, worked as a general labourer, moving from one job to the next, reparing the freehold gates, patching up houses, helping to build new houses, fetching watcher or shovelling soil - whatever needed to be done, he did it, without ambition or ask. The money Jacob did earn was little, and only after he'd lost the majority of it drinking and gambling in the local tavern did the rest go to feeding his son. Jacob was a resentful father, resentful that he was responsible for another life, resentful that Jacob's mother had the indignity to die of the sweating sickness merely 2 years after his son's birth, and resentful at his terrible debts accrued through gambling. So, in the 10th year after Gevard's birth, he simply disappeared. Packed up to move to the next town, or finally tracked down by his gambling sharks. Nobody knew. As such, Gevard was assigned by the Mayor to apprentice to the local tanner, whose previous apprentice had graduated and left for the city of Providence to make his fortune. The freehold's leather tanner was a mild-mannered man and a good teacher, but Gevard quickly learned he was not made to be a tanner. He hated the smell of the place, and wanted something more out of life. Growing up, he had loved to hear the stories of the travellers who stopped off at the freehold to rest or trade, listening to their stories for hours in the inn while his father gambled their little money away. The Elven visitors made a large mark on him, he often stared at them, admiring their beauty that was almost unnatural to human's like him. He wished to see the world as they did, to find purpose in a place that wasn't marked by memories of sadness and longing for more. After one particularly frustrating day, Jacob gave in to the pressure, and explained to his master that tanning wasn't for him. He hated the smell, he needed to go somewhere new, to get a fresh start! The master, a man in his later years, wisened by age rather than corrupted by it, sat Jacob down and let him vent. In the end, the master knew that Jacob wasn't set for this life, and they discussed ways that Jacob could move forward. The master's wife provided Jacob with enough food to reach the closest city, with them both wishing him well on his journey. A spring for life that had been dormant for many years sprang back into Jacob on the road to his new destination - a desire to make his mark on the world, and to never go hungry again.