Background[]
Born into a farming family, Gringor's early life was pretty plain, or as plain as it could be on Istria. His father, Alumar, and his mother, Illana, were both very hard workers and instilled into their only child a strong sense of duty and honor. By the age of 4 he was already helping out around the farm, although the harsh climate didn't give much choice. His family was one of a few who did not make the journey on the Great Migration. Fortunately they lived close to the equator so that their winters were never too harsh. While growing up, Gringor saw few battles except for chasing off robbers every once in a great while. Because of this, he never really noticed his potential to become the warrior he would be one day and was content being with his family and helping those around him. That is until one fateful day which changed his life forever.
Gringor's Great Loss[]
Gringor was 10 years old at the time. It was the dark season and it was an especially cold one. Alumar and Illana got a message saying that another family member of theirs who lived farther down had gotten sick and was in desperate need of medicine from the capital. Gringor wanted to come but his parents refused. They knew the road would be dangerous and instead got Alumar's uncle Karthan to take care of Gringor while they were away. They kissed their son goodbye and rode off into the night. Weeks went by and there was no word from them. Gringor started to worry, but would not show his pain. Then one day he got the message he never wanted to hear: his parents had been lost, slain by beasts of the night. He ran off into the night, desperate to escape his pain. His uncle chased after him and soon they found themselves confronted by a large wolf. Instead of being afraid, though, Gringor felt anger and something else as well. His mind was exploding with energy and all of a sudden his arms felt like they were tearing apart. He looked down and he saw that they had turned into iron. The wolf then leaped at his uncle but before it could clamp it's jaws upon him Gringor punched it square in the face, knocking it out cold. Amazed and frightened, Karthan told Gringor he should finish the job. Gringor refused. When asked why, Gringor said, "It was just hungry as well. We all have to live one way or another." This marked the beginning of his path to the ways of the battlemind.