Name: Tristan Veneti
Sex: Male
Culture: Brittonian
Age: 23
Physical Description:For all intents, Tristan resembles any other young nobleman who might reside in the court. He dresses finely, and stands both tall and proud. With a mop of brown hair that he keeps short, for the most part, and hazel-coloured eyes that always seem to shine with mirth. His face is fair, his skin pale, and any scars he has are more likely from childhood scrapes than battles. After all, his life is somewhat comfortable, to the observer. He does, however, keep himself fit, from a combination of practicing swordplay and archery, and dancing at events in court.
Occupation/Skillset:Unknown by most, Tristan is a spy in the employ of the Duke. Well, it wouldn’t do for people to know, after all – it would defeat the purpose, in fact. His duties mostly entail surveillance, gathering information that various nobles or merchants might try to conceal. Smuggling silk or spices, diplomatic sabotage, even the occasional murder – all these are Tristan’s to uncover. Sometimes he relies on subterfuge, picking locks and climbing through windows, to get what he needs. Other times he uses deceit and charm.
And, of course, he has a fair number of skills that come from being noble, though not all. He has trained in swordsmanship, archery, and riding, learned how to dance, bargain, and strategize. These lend themselves to his overall skill.
Personality:Tristan considers himself to be suave; and in a sense, he is not incorrect. He is intelligent, charming, elegant, and carries an air of confidence. But he can be arrogant, from time to time, and he is by no means wise. He has a tendency to be zealous, and this can lead to recklessness, or close calls. Due to his blood status, he might suffer from taunts or jeers from his peers, and this usually results in anger. Additionally, around others, he might act pompous, and foolish, though it is far from his actual self – it is a mask he wears, a façade, so that others don’t suspect he knows more than he lets on.
Backstory:Tristan is, in no uncertain terms, a bastard. He is the son of a servant woman, and a minor noble – Lord Aymon Veneti, low enough in power that he wasn’t among the most renowned members of the Duke’s court, but high enough that he had a measure of recognition. His father was both married and had an heir before Tristan, but that is not to say that he was ignored. In fact, he had a noble upbringing alongside his half-brother, Reinald, and when she was born, his half-sister Adelaide. He was snubbed by his step-mother, of course, but he thought nothing of it for a great portion of his life.
When not being educated by the harsh tutors, or playing games with his brother, he spent time with his mother. Despite the scandal of her son, she had been kept on at the Veneti household, to the Lady Veneti’s protests. He would watch her tend to her duties. She kept out of sight like servants should, but Tristan eventually became skilled in identifying where she and the other servants walked, where they’d go to conceal themselves – and he emulated them. Such was his life.
But, eventually, it could no longer last. When he was in the middle of his adolescence, the Lord Aymon took ill, and would succumb a month after. The change was swift. His father was mourned, by both him and his siblings. With Reinald taking over the household, the Lady Veneti stepped in to advise him. Tristan barely saw his brother anymore, but that was to be expected, given he now had duties to attend to. And as time went on, Tristan was given a summons by Reinald, to speak in private. Apparently, his step-mother had been whispering to him that Tristan might plot against him, in a bid for power, that even now he had to be careful of a dagger in his back. Despite Tristan having no such ambitions, they made an agreement, for the safety of both – Reinald from Tristan, and Tristan from the Lady Veneti – that Tristan should leave. That was how the young nobleman found his way to the Duke’s court.
Announcing himself as Reinald’s representative, he would attend court in his brother’s stead. This covered the documentation of taxes, the crops grown and the serfs that died and were born. Missives were carried between the castle and the Veneti residence. One day, however, Tristan found himself bored, and whilst walking the corridors, saw another man, a noble higher in rank, acting unusual. He would check behind him and in front of him, and dodged into rooms and alcoves whenever a guard might pass by. Tristan, unwilling to challenge the man, would follow. He trailed the man for quite some time, into the catacombs, until he encountered his target and another man talking with one another, regarding some shipment of a kind. Though he didn’t know the topic, he could tell that what these two men spoke about was neither meant to be heard by others, nor permitted by law. Stepping out of his hiding space, he confronted them. They responded by attempting to bribe him, and when he refused, kill him. His murder was prevented by a well-timed arrival of a fourth man, who swiftly detained the two.
This man himself was the Duke’s spymaster. Like Tristan, he had been trailing the nobleman. The man in question had been suspected for a while now. But when the spymaster had noticed the youth doing the same, he observed him, instead. Tristan was told he had natural talent, to which he disagreed, but when he was offered a position, he knew it would be poorly advised for him to refuse. He was taken on as a spy-in-training, and the rest is history.
Member
Roman
Not a Sayan
Dyelli Beybi
Mae
Nightbringer
Pirouette