Heroes/Jorgen

Lore
Lars had always been a beloved favorite among the northern people of Hornar. As the eldest son in an illustrious family, he was lavished with honors and attention. And after the tragedy that had befallen his house, he came to be revered as the head thereof. Jorgen and Lars' parents had been attacked by outlaws and perished, while his younger sister, Krista, had gone missing. For many years after that fateful day, Jorgen lived in the shadow of the only kin he had left.

As a child, he adored Lars and tried to match him in everything, becoming a diligent student of the magic arts and always coming to the aid of the peoples of Hornar. Yet the older brother would seldom pay attention to the younger, as his own fame and glory were of much greater concern to him. Thus, however good Jorgen were, he would never hear any words of support. By the time he was a young lad, Jorgen's heart was burning with the fires of hatred and envy. "How can this be? What have I done to displease these people?" he would ask again and again, alone in a distant part of the Alder Forest. A man, of no great height, stepped suddenly into the overgrown clearing and said, "I know what is making you sad, Jorgen. I am an outcast myself, though I have chosen a different fate. The fate of an outcast who has attained greatness! I believe it is a path we are to walk together." "An outcast, you say? An exile?" The injustice sent a wave of anguish over the young man's soul. "Whatever I do, the Hornar people will never accept me for one of their own! It's always Lars, just Lars!" Driven by his feelings, Jorgen got up and obediently followed the man he did not even know.

The stranger turned out to be none other than Shavarakk, a mighty dark sorcerer. But it worried Jorgen little by then, as he absorbed knowledge like a sponge. Shavarakk praised him, he called him his heir and successor! What could be more gratifying? There was but one source of unpleasantness, the sorcerer would conduct peculiar and morbid magical experiments on his apprentice, which turned young Jorgen into a mockery of a living being. A hunched back and deathly pale skin, against which a pair of sharp and crooked horns stood out: such was Shavarakk's notion of an appearance befitting his apprentice.

Manipulating human life-force and energy was what the young mage was showing himself the most adept at. Day after day, he practiced on victim after victim, supplied by the sorcerer. As Jorgen devoured souls, his own power grew. The less life-force an enemy has, the more is available to the ambitious mage. "What a surprise it will be for my brother when I crush his little world with my incredible magic!" he smirked as he squeezed the life out of another victim. Shell after lifeless shell dropped to the ground. Jorgen's might was becoming truly impressive. When his apprenticeship was at its end, Shavarakk said, "You are prepared to receive truly arcane knowledge, my disciple. But first, you must prove your loyalty to the Darkness in a manner most befitting: by killing your brother!" "Let us make haste then!" Jorgen shouted, clapping his hands. And yet, there was no joy to be discerned in his words…

Jorgen did not immediately recognize his brother, whose hair had grown whiter than snow and whose once-perfect face was now marred by wrinkles. Eyes like those of a cornered wolf, an unbowed back, and clenched fists said much of Lars. The sorcerer's voice all but deafened his apprentice. "Kill him! Kill Lars!" yelled the wizard. Raising his magic chalice over his head, Jorgen uttered a spell in a barely audible whisper before bringing it crashing down upon – Shavarakk! Not even he could survive a blow of such force!

And as the sorcerer writhed in agony, brother stared at brother. There was neither hatred nor envy in that stare. He realized that his brother had changed. Lars had come to avoid the love of the people, dreaming only of restoring his family. He had spent many years looking for his two siblings. He felt lonely, but could not abandon his people—even as, blinded by resentment, Jorgen had yielded to the dark mage's tempting and sunk into the depths of sin. Oh how many errors he had made! How many innocent souls had perished at his hands

Repentant, the brothers decided to atone for their guilt by serving the Dominion in the ranks of the fabled Guardians!

Йорген