Anu Kaurden

Anukafobaia Daramien Stefa Kaurden is a castar of Laurondirin Castle in Laurondirin and also acts as a personal bodyguard to Lord Magnus. Anu was born in 1086AL in the town of Ventet to his wealthy parents. His father was part of the bloodline that began the Kaurden fistfighting school and was the headmaster for a long time. Anu was raised into fistfighting, qualifying for entry at 11 years of age and climbing through the ranks into third place within a year. He held this position for another year, ascended to second place, and claimed the top rank the following year as the previous champion turned 18 and was therefore not allowed to continue his fistfighting career.

Above: Anu as a champion fistfighter.

Not long after he joined, as he began to climb through the ranks, he married a young lady named Kira who he had known since he was a toddler. In 1097 they had a baby named Leron and adopted a six year old boy named Malotis early the next year. As Anu and Kira both lived with Anu's parents at the time, Kira and Anu's mother spent much time caring for the children as Anu concentrated on his career as a champion fistfighter. They had another boy, Ahumana, in 1099, and yet another boy, Terisin, in 1101. As Anu became the champion around the time of Terisin's birth, and his father was still running the fistfighting school, they had ample money and hired carers for the children because Kira wished to travel to Duracia to continue her course at the Carson Institute there as a fire mage. After three years, Kira finished her studies and acquired the qualifications, and Anu turned 18 and so had to stop fistfighting. He had been learning how to fight with weapons and armour as he planned to enrol as a Laurondrian Knight as soon as he stopped his fistfighting. Kira returned home in 1104 and she spent a year with Anu and their four children. During this time, they had a two more boys, Indauro in 1104 and Karasen in 1105.

Early Adulthood

It wasn't until Anu became a knight and began his service to Lord Magnus that he really started to become famous. As the champion fistfighter, his name was known throughout North Nidonn already, and his spectacular and concentrated efforts as a knight did not go unnoticed for very long. At this time, the pirates from the north were unleashing a series of violent sieges on the country in an attempt to restock their own fortresses. As Anu had many years experience fighting with or without armour and was taught to use all kinds of weapons, he proved to be an effective fortknight at the primary outpost on the shore. Unfortunately for his family, Anu was requested to spend many months of service at these northern outposts. Kira continued to live with Anu's parents, her five children, and the carers they hired, and she did commission work as a mage-for-hire. In the middle of 1106, Anu lost half of his right arm in a fight. His effectiveness as a fighter decreased and Lord Magnus gave him less assignments as the time passed.

Anu's father passed away in 1107 and Anu was asked to come home and run the school, at least until a replacement headmaster could be found. As he was made to spend less time on the field of battle, he accepted his mother's request in an attempt at mocking Lord Magnus's decision to keep Anu off the battlefield. Due to his missing arm, Anu was also an ineffective trainer for the fistfighters at his school, so he was forced to run the school in every way except through training the students, which was his favourite aspect. He hired an old friend of his to be his master trainer under his guidance, and for several years, back living with his family and running the school, Anu's life was relatively calm. His oldest blood son, Leron, undertook fistfighting at 13 years of age in 1110, and by this time his oldest son, Malotis, had been fistfighting for the past six years but had to stop because he turned 18. In 1111, Kira had another child. It was their first girl and they named her Syraia.

Ever since King Enos's reign began in 1101, the border between Laurondirin and Jevithem was creeping back and forth. The city of Cape Crossing was especially affected by the constant border change, as it fell in and out of Laurondrian rule numerous times. Laurondirin attempted to reinforce this city by means of brute force -- sending war trains to the city and setting up blockades and outposts on roads. On the other hand, Jevithem constantly sent spies into the city and bribed the Laurondrian knights in charge to get them to turn a blind eye. Word eventually reached Lord Magnus that Cape Crossing was being bought out from behind his back in 1115, and he sent a powerful team including many of his more trusted soldiers to the city to sort it out. Anu received a request to be a part of this team and he accepted, knowing he would be accompanied by extremely able fighters. Anu was sent, not for his fighting ability, but because he had the trust and respect of Lord Magnus despite Anu turning down all of his lord's assignments and returning to run the fistfighting school.

Jevithem, of course, knew of this team, and they believed that Laurondirin was finally opting for war to take the city by force. So, when the team arrived at Cape Crossing, they were met with Jevithem's armies and a battle erupted over the city. Though potentially catastrophic, the battle only lasted several days, and casualties and damage to the city were kept to a minimum; most of the fighting involved strategic infiltrations of the opposing headquarters at the opposite end of town, and lives were only lost when said infiltrators were discovered by their enemies and fights broke out. In one of the fights, Anu was captured and taken hostage by opposing knights. They attempted to interrogate him but he told them nothing so they decided to take him into isolation to try to break him down. He was held hostage for six years while fights continued to break out all over Cape Crossing.

Anu's Rescue

Not peculiarly, Anu's seven children had heard rumours of what had happened to their father, and the six boys had been training as knights. The oldest four had already ended their fistfighting careers and the youngest two, Indauro and Karasen, were both 2nd ranks at the time. In 1121, Anu was 35 and had lost six years of his life to the Jevithem knights. Lord Magnus sent numerous parties to try to rescue Anu and take back the city, but when he heard about a powerful team of six knights belonging to the one family, Magnus saw their passion and determination to save their father, and he sent them in as an undercover team. Ranging from Malotis, 30, to Karasen, 16, the six brothers travelled to Cape Crossing, infiltrated the enemy knights, found out where Anu was being held hostage, and went there. They took a subtle approach and tried to sneak in, but they were discovered. They managed to take their enemies by surprise and this gave them the upperhand but unfortunately two of the brothers were killed in the brawl. Leron, 24, Anu's first biological child, and Indauro, 17, both lost their lives to Jevithem blades. The four remaining brothers pushed onward and found their father who, after six years, still had not given in. Enraged over the deaths of two of their family, Anu (with only one arm) and his sons exploded out of the hiding place, cut down the Jevithem commanding fortknight, and took back the city with sheer force. Witnesses said that the screams of the five of them were so terrifying that most Jevithium soldiers faltered and flinched, and some even dropped their weapons and fled, fearing that one of the Hireos had descended to unleash otherwordly wrath. Indeed the five Kaurdens did what the rest of Laurondirin had been trying to do for several years.

Magnus sent reinforcements to hold the city as Anu and his sons returned home to tell Kira what had happened. They were rewarded with medals and money and a memorial was erected for Leron and another for Indauro at the Kaurden fistfighting school. Somehow, not long after the Kaurdens left Cape Crossing, Jevithem returned and swept through the city with surprising power, taking back the streets and closing the gates on Laurondirin for 60 years. Jevithem also pushed the border back, further and further north, until Laurondirin could only claim their own desert valley as their own province. Magnus, for whatever reason, did not push back; Jevithem stopped advancing at the point where it was easiest for Laurondirin to defend itself, so in a way, although they lost much territory, what they had left was more ideal at the time.