Roots: Ashled The Fleet

The epic of Alexander started, naturally, with his birth, but just like the sprouts of a Stirk spring, it couldn't have existed without deep roots. Alexander's roots were the actions of his father Ashled. Ashled was a man in every sense of the word. A powerful jaw that sat on a six and half foot frame. The man had a hard nose that held a thick set of eyebrows in perpetual sternness. His eyes however hid an inexplicable softness that said "I'm here to help." He was surely the greatest man most would ever meet, and yet hardly worth mention when in comparison to his son; much to his pleasure. Ashled was born into an ages old conflict between two families. For as long as the island of Stirk was worth visiting, the Bjornson family had been feuding with the Jurgikssen family. The ancestral Bjornsons had founded the near legendary "Gryphons Slayer's Warrior Guild'' on the island, more commonly referred to as "The Gryphons," which was a collection of some of the best soldiers in the Southern hemisphere. Stirk was an island just West of Cyrodiil that had become legendary, amongst the pirates who visited it, for its "big men and Beautiful women." For generations now Stirk's finest warriors have lived in the guildhouse, selling their skills and offering protection to local businesses that had set up shop in areas of the city that the guards would prefer not to patrol. They acted as something of a mercenary guild but also as something of a gang with good intentions more often than not. The Southern half of the island was primarily lower class business and housing. This wasn't for any particular reason aside from the docks being located along the North shore for the most part. The trouble only arose when run-ins occurred with "The Snakes' ' as they were called by the warriors. Originally founded by the Jurgikssen family generations ago, "The House of The Coiled Serpent" was a political group that sought to control the amount of power foreign entities would have over the island of Stirk. Essentially their goal was to keep Stirk independent, a goal usually accomplished by threatening foreigners and discouraging imports as well as exports. Though it isn't known exactly how the feud started, the general consensus was that the "Gryphons" wanted foreign business, but the "Serpents" did everything they could to prevent it. The reasons it started, however, were irrelevant to the guild members now as the heads of the two families were honorbound to uphold the conflict and make every attempt to destroy the influence of the other family.

Due to the perpetual conflict with the Jurgikssens, Ashled was raised in a home where all children were trained from birth to be "gentlemen warriors." It was essential that a Bjornson, be it the father, son, daughter, or mother, must be always ready for a battle with a demon, or audience with the emperor. Any less was to let down your ancestors and bring shame to the family. As the oldest son, Ashled took pride in being the walking personification of a gentleman warrior. Ashled had two siblings; a sister, younger by two years, named Breela; and a brother, younger by five years, named Aslan. Breela was a stoic girl who lived for the thrill of fights, often to the point of being off putting to her training partners. While a bit intense she was certainly one of the strongest warriors on the island. Aslan was not meant for such a life. Aslan was a poet and philosopher, he spent every free minute writing and dreaming of the distant lands, like the jungles of Elsweyr and the mountains of Skyrim. As a Bjornson he trained every day and could certainly hold his own in a fight, but he never saw the glory of battle as much as he saw glowing possibility on the horizon. Predictably, he found little audience in Breela, but Ashled loved to hear Aslan go on for hours about the beauty that lived just beyond the Abecean sea. One story in particular always managed to get Ashled's sense of adventure burning, this being the epic tale of Ysgramor. Ysgramor was a true man in Ashled's eyes. He was bound to no island, he was slave to no man, he dreamt of a new land and so he found it and conquered it. Ashled did not hate his home nor his duty to his family. He was proud to one day become the head of the Bjornson clan and he hoped to decimate the Jurgikssens in life but he would never stop dreaming he was Ysgramor, a stranger in a new land full of things to be discovered but empty of men who controlled him.

As years passed and Ashled grew into the man he would be known as, the conflict with the Jurgikssens mellowed to the point of petty vandalisms and squabbles amongst underlings. However, conflicts elsewhere were growing and certain events would unfold that would lead to something of a dream come true for Ashled. The Thalmor had made their move and with that war was declared between the Aldmeri Dominion of High elves and the Empire of Tamriel. During this time every able bodied man was obligated if not required to sign with the legion. Naturally the men of the Bjornson and Jurgikssen clans alike left by the boat full to prove the mettle of Stirk's men and women. Among them was the now 25 year old Ashled along with Breela (23) and Aslan (20). By this time Ashled's father Aslong had grown old, and though he wished to join his children he knew he needed to stay home to take care of his wife who was not cut from the same tough cloth that was sewn into a warrior. Before the siblings left for war, Aslong gifted them each a weapon to carry, as he didn't trust Imperial steel would hold with the power of a Bjornson behind it. To Aslan he gifted a sturdy pair of Stirk axes. The oversized heads of these axes boasted a polished finish and bore a symbol of the sun that was the centerpiece of Stirk's flag. To Breela he gifted a mighty Hammer so large even Breela needed to use both hands to properly utilize it. To Ashled, the eldest son, he gave the family sword Yggdrasil. The blade was broad and long, the pommel did little to counterbalance the heft of the blade, and the handle left only enough room for one hand. Aslong made teary eye contact with his son as he told him

"This blade is yours my son, it is meant to be a test of your strength. The build is such that only the strongest of Stirk's arms can swing it. In the hands of a weaker man it is useless. I give it to you now because I trust you are more than worthy of it." with that he sat down. Ashled could think of nothing to say...and so he said nothing. He hugged his father as did his sister and brother and they boarded the ship to Cyrodiil to join the Legion. Ashled never regretted not saying goodbye to his father. He knew he would see him again.

Ashled found the training to be rushed and sloppy. The empire was obviously counting on overwhelming the dominion with man power. In the sea of mediocrity, the siblings ascended quickly with both Ashled and Breela being promoted to Legate within a year, and being separated to lead their respective cohorts. Aslan impressed but not to the same degree as his siblings, he was quite happy to find out that he would not have to be separated from both of them as Ashled used the power afforded to him as Legate to appoint Aslan to the position of quartermaster for Ashled's cohort. Ashled and Aslan fought like beasts alongside their troops ending countless elves with unparalleled teamwork that inspired every one of their soldiers to fight until they collapsed. In his first 6 months as Legate, Ashled didn't lose a single soldier. He was a hero of the legion and a demon in the eyes of the elves. Over the course of the first year his men had taken to calling him "Ashled The Fleet" for his incredible speed in battle. He consistently displayed perfect and precise footwork that was thought to be only theoretical. He could run an obstacle course once and have not only memorized the course, but do it over again blindfolded landing each step in the exact footprint he left on his last run. However, as he proved himself with victory after overwhelming victory, it was generally agreed upon that name now referenced his insane destructive power, which was fabled to be equal to that of an entire fleet of imperial warships. Ashled knew most of his soldiers by name and was proud to lead them not only in title but as their chosen leader. He knew that they followed him because he was their hero. He enjoyed getting to know all of his men and their particular strengths. While all in his cohort were his brothers, there were two that were particularly interesting to him; the first was an imperial maiden by the name of Alcedonia. She was fascinating to him because she reveled in the glory of a good fight and easily managed two elves at once, much like Breela; however she also had a fondness for song and story, and would often sing by the fire when the cohort set up camp. He had never truly believed one could excel at both martial and romantic pursuits, and feared his time to give up one or the other was approaching. She more than anyone gave him hope that he could be more than just a warrior like Breela or a romantic like Aslan. Sometime in his third year out with the legion, Ashled had fallen in love with Alcedonia. At first she was so focused on the war at hand she didn't want to take time to entertain his pursuits but he persisted. The two inspired each other to go beyond what they thought was possible. As they both realized this more and more they grew closer until they both, as professionally as expected, agreed to be married upon the conclusion of the war.

The second person of particular interest to Ashled was a man who, like Ashled, embodied the very spirit of a gentleman warrior. He cooked meals from rations that would be fit for a nobleman, he had vast knowledge of classic literature, he carried himself as if he was a king, and he was the single most deadly man on the battlefield at any given time. Even Ashled The Fleet couldn't help but feel this man's presence as he ripped through lines of soldiers as if they were rows of corn and he was their harvester. His hammer was ever-coated in Aldmeri blood and his reflexes were such that he would begin dodging an attack before the enemy soldier had even started his swing. Also like Ashled, this man claimed to hail from Stirk. While he was a fine warrior and certainly had the stature of a man from Stirk, Ashled doubted this man could truly have lived in the same city he did all these years, as any warrior of merit would surely have joined the Gryphons. Regardless, he was a horrifying sight in battle, and predictably, like Ashled, this man had also earned himself something of a title. By man and mer alike, he was referred to as "Tor the Destroyer"