Kellen Ashby
Kellen Ashby is a ruthless criminal underlord in the Allirian Shallows.
Operating mostly within the Alliria, Kellen has established a small gangs that deals with smugglers and pirates who wish to sell their goods inside of the city. The operation of the gang is fairly simple, buying stolen or pirated goods and then through a complex numerical system selling them as legally garnered goods.
This operation has grown in size over the last few years and has earned Kellen and his gang enough coin to purchase a storefront within Alliria's middle city.
Of course this modest illegal business is really only the start of Kellen's ambition. Having grown up within the slums seeing numerous illegal activities, the young man dreams of forging something far greater and more cohesive than he currently operates.
This desire comes from a deep and dark need for control, a drive that planted itself within Kellen's mind at an extremely young age.
Of course, in this world ambition is not enough to get what you want. Luckily the young Underlord is aided by his own ruthlessness as well as his inherent magical ability.
Skills and Abilities
Through his lifetime of misery Kellen has learned to be an incredibly ruthless fighter and an effective close quarters combatant, his most useful ability however lays within a right granted to him at birth.Though he has no true understanding of his abilities, nor where they came from, Kellen is what's known as a Magical Leech. In simple, his abilities do not come from any one source of power. There is no divine granting him strength, no element he calls upon, nor any artifact he calls upon.
Instead, Kellen's ability lays solely in taking power from others.
His abilities as a leech are innate and inherent, taking effect whenever he is around another mage or sorcerer. The power he gains is 'leeched' from from said person or magical object. In effect, he takes the abilities of his counter and mirrors them, though the reflection is tarnished and a ghost of itself.
Put more simply; Kellen naturally takes on the abilities of the mages around him to a lesser degree. When he steals the abilities of other sorcerers he does not automatically gain their training or skill, and thus must rely entirely upon his own instinct in the use of whatever magic he is wielding. This can of course be incredibly dangerous.
Whatever magic he takes it also inherently weaker than it's source, since Kellen is only ever capable of taking a small portion of his victims power. This can be increased if he touches the victim, and even more so if the effect is voluntary.
His innate nature as a Leech is also not a voluntary act. It takes conscious effort for him not to leech power from someone, and when he is not aware that someone nearby is a sorcerer his body naturally begins the process of taking their ability.
It should also be noted that Kellen does not keep the powers that he takes, nor can he store them and 'save' them for later. The power he takes is always only temporary, and remains for a few hours at best. It goes without saying that Kellen holds no magic ability without another source, and thus has no power unless a sorcerer is nearby.
Biography & Lore
Kellen Ashby was born in the section of Alliria known as The Shallows. An unpleasant and broken childhood, he was thrown out of his home almost as soon as he could speak, confined to the gutter with no love and little care.
Survival was the name of his childhood, nothing else.
In order to live Kellen joined a street gang composed almost entirely of urchins, run by an older boy who would direct the children to steal and beg. Beatings in this environment were a regular occurrence, and Kellen endured almost a complete lack of control until for many years into his adolescents.
As the misery grew and grew, Kellen began to toughen up. Over the years he learned to fight, hide his emotions, and manipulate his way into better treatment. This all came to a head when he turned fourteen, and during a confrontation with the gangs then leader killed the boy. The fight was utterly brutal, and ended with Kellen taking control of the small gang.
For a while the gang thrived under Kellen's leadership. They committed robberies, burglaries, and many other crimes until one day they went too far.
Eyes bigger than their stomach Kellen and his gang broke into the Embassy of Elbion, their intent to steal valuable artifacts. It was during this robbery that Kellen discovered his abilities as a Magical Leech.
The gang was caught red-handed in the Embassy's Vaults, and the guards were not kind. Trained mages, the men who caught them lashed out with powerful magics. Most of his gang was slaughtered in initial rampage, with only Kellen and two others surviving.
It was then that the Head Guard stepped forward, a fireball within his palm. It burned bright, searing in anger as the man prepared to burn Kellen alive. In a moment of complete and utter desperation the young boy screamed, and with that scream came a power he had never felt before. Fire filled him, power that he did not understand. He lashed out with his new found strength, catching the mage by surprise and killing him and his allies.
Though it took many more months, Kellen eventually learned to understand and even gain a modicum of control over his abilities.
Over time the young man used these powers to pull himself from the gutters, gather new gang members and create the beginnings of a small Cartel. His ruthless nature and ability to turn a fight with even the smallest hint of magic proving invaluable within the darker corners of Alliria.
Survival was the name of his childhood, nothing else.
In order to live Kellen joined a street gang composed almost entirely of urchins, run by an older boy who would direct the children to steal and beg. Beatings in this environment were a regular occurrence, and Kellen endured almost a complete lack of control until for many years into his adolescents.
As the misery grew and grew, Kellen began to toughen up. Over the years he learned to fight, hide his emotions, and manipulate his way into better treatment. This all came to a head when he turned fourteen, and during a confrontation with the gangs then leader killed the boy. The fight was utterly brutal, and ended with Kellen taking control of the small gang.
For a while the gang thrived under Kellen's leadership. They committed robberies, burglaries, and many other crimes until one day they went too far.
Eyes bigger than their stomach Kellen and his gang broke into the Embassy of Elbion, their intent to steal valuable artifacts. It was during this robbery that Kellen discovered his abilities as a Magical Leech.
The gang was caught red-handed in the Embassy's Vaults, and the guards were not kind. Trained mages, the men who caught them lashed out with powerful magics. Most of his gang was slaughtered in initial rampage, with only Kellen and two others surviving.
It was then that the Head Guard stepped forward, a fireball within his palm. It burned bright, searing in anger as the man prepared to burn Kellen alive. In a moment of complete and utter desperation the young boy screamed, and with that scream came a power he had never felt before. Fire filled him, power that he did not understand. He lashed out with his new found strength, catching the mage by surprise and killing him and his allies.
Though it took many more months, Kellen eventually learned to understand and even gain a modicum of control over his abilities.
Over time the young man used these powers to pull himself from the gutters, gather new gang members and create the beginnings of a small Cartel. His ruthless nature and ability to turn a fight with even the smallest hint of magic proving invaluable within the darker corners of Alliria.