Cadfael Espeni

Background
Timeline of Key Dates
 * 175 - Born.

The official story is this:

Cadfael Espeni is a new member of the nobility; one of those rare occasions when a family is elevated to status through merit rather than birth. In his particular case his elevation to nobility came in the wake of the Corvus-Ursan War, after he led a relatively small group of soldiers in a series of dangerous missions against the other side, something he could only manage due to their shared gift - wild magic, particularly shapeshifting. Due to the constant efforts of the small group, the war swung dramatically in favor of Ursa near the very end, and the rest is of course history.

The unofficial story, or the one which most people mutter to each other behind closed doors, is this:

Cadfael Espeni is certainly a shapeshifter, but the rest is up for debate. Because of the chaotic nature of war it's difficult to confirm any stories, of course. The overarching rumor is that his family, or at least one member of it, were traitors. Several sources (most of them anonymous and impossible to track) will say that either he turned against his family - with the implication that the entire family had been working against Ursa until then - or they turned against him at the last moment - implying that he was the only one not to work against Ursa at the end. Either way, a bloody battle took place, and Cadfael and a group of a few others were the only survivors.

All of these stories will particularly single out a brother. Most of them will say he was killed. Some suggest that it was all a ruse and Cadfael let his brother go, or even arranged for his safe passage into another country.

Not that anyone in Ursa would judge him for it, given that the outcome of the war was strongly in Ursa's favor (although the Lynx-Corvus commonwealth as an economic rival may count as a negative result). His combat and tactical ability is well-established, and that's all that matters now.

Personality
Cadfael, when at work, is serious and determined, to the point of ruthlessness and near suicidal insanity when pushed to (or beyond) the limit. It's often been said that once someone gets on Cadfael's bad side, there is no amount of distance between the two that will make them safe - if he wants revenge, he'll get it, one way or the other.

When at rest, he's casual, cheerful, and prone to making jokes and sarcastic quips to make light of a situation, especially when the subject of his sarcasm is something that particularly annoys him.

He favors one of three shapes for any given battle - A Wolfaboo, a Queen Bearbee, or a giant predatory cat. The first two shapes are, of course, sacred to their respective gods, so he defaults to the third when he doesn't have enough time to ritually appease them before turning into their sacred animals. It takes time, okay.

Existing Relationships:
TBA

PROBABLY ONE WITH BIZARRO-AURA

AND AVEN

AND REALLY ALL OF BIZARRO-URSA

AND BIZARRO-JACE?

BIZARRO-TOBIAS TOO