Hex

"What's life without the spice of madness?" -Hex With his parents victims of the Nordshire Cemetery plague, Hex, known today as the Mad Diviner, was left to fend for himself before he was discovered by a troupe of actors and acrobats. Hex quickly fell in love with the atmosphere of the troupe, with each member possessing one dazzling skillset or another. They in turn adored his eager mind and willingness to assist… so much so that he was adopted by two members--a trick shot archer and his wife, a tarot reader. The couple took note of Hex's sharp acumen and trained him in their respected crafts. He would perform daily as the archer's assistant, and in the evenings his adoptive mother taught him the mystical intricacies of tarot. During one reading, she foresaw great sorrow in the boy's future and urged him to always seek peace, no matter what befell him. Of course, evil finds a way of rearing its ugly head. After a Duke of the Mosune Empire witnessed one of the troupe's performances with his men, he demanded an evening alone with the tarot reader. The couple adamantly refused, and were slain in a melee with the Duke's drunken guards, the Duke himself landing the killing blows. Grief-stricken, the members of the troupe disbanded, and the boy they'd helped raise was devastated…but he did not forget. Maddened with gloom, his sorrow was eventually replaced by an ember of rage which promptly fanned into an inferno. For years he honed the crafts of his adoptive parents in solitude, obsessing over the mystical powers of tarot while using its magic to enhance his skills in archery, forgetting his mother's cautionary reading entirely. When the time was right, Hex infiltrated the personal quarters of the murderous Duke, pulling him from his bed and tying him to a post. Though he quivered and begged for his life, Hex merely smiled and laid out a deck of cards. First, he drew The Emperor, representing the powerful Duke. Next, The Lovers--the beautiful couple he'd slaughtered. Judgement was next, depicting the very situation the Duke now found himself in. The room went silent as Hex drew The Hanged Man before silently stringing the Duke up by the neck. As he struggled and kicked, the final card was pulled: Death. Hex, the Mad Diviner filled the strangling Duke with arrows, laughing maniacally before escaping to see what other thrills the world might offer.