Paal Kingslayer

Paal Kingslayer was a Reaper Superior, and one of Din's companions in the Chronicles of Paladin Wainwright. He is infrequently referenced in the Unnamed Story.

Paal was what the Riverki call a Wolf: a perfect example of every trait they value. Strong, fast, and utterly vicious, he was a terror in battle, gifted with a blade and utterly merciless to his foes. His death of the Blackness left his sons, Cole and Rhys, with a great legacy to live up to.

History
Being born to a well-known family promises some measure of notoriety, and among the Riverki, it is twice as true. Though only the elder of the Kingslayer twins, Paal was always considered first-born, and as such was expected to be better at everything than everyone else. The family name had been made long before his birth, and that its last representative--his father--was a giant only meant that he cast an even longer shadow...one that Paal would someday have to live up to. It was a challenge he took to with single-minded determination. Even in his early training, it was clear that he was stronger than his fellows, faster and more observant, and ultimately more dangerous. His raw power combined with a notorious family name endeared him to few, but it earned him respect. He scaled the clan's hierarchy in record time, attaining the rank of Hunter Prime by 22, and Reaper Superior by 25, and though he had no guarantee towards his father's position, his achievements more than qualified him. And he would have been the Elder of Clan Vatesh, if not for the Blackness.

Personality
Paal never quite mastered the social aspect of interaction. For all his skill with a blade, he could no more chain together a kind sentence than he could separate his arm, and shows of support and even sympathy were often beyond him--not because he did not feel these things, but because he lacked the means to express them. He never learned to pull his punches, having never understood why a fight should be anything less than a fight. Permanently sour and easy to anger, he found himself with few friends in life, and those whom he did maintain were present only because they learned to see through to his well-hidden gentler side.

Outside of combat, where his blunt aggression was a boon, Paal was reserved and stoic, a masterful cover for his uncertainty in interacting with others. But the people he connected to enjoyed the kind of devotion that cannot be bought, with Petya holding the highest honor of his loyalty, in return for his eternal support. He was utterly unable to admit defeat, his great strength and iron will propelling him through even the most treacherous situations, often at the cost of his own safety. Surrender was never an option.

The Unnamed Story
Paal contracted the Blackness when his children were toddlers, and fought for years against its ravages, but even he was unable to defeat it. Cole's few memories of his father are foggy, but clearer than anything, he remembers his death--the horror of what had become of him. It is something he thinks of frequently as he goes along his road, having discovered his own mortality at the hands of the same disease. As his carefully-guarded condition silently worsens, Cole remembers his father, and how the Blackness erased him body and soul from his life. It is a fate he deeply dreads.

The Chronicles of Paladin Wainwright
If Paal is good at anything, it's following orders--but he doesn't have to like it, and he certainly does not like being assigned to an escort mission, which he feels is beneath him. What starts out as a simple fetch quest soon turns into an epic journey, from which he finds he cannot extract himself. Having never met a challenge he could not bodily beat into submission, he tackles the mission's finer points with his standard method of bulldozing, and his failures in tact and social grace quickly backfire. As the story goes along, his determination to remain unconcerned with the goings-on beyond Riverenbeck slowly begin to fray apart, as he finds himself more and more entangled in the drama unfolding on all sides, his staunch elitist perspective repeatedly challenged in the process.

Paal appears as a major character in the Chronicles, which take place ten years before his death. Then only a Hunter Prime, Paal finds himself bodily thrown into a journey he wants no part of--at first. His role is largely to act as a foil to Din, his serious and unrelenting personality often clashing with the more light-hearted one of the notorious thief. It is a major lesson in human interaction, and more than once, Paal's prowess and ironclad will come in handy.

Petya
Of all the world, there is no person Paal is closer to than his twin. Having grown up together, Petya was the one out of all the clan to see him in his weakest moments, and to forgive his faults. Though he often resents Petya's wisdom, knowing all too well which of them is smarter, Paal values his opinion and considers it even when it clashes with his own. Their personalities are polar-opposite, and often times, Petya takes the brunt of Paal's temper when he gets carried away, but he holds a silent appreciation for his support, and will not hesitate to jump to his defense. If Petya is in danger, all the world falls away; Paal would not hesitate to kill anyone he feels is a menace to him--no matter who they are. (Or what Petya has to say about it.)

Din
Paal has no idea what to think of Din. On the surface, the thief is what he should be, obnoxious, overly talkative, disrespectful of boundaries and weak of moral code--but the harder Paal tries to understand, the more Din surprises him. The Malvarian thief has shown himself as skilled enough in battle, with a fearless sort of disregard for his own safety, something Paal is also notorious for. He shows sympathy, in spite of his own persistent aggression, and his good humor and friendliness deeply unnerve him. Still, there is something strangely endearing about him, to the point that Paal finds himself stepping between the thief and his enemies more and more. He simply cannot understand him.

Dick
It was Paal's actions that brought Dick into the story, and it is a fact he will never forget. His original intention was to kill the knight for his horse, but as Riverki Law governs that people not be killed lest they are hostile, he simply settled to strand him. It wasn't until he reappeared later--pathetically, desperately in love with Petya by this point--that Paal was tempted to violate the Laws. Paal dislikes knights as a matter of course, their general brutality and high and mighty demeanors setting them at odds with the Riverki, and Dick is only a partial exception. It is Paal's love for Petya that protects his life, and even that has its limits.

The Elder
Paal has a complicated relationship with his father. On the one hand, his strict Riverki training has left him with a built-in loyalty and obedience to authority, and there are few powers in their society higher than the Elder. On the other, being raised in his shadow left Paal with a crippling sense of self-doubt that even now drives him to extreme behaviors in order to prove his skill. But that does not change that he is his commander, and if he is anything, it is good at taking orders. Even if he doesn't like it. His loyalty to him is only outmatched by his loyalty to Petya, and the conflict of interests inherent in that has caused problems.

Trivia

 * His preferred weapon is a monstrous greatsword, able to halve a man and the hips and cleave through most types of armor. He is also an accomplished fencer, to compensate his lack of shield-training.
 * Paal is left-handed, and all of his weapons are custom-built to accommodate this. This gives him an advantage against right-handed opponents, who rarely have to block on their strong-side.
 * Despite his great skill in combat, Paal he never learned to read or write. Though common among Riverki (save the Scribes), he had the opportunity as the Elder's son. He simply refused.