Odin Faefather

One of the first Fae created during the Dance of Darkness, Odin is the wise leader of his people in the Redspike Mountains, one all look up to. For over a decade, Odin climbed the peaks, explored the valleys, and observed the wildlife of the Redspikes alone. During this time his only friends were the ravens, mountain horses, and wolves, creatures with whom he found a simple yet satisfying affinity. His closest friend was an eight-legged steed, whom he named Sleipnir. Odin loved to learn, possessing a deep wanderlust, for wherever he went there were new things to see, hear, smell, and feel. His thirst for knowledge was so great he was willing to endure almost any suffering to acquire it. When he encountered the malicious Firstborn, Mimir, a voracious information-seeker, he agreed to pluck out one of his eyes in exchange for the being’s knowledge of Teleria and its history. The Odin who finally encountered more Fae over a decade after he first set foot in the Redspike Mountains learned in his year alone powers of healing, poetry, future-scrying, and battle, and acquired the mighty spear Gungnir. All Fae he met admired him, and there were thousands. Thor loved him for his knowledge and toughness. Freyja loved him for his wisdom and curiosity. To at first have so few friends then suddenly be the leader of thousands was an unexpected change, but Odin saw this as another opportunity to learn. The Fae needed homes, and so he oversaw the construction of Asgard and dozens more keep-houses using knowledge Mimir gave him. Though they loved him as a father, Odin was a distant leader to his new followers. He was prone to becoming lost in thought and never abandoned his love for wandering Teleria. He often disappeared from Asgard without warning, always acting as if nothing had happened when he returned and that he had always been around. In a way, many people of Asgard believed he had, for some of his animal familiars always stayed behind like winged and clawed stewards. The Fae were sure Odin could communicate with the creatures, even seeing and hearing events through their eyes and ears. For centuries, the Redspikes Fae flourished. Early in the Age of Treachery another Fae joined them, called Loki. Quick of wit and sharp of tongue, he was well-liked by almost all. He delighted the young with his shape-shifting abilities. He listened to fellow roamer Odin’s lessons for hours in attentive silence, and in return taught the Wisest Fae of distant lands. What should have been a fruitful relationship however was not quite that for Odin. He was suspicious. Loki never fully laid out his life’s story, and his uncanny ability to always find the perfect thing to say brought much doubt to Odin’s mind. When Loki disappeared from Asgard without warning, Odin was sad, for he would no longer hear tales of distant places and creatures, troubled because Loki could cause much mischief – or worse – elsewhere, and relieved that the trickster Fae would no longer be an influential presence in Asgard — all at the same time. Loki had been gone for decades when the War of Kaerok erupted with the armies of Frostheim surged from the Redspikes into the lowlands of Anhelt, razing towns and cities by the dozen. Despite the ferocity of the assault, the Free Cities of Kaerok were united by Acelin the Stalwart, who rallied their disparate armies and, alongside the Elves and Sacred Order, invaded and conquered Frostheim. The Sacred Order in particular fought to quash the myriad spiritualities that thrived in the Redspikes, and saw this included the Frostheimers love of the Fae. They put dozens of hall-keeps to the torch and killed and displaced hundreds of Fae. Asgard only escaped discovery thanks to Freyja Fateweaver, who cast a great blizzard-shroud over the region to shield it from mortal eyes and blades. Thus isolated, Asgard declined in the years that followed and many Fae departed. Odin took to wandering the empty halls. Where there was once laughter and conversation, there was quiet. Where there was once life and growth, there was decay. These were new experiences for Odin, ones he could not enjoy. Centuries passed, and memories of a bustling Asgard all but faded, including that of the mischievous trickster that once frequented Odin’s great hall-keep. When Freyja suddenly experienced a prophecy pertaining to Loki, the Fire Knight, and the Waters of Life, Odin was stunned and his faith in his own wisdom was shattered. He had had no clue that the Trickster was capable of such catastrophic foolishness. He had thought Loki was untrustworthy, perhaps dangerous to mortals if he was so inclined, but not capable of initiating events that could plunge Teleria into oblivion. Cold fury took Odin.