Oakerd Arkoden

Oakerd Arkoden (played by Oakxygen) is the founder and first ruler of Celtenn. He is of mixed descent, and resides in Western Escharia.

Early life
Oakerd was born in harsh conditions. The only child of a nomadic family, he never knew the comfort of a true home that so many of his peers had, yet never took the time to appreciate. Years came and went, and now he was growing sick of all this. The never ending march across vast plains, lush forests, and unforgiving deserts. This didn't feel like a life worth living.

So, per his family's tradition, as soon as the boy reached the arguably mature age of 16, he was let go of by the parents and set out to find a permanent home. First, he journeyed southward, and towards the very edges of explored Rathnir. This was uncharted territory for the young traveler, as he soon found himself searching for home and food among pirate-ridden tortugan lands. Sitting in ports and on the streets, Oakerd overheard talks of the fame and wealth of mayors and emperors, and all the things money could buy. The topics fascinated him, but he could never strike up a conversation with anyobody to learn more. It's safe to say that Oakerd was not ready for adult life, especially being as unintegrated into society as he was. But finaly, the teen had found what seemed like a reasonable home. Atopolis, a big Tortugan city with mighty walls of stone. He was welcomed with open arms, and spent months learning the customs and beliefs of their people. But, he didn't stay there for much longer. Now, at 19, his nomadic nature took the best of him when Oakerd joined a mining expedition headed up north, to the Escharian domain. The journey promised to bring wealth to explorers, which ,some promised, was greater than that of the Mesa people. In hindsight, it is obvious that the operation was blown out of proportion, and the expectations shouldn't have been set so high. But all of that knowledge was unavailable to the young lad, who, proudly holding a sturdy pickaxe in his hands, boarded a ship, setting sail to Nieden.

The Nieden job
It wasn't long untill Oakerd found himself arriving at the destination. The bare and abandoned West Coast of the mighty Escharian Empire did not seem welcoming in the slightest. Frankly, it was the opposite. Old coastal cities that once promised fame and wealth to their citizens had now faded away into obscurity, becoming largely underpopulated, or, as was often the case, abandoned completely. Leaving the ship, Oakerd was feeling much less enthusiactic. "Think about the wealth, about all the stuff you'd buy back home" the young miner was thinking to himself. In the folowing months of grueling work, his hope dwindled away completely. So did the hope to find all the promised gold. Be it disinformation, or a simple mistake, the expedition failed to uncover the hidden riches. Oak truly hit the "bottom". Or so he thought. He will learn what "bottom" truly feels like very, very soon.

Winter turned out harsher than usual. No one expected it to be light. Far from it. But this season it was ruthless. Many suffered from disease, and starved to death. This was "bottom" at it's finest. Ravens have been sent to the nearest cities to request early pick up, but nothing came from it. The birds, and their messages, were probably buried under thick snow within hours of their departure. Staying at the mining camp will kill the team sooner or later. With no hope for a safe ride home, the group, consisting of about three dozen men, many of whom were already weakened by the terrible conditions, set out to the East, hoping to bump into a city at some point. However, without proper equipment and a compass, the expedition slowly turned northbound, and was now moving in a completely different direction.

The Guardian
36 became 30. 30 fell to 25. 25 slowly turned to 20. The group wasnt holding up in the winter.

'"Frosty slopes, shivering breeze, devouring hunger. None has prepared ..." "...The only hope - our dreams. Lone was us." "The guardian had no name at first; it was given to him, Bob. The majestic creature roared thunder, seen and heard from all Nieden. Lost souls gathered here to near the prophet. He who listens, he lives."' - From Bob's Burden by Thompson Carter.

The group found themselves among cold peaks. One dark and particularly cold night, Oakerd notices a dim light. Everyone else would have shrugged it away as a normal star. But the nomad noted how this was not one he had known of. Deciding to scout ahead, he ran from mountain to mountain, finding shelter in tiny caves along the way. This light was almost certainly not a star, Oak thought to himself as he was moving towards the peculiar light. Abruptly, thunder broke out. It was so loud that the boy fell to the ground, fearing for his life. By now, he had come so close to the source of light, that theories began popping up. Perhaps it was a team of explorers, or maybe a resque squad sent to find him and the miners. Climbing to the hill from which this light was emiting, he found himself among strange people. All cold, shivering, much like his company. Among them were two young sailors, wearing clothes obviously not fit for the conditions, some knights carying swords, and many women, men, and even children. He would soon come to learn that these people had, by the hands of fate, found themselves lost in the snow. It seemed like Oakerd was the only person among the many that gathered, who could safely traverse mountainous terrain. Thus, he led the way. Admitedly not without casualties, they reached the top, and found there nothing but a shining bear.

And the rest is history to the Celtenn people, told in children books and newspapers alike. To wrap up the story of the mining trip, I will conclude by saying that little of the initial 36, few survived the ordeal, but those who did pledged their loyalty to Bob - their saviour, and Oakerd - the courageous scout

Building Celtenn
(Read about in: Celtenn)

At this point, Oakerd's true journey begins. At only age 20, he found himself at the epicenter of a deity's descent, and now was esteemed by all the people he had helped. Bob, the Guardian provided food and shelter, while Oak was looked at as the true leader of the community. After days, people statred gathering supplies and leaving. Oakerd, however, believed that he had found his purpose. Ultimately, he found his home. Years passed, and the small community grew from a single lonely shack atop a windswept hill, to more than 20 houses and a stable population, a shockingly big library

Rapid shifts
With Oakerd’s life turning around in an instant, he now lived, seemingly, in perfect conditions. Now that all the young man’s basic needs were satisfied, he had money on his mind. And, with years, that grew into an obsession. Off course, when you live your younger years powerless and with barely a dollar in the pocket of your town pants, as soon as you gain the slightest bit of influence and wealth, it will only overwhelm you, and lead to unhealthy changes.

There was no doubt that Oak was great at expanding the city, helping it grow and prosper. But with more and more time passing by, his desires grew unreasonable. Soon, instead of contributing his riches to the city, like he once did, and funding the library’s construction, Oakerd now spent most of it on expensive equipment, premium animals, and, most interestingly, a castle of immense size, which was being designed by premium Rathnir architects.

So, living the best life he could, the boy turned to man, growing older and older, as well as rising to new positions within the social elites of the various iterations of the Escharian Empire he had seen come and go as time went on.

Brittle Old Man
For more information on Oakerd’s late life, read Scribbles from the Old Journal

Oakerd loved one particular spot in his busy city. Atop a hill overlooking “Tom’s Bar”, his hometown seemed as if it was in the palm of his hand, while still letting the old mayor keep away from the loud streets bustling with visitors, citizens, and merchants.

Oakerd was old. Very old in fact. At the age of 70, he had lived the fullest life possible. He now had a family, trusted friends, and son. All you could ever want. In reality, nothing was as simple as it seemed. Oak’s selfish habits we’re repulsive to many, while the fat ego he possessed made him blind to that fact. His social life was, essentially, a self-constructed lie, with all the people still at his side staying for the money. There was only one man, who stayed truly friendly to Oakerd, despite all of his flaws. Ouro, the mysterious visitor from a long-dead city of Mortem has grown close to this old man, ever since they met in his thirties.

But the most scary part of Oakerd that changed? His greed. His lust for money. His quest to gain profit in every way imaginable, be it morally correct or not. “Running a big city leaves very little money left to embezzle” must have been the though running through Oak’s mind, as he picked up the sharp and shiny sword, hanging off a coat hook, leaving to go and bandit, already to leave a bloody trail behind him just to satisfy his “wants”