Atakhan

Excerpt by Ezkiel Arentavon in "Nox, a city in turmoil"
"... he was an unusual guy. You wouldn't see a citizen like him everyday. He sometimes walked up and down the street for hours at a time, not blinking once. It was as if he was trying to find something within his own little vicinity. The only time he'd stop is when Mylo, the stray cat of the neighbourhood, would come up to him. He'd look down, bow down, give her a pet once or twice and continue walking up and down the street. He was strange but nobody expected him to cause such a mayhem.

''I remember the evening of the incident quite vividly. It was shortly before the sun set on a summer evening. The wind was soft on the skin and one could see the moon surprisingly well. I recall telling the Royal Guards that the blackboard next to the town hall was outdated after I had just come down the street from the docks. I used to love fishing back then but ever since, I hesitate to step out of the city walls. Just as I turned the corner, he was standing there. His body taped with some sort of inscription roles with a language I've never seen in my life! In his right arm, a spear piercing into his upper body. It was glowing in a yellow hue and blood was flowing all over it. I also noticed his mask was missing and his eye shining in an undescribable color. Just when I wanted to step back, he turned pointing his finger at me. I don't recall anything after that. I woke up in my bed as if it had been a normal morning. The birds were chirping, Mylo was jumping at the academy professor, asking him to buy a fish, and the tides turned like before. However, Atakhan had disappeared and with him, all the books in the city. The real horror is yet to be mentioned, however. All of the scribes, including their homes, burned to ashes and dust. Nothing was left. Not a single piece of paper remained. It was horrible. It was as if someone had put a black veil on this city, disconnecting us from the history of our land and the happenings all around the world we had carefully written down in our books. On this day, we decided to name the city Nox Aeterna. The eternal night." Atakhan "the unshackled" is a Librarian in Rathnir, living in The Lunari Empire at the south wall of it's capital, Nox Aeterna. After his arrival in Lunaris, he worked hisself quickly up the ranks, becoming second in charge- The so-called Voice of the Empress''. He takes care of the books within the city and is known as a pet-loving introvert. There is not much known about him, however a few ancient documents mention his name, granting insight into his past.

Early life
His date and place of birth are unknown. Looking at his appearance, he can't be much older than 40 and not much younger than 20 human years. When asked where and when he was born, he most commonly responds with "I am where I want to be, when I want to be". His parents are unknown, hence he doesn't bear a surname and likes to be adressed with his first name, derivating from one of his ancestors names, according to Atakhan himself.

Arrival in Nox Aeterna
Almost exactly two winters after Lunaris had come into existence, Atakhan arrived at the front gate in the middle of the night. The winds were harsh and the temperature unbearable at night. He stood there until the first fisherman in the morning discovered him. He was calmly sitting on the docks, reading some books he had brought with him which were wrapped in a silk cloth. He was wearing his iconic mask, hiding his right half of his face. On his first day he strolled the city, talking to citizens and scribes, eager to learn more about the city itself. However on his second day, he was already shaking the hand of the Empress. It was as if she had found a liking in him the second they passed each other on the street. On the third, he became librarian and on the fourth he was announced the right hand of the Empress.

Voice of the Empress
As right hand of the Empress, Atakhan immediately gathered the scribes and builders of the city to build a new academy and library. This academy, now, the Moon Academy, holds all the literary treasures of Nox. Books ranging from adventure tell tales to zooligcal documentations have been made available for everyone to read. He quickly got hands on some books of brewing and cheesemaking and started helping new citizens find a profession as brewer or cheesemaker. For one of the new citizens he went so far to have a tavern and a cheese factory built. He quickly became friends with most of the elderly and made sure no stranger was let into the safe castle walls. He even went as far to consider building a giant dome over the city, however he was talked out of it by his senior architects.

"The incident"
The incident describes a series of mysterious deaths and fires in the Lunari capital Nox Aeterna. On a shining wednesday morning all scribes of the city and their works were burned to the ground. The only one to survive was Atakhan and his works, however the culprit was never found. Ancient scripts lead to believe that Atakhan was hunted by the most powerful men in Rathnir, wanting to abuse his writing and history-shaping skills. These scrips also document Atakhan being able to bend paper that has been written on to his will, making him able to utilize it as weaponry, which in return leads to believe the documents the scribes had forged were burned down as a countermeasure. Atakhan was seen injured, as documented by multiple citizens, having a spear pierce his arm before his hour-long disappearance. Atakhan was found going on about his daily life on the day after and led the ceremonies held for the mourning family-members of the scribes. He refuses to answer to anyone but the Empress about the incident.