Logan Barclay

The early life of Logan Barclay was unremarkable, save for two respects: firstly, he was the elder of two elder of two brothers in line for the lordship of Whispering Reeds, and secondly in that he spent much of his youth among the tribal groups native to the barony of Trebachas.

The first consideration meant that his needs were generally taken care of by his father, but all the same applied a certain degree of pressure to the young heir. Into Logan was poured all his father's thoughts and training regarding honour and duty, not to mention protecting his younger brother Ewan from harm. In this task Logan generally excelled, though it was not without confrontation between the two from time to time. All the same, the two brothers loved one another greatly, and as Ewan grew after the mold of Logan, the elder brother found ways to cut his sibling some slack, unbeknownst to their father.

One way in which this came out was the exposure the two of them had to the spiritual societies among the tribal population of Whispering Reeds; a relationship peculiar to this lordship allowing for both the ancient and the modern to coexist in relative harmony. Less proud and fierce than the tribal society of Dun Artan, the tribes of Trebachas were of a gentler disposition; concerned with wisdom gleaned from the patterns of the natural world around them more than the arts and glories of warfare. Logan's father, Lord Gregor Barclay, had retained respect from the tribal community, and was eager that his heir grow up likewise; Logan was often sent to study with the tribal elders, though Ewan he intended to groom for more civil duties. However, as the two boys grew, more often than not would Logan conspire with his brother to sneak him along for such tutelage, and the pair became equally enamoured with the spiritual, superstitious tribes.

As the youthful heir grew to manhood, Logan's schooling in duty and honour was to take a turn in a rather more strict direction, for his father wished him to serve time in the legions; at the age of seventeen he was sent to enlist for his mandatory six months of training.

During his training period. Logan's eyes were opened rather sharply to the realities of life within the legions, and his relatively peaceful youth in Whispering Reeds stood as a stark contrast. Here in the legions he was required to take orders from another, and his schedule was decided for him. Gone were the privileges of being a Lord's son, and in their stead a slow realization that the other men and women around him respected only one thing: performance.

One incident which helped instill this lesson was Logan's first encounter with a man named Svoran Beridar; himself a relatively new recruit to the legions. While Svoran preferred to distance himself from the place of his birth, it was no secret that he hailed from Rayder Pass, in Dun Artan, which bordered Whispering Reeds. Despite their proximity to one another, the tribes of the two lordships were vastly different in nature, and Logan decided to pass comment upon the nature of those from Rayder Pass; to Svoran's displeasure. A black eye each and a bloodied nose for Logan later, and the youthful nobleman had learned a valuable lesson about toying with the tempers of those unlike himself. The two had to be separated by their superiors in the end, and once again the lack of privilege was made known to Logan as he was punished equally by their Centurion, Jorsten Var.

But, despite this unfortunate beginning, Logan and Svoran formed a strange friendship afterward. They were never close, and rarely spent time with one another, but their first (and on record, only) fight had left each of them with a measure of respect for one another that did not seem to ever fade afterward. Doubtless this was aided along by Logan's eventual apology for his words, but it's been surmised that his right hook might have had just as much to do with it. Either way, the future Lord Barclay always enjoyed meeting Svoran from here on out, and this fall to earth for the youthful noble is certain to have played a part in shaping the man he came to be over time.

After his six months in service, against his father's expectations and wishes Logan decided to stay on for another three years; something about the life agreed with him, and a hitherto undeveloped appreciation for graft was emerging. Logan had grown to like the more physical, and more direct manner in which his daily life was conducted, and more and more he seemed to take to the lack of status afforded within the barracks. The banter, the camaraderie and the sense of purpose that came from the training and exercise of the legions had coaxed an excitement in him that previously was reserved for the tribal tutelage, and so having just turned eighteen years of age, he refused his father's demand that he return home, pledging himself to another, more demanding spell of time amongst the warriors of the Empire.

Another acquaintance of Logan's at this time, was Asha Barca, and served as his first true introduction to the famous house that rules the Isle of Guardian. Before her, his impression of the Barca family was from boring, stately, infrequent functions, and Asha came as something of a revelation to him. His knowledge and experience of the tribal way of life in Trebachas was what drew the young Asha to him in turn, for she was ever eager to learn more about them; the tales of his youth were a happy currency between the two. In return, she offered an insight into the more civilized aspirations of the Isle of Guardian, and the two spoke much about honour and duty to the Empire.

Indeed, during Logan's time serving his first three years in the infantry, his newfound work ethic and sharp wits had marked him out for promotion, and coupled with the sense of purposes instilled from his time with the boisterous Asha he gained the rank of Decurion. Although a foot soldier, his friendship with the Barca allowed him a chance to spend time with those in the ranks of the cavalry, and it was there that he first met Edvard Stenvast...

As with Asha, it was the exposure and experience with the tribes of Trebachas that drew Logan to Edvard; a man a few years his senior but very much alike in heart and honour. Edvard was already a Centurion Primus by the time Logan enlisted fully in the legion, and had gained many an impressive accolade, but also he was known to have been born to the tribes of Dun Artan, and retained much of their fire and vigour. Having learned his lesson well with Svoran, Logan was more delicate in his approach, but he need not have worried; upon hearing that Logan was from Whispering Reeds Edvard immediately challenged him to a contest of strength shared by both the tribes of Dun Artan and Trebachas. It was a close contest, which Edvard won eventually, and the two bonded swiftly as an appreciation for one another took root. The more they met, the stronger the bond seemed to become, and it was often joked that Edvard had gained a disciple.

There was more truth in this that some might have suspected, for although Edvard was a rising officer in the cavalry and Logan a green Decurion among the infantry, the elder had taken the younger under his wing, somewhat. Often they would meet when off duty, and the cocky Stenvast imparted much to the Barclay in the way of both revelry and warfare. Under his guidance, Logan learned to drink, to woo, to heckle and to toughen his skin, both against harm and insult -- to become a leader of men and to inspire their loyalty, in all pursuits. Some say that Edvard began the exchange through vanity, but if so then this soon passed; there was true friendship between the two, as between an older brother and his sibling.

It was these friendships among the cavalry that committed Logan to the course of choosing a career in the legions, though he was adamant about remaining among the infantrymen. The glory and prestige afforded the elite warriors in the cavalry held an attraction, though while he and Edvard were similar so in many respects, in one they were unalike: Logan was less brash, and more reserved, and preferred being in the thick of the training, rather than participating in the lightning raids of the mounted knights. So it was that when his first three years were up, Logan once more did not heed his father's wishes for him to return to Whispering Reeds, and enlisted for his term of service. He was yet young, and his father hale, and his brother Ewan was there to aid Lord Gregor in his lordship. Logan had time to worry about familial concerns later; for the present, he was resolved to become a soldier of renown among the ranks of the Empire's warriors.

As the next three years passed, the youthful Barclay turned into an impressive man, both fit in body and cheerful in heart, and his skill with a sword was becoming famous among his unit. He had learned well from Edvard in the art of commanding other, and leading by example, and while he found less and less time to spend with his friends among the cavalry, he was winning the respect of his superiors and subordinates alike -- upon his fourth year in the legion proper he gained the rank of Centurion for both his weaponskill and leadership. Life as a soldier had agreed with him, and turned the excitable boy from Whispering Falls into a man for his family to be proud of. He was rarely home to visit them, and his father was yet saddened by his absence, but all the same Lord Gregor was proud of his eldest son, and it was supposed that as Ewan was groomed for lordship instead, that all would be well when the time to decide succession came to pass. Alas, however, tragedy struck in the year 493, and the Barclays were not afforded such a chance...

Word came to Logan that Lord Gregor had been out fishing alone one day, when a wild Reed Hawk dived to snatch at a caught fish and ended up raking the Lord's eyes. His fishing boat had capsized, and panicked at his wound, Gregor had failed to take breath; drowning beneath the water in the prime of his health. While Lord Barclay had groomed his younger son for possible succession, no arrangements to that effect had taken place, and so it was that the inheritance passed to Logan after all. He was required to leave his life in the legions and return home Whispering Reeds to take up the lordship, and succeed his father.

Logan was distraught, both at the loss of his father and the prospect of leaving the life he had come to know and love. But also there was a measure of guilt in his heart that gnawed at him and turned him more dour than before. He had assumed he had all the time in the world to square things with his father, and now his chance to do so was snatched away; Logan believed Gregor had died thinking his son cared little for him or his home, and this weighed heavy upon him. Even as he became Lord Whispering Reeds he bore both the twin woes of shame at having let down his father, and also mourning his dreams of rising to glory in the legions. So it was that for his first few years, Lord Logan was an unhappy ruler of his lordship.

However, he had at his side his brother Ewan, who did not blame Logan for aught regarding their father; nor did he resent the succession, despite having been groomed himself for it. Ewan's heart was gentler than his brother's, and he had not forgotten their closeness in their youth, and so it was that the younger brother set about ordering the affairs for his elder, putting to good use all that he had been trained to do as a steward for the new Lord Barclay. While Logan was dour and grim, Ewan set about keeping Whispering Reeds as the place they had always known, and soon nearly all matters were deferred to his judgment while Logan nursed his sorrows.

But time heals many wounds, and as the first two years passed, Logan's mood slowly began to lift once more. Ewan's tireless efforts had ensured that the people remained happy despite the loss of their beloved lord, and also seeing that his brother truly bore no ill-will he began to join in more and more of the governance of the lordship.