Oktán, Ugly, tough-looking ex-pirate

History

Oktán was born the son of a blacksmith in a coastal village in Salarvyá. When he was young, his training was very ordinary, and it was expected that he would follow in his father's footsteps as a smith. At age eight, his life was changed forever.

That year, pirates raided the town looking for slaves. Oktán was among those taken. While most of the prisoners were sold in slave markets, Oktán was kept around as a cabin boy/servant/mascot for the crew. When he grew into puberty, their treatment of him became harsher. He never reached the full height of a man, though he was stronger than most. His servant status and small stature made him the butt of many jokes on the ship. When some of the crew tried to sexually abuse him, he finally couldn't take any more. He attacked them, and by surprise, managed to seriously wound one and hurt others before they beat him senseless. This was the first in a long series of fights he got into in his late teen years. Gradually over time, he rose to full status in the pirate band; at least no one would say he was not one of the toughest.

This increase in status was not made without acquiring enemies. Some of the men he beat held grudges against him, and many of the crew resented this former slave acting as their equal. In a battle with a Tsolyáni warship, he was "accidentally" pushed overboard when he was attempting to climb aboard the pirate ship. He got to shore safely, but that was the end of his pirate career.

Finding himself without money and without prospects in Penóm, Oktán scraped together a life as a bum, a street thug, a gang enforcer, a bouncer, and a dockworker. Finally, tired of such a life, he signed on as a mate on the merchant ship Penóm Princess. As an experienced seaman, a fair hand at languages and navigation, he eventually made first mate.

Because he was somewhat closed-mouthed about his past, and he is notably unusual in looks, the crew of the Penóm Princess never really took to him. After one particularly rich run, the crew was partying in a local dive. Over the general conversation, Oktán heard one of the men say "E'en that ugly runt o' a mate'll get laid on 'is share." Before anything more could be said, Oktán was out of his chair and had the crewman by the back of the neck. In the brief scuffle that followed, Oktán broke a couple of the crewman's ribs, and pulled a knife on the others who had tried to drag them apart. The captain decided that enough was enough, and told Oktán to be gone.

So, Oktán is presently unemployed and roaming the docks of Jakálla in Tsolyánu.

Personality

His personality is shaped by his rough life. Raised by pirates, from a relatively early age, he is not a gentle man. Having started his adult life as a virtual slave, he places a high value on his self-image.  Anyone who insults him is likely to get beaten, or even killed. He wouldn't have killed the seaman for example, just taught him a lesson. On the other hand, if someone insults him over a long period of time, or directly in front of a large/important audience, he could conceivable kill that man. He likes to fight, but doesn't fight for fun. For example, if a bar fight erupts around him, he wouldn't become involved just for the fun of it. On the other hand, if it disturbs him, say someone is thrown over his table or someone hits him with a beer, then he may react rather violently. In other things, he is very impulsive. Once he starts something, he likes to finish in the short term. But, long-term obligations don't mean so much to him. He's never lived with any long-term stability in his life.

Religion

As his father was a weapon smith, Oktán was raised to worship Chegárra. He does not put much faith in the gods' desire to help him. They don't seem to have cared so far, and they don't seem likely to in the future. He acknowledges their power, but he feels they don't watch out for most people. His opinion of priests is not terribly high either. Most of them seem very removed from reality to him. He does make the appropriate observances occasionally. Also, he curses in the name of the gods rather often. If they really don't care about him, it doesn't matter, but if they do, the least he can do is point out how they could help him.