Bonus Content: Character Profile and Illustration
Erik Cincinnatus Oesten, Captain of the Second Order of Knights
Illegitimate son of Duke Silas Oesten
Age: 25
Favorite color: Black, the color of his horse, Somnium. Lately though, he’s been reconsidering...
Hobbies: Swordsmanship, archery, horseback riding, and drawing. Only a few people know about the last one, but not because he is hiding it. It simply doesn’t come up often due to all the political intrigue and life-and-death battles he's been dealing with.
Likes: Winning arguments against Rhiannon, art and art history, his warhorse Somnium
Dislikes: His father and brother, mind games, being patient
Favorite Animal: Horses, but mostly just Somnium specifically.
Symbolic Animal: The Lynx. Within Erik's world, the lynx is the symbol of the Second Order of Knights, the Guardians of the Great Divide. This order was founded by the Oesten dukedom in the Western part of the Ar Goll Empire. The lynx was chosen as their heraldic symbol in part because lynx is quite common in the west (the species there is most similar to our Eurasian lynx, larger than other species and with a shorter, reddish to brown coat with a black spotted pattern and occasionally stripes. During the winter, their coats change color, usually to grey or silver.) They were also chosen as a symbol of the Second Order's work defending the empire from demonic incursions along the Western border where the Great Divide is located, a region that with almost-constant incursions that often spill over the border. In that sense, within the mythology of the empire, lynxes primarily represent tenacity and ferocity, and (more controversially, since it sometimes is used to advocate for rebellion) independence.
Now, that's all why lynxes were chosen as the Second Order's symbol in-world. The reason the lynx is Erik's motif is, of course, related to what it represents in the real world. In Western mythology, lynxes are associated with clairvoyance and seeing through falsehoods. Erik has a tendency to barrel forward on what, to others, is a dubious combination of intuition, emotion, and just a bit of logic. Despite that, his gambles often pay off. The lynx-like quality of cutting to the truth of things is what makes this work for him; rather than playing complex Machiavellian games, Erik pushes forward based on what he thinks the truth is. If that were not the case, he and the Saintess would never have met, much less ended up traveling together.
Symbolic Flower: Rhododendron. One of the most common meanings of rhododendron flowers is danger, beware. While Erik is a formidable person, the reason behind this choice relates more to how he became formidable than any inherent quality of aggression. As a child, he was forced into conflicts outside of his control, and eventually lost his mother, a maid named Amina, as a result. If it were not for these experiences, Erik would be a very different person. He has no innate desire for power or influence, and violence without cause disgusts him. However, over the years, he has been given many reasons to be violent.
Rhododendrons are also the national flower of Nepal, where they symbolize spousal support; they are also associated with protectiveness towards others. Perhaps this will become more relevant in future chapters, but who’s to say?
A couple illustrations of Erik's warhorse Somnium: Her appearance is very similar to a Friesian horse, but she is a fair bit bigger, standing at almost 19 hands. That's bigger than even Shire mares, which are pretty much the upper limit of all horses.
And as a last little bit, I wanted to share some early designs of the Second Order's crest. I'm still messing around with the level of detailing and the color scheme - my main goal to start was just to ensure the crest is clearly a lynx and not a tiger. Right now I've left a more detailed pattern for the lynx's coat, which I prefer, but the simpler versions are more practical for uniforms and shields. I'll keep working on a good design for future updates so that eventually we can see the knights in their uniforms. But that will have to wait until we see a bit more of Elias, Augusta, Reed, and the yet-to-be introduced troublemaker Lionne.
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