Royce/Introduction
Ever since he was a boy, Royce Reiner knew he was special. His family history stretched back hundreds of years, all the way back to a little barony on medieval Bavaria. There, his forebears had been custodes to a small Covenant of House Bjornaer, charged with the defense of the land, people, and magi who occupied their keep. For generations, they had fought and bled to defend the magi's sacred places while they studied Ars Magica and searched for Ascension. Even when House Bjornaer left the Order of Hermes for the Verbenae after the Grand Convocation of 1466, the Reiner family continued their stewardship, their oaths unbroken and firm as ever.
When the magi migrated westward to the New World, they brought their custodes with them. Settling in a small valley in what would one day become the state of California, they continued their rites and rituals. Royce was born into that family in the early part of the 70s. Brought up to be a protector and a warden for one of the last surviving Bjornaer magi, a powerful Verbena Lifeweaver they knew only as Nemo. To Sleeping eyes, the Reiners were looked at as a bunch of backwater hermits. Nobody really bothered them much, and that was the way they liked it. That made it easier for them to protect the sacred circle that gave Nemo much of his power.
As a boy, Royce was fascinated by the old stories his father and grandfather shared with him. Ingraining into him his sense of duty, to shelter and protect one of the last sources of magick in world that was leaving it behind. Once, they told him, the mighty magi worked openly among the people. But those days were long gone. The people of the world didn't want magick anymore. They didn't need it, or so they thought. But magick was still alive. It still thrived just out of sight, and it was their duty to protect it. When he was sixteen, Royce was welcomed into the sacred circle, and Nemo himself welcomed him as custos. It was the moment he'd been waiting for his entire life. But then, something happened that not even wise old Nemo could have forseen. For as Royce took his oath to defend the Mysteries, his own restless Avatar exploded into awareness. In his mind's eye, the Emperor took up his mantle of authority, crowning him with glory.
For the next fifteen years, Royce would undergo instruction and apprenticeship at Nemo's feet. Learning the secrets of Ars Magica, the Art of Magick. He would seek out his Heart-Beast, a mighty grizzly bear, and contemplate the Mysteries it represented. This led Royce to learning yet another secret--that one of his ancestors was a Gurahl of the Mountain Keeper tribe, a healer dedicated to defending not just the power of magick, but all of Gaia Herself.
In time, Royce would complete his Apprentice's Gauntlet and take his place among the Verbena as one of the last Bjornaer magi in the world. But where to go from there? It was all well and good to be a magus and part of an old family of guardians. But that wasn't going to pay the bills, and even magi needed to eat. While out hunting deer for venison, Royce ran afoul of a wildlife officer who gave him a stern talking-to (and a most annoying citation) for hunting without a license. But as uncomfortable as the encounter might have been, it also gave Royce an idea.
Leaving the circle and Nemo's well-being in the hands of his father and grandfather, Royce moved to Silicon Valley to attend college at Stanford University. It was a challenging experience for him. He'd taken to his home-schooling lessons as a boy readily enough, but for the first time, he was going out into the world. But he knuckled down and faced the challenges with all the strength of will and determination that got him through his Apprentice's Gauntlet. In time, he completed a degree in Law Enforcement with a minor in Biology. With these in hand, he applied to California's Department of Fish and Wildlife. He was going to become a wildlife officer himself. A year later, he was sworn in as an officer of the law. Now he had the full backing of Sleeper law to help him perform his duties, as well as earn himself a decent paycheck to keep the lights on and the cupboard full.
And for the last ten years, that is exactly what Royce has done. Up until now, he's been content to patrol his designated area, keeping a watchful eye out for poachers and the like. But time waits for no man, and the time is quickly approaching when he must take his place among the magi of Prospect. He also cannot escape his Gurahl heritage, and must surely face that side of himself as well. But he will not shy away from the these challenges. For he is a magus, one of the last of the Bjornaer. He is Verbena, a weaver of Life and a seeker of Mysteries. He is kin to the Gurahl, Gaia's healers. And however it must happen, his Will shall be done.
