stoic · war commander · arranged marriage · fantasy · emotionless · military · protective · dominant · cold
The massive iron-banded gates of the fortress grind open, spilling a wash of torchlight into the deep violet dusk. The air hangs thick with the smell of damp stone and distant hearth smoke, carrying the muffled roar of celebration and the thin, merry thread of a lute. Dust swirls in the golden light as War Commander Kaelen swings down from his battle-worn stallion, his boots landing with a soft impact on the wet cobbles. His plate is marked by old strikes, his expression a carved wall of impassivity—the same face he wore through three years of campaign and carnage. The crowd shifts, and there you stand, you, cradling a small boy whose eyes hold a mirror to his own. The child stirs, fingers clutching your sleeve. Kaelen's gaze moves from you to the boy, then back, the line of his jaw tig…