Before It All Begins...

Tam'elanath Edroin, a wild elf from the Zultena, a forest-dwelling warclan of elves in the southeastern peninsula of Valenar, failed his coming-of-age rite of passage. He was shamed, and left the tribe in 994 YK: the midst of the dying days of the Last War. He departed bound for the battlefields of Cyre, but when he arrived he found the nation already torn asunder by the Mourning. From here, he traveled north, eventually arriving at the town of Lakeside in Karrnath. Sick of travelling, he settled here and used his hunting experience to make a humble living selling hand-crafted bows. Due to his lack of any kind of formal education and minimal world experience, his intelligence was not regarded very highly by the townspeople, but they were generally warm and accepting of him.

In spring of 998 YK, when going to retrieve some materials from the shed beside his home, he found an armored Dragonborn passed out within, apparently recovering from a night of drinking at the Lucky Gnome Taphouse near the house. After a while, the Dragonborn, Zil'dejin Firebane, awoke hungover and probably still a little bit intoxicated, and so reacted somewhat harshly to Tam'elanath's early-morning prying, with a lot of yelling and some sluggish thrashing. After some hurried negotiation, accompanied by hand gestures and diagrams, the situation is resolved, and Zil'dejin explains he has come to town looking for work. Tam'elanath hires him as a rope binder and string fitter for his bows, though due to his lack of Dragonborn-sized accommodations, Zil'dejin is forced to sleep in the shed.

The next day, a Tiefling passed through town, his identity covered by a dark hood and accompanying cloak. This Tiefling, who identifies himself only as Morgue, hears about the commotion that had taken place at Tam'elanath's shop the day before between the town's resident and a belligerent Dragonborn; a species which is not native or at all common in Lakeside. He investigated, to discover what he believed was an entirely different situation - he suspected Tam'elanath had enslaved Zil'dejin, and was keeping him locked in the shed. Morgue, appalled, demanded justice from Tam'elanath, and reacted with hostility. When the situation had been resolved, Morgue was deeply apologetic for his unjust attack against the two, and swore an oath of debt: a kind of protection pact, where he would accompany them until such time as he believed his misgiving repaid.

From there, the three lived in the already-cramped space of Tam'elanath's hovel and shop combination in the quiet town of Lakeside. But people like these are tied inextricably to fate, and cannot lay low for long...