Bastion del Carretto

Bastion del Carretto is a Jewish Italian priest soldier or paladin, a sort of holy warrior who combines aspects of both a monk and a fighter. He is a Master of the Hospitaller Knights from the Order of Saint John in Jerusalem, an underground secret society of Christian crusaders stationed in Muslim controlled Jerusalem at the Church of Saint John the Baptist, which acts as both a resting place for weary travellers and as a hospital or sickbay.

Legend has it that the Hospitaller Knights stem from mythical origins dating back to pre-Roman times, when a Greek king named Antiochus ruled Jerusalem long before Christ died on the cross. Antiochus wished to punish the Jewish high priest Melchior for desecrating the Tomb of King David, but as the story goes, divine intervention persuaded King Antiochus to have a change of heart, and instead he built a hospital in Jerusalem named after the Jewish high priest. It was called Melchior's Hospital, and according to myth, it had once provided shelter for the Virgin Mary, some of the Apostles and even Christ himself.

Some time in the late 500's AD, the large church was added to the small hospital building and the whole complex henceforth was known as the Church of Saint John the Baptist, but it still continued to provide aid for weary travellers and rest for those who were sick. In 603 AD the church began funding small hospices throughout Jerusalem, providing assistance to Latin pilgrims. The Order of the Hospitallers was founded by Pope Gregory I at this time, but at first the Hospitallers were not wealthy knights or warriors like they would appear to be in later writings. At first they were just monks and peaceful caretakers who helped everybody in general regardless of anything.

Many centuries later, however, the Order of the Assassins was founded by the Nizari Isma'ili sect leader Hassan-i Sabbah and likewise Jerusalem had fallen into Muslim control. But several Western European monasteries continued to provide funding for the Hospital of Saint John between 1063-1070 and it was at this time that the secret order emerged. The monks and nuns began aiding Christian pilgrims from all over Europe and secretly gave aid to what was to become the first crusaders.

Bastion del Carretto is a 33rd level Master of the Hospitaller Knights from the Order of Saint John in Jerusalem, and he is sworn to uphold the knight's code of valor. His father was a 85th degree Grandmaster of the Hospitaller Knights named Giovanni del Carretto, who was one of the founders of the original order or so it is said. Giovanni started his career as an Italian pilgrim, inventor, architect, skulpture artist, stone mason and explorer. While serving as an Italian soldier in the Holy Land, he married a sort of gypsy woman of unknown ethnicity in Jerusalem and they had five children, of which Bastion is the youngest. Giovanni's life is rather obscure after that, but in later years he became a monk and lived out the rest of his days in solitude, taking care of the sick and weary with another monk he referred to only as Brother Gerard, a mysterious man who wore a white rosary and a black hooded robe. The white cross over a black tunic became the official battledress of the Hospitaller Knights, in sharp contrast to the red cross and white tunic of the similar but unrelated Knights Templars.

While this was going on, young Bastion del Carretto left home and joined the Order of the Hospitaller Knights as a squire, following in his father's footsteps. His parents had already taught him many skills as a child, and he would go on to acquire even more education as a squire. At first he was just a simple usher, an alterboy, waterboy and fetcher for the other more experienced monks. But he often witnessed many horrific events such as the bubonic plague, sickness, death and even the occasional exorcism. These experiences molded his personality and behavior as he got older.

Bastion del Carretto worked his way up through the ranks and eventually became a young knight or paladin. He excelled over time and became a 33rd level Master of the Hospitaller Knights from the Order of Saint John in Jerusalem, but many recent events have altered his destiny...