Description

Having lived in a forest most of his life, his body could be considered athletic. Any blemishes Zechariah had on his almost tan skin were replaced with three scars: one across his left eye (both of which are greenish-blue), another on his right cheek, and the third just below his chin. That third scar is not visible due to his mostly well-groomed beard. His mustache is slightly less well-kept as his beard, which is typical for someone who makes do with a knife instead of scissors. His dark-blonde hair reaches to his shoulders unevenly for the same reason he does not have a completely well-groomed beard and mustache. Despite his muscular build, Zechariah maintains a slim figure, capable of agile manuevers. He almost always wears leather or fur; it is the material he has most readily available for his clothing, usually a tunic and pants, both with the belts, pockets, and eveything else to hold his hunting gear.

Personality

Zechariah can be rough around the edges, though that is primarily because of his somewhat isolated lifestyle. His life is defined by the hunt and whatever edible plants he can gather. Anything that disrupts the natural balance in Eagle Forest does not escape his notice; it is a hunter's instinct. He will often refer to blacksmiths and warriors as "fire-heads" due to the fact they heavily rely on forges, the smoke and fire from which can be hazardous to wildlife or people's health. Despite his notorious reputation for appearing cold or tough, he has a caring heart, inside. He just does not want to admit it. Anyone who knows him long enough will eventually see hints at his more sensitive side, though he will still try to hide it. Perhaps another reason for this is hunters cannot let their emotions dictate their actions, since one move could mean the difference between a meal and an empty stomach. Whatever can be found in the forest, Zechariah will use, even when the locals who hunt for sport do not want certain spoils from their kills. Whatever he cannot eat himself, he will trade, in town, for money and items he sees a practical use for.

Equipment

Zechariah does not find any practical use for the heavy weapons knights, warriors, and crusaders equip. Instead, he prefers the speed and mobility his bow, arrows, and knives afford him. He never possesses anything more than he can carry on his back or keep in his tent, which can shelter two people at a time, not including the space his gear and food take up. Whatever the size of the animal, he can create a trap for. The young hunter will sometimes take his fishing spear with him to one of the rivers as a break from tracking land creatures.

History

Not much is known about Zechariah other than his lifestyle in Eagle Forest and how he ended up there. He did not always live the life of a hunter. At one time, he was the son of two knights, in a land not part of Carshuimg until the crusades reached it.

His parents saw corruption among the nobility of the time and spoke against it, at the cost of their lives. The night of their assassination drove Zechariah to grab his hunting gear and sister, Hannah, before making a dash for Falcon Forest, the hunting area for knights. The man hired to kill off the family pursued the preteen siblings for seven years, during which time a rebellion rose in response to the outrage. Once Carshuimg's crusades reached Falcon Forest, five years after the assassination, the stalemate between the nobility and the rebellion broke. One by one, the armies of the nobles fell. It was at the end of the seventh year that the assassin gave up the chase; he was not willing to lose a high-paying client. This provided Zechariah the opportunity he waited for. By that time, the rebellion decided to become citizens of Crushuimg once the war was over. The young hunter knew if Crushuimg won, he and his sister would not have to worry about anyone trying to kill them.

For the next three months, Zechariah tracked down the assassin until they reached the last stronghold of the war. It was there, when the hired murderer attempted to kill the Crushuimg captain in charge of the siege, that the hunter shot down him down. That one action saved both the captain and the family. When the king offered knighthood under the Crushuimg banner as a reward, Zechariah chose instead to request residence in another forest while Hannah be given a safe home nearby it. He considered Eagle Forest his home, since then. That forest actually resides two miles away from the Crushuimg capital, which the hunter reaches via a giant, brown eagle named Deborah, his pride and joy that he tamed while adapting to the area as a teenager.