Rhett Lassiter

Rhett Lassiter
Profile
Status:	Dead
Age:	35 (at time of death)
Race:	Human
Gender:	Male
Class:	Warrior
Nation:	Aison
Faction:	Aison
Era:	Third Age

Rhett Lassiter was a farmer who became squire to the paladin Marcus Sarillius in Aison. He received a magical pendant blessed by Cardia from Schuldich Cedheros, the cleric who gave Marcus the sword Dusk. Rhett and Marcus helped Graves Hall fight against a fire elemental. Rhett was believed to have perished during the Yamatian Invasion but appeared again in Shipwreck Cove in 1017 AE, where he was reunited with Marcus thanks to the actions of the Red Sun Coven. He accompanied Marcus and the pirates of the Cove as they searched for the kidnapped cleric Unithien Greyrain, and he helped drive off the attacking harpies and heal Unithien's Blood Fever with the Pendant of Order, and ultimately sacrificed himself to save his companions.

Biography

Early Years

Rhett Lassiter was born to a family of farmers in Aison, the eldest of seven siblings. Being the oldest child, he spent his years helping his father with daily chores, though he yearned to see the world and not be confined to the farm he had spent all his years in.

Distreyd Era

Chance Encounters

"It doesn't look like you'll be able to go out for a good while now. I'm going to go with Marcus to get you some medicine from the city and make sure you're not out for too long."

"No, Rhett, I don't want you to do that. I'll have eight people here to take care of me, I want you to go out and do your own thing now."

"What? You've always said you wanted me to help you handle things."

"Then, I've always said wrong, Rhett. If I've learned anything from all of this, it's that I've been holdin' onto some things for a little too long. You're right, Tristan is ready, he's shown it. He and Laurent can take care of things here, and you can go out and live your own life now."

"Well, I only wanted to go out on my own to help you guys better."

"Then do that! But, Rhett, make me a promise. When you walk out that door and go to Reno with that Marcus fellow, live for yourself. If you want to help us, you can help us, but don't come back just because we'll be missing you. It's time you had your own adventure, like your mother and I did."

—Patrick Lassiter and Rhett

In the days after Graduation Day at Graves Hall, Rhett traveled with his father Patrick in the Aisonian countryside. Patrick became unwell during the trip, but a chance encounter with a paladin saved the man's life. The paladin introduced himself as Marcus Sarillius, a recent graduate of Graves Hall, and he helped Rhett and his brother Tristan bring their father to the Lassiter homestead.

While at the farm, Marcus enjoyed the hospitality of the grateful Lassiter family and spent the night with them. Rhett saw a chance to explore the world with his new acquaintance, but he hesitated to act on it because of his obligations to the family. However, his parents surprised him by encouraging him to leave, admitting that they had been reluctant to allow the young man to strike out on his own path. They told Rhett to return only if he truly wished to do so; until then, his younger brothers would pick up the slack.

Chosen by Order

"Rhett Lassiter, I can see that your destiny is intertwined in the greater schema of things. There is, perhaps, a part in the skein of history that only you can play, although this is my own gut feeling, and not the Word of the God."

—Schuldich Cedheros to Rhett

After leaving the farm for Reno, Marcus and Rhett were ambushed by thugs who were revealed to have been hired to assassinate King Byron Kagawest. The duo disposed of their adversaries and learned that they had been hired by someone from Yamato.

While pondering this disturbing revelation, Marcus and Rhett crossed paths with an elven cleric who introduced himself as Schuldich Cedheros. The elf, being briefly possessed by Cardia, the God of Order, gave the men valuable advice as well as words of warning for the conflicts yet to come. Schuldich then offered the sword Dusk to Marcus and a magical pendant to Rhett.

Cardia left the body of Schuldich, and the elf bid the two men farewell before departing Aison forever. Confused yet intrigued by what had happened, Marcus and Rhett wondered about the god's words and what role they might play in the future.

They soon heard news that Graves Hall had come under attack. They hurried to the paladin school, arriving as a fire elemental wreaked havoc inside the building. Marcus and Rhett did the best they could in rallying a defense and a subsequent evacuation, and Marcus managed to drive the elemental back to the High Plane by unleashing the powers of Dusk for the first time. Although the Battle of Graves Hall had ended, many lives had been lost, and the school now lay in ruins.

Uncovering a Conspiracy

Marcus and Rhett began an investigation into the attack's conspirators, and met two new companions -- the archer Tyco Drahj and the aspiring elven mage Aeriel -- when their journey directed them to the Magestar, a mage school which was also a sister facility to Graves Hall. While there, they met other like-minded adventurers such as BoB the Jaguar and discovered a sinister plot among the Magestar masters, led by Grandmaster Vepar. He tricked the group into lowering their arms after a successful assault on the fortress's front gate, then imprisoned them while taking Dusk from Marcus's possession.

A trial followed in which Marcus, Rhett and the others were deemed guilty of killing innocents; unlike what Vepar had wanted, the majority of the Masters decided to not sentence the fellowship to death but reduce it into a lifetime of servitude within the walls of the Magestar. It was during this time that Marcus grew increasingly suspicious of the Masters and began putting two and two together, believing that one or more among them may have had connections to the thugs he and Rhett had fought against as well as the fire elemental's rampage at Graves Hall.

The conspiracy was foiled when Marcus led a jailbreak. The escaping fellowship was intercepted by Master Amon who fought against Marcus. However, Marcus proved to be a resilient opponent when he defeated Amon in the duel by shattering the Staff of Magius with Dusk, while Rhett assisted his friend by fighting against the guards. Ultimately the group managed to flee from the Magestar, but not before they learned from BoB, who had overheard a conversation earlier, that the Magestar's conspiracy had been backed by the Clergy of Nergal. Marcus, Rhett and the rest of their fellowship made their escape, hoping to warn the King about the looming danger to the kingdom.

However, they were too late. The dark clergy's ambitions became clear when the Yamato Empire began its invasion of the other kingdoms not long after the Magestar conspiracy had been foiled. Marcus and Rhett fought against the Yamatian invaders, but it wasn't enough; the combined force of Yamato, the Clergy of Nergal, and the Clergy of Mardük, backed by the nightmare magic of High Cleric Distreyd Thanadar XII, overwhelmed Aison's forces at the First Battle of Myridia. Rhett was presumed dead in the wake of the battle.

Godslayer Era

Return to Light

As it happened, however, Rhett survived both the Great War and the Cataclysm. Less happily, though, he was held prisoner in a temple of Gaea under Shipwreck Cove in Yamato for an indeterminate amount of time. It was there that he was eventually reunited with Marcus, courtesy of the witch Jamila, Mater Tenebrarum. Rhett told Marcus that he had kept the Pendant of Order in safekeeping since the War, buoyed by the belief that Cardia's death was no obstacle to the salvation the duo would eventually bring to the world.

Marcus gained newfound determination from Rhett's speech and helped Jamila free his old friend. Rhett resumed his role as squire to the wayward King of Remon, with the goal of recovering Dusk from those that had stolen it. Their first task to this end was neutralizing Gilgamesh, a warrior who had stolen Dusk from Marcus before the latter's encounter with Rhett.

They found Gilgamesh at the docks of the Cove where he had already battered an elven knight called Varalia Earthhaven and was locked in battle with her daughter Unithien Greyrain all the while several other pirates seemed to be fighting against each other nearby. With Rhett's aid, Marcus was able to strike a decisive blow, though this only served to provoke Gilgamesh into revealing himself as an Andain, which Marcus couldn't believe and made the king hesitate to continue the battle while Gilgamesh advanced on the pair to finish them off. The battle on the pier was eventually disrupted by the timely appearance of a sea serpent which swallowed Gilgamesh and shattered the pier, sending several people tumbling into the shark-infested waters.

Unithein could not be found once the fighters fell into the water, though Rhett and Marcus were eventually fished out by the paladin Oscar Locke and Shipwreck Cove's famed singer, Silk. The bruised and unconscious Varalia surfaced, as well, and it was Rhett who resuscitated the elven knight before she was transported to Oscar's clinic for further mending.

A Man of Faith

More info later.

Death

"A mortal man bleeds with such responsibility. Imagine what I will wield with your offering, what horrors I will inflict upon your friends."

"Yes. Imagine."

—The siren and Rhett

Rhett, after having used the remainder of the Pendant of Order's fading power to heal Unithien's Blood Fever, went to hand the pendant over to the siren who was eagerly waiting for it. As he handed it over, he used what little power was left in the talisman to wound the siren who was surprised by this attack before the magical shield under him cracked and sent him into the cold water below into which he sank. His last thought was of his family whom he expected to meet once he crossed over to the Land of the Dead.

Aliases and Nicknames

Rhett

What he's called.

Appearance

Rhett is approximately 6'1" with a thin build. His shoulder-length brown hair greyed considerably from the stress of his captivity, though his brown eyes have lost none of their vitality. His clothes were fairly nondescript when he set out from home, though he acquired a more suitable white cloak during his brief time in Myridia. He bears no emblem, preferring that he stand as an enduring symbol for the God of Order.

Personality and Traits

Calm, dutiful, eager to explore the world. He respected Marcus a great deal for his selflessness and courage. His years of solitude proved to be a trial, though his uninterrupted possession of the Pendant of Order eventually bolstered his enlightened point of view, sharpening his youthful idealism into an assured philosophy. He was undeterred by Cardia's death and was committed to the responsibilities thrust upon him by the elf Schuldich, and this commitment lasted until his last breath.

Powers and Abilities

Innate Ability: Something from nothing. This ability required a great deal of concentration and visualization, but Rhett possessed the power to create items seemingly out of thin air. Larger items required a great deal of mental exertion, though small items such as knives and keys were often in greater demand, anyway. He lost his ability in the Cataclysm.

Weapons: Rhett traveled the world with the unremarkable wooden staff he took with him from his family's homestead, the only known link to his old life that he possessed until his demise. Though not the strongest or the craftiest warrior, he was skilled enough to leverage his weapon effectively. He believed it was either destroyed or lost during the course of his captivity, though it was apparently held in safekeeping by the Red Sun.

Relationships

Marcus Sarillius

Rhett's oldest friend. The two met when Rhett was stranded and in need of help for his father; Marcus, a paladin and student of some white magic, was able to assist enough for Patrick Lassiter to go home and recuperate. After leaving the rest of the Lassiters, the two fought side by side, time and again, against dark forces until the chaos of Myridia's fall seemingly severed their brotherhood forever.

Time and titles, however, had hardly changed their friendship. Though a king by right in this day, Marcus insisted that Rhett called him by name and treated him as no less than his equal.

Varalia Earthhaven

Rhett was intrigued by Varalia, sensing her compassion for her daughter Unithien and that she was willing to go to any lengths to secure her freedom. Moved by Varalia not wanting to heal herself at the expense of her daughter, Rhett honoured her will and healed Unithien instead, earning Varalia's respect in return.

See also

• Lassiter Family
• Marcus Sarillius
• Pendant of Order
• Varalia Earthhaven