Character Portrait: Nicholas Krain
In a prior post from this year, I mentioned an adjustment to my schedule of every other month, which is designed to help spend more time on writing content for book two, The Fury of Ages. As many of you are well aware, theory and actual practice rarely complement each other.
While I continue to make productive strides in writing book two, refinement of certain content pieces and fleshing out detailed character backgrounds must intrude. Certain characters will rise in prominence from their roles in book one, which requires me to establish nuance. Nothing worse than a poorly planned character with holes in their history, large enough to drive a truck through. By enhancing these pieces, it provides additional content for this blog, which makes good use of the idiom, kill two birds with one stone.
Providing further clarity on Nicholas’ character is essential for the progression of book two. As a writer, it provides me with a sense of completion considering the original concept for Nicholas’ character was developed when I first began writing the original concept of The Sy’Arrian Legacy when I was 16. Back then, he was known as Roger Williamson.
Born to parents, Daniel Krain, an engineer and Andrea Ziegler, a Xenobiologist in 3245 on the floating city of Terakia, Nicholas Krain stands at 1.7 meters with a slender build, dark brown eyes, and black hair with a dusting of gray. Although several generations of his family have been born on Terakia, both the Krain and Ziegler lineages date back to the ancient European continent on Earth in the country of Germany. When faster than the speed of light travel was achieved on Earth in 2190, small clusters of humans from varying cultures took to the stars in search of new opportunities with some of them settling in the Neridian Star System.
Highly observant and astute, Nicholas inherited his father's eye of ship design and his mother's natural affinity for Xenobiology, which he used to obtain membership at the prestigious Telerin Science Academy. He worked vigorously to gain the same level of respect and consideration afforded to those his equal merely due to who were his parents. Those who knew him best were not sure if this mindset was well known or self-induced, put in place by a young man desperate to carve out his own future in a vast universe. It would be at the Telerin Science Academy, where Nicholas would meet Nathanial Thias, the man who would become his best friend and navigator through the tough decisions both would face in their lives.
While he can be naturally playful, antagonistic, and engaging on the outside, he is inherently reflective and often needs periods of seclusion to balance his emotions. Nicholas also demonstrates elevated levels of compassion and understanding in everything he does, which is frequently at odds with his ego. This mixture has served to both elevate his career and put it at risk. Additionally, it has been a hindrance in developing any significant long-term relationships, where his direct and blunt approach to sensitive matters stifled meaningful connections.
Prior to completing their education Nicholas and Nathanial joined the Telerin military. Nicholas proved to be a very calculated and expert tactician known to always be several steps ahead of his adversary. He excelled through the ranks and became one of the youngest officers in Telerin history to obtain the rank of Captain and command the personal escort ship of the Telerin Premier. Yet, after only five years into his military service, Nicholas began to question his loyalties.
Although he never fully agreed with the methods Alexis Striken employed to maintain the Telerin Government's control of its territories, Nicholas had been willing to give his government the benefit of the doubt, hoping the growing unrest amongst the Telerin populace for it to change its expansionist policies, would spur the necessary changes. Over the course of time, he took note of the Telerin Government’s increasingly heavy handedness and imperialistic nature. Realizing a coup was not a viable option, he garnered the support of those closest to him.
In 3270, Nicholas, along with his friend Nathanial, took close to 20 ships and disappeared into deep space. Contained in the initial 20 ships were two of the three, Star Cluster Cruisers, which had been developed by his father, Daniel to serve a two-fold purpose. One was to safely remove energy from a main sequence star (yellow sun preferably) and transfer it to a planet, i.e., city or similar setup to restore its energy reserves. The second purpose was to utilize the stored energy to recharge entire space fleets who have been drained due to some type of electronic warfare or malfunction.
Nicholas secretly married, Julia Striker in 3275. Due to their positions in the respective factions, Nicholas in the Clandestine with Julia as the leader of the Cessation, secrecy assisted in maintaining the relative anonymity of everyone connected to them. Their relationship was more tumultuous than either of them had anticipated, resulting in them parting ways in 3280.
Since parting with Julia, Nicholas has shown little interest in cultivating anything except steadfast dedication to furthering the goals of the Clandestine.
Feel free to post your questions or comments. I will respond when I am able. Be safe, be well and allow compassion to manifest while we continue to navigate a crazy but beautiful world.
Thank you for reading.
