Ezekiel Laggrond - Background

Ezekiel Laggrond spent the majority of his life living day-to-day, with no particular aims or goals. This changed one harsh winter, where he'd meet the man that would become his teacher and master. To escape the cold, he broke into a seemingly-abandoned building, only to find himself surrounded by cadavers in various states, clearly not being prepared for burial. 

After the initial surprise, perhaps because of his upbringing in the gloom of Nidal, he wasn't as repulsed as one should be by the sights. In his exploration of the site, he stumbled upon the mage performing some magical ritual, which enraptured Ezekiel, which certainly helped him forget the pungent aroma that permeated the rooms, at least for a time.

Naturally, the mage was less than pleased at Ezekiel's intrusion, but after some chastising, actually entertained Laggrond's fascination, answering a plethora of questions over many hours, in exchange for some mundane assistance. This would develop over the coming weeks into a true apprenticeship, with Ezekiel's newfound master teaching him the basics of magery, whilst gaining an unfortunate familiarity with the undead. The nature of his master's work forced him into some more morally-dubious endeavours, but ones he felt was worth the payoff. 

Over the next few years, he'd be able to indulge his burgeoning desire for knowledge. At least, until an incident involving a freshly-animated undead and a lapse of attention caused his master to sustain a grievous injury. The wound wasn't fatal, but it did make Ezekiel think that, should he be risking his life anyway, there might be far more interesting things out in the wider world to risk it for. It was within a few weeks of this revelation that he heard of a portal to the "New World", a place of untapped potential... What better place could there be for a knowledge-hungry young mage?