BUILD: Short and round
HAIR:Silver grey
EYES: Bright blue with black sclera (right), void black, Fade-Touched (left)
JOB: Rogue | Sniper assassin
ORIGINS: Antivan Crow
RELATIONSHIPS: Emmrich Volkarin | Eternally bonded
OCCUPATION: Assassin
CURRENT ACTIVITIES: Recovering from saving the world
WEAPON: Gaatlok rifle (Raakata), gaatlok revolver (Kaaldaar)
FAVOURITES:
PERSONALITY:
Caul is a stoic, collected and soldierly type with a penchant for poetry and a stubborn streak ten miles wide. Nothing escapes his sharp, Fade-Touched gaze, and he rarely does a thing without thinking through every possible angle. He's an old romantic at heart, plagued with permanent chronic migraines and pain throughout his severed horns as well as his old leg wound.
NAME ORIGINS:
Caulthurin originated as a Fallen London character with a name taken from Sindarin. It breaks down as below;
— heavy burden, affliction (name) caul
— hidden, secret (adj.) thurin
CAULTHURIN ~ A secret heavy burden
His rifle and revolver had names taken from Sindarin too, but my friend Spider gave me names for them in Qunlat;
Rifle | Manadhaeron ~ distant final end/distant fate
— Raakata ~ distant end/death
Revolver | Maegûr ~ penetrating fire
— Kaaldaar ~ pierce(ing) fire
Being Fade-Touched, Caul - born Ashaktalan - sees the Fade through his void-eye, overlaid atop his normal vision. Fade-Touched children are made to live under much more restriction lest they be corrupted by the Fade, and many don't live to adulthood from a combination of terrible pain and a predilection towards madness which causes many to treat them with undisguised pity.
At the age of 12, Caul gathered his meagre belongings, donned an eyepatch and struck out on his own. He'd rather be Tal-Vashoth than a Seer; rather be Tal-Vashoth than restricted for the rest of his life, however long or short it may be. He severed his own horns (poorly) and Ashaktalan was no more.
He found his way to Antiva and was taken in by House de Riva, where he worked his way up taking on ambitious contracts, aided by the precision lent to him by his void-eye. Right up until the fateful contract on a noble from a rival House, one which specialised in poisons. He stalked his prey for days, learning his every movement, until he was far from home. In a moment of overconfidence, he went in for the kill in close quarters rather than using the crossbow he'd trained with, and the contract stabbed him in the upper left thigh with a wickedly poisoned blade seconds before Caul slit his throat.
Alone and panicking, poison taking root in his flesh, Caul did the only thing he could think: he cut out the rot with a shaking, imprecise hand, before blacking out from blood loss and pain. He saved the leg, but at great cost - the removal of chunks of his flesh, permanently affected movement in the leg and hip, and a bone-deep pain which flares up at the slightest of provocations. He survived purely by luck, a young Viago had been tailing a contract nearby and had both 'a feeling' and a vial of antidote which killed the remaining poison.
Caul was but 20 years old, convinced that his life as a Crow was at an end - how can a man who must walk with a cane continue to be an assassin? Of course, one can still kill, even from a distance, and his skill with a crossbow only grew from then on - though with difficulty, as he was forced to rely on stealth and extreme patience, stalking his prey slowly and laying in wait until the perfect moment.
His crossbow got an upgrade when he'd saved enough gold to visit Kont-aar, where he availed himself of a gaatlok rifle and revolver and the services of a regular supplier of gaatlok to feed it - not a cheap endeavour, but a worthy one for the Dead-Eye.
1. How did they meet?
They met during the first scene where you recruit Emmrich! Because Caul is a Crow, he's never had opportunity to meet him before, and none of his contracts took him to Nevarra
2. What were their first impressions of each other? Did those impressions change?
Caul's first impression was "oh the skull thing is cool" and, internally, "thank the gods, someone who's my age" lol. Underneath that he was attracted, and that increased when he saw Emmrich working his magic round the Necropolis during that first quest. Necromancy intrigues him! On Emmrich's side, he was surprised that this imposing, solid and quite dour Qunari needed his help, but delighted to find someone who showed an interest in his work and a respect for the dead, despite his career as a Crow. The good looks helped, and he found himself needing to know more!
3. When did they realise they had feelings for each other?
Caul realised when he caught himself watching Emmrich one too many times, and then it was cemented when his thoughts turned to poetry around him. Their casual, fun flirtation was just that until Emmrich's kindness just seeped into his soul and didn't let go, and he realised he was Serious. Took him a while, but not as long as Emmrich, who thought that their flirtations were just that - fun between colleagues, nothing more. Emmrich realised the terrifying depths of his feelings after one battle where Caul got properly injured then finally relented and let Emmrich use healing magic. During which time, Caul also lets his guard down enough to let him finally see his scars - mostly his leg - which he keeps hidden. Relieved that Caul wasn't going to die and overcome with emotion at the trust he's showing, Emmrich admits to himself that his feelings are real. And scary......
4. Who made the first move? Did it go smoothly or was it a disaster?
The first move went as the game - Emmrich turned on the charm & kissed Caul within an inch of his life against that beautiful statue of the eternal lovers. It went very smoothly, Caul was already smitten and their tension was insane by that point - if Emmrich hadn't made the move, Caul would have!
5. What was their first kiss like? Who initiated it?
Oops I answered this in #4 by mistake fkcmck I'm gonna skip ahead!
6. What was their firs time having sex with each other like? Who was the first to initiate sex?
They were very handsy and physical before they finally fucked properly! The first sexual contact was Caul giving into his post-battle adrenaline high and sucking Emmrich silly, Emmrich sat on his desk and Caul in his chair just completely going to town and not stopping even after Emmrich came. For full sex it'd been building for a long time, but they never had time or the right moment. Emmrich finally sent everyone else on errands with strict instructions to not bother them, then fucked Caul gentle and slow in his huge comfy bed with scented candles and flower petals everywhere
7. What did they do for their first date?
Their first date was as in game, Emmrich laying on a beautiful meal and wining and dining Caul with the full weight of his charm. Caul brought him flowers and a beautiful Antivan-made knife for ceremonial use and quite flustered Emmrich for a moment, then they kissed for like two hours in the moonlight.
8. Who was the first one to say 'I love you'?
Caul, without a doubt. Emmrich can't bring himself to admit it, let alone speak it out loud - he's afraid of the depth of his feeling, of what feels like an insurmountable gap between them (a Crow and a Watcher, who are they trying to fool?) and he's especially afraid of his mortality. Caul's a romantic type as is Emmrich, but he expresses it through his poetry and he'd given Emmrich enough of it by then to make his feelings clear, but he'd also never really said it outright until The Argument and even then it's only to accuse Emmrich of being scared to admit it. When he returned from the Fade prison, when they were alone in the Necropolis, he told Emmrich just how much he loved him when they kissed, and continued to tell him while they fucked in the sarcophagus until Emmrich was flushed and whimpering, gazing into Caul's eyes as they made love
9. What activities do they enjoy doing together? Are there any activities one enjoys that the other doesn't?
They enjoy reading together, going to plays or performances, and clothes-related activities like shopping for new outfits. They're both into looking good, and Caul enjoys how he can be himself and fussy about his clothes with Emmrich without any judgement. For activities alone, Caul is really into his shooting and will stay for hours practicing - while Emmrich finds it exciting and very hot to watch him on the battlefield, he only has so much tolerance for sitting and watching while Caul lines up shots for half a day, so he'd rather stay home and get some research or alchemy done. He does enjoy treating Caul to some massage and gentle lovemaking when he returns tho, because he loves the smell of gaatlok in his hair and his shooting leathers and the oils he uses to take care of his weapons.
For Caul, as a Crow he has basic alchemy training for poisons etc. but it was never his forte and although he has very nimble hands, he messes up a lot and finds it frustrating, so he leaves Emmrich to it.
10. What are their common goals? Do they have conflicting goals?
Post-game, Caul wants to get another poetry chapbook published - he's already a published poet under the pseudonym The Soldier, but he hasn't had anything full finished in many years. Just been one off single poems in one of the Antivan literature publications.
Emmrich has a secret goal of finding more effective healing magic or potions to help Caul with his headaches. He can't heal or help the chronic pain from his leg, but maybe he can find something to heal nerve damaged horns, or at least lessen the pain from it. He also wants to travel more with Caul post-game - he got the bug for it, and Caul's been to so many fascinating places! He especially wants to visit Kont-aar, so Caul plans to make the journey there next time he needs a new batch of gaatlok rather than having it sent to him like usual.
11. Have they had prior relationship experience, before becoming a couple? If so, how much?
Emmrich's had the two he mentions in game, and Caul has had well. Dalliances. Post-contract fucks, friends with benefits, nothing serious at all. He has a tendency to not let people get close so he doesn't have to let his guard down and then be hurt when they don't want to stay with him - he has a big complex about expecting people to not stick around when they realise how high maintenance he is, how difficult he is even on non-flare up days, so he holds himself apart. Until Emmrich, that is, heh.
12. What are their relationship expectations?
Expectations were low at first - they both enjoyed the flirtation and then dallying together and having frankly excellent sex. But now, post-game, they both want to spend the rest of their lives together.
13. Do they have any shared background experiences? What are some diffences in their backgrounds?
They're both detachment kings, in their own separate ways! Emmrich after his relationships, being afraid to let himself get close because he doesn't like to be reminded of his own mortality; Caul from the reasons mentioned in 11. It's something they work on together, and after that first barrier was broken (The Argument, Caul's subsequent entrapment in the Fade prison), it's like the floodgates opened and they become even more sickening than before.
Their backgrounds couldn't be more different though. Caul deals out death with a distant, loving hand. He stalks his contracts for patient weeks, even months, learning everything about them so he can predict their movements and plan out the perfect location to take them out. His relationship with his guns - his implements of death - is intense and singular. Where Emmrich loves the dead and cares for them gently and respectfully - Emmrich doesn't realise until he sees Caul ply his trade that a Crow can give death respectfully too, but it's still a pretty big difference.
14. Was there ever any difficulties that hindered their relationship? If so, how did they resolve it?
The Argument was a pretty big difficulty, not gonna lie. That and Emmrich not understanding Caul's trade, but both of those things were surmounted without too much of an issue - ofc the Fade prison definitely helped the first one!
15. How do they express their love for each other? In other words, what is their love language?
Caul writes poetry about Emmrich (so much poetry), and he loves giving him flowers and jewellery, especially meaningful pieces. One of the most meaningful was one of his old horn decorations from before he became Tal-Vashoth - he's incredibly touched that Emmrich worked on improving his healing magic to help his pain, and he gives it to him when he's explaining how the horn/head pain came to be. It's a symbol of his trust, and Emmrich recognises that and wears it as a bangle in pride of place on his wrist.
Emmrich loves to give jewellery too, especially earrings - he gives Caul a dangling emerald on a beautiful rosy gold ring - because he knows how much Caul loves his piercings. He loves to give experiences as well, from plays and music to meals and visits to interesting places, sharing his Nevarran culture with Caul, who loves it. They both also have a habit of giving practical gifts too, from knives to personal care items; lovely silk cravats to collar pins or cufflinks.
