Beginnings
Nicolas was not always the lost and angst-ridden man he is today. He was born the son of a yellow wizard and a fleeting guest at one of the hedonistic chronomancy revels held at the Yellow Wizard Keep. A bastard child of yellow wizard descent, he never met his mother. Wizards skilled in time dilation possess certain "methods" for hastening pregnancy, and she wanted nothing to do with him. From birth, it was evident that his magical affinity was strong, though it strayed from the conventional practices of the Yellow Hatted.
Nicolas cherished tranquility and all things beautiful. He admired the natural flow of time and space, longing for a normal childhood, free from a father who dragged him from one debaucherous celebration to the next. The splendid arbors and blossoms within and around the keep offered him an escape. Party after party, Nicolas found solace in the greenery that flourished within the oasis-driven desert climate around the keep. He would often steal away to "sniff the roses," as his father would jest.
Though the yellow wizards’ time-dilation spells and magic played a large role in the somewhat artificial upkeep of these landscapes, Nicolas knew there was a missing natural touch required to truly care for these gardens. He made this his mission, allowing his mind to drift away from the endless festivities at the Yellow Wizard Keep. The more time he spent creating scenic grounds for the keep's visitors, the more his adoration and skill for the magics of the natural world flourished.
While his father seemed indifferent, he was secretly concerned about Nicolas' deviation from the expected behaviors of a yellow wizard. Yet, he could not ignore the joy it brought the boy, more than the revelries and arcane arts his father endeavored to teach him. Encouraged by this, Nicolas' father would reassure other yellow wizards, concerned about his progress, that his natural affinity for the desert meant he would easily be able to "control the sands of time." He dismissed it for many years, assuming Nicolas would eventually embrace the celebratory lifestyle of the Yellow Hatted.
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Hedge-wizard and Affinity for the Desert Sands
Of all the traits he could have inherited from his father, it was his socialite persona that truly shone and complemented Nicolas' amiable nature. There was never a time in his earlier years when he didn't try to enjoy himself, even while being coaxed into the grand celebrations at the Yellow Wizard Keep. When party-goers would accidentally spill their beverages, he was the first to run and replace them, much to the chagrin of other yellow wizards who could simply reverse the spill with a flick of their chronomantic fingers. When others paused to admire the desert paradise, Nicolas would strike up conversations about the care and thought that went into its design and maintenance.
Nicolas forged a special bond with a stray cat he named Gus. This orange feline, seemingly lost and wandering, found a home at the Yellow Wizard Keep. As Nicolas transformed the shrubbery and floral landscapes in and around the keep, Gus found solace in the beauty he created. The cat's contentment with the shelter provided by the groundskeeping reassured Nicolas that his path was both natural and righteous, encouraging him to delve deeper into the natural arts.
Although Nicolas' magic was more attuned to the sands surrounding the oasis, he scoured various tomes about the natural world left at the keep by Green Wizards and other Hedge Wizards from across the realm. Between manipulating the sands, the desert oasis, and the river that ran through, he devised his own magical methodologies for cultivating the gardens he cherished. Years of practice turned Nicolas into a dynamic magic-user. He preferred the diversity of magics over the mastery of a few, and he excelled with this approach.
Most famously known at home for his efforts in maintaining the sands around the keep, Nicolas established a sort of magical moat. By manipulating the sands surrounding Atlanta's Pools and the Chronomancer's Riviera, he created natural underground tunnels that channeled water toward the keep. The abundance of water caused the surrounding and interior grounds to flourish spectacularly. This was the first time he had collaborated with his father's magical prowess, combining elemental manipulation and time-magics to maintain these aqueducts.
After this remarkable feat, he was bestowed the title of "Hedge Wizard" by the Yellow Hatted at the keep. His natural affinity for manipulating the sands to bring the oasis water's from Atlanta Pool's into the keep earned him a reputation as a wizard "of the Oasis."
Nicolas had finally felt like he was beginning to belong, though unconventionally, to the yellow-hatted...
Until the Technological Singularity stripped him of his Fellowship.
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