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Bradhoc Browning

Bradhoc was born into the wealthy Browning House, a family of nobles who can trace their roots back to the founding days of the city of Baron. Known for their secretive and somewhat off-kilter mannerisms, and the last surviving direct heir is no exception.

He is the husband of Margot, the adoptive father of Albert, and a close friend to Rye.

Origins

Bradhoc grew up in the kingdom of Baron, a very sickly child prone to injuries and illness. Despite the fact that the Browning family could afford the best health care, most physicians thought the boy would never live to reach adulthood. Though he displayed a natural talent for magical abilities at an early age, it wasn't until he was in his later teens that he was allowed to travel to Mysidia for proper instruction.

His closest childhood companion was his cousin, Baigan, who became a dashing and successful warrior in the service of the Baronian Guards. After Bradhoc had spent a few years training in Mysidia, the two had a serious falling out. The argument caused Bradhoc to leave his trainings, vanish from his family's knowledge, and stumble along the path that drew him into the secretive depths of shadowy cult societies.

No one is certain what Bradhoc was involved with during that time and up until the Crystal Wars. It wasn't until Baigan's traitorous allegiance to Golbez and death at the blade of the Paladin Cecil that Bradhoc Browning returned to Baron to reclaim his family's broken legacy. But time spent within the Shadow Societies has a high price and has not left Bradhoc unaltered.

Disposition

Bradhoc prides himself on his wealth and social networking abilities. Though he may appear outwardly proper, sometimes even charming, the truth is while he has many business partners, he also has no friends and too many enemies. Though it is suggested he conducts illegal activities in the black market trade for magical artifacts, he has been clever enough not to get caught.

He is also widely known as a womanizier (with no success). Overall, despite his great wealth, he appears to be a solitary and rather somber man with little fulfillment in his life.

For a time, his major goal was finding a way to eliminate the presence of Golbez at the royal court of Baron. It is unknown whether this is an act of vengeance for the death of his cousin, Baigan, or for some other personal reason.

Though he has spent much time studying the Lunarian language, culture, and magics, he has an extreme dislike for any race that is non-Human — especially the Lunars. However, this can be pushed aside for the sake of eliminating Golbez, as he has conspired in plots with others such as Luccious and Kip OMEGA in the past.

At least... that's where his life was going until the Lizard completely turned everything upside down.

Suddenly, the once proud and haughty aristocrat is brought to his knees, living in fear and seeking the aid of anyone kind enough to overlook his oddities. Bradhoc is even forced to accept mercy from his once-enemies... and in a twist of fate, he finds himself making unexpected friends, and even family, as he comes to understand what it means to care for someone other than himself. 

Shimmer Storyline

If the Shimmer webcomic storyline continues, young Bradhoc will show up in future chapters. Here, he meets Ben for the first time, and shows a little about how he got caught up in the Naugtylumini.

Wayrift Storyline

Contains Spoilers for Book 3 of Wayrift.

Bradhoc aligned himself with the Naugtylumini, and provided funding for some of their ventures, including giving Kip the resources to build a Lunarian ship. However, when things took a turn for the worse, he was deserted by Portia Suksley and Vake, and betrayed by Simon. (Chapter 79, Page 13)

Caught on the bad end of a rampaging OMEGA, he was skewered by Luccious’ sword, and left for dead. However, ever the opportunist, Simon claimed the unconscious Bradhoc (Chapter 79, Page 23), taking him to a secret lab for unknown biological experimentation. (Intermission: The Remote Lab, Page 1)

Following the completion of these experiments, Bradhoc woke up in his (miraculously repaired) mansion, unaware of how he’d got there and how he was still alive. However, he had a sinking feeling that something was not quite right with himself. (Chapter 85, Page 21)

In a frantic attempt to search for answers about what was happening to him, Bradhoc tries and fails to gain an audience with Portia Suksley. This is intercepted by the Dark Elf, Rye, who has been sent to investigate the workings of the Naugtylumini in Baron (Chapter 92, Page 6).

Upon taking Bradhoc back to Browning Manor for interrogation, Rye learns of the peculiar happenings in Bradhoc’s life. However, it’s not until the full truth is revealed that Rye understands the danger Bradhoc could pose to the people of the city (Chapter 92, Page 23).

Runes

Four magical runes are inscribed on the back of Bradhoc's neck. He obtained the runes during his time in the Naugtylumini. They are assumed to be the source of his unnatural power and his unexpected longevity, despite a sickly childhood.

The Lizard

Simon’s biological experimentation has unlocked Bradhoc’s dormant Sahagin transformation that lay unknown in the Browning bloodline. This creature appears to be driven by base instincts such as hunger and desire, and is simply referred to as the “Lizard” by Bradhoc, who is initially terrified of its existence.

The Lizard often makes its desires and instincts known to Bradhoc internally, and is sometimes even able to control Bradhoc’s actions when he is in human form. When in Lizard form, it’s often a heated battle of wills between the creature and Bradhoc’s rational mind, both fighting to maintain influence and control. Even when Bradhoc is fully aware of himself, the Lizard can still do things that are involuntary to Bradhoc, and even against Bradhoc’s will.

It's eventually discovered that the Lizard is linked back to a curse placed on an ancient life mage clan, likely the ancestors of the current day Browning family line. This curse has extended to others, who appear to be merely Water Lizards, but have the capability to be returned to human form – such as Azure and Albert.

Though Bradhoc is eventually able to lift the curse of his people, he is only able to temporarily seal away his own Lizard. Eventually, he discovers he must come to terms with the fact that the Lizard is a part of himself, and may even be an expression of his own dark desires, ambitions, and the feelings of powerlessness that pervaded his youth.

Elemental Lord

Bradhoc is eventually made aware that he may in fact be an Elemental Lord of the DS Dimension, and embracing knowledge of his power is vital to his survival. He travels to the Enchanted Forest of the Rai Clan, where the other (retired) Elemental Lords make their home, to seek out Rubicante, Milon, and Valice.

They confirm that Bradhoc does posess the potential to train and become an Elemental Lord, and that it’s possible the Lizard is his alternated elemental form – as each of the other elementals also have a similar transformation. Bradhoc accepts their offer of teaching, and finds himself being tested in mind, body, nature, and virtue as he beings to unfold secrets about himself and his alternate form.

Due to these revelations, Bradhoc is inspired to build an indoor Grotto within Browning Manor in order to create an environment of learning and self-reflection in his home.

Skills and Abilities

• He has spent most of his life honing and training his innate magical abilities. Though he keeps his true magical strengths unknown, it is said that the Naugtylumini gifted him with knowledge and ability at a young age, beyond what a normal human mage could obtain.
• He is naturally gifted in elemental magics, and possesses the potential to become an Elemental Lord. Though his most logical strengths would be in water magics, he also appears to have powerful control over earth and wind elements.
• Perhaps tied into both a family curse and his elemental nature, Bradhoc can transform into a Sahagin-like creature, which he simply calls the Lizard. When his mind and the Lizard’s instincts are truly in tune, they are quite a force to be reckoned with.
• He can speak, write and understand Lunarian language at a strong level of proficiency. He also has a good deal of knowledge about the origins and history of the Lunar people – though his sources for this information are unknown.
• He is a shrewd business man and has a keen mind for handling (and making) money.
• He has spent much time (and money) building up a wide network of contacts and intelligence across the world. He also has the resources to employ these networks... and to achieve just about anything money can buy.

Interesting Facts

• His name was originally "Bradoc," but over time and one too many RP typos, it morphed into "Bradhoc" and stuck. 
• Bradhoc displays a keen interest in networking with the Dark Elves.
• Though his walking stick looks ordinary, it is actually a magical artifact that Bradhoc uses to focus and enhance his casting abilities. He is rarely seen in public without it.
• His last name, "Browning" refers to the Browning line of apparel. When the author was younger, only the more well-to-do kids in her school wore Browning jackets.
• Bradhoc and the Lizard are shared characters across both authors. Bradhoc is written by Aywren while the Lizard is written by Syn – allowing for more organic reactions and interactions with both sides of this character. The one exception to this was the Lizard's introduction in Wayrift Chapter 92, in which Aywren wrote for the Lizard… mostly due to the fact that the fight with Rye would have been far less engaging to script if one author wrote for both characters!

Concept Art

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