Starting as a young boy, Balder knew little of his family. His father was a brave and respected man that spent much of his time away in battle, and his mother wasn't a woman he had ever met, leaving when he was born to go and continue her life elsewhere. Rather than tell him he should pursue her, his father always insisted he respect his mother's decision, though it was clear from a young age that Balder's father missed and loved her deeply. As a result of this, and his father being a soldier himself, Balder was very quickly taught the values of duty and responsibility. It shaped him, whether he knew it or not, to believe duty came before much else. In turn, he became helpful at home, taking care of the house when his father wasn't around and even going out to buy groceries and supplies from the age of ten.
Whenever his father was home, he insisted on training Balder as best he could, starting with a sword and shield. The shield felt normal and fine, but it became clear quickly that the sword wasn't working. A small handful of weapons were tried and Balder struggled to grasp them, his father starting to think it might be easier to teach him a ranged weapon. So the pair went out to look for a fletcher to make a bow, and as they browsed markets and stared into shops, Balder noticed a weapon that stood out to him. Simply eleven years old, he gestured to the Flail a merchant was selling. His father explained that flails weren't used as often by infantry, though they could be, but sometimes by Cavalry. The Lothar's eyes lit up with excitement at the idea of it, riding through the enemies of the Empire, swinging his flail and blocking arrows with his shield.
Uncertain, but willing to let his son try, his father allowed Balder to purchase the flail and try it. While he was bad with it at first and struggled to use it properly, he insisted it was the weapon he wanted to use. Then, after some months went by, he found his element with the weapon. Time went by and he continued to train for years, hoping to one day be a good soldier as his father was. No matter how hard he trained, however, he knew deep down he wouldn't be good enough to fight those that had real battle experience. At least not until he had some of his own.
Then, at the age of seventeen, he was training at home one day when he was met with some soldiers of the Empire. His father had died on a mission, fighting bandits that had set up an ambush, killing over thirteen soldiers - his father included. As he had no mother, the soldiers asked if he was in need of someone to care for him. But with his Eighteenth arc around the corner, Balder declined. He mourned his father for some time, but continued with life as normal, and on his eighteenth birthday he enlisted as a private for the Imperial Army, where he has worked since.
As years went by he developed a fierce loyalty, as his father had, to the Imperial Army and all those he considers comrades in it. As his father was, he was humble, rarely talking about his accomplishments but often bringing up the prestige of those around him, lifting them up where he could. It helped with morale, and he quickly found himself popular with the other Privates. As well as this, Officers could see his father's ferocity and willingness to fight in his own training. They gave him lessons in riding, and he quickly joined the Cavalry, learning the basics of riding a horse swiftly and finding it meshed well with his training with a flail.
His first few battles went well, his time on a mount proving easy for the man as he picked up the skill quickly. Over the Arcs he fought bandits, traitors and anyone that the Army ordered him to, following the orders of his Empress and superiors. Despite a long time in the army, working with them for over ten years, he remained as a Private at his own request - wanting to experience the life as a foot soldier his father did before even considering attempting a promotion. Now, after some time, Balder is ready to push himself and to become the best he can be.
For the glory of the Eternal Empire.
![[Approved by Pig Boy]](.//images/icons/cs_ok.png "[Approved by Pig Boy]"){kind=icon}
