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The black sheep of the Altambra family, Rowan is a bit of a dejected mess of a man. The boy was one among many in his family to be born with the touch of magic upon him, marking him for greatness -- yet this was the very same reason he would be cast out from his family, never to be recognized as a true heir.
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The Altambra family -- one of the older families in Pont-Ciel, nobles who specialized in magitech -- always prided themselves in their "uniquely powerful" bloodline. Not a generation passed in 300 years of the city without at least half of the children being born with innate abilities to access and harness magic. Those who could not were relegated to the less glamorous endeavors the family partook in, and those who could not handle these endeavors were disowned and sent off to the Bleeding Heart.
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Rowan was the third of his generation to be born with an aptitude for magic. His elder brother and sister before him both were capable of manipulating the weave, so it was predicted that he would meet his fate in the underworld. When he displayed the same aptitude they did, however, it was considered a miracle in the house of Altambra. What a glorious generation this was to become!
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Throughout his youth, Rowan was given a private tutor from the Conservatory. Eventually, he seemed to surpass his elder siblings, and this tutor was eventually replaced with one from the academy in Fainnard. "His potential is boundless," it was considered, particularly with extremely potent, volatile magics. This meant the boy was rapidly accelerating through course after course. It made his parents both proud, and exceptionally ambitious... all the while, young rowan was becoming increasingly anxious.
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He struggles, even now, to remember the specifics. Rowan could have been no older than eighteen, when it happened. The details are lost to him, but what he remembers clear as day is that he was unable to control himself. Was it simply a difficult spell he was requested to weave? Was it the pressure mounting, forcing him to strive for heights he could not reach?
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Whatever it was, Rowan lost his control.
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The south ward of the Altambra estate was destroyed entirely. Many of the staff were wounded, along with his older sister and his mother both being hospitalized. His brother, however, was killed by the resulting explosion.
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Rowan was cast out from his home, taken by armed escorts to the Bleeding Heart. The Altambras would rather banish their son to the undercity than risk the taint of their name being stained with one who could not control himself. From one bad day -- a day he may be lucky he cannot remember -- his entire life was turned on its head.
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Rowan was inevitably found and taken in by his uncle, who was also disowned by Rowan's grandparents due to his lack of magical aptitude. His transition to the life below was aided, and he was eventually given a job that his skills could support. Explosions cast Rowan out from the Bright End, and demolitions would keep food on his table in the Bleeding Heart.