Name: Bertram Silverwebb
(He started out as a fan character, based on Clayton Webb. I searched in a name book for a name as odd as the original and came up with Bertram, threw "silver" on the front of the surname and... there you go.)
Race: Shynonian
Notes on his cultural heritage: Shynonian is the name given to people whose heritage is a mix between Shynian and Nonian. Although both groups are of Kenzian origin, their cultures are quite different. Nonians are of particular note as they do not accept the existence of magic. Much of Bertram's appearance can be said to be a blend between to two groups. He has a hair color common among Shynians, but his complexion is fair, like his Nonian ancestors.
Age: Earth years – almost 40 years; Shynian years – about 26 years old If asked, he’ll say that he’s almost 40, but he looks more like he’s 26 years old.
Appearance
Hair: Short and chestnut in color. He is very particular about how his hair looks, feeling that messy or over-long hair shows an inattention to details.
Eyes: Green-gray (But sometimes they look bluish. Bertram's eyes are actually a lot like my own.)
Body type: He is of average height for a Shynian with a muscular, athletic build. He has an oval-shaped face and a small nose.
Clothing: Typically, Bertram will wear a white dress shirt and dark slacks with a long vest and a ribbon-tie. If the occasion calls for it, it will wear a long dress coat over his vest. When he's outside, he invariably wears a frock coat and matching cap. Only rarely does he dress in the traditional Shynian garb.
(His appearance started off being based on the actor who played Clayton Webb – only short and with glasses. I chose this picture because you can actually see his eyes:
Steven Culp – played Clayton Webb)
Personality: Bertram is a gentle and caring person, who has a sensitive nature that he tends to hide behind a serious and business-like demeanor. He does what he has to get his job done, but will not willingly allow others to be harmed in order to make his job easier. He doesn’t altogether trust the motives of the Agency and gets very annoyed at Keenan’s antics. He clashed only slightly less with Trenton.
Historical Background: Bertram was well on his way to graduating from the Cygman Bardic School when he received a letter from his mother that said he needed to come home. Shortly after arriving, he learned that his father had been killed and his brother had been kidnapped. At that moment, he determined to join the Equisetan Defense Wardens, in the hopes of finding both his father's killers and his brother's whereabouts.
He worked in the Wardens' anti-forgery division for many years until one fateful evening changed his path once again. He had gone to see a speech delivered by a presidential candidate and happened to notice a would-be assassin in the crowd. His quick actions both saved the candidate's life and caused the Wardens to promote him to Watch Warden.
His first assignment as a Watch Warden was to defend the life of Elizabeth Sebohn against both a stalker and an organization that was bent on destroying all bards. Over the course of the year he spent protecting her, Bertram grew to love the gentle young woman. He began courting her only after he received permission to do so from his superiors.
Things began to heat up when Sebohn's stalker broke into her room. Shortly thereafter, an attempt was made on her life and the man was finally brought to justice. It was also learned, from him, who the leaders of the organization were. With his duty to Sebohn dispensed, the Agency felt free to call upon Silverwebb to work for them. As a Shynonian, Silverwebb felt it was his duty to listen to the call and left Equisetia to serve in the Agency. (Just so you know, he didn't really have a choice. Any other decision would have been seen as treason against Shynia and he would have been in deep, deep trouble.)
Tortures: Bertram's only important health condition is his unusually acute senses. This causes several problems, primarily, his senses can be over-stimulated causing headaches or odd behavior (e.g. removing coarse clothing in public because he cannot stand the feel of it). Also, while very acute at tremendous distances, he has difficulty focusing on things at what would be considered a normal distance. Therefore, he wears corrective lenses, which he removes when he wants to look far away.
Although it is not specifically a health condition, Silverwebb has a strong disbelief in the existence of magic. He will either explain any magic he sees in mundane terms or he will simply not accept that it occurs.
He has to work with Keenan on a regular basis – torture for anyone as serious as Bertram tends to be. He also feels a bit inadequate because he hasn't managed to find his brother yet. Finally, as was mentioned in Keenan's bio, the Agency doesn't care too much for the welfare of their people. If it suits them, they'd sacrifice a few for the "greater good" without batting an eye.
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