Akabar Bel Akash

Akabar Bel Akash of House Akash was a wizard and a merchant from Turmish who was a companion of the hero Alias and one of her closest friends.

"''Alias watched as Akabar lifted the lid from the pan and crushed a fistful of dried peppers over the steaming grain, letting most of it settle in a quarter of the pan. "I take it that's Olive's portion," Alias noted, smiling. The mage grinned fiendishly. "The vengeance of wizards and cooks can be subtle but terrible. Each day I add another quarter fistful. Eventually, Mistress Ruskettle will help prepare a meal, or her tongue will fall out of her head." "More likely, you'll run out of spices." Akabar chuckled.''"

Description
Akabar was a tall dusky-skinned man of with blue eyes and curly brown hair, often banded with golden cords. He wore his short mustache and squarely-shaped long beard neatly trimmed like many other Turmish traders.

Akabar was very thin, hiding his body under billowing red rodes he often wore. The rich crimson robes were accentuated with thin white stripes and topped with his red-trimmed ivory white cloak.

As per Turmish tradition, the mage had three blue dots tattooed on his forehead indicating him as being a scholar of religion, reading, magic, and his left earlobe was decorated with a sapphire earing, indicating him as a married man.

Personality
Akabar Bel Akash was a smart and polite man who respected the tradition of his land as much as he did the traditions of the people he traded with. He was known by all who did business with him as an honest trader.

With his trading career being little more than working for his wives' business, Akabar yearned for adventure, to prove his worth as a mage. He felt that way while still being happy with his family and business arrangements. He was also self-sufficient and strong-willed, enjoyed traveling, and using his charisma to conduct trade.

After his one grand adventure, Akabar felt a kinship with other adventurers, gladly talking and helping the ones he met during his trading journeys.

Abilities
Akabar was a capable magic-user who often described himself as "a mage of no small water". Apart from his arcane abilities, he was gifted with a great direction sense. He was a great cook, even on the road. And was able to read and write in multiple languages.

Akabar's spellbook included a variety of spells including enlarge, magic missile, bind, continual light, deeppockets, magic mouth, pyrotechnics, dispel magic, detect magic, fly, and haste. The Turmishman was a very practical man, which showed in handy cantrips he knew (clean, dry, and spice) as well as the spells he studied and prepared.

One distinct spell he has mastered and modified was the arcane eye. Akabar's version of it was a glowing melon-sized orb that contained the image of the wizard's head. He was able to use the arcane eye to not just overserve, but also to talk through.

For a period of time in 1357 DR, Akabar along with Alias' other companions were protected by a benevolent spell of Elminster’s Blessing that was cast by Elminster himself, unbeknownst to them.

Possessions
Akabar's usual adventuring gear included a simple dagger, a quarterstaff, a component pouch, and his spellbook. He traveled with a full set of cooking utensils and a pan, always happy feeding his companions.

Relationships
Akabar was close friends with his adventuring companions Alias, Dragonbait, and Olive Ruskettle. For a short period of time, Akabar was mistrustful of the saurial but that changed to deep respect and friendship after the confrontation with Alias' masters. His relationship with Olive was more teasing, in the beginning, but they grew closer with the adventure's end.

Akabar was old friends with Dimswart and felt comfortable enough to share his feeling and reasons he joined Alias.

History
Akabar Bel Akash was born in Turmish and spent most of his life trading on behalf of his wealthy family's trading business - House Akash led in big part by Akabar's first wife Kasim. The family traded in fine weaves and spices. The House Akash's business was run by Akabar's wives as was the Turmish tradition, and by 1357 DR they were looking for a new wife to joining the family endeavor. Traditionally men, and Akabar himself, were little more than a face for their wives' enterprises.

1357 DR changed his peaceful and somewhat monotonous life. He felt a desire to have one great adventure before he got too old. These events started with a fateful delivery of fine weaves to Dimswart Manor, north of Suzail in preparation for a noble wedding. The trading caravan was destroyed by an ancient red dragon Mistinarperadnacles Hai Draco, who snatched one of the wagons with Akabars spellbook and a halfling "bard" Olive Ruskettle on board.

Escaping with his life, the Turmishman ended up in The Hidden Lady, an inn in Suzail. This is where Akabar's path crossed with amnesiac sellsword Alias. The woman's arm was adorned with a mysterious shimmering magical azure bonds tattoo. The merchant-mage attempted to work a detect magic spell to confirm the origin of the blue tattoos resulted in a violent explosion of blue light. Alias fled the inn and unsuccessfully sought aid at a temple. Akabar was intrigued by the magical tattoos and felt the sellsword's need for help. He followed her and visited the same temple Alias did after her departure.

Their paths crossed again but this time tightly intertwined when Alias and her saurial companion Dragonbait headed to meet the Sage of Suzail, Dimswart. The same man who Akabar was friends with and was bringing wedding silks to. Dimswart offered information on Alias' sigils in exchange for the missing bard's rescue mission. Akabar was the part of the destroyed caravan and followed the dragon to her lair so he knew of a secret way in, and he used that knowledge to accompany Alias and Dragonbait.

Together they freed the halfling "bard" from Mist's cage and managed escape unscathed. On the way back to the Manor they faced a crystalline monster created by one of Alias' evil masters. The group delivered Olive in time for the wedding reception, which they all attended. During the event, Akabar witnessed the azure bonds ' dominating magic when Alias was forced to attack one of the guests (thinking he was Azoun Obarskyr IV) and then fleeing. Instead of cutting his losses and going home, Akabar retrieved the information Dimswart was to find for Alias and headed headfirst into adventure. He was fired up with the lust for adventure and wanted to help the new friend. Accompanied by Dragonbait and Olive they caught up with Alias and together set out to free her from the azure bonds.

Together they traveled through Shadow Gap, freed it from the Iron Throne's occupation, defeated a monstrous Kalmari, and visited Alias' old haunts in Shadowdale. There they received accolades from the lord of Shadowdale himself, Mourngrym Amcathra, and Akabar attempted to meet with Elminster but was held up in a bureaucratic nightmare by Elminster's scribe Lhaeo overnight.

The group continued to Yulash where they awoke the Abomination of Moander, another of Alias' evil masters. Akabar was captured and possessed by the Abomination, and for a time, was linked with the god's mind. When Dragonbait rescued the mage, Akabar was almost broken by the experience, but eventually, the feeling grew into steeled determination. He became highly proficient in wielding his magics in battle, helping the destruction of Moander's avatar.

The Battle took the heroes from Yulash to Cormanthor, only to come to the explosive win in the skies over Westgate. Catching a short breather, they were captured by the rest of Alias' masters: the evil wizard Cassana, lich Zrie Prakis, and a strange beholder-like demon Phalse. Cassana was planning to use Akabar as a puppet consort, tried to break his will, using her control over Alias to make the sellsword woman beat the mage to an inch oh his life. With the help of Olive, and Alias' "father" Nameless Bard, the heroes confronted the masters, destroying all three of them in a long and fierce battle that took them to the Citadel of White Exile.

Following his life-changing big adventure, Akabar returned to the calm life if a trader. But the routine of life would be disrupted again the same year, four months later. While trading in the village of Hap, the town was taken over by the forces of a dracolich Crimdrac, a minion of a Red Wizard Dracandros. Akabar joined forces with a group of adventurers that possessed all too familiar azure bonds.

Accompanied by the azure-bonded adventurers, Akabar reunited with Alias, Dragonbait, and Olive, once more to stop the new masters' alliance, Fire Knives, Tyranthraxus, cultists of Moander, while traveling to Yulash, Tilverton, Zhentil Keep, Haptooth Hill, and Myth Drannor.

By 1358 DR Akabar married a third wife, Zhara, a priestess of Tymora. However, it was discovered that she was a clone of Alias. Akabar and his new wife traveled to Shadowdale to inform Alias of Akabar's nightmares of Moander's return. He was committed to destroying the god once and for all. Alias' relationship with her newfound sister began on a wrong foot due to Alias dislike of clerics and her child-like jealousy over Akabar.

Finder Wyvernspur's appeal in front of the tribunal of Harpers was happening in Shadowdale. When the session started, a saurial wizard Grypht teleported into the courtroom. Thinking they were under attack Harpers retaliated, driving the saurial toward's Finder's cell. Olive was there trying to rescue her friend. The trio was attacked by a Harper bard Kyre, who was enslaved by the Seed of Moander. Kyre stole the Finder's Stone, imprisoned the saurial, but Finder and Olive escaped by teleporting away. When Alias and the guard reached the Finder's cell, Kyre accused Grypht of kidnapping the Bard. While Alias and Dragonbait were hunting the alleged kidnapper, Akabar was charmed by Kyre, as she forced him to aid in Moander's return. Eventually, Akabar was able to break the spell and freed the saurial wizard. Together they retrieved the Finder's Stone and killed Kyre, realizing that nothing was left of the Harper as she was hollowed out from the inside by Moander's rotting vines. Alias and Dragonbait were joined by Zhara tracking Grypht. The heroes found out that Moander brought an enslaved saurial colony to the Realms. Alias reunited with Akabar and Grypht after battling Moander's rotten treants. The red-headed sellsword recovered the Finder's Stone, lost a year ago in a battle with Moander and was able to tap into the Stone's power to teleport everyone to the its creator, Finder. Akabar helped Alias in rescuing her father and Olive from orcs and Moander's rotted enslaved beholder.

The Finder's Stone teleported them to the Lost Vale where enslaved saurials were building a body for the new Abomination of Moander. There Dragonbait was captured by Coral his mate, who was controlled by the Seed of Moander. Alias and Akabar were captured to be sacrificed to bring moander back into the Realms. Dragonbait rescued his sister but Akabar managed to retain his own will and was sent to Moander's home plane of the Abyss, followed by Finder. In the end, his body overtaken by Moander's vines of possession, Akabar called to the gods he'd served through his life to take him into their hands, to teach Finder Wyvernspur how an unselfish man dies. Finder Wyverspur used the Finder's Stone's magic to obliterate Moander. Finder did not perish, instead, he absorbed the defeated god's divinity and ascended to godhood himself.

Appearances

 * Adventures:
 * Curse of the Azure Bonds
 * Novels:
 * Azure Bonds &bull; Song of the Saurials
 * Finder's Bane
 * Video Games:
 * Curse of the Azure Bonds
 * Curse of the Azure Bonds