Ælfrick Stolya Ældrick Stolya was an ambitious man. Not a surprising trait, given his Chelaxian heritage. But unusually, he was very successful. In spite of the best efforts of his "loving" family, Ældrick, a very ruthless importer/exporter of goods became rich, and even arranged a superb marriage with a Chelaxian high, but impoverished, noble lady. Amazingly enough, he even managed to love and cherish her. A son was soon born, Ældruss, the apple of his father’s eye. The boy grew up strong and quick, a militarily-inclined leader of men. Another son was born, much later. His birth destroyed his mother’s health; in a matter of months, and despite Ældrick’s considerable efforts, she wasted away and died. Ældrick despaired, and spent the better part of his fortune in bringing her back; he also spared no amount of scorn and hostility for his second, ill- starred son, Ælfrick. Stolya Sr. concentrated all his efforts on his firstborn, who entered the Korvosan military very young, and rose quickly through distinguished and valorous service. And then he was lost in a routine patrol on the borders of Korvosa. This blow was too much for Ældrick, who withered away visibly after the loss, and ceased to care for his much diminished business and estates. He became totally reclusive, a ghost in a frail mortal shell, haunting his home even before his death. Ælfrick, meanwhile, grew into a very strange and studious young man. The half-Shoanti wife of Ældrick’s majordomo took a shine to the boy, and taught him much on non-Korvosan ways. Every book in the house, whether a dull accounting ledger, or some exciting tale of adventure was memorized and filed away in Ælfrick’s mind. He impressed the local apothecary so much that he became his apprentice, and within a year had mastered all that the overwhelmed amateur physician could teach him. Ælfrick gathered money from a dozen consultations, took out a loan, and disappeared from Korvosa for a decade. Most thought he had died, but the boy had merely enrolled in the University of Cheliax. Years later, Ælfrick is back. His father is dead, his inheritance a legal tangle, mostly through the agency of Ældrick’s majordomo, who is an old man with a sharp legal mind, and has the Stolya relatives fighting amongst themselves and with creditors, ineffectually. He desires to find some trace of his much-storied older brother, find the fortune needed to restore his family’s good standing within Korvosa, and make his way in this very grim part of the world.