Thunderous Steppe, Zenith Caste

Thunderous Steppe was born and raised in Harborhead, among a minor tribe belonging to the Izhalvi people.
He had an ordinary childhood, with a reputation for getting himself into trouble. He was trained as a warrior from a young age, and was quickly used to work with the village militia.

The tribe of white rain was the home of 100 izhavis, with about a fifth of these being slaves. He had a mother and father, and 2 siblings, one older brother and one younger sister. The lands around provided with farming and cattle, but to provide cattle for sacrifices and slaves for monetary income, raids were often launched both against neighboring peoples tribes and beyond the lands of Harborhead. Thunderous Steppe often considered these raids necessary and thought nothing more of it, except when it came to the taking of slaves. Especially when farmers and peasants were taking as slaves from beyond Harborhead, he felt that it was wrong to uproot foreigners from their lands.

The older he got and the more he thought about this, the more his view on slavery not a necessity for survival, but as a cause of greed. at the age of 21, he started to speak about his feelings and thoughts with the rest of his tribe. Many took him for a fool, but his words were inspiring to the younger warriors of the tribe. Soon enough, his speeches were seen as an insult to his elders, for to have one so young question not only them but the entire way of life was unacceptable.

Thunderous Steppe was taken in front of the whole tribe to account for his lack of obedience. Headstrong as he was, he held true to his belives that slavery was a great evil, and that it should be abolished. Words quickly became shouts and as the heated discussion, as much as a yelling match can be called a discussion, turned more and more inspired, both among the elders and Thunderous steppe, but also among the rest of the tribe. The chief of the tribe realized that the discussion turned against him, angered by the lack of obedience that Thunderous Steppe showed, he drew his weapon and struck against his opponent. Thunderous Steppe felt the blow, but instead of pain, he felt a rush of energy flow through him, and he saw the brightest of light in front of him. It spoke to him. Memories not belonging to him flooded his senses. None of it made sense, except that there was a feeling of betrayal, and then shadows.

The next thing he remembered was his tribe devastated. He was covered in blood, the tents set aflame, and bodies lie everywhere. Out of the over 100 souls that had called the white rain it's home, only 40 were alive. Out of his family, only his father had survived. According to the warriors still alive, Thunderous Steppe had taking the chief’s blow without flinching, his sword bouncing off his ribs, and a symbol of the Zenith caste had started to glow on his forehead. In the lull of the events, Thunderous steppe had held a short speech that had set fire to the souls of the younger warriors. He had laid claim to the seat as chief of the white rain for himself, and declared that all stood against him would be slain in the name of the Unconquered sun. After that, the fighting had started.

Life continued. Everyone who had survived were fiercely loyal to Thundering Steppe, or simply children who did not understand what had happened. Everyone else had been slaughtered. He told his tribe to not tell anyone about his exaltation. Everyone was going to believe this had been a territorial fight between an elder chief and a ambitious warrior. Thundering Steppe took on the title of chief on the white rain tribe, and even though he was unmarried and young, Situations where whole tribes were close to annihilated where not as uncommon as you'd think in a nation of a thousand tribes, and the Elders of the Izhalvi thought it best to let the victor take charge until the situation had been cleared up. The few slaves that had survived were released.  Most of them went back to their homelands, but a few stayed, inspired by the newly exalted. Thundering Steppe did not wait, and instead started to engage himself in the politics of the Izhalvi. He toned down his hatred of slavery, knowing that it would probably make him enough enemies to get him replaced quickly. He hoped that with enough time, He could gain enough influence among his people, and among all of Harborhead, to make a difference.

As expected, his rousing speeches made him a popular chief among the Izhalvi. While he was young and his tribe was small, he had a voice that could raise an eyebrow even in the most cynical of opponents, and was, as hearsay from the survivors of the white rain, a fierce warrior. Within 3 months of the massacre at white rain, his name was known among all the people of the Izhalvi.

One day at nightfall, The Wyld hunt had found him. He never found out how they managed to figure out he was a solar, but nevertheless, a storm of imperial soldiers assaulted the tribe. With no chance of winning, Thundering Steppe fled with as many of his tribe as i could. When morning came, there were only 15 of his tribe left.

Angered and disillusioned, he brought those who followed him westward, desperate to find safety and supplies for his tribe, and to find a way to make his homeland free from slaves...