The prayers of Mateo Mateos

[drumtheweasel]

Template For Character Creation Reward:

First Name: Mateo
Last Name: Mateos

Appearance: A thin, fit young man. Well kempt, but obviously a traveler. He always has a lute in his hand, or a lute case packed on his back. More often than not he is wearing attention grabbing colors with a cloak of fine quality on his back. In adverse weather he wears a hood.
Race: Human
Age: 26
Height 5' 10"
Weight: 155
Eyes: green
Hair: brown
Facial Hair Style: Between clean shaven and a couple days worth of stubble. Nothing ever truly out of control.

Personality Profile:
General Health: General good health. Depending on how busy his performance schedule is he might be a little tired and a scratchy voice, but no real problems with his health at all. For a brief period in his youth his family thought it was possible he was having mental problems, but Mateo has long since figured out there was no problem and is none today. His parents were worried he might have had behavioral problems that were bigger than youthful rebeliousness.
Deity: Lliira
Initial Alignment: Chaotic Good
Profession: Musician
Base Class & Proposed Development: Bard and Whirling Dervish
Habits/Hobbies: Mateo believes in good and knows what is right and what is wrong. He knows his own personal weaknesses and strengths and will do whatever he can to live a life that brings happiness and joy to everyone that he meets. He is constantly running the "gambit" from Baldur's Gate to Nashkel, playing shows where he can. He'll play his best no matter if there are one or one hundred in the tavern when he shows up. Mateo smokes a pleasant smelling herb called mellein leaf. His mother used to use it as a remedy for coughing and to help him breathe more clearly. He is more than happy to share a smoke with anyone that is interested. Fond of home cooked meals as he is always on the road eating tavern food which can be average at best. Whenever he gets a chance he will practice his lute, singing and dancing, but never around the public or people that don't want to hear. He is a performer in the sense that he knows the proper time and place to present his music.
Languages:
Common and Elven. Although he isn't fond of Elvish music, he spent time studying it while he was younger and appreciates both the music and the language.
Weapon of Choice:
Dagger

Background: Mateo was adopted into the Mateos family soon after his birth. He knows little of his birth parents, but isn't too worried about it. His father and mother were good people that raised him well. Michael Mateo, his father, is a minor bureaucrat in Neverwinter where he moved the family for Mateos teen years. Shalia Mateos, his mother, took care of the home and the children, dedicating her life to raising them. Together they were not able to conceive, but adopted both Mateo and his sister Mariana. At a young age Mateos was all ready singing and making noises on instruments where ever he ran into one. Seeing his interest his parents decided to have him trained in music. There were times he did practice as a child, but he never gave up the passion. By the time he was 18 and it was time to make a name for himself in the world, he was all ready an accomplished musician. Having played many recitals, taverns and minor events in Neverwinter with the permission and escort of his parents, he was well on his way to becoming the musician he wanted to be. He parents brought him up believing in good and right and wrong. He was taught and knows that good and evil exist and that every sentient being has a choice. As Mateo grew into his late teens he drifted a bit from his parents. Not because he was angry, not because they did anything but well by him, but because he saw the man that his father was and wanted to become a man himself. Not understanding what that meant fully, he took the values that were taught him and tried to live them, but no matter where he turned he was met by mis-understanding and disappointment. Whenever he came home his father would give him advice. Mateo listened to it all, but still did not understand as he did not believe that his father, who was not musical at all, didn't understand the frustration that he was going through. Sometime after being on his own for awhile he realized what it was that he, himself had be missing. Good is good. It is not a relative thing that is up to the opinions and whims of sentient beings where they are. It is a solid moral Truth that sentient beings have a choice to follow. Armed with this new understanding he promised himself that he would live to bring happiness, joy, peace and Truth to everyone that he meets. He would use his music to help people understand. He also realized that no matter what he said, it didn't matter. People need to see. Leaders don't lead by talking. The lead by example. He gave thanks to Lliira for allowing him to see and understand this Truth and set his jaw and began the journey to champion Truth, Love and Comradery in his life and try to bring some hope to the world.
Goals:
To live according to the belief that good and truth are the most important thing in life. To find a wife and raise a family of his own that will carry the family name. To become the best possible musician that he can and to share his music and life with anyone that is willing to listen. To bring peace and understanding to all sentient beings in Faerun.
Possible Plot-Hook Ideas and Misc Facts:
Father is just as much a champion of good as he is and just as embattled by the forces of evil as Mateo. Sister is an artist as well, preferring to deal in visual arts. Mother used to be a teacher and a healer. Although Mateo believes in Truth and good, he is still human and has all the ranges of emotions that come with that. He gets angry when people disrespect anyone. He will help anyone that isn't directing doing something evil even if it is a hardship on him. He tries to avoid violent conflict at all costs, but is not afraid of fighting for what he believes in. He has been learning the dance of the gypsies that travel through Beregost. He will give every sentient being he meets a chance to choose good no matter what, because he believes that every sentient being is capable of good. It is a matter of their choice and it is his responsibility to live by example.

[drumtheweasel]

Sitting alone by the fire outside of Candekeep, Mateo carefully tunes his lute. The water beats rhythmically agains the rocks as the stars shine bright in the sky. Satisfied with the tuning, Mateo closes his eyes and bows his head and begins to pray.

"Thank you for this day. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to live through it and to touch the lives that I have. I know that not everyone understands me and doesn't see what it is that I am trying to do. I also know that I am weak and need guidance to live a good life. I have met so many people in these lands and I pray for every singles one of them. I pray for every living thing in the world that they may find happiness and peace in their lives.
It has been some time since I have seen my friend Thaler. I am truly worried for him. Last I spoke to him I feel I left him on a sour note and pray that he will forgive me. I pray that he will understand that he is my friend and that I was not angry with him at all for his words, but instead was trying to show him that it is only right to treat every sentient being with respect and kindness even if you haven't met them. Thaler is a good man and I pray that he will find a good woman that will be his wife and understand the pain he has felt and the devotion that he has to his family and help him find peace.
I pray for my friend Hoihe. I worry that he is often blinded sometimes by his furious passion he holds in his heart. Please help him to understand the power of the passion in his heart and what it can do to bring happiness and peace to the world.
I pray for Lillith, Laitae and Kestrel of Candlekeep. I pray that you will touch their hearts and help them understand that I am not convicting them when I speak, but only trying to help them gain the knowledge that they are all so admirably passionate about. They are collecting the knowledge that when time has passed and great empires have crumbled, will be taught to my children and my children's children. Give them strength so that they will do what is right and pass that knowledge on for the betterment of the world.
I pray for Kal. I understand the pain that she has lived. I understand that she has been hurt like I could never imagine and she still fights for peace and understanding. I pray that her way would be made smooth and that more would come to know the beautiful soul that she is. I pray for her patience that she would not trip and fall in her goal of bringing peace to the human and orcs of the world.
I pray for Wyndall. I pray that he understands that what you do is what speaks to your character. I know he is no coward. I know he is a good man. I pray for him to stay strong and realize that he has a great gift to show the world and that he will find peace and happiness through it all.
I pray for the dwarves I met on the trade way. I pray that they find the strength to stand up for the good in them and that they will show more kindness to strangers no matter who they are.
I pray for the world. I pray that the world will understand that what is right is right and what is good is good. I pray the the world will realize that every single soul is free and that they have a choice to do what is right. I pray that every single soul will have the strength to choose what is good and find happiness for themselves through it.
I pray for my future wife. I pray that she is given the strength that she needs to find her way through life and to do the good that I know is in her.
I pray for my future children that they would see the example that I have led in my life and carry on the family name with humility, righteousness, patience and happiness.
I pray for my family that they would continue to live right and that I will see them again some day soon.
Please bless my hands as I begin to practice and give them the skill they need to play what is necessary.
May all of this come to pass as you see fit."

Mateo strikes his first chord of practice for the evening and sets into running his scales and arpeggios. The water continues to break rhythmically on the cliffs in front of him as the night slowling lingers on.

[drumtheweasel]

Hoihe.....




Thank you....

[drumtheweasel]

Kal...

Love...

*tear runs down his cheek*

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Herran....


Good....

Man...

Help her.....

[drumtheweasel]

Thaler...............

...





... remember...

[drumtheweasel]

The dim light of the infirmary makes Mateo strain his eyes as he reads the well written journal in front of him. He laughs kindly as he closes the journal. "You're almost there, Tahlia," he says as he painfully gets on his knees, closes his eyes and begins to pray.

"I pray for all of the people that I call friends. I pray that they will have strength to complete everything that it is they need to do in their lives. I pray that they will realize that every choice, every thing that they do, down to the very most mundane is what will define both them and the way that people see them in the world. I have tried to live as an example to show the world that there is an alternative to hate, that there is more out there than duty, that searching for knowledge is more than collecting tomes, that there is hope in every chance meeting, that even though you haven't met someone, that common ties and friendships can bring you together in hardship and that Love, above all, will win.

I know it is a hard time for each and every one of my friends. Every single one of them has good in them. And what good person can rest easy with so much war and hate going on? Tonight, most of all I pray for strength. I pray for the strength to forgive them.

I pray for every soul that gave up on me as I lay on the floor of the temple of Oghma. For 10 days I prayed for someone to show me one act of kindness, and as always, without fail, the gods showed me what I needed to see. Thank you Oghma for showing me and giving me the knowledge of my friends that you have. I pray for the musician that read my songs. I pray that she understands that it was more than just a quill that wrote those words, but a man of true passion. I pray for those that defiled the alter of Oghma over my body. I pray that they will see the evil that they have done. I pray for those murdered over my body as I lay there. I pray for the man that picked up two strangers bodies in a cave and brought them to the temple. I pray that he has the strength to continue to go on doing what is right, regardless of the personal gain. I pray for each and every soul that left me on that floor without a second look. I pray that their lives would become happy and easy, that they would show the next person kindness as I have tried.

I pray that the world will understand one day, that being a friend and doing what is right is not always easy, but it still needs to be done."

[drumtheweasel]

[drumtheweasel]

[drumtheweasel]

Mateo drags his tired body through Candlekeep.

"Hello?!!"

He drags himself a few steps further.

"Hoihe!"

A rain begins to fall on the empty streets.

"Laitae!!"

He waits a moment for a reply.

"Thaler?"

"Anyone there?!!"

I pray for strength. For there is much work to be done.

[drumtheweasel]

It is this evening that I pray for eyes of a hawk and a heart of strength. I am searching for a few good people. People I know are out there. Please. Allow me to live to see the peace endure...

[drumtheweasel]

Mystra, I know that we are not well aquainted, but I wanted to say a prayer of thanks. That you for protecting your servant Laitae. I pray that I can act as your hands in her life.

[drumtheweasel]

Walking down the trade way Mateo breaks out in song,

"Just when I thought there was a problem,
Just when I though there was nothing left but rain
Just when I thought I was all alone
You break the clouds and stop the rain
I was thinking maybe no one's left beside me
I was thinking no one would share the blame
Now I see the clouds open up
And nothing will stay the same

And if I ever doubt
if I ever doubt again

All I have to do is look up to the sky
ask you why
No matter what time it is, you'll answer me and I can stop asking myself why
Everything and everyone
Seems to walk around, cold as a stone
All I have to do is ask you and you'll show me I'm not alone."

Smiling, Mateo continues down the road whistling.

[drumtheweasel]

Mateo smiles and reaches for a piece of jerk to give a small, strange looking cat that sees him at the fire warming his hands.
"Haven't seen you around before, you a friend of someone?"
The cat delivers a note to him. Mateo reads it and gives the cat another piece of jerk.
"You're a good boy. Thank you."
Mateo turns and heads south.