Aquilus, the Dark Delver

Aquilas' place in his desert tribe was always at risk. The clan's crafter and trapmaker, he was also in constant squabbles with those higher in the clan. Moreover, while he was a bright kobold, his arrogance and insistence often led to more trouble than he solved. He lost a fair number of limbs to his own contraptions; Aquilas would retort he replaced those limbs just fine, what was the big deal? Unfortunately, one day he would do too great an injury - both physical and emotional - to the clanhead. He was kicked out of the clan, left to fend in the wastes.

A crafty kobold, Aquilas struggled on through the wastes until one day he came to an astounding sight. A horse-drawn carriage had careened over the side of a cliff. Investigating the wreckage, he found several corpses, and a most unusual weapon: a revolver. He also found the writings to a man named Wyatt Earthell; he was en route to a town on the fringes to aid in a crisis. There was a long communique - it seemed that the strange man was not known in these parts. A perfect rube. With a grin, Aquilas stole not just Earthell's weapon, but his very identity.

Waltzing into Ironstead, the locals were more than a bit skeptical that this little lizard was the well-regarded Earthell. Especially with how brash and larger-than-life he was! But he did bear the weapon. Sleek in silver and loud as thunder. It would be the answer to the town's problem - ruthless beasts beneath the very soil. A cavern system ran beneath the town, an old gold mine gone dry - and now home to a terrifying beast. Holding only a bit of terror, Aquilas braved delving into the depths; after all, he had a ruse to maintain. Beneath the town he discovered in the darkness an Underdark fissure. From the fissure crawled a Fire Snake - well befitting the beast described! In a hard-fought battle, Aquilas was victorious - the town revered "Earthell" as a savior.

For a good while, Aquilas was content to stay in Ironstead. His charms were working there, he got a good brawl in every now and then with some ruffians who wanted a piece of the Beast Killer, and he even modified Earthell's designs to create a gunblade. But it all came crashing down so fast. Aquilas was called back down beneath the town - the beast had returned. Expecting just another fire snake, the kobold thought little of venturing underground once more. Instead he found a worse sight: a purple worm burling up from the underdark. His revolver only roused the beast's anger - in its hunger, it devoured the town from below. Aquilas was lucky to escape alive, but now for the first time he felt a heavy weight of guilt for the destruction of Ironstead.

Aquilas now wanders once more. Word of "Earthell" had started to spread - with him at the focal point. Something within him drove him to keep up the facade - if only to give hope to people out in the wastes. To all he meets, he is Earthell - Delver into the Dark.