Garez ‘The Wher’ is short and burly, with gray eyes and blond hair that contrast oddly with his leathery skin. Even without the wind-roughening and fight-scarring, his face would be homely, with the combination of a lantern jaw, a low forehead, enormous eyebrows, and eyes barely visible within the folds of his ancestry and those caused by constant exposure to the elements. Most imposing is the nose, broken innumerable times, hooked and Roman, that dominates his features. His speech is brusque, and he barks the staccato of his orders in a sneering bellow. Garez has an unholy temper that takes over from cold scorn in seconds. He is greatly feared among the crew, and those with nightwatch are pitied for their time spent under this hard master. As second mate, Garez seldom sees daylight. This, and his ugly face, have earned him his nickname, ‘The Wher’. The only person he likes is the girl Jandeci, who he treats with a sort of rough chivalry, and Garez considers her his apprentice, foregoing his precious sleep to bring her a better understanding of the sea. Especially he hates Ondros, whose education and music do not endear him to the illiterate and hard-handed second mate.
Garez seldom speaks of his past, but if you can wring it out of him, he will admit to his birthplace being Big Bay Hold, that he had an elder sister (he’ll give no details on what happened to her), and that his father was a big drinker. His full name is Garezon, but his face darkens so when people speak it that the crew of the Squareline has learned to leave well enough alone. Jandeci, who he treats with the tenderest of concern, is uncertain whether he thinks of her as a friend, as a daughter, or something…deeper than that. Garez, on the other hand, is quite sure of his feelings. She is the light in his days, his protégé, and he fears to drive her off if he admits his close-kept love for her. |
