He was raised as a noble of Taiga, his mother, Galina, being a lady of one of the noble houses of the city of Taganrog. His father (as much as he can remember) visited occasionally. He knew his father, Eric, was the King of a faraway land, but he lived here because it was safer for him to be hidden until he grew up.
Then he was kidnapped off to Chaos (when the Black Road was reaching across Shadow perhaps). He remembers that he was with his father as a young, young boy (six or seven years old), and that they were set upon and he was captured by Chaosites. Or did Eric hand him over? It's so hard to remember. He was taken to Chaos and kept imprisoned (but not particularly ill-treated) for some time, in a quality-type cell (in fact a small shadow pocket). He was given some training befitting a Chaos noble, and to some extent, because of his loneliness, became a little loyal to them, though strong-willed as he was, he never forgot who he really was. During this time a sympathetic jailer, Felix Vitherni (Youngish, dark eyes, short bronze hair, dark skin, handsome. Alert. Average height, muscular build. Knows shapeshifting, and has taken the Logrus. Has a significant streak of kindness. He is a jailer because he offended someone important that he shouldn't have. He is generally calm and stoic in demeanour) befriended the lonely and frightened boy, and partly to keep him occupied, slowly over time secretly taught him how to shapeshift. The chief jailer, Pericles Ashlurian (Tall, slim, long black hair [usually in a ponytail], pale ice-blue eyes. Regal, superior air. Sneer. Fine clothes. Apparently a skilled swordsman. Obviously a shapeshifter and Logrus initiate. Basically an arrogant slimeball. He is married, to Samantha Ashlurian. He was given his posting as senior jailer as a sinecure, to keep him out of the way or out of trouble [Rakhmon isn't sure which]. He was told that Ashlurian likes to torture people, but has no actual evidence one way or the other .), the man responsible for his imprisonment, Rakhmon came to hate as he was cruel, vindictive, and hateful.
Rakhmon made occasional, futile, attempts to escape, after which he was kept in solitary confinement for varying periods of time. After one of these he told one of his 'tutors' (or had wheedled out of him) various bits of (apparently harmless) information about Eric and Taiga.
Later, he learned from Ashlurian that Chaos was at war with Amber, and that the information he had provided had been invaluable in driving the Black Road all the way to Amber, and through Taiga, and also in enabling Chaos to kill off King Eric, his father. Rakhmon was heartbroken, but wouldn't let Ashlurian see his grief, so hid behind a wall of icy coldness. He couldn't really have betrayed Amber per se as he'd never been there, though he could have been taken near Amber (by boat?) to see it before his kidnapping - that information could have been useful to Chaos too, in planning their attack .
Ashlurian told him his main usefulness was gone now, but that he'd be kept around 'in case of need'. He was taken from his reasonably comfortable confinement, and throw into what was basically a Chaos oubliette, a mobius-strip maze shadow pocket, easy to get lost/confused in, but with (basic) food and water within it.
He was not alone in the oubliette; other prisoners, were also inside it. Some had been there a very long time; some were powerful, some were mad, many were hostile. Rakhmon quickly learnt to fight well (on top of the training he had received on Taiga) and effectively to defend himself against the other prisoners, and gain a place in the obscure and convoluted obliette pecking order.
He learnt to kill, and became even colder and harder than he had been. A liar, thief, cheat and generally something of a black-hearted rogue, not to mention a survivor. Perhaps something to do with finally having some control over his life. What he had to do in the oubliette to survive is not something he likes to talk about.
Felix Vitherni kept in touch when he could, but because of the nature of the oubliette, and the war with Amber, these contacts became less and less frequent. And then, in some fashion, after roughly five years in the oubliette, he was found and taken out of the oubliette (perhaps because Felix told an Amberite of another held prisoner in Chaos?). And so, here he is in Chaos . Felix Vitherni gave him the sword-cane upon his release - 'something I'd been saving for you, if you ever got free'.
At the start of the game, he is in the Courts, having been put under house arrest during the period of time leading up to the final battle of Patternfall. He doesn't (didn't?) know where in Chaos he was imprisoned.
Strangely, he hears that the authorities who placed you under house arrest didn't survive Patternfall. Nor, amazingly, did the paperwork regarding his background in the Courts. Someone, somewhere, did a fine job of burning the papers and cleaning up the nasty tracks.
So as the story begins, he found himself free in Thelbane, as an occupation force of Amber's elite forces enter the City. He has heard that they are commanded by a man named Benedict, whose name is spoken of in hushed, respectful tones. (From the GM : Think Japan after it surrendered, and MacArthur is in town)
He has just been delivered a note,
"Prince Rakhmon,
"Your name has been found on the rolls of political prisoners currently in the custody of the Imperial Thelbane Government. Under the terms of the surrender, you are free to return to your homeland.
"We are currently in the process of identifying and securing other prisoners of war. It is our understanding that you are secure and safe; should you wish to come to a Amber Crown facility, we may dispatch a squad to accompany you.
"We are very glad to know that you are alive and well, and look forward to your return.
"Regards,
"Klaus Theobal,
"Aide de Camp,
"General Benedict"
When the letter is delivered, he found that all the servants have fled the house. A strange silence had descended on the place.
At the moment (well, just after getting out of the oubliette, at least), he's obviously not as neatly-groomed as he might prefer to be. He is dirty, with ragged and tattered clothes, a ragged beard, and long ragged hair; he is in his late 20's by now, though he doesn't know exactly how old he is. He is also a little thin and gaunt, with a wary look in his eye. Despite his dilapidated state he still moves fluidly and gracefully.
His being a shapeshifter is something he would like to keep secret (if only because it's a bit more useful if no-one else knows he can do it), but it's not something he'd find too worrying if it was revealed.
He is maybe a little grimmer than the old version but still much the same.
It turns out that Taiga was near the Golden Circle, and was damaged when the Black Road came through it. It still suffers the effects of this.
Psyche : B Pattern : 50
Strength : C Shapeshifting : 35
Endurance : D Court Friend : 2 (one court or the other!)
Warfare : A Amber Court Devotee : 6
Ally in Chaos : 1
Sword-Cane : 1 (Extra Hard)
Points Pool : 5
Points Spent : 50 + 35 + 2 + 6 + 1 + 1 + 5 = 100
Note that this game did not use Stuff, and no points were spent on statistics; instead they were simply ranked from highest (A) to lowest (D). I'm guessing that the GM then took these ranks and translated them into numbers somehow, but as to how that was done, and the eventual numbers obtained, that remains a mystery. Also, he encouraged us keep a free pool of points, which would come in useful later; unfortunately, the game ended before I, at least, got to see what they might have done.
His Ally and Amber Devotee could be supporters of Eric previously.
The cane is of faintly iridescent immensely hard and tough blue-black wood with a swirling grain pattern. It has a silver metal foot, and is topped with a large sapphire globe held by a silver metal mounting.
The join where the blade comes out of the cane is almost invisible, looking like a fine groove in the wood. To disguise it, other grooves run around the cane at regular intervals down its length.
The blade is of some glittering transparent material.