Ranulf Dorsey
Sir Ranulf Dorsey is a Seelie Sidhe, presumably a Wilder, of House Dougal.
Overview
Until his last year in high school, Lowell Gordon lived a normal, if somewhat hectic, life. As the star quarterback for his football team, he spent most of his time outside of classes on the playing field or else working out in the gym. He dated casually but had no serious thoughts about long-lasting relationships. His future included a football scholarship to the state university, then a few years of professional football, and then, finally, a lucrative retirement with endorsements and, maybe, a wife and kids.
All that changed when he zigged instead of zagged across a busy street the evening after his graduation. He woke up in the hospital intensive care unit, paralyzed from the waist down and missing his left foot, with an eerie feeling in his head, as if some stranger had come to occupy his mind. that night, as Lowell Gordon slipped into a coma from which he would never return, Sir Ranulf Dorsey ap Dougal claimed the body of the comatose teenager and decided that life in a wheelchair was unacceptable. The Glamour induced by his Chrysalis in extremis drew a troll orderly and a Liam head nurse to his side. The pair nursed the newly arrived sidhe in addition to caring for his mortal shell. They helped him recall enough of his host's mortal memories to put together a convincing semblance of Lowell Gordon.
For the next three years, "Lowell" occupied a hell of physical and mental agony as he struggled to overcome his paralysis. Finally, with the help of a prosthetic foot, Lowell took his first steps without assistance. His family was overjoyed at having their son back, even though his dreams of a career in pro football died in the hospital. They made no objections when Lowell asked them to send him to MIT, though they did not hide their surprise at their son's sudden desire to get a degree in engineering.
Three years older than the rest of his classmates, Lowell held himself apart from the usual college extracurricular activities. Instead, he sought a found a group of Kithain in Cambridge who introduced him to the local changeling community, including a physics professor at MIT who, like Lowell, belonged to House Dougal.
Professor London, otherwise known as Sir Louvain, took Lowell, now Ranulf ap Dougal, under his wing, making him his squire and, later, when he had proven himself, recommencing him as a candidate for knighthood. That very year, the High King passed through Boston and noticed Ranulf at a reception given in his honor. David Ardry knighted the young man on the spot, claiming that the Dreaming had urged him to do so and that Sir Ranulf had an important role to play in the future of Concordia.
A year later, after a period of secret testing, Sir Ranulf received an invitation to join the Knights of the Red Branch. Two years later, David Ardry disappeared. Sir Ranulf not only mourned the loss of his liege, but he deplored the subsequent collapse of the unity of the Red Branch. Remembering the words of the High King, Sir Ranulf decided that his role in Concordia's future consisted of nothing less than reuniting the Red Branch and placing the elite group at the helm of Concordia's sinking ship.
Image
Built like a quarterback, with strong muscles, a lithe body, and powerful arms, Sir Ranulf's curly brown hair and dark blue eyes make him a head-turner. His noticeable limp slows him down on foot but does not affect his ability to ride a horse (or a motorcycle) or drive a car. In his fae mien, Sir Ranulf stands several inches shorter than most sidhe and has a bulkier build (though still slender by human standards). His hair falls past his shoulders, and his eyes deepen to blue-black. He prefers serviceable, casual clothes in mortal seeming, suitable for his position as a consultant to a Boston group of architectural engineers. As Sir Ranulf, he wears elegantly crafted armor that displays his house's blazon entwined with a red vine, symbolic of his membership in the Red Branch.
Personal
Ranulf believes that the High King himself, in a moment of prescience, chose him for the task to which he has dedicated himself. The Red Branch has come to mean everything to him. It symbolizes honor, bravery, determination, and camaraderie. He can't let that ideal die. If he can save Concordia by staging a fae version of a military coup, he will do so in a heartbeat. He speaks forcefully, whether he is talking to an individual or a crowd. He has a mission to accomplish and, by the Dreaming, he will succeed!
References
- CTD. War in Concordia: The Shattered Dream, pp. 86-87.