A Monster of his own Making

The last of my series villains is a monster of his own making. No amount of wealth or titles can overcome the flaws in his soul

Dalvir Kaash commanded the Emperor’s Third Company of Vipers. He selected and trained the elite three companies to be the unbreakable vanguard of the Emperor’s army. Competent, feared; but also derided.

Everything for Kaash comes down to status. He wants rank and wealth to wash away the stink of the tannery and prove to himself better than his birth.

That low birth persists in his mind. However high he rises, he knows that all of society looks down on him. He imagines the whispers behind his back at his speech, his manners, his ludicrous attempts to dress like a nobleman. All the loot he gains in the Emperor’s wars he spends on his public image.

A high opinion

Kaash’s vanity worsens his problems. He believes himself as capable and charismatic as the Emperor. If the peasant’s son can become a noble, then why not the tanner’s son? Are all sins not wiped clean by sufficient wealth and power? Ambition drives him, though he lacks the skills or the talent to make his way in society.

Behind closed doors

Kaash has anger issues, a legacy of domestic abuse in the family. It manifests whenever obstacles frustrate his path to glory. A typical bully, he lashes out at those weaker than himself. He ruthlessly punishes disobedience.

Kaash’s first marriage for convenience ended in violence. His second marriage for advantage ended with death in childbirth. His third marriage driven by ambition, also ended in violence. Close to the Emperor, Kaash faced no justice or retribution. He thinks himself untouchable.

Rumor and gossip swirl around him, however closely he tries to keep his secrets behind closed doors.

Fatally flawed

In the end, cowardice gets the better of him. Unscathed in the the Emperor’s wars, a near-death moment signals the end of his luck. Kaash deserts the war. His fortune-teller wife convinces him of fantastic wealth in his future. She lays a trap he cannot resist. His own vanity and greed drive him to a fate he cannot escape.

The Escarri series is available on Amazon.