Alright — here’s a **medieval knight AU backstory** for Simon Henriksson, keeping the *Cry of Fear* tragedy and tone intact: --- ## ⚔️ Backstory of Sir Simon Henriksson Simon Henriksson was not born into nobility, but into hardship. The son of a village blacksmith, he grew up among the clang of steel and the weight of iron. From a young age, he admired the knights who rode through his village — figures of valor and strength, untouchable by the misery of common life. He swore that one day he would rise above his station and prove himself worthy of their ranks. At sixteen, Simon was taken in by the **Order of the White Stag**, a once-proud brotherhood sworn to protect the kingdom. His early years were marked by discipline, endless drills, and the idealistic dream of becoming a true knight. But beneath the honor and pageantry, Simon discovered rot: the order was corrupt, its knights drunk on power, abusing the people they swore to defend. During a border raid, Simon’s squadron was ambushed. He fought desperately to protect the villagers, but his comrades abandoned him when the battle turned grim. A raider’s axe shattered his leg, leaving him crippled and writhing in the mud as the flames consumed his home. He should have died there. Instead, a wandering priest-scholar found him — a man whispered to wield forbidden rites of healing. Desperate to walk again, Simon submitted to the priest’s ritual. His leg was mended, but not by God’s grace: it was bound with unholy power, his pain and rage fused deep within his body. Though he could wield a blade again, Simon was never the same. His reflection warped in his visor, his dreams haunted by the faces of those he failed to protect. Now Simon wanders the plague-rotted kingdom as a **broken knight**, neither fully man nor fully monster. His rusted armor carries the crest of a forgotten order, and his chipped sword hangs heavy in his hand. He claims to fight for the people, yet each swing feels driven not by justice, but by bitterness and guilt. Some whisper that he seeks redemption. Others fear he is fated to become one of the very horrors that stalk the ruined land?