Silvius-Esmer-Gradus is one of the members of the Six Reasons Why. He is the son of the world-famous painters Merwin Gradus & Zuria Esmer. He is an art student at the Carminus Universum and uses a Wondrous Palette.

Biography

Early Life

"Most children in Sombus are born with silver spoons. He was born with a golden paintbrush."

Silvius Esmer-Gradus was born in the year 3E497, in the Crimson city of Sombus. Born to two of the most well regarded artists in the recent century of Abmarah, he was no stranger to the savoir faire of nobles. He would often observe his parents, Merwin Gradus and Zuria Esmer, chatting with leaders of the Crimson Empire, often entrusting them with the task of memorializing their deceased.

Early in their lives, Merwin and Zuria seemed to have a special connection with canvases. Over the course of their career spent painting and studying the arts of the old, they discovered a long forgotten method to capture the very essence of what’s in front of them and bind it to a canvas.

This, in essence, allowed them to paint literal worlds, albeit limited by time and the constraints of the canvas itself. While this elden scrying art remained secret to the world, they shared their works with others, allowing them to cut through the veil of death and giving people an opportunity to see their loved ones one last time, albeit briefly. The power held however, could very well be abused for all kinds of espionage between warring nations. This, unbeknownst to them, attracted the wrong kind of attention. Emperor Sombra offered them refuge, under the condition that they would paint canvases that could spy for Sombra on those he deemed worthy of keeping an eye on. Over the course of his childhood, Silvius was taught by Merwin and Zuria, in the hopes of having him follow in his footsteps of serving the Crimson Empire.

Silvius, however, found the canvas too limiting. He loved to paint, but seldom did so within the confines of a frame. He used the knowledge taught to him by his parents to use the very world as his fabric, painting things in and out of existence. When Merwin discovered this, he was seemingly proud of his son; Zuria however thought that this would endanger him like it did them. While the parents never came to a complete consensus regarding how to deal with the situation, they agreed that he needed to learn how to hone his abilities through academia, like they once did. He became a student at the Carminus Universum, learning both art and sorcery.

He was a pretty happy go lucky kid, and always seemed like his head was in the clouds. He enjoyed the company of others, but found relating to those around him a little difficult. He was most comfortable around this one live painting of a historical figure (A long-dead hero named Anlyth Urata) in one of the mansion rooms. He had a tonne of friends in college, due to his fame, and was closest to a girl named Norah Ward. He was motivated by beauty and perfectionism to a fault. He hadn’t known struggle or combat.

Beneath the Scarlet Spires

In the midsummer of 4E016... Sir Cedrik Gwynne prepared for a lecture at Carminus Universum. There, he reunited with his ex-wife Clara and impressed students Silvius Esmer-Gradus and Norah Ward. Later, at their art studio, Silvius’ magic painting accidentally birthed a paint-monster while drawing Cedrik. Afterward, he offered to sponsor Norah's career. Norah and Silvius suspected Cedrik’s secret went deeper than he admitted. Cedrik returned home, haunted and injured.

On 4E016/05/22, Martin Candlewynd, Luciano, and Loras Runestrong were murdered at the society’s warehouse, and artifact “VN Abyssal B” stolen. Cedrik, Tuskon, Vetri, Oscar, Silvius, Esther, Miri, and Edgar all converged on the crime scene and met Inspector Rorax and each other. They discovered signs of necrotic magic and a fourth attacker. Before they could investigate further, Ratti family goons attacked. The group fought them off amid stormy seas, where Silvius was beaten up roughly for the first time in his life. Inspector Rorax advised them to stay together, and Cedrik brought everyone to Gwynne Manor. There, the party formally introduced themselves.

The next morning, the group shared breakfast at Gwynne Manor before Rorax arrived, questioned them, and formally declared them a party, giving them linked sending stones. Afterward, Cedrik revealed the fiendish angel within him. They split to investigate: Vetri, Miri, and Silvius searched Martin’s office at the museum, discovering documents had been seized and finding his rapier. The group regrouped at Martin’s penthouse, and took his black money gold bars. They uncovered a secret room, and recovered a demonic letter from Xarkos, gold, and a figurine of Varkanus. When Inspector Gailhel Redeye confronted them, she betrayed them, nearly killing Silvius by shooting him in the back of his head. The party subdued her and her men, but Gail killed herself magically, revealing she was a Varkanus cultist.

The next day, Silvius told Norah and Clara limited details. Vetri studied the figurine until Oscar and her noticed the weird actions of one of the Cogwork Archvists. They called the party, until the tampered archivist revived a T-Rex fossil in the museum. They brought the damaged construct to Yizuko Labs. Xoe and Faktoré confirmed the archivist had been remotely controlled by another artificer. Xoe agreed to investigate further and look into the Varkanus cult. At CU, Silvius defended Norah from Selda Hightower’s bullying about her sponsorship, though Norah was annoyed at his interference. Later, he asked Professor Triston Hightower about the Varkanus cult; Triston claimed it hadn’t been active for sixty years but grew curious when Silvius mentioned Gail’s death. Clara stepped in before Silvius revealed more.

The next day, the party dressed for Angelica Ratti’s wedding in Sewertown. At the chapel, they met Don Ratti, who offered condolences and revealed his son Rico Jr. had been in charge the night of the murders. The group joined the festivities, but Cedrik noticed Rico sneaking away. Following him, they were ambushed by Carlos, who poisoned Esther and Cedrik. After a brutal fight, the party defeated him and pursued Rico Jr., discovering a prison beneath the sewers. Cedrik disguised himself as Carlos while Miri made Esther invisible. They learned Rico Jr. was working with dangerous allies who wanted the party dead. Esther freed Mya, an imprisoned Rust enforcer, and escaped with her and a gagged Carlos. The group fled through sewage pipes, battled giant cockroaches, and emerged in the Cristol River, hiring a boat back to Gwynne Manor.

Under Zone of Truth, the party questioned Carlos, learning Rico Jr. was greedy but not a cultist. He’d been tipped off about Luciano by Selda Hightower. After handing Carlos to the police, Cedrik gave Silvius Clara’s old Wondrous Palette. At Yizuko Labs, Xoe revealed the cogwork archivist was altered with a psionic shard. On their way to CU, Jamison ambushed them near the Starling Agency. After a fiery fight, Vetri downed him, and Rorax arrested him. The party spent the night at the Agency, where Esther flirted with Edgar and Silvius acted as a chaperone.

The next day, they plotted to confront Selda. Ignoring Norah and Clara’s suggestion of a formal inquiry, they tracked Selda to West Sombus Train Terminal. Disguised as Rico Jr., Silvius drew her out, learning she answered to Xarkos and believed she had met Varkanus. She spoke the code phrase “3 tickets to Madness,” transporting everyone into a demiplane with a giant glowing eye. Selda summoned an Aboleth Spawn, but Vetri quickly downed her and the others destroyed the monster. The eye demanded Vetri’s Varkanus figurine and marked her when she resisted. The party interrogated Selda, confirming the cult’s structure and that Rico Jr. was only a minor pawn. Suddenly, cultists and a plague-masked paladin named Yulis arrived, forcing the party to use the exit code “Tickets to Sanity.” Silvius botched the phrase, splitting the group before they reunited outside.

Timeline

• 3E497 - Silvius is born in Sombus.

• 4E015 - Silvius begins to attend the Carminus Universum as an art and sorcery student. He also meets Norah Ward and becomes best friends with her.

• 4E016 - The events of Beneath the Scarlet Spires begin.

Gallery

Silvius during Ch. 1 of BtSS (Credit: Sam)

Silvius with his magical tattoo (Credit: Sam)

Silvius Mii (Credit: Tomodachi Life)

Silvius at the end of Ch. 1 of BtSS with his Wondrous Palette (Credit: Sam)

Pixel Silvius (Credit: Daibik)

Silvius with his magical Tattoo (Credit: Sam)

Silvius Minecraft Skin (Credit: Sam)