Jon Connington

Jon Connington is a scion of House Connington and the twin brother of its current lord, Arys. A skilled fighter, he has spent many years searching for purpose and rank beyond that given to him as the younger twin.

Appearance and Character
Though twin to Arys Connington, the two brothers do not look alike -- where Arys is crowned by light brown locks, Jon's are far more red. A sign, it would seem, of their temperaments as well; for the gods have not given Jon much by way of patience. A man swift to anger and swifter still to harsh words, he is known for both his temper and his skill at arms.

Though possessing a doe-eyed look capable of making all but the most paranoid believe in his innocence, what was once a fresh-faced and amiable air was forever marred by a horrific scar from ear to lip. The scar has made him sour, and a life in the shadow of elder brothers has made him bitter; but a few things still bring a smile to the sundered face of Rodrik Connington's third son. Namely battle, victory, and the presence of his Red God.

Youth
Much of Jon's childhood was spent in the shadow of his brother, fighting to become the greater of the two in any way their birth order could not prevent. Jon was the better rider, the better archer, the better jouster -- but in force of arms he could never best his briefly-elder brother. As the two lads grew, It came to be that their mutual interest in combat spurred their father to seek out for them a tutor. Thus were they introduced to Reynard, of House Herston, who was to be their mentor.

For a time, things went well: Reynard began to teach the boys swordplay, and all the tenets of knighthood that one must know. But with this, of course, came teachings of the Seven; a dangerous subject in a bastion of the Red God. Where Arys drank deeply of the tales of great knights, Jon knew that this would not be his father's wish. After years of quarreling and watching Reynard and Arys grow close, the third son of Rodrik eventually told his father of the forbidden teachings.

Rodrik was incensed, but dared not punish the boy Arys lest he too take the black, as his elder brother had. Unable to reprimand him openly, the Lord Connington turned to other means; taking Jon as his personal squire, and favouring him highly above his twin brother. This treatment only deepened the feud between the two young griffins. When the early days of the Uprising began, Jon proudly rode beside his father into the countryside.

The Uprising
After hanging five boys from the same village, Lord Rodrik Connington managed to pull information from their relatives about a nearby camp of Warsmiths. Hoping to shatter their control over this particular region in one swift stroke, the Lord of Griffin's Roost brought his men to rout the bandits. What they found instead was a fortified encampment, well maintained and supplied -- operated by Warsmiths it did in fact seem, but also with the aid of Swann supporters. Lord Connington did not hestiate; they attacked the camp and defeated their foes, taking several Warsmiths prisoner and routing the Swann adjuncts as well. But the fighting was fierce, and they were not without casualties -- Lord Rodrik took a spear wound to his side, and fell from his horse in the midst of the fighting. The Connington forces retreated, victorious but worried; their lord was in poor shape, and could not long travel. They brought the wounded Rodrik and their prisoners back to the village from whence they'd come, and dragged in a Septon whom they knew had skill in healing.

The Septon saw to Lord Rodrik's wounds -- saw to them, and made them worse. By the time Connington's men realized his screams were not of simple pain but of agony, the Septon had already poisoned the wound and set about bringing the end. Jon Connington cut him down where he stood, his sword carving the priest from hip to collar. Rodrik, however, was too far gone; he died in agony, grasping at the hem of his son's garment.

Hearing of the murder of their priest in his own Sept, the villagers finally could not bear any further affront. They rose up against the Connington forces, attacking with makeshift weapons and tools -- whilst others freed the Warsmiths prisoners and armed them with what could be found. Battle-weary and demoralized, the Conningtons beat a hasty retreat under the command of Jon; who set the village alight behind them.

In the midst of the fighting Jon took a heavy wound from a Warsmith fighter - leaving him red and blooded and forever scarred. It was this night that earned him his moniker. And this night that woke the true depths of his bitterness and fury.

The Scarlet
The flight of the surviving Connington soldiers set them on the wrong side of the growing strength of the Warsmiths; they were unable to slip round and regain Griffin's Roost, what with the entirety of the countryside roused against them. Jon turned then southward, and eventually eastward, met at all sides with hostile foes. He and his men survived in the countryside for several months, striking where they could against the invading Swann soldiers and entrenched rebels. Over these months did Jon earn reputation, experience, and spurs -- after a particularly fierce battle where the young Jon had slain three enemy knights, he was knighted by Loras Whitehead, and granted the title of ser.

When the Baratheon forces at last advanced upon the Roost, Jon Connington and his men joined their ranks. Expecting to find his family slaughtered and his elder brother a half-rotten corpse, Jon prepared himself to become the new Lord of Griffin's Roost -- only to see Arys emerge from the keep and join in on the fighting. After the battle Arys was knighted by Lord Gwayne Baratheon, much to the younger brother's ire. For the rest of the war, they kept apart -- whilst Arys fought under Gwayne's personal banner, Jon kept first to Lord Grandison, and later to the royal forces of House Targaryen.

Recent Events
Though his faith is an open secret amongst the court of Griffin's Roost, in public Jon still holds to the gods of his grandfathers.  'Jon is a man of the Seven,' he would say, bowing before septons and kneeling at altars to ask the Mother for mercy, or the Smith for strength. But many whisper that Jon yet keeps company with those of the Red Faith who survived the Uprising, biding their time until the day where they might seize control, and return once more to the light.