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From a young age, Mark had dreams of being a knight, protecting the helpless and putting wrongdoers in their place. His spirit was undeniable, but was upset by one minor complication. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how much he practiced, he was completely useless with a weapon. Swords, shields, axes, bows, knives... he'd even looked into attempting magic of some sort - any sort - but failed miserably in that regard as well. It didn't help that his body was a bit more frail than the average boy; too much training made him lightheaded, and there were numerous occassions when he worked himself to the point of fainting. His parents, supportive though they were, urged that he try a different field, and give up on becoming a knight. He begrudgingly accepted his shortcomings, but did not turn away from his dream of helping others. He began to study extensively, and over time it became apparent that though he had a weak body, he had a strong, sharp mind, and he found himself urged to pursue academics and see what he could accomplish as a scholar.

But he never truly lost sight of his dreams as a knight, and found himself reading more and more works involving them - legends and myths, at first, but gradually his attention drifted towards their strategies and battle tactics. These fascinated him, and his readings soon expanded from not just knights, but archers, mages, even clerics; they all had their place on the battlefield, and he quickly learned each. His studies branched out from there into terrain tactics, and from there into cartography; as it turns out, drawing maps was something he was able to do both quickly and accurately. Still, it was all just a hobby until his village was raided by bandits; the local militia took up arms against them, but were outnumbered two to one. Worse yet, their captain was slain immediately by a well-aimed arrow, leaving the troops disorganized, panicked, and at risk of not only losing their lives, but losing the entire village. It was right then that something came over young Mark as he strode out and began directing the men with unprecedented confidence. The soldiers, at a loss for any real leadership and eager to organize somehow, fell into line and moved according to Mark's guidance. At the end of the battle, the only friendly casualty was the fallen captain - no innocents were slain, and though some soldiers suffered minor wounds they all survived the skirmish. As the last few bandits fled instead of facing certain doom now that they were the ones outnumbered, one of the villagers heralded Mark for having saved them all.

And that's when it all fell into place. He couldn't protect from the frontlines with a weapon in hand, but he could direct those who did fight. He could reduce their losses, perhaps even eliminate them, and in doing so protect not only the civilians, but the combatants as well. This realization lit a flame in Mark's heart, and he set out to broaden his knowledge, studying everywhere he went to strengthen his expertise.

One of his travels led him to the plains of Sacae; he underestimated their vastness, and after wandering for too long his body gave out and he collapsed out in the open. Fortunately, he was happened upon by a young tribeswoman named Lyn, who brought him into her home to help him recover. This began a chain of events in which Mark directed an entire military campaign; with only a handful of ragtag soldiers and lords at his disposal, he found himself with the daunting task of directing them through dozens of battles, each of which found them at a tactical disadvantage. They were outnumbered in manpower, outnumbered in resources, and initially unequipped to stand even half a chance of succeeding. By the end they were facing not only powerful soldiers and knights who commanded them, but magically created lifeforms known as morphs, and one of the most powerful wielders of magic of all time, the Dark Druid Nergal. They even stood against a Fire Dragon, a monster of unprecedented power. Fight after fight Mark saw them through, and though he spoke little with them the members of their brigade grew to respect his ability, occasionally chatting with him before or during battle.

And at the end of it all, not only did they succeed in their campaign, but they didn't suffer a single casualty in battle. It was a statistical impossibility. Two of the lords, Eliwood and Hector, even go so far as to ask him to name their children and become their godfather. Though he fulfills their first request - naming them Roy and Lilina - he respectfully declines the other; now that their journey had ended, it was time for him to move on and find others who may need his help. He was actually sought out by the kingdoms of Bern and Etruria, who went so far as to plan a war to draw him out so they could make use of his skills, but they never managed to find him.