Being born a member of the prestigious Alazario family in Egorian has many advantages. During his childhood, young Acanthus did not want for anything. Provided with the best education money could buy and constantly surrounded by powerful men and women of the empire, Acanthus grew to be everything a young Chelaxian should be, ambitious, ruthless and strongly patriotic. So when offered the chance to enroll at the prestigious Egorian Academy of the Magical Arts, he naturally jumped at the chance to further his own power while becoming a part of the chelish wizardry tradition.
However, his time at the Academy was not all Acanthus had hoped it would be. He was eager for power but found himself unsuited to the type of academic study required by those of the wizarding tradition. He became increasingly dissatisfied by his inability to excel in his studies and began to look for some alternative to the tedium of the academy. Over time he came to believe the academy itself was misguided in it's persuit of power. All the study and mindless repitition was to achieve control over forces that had already been perfected by the Empire's very patrons. Bargaining with the forces of Hell for power was always a risky endeavor but the house of Thrune had found a way to maintain control over their own destiny while weilding great infernal power and so too would he.
Acanthus dropped out of the Academy in short order and immediatly began preperations for his own rise to power. He began to study the Nine Hells, focusing on the history and rules governing infernal contracts made throughout the ages and what little he could find concerning the contract struck by Abrogail Thrune all those years ago. When he felt he was ready, Acanthus used all of his family's connections to make contact with one of the dark and powerful infernal cabals and eventually, through much bribery and negotiation, travel to the hells themselves and strike a pact with the dark powers that reside within.
Through his considerable skills in diplomacy and persuation, Acanthus was able to forge a contract with the devils that would fulfil his desires. By pledging to devote his life to furthering the Nine Hell's influence on the material plane, he convinced the dark powers to infuse him with control over thier realm. They made of him a conduit between the two realms, he would be able to open himself and call forth the influence of Hell into the mortal realm directly. While the control of his new power was left up to Acanthus, his new benifactors wouldn't allow him to act without supervision. He would be bound to a powerful infernal entity, whos very form on the material plane would be shaped by the young chelaxian's new powers, to act as his companion and advisor from then on. Careful in his consideration of the form his companions would take, Acanthus crafted his new ally to be a powerful symbol of his connection to the Nine Hells but knew he would always need to ensure that there could be no mistake as to who held the power in their relationship.
Backed by the infernal powers and the teachings of his new companion, Acanthus quickly achieved a level of planar control far beyond that which his peers at the academy would ever strive for. Armed with his new abilities he turned his sights to achieving the level of status within the empire that he now felt was his right. He knew that moving through the ranks within central Cheliax would be a slow and arduous process no matter how powerful he had become. Knowing this he jumped at the chance to spread the Empire's influence further, knowing that doing so would earn him fame and favor with the empire and that someone would be needed to preside over the new holdings once they had been secured.
