Silvio and Lars were born in Kintargo to a fishmonger’s family. Their father, Hunley Slate, was a fishmonger on Yolubilis Harbor, but he didn’t want that life for his sons. He paid a hefty fee to get Lars an apprenticeship with a local Alchemist. Silvio helped his father with the business, instead becoming good with merchant figures and selling to the locals. After he was old enough, he worked for several merchants on Bleakbridge, hawking wares and making sales. He was sharp with figures and could have been a scribe, but the bulk of the family funds went to help Lars with his apprenticeship.
Lars and Silvio were close even through Lars’ apprenticeship. Once Lars completed his training and was ready to become a journeyman, Silvio convinced him to stay in Kintargo instead and try to open his own business. Silvio was working at the Tooth and Nail at the time, helping to keep the books and serve food. He convinced their father to pool his funds with his own earnings at that point to help Lars buy a small shop in the Harbor District where Silvio and Lars could work together.
Opening day at the Bottled Sage was a great day for the brothers. They finally had something to call their own and they were convinced that with Lars’ skill and Silvio’s business, they could buy the whole city in a matter of years. While they struggled like any business, soon the Sage was popular and Lars’ concoctions were well-known. Lars married a girl named Demara and soon had a son, Emil. Silvio continued to keep the business running, even learning how to help his older brother create some of the alchemical items.
When martial law was declared in Kintargo, Silvio and Lars faced a rush at the shop to purchase items. People were worried shops would be shut down next and wanted to get their good in a hurry. In particular, Lars seemed to take the new of the Thrune crackdown especially hard. He began to leave without explanation and Silvio didn’t seem him for several days. One morning, Demara was banging on Silvio’s door yelling that Lars hadn’t come home the last night. They searched for any sign of him at the taverns, the jails, and the shop. But it was no use. No one had seen him or knew where he was. A couple of days later, Silvio awoke a second time to loud banging on his door. This time it was a friend who told him the Bottled Sage was burning. By the time he got there, the fire brigade had put out the flames, but the shop was ruined. All of the inventory was destroyed and the half of the shop was a burnt husk. A couple of witnesses claimed to have seen three armored men inside overturning items before the fire broke out. They thought the men were Hellknights, but weren’t sure. Faced with a missing brother and the loss of their business, Silvo nearly broke down. It was only the arrival of Demara and Emil which snapped him back to reality. He had to help care for them until Lars was found.
Later that night, Silvio was going through papers in Lars’ home trying to see if there were any clues to his whereabouts. In a drawer with bills, he found an odd locked box. Demara didn’t know anything about it. Using some old tool of his, Silvio managed to pick the lock, but as soon as he opened it, a trap was sprung. A vial of acid broke in the box and began dissolving the papers inside. Silvio quickly dumped out the box, noting the acid was their signature red color. Unfortunately, most of the papers were destroyed, but Silvio managed to salvage a few scraps. Among them were there words ‘Silver’ and ‘Ravens’. Silvio realized that the timing of Lars’ disappearance could match the rumored attacks against the Silver Ravens. If he was going to find out what happened to his brother, Silvio needed to contact the Silver Ravens and see what they knew.
