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Bernhard the Wanderer

Standing at five feet, eight inches, Bernhard is less imposing than some, but more imposing than others. His hair is stringy and black, his eyes a watery blue. His face and hands are tanned from long days in the sun, as he seems to prefer the company of nature to the society of men.
A childhood accident has cost him the two last fingers of his left hand. If you ask him how it happened, he'll give you an answer. If you ask him again, he'll give you a different one.
Having no formal trade, he seems to subsist on what odd jobs he can find. He's been rumored to be a poacher, but, if so, he has never been caught, and has thus escaped the noose. So far, at any rate.
As for alliances, Bernhard will treat any man as a friend until he proves himself otherwise. But do not take him for a fool. With Bernhard, trust is freely given, but respect must be earned.
As for women, all women are sacred in Bernhard's eyes, unless they prove themselves false. And even if they do, he will tolerate a bit of roguishness if she provides entertaining company. He will welcome any lover, but he does not seek a wife.

Wanderer Bernhard

What can I say about our departed friend, Bernhard? Very little actually, as I know nothing about him. Nobody seems to, as he seems to have kept to himself, and to have interacted with none, save the cobbler and the seamstress. So how did it come to pass that he should die, alone, in an alley, leaving none to mourn him? Why did this quiet, gentle man meet such an abrupt, brutal end?

As children, we are told there is a god that loves us, and keeps us safe. But having stumbled upon Bruno's...I'm sorry, Bernhard's, broken and molested body has shaken my faith. Was God watching over him? Did God hear his last breath as he slipped from this world to the next?

I don't know the answers to these questions, and they trouble me greatly. Indeed, they seem to gnaw at the very foundations of all that I believe. I came to this fair town as a seeker of truth and light. But all that is revealed to me is horror, and pain, and death. What lesson is there to be learned from this apparently meaningless tragedy?

If there is a lesson to learned, I think it is this: That if we wish there to be light in this world, we must do more than seek it. We must go forth and create light, through acts of kindness, and through loving one another. We must go to the places where darkness dwells, bringing our light with us, sharing our love, our compassion, showing those that do evil that there is a better way. If we all worked together, we could create paradise.

So I challenge you, you who are gathered here today, yes both of you, I challenge...no, that is not the right word, I beseech, I beg you to go out into this world, and spread a message of love, for only love will heal this land. Only love can give meaning to anything that happens here.