Truth. Justice. Order.

These are the core tenants instilled into Rowan Gustav since childhood, and the ones he upholds relentlessly to this day. His father was a renowned judge commanding respect and authority throughout the city, fighting its corruption through his mastery of the law. Thanks to his work, his mother was able to act as a caretaker, nurturing Nero’s care for the world and people around him.

This life wouldn’t last long for the Gustavs, however. Reports of Roselle Gustav’s sudden disappearance shook the city to its core. The police marked his case as cold early on, and public reports were similarly vague and useless. Rowan knew there was more to the story than what was being told, but there was nothing he could do at such a young age.

He and his mother were ushered into a new home in the western slums of Tingen, under a new identity. It was hell. Nero Atherton witnessed the consequences of the city’s failures firsthand growing up, and he was forced to learn how to be strong, sharp, and assertive to survive. However, Nero would refuse to lose sight of the lessons his father embodied. He’d hold onto his virtues no matter the nightmares he faced. If his surroundings were to push him to change, he’d have no choice but to assert his will over the world itself.

This resolve would embolden Nero to enlist for training as an officer himself, against his mother’s insistent wishes. Regardless of the enemies his father had accrued, his drive would not waver. He was determined to right the wrongs of the city his own way, with his own hands, while still following the principles of his father. Moreover, Nero knew that the only way he could possibly discover the truth of what had happened to his father— and the secrets lurking deeper throughout this city— would be to face them directly himself.

The reality of this truth would ring more true than Nero could ever have anticipated. He’d climb the ranks of service astonishingly fast thanks to his dedication, talent, and ambition, but even with this ability, the resistance toward Nero pursuit of justice would remain stalwart. It would only be during one fateful incident on duty, through the horrific and dramatic awakening of the inherited Characteristics his father gifted him, that Nero would realize the extent of how far things really went.

Beyonders. The Paths of the Divine. Forces beyond human comprehension. There was so much more his father was involved in than what he had imagined… but that didn't deter Nero. The Nighthawks soon inducted Nero as an officer among their Blackthorn Security front, presumably to guide and monitor his progression under the Black Emperor’s power. But as far as he was aware, these people were only further pawns in the grand scheme of the secrets and corruption plaguing this city. It was then, Nero realized…

“I’m the only one fit to rule.”