1-Line Wednesday | March 27

Iago opened the envelope from his aide, a long list of the top criminals across Karadria.

Herenyonnen was a wood elf, not from around here. He had once been caught trying to enter using a fake passport, but that was not the reason why he had been brought to Iago’s attention.

He was skilled in illusion magic, but only used that skill as a common criminal to steal from street vendors. Herenyonnen was also in a wheelchair, one that according to his file he created himself. This wheelchair appeared to be necessary, as he had no legs. This seemed to be helpful in getting sympathy among those he stole from.

The wheelchair also made it hard to get away. When he was caught stealing one day, it was pretty easy for the guards to catch him. He had created a pretty exciting chase, casting magic and creating numerous distractions, but their getaway was unsuccessful and they were soon placed in mage cuffs, blocking the ability to cast spells.

There was a discussion online this week around the concept of disabilities in fantasy novels. Why doesn’t a paralyzed person just visit the local wizard and regain their health completely?

Unfortunately life is not that simple, and stories are meant to have components that are relatable to a reader. There are medical procedures that people can go through right now to hook into robotic exoskeletons or get limbs replaced through surgery. However, these things are expensive and have their own risks. Clearly, there are reasons why things are the way they are.

But in storytelling, particularly fantasy, there’s a lot of interesting ways to portray characters and situations. Here, an elf requires a wheelchair as they have no legs. What happened? Were they born without them, or was it a curse by a dark wizard that no local magician can dispel?

What happens to Herenyonnen, and why has he been brought to the attention of Iago? You’ll have to pick up The Isolated Vizier to find out.