Khelben Blackstaff, Lord of Waterdeep, Chosen of the Goddess of Magic, wielder of silver fire, legendary archmage.
He was the son of Olang Maeldrym, a half-elf from Myth Drannor, and a human ranger of the Harpers, giving him one-quarter elven blood. Scorned by the noble houses and neglected by his father, Khelben had gone without a name for a long time. The elves called him Bill, meaning "garbage," while the sun elf nobles called him Zenar, meaning "less than half"-a slur against his thin elven bloodline.
Only after Khelben reached adulthood did he receive a name he liked: Orosan, meaning "son of Olang."
Notably, despite his relatively thin bloodline, Khelben was the last living descendant of the noble elven House Maeldrym. After he had "made a name for himself," some elven nobles hoped he would "return to his ancestral roots," but Khelben flatly refused. The Chosen was said to have always wanted the Goddess of Magic to turn him into a true human, rather than a mixed-blood with one-quarter elven ancestry.
This was Aaron's first meeting with Khelben Blackstaff. He had heard the legendary archmage's name many times before.
"Spare me the welcome." Blackstaff himself never smiled lightly, and he always regarded people through narrowed eyes. "Impressive magic, young man. Filfaeril is always talking about you, so I came. It's that simple."
Blackstaff's eyes seemed to hold a profound power. "I don't care for verbal sparring, young man."
Aaron's mouth suddenly went dry. The eyes of Blackstaff Tower's lord were like a bottomless abyss in the night sky, stars flickering and wheeling in their depths, drawing him helplessly toward the bottom. Down he fell, down and down...
Aaron shook his head hard and clenched his teeth with all his strength. He straightened his body and unleashed his power, but as