Marc was born the only son of the Baron of an impoverished barony. His father had returned from the wars a changed man, prone to violent, drunken rages and Marc's mother inexplicably disappeared one night. Not content to continue living in a poor backwater, he set about filling the barony's coffers by somewhat questionable means, leading to friction and armed conflict with his powerful neighbours. Soon after the death of his father in a bizarre accident, his best friend, a sorceress, is murdered; which sets him off for revenge and, ultimately, after many adventures, leads to him being inexorably and very reluctantly drawn into a conflict of good versus evil, on a global scale.