Pilgrim Grum Backstory
Taken from a discord message:
Grum was born to his parents Murm and Gurm along with his 4 other siblings: Plum, Lurm, Wurm, and Humm. He got along well with his siblings, and loved to listen to the stories his father Gurm would tell of his past being a Pilgrim. In his nomadic tribe, it is tradition that one offspring of each brood be chosen to be the new Pilgrim of that brood. In honor of the protection and blessings Arcundus gives the pillbugs, they select one pillbug from each brood to travel across the land, as the sun does. When a pillbug feels its journey is complete, it uses the talisman given to it by the former Pilgrim, to go join another family of pillbugs, have their own brood, and continue the cycle once more. Grum would listen, fascinated by the stories but hoping that he would never be picked as the Pilgrim. He loved his family very much and couldn’t see himself possibly never seeing them again.
As he and his family traveled around the world, Grum picked up on many different languages, a skill that made him stand apart from his siblings. As Grum and his siblings celebrated their 14th birthday they all wondered who would be chosen this night to be the Pilgrim of the brood. Grum thought it would be Lurm, for he was the toughest of the brood, or maybe it would be Humm, the fastest. Due to Grum’s affinity for languages, his father Gurm, Pilgrim before him, chose Grum to be the Pilgrim of the brood. Grum was devastated by this decision. At first, he tried to convince his father to pick someone else but his father stood firm on his decision saying that Arcundus had given Grum an important gift and that it would be blasphemous to not appreciate it and grow it. Gurm assured Grum that although the life of a Pilgrim is not easy, as long as Grum had his talisman, he would never be lost, or alone. The next day, Grum began his pilgrimage, knowing he might never ever see his family again. As his family rolled away into the distance, Grum began a sad march to places unknown.
Although scared, Grum had one thing going for him, his charm, and his skill in playing musical instruments. He often managed to pay for room and board by either singing or dancing in taverns, or mystifying people with his tales of danger and adventure encountered on his travels. His affinity for languages also helped him mingle with different peoples and learn more of their history and culture. Years upon years went by but Grum never quite felt his pilgrimage was over quite yet. Every time he looked at his talisman, all he could think about was his family. He understood he had to carry on the cycle he had been entrusted with, but he also wanted to see his family, just one last time.
At 35, nearing the end of a normal pillbug’s lifespan, Grum feels lost. Upon hearing of the Sunspark Festival, Grum makes a decision: he will travel to the L’Arc Chantante in search of Arcundus’s guidance.