Withick

Withick was a famous artist, writer and inventor who lived in Deltora in the time of King Lucan. A genius of many talents, he was best known for his paintings, particularly the ones he was commissioned to paint on the ceilings in the palace of Del. The most famous artist of his time, he once lived in the palace, but after Drumm objected to a book he had written and printed, he moved to the place known as "the Mire". Withick was an old friend of the famous explorer Doran, with whom he worked to complete the part-travel guide part-journal Secrets of Deltora.

Early life
When he was alive, Withick was considered a genius. He was best known as Deltora's greatest artist, but he was also a writer. Withick lived at the palace of Del in his early days, and at some point he was commissioned to paint the ceilings of the palace with scenes from Deltora's history. The most well-known of these paintings are the scenes on the ceilings of the palace library, depicting Opal dragons swooping down to fight alongside Adin's army against the Shadow Army on the Hira plain.

Life in the Mire
Withick decided to leave his home in the palace and retire to the peace of the place outside Del known as "the Mire" after King Lucan's Chief Advisor Drumm objected to a book Withick had written and painted when he had completed the paintings. Withick was inspired to produce the book as a result of his study of Deltora's oldest stories for his painting work. The book was simply titled The Belt of Deltora and told of the Belt's history, magic and power. Withick decided not to decorate the book in any way, because he wanted nothing to distract the reader from the words. When Withick presented the finished book to Drumm, he was rejected. Drumm had told him that it was impertinent for a commoner like Withick to write about the Belt, which was the business of the king alone. He mocked Withick, telling him he had become "swollen with ridiculous ideas of his own importance," and that the book was "an insult to the king, because it had no illustrations and was plainly bound in blue." Then Drumm gathered up the copies of the books he could find and burned them. Withick left the palace in protest and never returned.

By now Withick was an old man, but his fame had continued to grow and spread. He was now considered the most important artist in Deltora, and the few paintings he produced each year were bought for enormous sums.

The explorer Doran had come to the Mire when he was very young. Despite the age difference between the two men, they had become firm friends, for they thought alike.

Secrets of Deltora
When Doran was nearing the end of what would become his last journey around Deltora before he set out to find the last seven surviving dragons of Deltora, he paid his old friend Withick a visit in the Mire. He told his friend about a book he had been asked to write for the king's son Prince Gareth. Withick agreed to help Doran complete the book by illustrating and printing the book. On his last trip around Deltora, Doran had noticed the decreasing amount of dragons, and he began to suspect that the Shadow Lord was plotting something. Because of this, Doran had included a coded message throughout the book, hidden among nonsensical, made-up poetry mentioned as "traditional dragon songs" in the beginning of each chapter. Withick also included an illustration near the end of the book, which depicted a corner of the palace library, with a small copy of his book The Belt of Deltora lying on a table. He painted a white glow near the book, in hopes that Gareth would see it and read a copy of it, and be convinced to wear the Belt of Deltora.

Doran believed that using the famous artist Withick to copy and illustrate his book would ensure that it would reach Prince Gareth uncensored and intact. However, on returning to Del with the completed book, he found that King Lucan had fallen very ill. Drumm, Lucan's traitorous, manipulative chief adviser, was likely slowly poisoning him. The palace doctors tried every way they knew to cure the king, but without success. Lucan's son Gareth was only fifteen years old at the time, and the book was thought as too valuable for him to handle. Lucan was too ill to object, so Drumm eventually ordered the book to be put in a glass display case.

Death
Soon after Doran's delivery of his and Withick's collaborative book and his departure on what would be the explorer's last trip, Withick was found dead in his hut in "Withick Mire" as it had become known as during this time. He died of unknown causes, but it is possible he was killed on Drumm's orders.

Legacy
Even after his death, Withick was considered to be the greatest artist in Deltora's history. His death made Doran's book even more priceless and incomparable than before, and left no one to alert Prince Gareth to what Doran had been trying to tell him in the book. The book Withick had worked on with Doran was delivered to Drumm, who hid it away from the king and his son. Centuries later, King Lief discovered the book in a sealed glass case beneath some ancient papers in a palace storeroom. The case was marked: "The priceless last work of Withick, Deltora's greatest artist. Do not touch." Lief made sure that the book was reproduced page by page the way Doran had intended it to be read, and published it under the title "Secrets of Deltora." In his book, Doran mentioned Withick's work on the palace ceilings and his contributions to the book. The Mire where Withick had spent most of his life was renamed "Withick Mire" in his honour. The Mire later became a dumping ground for the rubbish from Del, because the royal family neglected the land under the influence of their chief advisors, who secretly served the Shadow Lord. It is not known if Withick was remembered or highly regarded at this point in time.

Personality
Withick was a genius, considered the most important artist in Deltora. He was likely a very artistic, inventive and creative person. He understood the importance of the Belt of Deltora and the necessary role of Deltora's dragons.

Abilities
Withick was a gifted individual. He wrote books and painted prolifically.

Doran
Withick respected Doran and because they thought the same way, and they became good friends. He was willing to help and support Doran whenever and wherever he could.

Appearances

 * Secrets of Deltora