If one is to believe the legends, Prester ("priest") John was one of Hughes Allais de Crieux's original Poor Knights of the Prophet in 1118. Prester John battled the Crescent during the Crusades, then retired after decades of fighting to found a Vaticine kingdom in the darkest heart of Numidia. His kingdom would be perfect, not subject to the pettiness and hypocrisy he had observed in Théah.
But the legends have yet more to say. They suggest that in his days as a crusader, Prester John was not always fighting the Crescents, and even became friends with some. He travelled freely, it is said, through the Crescent Empire and through the ruins of Taumau-Boha. And he found something, something extraordinary which he brought back with him when he founded his kingdom. According to these same legends, Prester John reigns to this day, five hundred and fifty years later.
Prester John is described, by those who claim to have caught a glimpse of him, as a bearded man in his fifties, fit and trim but otherwise unremarkable. Various powers are ascribed to him, but since there is a lack of credible testimony, it is hard to guess what portion of truth these tales may contain.
