I never get tired of hearing the sound of a hammer hitting a piece of metal. For me, it's an everyday thing being the son of the local blacksmith. Whenever I see the hammer going down, I picture the hammer of Darius, God of light, as he defeated Tenebris... The Demonlord.
My friends think I'm weird cause of my obsession with the Gods. Everyone thinks they're gone, that they abandoned us. Some even think they aren't real! But without them, we wouldn't be here. In anycase, I'm sure they'll get bashed by Darius' hammer soon enough! *Grin*
Every morning I wake up before dawn, climb to the roof and watch the sun rise. Volkshire, I love this little town, it's all you need bundled up into one small area. You have Ysolda and Ingrid's market down the road, they sell all kinds of goods. You have Old Man Tom's Tavern right beside it.
And finally you have my father's blacksmith right here. He works with Krow Reyholf, a lumberjack. There is always weird stuff going on around down, cattle gone missing, drunk men dancing around on the side walk.
We are a happy town, the guards are very nice too! Unlike the savage brutes in the City of Verigan's Hold. They have a whole underground community there. The city seems like a safe sanctuary, but its just an old, dirty stronghold that is ruled by corrupt politicians. They robbed my father once when he had to travel there. He swore he'd never return there.
There are many different races in the world of Evergreen. They range from Humans to Dwarves, Gnomes, all the way to the Mystical elves. But I'm talking about our allies. There are also the Tainted Legion; A bunch of Orcs, Trolls, Bullwhiffs and of course... demons. Our faction has been at war with them since the time of the Titans.
While I was fetching some goods from the market for my mother, a voice called my name.
"Tirion! Tirion!"
Its was Juliette Mortensen, she has been my friend since we were only babies. She has been my best friend for 13 years. I'm 15 so that's a long time!
"Tirion!"
"Hey, Jules!" I called her by her nickname.
"Guess what! I made it into the archery contest!" She boasted!
I was so proud of her! She had been practicing archery since she was a little girl!
"That's amazing! I told you that you'd get in!" I said.
"I gotta go practice! Bye!"
Before I could say "Good-bye", she kissed me on the cheek and ran to the archery range. I'll admit, I've liked her for quite some time now too. *sigh* "She's too amazing for my life" I thought to myself. I went back to the house.
***
A few days went by and yes everything was normal. Too normal, not a single weird thing! No cattle being lost, No drunk men on the side walk. No dogs battling with a barrel of ale!
Finally, I realized why... the king was coming.
"Oh Darius..." I exclaimed.
The king was a rich fancy pants who would complain about everything! He was born with a golden spoon and keeps that spoon in his bright and tight leggings. I would love the king, if he wasn't such a little girl! His feet never touch ground that is not of his own castle. He has slaves carry him on the Royal Litter as he addresses the current state of the kingdom. This ritual is done every 10 years. I was 5 the last time I experienced one, and he made my father build him a fine dagger just to clean his teeth!
The day finally came, the horns of the king were sounding in the distance... Our town bell sounded and people rushed to the front of the church. 10 guards, 5 royal priests, 2 royal ministers, 7 slaves and... the king himself. We see the king exit his Litter. I expected to see a happy-go-lucky moron in golden spandex.
But no... He was wearing a set of diamond armor... instead of wielding his royal walking stick, he was wielding the Great Sword of Verigan. This couldn't be good, either he's here to execute someone... or here to announce something tragic.
"Citizens of Volkshire! I am here not for my yearly state of the kingdom address! But to announce a message from the Gods themselves..."
Whispers started emerging from the crowd...
"Many of you know the Tale of Darius! How he defeated the Darklord, Tenebris! But what you don't know is of a secret... A secret that he left in Evergreen to ensure the balance of the world!"
The crowd was suddenly silenced.
"He chose a set of warriors, and named them Guardians of Evergreen! He granted them the might of a thousand bears! The agility of a thousand hawks! And the wisdom of a thousand owls! ...But alas, he did not grant them immortality. As generations passed, descendants of these Guardians were chosen to replace them! Tragically, the family blood line of the last guardian was lost!
Therefore! The Holy Council has communed with the Gods and have been blessed with the knowledge of who the next guardian would be! ...
...Tirion Strongarm!"
