Realms. Dimensions. Planets. Outer systems. The universe is full of so much mortal life. Many with their own unique attributes and qualities that helped them diverse themselves from one another. An intended decision by the gods. But during the hundreds of thousands of years of mortal existence, no world is as diverse as the realm of Haven. A realm full of life, color, quantity, quality, and diversity spanning from humans, elves, orcs, Anthromorths, and Ska'drin.
The history of the realm of Haven was one that every one of its inhabitants knew, but not one that is taken lightly. What started off in a boom, lead to many years of bloodshed, and war. It was not until the near immortal warrior, Valera, and her group of paladins rose up to put an end to all this frantic fighting, and succeeded. With Haven finally being livable without endless days and nights of fighting, the paladins disbanded, Valera left the realm to the Magistrate, and she settled down to have a normal peaceful life.
Fast forward almost one thousand years later, and the realm is as peaceful as ever. While certainly not perfect, it was what many called home, and were happy to live there... But what happens when you wake up in the middle of a forest, and not knowing how you arrived there? Such as the case... with a young son-to-be talented spell caster.
Greenwood. A village inside a forest located in the western area of the continent of Earth. The forest was full of wooden homes, small businesses, tree houses, and of course, humans. Travelers were constant, and its inns were cozy. The village was also known for is love for archery, as it is the home to one of the greatest human hunters of all time: Alexanderson Cress. Things were quiet in Greenwood. Nothing out of the ordinary ever happened, and when it did, it was rare, such as now.
In the middle of large trees near a flowing river, laid a young elven girl, sleeping soundly and peacefully. Her skin was light, her hair dark and tied up in one ponytail, her ears long like the elven that she is, and was wearing gray sleeping clothing with no footwear, or even socks. She slept for a few more minutes, until she began awakening. Her eyes were still closed as used her hands to lift herself up... only to realize that it was not her soft bed she felt, but the dirt beneath her. This feeling opened her eyes widely, rubbed them quickly with her left hand, and blinked a couple of times, her irises completely black-colored. She realized she was not at her home, but surrounded by tall trees.
Her eyes were wide and full of confusion, she stood up immediately, her bare feet making contact against the dirt. She kept looking st her surrounding, turning her torso and her head left and right, her face had confusion written all over it.
"... Where am I...?" She asked herself. She turned around, nothing but more trees behind her, and turned back forward. The girl wasn't going to get any answers by just standing there, so she began walking forward.
Trees, grass, and the dirt under her was all she could see, and the sky above her was clouded by tree branches. She was barefooted, so she walked slowly and careful so that she would not step on anything sharp.
"... This doesn't look like the forest back home..." She spoke to herself. The heavy anxiety was feeling was messing with her train of thought, "... How did I get here?"
She stopped, and looked around even more. Maybe there was someone around.
" ... Mom!? Dad!?" She called out, but there were no answers. the elven girl began thinking that maybe they brought her here. But for what reason?
"Mom! Dad!" She called again, no answer. Her anxiety kept growing, but she began walking again, holding her hands onto her chest.
Her head was full of questions. Where was she? How did she get here? Where are mom and dad? All she could do is continue walking and find someone that could help her.
After just a few short seconds, she noticed a dirt road in front of her that faced horizontal to her. She stood in front of the road, and looked left and right. No one could be seen, but she did notice wooden stairs far to the right, on the opposite side of the road, which led up to a hill.
"Maybe someone lives up there!" She once again said to herself, and began to run slowly towards the wooden stairs. She looked up, and notice the the bright blue sky could be seen.
"Hmmm... Yeah I'll go check it out!"
Without further hesitation, the lost girl proceeded heading up the wooden stairs.
Cress residence home to the huntsman, Alexanderson Cress, and his daughter. The day was going smoothly for the two family members. The man was bringing tree branches from behind his home to his only child, who was sitting down on the ground, surrounded by tree branches and wood, and sharpening said tree branches. The girl, already a grown woman, had fiery red hair tied into a long braid that flowed down her back. Her skin was light and her face had freckles right on her cheeks. And her garments were mostly green, matching well with the color of her bright lime-colored eyes.
Next to her sat a long-feathered red falcon, who watched as the ginger sharpened her wooden arrows.
The girl looked at her falcon, "What'd you think, Zigs? Sharp enough?"
The falcon, Zigs, lightly shrieked with disapproval.
"What? Oh come on! You don't have to be a critic!"
Alexanderson watched as the two companions argued with each other, and lightly smiled. Alexanderson himself was a tall man who had short black hair that was brushed back, a short beer that covered most of his lower face, simple black eyes, pale skin, and green clothing that matched the girl's.
He walked up to her, "Everything alright, you two?"
The girl looked at him, "Yup. Just Zigs being a critic again."
He placed the wood next to them, and looked at the arrow, "Can I see it?"
"Sure!" His daughter answered, "I'm sure you can give better feedback than Zigs over here." And lightly laughed, giving him the wooden arrow.
He looked at it with careful observation, inspecting every inch of it, "Hmmm... Seems a little light, and the front is not sharp enough, but it's nicely straight and perfectly cut."
"Ah-" The girl cut herself off, "... Yeah Zigs told me the same thing..." She chuckled embarrassingly, and looked at her friend, who had stretched her neck towards her with wide open eyes, "Don't look at me like that!" The woman told her bird.
The father laughed at the two, and placed his arrow down, "You've already made a lot of progress. But you better hurry. You leave tomorrow to begin your travel. You can't sell your bows and arrows if you don't have them ready. So I'm bringing as much wood as you need to help you get ready."
"I know, I know." She answered back, "Thanks for the help. I'm kind of nervous about this."
"I have faith in you. You've already shown you're a great salesperson. You've worked at many businesses in Greenwood before with success, and you've helped me too with my sales. You'll do just fine."
"You think so?"
"I know so."
The praise made her smile, "Thanks dad. I won't let you down." The young woman grabbed her knife and another piece of wood.
"Hmhm." He lightly laughed. "I'm gonna get a drink. You want anything?"
"Just some water, please."
"Alright I'll be right back."
"Okay dad. We'll be here."
The father walked back inside their home as the woman began sharpening up another piece of wood into an arrow. What she didn't notice was a young girl walking up the wooden stairs to their home. The same elven girl from before.
The girl walked up slowly and quietly, not wanting to frighten the ginger.
She elven spoke, "Umm... Hi!"
This immediately caught the young woman and the bird's attention, and turned to where the girl was facing.
The young woman responded, "Oh uh... Hi!" She stood up, "Can I help you?"
The dark-haired rubbed her right arm with her left hand, " Ummm... Could you-... Could you tell me where I am?"
"Ehhh... you're in Greenwood." The ginger walked up to the other girl, she was almost half a foot taller than the lost girl, "Lost, eh? How'd you get here?"
"I... I don't know I... I'm not sure how I ended up here..."
The taller woman tilted her head, "You don't remember?"
"No... not at all... I went to sleep last night, said goodnight to my mom... And then I'm here. I've never been here before and I'm so lost... Could you help me...?" Her black-colored eyes were bright and shiny. She looked so innocent with that lost look on her face.
"Yeah sure! I'd be happy to help you!" She extended her hand, "My name's Cassandra Cress. You can call me Cassie."
The other girl held her hand, and slowly shook it, "I'm Ying."
"Nice to meet ya, Ying!" She pointed over at her bird, "This is my buddy Zigs."
Ying looked over to the falcon, and smiled, "Hey there!"
Zigs screeched with approval, and Cassie looked back at the girl, "My dad's inside. He can-"
From inside the house, "Cassie? I heard voices. Anyone there?" And proceeded to walk out.
Both girls turned to the father's direction, and Cassie answered, "Dad! Just in time! We have someone who needs help."
He walked up to the two of them, and stood in front of them. Cassie looked at Ying, "Ying, this is my dad. Dad, this is Ying."
He extended his hand, which Ying held, and shook, "Nice to meet you, Ying. I'm Alexanderson. You can call me Alex."
Ying smiled at him as she shook his hand, "Nice to meet you, sir."
"What can we help you with?"
"I don't know where I am... I went to sleep last night and ended up here..."
He asked, "Where are you from?"
Cassie stood quiet as they spoke.
"I'm from Riverside village."
"There's a lot of Riverside villages. Any in particular?"
"I-... there are?"
"Oh course. I can think of at least seven different Riverside villages here in the continent of Earth."
Ying seemed even more confused, "The-... The continent of Earth?"
Both Cassie and Alex were starting to get confused too.
Alex answered, "Ummm... yeah, there's three continents. Earth, Hesnora, and Anthrah."
Ying felt anxious, "... I've-... never heard of any of those..."
Cassie decided to ask, "Ying? Do you... by any chance have amnesia?"
"What!? No! Of course not! I remember everything about my life! My mom, my dad, my village... I just-... I didn't-..."
Cassie walked up to her, and held her shoulders, "Now now, calm down there, sweetie. We can help you figure things out." Then looked at her father, "Dad? Could we bring her inside? She's obviously very lost, and doesn't seem to know much about what we're saying."
"Hmmm..." The man thought, "Well... I've got a lot of maps and information inside our house that might be able to help you, and Cassie and I could use a break, so I suppose."
The elven smiled, "Thank you so much. Both of you."
Alex answered, "You're welcome."
The ginger placed her hands on the brunette's shoulders, "Now come inside! Make yourself at home."
And they proceeded to head back inside the wooden home.
Ying sat at the small dining table next to Cassie, as Alex looked through his maps.
The elven looked at the place, "So, this is your home."
Cassie responded back, "Yeah, it's not much, but my dad and I can manage. We like keeping a low profile."
"Why?"
The young woman lightly giggled, and looked at her father, "Dad? Should I tell her, or do you want to?"
He smiled as he looked through his maps, "By all means. Do the honors, Cassie."
The smile stayed on her faces while she looked back at the elven, "My dad is a legendary huntsman." She said with a lot of pride, "His name is known ALL over the continent of Earth! He's hunted all sorts of creatures from forest deer, mountain wolves, he's wrestled bears, caught a shark with his bare hands, he even punched a gorilla into unconsciousness!" She said excitedly.
He looked at the two girls, "At the cost of a broken wrist."
"Oh, yeah, that's true... Anyway, my dad is a legend! He's praised wherever he goes, everyone loves him," She placed her elbows on the table and her head on her hands, "And I'm his biggest fangirl!" She said with a smile, and eyes nearly sparkling.
Alex laughed at this, "You always were, Cassie. You are my daughter, after all."
Ying realized, "So you keep a low profile because of the fame. Don't want everyone to knock on your door all the time, right?"
The man pulled out a map, "Exactly. We keep ourselves in the most secluded part of Greenwood so no one bothers us."
The two girls look back at each other, "We do travel, so people get to see us that way, but thankfully that's not too much of a hassle."
Ying nodded after she said this, but there's something... odd that she noticed about her two new friends.
The elven asked, "Cassie?"
And the ginger looked over, "Yes Ying?"
The younger girl slightly tilted her head towards the left in the cutest way, "Why are you ears so short?"
"Ehhh... What?" Cassie was dumbfounded by the question.
"Your ears. They're..." She held her own pointy ears, "... Short. Where you and your dad born like that? Is that a family side effect?" She asked a bit worried.
Cassie was speechless. Her eyes were wide and full of questions, and her eyebrows were raised pretty high.
"We-... We humans have always been like this, Ying."
Ying asked innocently, "What's a human?"
"Wha-... What?" This raised even more questions.
"What's a human?" Ying asked again politely. Cassie's silence made the young girl feel anxious, "Di-... did I say something wrong?" She asked.
Alexanderson looked over to them and listened to the odd conversation.
"Emmm... Well..." She placed her hand on her chest, "I'm a human..." "Then moved her hand towards Ying, "... Like you're an elven."
"Oh!" Ying responded, "Yeah that does make sense. Does your species have magical powers?"
Cassie blinked twice as she heard these questions, but this made Alex interested. He decided to interfere, "Ying? Did your parents ever... Tell you more about other species here in the world?"
This caused Ying to thing, " ... I-... It doesn't seem like it... My mom or dad never really showed me much outside my home village, or spoke of any of it. And my villagers never spoke of it, either..." She looked back at her new friend, "... I didn't think there was a world much bigger than what I had known..."
The ginger tried to explain, "Maybe your village was really secluded. Like us." Referring to herself and Alex.
"Maybe... But it still doesn't answer how I ended up here..."
Alex took out another map, and walked up to the table with two maps, sitting down in front of the two girls, "I pulled out two mas. One of the continent of Earth, and one of the continent of Hesnora. There's only one Riverside village in Anthrah, but it's an Anthromorth village unless you were secretly raised by animals." He joked.
The elven lightly laughed at the joke, "Is that what Anthromorths are? Animals?"
Alex quickly explained as he opened a map of Hesnora, "Anthrah is a continent of anthropomorphic animals, creatures, and just animals in general." He then looked at his map. "You're an elven, so I'll assume you're from the continent of Hesnora."
Ying asked innocently again, "Is that where my race is from?"
The man looked at her, saying without stuttering, "Your village is more secluded than I thought."
This made the brunette feel down, "I guess..."
Alex looked at her, and immediately felt regret, "... I'm sorry, Ying. I shouldn't have said that. You're not exactly in a good spot right now, and I understand that."
"No no it's okay... Maybe you're right."
He looked down towards his map, "Hmmm... If you don't know what Hesnora is, then this map won't help you... There's at least twelve different Riverside villages in Hesnora..."
Ying also looked down on the map, "Well... if it can't help me figure out where my home is, then maybe I can use it to find out which one of these villages is my home!" She said with a lot of hope.
Cassie looked at her new friend with a smile. She admired how hopeful she was, and how she was willing to go back home despite being so far away from it.
The interaction was interrupted when a fairly loud grumble. Cassie and Alex turned to the sound, which came from the elven girl. Her stomach was empty and unhappy, and the grumble was loud and embarrassing. Ying put her arms on her stomach, and blushed out of embarrassment.
She chuckled embarrassingly, "Sorry... My tummy's hungry." She said in a childlike manner.
Cassie giggled at this, and Alex smiled, "We'll make you a meal, Ying. We're generous people," Referring to himself and Cassie, "so make yourself at home."
Both girls looked at the father with a smile on their faces, and Cassie asked, "You mean Ying can stay?"
"I'd feel bad for letting her wander off without someone to watch over her, so yes, for the time being, she can stay."
Their smiles grew bigger, and they looked at each other. Ying was a lot happier. She was exploring more about world she was terribly unfamiliar with, and she had already met new faces who were willing to give her a hand, and let them share their home with her.
She hugged Cassie, "Thank you so much! Both of you!"
Cassie returned the hug, "Aww you're welcome, Ying! We're more than happy to help you."
Ying was lost. Very lost. She had no idea how she ended up where was was at, and worst of all, there was an entire world out there that she didn't even know existed. Was her home village really that secluded from the rest of the world? And why? Her head was filled with so many questions that she had no answers to, but despite all this, she found wonderful folks who were willing to help her get back home where she belonged. It was going to be a long trip, but Ying had a lot of faith that she was going to get back home.