This is my first ever story so it is kinda crap. I will only continue this story if reviews come in. Btw, I'll write up to two chapters for people to see.
Prologue
A dark shape loomed over the skies of Ilia. Closer and closer it came, its speed so fast, it looked like it might collide with the Ilian mountains. A cloud covered the moon, making the shape indistinguishable in the darkness. It landed at the base of a mountain where trees grew sparsely. A man in a dark cloak and deep cowl got off his pegasus. There were two things wrong with this. Only women were allowed to ride pegasi and pegasi were white. In this case, the pegasus was darker than the darkest shadow and knew only unquestionable loyalty to his master. The man looked at the trees and nodded.
"Come over here, Shukan. Break those branches with your hooves." he commanded.
Shukan obeyed. He reared up and struck at the trees. A scream pierced the night and a girl, around fourteen years old, ran southward towards Sacae. The man smiled. "She is the one." he said to himself.
A cloud shifted and the moon shone. Something glinted off the man. It was a Delphi Shield.
Chapter 1 – Humble Beginnings
It had been four years since that incident. Garose sat on a log with his sword. Satisfied that it was clean and sharp, he sheathed it and tied the scabbard to his belt. It was a desolate area and no bandits wandered around but he liked to feel the familiar weight of his sword. "After all, emergencies can happen." he reasoned. Garose walked toward the little forest, the sound of someone gasping for breath getting louder. "What happened this time?" he asked Derok.
Derok was a warrior from one of the clans that lived in the western isles. A champion with an axe, his clan saw that his potential could grow no more if he stayed with them and sent him to travel the Elibe continent in search of rivals. Being a typical warrior, he would always fight first and ask questions later. In this case, he had eaten a huge feast and asked for the bill later. He was shocked to find that he was broke. Since he was a warrior, he could use the bow to some extent and went out hunting where he clumsily sumbled onto a group of bandits.
"Fall beneath a worshipper of Durbans!" Derok had roared before he had chargedat the group, killing five instantly with a swing of his mighty axe. More came from within the forest and soon there were too many to take, even for Derok. That was when Garose came in.
Strong, smart and handsome, he was what every fighter should've been. He had grown up in an orphanage in Bern, studying Elibe's history and sneaking away to watch battles in the arena. His hero was Hartmut, one of the Eight Legends, and to Garose, he was the perfect role model. Garose copied many arena moves, sometimes even getting lessons from some of the fighters. He studied tactics and Elibe geography. He trained with a sword and, occasionally, an axe. He helped younger ones in the orphanage in times of need, copying the good side of the Black Fang. When he left the orphanage at eighteen years old, he fought in the arenas as often as he could, risking his life to save up money. Could life get any better?When he had saved up enough, he bought camping and travelling supplies and, eventually, a Brave Sword. Garose, who had earned the name 'Servant of Hartmut', had always known he would love travelling so he knew being a mercenary was the perfect life for him.
Three years later, after travelling to Etruria en route Lycia and being hired many times, he had rescued Derok who insisted on repaying Garose by travelling with him. Derok had never seen Bern so the campanions travelled there en route Lycia again, stopping at arenas and camping out in the open. Both enjoyed this simple life for even if mercenaries were goin through hard times now, they always found alternatives.
"I'd just finished using my bow. I started swinging my axe around a bit but I got the cramps so I stuck it in a tree to massage my arm. Now I can't get it out!" complained Derok. Garose walked over to the axe, wriggled it around a bit and pulled out the axe cleanly.
"And to think those arena fighters called you the Axe of Durbans." teased Garose, casting a casual glance at his friend,"One, why were you swinging your axe around. Two, why did you stick it in a tree?"
"You're letting it all go to your head just 'cause they call you the Servant of Hartmut!" spat Derok, his face turning red with anger.
"You're sooo gullible." thought Garose, his face cool, caml and collected. Being calm infuriated his friend even more.
"You think you're so great with your sw-"
"Oh shut up and stop blustering, Derok." came a voice from the camp. "And you keep your mouth shut too, Garose. You know you always win at teasing him so just stop."
Derok glowered at the young woman but kept his mouth shut. He really liked her but knew that Garose had already won her first which made him just a little bit jealous. "She really is beautiful." he thought. "Her magenta coloured hair falling to her waist. I love it when she leaves it out, especially when it flies in the wind...And her face! Those clear, blue eyes, her dazzling smile..." Derok shook his head, dispersing such thoughts.
Garose walked up to the young woman, feigning a look of surprise. "You heard us all the way from here, Kerna? You must have good hearing."
"Stop pretending. Derok is twenty four, you're twenty one, I'm twenty and yet you two never stop acting so babyish." she scolded but a warm look passed her face when she looked into Garose's eyes. "Those eyes are such a rich, deep green...I wonder if he feels the way I do..." Of course, she had no way of knowing that Derok had said nearly the same thing a few moments ago. Ever since the mage had finished her training and joined the two mercenaries in Etruria, she had gotten used to their bickerings. They all knew she had a soft spot for Garose but Derok had tried to impress her nonetheless.
"I got a present for you while I was in town today." said Derok, turning redder then he already was.
"Thank you, Derok. I'll look at it after dinner. You did catch something for dinner didn't you? Because I don't think it was worth spending the time and money on the present if you didn't get me something I needed to survive."
"Don't worry. I bought supplies to last us to the next town. Tonight is our last night here. We move onto Araphen then on to Bulgar." said Garose. He was officially their leader and, since he knew the most about Elibe, chose the best places to go.