Under the eternal guidance of the star,
with the radiance of the sun,
blessed by the wisdom of the wolves,
and the strength of the lions,
a leader shall arrive to save us all,
a conqueror shall be born to unite us all.
For years, a land ancient has been the subject of tyranny and warfare. The fields devastated by the passing armies and its citizens enslaved or slain like wild beasts by bandits and raiders. The wars never seemed to stop as each kingdom declared war unto another in their eternal attempts to gain more lands. Little did they care for the people who truly suffered under their regimes.
Ranging from the horsemen of the Khergit Khanate, to the crossbowmen of the Kingdom of Swadia, past the fierce swordsmen of the Nords, passing the flying arrows from the Kingdom of Vaegirs to the spears of the armies of Rhodok, the five kingdoms spent the riches and lives of millions in a seemingly eternal struggle.
In a small village a young man looks to an eternal blue sky, wondering what the clouds could mean. The minutes fly by, but his duty remains. Looking around, it is obvious that the village had a small, but bloody history. Mere months before he and his family, along with a couple of hundred farmers from other villages, were relocated after the previous inhabitants were slaughtered by bandits.
An old man walks up to him from behind. "A tragic end for the innocent, but alas a part of everyone's life". "It isn't right, somebody should do something about it!" The old man smiled as he heard the fierce determination in the young man's voice, but knew deep in his heart that nothing could be done. Nothing but accept the dangers life throws at them, whether they like it or not.
Such is the way the villagers have lived for what seemed to be centuries and so it appears to continue. The old man walked past him, preparing himself to work on the fields again. The grain was ripe and it would not take long for their Lord to demand his share. Everyone knew they had to have something or they'd face a harsh punishment.
"You're wrong father. Something can be done. The future is ours to make, it is ours to take and it is up to us to shape it." After a long hard day of work the villagers returned their harvest to a stockpile and assigned to villagers to guard it for the night whilst the rest returned to their houses to get a good sleep. It was truly a hard life.
Yet whilst all slept peacefully under the shining stars, one could not close his eyes and find rest. The thoughts of suffering of the innocent and the incompetence of the Lords felt like a colony of ants finding a way into his clothes. It annoyed the young soul, especially since there was so little he could do. What was his future going to be?
And as the night arrived by the stars, the day was brought by the sun in the morning. Most of the fields had been emptied of all that could be found and tension was amongst the face of every villager. It would be mere days before their Lord's lackeys would arrive to collect the harvest, but the risk of a raid increased every hour as well, for the harvest was a tempting target to all.
"I swear it's like walking around with a marker on our asses for every bandit out there" Chuckles and soft laughing could be heard by several villagers in the crowd. "Jonathan, are you suggesting we should paint it blue instead?" The laughing only increased and it became much louder. It was good to see people laugh, even if it only happened once in a while.
"Let's see if you're still a smart ass like that if one of them bandits shoots an arrow in it!" At that point the laughing increased again. It was truly a happy day for everyone. With the good mood hanging in every corner of the village, the work was quickly finished and all they had to do was wait until their Lord would arrive.
And again, a day passed. Instead of walking around the village, attending to other small things to take care of, every villager flocked to the house of a young woman near the southern exit. She had her child the last night and it appeared the child appeared to be carrying some magical dust, as everyone wanted to hold it.
The day was sent celebrating the arrival of the young new one in the world. Villagers attempted to use whatever materials they could to make presents. Though they were not the same quality as the fancy gifts bought in stores, the fact that everyone went through so much effort made the woman truly happy with ease.
Life had it's great moments.