We all know of the existence of the solar system…and we know we all live on a planet called Earth... but what you don't know, that there is a world parallel to our Earth. A magic world, where warriors fight bravely, where bowmen fire arrows with pinpoint accuracy and where thieves who move unseen and swiftly over the world. Magicians are not a common sight in that world, because it has to be in your blood to master the art of wizardry. The planet itself was all water except for a few main islands. Victoria was the biggest of them all, a green lush island with forests in the East, deep jungles of adventure in the West. There were great wastelands in the North and big plains of green grass that stretch for miles. In the center of this island there was a humongous tree with branches that stretch for hundreds of meters and a base that was hollow where someone had built a hotel.
Close to the hotel, named the Sleepywood Hotel, was a cave that leads to the deep inner parts of the island.
The island had only a few cities, each in a quadrant of the island: Ellinia in the East, a town built around the hundred-meter high trees; Perion in the North, living from hunted beasts, because there are no trees in the dry land; Henesys in the South, where the people live off the land; Kerning City in the West, the modernized city on the island. There is also a harbor, named Lith Harbor, where people go to get a ride to the other islands.
My role in all this is just small, but I'll tell you anyway:
My mother was a sweet mother, who wanted the best for me. She took care of me when my faster perished when I was 2 years old.
I lived in the town of the South: Henesys.
When I reached the age of 12, my mother told me about my father and when she was talking about him, telling me about his adventures as a skillful warrior, I wanted to become like him and asked my mother if it was okay to travel to one of the main cities to start my training. She told me that my father had trained at Perion and that she wanted to help me as good as she could to make sure I was okay.
Two weeks later I set off to Perion, waved out by my mother who was, at that moment, very proud of me.
Now, before I tell you how I got to Perion, I've got to tell you something about how you survive in this world.
The way of life as you know it, is a safe world: no monsters of evil beasts that can attack you. In my world, you can be attacked my all sorts of monsters, strong and weak, fast and slow, huge and tiny.
And they don't hatch out of an egg, or be born by nature. No, they sort of just pop out of nowhere every time one dies. As far as we humans know it has something to do with the cave in the center of the island. If you ask "What about money, do you have something like that?", then I say we do, but we don't know how it can be true, but when a monster dies, a bag of money can be found on its carcass. The amount is depending on the strength of the monster and how many people it has killed. It is a weird system if you're used to the way it goes on you world.
Now that you know this, I can continue my story:
When I left my home, I had practiced with my sword. It wasn't a very good one, but it was all I could wield at that time. My clothes were like yours: a simple shirt and jeans.
Outside of the town boundaries, I felt like I had left everything behind me and started a new life. Unaware of how dangerous my new life was going to be, I set off to Ellinia because I felt like meeting magicians who I had never seen.
After hours of wandering through fields, I entered the outer boundaries of the Western forest, where I saw an Iron Hog. I quickly hid myself behind a tree, hoping the Hog hadn't noticed me. When I looked where it had gone, it wasn't there anymore. Thinking I had hid myself fast enough, I continued my journey.
Suddenly I heard a sound from the bushes left of me, so I focused on what may have caused it. Then a Hog walked out and I quickly turned around, ready to make a run for it. But I never got the chance, because something really hard had hit me with such a force, that I just blacked out of the pain.
When I opened my eyes again, it was close to nightfall and as my eyes got used to the weakening sunlight, I saw a whole pack of Hogs. I stood up and wanted to sneak away, but only a few feet later I bumped into some sort of cage. I now realized they had put me in it.
"If you're looking for a way out, don't mind, there isn't one." I heard someone say. "Who are you and where are you?" I said as I looked around me. "Down here, fella," he said and I sat next to him.
When I looked at his face, I saw it was quite banged up and I told him that. He replied: "Heh, yeah I put up a good fight before they overpowered me. When their backup arrived, they were outnumbering me too far and captured me.
Me- "Wow, you must be strong! What sword do you use?"
Him- "Sword! Hahaha, sorry kid, but I use a bow..."
Then he pointed at something near the pack of Hogs and said: "See that yellow-green thing over there? That's my bow: the Ryden bow."
"Damn, if only I could get out of here..." And he stared at the distant bow.
Him- "I'm Korban by the way, what's your name?"
Me- "I'm Shikotei, but everyone just calls me Shik."
Korban- "Looking at your clothes, I don't think you have any combat experience. What's your age Shik? And why are you here?"
I told Korban my age and that I was on my way to Perion via Ellinia.
"Well I'll help you to get to Perion, because I think you wouldn't get far on your own." I said that I really appreciated that and thanked him, but he said that had to get out of here first. So we both looked at what the Hogs were saying to each other.
Hog 1: "Let's eat the little one first and squash the other!"
Hog 2: "No you fool, we got to wait for the Lupins so we can save our strength, that big guy is tough."
3rd Hog: "No way Guss, we caught those two and we're gonna eat them too!"
Another Hog said: "Then I want a bigger piece of the little one, I rammed him."
"SILENCE you FOOLS!" A really huge Hog said, "It was my idea, so I get my rewards."
The first Hog then said: "Seems we need a new boss: ME!" and rammed the big one. All the other Hogs now wanted to be the new boss and started to fight each other, ramming, biting their rivals.
After a few seconds had passed, a Hog came towards us, probably to destroy the cage and have us for dinner. It did manage to rip a hole in the cage, but got rammed by another Hog, that then ran after the first Hog.
"This is our chance," said Korban, "we got to get outta here now!" And he grabbed my arm and we ran away from the fight. Korban stopped running, said something about his bow and ran back to the fighting Hogs. I ran to the nearest tree and hid myself while watching Korban grab his bow and dodging the Hogs flying about, getting rammed and scratched. "Follow me, I know a good spot to spend the night." he said while running past me. He seemed to know exactly where to go, but I had no idea where we were going to.
"Here we are, come." He said and just climbed up in the middle of the air. "What the... how do you do that!" I said. "Oh yeah... ehm... just give me your hand and I'll pull you up." As he pulled me up he told me that I was in an air hut. That's a magic hut which was a floating wooden hut with invisible walls and roof. "These were made centuries ago by one of the most powerful person of that time... Who and how remain mysteries."
"Here, eat this, it'll still your hunger. Now go to sleep, we are safe in here. Tomorrow, I'll take you to Ellinia, where you'll meet loads of Mages." That last bit he said with a touch of anger... why? I wouldn't know until tomorrow…