Well, I'm still not quite sure what is going to happen with this fic, but for now I'll just keep writing and we'll see how far this will go! This will be a much longer chapter, and if you guys have any suggestions or requests, or just any comment at all, it is appreciated!
Leifnar awoke to the roaring of a hellfire. His ears had gone nearly deaf, apart from a loud ringing in his ears. He smelled ash, smoke, and blood. The smell of death. A massive fireball erupted behind the door and Leif knew his sight was gone. Blinking in a daze, his vision was blurry, but that could've just been the smoke. Fernia was grabbing him pulling on his arm but when he tried to move he couldn't. He looked down and realized that part of a wall was crushing down on him. It was hard to breathe. A terrible roar from outside followed by screams was all Leif needed to know what was happening. He tried once more to move to no avail. As far as he was concerned he was dead. Maybe he couldn't move, but he knew who could. With a weak push he motioned towards the back door and Fernia through her tears knew this would probably be the last time she saw her husband. They kissed and through his tears he saw a wall collapse. He gave her one final push and she had just turned around when the house's roof caved in and everything went black for Leifnar.
When Leif awoke again he was in the charred rubble of what used to be his house. He weakly managed to roll a little, sliding the remaining bits of debris off his chest. He tried to sit up and found he was still a little dizzy from the morning. 'Dragon attacks will do that to you' Leif thought to himself. Then he remembered right before he had fallen unconscious. "Fern! Fern!" he yelled, and yet he couldn't see anything. Suddenly a strange and unnatural feeling came over him and he knew he had to get out of there. A groaning sound came from the side of the house and its final wall collapsed right over Leif's head. Leif rolled to his feet and vaulted over the stub wall in one motion. The heavy bricks landed where his head had been moments before. Leif had always been a natural athletic but this felt different somehow. He had known exactly what was going to happen and this time, he had no rationalization. Moments later his train of thought was interrupted by a blaring trumpet call that made him cringe.
Four men on horses rode past all wearing similar armor, the symbol of a dragon skull with a lightning bolt through it emblazoned on their chest. Their leader a man in his forties slowed to a halt, and so did the others. He turned around after running his keen eyes over the burnt husk of the village. Leif didn't know what was so strange about this man, but for some reason he seemed a bit off. The man looked at Leif with his electric blue eyes and dismounted his horse. The man was a lot taller than Leif had originally thought, although with the man being six foot three he was still small compared to Leif's seven feet even. He strode up to Leif with the walk of a veteran soldier and stood right in front of him.
"Boy, do you know what the hell you're doing here! This area's still dangerous and all you're doing is wandering around in the plain open! With dragons around damn it!..."
Leif stood still dazed and thinking about the attack. The man's voice slowly receded into the background as Leif played through his memory over and over.
"... and that is why I'm sorry, but you will be coming with us. Moharv, you'll be doubling up on this one."
"Aww hell Belkar, come on! He probably doesn't even remember anything. He's repressing!" It was a ridiculous excuse and everyone knew it. Moharv, probably the youngest of the group by his looks, certainly did not appreciate the extra weight that would be on his horse. "You know how Challenger feels when you always make him the damn pack animal!"
"Son, I don't give a damn what you or your horse thinks, you don't have a choice in this!"
The other two men to the side were barely containing their laughter. Moharv grumbled and rode up to Leif extending a hand.
"I sure hope that your worth this guy"
Moharv's horse snorted and then grunted as Leif was hoisted into the saddle behind Moharv. Leif wasn't even sure where he was going, but he knew where ever it was it would certainly be better than staying here. There was nothing for him here now.
As the company of five men rode off into the distance, Leif couldn't help but smile remembering when he was just a boy, yelling and running around his parents inn, swearing some day that he would be an adventurer like all the others that frequented his home. Then he groaned as he remembered the life that he had. The life he would never have.
So that's the first real chapter, how do you guys think it went? As always I welcome criticism and helpful tips. But not from you Josh! I'm thinking I'll extend this story to somewhere near 10 chapters, although it really just depends on my motivation. Summers almost here so I'll have a lot of time to be writing! As my pal Bender from Futurama sais, "It's gonna be fun on a bun!"
