Ravaged Lands Saga: Chapter 1 (The Game's Beginning)
Written By: Taylor Howe

The Next Generation

As the light began to retreat upon the horizon, there was an eerie calmness in the air. A young shepherd-hand found himself wandering along the distant outskirts, of the vast Kingdom of Eloria. He paced the fields, and the rolling hills in search of a few sheep that had ran off during his watch.

He knew he wasn't to venture too far from the pastures, however he could not recall a time when this many sheep had just vanished into the countryside. Something was most definitely strange about this evening, and all seemed a little too quiet.

As he rounded the last hill, before exhausting his search, the stillness of dusk was abruptly disturbed.

There over this final hill, before the great Mountains Of Stormheld, which held the entrance point to the the Mortal Realm, was the Veil Of Aegis. The young shepherd-hand had never travelled quite this far before. He had heard of this great place, but was told to never venture there. This was a place to be visited by the Guardians or Knights of the Mortal Realm, as they would stand watch over the entrance to their Realm.

The boy would have been amazed by just this amazing sight alone, if it was not for stumbling upon a more malicious and terrifying sight at the base of this grand Veil to another Realm. 

Kneeling down quickly, before one of the thousand pairs of eyes had noticed him there, the boy had witnessed an amassing Orc army setting camp for the evening. It was here, that he quickly realized where his few sheep had gone astray, as he noticed them being strung up, along with other hunted game. A large arrangement of predators and prey of his Realm to be devoured in an Orcish feast. 

Quickly scurrying over a large mass of stacked boulders to take refuge, the young farm boy, peered out from the darkness between two towering rock slabs. It was here that he saw, by far the most vicious of any Orc Warrior that had ever been described to him by the few knights that past through his village after returning from a crusade.

She a towering ravenous, muscular Orc woman, was most definitely built for all out Warfare.

She, the nameless Orc Warrior, stood firm on the hillside armed with an ungodly like bone and steel serrated blade. A blade that appeared to be garnished with that of a human skull. Upon closer review, the boy seen specific markings and warpaint that could not be for, but a simple Warrior among the ranks. He thought to himself that she, must have to be equivalent to the Hero Guardians, but for their Orc-like kind.

As the boy continued his stare between the rock formations of the hillside, he couldn't help but notice the scarred rune seared into the exposed flesh of the Orc Guardian's back. A part of her body, that she conscientiously left exposed from furs and rawhide.

This marking was very unique. Unique in the fact that he had only ever seen once in his early formidable years, on the wrist of his late father. It was the marking of the "Druid Arcane", used only by the secretive, yet ever present organization, known only as "The Hood". There was no way that this hulking Orc woman could have been a member of the Heroes most honoured organization, let alone been marked with their seal of their creed.

Trying his best not to be too suspicious, that he exposed himself from behind the rocks, the young boy knew he had to move just a little closer. Too curious for his own good, the young boy found himself miss-stepping on a loose pile of rubble beneath him, resulting in him slipping down into some smaller stones that lay in front of him. This erratic movement made a shift within the boulders that that he was precariously squeezed between, resulting in a large cascading noise that echoed out to the sharp hearing of the Orc Guardian perched on the hillside.

She snapped her head backwards, to glare over her leather-strapped shoulder, and clenched her violent serrated weapon tighter in her hand. 

It was at this very moment, the young shepherd-hand farm boy saw his minuscule life flash before his very eyes. For all intents and purposes, he knew he was to be killed by this elite killing machine in a instant. However, much to his surprise, she just maintained her thousand-eyed stare, as if she was peering into his quivering soul. 

This was when a hearty female voice broke the silence from below the hillside, out of the boy's line of sight.

"What was that up there Visceria?", the disturbed voice called up from below.

"It was nothing of any consequence, my Lady Bloodmaiden...return to your feast and enjoy. I will not have you follow in the footsteps of your mother!", Visceria replied down to what could only have been her superior.

The boy within the rocks, sweating as his heart raced with adrenaline, stood paralyzed with tremendous fear as he awaited for his timely demise by the cold steel she clutched in her hand.

But to his surprise, it never came.