Keridan
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quote:
Word Count: 1,252
Book: Pre-Game
Characters: The Hero - Eidrian Belmont
Genre: Drama, Origin Story
Rating: G (For now)
Author's Notes: Hello again! Back with a new story, over trying to revise my other one I last posted, since I decided to make a new hero (Named Eidrian Belmont, can find a reference picture here,) and already have an idea for his character. I know for certain how the ending is going to be like, so the meat of the story is probably gonna give me issues to try and figure out what directions they will go, but I will say it's going to get dark, and as such, later chapters will have different ratings.
Originally, this was going to be one, long story, but I got burnt out writing up at this point, and decided instead to make it chapters. On this thread, I'll make new posts with the different chapters, and hopefully I'll see this through to completion and not have it suffer the fate of many of my chapter stories in the past.
I hope this will be an interesting read!
Chapter I - Life Starts Now
Once, there was a time Doomwood went by another name. What that name was, it’s long been forgotten, for it was long before even my grandparent’s time. Once, they said the woods in this area possessed the most stunning of flora, the most captivating of creatures; the envy of all of Lore with its magical connections and mystical presence.
Now, all that remains is the twisted wood of corrupted trees, plants sickly browns and grays, and the fauna nothing more than corpses long past their prime. Was there truly a time Doomwood was anything but this horrid farce? It seems so hard to imagine, when generations remember nothing but rot and death.
There exists only one town in Doomwood that remains untainted, that gives the faintest glint of hope that these woods have yet a chance to be saved. Moonridge stands now as the only force that resists the darkened hold, life still present in more than just the occupants. So many of the other settlements of Doomwood hope that, either by faith or by study, their own town can break free of the corruption.
My own town, End’s Reach, hopes we can replicate the thriving scenery of Moonridge one day soon. Intensive research by our own Paladin Order, the Shade Keepers, is carried out each day to monitor what in Moonridge’s geography keeps it from falling victim of the taint. But so far, no breakthroughs have been made; from what they’ve discovered so far, it seems like a straight, magical miracle that Moonridge had avoided the foul that befell the rest of our woods.
But still, the Order searches, determined to seek out the cure to our town, to allow us to live without fear of our very loved ones rising from the ground by the evils within the soil itself.
And now, I stand a part of said Order to help in not only protecting the town I call home, not only to protect all those that I love, but to aid further in researching the blight of Doomwood, and reversing it to free the future from this cursed life.
It was a hefty process, the training. I’ve been a part of the Order as a recruit since I first met the required age to begin partaking. My parents, bless them, tried to convince young thirteen-year-old me to hold off and see if this truly is what I wanted to do with my life.
But I was adamant, to say the least. As soon as my birthday party had ended, I packed up all the things I thought I needed at the time, and went off without even my parents’ blessings. For I was determined to join the ranks as one of the Priests of the Order, casting spells of holy retribution while tending to the injured and inspiring hope in the desperate.
I swear, I can still remember the day I went off. My parents scolding me, ordering me to come back. Even used my full name, Eidrian Clarence Belmont, during the whole debacle; you always know when parents were beyond playing games when they pulled out those kind of guns. But they never did try to stop me outside of words; never tried to follow, never tried to hinder. All they did was plead for me to stay, but that did little good to the rebellious, determined teen that I was.
Now, I stand as an adult, twenty-five years of age. My training still has such a long way to go, but I’m officially considered part of the Order in full; not some trainee, not a lackey or servant. A full-blown member, my own armored-robes fitted for me, and my own staff and book of holy scriptures to wield in both combat and in casual public encounters.
Over a decade of training. A lot has changed while I was gone; while I could visit my parents still, when my training was still going on, it still feels so surreal how little I really know.
I know that two years after I left to train, my mother birthed another child; my little brother, Arthur. I’ve met him only so many times, and every time I did, something new seemed to come up. This year, Arthur would be going into the third grade. The last time I saw him, he was just exiting Kindergarten, sad that he wouldn’t be seeing his favorite teacher anymore.
I know that five years after my departure, my father was critically injured, causing him to lose his leg, and thereafter lose any ability to work. When that happened, all I could think was how good it was in hindsight to join the Order; the family of any member, even trainees, tended to get paid enough to support three families alone for one person. The fact there were four of us, my family definitely was living comfortably even before my father’s accident.
Still, that old goat insisted on working even when luxuries were practically handed to him. Guess I had to inherit it from somewhere.
I know various things that happened; my mother, the one who was most hesitant of me leaving, now sprouted nothing but good will at my accomplishments and progress in training. My best friend since I was five moved to Falconreach, after he became too ill to safely live within End’s Reach. My first crush ended up marrying off to what was his school sweetheart; bittersweet, but I’m still happy for him.
But only bits and pieces. I never stayed home long enough to learn in detail anything truly happening. I think the longest I ever left the training grounds was a month, and that was due to renovations to the dorms. Otherwise, three weeks out of the year was all I was granted.
Now that I’m a Priest, I’m granted more freedom. I can leave for home whenever I wasn’t needed, no longer required to be housed in no-privacy dorms with dozens of others trainees as my roommates. It’s a relief, to say the least; I never did quite get over that one particularly mean-spirited Paladin trainee that threatened to burn all of my books with me underneath it all. He was dismissed for such a comment, but still, it gives me the shivers to think on it, the pure venom housed in his eyes.
I can also leave for combat expeditions, or to serve the public with my sermons and medical training. Though those are only with orders from my higher ups; elsewise, I’m to be in the laboratories to help with the studies, as my attunement with magic impressed the lead research, Beowin, enough to consider me part of his group. An honor, to say the least! Never would I have thought the genius behind the growth of the bulblight sprout would consider me worthy enough to be under his wing!
But, that waits for tomorrow. Today, though, is reserved for rest and reconnections with my family and remaining friends; I still can’t get over how fast we’ve all grown. Half a year often brings massive changes in their own right, twelve years leaves me with nearly an entirely new world to witness.
Well. Time waits for no one, so I best not dwell on what was over what is.
My new life starts now, and I’m eager to serve the townsfolk in whatever endeavors I can manage! And hey, perhaps with any luck, my generation will find the cure to our town’s blight! Unlikely, but one can hope.
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