The House of the Griffin

Prologue

Smoke covered the skies, obstructing the rays of the sun from reaching the ground. Flames surrounded the one man responsible for it all - General Avart Grieves.

Coming from a noble family, he was one of the youngest to have made General at the age of 28. He had been in many battles under the command of his father, but this was the first time that he was in the lead. His father had died last year in one of these wars, and following tradition, Avart had succeeded him. To him, combat was what he lived for. The sound of blades clashing, the smell of blood, the surge of adrenaline he felt when battling against a worthy opponent, all such things filled him with excitement. It was this love for battle that caught the attention of the High King. He made Avart General of Faction 10 of his forces.

Under the orders of the High King, Avart was on his first expedition to the island of Havi. Havi came under the rule of the High King, but had recently become home to a rebellion. The Jarl of Havi was found to have instigated this rebellion and used his funds to buy armaments and other supplies for the rebels. Angered, the High King had ordered a purge of Havi and General Avart obliged to his request. Avart had made landfall in the morning and by evening the whole city of Havi lay burning. The High King wanted to make an example of Havi, and thus nobody was to be spared. Nobody.

Following orders, the soldiers killed every man, woman and child that they found. In the end, all that was left was General Avart and the ashes of Havi. He walked around the dead city, sword in hand. His sword was caked in blood, but none of them belonged to any civilian. He had only fought and killed warriors and soldiers. He had been taught by his father from a very young age to stay his blade from the flesh of the innocent. He was noble in that manner. Though personally, Avart just didn't feel that killing anybody but warriors and soldiers was worth it. He lived for combat, not mindless slaughter. Though the other soldiers had no such reservations, and it being the command of his High King, he could not stop them.

Avart was thinking about the carnage and what his King would demand of him next when he heard a cry. He followed the sound and entered a house in which the roof had fallen down. He saw a figure of a woman, hunched over on all fours with a huge wooden beam on her back. The sound was coming from a small bundle of clothes below her. Avart bent down and touched the woman's shoulder. Her body had gone stiff. She was already dead. He picked up the bundle and unravelled it to reveal a baby boy. He had black hair and eyes that matched the colour of the ocean. He looked at the baby curiously and raised his sword to kill him, but stopped just before bringing it down. He saw the baby looking at his sword. His gaze was fixed on his blade and he extended his arms as if to grab Avart's blade. Avart wondered what to do with the baby. If he followed orders and killed the baby, the High King would be happy with him. If he left the baby, he would die anyways of thirst and hunger, though that would be a cruel way to go. He thus chose a third option, one that he knew might get him in trouble.

"What have you done?!"

One of the King's ministers had come with Avart to Havi. He was chosen to oversee the purge of Havi and report back to the King. Seeing the General carry a baby back to the ship shocked him, to say the least.

"I have done nothing that a sensible person wouldn't do," replied Avart.

"We were ordered to kill everyone on this island! And here you are bringing back this...."

"If you really want everyone dead, then you are going to kill him yourself." Saying this, Avart held the baby in front of the minister.

The minister had never killed anyone before, let alone a baby. He didn't think he would have to. He was a politician, for the Gods' sake, not a soldier.He stared at the baby for a full minute, contemplating what to do. He extended his hands to choke the baby, but changed his mind at the last moment.

"What do you want to do with the child?"  The minister sighed.

"I'm going to take him home and raise him as my own."

"Your wife may have something to say about that, General. Think about this again. By doing this, the King has reason to reprimand you heavily. You are endangering not only yourself, but your whole family. The King has stripped many nobles of their titles for much less than what you are doing. Are you sure you will be able to face his wrath when he finds out?"

"If he finds out, Minister. And let me worry about that. What I want to know is are you going to tell the High King about this?"

"I know not, General. This is something that nobody has ever done before. On one hand, it is my duty to notify the King about everything that took place here today. But I cannot. If he learns that I let you do this, he will punish me too. No, I saw nothing today. You never met me today except to give report. You didn't carry anything with you back from the battlefield. Now, take this away before I change my mind and order one of the soldiers to kill it. Let none other know that I let you do this, General."

"Don't worry, Minister. The whole world shall know him as my son, and nothing else."

Avart turned to go back to his chamber on the ship, but was stopped in his tracks by one final question from the minister.

"What are you going to call him?"

Avart looked at the baby and pondered for a few moments. Should he name the child after one of his ancestors? Or should he name him after one of the Gods of the Old World?

"Cal. He shall be known as. Cal Grieves."