Adventuring through Elkham

Chapter 1

Upon the hills of Elkham could be seen yet another sunrise.

And thus was beginning another day, without too much commotion, blessed by our peaceful times. However, today is not just another day. As I am turning 15 !

"Elam, come down at once for breakfast, or the Ancient Dragon will come knocking over our door and take you away for being a bad kid !" Irritated, I yelled back " Mom, I am not a kid anymore, I'm already 15 ! I'm too old to believe in your fairy tales. And everybody around here says dragons don't exist".

And as I was getting dressed up, and preparing for breakfast, I could hear Mother replying " Oh, but no matter your age, you will always be my cute little son". It was embarassing being treated like a kid but I guess it couldn't be helped. When I came down the stairs, my father was already eating silently, as if lost in deep thoughts, and once he realized I came down he suddenly said " Oh, but you know Elam, Dragons do exist. You'd be surprised by how vast the world is and by how many things you have never seen."

"Come on dad, are you treating me like a kid too ? Why would a dragon even pay heed to this small, boring village, lost deep in the woods." And then, while he was bursting out in laughter he replied "Well, can't argue with that". But then his facial expression became much more stiff as he kept on going : " But it's peaceful here. "

« Well, a little bit too peaceful for my taste. » I replied. And voiced my complaint : "When will I be able to leave this town that nobody cares about and go on an adventure like you have, dad ? Everybody knows that you were a famous adventurer and have tons of tales told about you, the Hero of Elkham, Kaarash The Great, and yet have you never mentionned any of it to me, your own son." My father couldn't find his words and didn't give me an answer, which is when Mom interrupted and said in a gentle tone "Elam, your food is getting cold. And what's up with that gloomy attitude ? It's your birthday for heavens sake ! Why don't you cheer up a little bit."

Annoyed because I knew she was trying to change the topic and deny me from an answer, which happens everytime I mention my fathers' adventurous days, I blurted out in an irritated tone "I'm done here. Thanks for the food. I'll head out for a little bit." And hurriedly went out to cool myself. What awaited me at the door's length was a wonderful scenery, where stood plains full of emerald colored grass with all kinds of greenery, a large turquoise river stream, full of seafood and clean water, that came down from the lake in one of the mountains surrounding us. And passed through our town, separating it in two. Because we lived in a large house located atop of a hill, we could clearly view the diverse human settlements with small houses made of wood in the isolated parts where lived peasants living off agricultural work. Meanwhile merchants took a liking to the centre of the town where they could setup their shops and rent less modest houses, made of bricks.

Our village didn't have any reknown and yet it was no ordinary village. It's true that we lived off mostly from fishing in the river and selling our cultivated agricultural goods like any other town. But ours was very populated and we were self-sufficient. Because our town became home to many artisans such as blacksmiths, securing the manufacture of goods. To Merchants, securing the trading in town. And lastly the agriculturists, who secured us food. Since our village was cut off from the main country by a mountainous area, nobody even bothered to venture here, so litterally nothing big happent around here, and it was evident we wouldn't be functionning if not for our self-preservance. We were simply doing honest work without any ambitions fueling our desires. Fortunately, our community was big enough for us to be self-reliant and we didn't have to rely on other merchants' goods, who rarely even passed by just because our village was in the middle of their path. After admiring the scenery for a little bit, which was ordinary but still very enjoyable to watch, I went down the road in order to venture to the village.