Evelyn's Star

1

Dreams are a gateway to a world that is far away from our own. But no matter how unreal they may seem, for the moment, they are very much real.

With a surge of adrenaline, Raymon wakes up and sits straight on his bed. He frantically motions his hands towards his chest looking down at it at the same time. He is panting and swearing from every pore of his body.

Just another dream, he thinks. Nothing can harm me here. Just another bad dream. Raymon looks up at his window realizing that the morning had approached sooner than he anticipated. I need more sleep, he thought, as no amount of rest would suffice the ordeal that he goes through every night.

“Another nightmare kid?” a voice pushes Raymon’s now rested heart to beat at an exceeding rate. He excels toward his sword placed at the foot of his bed in fear. But he suddenly understands the source of this voice along with the familiarity it carries and quickly glances toward the corner. “My heart almost jumped out of my chest, chief”, Raymon exclaims.

Garid Rumpsly is sitting on the floor in the corner of the room, stroking his beard that is as long as his neck and he has a fascinated look on his face.

“Almost?” he grunts, “Pity. Bearing in mind how you don’t belong here, I would not have seen it as a problem if it went all the way”. Garid’s voice is coarse but sharp enough to pierce like the howl of a wolf in the dead of the night.

Raymon is recovering. He is now sitting up in his bed with his feet kissing the ground. Garid stands up, “I was here to wake you up for training. But I could not help but entertain myself to you whimpering like an infant”.

You’re the one that looks like an infant, you bald scoundrel, Raymon thinks.

Garid starts to proceed toward the door. His footsteps sound astonishingly heavy for a man with a lean stature “In the field before noon bells, or you will be on messenger duty”. He stops at the door and looks at Raymon “and yes, I do have the authority to disband you from the ranger squad” and exits the room. 

*****

Training for the ranger squad is not less than a vigorous process of increasing one’s strength and agility. This was a part of many other squads that involved in the protection and advancement of the country of Estermead.

The ranger squad in its full potential is responsible for carrying out missions outside of the capital city of Goldwell. Although, the last mission carried out by them was during the Oldfield rebellion that took place twenty years ago.

The rebellion led by the mighty Edward Dorous with his Damascus steel sword was rumored to posses abilities that no human could handle. The civil was lasted for a hundred suns, but everything eventually comes to an end.

Garid Rumpsly in his days of glory was responsible for leading a stealthy operation, resulting in the fall of the mighty Edward.

The war came to a screeching halt. The crown came to an agreement with the people of Oldfield, where the rebellion initially started. This agreement was managed because advice presented by the king’s counselors as the piling of bodies needed to stop.

Garid was awarded with the position of chief of the ranger squad, although he never dressed like one. He portrayed a ruthless personality with no respect for Raymon in the slightest.

The rangers are supposed to be the elite squad, above everyone else. They should be quick on their feet no matter the weight of the equipment they carried. They have to be very strong. Strength is where Raymon lacked the most. This is why Garid’s behavior toward Raymon was well accepted by the other squad members.

Raymon has faced hardship all his life. His parents were killed in the civil war which led him to live with his uncle Uriah Vidal when he was two years of age. 

“My brother was an impulsive fool who would charge into battle like no tomorrow. And his wife? A fool, just like him, who believed that redemption, was just one step away and that the crown would surrender. You come from a family of fools. Don’t ever ask about them. And you better not turn out like them”, his uncle explained when seven year old Raymon questioned about his background.

Raymon grew up practicing archery in the forest that was five miles from Goldwell. He was in no way strong, but he was fast. He had to reach home on time before the sun set, and his legs helped him achieve this as he would run like the wind. He was brilliant and quick in this thinking which helped him getting out of sticky situations that he got himself into because of his troublemaking. He was also very well known for questioning authority that suppressed people.

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The pattern of a jigsaw like the first chapter/prologue initially promised cannot continue. This is because this is the first time I’m taking up writing and thinking of plots that take place in various timelines would do nothing but mess up my brain and make me give up writing :P. So hereafter this story will follow a regular pattern and uploads will be monthly (no promises).