I
11th Springsbirth 702
The Elves sat around their campfire singing and telling tales about the days of old when they were respected and not kept under the ruthless eye of men.
The Elves used to be strong, so great and powerful, but when the time came their lands were destroyed by an army of terrible creatures, great beasts that the Elvhen legends spoke of. The Elves called these monsters the Inferno, for they burned always and their flames never died out. The Elves would all have surely perished if the humans had not united and destroyed the Inferno. By that time many of the Elvhen had perished and the ones that still lived were either kept as slaves, or they were allowed to live in small clans far apart from each other in forests and other places, but no matter where they were they were always under the close eye of the unforgiving humans who had complete and total power over the once great Elvhen.
One of those few remaining tribes lived in the forests of the Dew, just a few leagues south of the city of Pedorac. These Elves were under the close eye of Duke Caspian, who would kill and torture Elves at any chance he got. Duke Caspian enjoyed killing Elves, for he despised their people, and the way that they never thought of the present or the future, but they always thought of the past, in the times when the humans had no power over the Elvhen. But for all his hatred for the Elves he could not kill them without reason, doing so would damage his image among the people and that was something that he wasn’t going to risk in a hurry.
Every day the Elves of the Pedorac forest hunted in the woods and killed deer and rabbits so they could eat in the day and use their fur for blankets and clothing. The Elvhen were master hunters, thus their hunts were always fruitful and rewarding, and every day the hunting party would return with enough meat to feed a hall full of lords.
Although they were despised by their Lord and hated by the people of Pedorac they always found a way to enjoy them and to make the most out of what they had. Their Elvhen tribe lord was a fair ruler and would always defend his people no matter what foe he faced. His name was Theron and he was an amazing fighter, but even he worried that the Inferno might return one day and succeed in their quest to bring down all of Keroshek and all kingdoms who defied them…
The Sun was beginning to rise over the beautiful forest of Dew, the birds could be heard chirping and the sounds of the waking foxes, rabbits and game were also to be heard. The Elves were just starting to awake from the night in their tents. This day was the day of the hunt, three of the most skilful hunters would go into the woods for the food that the Elves needed to survive. The three hunters had already been chosen to go into the forest to hunt; the final choice of hunters was made by Prince Theron, leader of the Elves in the forest of Dew, and the rightful heir to the Elvhen throne. The Duke of Pedorac did despise the Elves but he respected Theron, despite his race.
The people of the camp gathered around the front gates, where the three hunters were waiting for prince Theron to begin the hunt. All the Elves were excited about the hunt which would take place today at noon, a great feast would be held that night, when the hunters brought back deer and bison and all other manners of things to eat. As the Elves stood there waiting, the lord Theron himself walked slowly towards the hunters. The Elves and all who stood there bowed before their Prince and at his side stood Aelfgar the Mage of the tribe. His long white hair flowed to his shoulders, his face was old, and so was his body, but his skills were not. He stood with his back straight, holding an iron clad staff in his right hand. Aelfgar had always commanded much respect in the Elvhen people, not just for his strength in battle, but for his pure dedication, and unfaltering loyalty to the Elves.
