2 Chapter 1

Altrea, the capital city of the Elysium, is the largest city in the country. Built at the foot of a mountain range, the imperial castle stands at the base with the city spreading out over the land. Its location is not only strategic as far as defense is concerned but the mountains offer fresh water that flows down from the peak through the city. the streets are all paved stone with three main districts. Outside the castle walls, the noble district, as the name implies, is strictly for noble residencies. Then there is the market district outside with the high end merchants able to cater to the nobles right outside of there district. as you get farther way from the castle the quality of the shops degrade although the merchandise is similar in quality, the shops are smaller and are operated by local commoners and apprentices. that share the ultimate goal of one day being hired by the upper class merchants to sell their wares to the nobles. Then there is the lower class district, where laborers, adventurers, and travelers reside. The residents of this area have access to the market district, but only to shops that choose to allow them to. The buildings are all made of smoothly cut bricks and start at one story in the outer most district and get taller the deeper into the city you get, with the imperial castle standing above all. The country of Elysium is the wealthiest country on the continent and is also the largest. The geographical location is in the center of most of the countries, thus making it a prime trade route. The mountains also provide rare gems and metals used to make armor and jewelry.

One day, while a certian blacksmith was out on a quest for materials, he happend upon an unsightly scene. Bandits and thugs where not uncommon in the wild. Most people knew this and didnt really bother with going deep into the woodlands. Not to mention the various monsters that called the forests their homes aswell. While the blacksmith was put in search of one of these mosters he cam upon some unfortunate souls that seemed to have wondered through and got themselves attacked. The ground was soaked with blood, body parts were strewn all over the area as far as the man could see. Even though he was a blacksmith now, he was once a ranger that held a sargents rank in the military. As he inspected the scene, he saw tracks that seemed to be a pack of wolves. However these footprints were much larger than a normal wolf. He soon recognized them as hell hound tracks, which would explain why there were body parts eveywhere. Instead of hunting prey out of survival instincts, hell hounds would tear their opponents apart and consume the emotions of fear. The more pain and suffering one felt the more nourishment the hell hounds acuired from their prey. Although this foe was incredibly dangerous, as long as you show no fear while in their vicinity, there wasn't really anything to worry about. These people however didn't seem to know that small bit of seemingly worthless information. After inspecting the area thoroughly, he decided nothing could be done and there didn't seem to be any immediate threat. The scene was gruesome, but based on the rate of decay, this struggle was about two weeks old. So he moved on with his quest. As he was walking along, he noticed small humanoid footprints that seemed to lead away from the scene. Out of curiosity as to why one small human was able to escape from hell hounds semingly unnoticed, he decided to follow the tracks. After about three hours of following footprints he was about to concede defeat to his small invisible friend, and return to his quest for a certian type of ore to forge a weapon, when he noticed a cave about fifty yards ahead. As he approached, he noticed that someone or something appeared to be living there. With his hand on the hilt of his sword he cautiously continued his approach. When he finally got close enough to see inside the cave, he noticed it wasn't very deep. Then he saw a young boy sleeping next to smoldering embers. the boy was small and malnourished, he looked to be about five or six years old. "He's about the same age as my daughter". As he was thinking this to himself, the boy jumped up almsot immediately and brandished a dagger. "His form is crude but he seems to have a grasp of how to use it to some degree. I wonder who he is". As the boy was about to attack the man said. "Wait! I'm not here to harm you. My name is Viktor. May I ask yours?" The boy stared in silence after Viktor spoke. As Viktor began to wonder if the boy could speak his language or not, the boy said "I have no name". After he spoke he started to sway back and forth a bit before loosing consciousness. Viktor decided to scrap his quest and return to the city with the boy he found.

The city of Altrea was surrounded by a wall fifty meters high with gates on the east, west, and south side. The southern gate was the closest to the forest area that Viktor was exploring. It was about a four hour walk from the gate to where he found the dismembered bodies. So it took him almost seven to get back. By the time he had returned the sun was setting. As he approached the southern gate the group of guards were about to shut the gate for the night when they noticed Viktor was on his way through. As Viktor went thruogh the gate he showed his merchant pass and was granted entry into the city. Normally passing through the gate required an entry fee of five copper. However merchants provided revenue through their businesses in the form of sales tax, so merchants were granted a pass that allowed them to pass freely. One of the gaurds noticed the boy and said "hey Vik, seems like you brougbt back something interesting". Viktor replied in a jokinly manner with "ya I wonder how I am going to explain a bastard son to Evee. Hahaha". The guard then said" you!? with a bastard!? Hahaha ya right I'll believe that when I see it with my one eyes!" The guard, Merrick, was actually one of Viktors friends from his time as a ranger. He knew that Viktor was incredibly loyal to his wife. He wouldn't ever dare look any any woman other than his wife. As Viktor walked through the laborer district, truly wondered how to explain this to his wife and daughter.

As he approached the southern gate to the merchant district, he flashed his pass to the guards that let him through. His house was part of his shop. It wasnt anything spectacular like the shops closer to the noble district, but it was enough for him and his family. The sign above the front door said Viks smith, the sign on the door said closed but he knocked anyway. As always his beautiful daughter answered with a high pitched voice she shouted "welcome home daddy!!!"