21

- Blood.

It was a long and winding path that led from the forest to the great stone fortress at the center of the kingdom. It was not an easy path or short, but it did not involve mountains, valleys or lakes, and the trees and underbrush were always in abundance. The air smelled clean and crisp with just a touch of pine. The forest had been cleared away and many new paths created, which made the way easier, but the trees still had their place, like they always had.

The sun shone brightly down upon them, making this path seem even longer than it was. In fact, if one looked hard enough, you could see the faint footprints of the previous person who walked through here. Many would never have thought there were such marks as the ones on those steps. They weren't even obvious. Only someone looking closely would notice the slight indentation of each step, for instance, and then, of course, there was the faint imprint on the ground where the other person fell. Those faint prints would never be seen by someone looking at them from above, because they weren't visible at all.

But then again, neither is the trail of blood on these footsteps. That was the reason people didn't look carefully at them. If anyone tried, they might get dizzy from the overwhelming scent of blood, so everyone kept to a safe distance. This was a well known saying around the castle - no one wanted to end up dead at the hand of a vampire, after all. But that was a story for another time, and this was a story that most people knew very well. The story of how the clan of trolls became the clan of vampires.

As it turned out, the story wasn't all that far off from the truth. When trolls first came into existence, they used the blood and flesh of humans to survive, and then they found that human meat tasted good too. So the trolls ate humans for a while, until it grew boring, so they started drinking blood, then they decided to drink humans when they got hungry, and finally, as a result of this process, the troll species evolved to the point that now we know them as vampires.

This story isn't important to the story at hand, though. What matters is the true cause of why Krarr and his people were walking this path today. As usual, this trail was full of bloodstains and evidence of violence, even though it had been cleaned up before. Today, however, it seemed to be empty save for one person. It was only him. Well… maybe it wouldn't really be him anymore. But, at least, he could walk with more peace of mind knowing that this particular person had left the path of death behind. And that meant his soul had gotten to live on in peace. He may have died at the hands of a demon, but at least he had been given a proper funeral. That much he supposed was acceptable for a warrior like himself.

If only he had taken it in stride, he wouldn't be walking on this pathway right now, he mused, but what could he do about it? After all, he didn't choose to come here. He never asked the demons to make it happen. Maybe his own father had cursed him, as he had once cursed his father, and now his family line would forever be tainted with blood. No matter the reason, though, he had no regrets. He could tell that his life hadn't been wasted.

( Krarr's story)

He couldn't understand it. Not one single part of it. It had happened just like this, over and over again, but nothing ever changed. No one listened to him, no one cared about him. Why should it? He was just some random guy. And he wasn't even that special. Sure, his skills had become quite impressive over time, but nobody paid any attention to that. Even the other knights treated him the same way they always treated the other recruits. He had tried everything he could think of to get somebody to listen, and yet none had.

Maybe that was all he deserved. After all, what else had he done during his entire career except for serve as some sort of glorified guard dog for those stuck at home and in debt? Nothing. He should have retired ages ago, since the war had ended and he was free of debt. He knew his name would have gone down in history, but that was all he really cared about.

Still, he wondered how much longer he would stay here. He hadn't spoken with anybody but a few nobles about the current state of affairs since the war ended. Nobody wanted to hear anything about that, though. So he waited, watching the road ahead. Just in case, he thought. Just in case something happened and somebody had to be rescued. Just in case. He hoped nothing would. He really did. All he wanted was to retire soon, and not have to put up with this endless waiting. But he also knew he couldn't afford to retire. He needed to keep the job going until he could find a better job. There was too much riding on his success and reputation now for someone like him to give up and go back home. He needed the money he earned in order to pay for food, housing, and supplies that he bought for his own living expenses.

He wished he could just quit, but it wasn't possible. It would make his wife, Mirelda, furious, though. She loved her job, loved having her children around, loved running the nursery. He didn't want to upset her. Besides, she had invested in a business that would help support both of their families without raising eyebrows. So he would try to do it his best and see what came of it.

As he watched the path pass, he heard something rustling behind him. He didn't turn around quickly, instead taking his eyes off it for a moment before turning his head slightly. His heart jumped into his throat and he almost screamed out loud. Standing at least three feet tall was a gigantic, muscular man wearing a dark green cloak over his shoulders. He had pale skin and golden hair. He held a black broadsword and held it loosely in his fist, resting on the hilt. A red jewel gleamed in the middle of the hilt. His lips curled into a sneer as his eyes glared straight into Krarr's soul.

In that moment, Krarr's life flashed before his eyes as he felt a shiver run down his spine and the hairs on his arm rise. For a moment, Krarr felt completely overwhelmed. All he could do was stare at the giant stranger and try to steady his breathing. He knew he should have done something or said something, but he was too scared to move. He knew there was something wrong with this man. His presence was terrifying enough already, but he was still too frightened to move. The giant monster stared at him silently, like he expected Krarr to say something. Krarr stayed silent and stood still, staring back at the man, trying to avoid the gaze of those piercing gold eyes, but it was becoming harder and harder to breathe, as if the air itself was suffocating him, forcing its way through his windpipe.

After a minute of silence, the giant monster spoke. "You are not of this world," He declared simply

monster says: my name is Ladriz the leader of the faction calling CWO is you look like the type of person we are looking for for our faction

Krarr: I don't want to die I want to go home

Ladriz : We will kill you if you fight against us We will cut your flesh apart and feed it to pigs if we must Your blood will stain our swords And it will be all your fault You belong to us, so we must take care of you We must make sure you are safe We must teach you Our ways, Our way is survival. You should learn our ways and live with us We shall teach you our ways We shall make you our slave Your blood belongs to us so We need to feed Your body Our food needs to be filled We need to protect you so that You can remain strong. But we cannot let you go back to where we came From You cannot leave We will find you soon If you stay with us Our ways will change The ways of the clan will change.

And so, in the following weeks, Ladriz and his men traveled throughout the forest with Krarr, teaching him all the things that were necessary, such as the use of bowstrings, sword fighting, archery, and so forth. Krarr was learning fast and soon the days passed quickly. They rode horses and carts for hours everyday, sleeping at night in tents or under thick furs and blankets. Krarr's horse was named Kjallin and he loved the beast dearly. Every morning he would wake up to the sound of his beautiful friend whinnying in joy, and after that he would spend some time grooming him. Krarr always took his time doing so because he was tired and had to stop occasionally for a break. At these moments, Ladriz and his men made fun of him and teased him. They teased him that Kjallin was a girl named after the flower 'Ki', and that it probably wasn't fair that the horse was a boy. Of course Krarr denied the claim, but it hurt nonetheless.

One day, as they were passing by a small town, Krarr noticed a woman standing outside of a house, talking animatedly to a young boy.

"So you haven't seen them in a week? How is that possible? I thought it was impossible for me to forget someone as beautiful as she was. I mean, she looked so beautiful that my mind just wouldn't shut up about her the whole trip home!"

The two adults laughed. Krarr couldn't believe it. He was seeing Mirelda. It was his wife. But she looked… different somehow. Her cheeks weren't the soft curves and perfect skin he remembered so vividly. She had gained muscle, and her waist was much broader than it was before. He noticed that when she talked with her son, he always called her Mommy. Krarr wondered if she had a boyfriend at all. He knew that sometimes women liked boys, but he didn't know if he should feel jealous or flattered or angry. Either way, he was curious to see the child that he had left with his mother. He felt strangely anxious, almost apprehensive to watch them together, but he decided that it was for the best. As he got closer, though, his fears faded away.

It was true, she had gained muscle. However, she wasn't fat anymore. In fact, Krarr had never seen a more curvaceous woman than Mirelda now. He didn't dare to admit that aloud, however. She didn't seem to notice him approaching, which gave him a chance to observe her more closely. She appeared younger now, maybe only just twenty-one or so, maybe less. Krarr had lost track of her age, of course. Time seemed so fleeting in her presence. Still, she looked so happy. He realized that she truly loved her son and didn't miss him at all.

They hugged goodbye after a short while. When the woman turned toward Krarr, he froze in place, unable to tear his eyes from her face.