TRAINING BEGINS

I snorted. "Guide me? You're the one who left me in the middle of a war zone! I don't need a guide like you."

The man's smile faded for a moment, before he regained his composure. "You do Richard. You see, I'm not just any ordinary stranger. I'm... well, that's a secret for now. But trust me, you need my help."

I raised an eyebrow, my voice dripping with disbelief. "Trust you? You're kidding, right? That's like asking me to trust a goat with a carrot farm! After what you did, I'd have a better chance of being my grandfather in two life times than having myself trust you!"

The stranger sighed. "Fine, don't trust me. But at least listen to what I have to say. You are in great danger, Richard. You have alot of enemies which you aren't aware of."

Richard's eyes widened. "What are you talking about? What enemies?"

The man's expression turned serious. "I'm sure you've heard of the dragon's tooth,well it's no myth Richard. There's alot of unimaginable forces after its power, willing to kill you if you posses it. I'm only here to guide you to it and make you become it's only bearer Richard ."

My mind raced. "Why does it have to be me?"

He looked at me seriously. "They are currently after the journal. And they'll stop at nothing to get it."

I tightened my grip on the journal. "I won't let them have it."

The man nodded in approval. "I knew you had spirit. Now, let's get moving. We have a long journey ahead of us."

"who are you really"?

I asked, being tired of calling him stranger

"If I should trust you atleast let me know your name".

"I am Nicholas, Nicholas Worral" he stopped to answer before moving hurriedly towards our destination.

I hesitated at first, I was still unsure if i should trust the strange man But something about his words sank deep within me.

I nodded in agreement, and followed him deep into the woods since I had no where else to go as my home and town had been attacked.

As we walked, he talked more about the Shadow Order. They were a secret society that had been formed by the past kings and rulers of the four nations ELYNDOR,SAVOYEN, WELLINGTON and NORRICH the land where Richard and his family had lived.

After the creation of the dragon's tooth,they all set out with sole purpose of hunting down the powerful sword and eliminating any potential threats to their Search in order to destroy the powerful weapon so it wouldn't enter the wrong hands.

Unfortunately Norrich was a kingdom which had other plans and wanted to rule over all.After the king of Norrich had died,the current ruler, Queen Helen betrayed the shadow order because she wanted the power of the sword(dragon's tooth) for herself.

And i, with my family's legacy and the journal, fit into their perfect description of threats.

My mind was flooded with a billion questions,

Nicholas seemed to know exactly what i was thinking. "Don't worry, Richard I'll answer all your questions in time. But for now, let's focus on survival."

We journeyed deeper into the woods, as we did, I began to notice strange markings on some of the trees. They seemed to be some sort of code, and I kept wondering what they meant.

The man noticed my curiosity and smiled.

"Those markings are a part of ancient Magical spells I knew,i used to learn magic as a boy",with that being said he turned with a smile and echoed "we're here".

My eyes widened in suprise. "Where are you taking me?"

"You'll see, Richard You'll see." He replied

As we walked, the markings on the trees became more frequent and I began to get curious and anxious.

Suddenly, the man stopped in his tracks, his eyes were fixed on something ahead. I followed his gaze, and my heart skipped a beat.

There was a massive stone door adorned with carvings and symbols in front of us.

"We're here, Richard. Welcome to my own kingdom." He said

My mind raced. "What's inside?"

"That's for me to know, and you to find out."

As we entered the temple, I couldn't help but feel anxious. Nicholas The man, who I was still getting used to calling my "guide," led me through a series of chambers with strange artifacts and mysterious symbols inscripted on the walls.

Finally, we arrived at a large stone door, there was a carving of a dragon on the door. My guide pushed the door open and we entered into a room filled with all sorts of strange and exotic weapons.

"Welcome to your destiny, Richard," which was actually just a training ground, he said to me with a grin. "Here, you will learn the ways of a true warrior and unlock your inner mind which will give you access to the secrets of the journal."

I looked around the room, never in my life had I seen such an amazing collection of weapons "This is amazing," I said. "But, um, where's the instruction manual? I don't exactly know how to use any of this stuff."

Nicholas chuckled. "Ah, Richard, you amuse me. There is no instruction manual for being a warrior. You must learn by doing."

That being said, he tossed me a sword and pushed me into the center of the room.

"Okay, okay," I said, holding up my hands in defense. "But can we at least start with something simple? Like, I don't know, a nice game of 'Checkers ' or something?,you said something about my mind right so... You know?"

The man laughed again . "No, Richard. We will start with something much more challenging. Like.. this!"

And with that, he threw a knife at me.

I yelped and dodged to the side, barely avoiding the blade with my hands wrapped around my whole body. "Hey, what the...?!"

The man grinned. "Good reflexes, Richard. But you must learn to anticipate your opponent's moves. Like this!"

And with that, he threw another knife at me.

I tried to dodge again, but this time I wasn't so lucky. The knife grazed my arm, leaving a small cut.

"Ow!" I yelped, holding my arm tightly. "What the heck, man?!"

"Don't worry, Richard. It's just a flesh wound. You'll be fine."he said nonchalantly

I glared at him, but he just winked at me. "Trust me, Richard. I know what I'm doing."

he continued to throw knives at me, each one coming closer and closer to hitting its mark.

I stumbled around the room, trying to dodge, but he was relentless.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he stopped throwing knives and approached me.

"Not bad, Richard," he said, grinning. "You have potential. But you must learn to focus your mind and trust your instincts."

I glared at him, still rubbing my sore arm. "Yeah, yeah. I get it. But can we please just take a break now? I'm starving."

The man laughed. "Ah, Richard. You amuse me. Very well, let us take a break. But don't think you're off the hook that easily. We have much more training to do."

And with that, he led me to a tall tree with mysterious looking fruits "isn't that poisonous?"

"You said you were hungry didn't you? Well if you really are you better get climbing"

I instantly started missing home,but I knew this was just the beginning of what layed ahead of me.

I dug in immediately the fruits weren't that bad though even though they had a sour taste, knowing that that was all we had i decided to go with it, finally my hunger for food would be satisfied.

As we ate, he told me more about the way of being a true fighter and the secrets of the journal.

I listened quietly, as I should

It didn't take much time before we finished, our so called "meal"and he led me back to the training grounds.

"Okay, Richard," he said, grinning. "Let's see if you've learnt anything. Defend yourself!"

And with that, he charged at me, sword drawn.