A Tale of Adventure - P1

27th March 1257

A poor man seeking his fortune in Calradia. That's what they told me I am. They also flamed me, telling me I will fail in everything I tried. But I wanted to prove them wrong. 

I was born 27 years ago in a land far away from here. My father was a hunter. We lived in a small, wooden cottage in the woods, hunting game for a living. Sometimes we went to bed with our stomaches empty, but we managed, albeit barely. The local Lord was a cruel man, he always seeked to empty our pockets and steal our bread. But my father managed to keep him away from us. I still don't know how he did it, but I am glad he succeeded. Winters were harsh, there was little game in the forest. But this trained me for the world, I was swift and quick, I managed myself across any terrain and weather, and there was no other boy more skilled with a bow and arrow than me. I survived every winter, but my brothers were not so fortunate. My mother left us when I turned 12, my father never telling me why. A little later, the town guards came to my house and asked for my father. I was scared, but I told them where to find him. They got to him, they spoke for a bit, and then my father took out his bow. But before he could arm an arrow, a sword pierced his chest. Tears came out of my eyes as I witnessed my father die before me. As he fell to the ground, I heard him whisper the words "I'm sorry, my son. You always do what is right.". His lifeless body was left there to rot. The guards soon came to get me too, but I was long gone. I took my horse and rode on a vast stepe. I spent my next few years as a stepe bandit, riding along with my horse all over that land. I survived by eating berries and sometimes hunting some game, but nothing big, mostly squirrels and baby boars. I never left the side of my trusty horse and my bow and arrow. They were my allies, my friends, my guides and guardians. 6 years later, I had the good fortune to hear of a archery tournament that was being held in a town nearby. Knewing this was my chance to gain some renown throughout the land, I saddled my horse and I rode as fast as I could to the tournament. Once I got there, I had to spend my last 100 dinars to enter the competition, but I knew it would be worthed. Once they allowed me into the inner courtyard, I was stunned by all the noblemen and noblewomen I saw there. It was a true feast going on, I had never seen in my life so much food in the same place. It was truly tempting to feast myself on a steak and to drink some wine, but I conviced myself that I should attend to the contest first, and after that I would have enough time to enjoy everything else. The sound of some trumpets allerted me to the start of the competition, and as I joined the other participants I couldn't but notice that they were all old warriors, experienced nobles or even bandits. They all had a name for themselves and some renown. I felt a chill when I thought about what would be like if I managed to win against so many well-known adversaries. And it began - the contest was simple, you had 10 arrows to hit 10 targets at a distance of 100 yards. Some of the others looked shocked when they heard the rules, some were confident. But I, I was already used to not wasting arrows while shooting for squirrels 100 yards away, among thousands of branches, leaves and vines. This was truly a kid's play for me. I hit 10 targets out of 10, while the second best managed to hit 7. I have been rewarded by the Lord himself for my performance, I was invited to join the feast. While at the feast, the Lord offered me to be the game poacher of the town. I immediately accepted, knowing that I had to do what I did best - hunt game for people who wanted - and I would get paid for it, while also working for a Lord. 

Everything was fine with my new position, but then I heard of Calradia - A distand land where people went to start a new life, to try their luck. I lust for glory and power then surged through my veines, and I knew I had to go there. I took my bow and arrow, my horse, my now 26 years and I took a boat to Calradia. I had left my past self behind, ready to start my new life in a land full of possibilities. Once I got to Calradia, I was stunned. The beauty of this immense land was outstanding. The port in which I arrived was at least 10 times bigger than any town I had ever seen. People were roaming the streets, selling their merchandise, talking or going to the tavern to have a drink. Outside the gates, there was a trading caravan ready to leave to Jelkala, a town on the other side of Calradia. I asked the caravan master about that, and he told me that Jelkala was the capital of the Kingdom of Rhodoks. He offered to take me there for free, as long as I swore to protect the caravan if the situation demanded it. I knew I was skilled with a bow and arrow, and so I accepted his proposition. We travelled for a long time, 4 days and 3 nights before we got to Jelkala. But in this time, I learned a lot about calradia and it's customs, kingdoms and people. There is the Kingdom or Rhodoks, were I was headed, the Kingdom of Vaegirs, the Kingdom of Nords, the Kingdom of Swadia, The Kerghit Khanate and the Sarranid Sultanate. The caravan master told me that if I seeked honor and upholding the rights of the commons, my place was in the Kingdom of Vaegirs, and definitely not in Swadia or Kerghit Khanate. But if I seeked wars and plunderers, my place would be in the Kingdom of Nords. He also advised me to stay away from the bandits roaming the place, especially those near the sea. Because of the rich ports, the sea raiders parties are sometimes overwhelming even lord's armies, because of their strong armors and huge numbers. But I was nowhere near the shore, and that was good news. Now here I am, in Jelkala, in the town's tavern. The inkeeper was kind enough not to charge me for renting a room for tonight, as I don't have any dinars with me. He seemed happy to see another young adventurer, he said I reminded him of me when he first came here. Anyway, I am terribly glad to have a warm bed and a belly full of mead in my first day here. After I spoke with the innkeeper, I decided to take a walk around the city streets. It was so early in the morning there was nobody there, it was just me. I was truly fascinated by the imposing walls and buildings of the town of Jelkala, but the castle inside was truly outstanding. I hope that one day I will be able to rule a town like this on my own. Then I stopped and layed down on the soft, silky grass, the sun beating down upon my face. As I snoozed away, thankful for my fortune, a familliar sound woke me up - the rasp of a blade sliding out of it's scabbard. 

I got up, armed my bow and listened for footsteps. Soon I heard one man running from behind me. As I turned around with my arrow armed and ready to fire, I saw that barbarian and I was shocked. It was a giant of a man, truly. Cold chills almost went down my spine when I thought what could happen if he got to me. Before he could even get close, I struck him with my arrow right between his eyes. He fell to the ground and never got back up. I was glad it was over, that first fight since my arrival in Jelkala, even Calradia. While I was looting his body, I found a purse with 100 denars in it. Maybe it was his money, but I was suspecting it was the money given to him by somebody so that he would arrange a suitable end to my life. Anyways, now I had enough to pay for my room and enjoy a warm meal. Suddenly, I heard footsteps again. I armed my bow and turned around, arrow readied, only to see an old man, a merchant of some kind, approach me with his hands raised. He told me he was a merchant there and he needed my help. He said he would tell me who the attacker was and what he wanted, but only after I went with him, as there were many people eavesdropping out in the streets. I followed him to what seemed to be his house. A tiny, dirty cottage somewhere near the edge of the town, lacking even the slightest luxury. He told me he had a job, and there were good money in it. I agreed to listen to his proposition, and he told me his brother was kidnapped by bandits, and he wanted me to rescue him from their hide-out. I accepted, not only for the reward but also for the chance to do some good here, maybe to obtain some renown throughout the land. The merchant instructed me to recruit some volunteers from a nearby village called Ruldi. He told me there are always a few lads looking for a man to lead them into battle, the need for adventure rushing trough them. He mentioned I had to pay them a wage weekly, but that would be no problem right now, as I had enough money to last me more that a week. 

The walls of Jelkala behind me, I began travelling to Ruldi first, to recruit some men as instructed. I couldn't but be stunned by the sights around me - on the left a vast plain with incredibly smooth grass, on the right a mountain with snowy peaks. I got so absorbed into the vastness of the landscape around me that I didn't notice that I had already reached Ruldi. It was a small, poor village. About 20 souls were working hard to prepare the harvest, some were enjoying a walk. The kids in the village were all inside their homes, it seemed. Maybe because of the looters that used to pay visits to those kind of villages. Outside the biggest building in the village, there stood the village elder. I approached him, saluted and then I proceeded in asking him about any potential recruits that were stationed in that village. He told me there were 5 of them waiting to be hired, and I told him to bring them right away. They were young lads, maybe to young to know much about the world around them. A mix of fear and eagerness was defining them, both on the inside and on the outside. But they looked pretty strong for their age, muscular enough to hold a great battle axe and fight with it properly. I am no extraordinary general, but those lads were more than necesarry for attacking a bandit hideout. I paid each of them the wage for the next week and then we all proceeded in travelling back to Jelkala. The recruits were a quiet lot, I had nothing to talk about on our way back. It was already late evening when I arrived, I stationed my troops at the local tavern and then went to the merchant's home. He told me that in order to find his brother and his kidnapper's lair, I would have to speak to a bandit, and the easiest way to do that was to capture one after a battle. I nodded and thanked him for the opportunity and then I went back to my room in the tavern. Now it is already late night and I am tired. I have had a truly long day, and tomorrow will be at least the same. I hope I will have a good night's sleep, because those nightmares really managed to wear me out.