《A Hero's Tale》 The Beginning Part 1 This is a story about a mostly average dark elf from the town of Rivendale. This dark elf is known as Lindras, she¡¯s average in every sense of the word. The only things that separate her from almost every dark elf are her deep fiery red eyes that almost seem to glow with reptilian like pupils, pale ashen skin, and two red marks tracing from the bottom of her eyes, down back to her cheek bones to under her chin near her throat and finally connecting in the middle of the base of her throat. She¡¯s also got abnormally black hair that she keeps straight and long with two braids that come to form one braid at the back of her head. Lindras lived in a town on the outskirts of the continent known as Terralind. Lindras lived with her parents until she was nine. It was at this time that she got an apprenticeship working for a blacksmith so she could help her family with their money problems, and so she could help not only her family''s farm equipment but also repair any other farmers equipment, for the right price of course, and so she could make items, whether it be accessories like bracelets or necklaces or armaments like swords, bows and armor, to sell at the market. She didn¡¯t do this until her mid to late teens of course as per her masters request. When she was ten a dragon attacked her village killing her parents, it wasn¡¯t until she got back from her master¡¯s mine after a week of gathering metal did she find out. She didn¡¯t find out immediately however, what happened was that she got treated slightly more cared for than usual. The thing is she saw that Rivendale was burnt down, but she overlooked it seeing as she thought is was just a large fire started by a smithing accident, like most kids, because most kids Lindras¡¯s age at the usually were out playing in the forest about a mile away from the town. She started to suspect that something was off when at the end of fer day as she was putting the tools away her master told her that she was going to be staying with him from now on, she thought it was odd but thought it was so that she wouldn¡¯t have to walk a mile every night to get home.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. It wasn¡¯t until the next day that she found out what happened. She was going to the market when she saw to people in the alley that she normally took to get to the market, these two bodies were in fact her parents. This destroyed Lindras instilling a deep hatred for whoever, or whatever, it was that killed her parents, but at the moment she was in the alley grieving the death of her perentsfor hours until her master found her after looking for her. It was when she was brought back to her master¡¯s home that she finally got the whole story. After this she used the money that she accumulated to buy books on archery and magicka as well as a bow and arrows for training, so as to obtain the ability to track and kill this dragon. After hearing that the dragon looked like that it was as black as the night and with scales as rough as gravel, a boney row of spikes running down its back from its neck to its tale, and thick leathery skin for wings. People also said it also looked like its horns formed what looked like a crown on its head and that its eyes were a fiery orange with the look of a hardened warrior, had attacked the town and presumably killed her parents, Lindras became dead set on killing this dragon. She worked hard for ten more years on both her combat skills and her job, she was finally able to set of on her journey to kill the dragon that killed her parents, that she has named Puramalum. This however started off not as smoothly as she would¡¯ve liked. Lindras was caught and imprisoned via the accusation of treason because she had books in her possession that were outlawed at the time but mainly because she was caught with maps, charts, graphs and plans that were misconstrued as a murder plot to kill the emperor of Terralind, for this she was sentenced to death. But that isn''t were the story ends, but were it begins. Chapter 2:The Beginning Part 2 This brings us to Lindras¡¯s current situation. Lindras is currently in a carriage with three other people, one of which is the jarl of Frostmist Keep and leader of the Grey Banes. This wagon was the wagon that was taking her to the city for her execution. It was at this point that Lindras was contemplating her situation, wondering if she could¡¯ve done things differently so as to not end up in her current predicament. She was sad, but mainly she was full of regret seeing as she didn¡¯t get to avenge her parents. As they neared the town of Green Rock one of the prisoners spoke up, ¡°I see that you¡¯ve woken up.¡± ¡°...I guess¡± Lindras replied in a sorrowful tone. ¡°I hope you enjoyed the rest, because it¡¯s probably the last time you¡¯ll get to enjoy it.¡± ¡°... I know,¡± Lindras replied. ¡°What¡¯s your name? Mine¡¯s Falgor.¡± ¡°Lindras. May I ask why you want to know?¡± ¡°It''s a tradition of my village to have good thoughts before death.¡± ¡°I guess makes sense.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t mind me asking how did you end up getting caught by the empire?¡± ¡°I was accused of treason, under the assumption of plotting to kill the emperor. What I was actually trying to do was to track down a dragon.¡± ¡°A dragon?¡± ¡°Yes, when I was little a dragon as black as the night sky with fiery eyes attacked my town killing my parents, and from that day on I swore that I would hunt and kill the dragon.¡± As Lindras was explaining this Falgor went into thought. Falgor was an exceptionally knowledgeable man, especially when it came to the time of dragons, and this specific dragon that Lindras was describing to him was none other than the ancient dragon known as Puramalum, who was described as being evil incarnate, and it was said to be the first born of Julianos, the first god. Seeing as Falgor knew this he then turned to Lindras and said ¡°Lindras this dragon that you told me about, it is my assumption that it was the ancient dragon lord known as Puramalum. However, this can¡¯t be the case because it is said that the heroes of old had slain him in the dragon wars. However it was said that as Puramalum was dying that he said, ¡® When the final Grineer is born in a time of peace, when history is forgotten, I will arise a new to exact my revenge.¡¯ The thing is that it was just a rumor, but if what you are saying is true then trying times are ahead.¡± ¡°I have a few questions. First off what is or was a Grineer, and second what were the dragon wars?¡± Although Lindras spent a good portion of her free time either reading or training, she hadn¡¯t ever come across anything even remotely close to a war that was fought against dragons. Falgor replied saying, ¡°Good questions, and to answer those a bit of history in order.¡± ¡°Two thousand years ago there was a cataclysmic war called the War of Dragons, it was a war that united all the races together, the only event in recorded history to ever accomplish a feat of such scale. The races convened together to come up with a plan to wipe out the dragons, the problem was that if a dragon was killed it was only a matter of time until it reincarnated, so to combat this the races developed special weapons and armor to not only kill but transport the dragon to a special prison called Dragontooth Prison. This strategy of killing and and moving the remains to a cell, that was made to contain dragons so that they would reincarnate in prison, worked for about five hundred years until the dragon lord Puramalum got tired of seeing his own kind being captured and tortured. So he planned a siege on Dragontooth to release his captured brethren. However the unified races were only capturing the weakest of dragons, but even the weakest dragons were still very powerful when considering that they have killed millions. The reason that the stronger dragons wanted to free their brethren was because dragons were extremely ¡®close-knit¡¯ so to say. Each one felt as though they should protect each other, even the weakest felt like they should protect the stronger even though they didn¡¯t need it. It was because of this that he attacked not only Dragontooth prison but the unified races. Puramalum¡¯s attack not only released the dragons at Dragontooth, but also disordered the races¡¯ peace and sense of security. It was from this point on for five hundred years that everyone became nomads, and scavengers, that is until special group people were born that had the ability to truly kill a dragon by absorbing its soul and therefore it¡¯s knowledge and experience and gained the ability to use the dragons¡¯ words of power against them.¡± Lindras sat in contemplation before saying, ¡°Okay, but how were these Grineer discovered and where did these people get the name, and what did they look like?¡± ¡°The Grineer got their name from the ancient tongue, it meant dragons bane. They looked like normal people with abnormal traits for their respective race, it was mainly hair colour that¡¯s different, and it could¡¯ve been anyone that had the power of the Grineer.¡± ¡° Oh, okay,¡± Lindras said. It was as Falgor was finishing his explanation the guard leading the carriage announced that the convoy was nearing Green Rock. ¡°You know when I was little Legion walls used to make me feel safe, but now I don¡¯t and it¡¯s not because I¡¯m about to be executed, but because I believe in the ideals of the Grey Banes.¡± Falgor commented. ¡°What is a Grey Bane? The most I know about them is what I¡¯ve heard from the guards from my time in prison, which boiled down to the guys¡¯ leader killing the emperor, ultimately making it a faction of terrorists and rebels,¡± Lindras questioned. ¡°Yes, our leader Ivar Bjorn Jarl of Frostmist Keep, and also the person to your right, did kill the former emperor, but it was because he was a corrupt and evil man, and Jarl Bjorn wanted make changes to the empire to make it better for everyone. But the Legion saw the emperor''s assassination as a rebellious take over so they sent a garrison to attack a known Grey Bane fortification where I was captured.¡± Falor said in a regretful tone. ¡°But at least my men fought valiantly until then end,¡± Jarl Bjorn commented proudly while also surprising Falgor and Lindras, ¡°I received a letter describing the situation at the fort, and in said letter I was told there were at least three or four hundred Legion soldiers attacking the fort so I gathered roughly five hundred men to retake the fort, but when I arrived at the fort there were at least nine hundred enemy soldiers, however my men fought until there were only two hundred of us left. I didn¡¯t want to lose more than we already had so I told my men to surrender. They didn¡¯t want to, they wanted to protect me so the Grey Banes won¡¯t fall but I told them that it isn¡¯t solely the leader of a group[ that makes it successful, but the idea of the faction and so long as the idea doesn''t fall then neither will the Grey Banes,¡± the jarl said with great pride as he puffed out his chest to add emphasis to his words. As he finished explaining how he ended up on his way to his death, the gaurd shouted that the convoy arrived, as the town gates opened revealing a barren town with a few of the towns people who were wanting to see the executions. As the convoy entered the town the carriages were brought into the courtyard of the keep, were the executions were to take place. As the carriages stopped Falgor said with a somber sigh,¡±This is the end my friend, Nakvar awaits us.¡± The carriages stopped, and the guards signaled for everyone to exit the carriages. As prisoners exited the carriage a somber feeling could be seen among the Grey Banes, and those who were caught in Legion ambushes. The Legion generals then directed everyone to the middle of the court yard. Legion executions were said to be crushing. What happen was that there¡¯d be two hundred or more Grey Banes that were sentenced to death, and what the legion does is to first say a prayer to the divines to look over the souls of the fallen and guide them into Nakvar, or were ever it is that each race went when they died. Next, they¡¯d start the executions, which went from the lowest rank to the highest, beheading a single soldier at a time to break the remaining prisoners. About an hour into the executions Lindras was called to the block, and as the executioner was raising his ax there was a blood curdling screech, then a giant shadow could be seen soaring through the air headed directly towards Green Rock, it wasn''t known yet but this was a dragon, but seeing as nothing was going wrong the execution continued, that was until the same screech could be heard followed by a huge gust of wind. As the dust settled everyone could see what had befallen the town, a massive dragon. None had time to process this because as it landed it shouted out in a foreign tongue a spell that decimated the immediate area, but luckily for Lindras it was the perfect time to make an escape and she took it along with Falgor who has helped her up and guided her to the closest building. In this building falgor had cut the bindings off of Lindras and said, ¡°What¡­ was¡­ that? It couldn''t have been a dragon they were all killed thousands of years ago.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter now we need to get out of here as quickly as possible, and thank you for helping me.¡± Lindras added. You¡¯re welcome and follow me I know my way around this town very well, it¡¯s where I grew up.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Lindras said with a hint of determination. So Lindras and Falgor made there way through the town sneaking through alleyways and houses trying their best to avoid detection. They made it about half way out when the dragon suddenly landed on the wall of a dilapidated house on the other side of the wall and used its magic to blast the wall to bits, but luckily for Lindras and Falgor they managed to make it into a house without injury but not without avoiding detection, and Lindras knew this and she turned to Falgor and said, ¡° We need to start running now the dragon saw us!¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°Oh crap¡­ we need to get to the keep its fortified enough to withhold at least two of those attacks the dragon is using and there is an escape tunnel that we can use to get too Grasstown.¡± Falgor said in a hurry. As he finished saying this the dragon fired another spell at the house destroying it just as they made it out of the house, and feeling the immense power of the spell Lindras sped up her pace feeling the dragon reading for another attack. They managed to narrowly avoid a few more attacks before reaching the door to the keep, but as they got inside the keep the dragon unleashed another attack launching Falgor and Lindras into the next room after destroying the entrance to the keep. ¡°Falgor, are you alright?¡± ¡°Yes I¡¯m fine, for the most part. How about yourself?¡± ¡°I should be able to manage I know a bit of healing magic so I should be able to heal medium sized wounds before the dragon comes back.¡± ¡°That sounds like a plan. I think we¡¯re in one of the dining halls, most likely the one to the east so that means the armory is this way.¡±Falgor stated as he and Lindras started to make there way to the armory. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind me asking , do you have any training with weapons and or magic?¡± Falgor intoned. ¡°I have been trained in archery, close quarters combat, both armed and unarmed, and for magic I know advanced healing and I know a few bolt spells and manifestation spells. I mainly use manifestation for my weapons.¡± Explained Lindras. ¡°Interesting I¡¯ve never heard of anyone using manifestation magic for weapons, summoning atronachs is what it¡¯s mainly used for. Are you a combat magician?¡± ¡° You could say that, i use manifestation magic because its lighter and much quieter than using a normal bow, and I don¡¯t need to carry tons of arrows allowing for greater mobility.¡± ¡°Wait you can manifest a bow with arrows?¡± ¡°Yes that¡¯s what I said.¡± ¡°Do your arrows shatter on impact?¡± ¡°No, why?¡± ¡°This is unprecedented. At first I thought you were joking, but from the tone of your voice I can tell that your being serious.¡± ¡°Is there something important about what I can do?¡± ¡°Oh definitely. I¡¯m sure that you know that atronachs are strong but are extremely weak making them only good for dangerous jobs such as tunneling, so by manifesting a bow, which I assume has around the same draw weight as a war bow, and arrows that don¡¯t shatter on impact or launch form said bow is astounding and quite possibly a breakthrough un manifestation magic.¡± ¡°I knew about the atronachs being strong but very weak, and yes I already know that what I managed to create is quite possibly the most advanced formula of magic in the field of manifestation.¡± ¡°May I ask how you accomplished this?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to give you the direct information of how it works but i can tell you how i came up with the idea behind it.¡± ¡°That works.¡± Falgor replied instantly. ¡°Ok so a couple years ago i got tired of lugging a bow around and spending money on arrows every other job, so I decided to use what I had available and what i had was a few books on magic and summoning, so used those books, what I already knew about combat magic, and many many months of constant experimentation and practice to be able to come up with this.¡± Lindras explained as she manifested her bow. Flagor was in such awe that he didn¡¯t realize that he just about ran into the door to the armory, and he would¡¯ve if not for Lindras pointing out that they had arrived at the armory. After coming out of his stupor Falgor approached the door and when he tried to open he turned to Lindras and said,¡± It¡¯s looked, I don¡¯t suppose you know of any way of getting through the door.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll just pick the lock and if that fails I¡¯ll just burn the door down.¡± Lindras said in a contemplative tone. ¡°That¡¯ll work but how would you contain the fire?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll start the fire then i¡¯ll keep it contained with a bit of water manipulation.¡± Lindras explained. ¡°That sounds like a plan, I¡¯ll let you get to it then, although I will say that this is probably going to be tough to open.¡± Falgor said as Lindras went to work. It only took her about three minutes before a faint click could be heard as Lindras stood up and pushed the armory door open and said,¡±AAAAnd...Open.¡± ¡°You cease to amaze me with all the tricks you have up your sleeve.¡± Fallgor replied in a sarcastic way, as he entered the armory. As they entered the armory Lindras was shocked at the lackadaisical supply of weapons and armor. She knew that most of it was probably out in the town on the corpses of the soldiers who went to fight the dragon, but it was that almost all of the armory was gone. ¡°Wow¡­ this is somewhat disappointing.¡± Falgor announced ¡°Yes very, although there is atleast a set of leather armor and a few daggers to choose from.¡± Lindras added as she picked up a set of leather armor and walked over to the daggers to see which one she liked the best, she chose the most plain dagger out of the few that were there. With her armaments selected Lindras went into the next room over to change into her armor. After her and Flagor were done they made there way to the escape tunnels to finally escape the dragon¡¯s assault on the town. As they neared the tunnel entrance Falgor spoke up, ¡°We¡¯re in the home stretch, we¡¯ve just gotta make it out of the tunnels then we can make it to Grasstown which is about a mile to the east of here if this tunnel leads to where I think it should.¡± ¡°May I ask how you know your way around so well?¡± Lindras questioned. ¡°Did you notice that the jarl wasn¡¯t present at the execution ceremony?¡± ¡°Yes I noticed that, but I just assumed this was a Legion fortification, or he had a weak stomach.¡± ¡°No that¡¯s not entirely true, yes this is a Legion fortification, but the jarl wasn¡¯t there because he didn''t want to see his son executed.¡± Falgor replied. ¡°That explains how you were able to navigate through the keep so well, and i presume you¡¯ve spent time navigating the tunnels as well.¡± ¡°Yes I spent most of my childhood running through the tunnels and the keep, so I have a decent idea of how to get out of the tunnels, and even if I didn¡¯t my father was a cautious man so he made me memorize how to get out of the tunnels without knowing exactly where to go.¡± ¡°How¡¯s that?¡± Lindras asked. ¡°There are engravings at every intersection of tunnels that tell you were to go.¡± ¡°Interesting.¡± Lindras commented. An hour later they reached the exit and started the their trek to Grasstown but not before hearing the same screech for hours ago, and Lindras in a calm panic turned to Falgor and said, ¡°Hide now.¡± So they each found a hiding place each hiding in different ways, Falgor hid under the shrubbery, and Lindras hiding in the trees using camouflage magic to blend in and become almost invisible to the senses. A minute later the dragon flew over head giving Lindras a decent view of the dragon and what she saw was eerily black scales and blazing orange eyes. But by the time she realized what she saw Falgor called out to her, and she materialized behind him saying,¡±I¡¯m right here.¡± obviously scaring the life out of him, causing him out of reflex to turn and throw a punch but luckily Lindras was skilled enough to redirect the punch. ¡°Jeez, don¡¯t ever do that again, whatever it was that you did.¡± Falgor exclaimed. ¡°Sorry I was just using camouflage magics.¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°Camouflage magic as I¡¯ve called it uses invisibility formulae mixed with a few alteration runes creating a pretty decent way to sneak past most things although it''s not perfect it has gotten me out many close calls.¡± ¡°That¡¯s interesting because you said you use invisibility formulae, which to my knowledge only make the caster blend into the background and not being as effective if you move but i saw you disappear then saw tree branches move on their own without ever seeing a faint silhouette. You cease to amaze me.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think most of my magic was that groundbreaking.¡± ¡°So far everything you¡¯ve showed me is monumentally advanced, like ritual stones.¡± ¡°What are ritual stones?¡± lIndras asked. ¡°Ritual stones are said to be ancient structures that grant special gifts to people who do the respective ritual of the stone, they don¡¯t always grant gifts however.¡± ¡°Interesting, how many are there?¡± ¡°There are supposedly thousands of them, but only thirteen of them have been found.¡± ¡°Do you have to pay to use them?¡± ¡°No, there is an eridian guardian at each of them preventing anyone from making a profit off of the stones.¡± ¡°How do you know what¡¯s needed for the ritual?¡± ¡°You can ask the guardian about the ritual and how to perform it.¡± ¡°Sounds fun I may have to check out these stones.¡± Lindras commented. This sort of small talk went on for about an hour before Falgor said, ¡°When we reach Grasstown we need to go to my cousin¡¯s home to see if we can¡¯t get some food and a place to rest before we go our separate ways.¡± ¡°Is there any way i can contact you when we do leave Grasstown?¡± ¡°Yes, just go to the Grey Bane headquarters in Frostmist and ask to give a letter to Flagor, and then write what you want to say hand it back and return in about a day and there should be a letter waiting for you with my reply.¡± ¡°Thank you, it always helps to have friends in a new place.¡± ¡°That is very true.¡± Falgor added while they entered through the gates of Grasstown. Gastown is a small farming town in a valley next to a river. It isn¡¯t that special, the town has a smithery, an inn, a tavern, a lumber mill, fields, and a general store. The most interesting thing about the town is the ancient telvainean ruins across the river from Grasstown. Once they reached Falgor¡¯s cousin¡¯s house he walked up and knocked on the door, and a few seconds later the door swung open revealing a burly man who said, ¡°Falgor, what are you doing here?¡± ¡°Me and my friend are here for a place to rest before we head our separate ways, and to discuss something of the utmost importance with you.¡± ¡°Well in that case welcome, and lets discuss this over a nice meal shall we.¡± ¡°That would be extremely appreciated Malcolm.¡± As they entered Lindras saw that Malcolm¡¯s house was extremely well kept and finely decorated, which was in stark contrast to the man¡¯s grizzly appearance. Malcolm gestured to a table so Falgor and Lindras could have a bit of rest while he stated a fire so he could cook a bit of rabbit stew. As Malcolm was cooking he said, ¡°So Falgor what is it that you wanted to discuss?¡± ¡°Did you feel the earth shake about four to five hours ago?¡± ¡°Yes I did but i just assumed that it was a rock slide, like most people.¡± ¡°Well¡­ it was actually a dragon attack on the Legion town of Green Rock, and I know it sounds like I¡¯ve gone crazy, but I assure you it¡¯s the truth.¡± ¡°I do not doubt that your telling the truth but if what you are saying is true then we must tell the jarl of Olderion immediately.¡± Malcolm explained. ¡°Lindras can you do that I must inform the Grey Banes that there is a dragon roaming the land.¡± ¡°Yes I can do that, although I¡¯m not from this country so I¡¯ll need a map.¡± ¡°I have one you can use.¡± Malcolm stated as he stood up from what he was cooking to get some bowls. ¡°Thank you.¡± Lindras replied With the plan set everyone sat down and engaged in small talk for about an hour until dawn broke and Lindras set off on her life changing journey that will lead her into becoming the greatest hero all throughout history. The First Quest Prt 1 As Lindras was looking at her map Malcolm walked up and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t mention this at the time, because i forgot to mention it but, that map is a magical map. All you need to do is channel magic into it and it will create a telepathic link with you allowing you to know exactly what is the best path to take to get to where ever you need to go.¡± ¡°Wait but how do I tell it were I want to go?¡± Lindras questioned. ¡°Once the link is established you¡¯ll know exactly how to use the map. Lindras nodded as she started to channel the magic through the map. Once she started she felt a pull in her magic and her mind as the telepathic link was beginning to be established. This continued for a few more minutes during witch Falgor awakened and saw Lindras with a concentrated look about her wondering why she was staring so intently at a piece of paper, what he didn¡¯t realize was that she was channeling her magic through the map. As Lindras finished her channeling the map started to dissolve into a blue mist that was coalescing into a ball of deep violet. Lindras never having done this approached Malcolm and asked, ¡°Is this supposed to happen? I finished channeling and the map dissolved into magic then condensed into this marble sized chunklet of magic.¡± ¡°Yes it was supposed to do that, but what¡¯s odd is that it is purple and not blue like hey usually are, granted that could also be because you are a dark elf, but that¡¯s just a theory. In any case it should function as normal.¡± ¡°Okay, thanks for the map. I am going to start making my way to Oldrion. My map says that it¡¯s going to take about a day and a half to get there.¡± Lindras explained. ¡°Wait it tells you how long it¡¯s going to take as well?¡± Malcolm exclaimed with a hint of jealousy, ¡° Nevermind that there is a carry bag by the door with enough food to last about a week and some money in case you need it.¡± ¡°Thank you so much Malcolm. I promise to repay you for your hospitality.¡± ¡°No need too.¡± Malcolm announced. ¡°Once you finish telling the jarl about the dragon come and visit me at Frost Mist.¡± Falgor added. ¡°Can do, and thank you both. I hope to see you both again soon.¡± Lindras said as she grabbed her carry bag and headed off to Olderion. Lindras was in high spirits, she had an important quest to fulfill and she knew that if she failed there could be massive amounts of destruction, but it was the possibility that she could be recognized as a hero for warning the continent about a dragon, and preventing it from destroying everything. She knew that this goal was ambitious so she first making it there. Lindras made it about half way before it got to dark for her to see, so she decided to find a place to camp for the night. Lindras decided to sleep in a tree because she didn¡¯t want a large animal stumbling across her while she was asleep and then having to possibly fight it in the dark. So after cooking some food and clearing the area of any signs of a person being here she climbed a tree and went to sleep. As the rose so to did Lindras. She rolled out of her tree and landed gracefully on the ground and started on her way to Oldrion, this time with a bit of company. As she was falling a caravan was passing by and they were startled to see a dark elf falling from seemingly nowhere, and then they saw the marks on her head and thought that she was part of a cult or bandit raiding party, but when Lindras saw that she had startled the group she quickly spoe up saying, ¡°Sorry if I scared you. I was camping in the tree last night.¡± The leader of the caravan having dealt with bandits wasn¡¯t buying anything Lindras was saying and he responded saying. ¡°Listen here bandit¡­ we have supplies that you can take, but if you do take them please don¡¯t harm anyone.¡± ¡°What¡­ do I look like a bandit to you? I do get that my birth marks make it look like I''m a bandit but I assure you I am not a bandit, notice how I only have a dagger and not a sword like most bandits, and if I was a scout I wouldn¡¯t be here.¡± Lindras explained. The group leader still wasn¡¯t believing her words because he thought that she was just a distraction while the rest of her supposed group was getting ready to attack, and he said so, ¡°I still don¡¯t believe you. You could just be a distraction while the rest of your group surrounds us.¡± ¡°You got me there, but if there was people surrounding us I¡¯d know.¡± Lindras explained. ¡°And how¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Well for starters your carrying around a thousand or so gold on the back most carriage under the drivers side bench.¡± She said as she gestured to the last carriage, that was about one hundred feet away. ¡°What¡­ how did you-¡±This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡°Like I said I¡¯m no bandit and if I truly wanted to take your stuff you wouldn¡¯t know until it¡¯s to late.¡± Lindras interrupted. ¡°I guess you¡¯re not a bandit, but may I ask where are you headed?¡± The leader of the caravan asked. ¡°I¡¯m headed to Olderion to give the jarl some VERY important information.¡± Explained Lindras. ¡°We¡¯re headed past Oldrion if you¡¯d like a ride, but in exchange you¡¯d have to be a guard seeing as you have an extraordinary sensing skills.¡± ¡°I should be able to do that for you.¡± ¡°Good then let''s get going.¡± The leader announced with a sigh of relief. The caravan traveled for a couple more hours, during witch time Lindras got to know more about the caravan and what they were trading. The caravan was apparently sent from the Grey Bane Headquarters and was traveling to Autumn Bale, a city that was supposedly built by the Telvain on top of a mountain, as to why and what they were carrying Lindras was told that it was classified although she suspected it just being weapons to resupply an outpost seeing as there were only two carriages. Within a few hours however the caravan arrived at Olrion at which point Lindras said her goodbyes and made her way the city gates, were a guard approached her and said, ¡°The city is currently off limits to entry or exit as decreed by the jarl.¡± ¡°I have an extremely important message for the jarl, that he must here. It¡¯s about something that took place at Green Rock.¡± Lindras explained. The guard replied saying, ¡°And what happened at Green Rock that is extremely important.¡± ¡°Green Rock was attacked by a dragon and last I saw it was heading this way.¡¯ ¡°That would explain a lot,¡± the guard said, ¡°You may enter, but know this we will be keeping an eye on you until our situation is resolved.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Lindras said as she followed the guard through the gates and into the city. Oldrion is a walled city with three sections, the first section is the market and craftsman section. There is a single main road that goes from the gates to the main market area where most of the trading goes down. From this area there is another area, this is the residential area. Like the business district there is a single main road going from the market area gates to the castle¡¯s gate with other streets branching off from the main road. To the left of the main road are the houses, and to the right there is a temple and the Stormwind¡¯s Headquarters. The Stormwind is a prestigious guild of mercenaries that take on various jobs for the the right price. The final section is the keep, Iron Castle. It¡¯s more of a mansion than a castle in aesthetics only , it was built to be easily defendable with magic and not men, and it was also built during the dragon wars so it¡¯s the most advanced keep out of all the keeps that are being used on the continent. Once in the city Lindras saw that it was almost barren, besides a blacksmith near the front gate, and the market area, and the occasional guard. Lindras then walked up to the blacksmith and said, ¡°Excuse me ma¡¯am, can you give me directions to the keep?¡± ¡°Yes, just follow the main road to the market turn, left and go through the next two gates until you reach a set of steps leading up to the keep.¡± The blacksmith said as she continued to hammer out the sword she was smithing. ¡°Do you also have any wares for sale inside?¡± Lindras questioned. ¡°Yes, both my husband and I sell what¡¯s crafted or bought.¡± ¡°Ok thank you.¡± Lindras said as she left the blacksmith to her business, and made her way to the keep. Once she got to the market area she was severely underwhelmed. The market had a couple of stands, a tavern, a general store and a well in the center of the market forum. She didn¡¯t need much so she turned and went towards the keep, on the way passing through a massive gate into the residential area, were once again she was underwhelmed, though she was impressed with the temple, even if she didn¡¯t know which of the divines it was dedicated to. But seeing as she had a mission to do she got back on track and made it to the keep. Once in the keep she was approached by an elite guard who sternly said, ¡°The jarl shall not be disturbed during a gathering. Please wait outside until the gathering is over, then someone will come and see to what you want.¡± As the guard finished she proceeded to lead Lindras to a waiting area back outside. Lindras seeing no other option, complied and went to sit and wait. It was about an hour later by the time that Lindras was seen to. ¡°Would you kindly follow me.¡± The same guard from earlier stated. Lindras stood up and nodded, then the guard lead Lindras to the jarl. Once there the jarl greeted Lindras and she did the same. After the greeting Jarl Jareth said, ¡°Why are you here and what news do you bring?¡± ¡°I bring news of a dragon attack on the town of Green Rock, and that it was last seen heading this way.¡± ¡°That would explain why and how one of my fields was burned during a rainstorm.¡± Said Jareth, ¡°However if there was a dragon attack we would need to verify this claim by sending a scout down to Green Rock.¡± ¡°All that you¡¯ll find is a pile of ash and rubble.¡± Lindras stated. ¡°And may I ask how you know this?¡± The jarl questioned. ¡°I was in the town at the time of the attack. I narrowly avoided some of it¡¯s attacks.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case then what was it doing that destroyed the town?¡± ¡°The dragon used some sort of magic language that channeled a huge amount of mana that when released could easily destroy a two story house, and fire breath.¡± Lindras explained. ¡°Okay, that makes sense, but what did this dragon look like, and how do you know this?¡± ¡°It was black, but that¡¯s all I saw because as soon as it landed it unleashed a powerful attack that threw me back tenish feet from where I was.¡± Lindras explained. ¡°Well in that case we¡¯ll send a reconnaissance team to verify your claims, but in the meantime there is something we can use your help for.¡± The jarl stated. ¡°Okay.¡± Lindras said with a bow as the jarl stood up to lead Lindras were ever it was that they were going.