Chapter 1: And so it begins...
His name was Guy, still is Guy as a matter of fact, don't know if it will be Guy in the future, but that's kind of the reason he was here.
Here is a humble hill; it was rather small, more like a mound. Like if it had a hill internship. It had a nice view, not amazing, not stupendous, it was a humble hill after all.
It was at this humble hill that everything changed. Not just for Guy, but for everyone, in due time. Guy was minding his business on this hill, he was eating a sandwich (as he likes to "claim" new hills he finds with a sandwich) and he saw something he had never seen before. It was past the fields of his village, it was past the abandoned mill and the Evill forest (named after the extremely generous and compassionate Gavin Evill), it was even past the legendarily titled Big Hill and no one ever goes past Big Hill. He had no idea what it was and yet he knew for a fact that he wanted to get to it. He didn't even know what he'd do once he got to it. But he needed to.
What was it? It was a line, a line where the land and the sky met, where even the biggest things like Big Hill looked small. He squinted his eyes to see where he needed to go in order to get to this line - as all adventurers do, Guy thought to himself - and decided to plot a course, because if you know where you're going you'll get there in no time, right?
Right?
But the more he looked into the distance, the further the line ran away, could he go through the forest? Could he go through the meadows? Ride a cow? Jump the lake? No matter what route he took there was seemingly always another step to take, it was the furthest thing away no matter what. He took a breather and decided to take a different approach, mentally that is; he'll take it one step at a time.
"Each obstacle as the crow flies," Guy thought to himself. First things first was to pinpoint what this line really was... well, that was easy, it was where the land and sky met, but hang on, it was over there as well, and there, and there. In fact it stretched almost all around him.
Guy shot a look back to his village, with its thatch rooftops and its neat little market and its cute little cows. One thing stood out to Guy: it didn't have this line.
It was like, the line was everywhere that he wasn't.
That royally, wholeheartedly, even ultimately... pissed Guy off.
He skimmed the length of the line - it stretched all the way until it stopped at... Ah ha! It stopped at the legendarily named Big Hill! Maybe that's where it was, maybe it wasn't past it after all. He wasn't bothered to humour the doubt in his mind, it was the best lead he had.
Big Hill it was then! He darted back to his village, almost choking on his half-finished sandwich as he ran; he needed to prepare for his journey.
Guy's mum wanted him back for dinner, so he didn't have all the time in the world. What he did have, however, was a comfy hoodie, shorts, and a backpack containing an assortment of bits, bobs and the occasional 3-foot-long iron sword. Don't ask where he got it from, he'll claim he forged it himself, despite referring to an anvil as a "Clanging Table".
He had until dinner time.
Lucky for him, the assortment of bits and bobs didn't contain a watch.
He regrouped at the very same hill he had his epiphany and looked straight at Big Hill.
"I'm on to you line."
He took one last look at his village below his newly claimed hill and smiled. Saying goodbye to his house, his shed of many things, the baker's, the elder's hut and the local stray cat called Aneurism.
His eyes looked forward, squinting with determination.
"No. Matter. What. I will find you."
And so he set off, down the hill and across the rolling meadows, an expanse filled with reeds and riddled with rabbit holes. He kept his sights on the line, it was still there. It hadn't moved yet, which was promising. Though in between where he was now and his destination, there was a rather large Evill Forest in the way, Beeches and Ashs and Elms all mixed together in a big natural clump. He could hear birds chirping on top of the distant rustling.
He kept walking. A good thirty minutes went by of him admiring the canvas-like sky. The clouds varying from billowing spires to dainty plumes. The forest was looking surprisingly close, which to Guy meant that Big Hill was closer as well. After another thirty minutes the ground began to squelch under Guy's shoes, the flies and frogs hopped and hummed, the greens were diluted with dark browns and oranges . The meadows had turned to marsh. He came across a horse and cart. Next to the cart was an older woman with a straw hat and a sodden cardigan. She sat on the soggy ground, defeated, for the horse and cart were both sinking, slowly, as if quicksand wasn't quick... or sand. The woman sighed.
"You ok there?" asked Guy, still walking towards his destination. The forest was just a few hundred meters away.
"My tether to my here horse snapped and frayed, and now my cart is sinkin'." The woman knocked on her cargo. "And I can't bring the goods I got to that there village." She gestured to Guy's village, now a small blob in the distance. Guy smiled with surprise, he had no idea how far he had come already.
"Damn... that sucks..." said Guy. By now the horse's legs were completely submerged. It was just a body and a head - the horse looked very chill despite this. A new-found respect for the horse was ignited within Guy. He nodded approvingly.
"Yes... it here sucks... say you got anything in that there backypack of yours that could be of any help?"
Guy was hesitant. He didn't have an overflowing amount of things in his pack, he wanted to make them last. But he ruffled through anyway and found a small loop of rope. The woman's eyes lit up with relief.
"Oh thank Nod! That there is just the thing I need, do you mind?" She gestured for Guy to bring it over, but he stayed put.
"I dunno lady, I kinda need this for me... see I'm going into the forest and I feel like this'll be really handy."
The lady merely smiled and laughed. She looked at him with understanding.
"Oh I get that, don't you worry, but I am a merchant by trade and I think I could give you something in return for that there rope. See, if you help others get what they want and need, then they might do the same for you. Now come on over and see what you might like, take whatever you please." She began opening various boxes and barrels and crates and stashes, they contained an assortment of rugs and silk carpets and jewellery and gems.
Guy's eyes grew wide with excitement. He skimmed the clothing and garments in the crates and boxes, the jewellery wasn't really his thing, he liked the more practical side. However, through the robes and jackets and shoes and shirts, one piece of attire caught his attention. It was a bright crimson cloak, it looked used, but with an odd charm to it. Guy picked it up, dusted it off and looked it up and down, it was almost as big as him, it had some weight to it too. An unusual marking could be seen on the bottom left corner, though, written in a language he didn't understand, but even so, it looked cool. He whipped it over his shoulder and clipped it around his neck. He had a new feeling rush through his body, was it pride? Self respect?
"I'll take this one, unless it's cursed or something, it feels good though." He drew his sword out of his backpack and struck a little pose. Oh yeah, he looked like a real adventurer now, that line won't know what hit it.
"It looks rather feisty on you there sir, a rare find if I remember. I'll be more than happy to give it to the likes of you. Thank you for the rope." She quickly tied it to the rung on the bottom of her cart and strapped it to the horse with an iron shackle. It was at this point Guy realised that the horse wasn't stuck at all, in fact its legs weren't sunk into the marshy ground because it didn't have any legs to begin with. It just levitated upwards and with it, dragged the cart along with simple ease. The rope creaked lethargically but held fast. The merchant gave Guy a hearty chuckle.
"Specifically little guy, I here be a wandering merchant, pickin' up the odd bits along my travels and selling it wherever I can. I'll tell that there village you be doing a lovely job so far. Good luck, may you find whatever you are lookin' for! I may even see you again at some point." Her voice faded as the cart trundled away. He smiled, and tried to process the concept of a legless horse, failed, and then set his sights on the forest in front of him.
Weekly Power Status
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