Humble Origins

By: Sergio Berrones

Chapter 1: The Woodsman of Dark Woods

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The sound of a beast growling with blood lust was a noise that one couldn’t usually ignore. The fact that its origin was facing down a tired young man made things worse. The would be predator had been stalking its prey, watching as he worked at cutting and gathering the firewood his family needed. Along with a bit more for those that couldn’t fully gather the amount they required on their own.

Hunching over while allowing its arms to hang at its side stood a beast of endless hunger. A monster made from man that had given over to its darker desires. At one point the tired human might have thought him to be a some what handsome fellow. But not the monster that was now nothing more than an impure creature of the night. It flesh was sickly pale as it barely stayed over its malnourished frame.

And yet the woodsman knew better than to let down his guard. The ghoul before him might be nothing more than a rogue pawn for something far more sinister. But with no sign on why the ghoul was here he had no choice but to see this encounter to the end.

The monster stood and a little under six feet tall and looked like it could fall over dead after a few steps. Its fanged mouth was drooling as it desired to tear into the man’s flesh. He could feel its tainted hunger radiating from its body wishing, nothing more than to bring a violent end to his being.

A frown was clearly of the woodsman face. He had not heard of such a creature being anywhere near his home. And that was some troubling news, either someone had some sinister plans for his fellow villagers, or he was to become the first victim out of many more that were to come.

“Or this could be a stray that needs to be put down?” The young man asked himself with smirk as he stared into the eyes of the ghoul. His eyes easily noticing that the beast had some fragment of intelligence as it took in his words. Unfortunately for the creature that moment of distraction was all that was needed to decided the fate of their encounter.

With unexpected speed a small ax flew through the air. It target being the dead center of the starving monster. With inhuman dexterity the creature twisted its body to avoid the weapon making its way to him. As it returned to an upright position it was suddenly slashed at with a machete the young man had been using to cut into wood that the ax couldn’t handle.

The formerly used working tool did its best to cut through the monster its owner was fighting. But its blade had been dulled by the days work, barely tearing into the monster flesh, finding itself trapped between the rib cage of the best.

The black haired woodsman clicked his tongue as he found a great deal of resistance from the monster’s natural defenses. He quickly moved away from the monster before its claws could tear into him. He had no plans to give such an advantage to the undead stalking the woods.

“You might be human like but in the end your nothing more than a monster.” The young man growled out as he grabbed a second ax that was attached to his belt. A similar holder showing were it had been holding the first weapon he had tossed.

The ghoul growled out in pain as it pulled the larger weapon from its chest.

The woodsman watched with some disgust as a fair amount of blood burst from the wound. He couldn’t understand how the gods could allow such a creature to exist. The amount of blood it had lost would have easily killed any other mortal, yet this beast before him was clearly ready for more.

The monster released a battle roar before charging at the man that refused to play the part of prey. Its right arm was swinging out hoping to tear into some fresh flesh. And the young man did all he could to avoid making its desire into a reality. He took three steps back and countered with his own swing making the ghoul take a very impressive leap back.

Refusing to give a moment of rest the young man ran while throwing his ax once again. It flew through the air and met with the monster before it could hit the ground from its leap. Unfortunately the sharpen end of the ax was unable to dig into the monster, but the blow was enough to cause it step back to regain its balance.

Taking advantage of the moment of opportunity the young man rushed to get his hands once more around the handle of his larger weapon. Picking up the machete with practiced ease as he charged in with the intent to kill. He swung his blade with the force and ease of a man that had used the tool for a majority of his life. His strength gained from the labor of everyday life was more than enough to hack off the left of the arm of his target. The severed limb spinning through the air as it was separated from the ghoul.

He released another click of the tongue as the monster avoided his blade from hacking into its chest. And while he felt pride at disarming it of one of its natural weapons, he knew that it wasn’t enough to take it down. From the rumors he heard the beast would either naturally close its wounds or regrow what its losses after multiple feedings. Once again making it clear that it was an abomination to the natural laws of the world.

The beast spun into the direction of the machete that had just removed its arm. The young man could see it gaining speed as it tried to counter his attack. As it turned it found its opponent rolling from its reach. The woodsman couldn’t help but smirk as the monster hissed in anger. The duo charged one another and the young man had already planned what his next target would be. While the monster’s face showed no signs of having any higher thought that tearing at the human’s flesh.

As the deadly claws of the ghoul once more rushed towards his direction. The woodsman countered by thrusting the tip of his machete towards the limb that was attacking. The sound of steel tearing into flesh filled the air once more. The ghoul roaring once more as it found its lone upper limb in danger of being made useless. It soon felt the blade tearing deeper into its limb as its would be prey pushed his advantage.

His smirk turned into a smile of a satisfied warrior. He could see some fear beginning to fill the heartless mind of the former human. Before it could figure out what to do next, the woodsman slashed his blade out from its right arm while directing it into the monster’s right leg. Using his strength to run it through bone and flesh, his own body smashing into the ghoul causing it to fall towards the ground. The blade continued to cut through the air before finding itself sheathed into the ground. The amount of force he used was more than enough to gain him the almost inhuman like results to end the fight.

The young man rolled from the beast as fast as he could, making sure to stay out of its now limited striking range. The sounds of agony it was creating was completely ignored as he made his way towards the stack of woods he had been cutting. Taking hold of the second machete he always carried with him when going into the local woods of his home. It was a self made habit to always carry two of his tools when possible, that way he won’t have to bother with sharpening them if they happen to go dull.

He could hear it struggling as it tried to use its damaged limb to escape. All of its effort proving to be nothing more than a waste of time. And yet he could see that some of its earlier wounds were already closing up in a manner he could only wish he could mimic. A frown found its way to his face as he wondered the lives that could have been lost if he had not been the one the beast ran into. His mind picturing the children that played at the edge of the woods, of the teens that would gather at the open patches for a picnic. Of the mothers that would search for fungi and cooking herbs. And of the men that worked the forest in a manner similar to what he did.

“I guess the village got lucky that you tried your luck with me. Had you been patient you might have found an easier meal.” His words making the ghoul to glare at him before watching as the machete swung down and hacked off its head. A splatter of blood once more filling the air as the beast face morphed into a silent howl of agony.

“I should have brought my shovel, now I’m going to have to use good lumber to burn its remains. Wouldn’t want anything to eat of its tainted flesh and become monsters themselves.” The woodsman growled to himself before working on dragging the monsters remains into an area he where he could safely set it on fire. Make sure to keep the head in the sack he had used earlier to carry his food. Now it also would need to be torched in order to keep his fellow villagers safe. And he would have to spend some coin in getting himself a replacement.

With his newest task done and after collecting and cutting the last of the lumber, he was finally able to head home. It was nearly an hour walk before he finished clearing the woods that his people depended on so heavily. But once he did he could see the kind and welcoming place he called home. Their little slice of paradise had been built along side a river, taking advantage of its clear water, and healthy fresh water inhabitants. Always keeping in mind to only take what was needed and never more. The people he grew to love were one of a kind as far as he was concerned.

“Haylan. Looks like you found yourself some extra meat today.” A young man the same age as the black haired woodsman said with a smile. He had blond hair, blue eyes and was far more built than his ebony haired childhood friend. He stood as the sole defender of the entrance of their village. Using armor that allowed him to be far more mobile than most other knights. An impressive spear with two decorative cloths was held in his left arm while the right was waving at the woodsman.

“Didn’t know you had set up any traps, was your mother hoping to make some rabbit stew?”

“We’ll be having fish tonight and I didn’t set any traps.” Haylan said with a serious voice as he locked eyes with the blond gatekeeper. There home wasn’t known for having to deal with the usual threats. The woods surrounding them, and the dangerous predators made it hard to approach their home. Which is why most used the sole main road that had been made by the empire so long ago.

“Has there been any word about unexpected trouble? From the visiting merchants or perhaps a message from the duke?” Haylan’s red eyes locking onto the blue ones of his friend.

“There hasn’t been anything out of the ordinary, you were the last one that had gone out to the forest and finally returned… what happened?” The blond asked with a bit of worry in his tone. He knew that Haylan wasn’t the type to start asking such questions. There had to be a reason why he suddenly struck up such a serious conversation.

“Hopefully I already dealt with the problem. Here.” The sack dripping blood was suddenly tossed into the armored man’s hands.

It wouldn’t be the first time either of the two had suddenly thrown or slammed something into the body of the other. They were both boys that didn’t mind a little rough housing as some of the adults had once called it.

“This… how far was it?” The blond asked with a serious tone as he looked upon the disfigured face of the ghoul.

“Where the splitting trunk is at? Can I trust you to report in to the elder?” Haylan asked the blond he trusted like a brother.

“I need to report this to the patrol captain… were going to have to comb the woods in case there is more out there. Anare wasn’t feeling well so we had to send her home early.”

The ebony haired man let out a click of his tongue that had the blond smirking.

“I’ll deal with it but you owe me one Vox.”

“I’ll make sure to have the usual ready for you.” The blond spearman said with a smile as he tossed the head back at his friend. The woodsman catching it with one hand before making his way to the elder’s home. The blond got started on closing the gate before locking it and heading towards the militia barracks. Which in honesty was just a house capable of housing eight.

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Hayland would nod his head at his fellow village as he traveled through its simple roads. As far as he could remember there wasn’t even a hundred members to the village. And since he wasn’t seeing any of them panicking yet it was safe to assume that there had yet to be a tragedy. He hadn’t even spent ten minutes walking down the main road before reaching the elder’s house. Which didn’t look much different from the ones around it.

“Come in.” A calm voice said after the black haired man gently knocked on the front door.

“Elder.. I come baring ill news.” Hayland said with his usual laid back tone. Easily catching the attention of the man’s family. While the woodsman was in his early twenties, the elder was only nearing his fifties. The only reason he stopped leading hunting parties was the fact the man’s father had finally retired the position to him. And yet in the morning one can see him sparing with his daughter and some of the militia.

“Hayland… what did you find?” The physically imposing man said as he offered to take the sack off the woodsman’s hands. He was a symbol of strength that the village had easily learned to depend on.

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“Single ghoul… nearly starved to death. Vox is informing the captain.”

“That’s good… it brings me ease knowing we have such dependable men in our village.” The brown haired man said with pride filling his voice. Never noticing how his own daughter was gritting her teeth. Hayland already knew he would probably be dealing with the fallout of what she would consider a moment of weakness.

“You should focus on resting. I don’t think there is going to be much action found in the woods.” Hayland said to the golden brown haired female warrior. A tittle that she would go out of her way to remind the rest of the villagers about it.

“Too true… I better not hear about you being foolish and sneaking out to join the guard.” The leader of the village said with glare at his oldest child.

“But father.”

“No… a sword arm that can not swing its blade is useless. Rest and as soon as the healer clears you for action you may charge off and kill the foes of our home. But not a moment sooner.” The man said with all the authority he had as the elder, and father of the female fighter.

“If it will make you feel better… I promise to spar with you on the first day you are capable of training.” The black haired woodsman offered otherwise he worried that the two would argue for the rest of the night. It wouldn’t be the first time such a thing happened. Even thought Anare loved and respected her father, she was unfortunately under the impression that he was babying her. And while the man had done so earlier in her life, he had greatly eased up after the first time she had disarmed him during their training.

‘Why can’t these two hard heads just sit down and have a proper conversation? It would make things far easier for the rest of us.’ Hayland thought as a dark smile filled the face of Anare.

“You better not take back those words.” The golden brown haired beauty said with hint of excitement in her words.

“Hayland wouldn’t dare… he might be a woodsman but he is still a warrior at heart.” The seasoned fighter said with pride.

“No he isn’t.” Anare quickly responded with a dead pan tone. Her face making the man sigh at the fact that she was right and he had just projected his own hopes for the younger man.

“He can fight but he doesn’t consider himself a true warrior.” She said with disappointment clear in her words.

“Anare.” The golden haired mother of the female warrior nearly hissed out making her daughter to flinch.

“It is not like she said said a false truth.” The woodsman said with a carefree tone.

“And yet the mighty true warrior has yet to best you in combat?”Anare’s father said making his daughter to glare daggers at Hayland. He was only teasing his daughter yet praising the woodsman.

“I got better luck than she does.”

“L-luck??” The attractive young woman stuttered out with disbelief and fury. The villager elder letting out a laugh at the young man’s usual response. His wife giggling at how her daughter was reacting, the woman’s joyous mood was soon joined by her two younger children.

“Anyway… I should be leaving now.” Hayland before giving anyone a chance to continue the conversation.

“Before you go there is something I need to give you.” The man said before reaching into a chest that was on the center table. Hayland quickly recognizing the village’s chest that was used to pay its expenses.

“The duke’s usual bounty of a rogue ghoul is two gold coins. You earned the right to claim the value of this head.” The man said once again with pride. Anare looking at her father and rival with a bit of envy. She had been hoping to make some extra coins in case they ever got around to visiting the capital. There was a set of armor she had been wanting to get her hands on.

The black eyes of Hayland locked on with those of the village leader before nodding his head with a bit of uncertainty. Since the death of his father by the hands of bandits, his family had been struggling, yet Hayland had refuse to accept the charity of others after becoming capable enough of providing for his family.

“Thank you.” Yet he also understood when to be grateful for the things he did earned.

“No need for thanks… you earned them.” The man said while his wife smiled at him before sending an encouraging nod in his direction. Anare simply huffed and pouted before turning her head from the villages’ sole woodsman. A job that wasn’t really need since most were capable of gathering it themselves. And with the lack of carpenter work, Hayland wasn’t able to earn much in a village as small as theirs.

The young man simply nodded his head in quite gratitude before making his way out of the house. A bit of uncertainty on his face before putting the money in his coin pouch.

As he traveled the familiar streets of his home he didn’t pay much attention to those around him before making his way to larger than normal house compared to majority in the village. The main reason being that a residential area rested above a carpenters workshop. He walked past his work place and reached the back of his family’s property. Soon standing before a large barn that was made to safely store supplies for the winter months.

Hayland separated the firewood into three equal parts. A third for the duke, a third to sale to the village when needed and a third for his home. The duke’s supplies, along with that of the village, was easily far large than that of his family, but not by much. There was also four large barrels for containing fresh water. It had taken him some time to make them and fill them, but he made sure to maintain them so that his family wouldn’t have to make their way to the river to collect some. It had taken some silver to have a traveling mage enchant them to help keep the water fresher for as long as possible. He could remember his mother saying that such things weren’t necessary. In the end that was just something they had learned to disagree on.

His sisters on the other hand were glad he had gone out of his way to provide them such a benefit.

Hayland continued to inspect the barn to see nothing was out of place. Just like his father had thought him so long ago.

He counted the bare minimum of chicken he wanted for them to own, the aging rooster along with a dozen chicks running around. There was two large pigs in a well built pen. They had yet to finish their last meal and the water his sister had placed for them. The shed they usually kept their food had no signs of thief or pest having visited. He assumed the reason being that their surrounding neighbors had big dogs that went out their way to announce the presence of others. There was also the fact that one or two usually got loose and walked through the village every night.

After finishing his last check of the property Hayland made his way back to the work shop. Finding no new orders waiting for him he got to work on his last project. A large book shelf that he was carving for the local self appointed teacher. A man that had made his way from the capital hoping to find an easier life in their little piece of paradise. A good man as far as Hayland was concerned.

The man had earned his place and found love with the sole daughter of one of the farmers. Hayland was happy for them since he wasn’t sure she was going to find much love from those she grew up with. Since that wasn’t any of his business all he could do is give them his blessing and carry on.

As he sanded the shelf he couldn’t help but loose himself as he worked. He always found it relaxing to work with his hands, and while once he had dream of being knighted he didn’t see any fault with the way he currently lived.

“Brother… its nearing the time for supper.” Black eyes fell upon the eyes of one of his sisters. Her dark hair and eyes quite similar to his own, she was only reaching her thirteen year of life but was already showing her potential as a lady.

“Thank you Helen. How was your day?”

“It went well. Mother was able to sell some of extra eggs today. Along with two of the hens.” The soon to be teen said with a smile.

“That’s good.” Hayland said with a light smile, he couldn’t help but find it a bit silly how the smallest things brought so much joy into his family’s life.

‘The girls are probably going to want to celebrate once they learned about the bounty I cashed in.’ He thought as his smile grew in strength.

“Did you have a good day as well?” Helen asked with a smile.

“As good as ghoul victim could have.”

“A ghoul…?” His sister paled at the words that left his mouth. Causing him to bark out a laugh as he saw so much worry fill all of her being.

“Its okay… it never got the chance to hurt me.” Hayland said with a smile at the pout that developed on her face. He placed his tools on the shelf and walked towards his clearly upset sister. He gently patted her head before using his hands to guide her to their home.

“Lets go inside and I can tell all of you what happened.”

“Big brother is too reckless.”

Hayland couldn’t help but laugh at her words. He pulled her into a side hug as they made their way into the display area of the carpenter shop. Locking up and then making their way up the stairs where Hayland knew he was going to get an earful.

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As Vox rushed through the forest with his fellow militia his face was showing a level of focus he wasn’t usually known for. Five armed warriors traveled through the dangerous woods with ease that seemed almost unnatural. The dark woods that would normally be a danger for a regular person was surprisingly used as a natural defense for their villagers that fought their way to claim it.

The village had been around for less than sixty years but in those few decades they had worked hard to adapt and claim such a dangerous zone. The extremely powerful and deadly predators that called the woods home made them a great buffer towards the more deadly of the humanoids of the world. Incredible predators that had learned to avoid the large road that lead to the simple village that had learned to coexist with them.

Which is why Vox and the others knew how to avoid those same creatures that others had labeled as monsters. The blue eyes of Vox locked upon the scene of a fierce bear that was fighting a large elk to the death. Two beast that towards over the average man, with strength and speed few were ever able to match. The sounds of their battle was swallowed by the woods around the warriors as they continued to search for any signs of true monsters that had a craving for easier prey.

“This is where we will start our search.” Vox said as he finished leading the group to the splitting trunk that Haylan and his father had used so many times. And yet the thing didn’t look like it had ever been hurt. Haylan’s father had once claimed that it had once been a special tree that other races would fight to the death for it. When asked how it was cut the man said that nature itself had destroyed it. Neither boys had ever learned if he spoke the truth or not. The man usually laughed off their demands for confirmation.

The five nodded towards each other and quickly took off to find signs of where the ghoul had been. Hoping to find where it had entered the forest in order to find where it was brought back from the dead.

+-*/\*-+

Haylan let out a calm smile as he watched his family enjoy their food. His mother would smile as her children enjoyed another peaceful day. She had given the young man a quick look over before nodding in satisfaction that he hadn’t been hurt. And after getting the approval of the woman his sisters had relaxed to their more usual behavior.

As the oldest daughter Helen did her best to copy her mother in the art of caring for a home. While little Elena was more focused on having simple fun. Whether that was running around with the other kids her age or picking flowers while their mother collected some herbs while in the safer edge of the woods. They didn’t have too many worries in the world and Haylan wished to keep it that way.

‘I hope things don’t get ugly any time soon.’ Haylan thought with a frown as he dipped some of his bread into the soup he had been served.

“Are you okay?” The soft and innocent voice of Elan broke the young man out of his thoughts. She was only six yet seemed much younger than her age. No matter where she went she was adored and cared for by just about every one she meet. Haylan was sure that if she ever ran into a predator of the dark woods he would find them being the best of friends if given enough time. He knew she had a talent for dealing with animals, he was constantly reminded of so by the very creatures they owned. Not to mention she had apparently worked out a deal with the traditional pests of the world. He had no way to explain how such a commitment had been made but apparently it was.

“Just a thought that wouldn’t leave me alone.” His words making his sister to pause and think before sticking her tongue out in disgust.

“Oh… probably had to do with school. They won’t leave me alone either.”

“School is important.” Helen said with a lecture like tone.

“Maybe for you… I don’t get half of it.” Elena said countered with a frown.

“One day you will.” Haylan said with a supportive smile before returning to his meal.

It was only an hour after the family finished their food before the sound of their door being knocked on caught their attention. Haylan got up to answer, as his mother worried a bit about what could be wrong. Helen had been helping Elena with her studies but the youngest of the family was struggling to stay awake.

"Vox, what did you guys find?.” The woodsman asked the blond who looked a bit tired from searching the woods, yet showed no signs of being in a fight.

“The ghoul was the only one that entered the woods.”

“I’m guessing that’s the good news?” Haylan asked with a frown making the man before him to frown while nodding his head.

“From what we can tell someone was transporting it… and they were heading towards the center of the duke’s territory.”

“You think it might be a necromancer?”

“Don’t know… the elder said he will be sending a group to make a report to the duke.” Vox said before seeing his oldest of friends give him a look of pure boredom.

“He plans to force me to go with you guys?” Hayland asked with a bit of venom in his voice.

“Not much choice, the Duke is suppose to hear the report directly from the man that slayed the monster.” Vox said with a smirk.

“Damn that old man… probably why he paid me the gold upfront instead of waiting for me to be rewarded by the Duke.” Hayland groaned in defeat making Vox to laugh.

“That old fox still has some tricks up his sleeves.”

“Who is going with us?”

“There is me… you, Ludo and finally Anare.”

“She just wouldn’t let that spar go would she?” Hayland asked with a tired tone.

“She would kill us in our sleep if we left without her. Not only can she spend some time in a bigger place than our village but she will be able to challenge you when we make camp.” Vox said with a grin.

“I really hate the both of you.”

“We love you too.” Vox said with a teasing smirk.

“I’ll prepare your pack. You’ll need a good night rest if you plan to leave early in the morning.” Alina said with a smile as she looked towards her son. A bit of shame and pain in her eyes that went unseen by the two young men and her daughters. The mother of three couldn’t help but find herself a nothing more than a burden for her eldest child. She had been unable to carry on when her husband was lost, and had forced her son to become the head of house at a much younger age that what should have been expected. And yet Haylan had been able to deliver a proper home for their family. But had pushed back the development of his own for their sake. And that shame continued to fester in her no matter how much her son tells her she is speaking nonsense.

“Buy me something?” Elena said with a smile as she suddenly hugged herself on the legs of Vox. Her cute smiling face easily melting the heart of the guardsman.

“Of course… don’t I always bring something back?” Vox said with a smile as he patted her head.

“If possible can you get me blank book, I wish to practice my writing more.” Helen asked her brother with a shy tone.

“If it isn’t too expensive.” Hayland said making his sister to nod her head. And while he said such things Vox already knew that he was going to buy her the book. And if his friend couldn’t afford it the blond would add the missing coins himself.

“Then I’ll be see you in the morning.” Vox said as he peeled Elena off his legs and handed her towards Haylan. She was quite affectionate and no one in the village cared to change her odd habit.

The black haired woodsman nodded his head in agreement as his eyes followed the man before watching him leave. Already knowing that Vox would properly lock up, since he was one of the few they trusted to come and go.

‘I’m going to have to work harder when we get back. This trip better not take more than a week.’ Haylan thought with a frown before making his way to his mother. She took the now sleeping Elena out of his hands, allowing him to make his way to his room to rest for the night. Helen was quietly working on the last chores of the house before blowing most of the candles out.