The day after I turned five, I was helping tending to our garden.

" Boy, there you are."

I turned around to find my father waving me over.

So I gathered my gardening tools, and went over to him.

"What is it father?"

" You have now turned five, and it's time to start your training."

He showed me two swords made of wood that he had brought with him. He gave me one and made for me to follow him, he went over to the small training field I had helped him make last sommer. We had dug out the stones and soil, then we had waited for my uncle to come over and harden the earth. Then we filled the 5*5 square with sand.

It was now spring but the weather was warm, around 16 celsius. So when he gave me a small gambeson I knew that I was going to be dripping in sweat.

"But father, why are we going to be swinging swords, Aldrin said I could be a mage."

"Yes he is right you can probably become a mage, but let me tell you something. A mage is really weak when they start out, it takes a lot of time and practice to become a strong wizard like your uncle."

"But why swords and not a staff then?"

Thorgrim took a deep breath, then he sat down on the sand.

"Okay, make yourself comfortable, this will take some time to explain."

I did as he said, my father may be strict but he always explained why we did something if I asked.

" So you may have overheard people talk about levels and skills?"

I nodded my head in answer, I had overheard people at the inn talking about it, but I never understood what they meant.

"Well the thing is that when you turn thirteen you will get access to something called Character Information. This information will tell you your attributes like strength and intelligence, It will also show you the skills you have acquired through training and usage."

He pointed at himself.

" Take me as an example, I have the skill called smithing and my information tells me I'm at level 78 with it. This shows me how good I'm at smithing, but I can still be worse than someone who has a lower level in smithing if he has focused on only one thing, like making swords. The skill levels are more like guidelines for one self, and they give you an idea how good you are and some bonuses. "

" What are the bonuses and why do I have to know how to handle a sword."

"I was getting to that, the first thing you have to know is that everything has stats."

He pointed to his wooden sword.

" Take this sword, when I use the skill inspection on it, I get a small window in front of me."

He used his hands to make a small rectangle in front of the sword.

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" It tells me that the craftsmanship is excellent, it has 20/20 durability, and it makes 0-1 damage, and that strength or dexterity is the attributes used when wielding it. Some items and weapons will also tell you how high you need to have your attributes to be able to use it correctly. Like my axe over the hearth in the house, it requires 30 in strength to use. "

" Before you turn fifteen you can only raise your attributes and skills permanently through training. And from the stats on the sword we see that training with the sword helps to train strength and dexterity. "

I was about to open my mouth, when he continued.

"Yes, training with the staff helps raising attributes too. But we are going to go through a lot of weapons before you turn thirteen. Who knows you might have a talent for battle hammers."

" Anyway, attributes have a base of 10-11. When your attributes are higher you get positive bonuses to your actions. Again take this sword, with a strength of 12 you get plus 1 in damage, with 14 you get plus 2. Do you understand?"

" So a score of 18 would give me 4-5 in damage with the sword?"

"Good, and one more thing the attributes you have when you turn fifteen will decide what classes you can choose. You can later change or evolve your class, but know that changing your class comes with a penalty."

"What attribute scores does mage require?"

"The stats for the mage class is, 13 intelligence and 10 wisdom. But don't stare yourself blind on becoming a mage, me and your mother have decided that you will try different things every sommer before you turn thirteen. Then we will look at your stats and let you focus on the class you want."

He stood up and pointed his sword at me.

" Enough talking, let's see what you have lad"

When we were done training I dragged myself over to our well and dumped a bucket of water over my head. Thorgrim had told me that from now on we would start each day with 2 hours training before breakfast. And that after lunch Helga would start to teach me letters and numbers.

After I had rinsed myself, I hurried over to Tovas home. I had no more time for training or working. It was time to play. Tova is seven years old and fast to remind me of it, but she was the only one around my own age. There were more children in the village, but we only went there once a week. I found her in the kitchen helping Ingrid."

"Tova, what are you doing?"

" I'm helping mom clean the vegetables."

"Oh, do you want to go to the stream when you are done?"

" Sorry I can't, I must help mom make the rooms ready."

"Okay, maybe tomorrow?"

"Sure if mom doesn't have anything for me to do."

I waved her goodbye before I left. What am I to do now, I'm not allowed to go there alone… mom went to the city, so that leaves father… well we have already trained so maybe he wants to do some fun. I easily found him in the forge.

"Oh Elric already back ?"

"Tova had to help Ingrid."

" So you have nothing to do and are full of energy?"

I nodded, he understands me.

" Well I was afraid I was being too hard on you, but I seem to have forgotten how much energy a child has. Well what are you standing around for, at them bellows boy, this forge is too cold. "

And that was when I started to learn the grand art of blacksmithing. Idle hands make lazy lad, as Thorgrim expressed it. When I finally dragged myself to beed that evening, I was so tired I didn't even get my shoes off before sleep had claimed me.

That year went by fast, in the summer I made my first knife. It barely passed my father's critical inspection. We went to the summer festival in the village, but I was so tired that I feel asleep in the wagon on the way there, only to wake up in my own bed in the morning. In Autumn Aldrin came by I got three books from him, two books was about the arcane and the last about monsters in our lands. That book gave me bad nightmares for a week, and decided that I best check on my father and mom each night so no monster came and ate them. Too bad I feel asleep between them every night.

I saw my first halfling that winter, me and tova were outside having an epic snowball fight. When he came up the road, he was going really fast in a sled drawn by three big dogs. He was some kind of alchemist from Kevin's harbor, he needed father to make some tools for him.

Then spring came again and I became six years old, I got a training staff from Aldrin, a fishing rod from my father, clothes from mom and cake from Ingrid and Tova. We have now switched weapons and are now training with the staff I got plus some other polearms. I almost killed the garden with a halberd and mom almost killed father because he made such a heavy weapon.

That summer I learned the secrets to fishing by father and Hans, it has something to do with a keg of mead and no women. But I think I got it since I'm the only one who got any fish. I am also learning bow making and carpentry by a man named Rurik. It is really fun and in the autumn I made a small jewelry box with his help, I gave it to Tova.

Then winter came and I was in my first fight, it was some merchant kid who was being mean to Tova. I think Ingrid was afraid of the guards his father had with him, the boy was bigger and older than me, I didn't know what to do since mom always tells me to try to talk about the problems. So I went and asked my father what to do, he asked me if I had tried talking to the boy and I nodded. So he told me that no son of his left a girl in trouble, and that I better get in there and show the boy some manners. So with the wisdom of those who came before me, I smashed a chair across his back and when he was down. I did the special elven move Aldrin told me about, a cold shot to the nuts. The guards stood awe of my martial skills holding hands between their legs. The merchant came down the stairs with a roar, and with a dagger in his hand he went after me. Then a battle cry rang out in the tavern and an aura of pure hate, blood and a promise of pain spread throughout the inn. It was so intimidating that I instantly blacked out. I later got some money from Hans for saving his daughter, Helga gave it to Ingrid in payment for the chair that broke when I fell on it. Later I had to make a new chair with Rurik, carpentry is a good skill who knows when you are in need of a chair.

Spring once more came and I'm now seven, I got a small bow from Aldrin and made about 50 arrows with Rurik. I was training really hard with the bow, because Aldrin had convinced Helga too let me spend the summer with him at the guard post. She only agreed when Thorgrim told her that he had some work that the guards needed done so he would check on me regularly. Aldrin was going to be teaching me about magic and he had talked one of the elven rangers into training me how to hunt and survive in the forest. I can't wait for summer.