Garvin lay in bed, practically hiding underneath the thick woollen blankets as the storm raged outside.

Awed by the primal forces of nature, he barely dared to move. He couldn't breath, so heavy the air felt. A flash of light teared the sky open, quickly followed by a rumble so deep it he could feel it reverberating in his chest. Waves of sound rolled over the meadows, to the distant lands beyond the Great River. Rain battered the tile rooftops, as the wind tried to tear it apart altogether.   

Garvin remembered that moment as the first time getting to know about the heroes that roamed Ar'Moor. And he often thought of this moment when it rained or the weather was particularly brutal. He remembered how his mom would enter his room with this candle, a book and a warm smile and she would sit on the woollen blankets of Garvin's bed. There, almost in a whisper, she would tell him a story. Only, that particular night she had a special story she never told him before, nor after. It was a story of the Dragonslayer, and it was their story.  

 "There was a night where your father and I were heading to a small town. Because of some interruptions, we weren't able to reach the inn we set out to when we left that morning. So we set up camp at the edge of a forest, and slept."

  "Suddenly, while all was still dark and quiet. I felt cold steel on my throat, and a hand on my mouth. What was happening? I felt a chill in my spine, for I realised we had been captured! Surrounding us were savage bandits, clad in leather and fur and carrying iron weapons."   

Garvin remembered the voice of his mother, every detail, every intonation. Her brown eyes wide open. After he gulped, he asked his mom about what happened next. She continued;  

   "We were stripped from our belongings, and were forced to follow them. Fearing for our lives, I sobbed so loudly that I couldn't even hear my captors. A ruffian with a bald head and an enormous beard laughed at us as he pulled at a crude rope. My wrists were burning."

Lighting struck, and she stopped speaking for a moment.

"The men had just picked up all our wares and prepared to move out, when we heard a noise in the foliage surrounding us. A loud noise, like wild animals scurrying trough the darkness just beyond. It had the bandits all startled. They drew their weapons as their leader yelled something. The torchlight smoldering in his eyes, he moved towards the sound and then waited. Then there was this silence, like the whole world held its breath."   

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Garvin held his breath as well, looking at the wide open eyes of his mother. 

"TWANG!"

Garvin gasped for air.

"An arrow came flying from the darkness, piercing the throat of a bandit. Blood gushed out from his wound. In the confusion of the moment, the bandits grabbed their shield. Trying to figure out from where they were attacked. Then a figure arose from the shadows of the forest. A man so large and fierce, like he was the thunder in person. The bandits ducked down and held their leather clad shields in front of them. Their leader shouted an order and they surrounded the strange figure. The giant man but laughed, pointing his sword at the savage men."   

This was the part where she would be silent, it took Garvin years to figure out it was just for the aimed effect. To have him at her lips. Waiting for how the story would end. Like there was any doubt left if his family survived this encounter. The sound of the storm seemed to fade.  Garvin remembered only hearing her voice.

  "They yelled as they charged in. Another arrow pierced the darkness, and another bandit fell to the ground.Then the clashing of steel, shouts and clangs. Metal against wood, iron against iron. The torches created these tall shadows on the grass. The giant man fought so fierce. He parried and dodged as the bandits swung their blades. Alone he managed to hold them all at bay. More than that, he pushed them back! Soon most men were dispatched. The last two fled for their lives trough the foliage.  

The colossus of a man stared at his slain foes, then he sheathed his sword and walked towards us. Blood-spatters on his face, and a grimace that had just made the last of them run in fear. His eyes shone in the reflection of the fallen torches and starlight. But then as he came closer, he smiled. I noticed one of the ruffians still moved, injured though not defeated, crawling near. He raised a dagger, but before he could stab him in the legs, an arrow pierced his skull. The sound of his cracked skull was like a dry branch breaking under heavy boots." 

"And out of the forest came a woman, beautiful as a queen. With long blond hair and dressed in green clothes. She carried a bow as tall as her. We were saved."

"Do you want to know the names of the heroes?" she had asked him. 

Garvin had nodded furiously. 

"He was.. The Dragonslayer! And the woman was Illyria."

Then she would tickle him. And whilst the lightning tormented the sky and rain poured down by the gallons, they would laugh. There was no reason to be scared, because there were heroes who kept evil at bay.

He imagined; somewhere out there in another forest, the Dragonslayer still roamed. Saving people from evil. Fighting the darkness wherever he could found them.