[participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge] 'A young orphan named Ari discovers he has a talent for the old druidic arts while living as a shepherd. He seeks out a master to train him in the ways of the druids, but most of the practitioners of this magic are found far from civilization. He decides to try and learn what he can on his own while remaining in his village, but forces outside of his control push him away and into ever more dangerous and horrifying situations. He eventually discovers a hidden druid circle in the swampland south of his home, and is taken in by an undead druid in the way of decay and death magics.' I plan on publishing around 5000 words per day if I can. This story has been sitting in my head for a very long time. It has almost been written many times before, even once here on royal road (but I didn't like it so I deleted it and scrapped that attempt.) Each chapter is published within minutes of me finishing it on my computer, and I will be doing only minor editing until the book feels complete. I am probably going to go for around 150,000 words for the first book. I won't be accepting any form of money or donation at all until I finish this book, but being an author has been my dream since I was a child. More than anything, I hope you enjoy the stories and characters. I hope that this can be a story you fall into and binge, even if its just a guilty pleasure and not something you'd ever recommend. Please enjoy