Outlander
At sunset, the great menace of your enemy rears its head in full. The walled city of Hakin is surrounded by goblins in a full circle. The amassed army is greater than any that you have yet seen. You see fear in the eyes of many of your soldiers. General Graff is an able commander, but you decide to reignite the fire in your men with a rousing speech. Before you can utter a single word, however, something unprecedented happens.
Outside the gate of the city, a hundred goblins wave long pieces of white fabric. In the midst of them stands a lone rider in extravagant armor. The mount is a beast unlike any you have ever seen; a strange breed of canine and reptile. It seems that the goblins are asking for a parlay.
***
The clearing outside the gate is occupied by only the Goblin envoy, Graff, yourself, and a dozen Raptor guards. You wait, not willing to be the first to speak.
"Greetings, Red-blood," the envoy growls, seeming to struggle with each syllable. "Most of the hordes have forgotten your tongue in our exile, but an ancestor of mine saw the wisdom in teaching his descendants your bittersweet speech." the goblin looks up to the walls of Hakin and smiles. "You have been a worthy enemy, Red-blood. Many of my people have died honorable deaths by your command. But this cannot go on forever. Perhaps we can come to a solution with less blood-letting?"
You are wary to agree to any ideas of a goblin, but he speaks to your concerns and desires. "What do you have in mind?" you ask.
"A contest. Our leader, Viko Zayrh, will fight you in single combat. The survivor will win the war and the losing species will be forever exiled from this land."
"I will return with my answer," you reply and leave on your horse.
***
You pace in the war room, but you know that you have little time left. Graff and Lucia are here for you to consult, but you know the ultimate decision will be on you. Suddenly, while you walk in front of the general, he stops you.
"My lord, I have a question that has troubled me."
"Ask it." you demand, craving any distraction.
"When I joined your army, Outlander, you gave me your name, but what is the name of your family?"
"Farchance. My full name is Nathan Farchance."
Graff gapes at that. "It cannot be. The old king of Hakin had two people closest to him: a sorceress advisor, and a Raptor who was both a master archer and captain of the royal guard. Their names were Fralia and Cedric Farchance."
"Those are the names of my parents!" you cry out.
"If that is so, then you may be the only legitimate heir to the throne of Hakin. You cannot risk yourself in a single combat, or there will be no one to unify the nations!"
Merida interjects, then. "But can we win against this threat?" She turns to you. "I care for you, Outlander- Byt the gods, I think I love you, but if you can win this war in one fell swoop then we need to take that chance."
What do you do?
Outside the gate of the city, a hundred goblins wave long pieces of white fabric. In the midst of them stands a lone rider in extravagant armor. The mount is a beast unlike any you have ever seen; a strange breed of canine and reptile. It seems that the goblins are asking for a parlay.
***
The clearing outside the gate is occupied by only the Goblin envoy, Graff, yourself, and a dozen Raptor guards. You wait, not willing to be the first to speak.
"Greetings, Red-blood," the envoy growls, seeming to struggle with each syllable. "Most of the hordes have forgotten your tongue in our exile, but an ancestor of mine saw the wisdom in teaching his descendants your bittersweet speech." the goblin looks up to the walls of Hakin and smiles. "You have been a worthy enemy, Red-blood. Many of my people have died honorable deaths by your command. But this cannot go on forever. Perhaps we can come to a solution with less blood-letting?"
You are wary to agree to any ideas of a goblin, but he speaks to your concerns and desires. "What do you have in mind?" you ask.
"A contest. Our leader, Viko Zayrh, will fight you in single combat. The survivor will win the war and the losing species will be forever exiled from this land."
"I will return with my answer," you reply and leave on your horse.
***
You pace in the war room, but you know that you have little time left. Graff and Lucia are here for you to consult, but you know the ultimate decision will be on you. Suddenly, while you walk in front of the general, he stops you.
"My lord, I have a question that has troubled me."
"Ask it." you demand, craving any distraction.
"When I joined your army, Outlander, you gave me your name, but what is the name of your family?"
"Farchance. My full name is Nathan Farchance."
Graff gapes at that. "It cannot be. The old king of Hakin had two people closest to him: a sorceress advisor, and a Raptor who was both a master archer and captain of the royal guard. Their names were Fralia and Cedric Farchance."
"Those are the names of my parents!" you cry out.
"If that is so, then you may be the only legitimate heir to the throne of Hakin. You cannot risk yourself in a single combat, or there will be no one to unify the nations!"
Merida interjects, then. "But can we win against this threat?" She turns to you. "I care for you, Outlander- Byt the gods, I think I love you, but if you can win this war in one fell swoop then we need to take that chance."
What do you do?