Questlander

Chapter 1: The Verdant Sage

Kay'El Trosden, Kael for short, had wandered alone for many weeks in the wilderness. He was on a quest you see, to speak to Verden, the Great Sage of the Verdant Forrest. He needed her wisdom on medical remedies. For the the Great Sage of the elven holds, Ral'Kin, was sick and wasting away. No remedy pursued by the elves could fix his deteriorating spirit. And if he was to pass, so too would his protection over the land. Dark and nasty creatures would come and the heartlands of the elves would be in peril.

At long last, Kael reached the heart of the Verdant Forrest. There a large hill bloomed forth from the land and kissed the sky. While the land around was cast in shadow by the thick canopy of deciduous tress, the hill top glistened, baldly in the sunlight. There were no trees at its flat top, but grasses and wild flowers of all sorts of colors. And in the center of the hill top, a solitary cabin of wood stood defiantly.

Kael trodden up to the cabin and knocked upon its door. The grass began to shake and the flower petals shivered.  A booming voiced echoed throughout the hill to answer him. "Who comes knocking at my door? You should know that I am a very busy lady! Winter comes swifter this year and I must sing to the trees! Begone mortal, for I am too busy for you! Return back in the Spring! For only then will you find me a most courteous host!"

Kael was taken a back. The Sage of the Elves, Ral'Kin, would always make time to attend to the needs of his people. Oh how badly did he want to return home. He should have rejected this quest and urged his fellows to wait for a more experienced ranger. But he was the swiftest among his throng and the one with the most wilderness experience. None of the remedies they tried had worked and they could not bare to waste time awaiting word from the capital. And so Kael was sent to seek foreign aid, a method avoided and rarely used. 

Kael gritted his teeth and knocked again. This time a roaring wind of dirt and grit came flying at him. Kael stood his ground against the barrage until the wind ceased to blow. Again, he knocked upon the cabin. This time, the hill began to shake and the insects flew away. Dark clouds formed in the sky casting the sunlight to shadow. 

"How dare you! How dare you defy the words of a Sage! We are the ones who protect the land, who protect the people! You put lives at risk and innocents in danger through your petulant distractions! I should have you strung up and mocked by every person and beast upon the land. Then maybe you will learn some respect to the actions of hard working Sages!" 

Kael responded by knocking again. There was a scream, an ear piercing scream and a blinding light filled the cabin. Foot steps walked across the boards and the copper knob on the door turned. The door flew open and out walked the Great Sage Verden.

Ral'Kin had always told him, that she was a Great Sage in many forms. Her magics in the way of nature was supreme and commanding. Her presence left a great impression on all. And most of all, she burned with a fiery passion. 

Upon seeing her, however, Kael was quite stunned. His imagination of her did not match the woman he saw in front of him. He had imagined a tall woman, with fiery red hair, wearing an intimidating pelt of animal furs, and of course the impressionable attitude he just witnessed. For instead, Verden was short, five foot tall at most, and her hair was black and curly. Her dress was of simple cloth dyed brown and she wore a fur cap upon her head. 

"An elf." Verden chimed. "No wonder you did not get the hint to leave. Though I can't blame you, your kind are too open as a whole for my taste. Which is weird cause you elves tend to be quite reclusive at the same time."

"Only to outsiders, Great Sage." Kael replied. "Humans and dwarves make too much of a ruckus for our liking. They tend to bring trouble with them where ever they go. Unless they proven themselves elf friend, I say good riddance."