Beneath The Fallen Sky

I had finally gotten a good night's rest. How long has it been since I was able to? Too long ago to remember.

As soon as everyone was awake, we started discussing our much needed plans for the future. I had a goal but no path to reach it. If I wanted to free this world from torment and slay the Tyrant, I needed a few things. First of all, I needed to get stronger. Far stronger than I am now. The second thing I needed was capable allies who shared the same goal as me. It wasn't exactly hard to find these kind of people, since it was a common desire of this world. The Tyrant had taken many lives.

Before we started this journey, the rest of the party needed to know what my motives were.

"I plan on going for the King of Catastrophes."

The mood suddenly got heavy. Everybody went silent and shifted their gaze towards me. Elyndor had a look of worry in her eyes. I could tell she thought I was crazy. Finnian tried to muster up words, but in the end he didn't speak a sound.

"You should give up on that dream of yours. It's a suicide mission, everybody knows that. Nobody has ever gotten past the one of the four demon generals and you, a 12 year old boy, want to go for the devil who commands them? Don't be stupid."

Caden was the only one to say something. He seemed angry. He was worried about me. I knew he was right, but I wasn't going to change my mind. This world has gone through too much suffering cause of the catastrophes. Someone needed to do it.

"I know it sounds crazy,

I exhaled, gripping my knees.

But how can I sit back and do nothing? Every day, more people die. Every hour. If no one else can stop him… then I have to."

I clenched my fists, thinking of the battlefield I had never seen but knew too well from whispered stories. Four demon generals. Each ruling their own floor of the Dark Castle, their black banners flying high. Beneath them, three lieutenants each—twelve monsters leading legions of demons to burn our lands and slaughter our people.

And what did we have?

I imagined the Warlords, humanity's greatest warriors, leading our armies into hopeless battles. Three Warlords, three lieutenants, three commanders. Nine warriors to hold back an endless tide. Even our emperor, the strongest of them all, could only afford to step in when two or more demon generals moved together. He had an empire to run, after all.

The numbers never lied. Twelve versus nine. A losing war from the start.

I could still remember the stories from the Grey Zone. A thriving city wiped out overnight. A battalion torn apart by a single demon general. And yet, despite everything, humanity never gave up.

And neither would I.

I announced to the party all that I was thinking: How long I wanted to stay as an adventurer, roughly when I would join the army and a few other details. The mood remained heavy throughout the whole conversation.

"You know we won't be joining you on that road, don't you, Kael?"

I knew that from the start. Finnian was here to provide for his older parents in the wetlands. Caden was an orphan, like me, who was only in this business for the money. He wanted to rack up gold and lay low for the rest of his life. That's where we differed. As for Elyndor, she had a dream to heal as many people as she could. Too scared to join the army, she settled for the adventurers guild.

When I finished my rant on my future plans, we discussed where we would be heading out to next. Caden suggested we headed to the drylands.

"Now that we have a miner on the team, we should head out to the crystal caves. This is where most ores can be found. We can make a lot of cash from it."

The rest of the party wasn't opposed to this. Neither was I. Money was what I needed and that's where I'd find it. Of course, we'd fight monsters along the way and even in the caves, so I'd still be able to practice and grow my skills while observing how the rest of them fight and learn from them.

We headed back to the guild to take on quests at the mission board. Since it was a long journey of roughly 10 days by carriage, it was a smart idea to pick up missions around that area. More money, more combat experience.

Among the seemingly endless requests, only a few sounded reasonable for our level.

————— MISSION BOARD —————

[ Difficulty level: D ]

[Objective: Gather Opium Mushrooms, Spider Silk, Firefly essence, Goblin blood and Moonstone dust. Deliver them back to the alchemist shop inside Mercalis ]

[ Contractor: Edelweiss, the alchemist ]

[ Reward: 25 silver coins ]

———————————————————

[ Difficulty level: C- ]

[ Objective: Subjugate the goblin nest in the wetlands, south east of the western boarder. Many goblins have been running rampant in the forest, ravaging crop fields. ]

[ Contractor: Farmer Garrick ]

[ Reward: 45 silver coins, any lootings from the goblins ]

———————————————————

"We'll take these two. Any objections?"

No one objected. These two were almost perfect for our party. Caden had the strength to fight the goblins while Elyndor would support him with her healing arts. Finnian lived in the country, so he knew what materials to look for and where they were. A big advantage was how our quests interlinked.

"Before we head out, we should stop by old man Vorn's store. We can't have Kael out adventuring with the scrap he's wearing now can we. Not to mention his little butter knife he carries."

The party chuckled. I opened my mouth, but no words came. What do you even say to people who save your life, who feed you, shelter you, and now arm you? Gratitude wasn't enough.

The forge was at the edge of the trade district, squat and worn, its blackened stone walls streaked with soot. A rusted iron sign above the entrance, the letters barely readable: 'Vorn's Blades & Mail'. Unlike the polished shops with their bright displays, this place is open to the street, the heat spilling out like a living thing. The clang of metal on metal rings through the air.

I stepped inside, and the heat slammed into me, thick and suffocating. The scent of burning coal, oil, and raw iron clings to the walls. Weapons line every surface: swords, axes, and spears stacked in racks, their edges gleaming in the forge's glow. Shields hang from wooden beams, dented and worn. There's no order here, no display for customers—just steel, waiting for a hand to claim it.

At the back, a massive, scarred man hammers at a glowing blade, his arms thick with muscle, his bald head glistening with sweat. He doesn't acknowledge me. I take a step closer, eyes tracing the weapons, drawn to a short sword resting on a rack. My fingers barely brush the hilt when his voice cuts through the air.

"You got coin, or are you just here to gawk?"

I froze, unsure whether he was serious or just testing me. The heat of the forge pressed in on me, and for a moment, I considered turning back. But then I remembered why I was here. I needed this.

"I'm not here to gawk," I said, trying to sound confident. "I need proper gear… something to help me survive out there."

Vorn didn't respond right away. His gaze flickered over me, sizing me up like a blacksmith inspecting a lump of unshaped metal. Then he grunted and motioned toward the racks.

"Got any coin, or do I need to knock some sense into you?"

I stepped forward, feeling both a strange thrill and fear. Whatever was about to happen, I knew this forge—this man—was going to shape my future in ways I couldn't predict.