FSE

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The vast room slowly filled with furs of all ages, as it did muted, excited voices began filling the void in anticipation of what was to come. It wasn't long before the excited chatter was replaced with the joyful screams of cubs playing, complaining, crying and whatever cubs and young do when in such places. Occasionally, a parent would be seen taking an unruly cub out of the room, only to hear the slap of a paw on the problem cub's rear followed by painful wails from their paddling.

"Kingdoms come... Kingdoms go." A soft voice intoned just loud enough to be heard over the din of the assembled furs. "We have all seen this through the course of time and will see again in the future. We have been witness to that many times in the course of our history."

Slowly but surely the noise quieted to a dull rumble as what appeared to be a wizened, tailless wolf slowly limp onto the stage, his staff clicking with each slow step he made. His meticulously groomed dark grey fur did little to hide scars from years past, scars from battles, scars from hunts and the like. By the time he made his way to the center of the raised dais before sitting in a sturdy rocking chair, the assembled crowd was silent and all eyes focused on him. As he sat down, he motioned to the young in attendance to gather around his feet.

"Today is a special day." He said in a soft hoarse voice, smiling sadly. "Once again we celebrate the freedoms that were stolen from us all those years ago. To celebrate those who were lost in the terrible battle that restored our freedoms, to honor those who gave their very lives defending what we cherish and love."

Looking down at the cubs around his feet, he grinned mischievously. "We also need to remember those we love that have left to parts unknown whether they did so freely or against their will. The celebration will begin shortly, but tradition also dictates that one of the Elders in every village, town or city start things off with a tale and tonight it is my turn."

He stopped briefly as he looked around at the assembled furs, his eyes glimmered mischievously. The cubs at his paws yelped in surprise, quickly backing away towards the adults as the elder slowly drew a beautiful but deadly blade from a hidden scabbard under his cloak. "I have thought long and hard about the tale you are about to hear tonight." He said as he brandished the blade for all to see. The blade glistened in the strong light in the room, the main blade was a clear blue that glowed with a faint aura, the two smaller blades flanking the main blade that curved out and back towards the weapon. "This blade I hold in my paw became my inspiration; it has a tale that goes back centuries. This is Nightshade the Dragonslayer, made eons ago from the very hearts of dead stars; it was handed down from father to son, looking for its destiny, its one true Master. It has found its Master, but as fate would have it, its Master has no desire to keep such a beautiful weapon for themselves, so I was tasked to take care of this blade until such time comes for its Master to reclaim it. Something that may never happen in this lifetime.

"Now this tale is long. It is full of adventure, good, bad and otherwise." The elder said as he sat down in the chair. "As I said earlier... Kingdoms come and kingdoms go, and you know what remains of kingdoms? Their history, their stories, their legends, and their ruins are all that remains, nothing else. A good story teller will tell stories about both the good and bad kingdoms so all will hopefully learn a lesson. The tale I am telling you today is about one who should have never been born, one who went through and is still going through challenges as I speak. Not only will the tale be about the one main character, our tale will also tell about those close to him as well.

"Now where to begin, that is very important you know starting a good tale always needs an intriguing beginning..." He said as he placed the blade point down and rested his muzzle lightly on it. "Should I tell you how they came to be?"

"NO!" Shouted the cubs around him.

"Do I start at the middle?"

"NO!"

"How this sordid tale got started?"

"YES!" The cubs shouted gleefully.

"I see." The old male said softly, his eyes gleaming mischievously. "Gather 'round then, and I will tell you of a young man who was given a chance to be a leader and chose not to be the king of our kingdom. How he grew up learning the ways of the common folk, learning the evils of the land as well as the good bounty it can offer as well. It was foretold that he was destined for greatness eons ago with this prophecy from a small, yet very insignificant wolfclan...

"The omens and the stars point to the one who will either save or destroy our clan. The one will be a part of us, and yet not one of us, forever alone. They will be a friend, an enemy, a lover, a stranger always alone, yet in need of companionship. Their friends, enemies, demons, angels and strangers alike will test them in ways that they will never expect. They will come to our clan on the harvest moon by the one who has rejected their own clans. The one's path has been set and they are already on it. Once the one has left the clan, they will find their destiny; they will also find their purpose after many trials. The clan's future rests with the one; they will test the one's resolves and convictions before the one departs us forever.

"Our story begins many, many years ago in the frozen northern wastes of our kingdom, where summer never shows its warm face having been driven out by the Ice Gods themselves. Very deep in an ancient forest that is said to be older than the world as we have known it has existed..."