5:00am
(Beep, Beep, Beep)
A tired hand reached out towards the wooden alarm clock atop a makeshift dresser. It is made of logs bound by rope and hardened tree sap. The wooden walls creaked against the storm of rain and wind outside, the wind chimes becoming a never ending reminder of how strong it has become.
The bed creaked under his weight as he swung his legs off of his bed which was covered in thick blankets colored in hues of dark reds and browns.
He reached towards his face and rubbed the tiredness out of his light brown eyes. "Oh fuck...",he yawned, before standing up, letting his bare feet touch the softness of his carpet. It had a black and white design of flowers and vines with two large snakes in the middle. The carpet covered shabby wood paneling that was a bit on the grayer side.
The man sauntered towards the bathroom as he rolled his large muscled shoulders and back before doing his morning routine. However, he paused this time to look at his reflection in his lopsided mirror which had a crack going across it. He inspected his bare chest, he ran his fingers against a freshly made wound, a large scratch he had gotten the day before as he fended off a monster from invading a humanoid rabbit family home.
His home was a small cottage in the woods, it was always warm inside, despite the bitter cold that always plagued outside. The windows always glowed a warm orange color, even at night because of lanterns that never go out. The cottage is covered in different species of plants, it even had a moss covered roof. The walls seemed to be taken by nature, as if it has been morphed into the ground. His home was always known to have natural healing properties, however no one knows where these properties come from.
The small town about 2 miles out aren't fond of the forest where this healing cottage resides. The forest is known to inhabit monsters of many kinds, as well as dangerous creatures and people.
The man inspected his plants carefully, making sure they are in good health. "Do you little ones like storms?", he asked them. He stared at them as if expecting an answer, however a thunderous sound filled the silence.
Then he turned around and walked towards his small dining table and picked up a parchment.
He read the words over and over again:
Dear Krein,
A man was dumped at our house, poisoned and deeply injured, he has not woken up from what seems to be a coma. The storms have kept the town and us in constant disarray and we have started running low on resources. We are now rationing medicine! The man seems to be of the Blood Court, and you know how we feel about them, but I could not just let him die. So we are asking of you...to please take him in. You have a spare room, and we know you are more than capable of saving one more life. Please.
—Jinny
Krein set the paper down. "Blood Court..",He spoke as if it was a little gross to say. He then faced the portrait of his parents on the wall, a reminder of the hole he had to dig himself and fill. He quickly grabbed a quill and put a hard NO, on the bottom of the note before sending it off in a poof of magic.
Krein sighed and pushed back his short dark red hair. He grabbed an axe that was leaning against the wall next to the front door and walked outside into the heavy rain to chop wood inside his cellar.
///////like 3 hours of chopping wood and training with swords later////////
Krein put his longsword back on the weapon table as he wiped the sweat off his brow. Just then a letter appeared in front of him before falling into his calloused hands.
'PLEASE' it said.
Krein grumbled and decided to ignore it. He went back into the rain, allowing the paper to dissolve with the water. He smiled at himself as he watched the paper disappear. The smile faded at the dim light of a lantern in the distance. "No...", the sound of horse hooves on a stone path echoed in his ears."no no no...NO!" He continued as he started running towards the light.
