So here I am, the unlikely hero, standing outside the castle. My merry band of misfits both eager and timid to follow me into what may be our doom, each of us intending to gain something different from this adventure; whether it be love, money, fame, or just the adventure itself. All of us armed in some way, in hopes that we're truly ready to slay the dragon who awaits us inside and the damsel locked away in her tower hoping for a brave hero to come to her aid.

We're going to do this, every fairy tale I've ever been told, since I was just hatchling sitting with my brothers and sister, guaranties that we're ready. Mother always said that the underdog always won, that the smallest man could move mountains, that Fate smiles on people like us. It had to… right?

~*~*~*~*~*~

Perhaps I'm starting to fast, quite unlike me, I should start back at the beginning instead.

It was a chilled day in mid-Spring when my siblings and I hatched… what, too far back? This does hold relevance, I promise, you'll simply ask a large deal of questions, like "What do you mean by hatched?", should I start from the beginning of the adventure. Be patent, now, where was I?

Oh yes, it was a chilled day in mid-Spring when my siblings and I hatched. I was slower then the rest. When I first heard the sound of my mothers voice and felt her nuzzle against my outer shell I felt loved and eager to meet her but a high pitched screeching sound, which I now know was my brother hatching, drew her away and I was suddenly frightened. More screeching came all around me as time went by and I became determined to stay in my shell.

In a short time the screeching grow quieter and my shell began to feel smaller and smaller the longer I sat inside. The air felt heavier and I couldn't stand containment any longer. I began to squirm and struggle with the shell around me and soon enough it broke. I was free.

Then I saw Mother. I chirped with joy and love at the sight of her. Her body and head were that of a golden brown hen body, her black wings like a bat's and her long green tail belonged to a serpent but with feathers on the end. But I didn't know that. I didn't know anything at the time other than that she was there, she was warm, and she was Mother. That was enough.

~*~*~*~*~*~

As time passed my siblings and I would change from little balls of yellow fuzz, we would soon become golden brown, our tails would become longer, our wings would became stronger and the males would grow their wattles and combs. We would learn to fly and glide, to hunt and fight and hide. And of course we'd learn to turn people to stone with a touch. Like any good cockatrice.

If only it were so simple for me. I was different from most of my siblings. I was a pyrolisk.

A cockatrice and a pyrolisk are both very similar. Both have the same body, though pyrolisk have red tinge to their feathers and a long red feather on their tail. The big difference though is their powers, a cockatrice can turn a person to stone with a touch but a pyrolisk can cause you to burst into flames with just a look. Supposedly we're more fierce and we also hunt out of boredom. Supposedly.

But how was I a pyrolisk and not all of my siblings you may wonder, well that has to do with our fathers. You see, female cockatrice are extremely rare, in fact a nest with two females was cause for rejoice in my family. A flock of males normally follow around a single female or Mother. Males do everything in their power to keep the female comfortable and happy while they're pregnant and while the eggs are being warmed. They bring the female (and the chicks once their hatched) food, they defend the nest and they keep us groomed, all in exchange for keeping our species alive.

The pyrolisk is different, they're normally solitary and only met to mate. (If the male could catch the female that is.) The female then chase the male off. The female cares for herself and does the work of a whole flock of cockatrice.

How my father became part of the flock I'm unsure, he wasn't the type to talk to us much and wasn't really like the other fathers. He was bigger and harsher and wasn't afraid to threaten any one of us, unless Mother was in ear shoot. I never saw him as my father, he did so little for me other than defend the nest. (Not really a big deal when people normally weren't stupid enough to attack a whole nest of cockatrice.)

Really, he only ever did two things for me. The first was teaching me the stare, with which I could set things a flame. The second thing was giving me my name.

2: A Father's Love...

Sleeping in an average nest can be a bit crowded. Sleeping in a nest with six growing siblings and four fully grown adult cockatrice and on occasion a fully grown pyrolisk, that something different entirely. That's Hell.

I had, there-for, taken to having early mornings where I would dismiss myself from the nest and begin to peck around for worms before my sibling bet me to it. It wasn't bad really, I'd gotten used to it, being the smallest, so of course I put up with it. Besides, it was valuable life experience.

As I hunted along I found the the sparrows had learned just as I had and were taking my food before I could reach it. 'Great', was all I could think, 'now I'm even losing to the smaller birds'. Soon it was a competition and I was losing. I retched a worm just in time for a sparrow steal it from my beak and make with it onto a branch in a near by tree. How pathetic.

I gave the bird a hateful stare and then suddenly it was in flames. I jumped in horror and landed at the feet of one my many fathers. He glared at me, as if to mock me, he then proceeded to bite at the back of my neck.

"Hey, hey, ow!" I batted at him and jumped a safe distance away. "Cut it out or I'll tell Mother!"

"Of course you will" He took another bite at me, "and do you know why?"

"Because you're a lunatic who's trying to kill me!"

"No, because you have no spine!" yet another bite in my direction. "You're letting sparrow take you're food, when the sparrows should be your food! You can't even set fires yet!

"You know what my nest mates did to the runt in our clutch? We ate him by mid-Autumn. It's the beginning of Winter now, you've over stayed your welcome, Runt." He hissed at me.

I backed away just a bit, "That's not for you to decide, we've not yet-"

"No we, none of the other need to leave yet. Just you." His feathers became ruffled and he continued his bites and now added claws to the assault.

I glanced in the direction of the nest but he was far a head of me. He block my path and screeched. "You really think you can out run me? I love to see you try, at least then you'd be good for something."

He continued to attack not letting up and all the while chasing me farther and farther from the nest. Soon I was simply running and him pursuing, perhaps I could have made it to the nest. We were soon near a lake, miles away from the nest. He hated water, it could work to my advantage. I ran for the water but I suppose I never had a chance, he saw what I was doing the moment I moved in the direction.

He tackled me to the ground and pinned their. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't crush your skull." He hissed as his clawed feet gripped my head.

I whimpered fear and he hissed more. "Alright, alright I'll leave. Just stop it already."

He wasn't pleased and forced my face in the dirt. "Sorry Runt, not gonna cover it anymore."

"Wha-What do you want from me then?" I begged.

"What do I want?" He demanded. "I want you to act like a pyrolisk, like you truly share my blood. I will not stand for such disgraceful off-spring, I'd rather see you dead!"

I was terrified and surely doomed, if only I could make it to the water. My squirms and struggles did nothing to aid me and I was going to die if I couldn't do something. His claw tightened a bit more and I closed my eyes and focused with all my might. I focused all my fear and hatred for my father, for my own weakness and dammit-all for those fucking sparrow too! I focused all of my hate and then I looked up.

3: ... is Sometimes Misguided

I'll never forget the rush that came over me when I saw my father burst into flames. The way he pounced off of me and stumbled about for a few moments. The flames swallowing him entirely. It felt good and damn if I didn't want to stand there forever and watch him burn.

I'll also never forget the shear horror that flowed throw me when he put out the flames with nothing more than a quick shake of his feathers. Of course, pyrolisks are fire proof. They sometimes even set themselves on fire when they fight. I was heart broken at the sight and I knew I was going to die.

Father then proceeded to laugh like it were the funniest thing he'd ever experienced. He then charged and tackled me again. I'd like to say I fought him but I think it's clear by now that I was no good at that. He pinned me down again but this time, far more gently and of course still laughing.

"It's about damn time! I knew it was in there somewhere, just needed a little motivation." He crowed.

I glared up at him again, the hate didn't stop and he was on fire again. The grin on his face, though, told me it wasn't bothering him in the slightest. So in it's stead I squirmed and struggled again.

"Get off!" To my surprise he did.

"Right, right. We need to get back before the rest of the nest starts wondering where we've gone. Come on, Runt." He seemed far to pleased with himself.

"What, after all of that, threatening to kill me and ordering me to leave, now you just want to go back like it never happened?" I demanded.

"Oh please, I wasn't gonna kill ya and I couldn't force you to leave. Your mother would kill me." He chucked.

I just stared at him until he looked back to see I wasn't following. "Come on Runt, don't have all morning. Move it or Mother'll have both our tails."

I followed, reluctantly, but I follow. "This isn't over." Warned him.

"Perfect, sounding more and more like a pyrolisk every second."

4: Not a Name!

We made it back to the nest with little trouble and explained the damage Father had done to me with the explanation that I had finally learned my stare. We rejoiced and most of the day from then on was spent with me showing them my power. And of course setting Father on fire as often as possible.

In time Father began train myself and my bother, who was the only other pyrolisk born to the nest, more and more with our stares. Soon enough we were providing the food for the nest and helping defend the grounds around the nest.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Father woke us in the middle of the night. "Time for your shift, move it."

By that time it was normal and we rose without complaint. Though as he lead us away to our posts I set him a blaze, as I did each night. At this point the act surprised no one and Father had come to find the act of rebellion cute and "the perfect pyrolisk attitude". Father soon left us to our own duties and returned to the nest.

In the darkness of the night we sat a distance apart, the only thing on my mind was wishing to go back to sleep but I didn't realize how very different my brothers thoughts were. A bit later I realized he was staring at me. Glaring actually.

"Is something bothering you?" I asked, a bit uneasy.

"Yes," he kept glaring, "you. You are what's bothering me."

I blinked. "What? What did I do?"

"You have been so unkind to father ever since he taught you your stare." He snapped. "He wasted time on you, helping you learn, even when you were so pathetic and yet you show him no gratitude for anything he's done for you."

"I only treat him in kind for what he's done to me, I hardly need your approval for how I act." I snapped right back. "Besides, what do you care, both he and you said I need to be tougher."

"It's just unfair, I have been loyal and ready to learn. I've followed his every example and never questioned his methods. I didn't even complain about have night shifts. Yet even still he favors you!" His words grew more frustrated as he spoke.

"He does not favor me!" I challenged "He is always taunting and rude. Not to mention he always refers to me as Runt. How is any of that favoring me?"

Brother looked away from me. "None of us were given names."

"It's not a name, it's an insult!" I hissed. "We don't need names anyways."

"No, we don't need them but we want them." Brother had become quieter now. "It's just not fair, what makes you so much more special? Why are you the one to get a name and not the rest of us?"

I didn't have an answer for him, I didn't even think he was right. So I simply stayed quiet and he did the same. The rest of the night was nothing but an uneasy silence between us.

Brother stopped speaking to me after that night and I became all too aware of the fact that my other siblings would, on occasion, wonder off away from me and sometimes give me hateful looks.

5: Mother's Bedtime Stories

The days soon grew warmer and the nest seemed to grow smaller. It seemed so fast the way time passed. Soon we would be old enough for our parents to cast us out of the nest so that we may make or join our own flocks and build our own nests.

Together we sat in the nest, nestled up close to Mother. She told us, as she did every night, the tales of great heroes. Stories where they would fight demons and troll and dragon. Where they saved whole towns from rampaging orcs. Where they saved princesses, married them and became kings, even if they were born peasants. And so many other wonders that most could only dream of.

When Mother finished her story she spoke the same words she would speak after every story.

"My children, a hero is a strong thing. They are blessed by the gods, it is their destiny to live and fight. They will succeed against all odds and most impotent to remember, they will kill you if you give them a chance. They will see you as vile monsters and will kill you for defending your nest and your young. Never give them the chance to kill you. Never let them threaten your nest."

She would speak these words each night and send us to sleep with them. The heroics and kindhearted nature. It only made me want to meet one of these great heroes.

I would sometimes lay awake at night and wonder what it would be like to be like the heroes in Mother's story. Strong, brave, honest and noble. That's what I wanted, but I was one of the monsters. I could never be the hero, It was simply against what nature wanted for my kind.

Then again, Fate always favored heroes…

6: Goodbye

The morning light hit me in way I had long forgotten; asleep. I realize, after a bit of grogginess, that Father did not wake me or Brother for our night shift. I then realized that only my siblings and myself were in the nest. I knew without a second thought what this meant.

I left the nest, looking back only once or twice, and proceeded to seek a new nesting ground. It all should have been instinct.

At a lake a few miles away from home I could see Father sitting, staring into the water and looking rather unhappy. I set him on fire, more so he would know I was coming, before sitting beside him.

"So, you gonna eat any of the stragglers?" I teased.

"Of course not but your mother did tell me to set the nest on fire if they're not all gone by noon." He gave a halfhearted chuckle to himself.

I sighed. "Well, I suppose this is goodbye then. Do try to be bit less horrible to your future young. Just a thought."

He chuckled again. "I'll think about it. Good luck, Runt. I think I might actually miss ya'."

The words were the kindest I'd ever heard from him, it somehow felt wrong even hearing it. "… Goodbye Father."

I turned from him and with great difficulty I walked away without looking back. But it wasn't just walking away from him or the nest. I walked a great distance; in hours I was farther than I'd ever been from the nest, in days I was out of the forest entirely and going through roaming hills.

In a week I saw farm land. In a few hours of that, those working on the farm saw me. It was easy to see they'd never encountered something quite like me and I only knew what they were from Mother's stories.

I didn't go in towards the farms, I knew it would be more trouble than it was worth. Oddly enough though, the less interest I showed in the humans, the more they showed in me.

7: Little One

I knew better than to trust them; they were human after all, but I found myself interested in, what was to me, a great oddity. They were foreign and strange, things I thought I would never see, like all the fairy tales I was told were just that, fairy tales.

In time, however, both sides began to warm to each other. The humans began to approach me and some would offer seeds and bread crumbs. I too began to cooperate, not running when they came close, sometimes taking there offerings and soon enough, making a nest of sticks, stones and tall grass.

I remember the time there well, mostly because of Little One. Little One was a kind thing, the first to approach. (much to the other's fears and dismay) She was small for a human, barely bigger than myself, and had long yellow hair.

As time went on she would sit beside me in the field more and more. She would read to me and tell me secrets and I grew fond of our time. Though at the time I was not capable of speaking the human tongue, I still felt as though a bound had grown between us.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Not all the humans trusted me on the farm, it was a thing I didn't think would change, but by mid-summer I was to be proven wrong. The farm was peaceful, the sun would soon go down in few hours. The sheep were still in the field grazing and would soon be brought in their fence.

One of the human, who I had come to know as the Father of this flock, called his dogs and they began to do their routine of herding the sheep. He had a stern look about him that night as the sheep were gathered.

He glance in my direction and saw Little One beside me, reading to me and showing me the pictures in the book. "Child, what did I tell you? I don't want you goin' near that thing and I don't want you wanderin' into the field this late!" He shouted. "There've been coyot' attacks on our neighbors heard and I don' want you getting hurt out there."

"But Papa, I won't get hurt. Mr. Chicken can keep me safe." She insisted.

"Like hell it will!" He shouted even louder and marched out into the field. He forcefully took her arm pulled her away to the wooden nest the humans lived in. I didn't dare confront him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The moon rose and the beasts of the night came alive. The crickets and owls and various rodents made soft sounds and I slowly faded to sleep. That is, I would have faded to sleep, if not for the sound of a howl filling the air. In an instant I was awake and took on the most threatening stance I could manage.

I was not the only one to awaken, the Father rushed out of his nest with an object that held a small flame (just enough to give light) and an odd metal poll in hand. I'd seen the poll before, he'd pointed it at me many times but never attacked me with it. He swung it around, back and forth and at least once or twice pointed it at me, as though I intended to attack him.

The sound of sheep crying out caught our attention and Father ran to the source. I followed behind a bit slower, not wanting to alarm him. Making it to the pen, we could clearly see the sight of two large grey hounds and the horrifying sight of where the howl had come from.

The two herding dogs, that I had seen assist the Father many times before, were on the ground bloody and only slightly moving. I felt shocked and appalled that these beasts could do such a thing to those of such close breed.

Father however chose to rise his poll and for the first time I saw it at work. It made a sound like thunder and let out a small puff of smoke and fire. (from what I could see any ways) It didn't seem like it should have done a thing, other than terrify them but it did, It left a bloody wound in the side of one of the beasts.

They both attacked and the one already hurt was hit again, this time in the neck. It fell over and never moved again. The second, however, was faster and managed to bite one of Father's hands and tore it away from the poll.

In an instant I wished I could use my flames but I feared for the human Father and refused to use them. Instead I chose to charge. I flapped my wings fiercely and dug my claws in as deep as I could. I found myself the full interest of the beast now and used every bit of aggression I could on it, from hissing to peaking at it's eyes.

Soon enough the hound was away from Father and he held the poll again, this time with difficulty. He attacked but it missed and sadly it grow the beasts attention. It went to attack him only for another sound of thunder to fill the air and a new wound to be in it's head. It to stopped moving.

A distance away I could see another human, who I had come to know as the Mother of the nest, in her hands she held another long metal poll. She then pointed it at me.

I froze and lowered myself to the ground, keeping my body low and showing no aggression to her. She was the dominate female and saw me as a threat to her mate, if I wanted to live I would have to submit before she furthered her attack. All the while Mother followed me with the weapon and eyed me carefully.

"Woman, put that gun down and help me!" Father shouted, though he sounded ill in a way. His hand now bleeding quite badly.

Mother glared at him. "I am helping you! This bird-"

"That bird may have just saved my life. Now you put that gun down." He ordered.

She gave me an untrusting gaze but did as she was told. His hand was wrapped and the same was done for the dogs. The sheep were checked and found in good health.

All-in-all it somehow felt like a small victory and I was glad to have it.

8: Offering

I am sad to say that the dogs were not as lucky as Father, their age and the damage done left one crippled and the other dead. Little One cried for a long time and later buried the dog in what I could only assume was an offering to the earth.

The living dog no long was able to heard and didn't seem to adjust well, still trying to do the things that Father had expected of him before.

For my part, I became almost like a true member of the flock. I was welcome near the human nest, Little One was permitted to be near me and I now work with Father as his herder. It was silly, yes, chasing sheep around but all the same it felt proper to assist.

Everything was perfect, my life was better than I could have imagined it, until the day a stronger flock came along.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was now Autumn, the leaves only just starting to fall from the trees and the fields now the perfect time for harvest. And indeed the harvest seemed to cause a big commotion. It had to be ready in time but for what no one would say.

Many men came to the nest and had loud arguments with Father about an offering being done at his nest this year. The men were insistent and soon Father agreed, though not happy in the least.

There was so much to be done that even Little One would not stop to speak to me or stay late to tell me secrets. It confused me greatly and had me concerned.

In time food, fabrics, pottery and animals of all shapes and sizes were gathered together in the large field the the human nest sat on. People gathered and shared frightful looks with each other.

More than once they looked at me and many were afraid I would attack. Father calmed their nerves though and swore I would do them no harm. And of course I would not break the honor of his word.

Loud sounds, that was what humans called music, (though I still care to disagree) filled the air. The appalling sound came from a metal horn held by a small man in a bright blue outfit. (with many frills) He had stepped down from a horse drawn carriage.

He cleared his throat and spoke triumphantly "Now presenting his majesty, Lord William Yor VI and his majesty, Lord William Yor VII."

Another small man in the bright blue outfit opened the carriage door and out stepped a man about as old as Father and after him a boy about as old as Little One. The man had brown hair and a well kept beard and the boy had long black hair pulled back into a pony tail. Each of them stood tall and with purpose and moved in a way as though walking on the dirt was beneath them.

"So this is your offering to the royal family?" The man asked dryly "Not nearly as impressive as last year."

All eyes were on Father. "My apologies my Lord, this year did not treat our people well."

"That's what they said last year." Boy said, just as dryly as the man.

"We've done all we can." Father spoke, fear in voice. A first for me.

"If all you can is this poor then perhaps you're not worth the trouble." The man held no emotion to his voice and it was a struggle to know what I should feel in response.

"But" Mother spoke fearfully before she could stop herself.

"But?" The man now glared at Mother. "Is there something you would like to say wench?"

"I-I just…" She began. Her eyes glanced down and she saw me.

In an instant she bent down and took me into her arms. "We've found this creature to make up what we couldn't grow."

Everyone looked to her and me. The man eyed me as though someone had sown together the parts of many animals onto a still living chicken. Little One eyed her Mother with what looked like heart ache. The many members of the town all looked with what I only could assume was hope.

"What is that beast?" The man sounded appalled.

"It's amazing!" The boy spoke with the first sigh emotion I'd seen from him. His eyes were wide with delight. "It's a cockatrice."

The man frowned. "What?"

"They live in the magic forest and are extremely rare. This one is so young and female at that." The boy was now bright and lost any form elegance.

"Female? How can you tell?" He asked before he could stop himself.

"Females have no wattles or combs." The boy explained, all too over joyed. "But they're so rare, even more than the males, I don't know how anyone could capture one."

"So perhaps it is worthy of an offering." Mother spoke. "You'll not find a creature like this just anywhere and certainly not one broken or friendly as this one."

"I suppose so." The man spoke one last time before returning to the carriage.

The boy took me from Mother's arms with out question and took me with him. My heart sank as I saw Little One begin to cry.

9: Ambush

As the carriage began to move the man gave the boy a disgusted look and then gave the same look to me. The boy held an ashamed look as he held me in his lap.

"Unbelievable, I told you to be a silent observer. You are a noble, you mustn't put yourself on there level." He scolded the boy.

"I am sorry Father, I simply hadn't expected to ever see such a beast alive with my own eyes. I had not prepared myself for such a thing." The boy sounded as though he was fighting back tears.

The man's face lost it's harshness and he sighed. "So this beast is valuable?" His voiced sounding kinder.

The boy wiped his eyes before smiling and nodding. "The court wizard spoke of them many times. He wished for a familiar of one in his youth but they were simply too rare."

Court wizard, like in Mother's stories of kings and heroes? With these words I realized that this was a stronger nest. The man was a superior Father and the boy was his offspring. I felt a new fear for what they could do to me. After all, if the last nest had such a powerful weapon, then… what did this nest have?

What weapon captured the loyalty of men?

~*~*~*~*~*~

The carriage rode on for a bit but soon stopped. The man I now knew as Father grew irritated. "We can't be home yet. Why have we stopped?"

No response came but much moving came from outside. I kept my head low and hoped it wouldn't become something far worse. No luck.

The door of the carriage was thrown open and sword was pointed at Father. "Get out." He was ordered. He did as he was told and was kept at sword point.

"Please, do what you will with me but leave my son." He begged the man. The man sneered and hit Father on back of his head with the hilt of his blade. He fell to the ground unconscious.

The swords man then grabbed the boy and pulled him out as well. He was thrown to the ground, a sword was put to his back. I was horrified by this and acted on impulse. I attacked the mans face and pecked at his eyes. Screaming in shock he back away from the boy.

I ended up next to the boy on the ground and saw that this was an ambush, with men all around the carriage. Panic and fear went through me at the sight of their numbers.

In the end, I did the first thing I could think of, I glared.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Perhaps the smell of burning flesh shouldn't have given me ease but it did and further more it gave me satisfaction. The men, who were so foolish as to attack us, all ended up as chard crumpled heaps on the dirt road.

I slowly approached the two members of, what I had come to assume were, my new flock. The boy looked up from the dirt and gave a fearful stair. I nuzzled him and tried to be as gentle as possible.

"You're… you're not a cockatrice." The boy said in a small voice.

He broke his elegant demeanor again and hugged me close. "You saved us…."

The men who worked the carriage where knocked out as well but woke soon enough. They put Father (who was still unconscious) back into the carriage and we soon made our way down the road.

This would be the beginning of a new life for me and a marvelous new friendship.

10: Nobles of Woodheart

After saving these members of my newest flock thing get less important.

Granted, in the years following, the court wizard cast some spells on me that gave me the gift of the human tongue and with the language gap gone I was able to learn many great things about humans and their culture. Though old habits die hard, I never did get use to calling a the castle my "home" rather than my nest and the dominant male was never not Father to me. (Lord William got use to it though.)

I never did go back to the magic forest or see Little One again, I didn't even know the girl's real name. They were both regrets that could of been solved easily but for some reason I never had the courage. There was nothing in the forest for me anyway and Little One, well, I wasn't so sure she'd even remember me after a time. So, whether I liked it or not, I let both go.

~*~*~*~*~*~

The family of Yor were nobles but they were in no way in line for the throne unless an unlikely marriage were to be arranged. Father lorded over the castle of Woodheart and the some small nameless villages and farmlands like the one Little One and her family was a part of. Not much was expected of him other than to watch over and guard the villagers. And, of course, once a year the villagers were expected to give part of their harvest as an offering to the noble families and Father was expected to oversee it.

The villages were not much in the way of profit, they were land locked in the very center of the kingdom so there were not ports to bring in large amounts of goods or people and few people came threw or settled in the villages as they were so near the large magic forest. Only heroes or wannabe heroes went there. So the villages mostly kept to being self sustaining.

The young lord William, or Liam when Father was out of ear shot, was expected to take Father's place as Lord of Woodheart when the they both were ready but there was one thing that came first. Liam, like every boy who would try to claim his place on the throne in this kingdom, must prove himself a hero in some way. It was a law and tradition passed down for generations.

The kingdom known as Grimwood created the law many generations ago after the reins of cruel king. He enslaved his kingdom, brought poverty and let the magical creatures run a muck. The kingdom in it's misery, cried out for a savior. Their cries were answered by a simple peasant boy, Edward Smith, who cut the king down during a public execution. The kingdom rejoiced and declared that the peasant boy should take his place on the throne.

It wasn't so simple, of course, the nobles resisted the new rule as did the boy at first but a form of harmony eventually came over the kingdom. Peasants found themselves in good health, the nobles found the new rule to be better for them and new possibilities opened on all sides. Heroes began to prove themselves, trying to be as great as the Peasant King.

In his later years Lord Smith realized that his children, who had been born into a life of royalty, were spoiled and would never appreciate the position of ruling a kingdom as he had. They didn't see peasants the way he had because they had never been peasants.

Lord Smith looked at the many good young heroes and thought of himself. His children and the nobles never forgave him for his decision when he made the law, but that didn't change a thing. To be put in such position of power, he decided, they must prove themselves worthy of the power, they must become heroes.

It was now Liam's turn to prove him self.

11: Adventure and Heartache

The young lord took his departure quietly. Becoming a hero is hard enough, he didn't need his nobility to make harder. So he had decided that he would dress as a commoner and drop the title of lord and slip away at morning light.

Liam was now sixteen years old, though he was tall for his age, and his black hair had grown long and was well groomed. (That would have to change if he wanted his identity to be secret.) His eyes were bright and blue, not yet broke by the harshness of reality. He wasn't fat but I don't think I could rightly call him thin, he'd never fallen on hard times but he didn't actively gorge himself. There was a slight bit of stubble on his chin but he seemed unable to grow a beard which he found rather disappointing.

I can't say if I thought he was ready for the world outside of Woodheart but there wasn't much choice.

~*~*~*~*~*~

I thought he was talking foolishness, when he made his decision. His journey allows him a companion to accompany him, along with any who might join him down the road. Many good men and soldiers stood and offered him them assistance but he chose none of them. He turned to me, asked me to be by his side for this journey, as I had been for many good years.

My heart had fluttered and said yes without a second thought to it. I had told him, in both our youths, my wish to be like the heroes in Mother's stories. I had never seen what I'd done for my human flocks as acts of heroics, I always believed that heroes had a choice when it came to their action and I could never believe that there was any decision making when in either of those actions. I hadn't thought he would think of my childhood dreams in making such a vital decision. All the same, I would go with him with all the excitement in my heart.

So we set out to the little nameless village, it would take about a day to get their on foot.

He asked me, "What do you want to do first?" He looked all to excited.

"Me?" I asked right back. "This is your quest. Shouldn't you make the decisions?"

"This is the first time I've ever left the nest without an escort," Liam smiled, more to himself than me. "I'm taking everything in that I can, before it's too late."

"Don't call it a nest, you know that makes Father upset when you do that."

"That's why I do it." He teased. "Come on, we first got you at this village, isn't there someone you want to see?"

"I-I'm not really sure," I admitted. "It was years ago, the last time I was here. No one would even remember me, I'm sure."

"Right, because there are just so many pyrolisks going in and out of town." He gave me a small nudge. "What about the girl you told me about?"

I thought about it, Little One, I had spoken of her to Liam only a few times but it had left an impression on him. He wanted to meet her, to know more about my old family and about the people he would rule. I wasn't sure if it would be better to see her again or if I should let her stay pure and unchanged in my mind.

"A peasant girl, at her age?" I tried to move away from the idea. "She surely has already gotten married and moved on with her life."

"You can be married and still have old friends and, even if she has moved, I'm sure her parents would know where she is."

He convinced me, though it wasn't so hard to do, and we set out to the little farm. We'd be there by night fall and we hoped that perhaps we would be giving a place for the night.

~*~*~*~*~*~

It was the smell that hit us first, a smell that had become almost like a friend to me, something was freshly burned. We saw it shortly after, the nest and the grass field, all of it freshly burned, some of the field still burning.

I ran in without thought, Liam pleading for me to wait. The nest was collapsed and in ashes and no one was in the field.

I came back to Liam and broke down beside him. I saw no brightness in his eyes, like they were clouded over by the same thick layer of ash that covered the farm.

"Little One." I sobbed to myself and Liam held me close. We stayed near the remains for the night.

I was mid summer but I felt cold that night.