Chapter I

Rade was a young man who lived in the village of Kapech. In a country plagued by conflicts and wars, a village like Kapech was a sanctuary, being hidden well within the forest and far away from the battle-plagued fields and bloodied city walls. The peaceful nature of the town was such a stark contrast to the outside lands that its residents could be easily mislead into thinking that the tales of war and danger were much further than they really were.

One might imagine that living in such a privileged position would cause its residents to have a sense of apathy towards matters concerning their country beyond their forest boarders, yet nothing could be further from the truth. Other than a few exceptions, the general population was rather prepared for warfare and was ready to defend their village- none more so than Rade.

Rade was a young man and a good fighter, by the standards of his village at least. He had a beautifully crafted suit of armor of blue and gold, made painstakingly by the hands of his parents who had spent most of their lives outside of Kapech. They knew the nature of the war-torn lands and thus created a suit of armor made for more than just the occasional skirmishes with an intruder or raiding party that entered their forest realm. None the less, in events of enemy intrusions (which were taken very seriously in Kapech) Rade rested not in the protection of his armor but fought bravely in defense of his village and had helped to keep it safe all this time.

Rade's basic fighting skills picked up over the years served him well in such a protected and safe environment where the enemies were few and far between. Yet in his heart Rade felt that he was a warrior meant for much bigger battles, as his armor was made for. For he knew that as long as he stayed in this sanctuary, far from harm and danger and the cares of the rest of the country, he would never become the warrior he wanted to be.

Stepping out of heaven into hell was not something anyone does on a whim of a fancy. Rade had been thinking about it for a long time, his heart burning within him to bring his blue blade into the battles that mattered, yet the kindling passion still needed a gentle nudge to act on. This finally came much later in the form of a cry for aid from a village just outside the forest. Rade donned his armor, strapped on his blade and for the first time in his life, stepped out of Kepech and into the bigger world.