Chapter Text
The legends of the lands say that demons and witches will try to sway your beliefs. They will also try to make you think things that are not true, or things that may drive you away from others. Ex-Legionnaire David Kohen knows this for a fact. He probably knows this more than anyone, actually. The man, now considered a hobbit and runaway, is a living example of what a trickster demon can do to someone. Once trusted, now shunned, he sits alone at his one-room cabin on the outskirts of the town. His old, now rusted battle armor still wears the emblem of his Legion, The Dark Legion Dynasty's finest, The First Regiment. Although rusted, battered, and dented, the armor still reminds its owner of his past.
You, the reader, are probably wondering, Mr. Narrator, what on Earth did this man do to be considered an example of what a demon or witch can do, right? Well let me tell you the story of how David Kohen's life went from one of the most powerful to one of the poorest people in a matter of two years.
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David Kohen was born into a rich, merchant family. The merchant was very good friends with the King's father and the King himself. Rewarded for their generosity to the kingdom, the family was given shelter at the King's castle. David's father was promoted to Chancellor of Trade for the Dark legion Dynasty. That gave his father the final say in any and all trading and marketing strategies. Of course, the king would have the true final say but Kohen's father still had a significant amount of power in the kingdom. As a result, Kohen and his siblings lived a life of easy-going childhoods and fine clothing and food. They rarely lost money and were rarely attacked by mobs of townspeople for how they lived. They were almost untouchable by the bad in the town.
Coupled with their lives of luxury, there were several people who hated his family. Poorer merchants grew envious of the Kohen family's wealth. They were angered that the King chose the family over their own businesses. They didn't think that the Kohens made a significant change in the economy, even though they produced the majority of the income for the kingdom through their spot-on marketing and trading strategies. Greed soon overtook these people and they decided to start attacking the family. Now, no amount of riches can hire someone to protect you from greed at its deadliest level, at least not in the Kohens' instance.
When he was walking home from a new deal, David's father was ambushed, gagged, beaten, and stabbed to death. David, who had been walking home with his father, for he had started learning his father's trade, had witnessed this all. The boy had fled and had hidden behind some crates in the area. He watched as his father was killed and watched as the culprits fled the scene, leaving the man in a pool of blood. Tentatively, the boy stood up and ran to his father's now dead body and began to cry. He wished he had been able to protect his father. He was so young but he wished his father could have been protected. From that day on, David made it his goal to become strong and protect the remaining members of his family. David was 17.
David went to the king shortly after his father's death and informed the King of the event. The King, who was very distraught by the news, called for a funeral and procession through the city in his friend's honor. Many townspeople attended and mourned the death of the man and the funeral was held on that same day. Afterwards, David made a plea to the King. Slowly making his way into the King's courtroom, he made his request, bowing in front of his throne.
"Sire, I come begging you for a favor. In response to my father's killing, I would like to train to become a warrior. I want to be able to protect my family and honor my father by getting revenge. Let me become your policing command. I'll apprehend the criminals that run rampant in this town and bring a sense of royal justice for the crimes they've committed."
Amazed by David's eagerness to serve him, the King granted David's wish and sent him into training to become a squire. He was put under the care of Sir. Constantine Barkogh. Barkogh was one of the toughest people that David had ever met, and one of the shortest as well.
As a former stable hand, Barkogh wasn't the type of person to strike you as "lead warrior" but sure enough, he was. Barkogh was the lead warrior in the Sixth Regiment, under the Legionnaire. He commanded the troops in smaller, less changing battles. (Legionnaires led the more decisive, land altering, power changing battles and wars.) Sir Barkogh put David through rigorous training tasks and assignments, all to better the boy's body for the battlefield. After roughly half a year, David was strong enough to dual-wield swords and battle effectively with them in full-battle armor.
Several more months were spent training the boy in different fighting techniques and situations. David also learned how to give commands, respond to certain changes, and react to different orders and calls. After several years, David was finally ready to become a true warrior. The trials were in the spring and Barkogh was preparing the boy for the final challenge, and possibly his last days on Earth.
"Sir Barkogh?"
"What is it, boy?"
"The Trials Of The Fittest... what happens there?" David had heard the warrior muttering about the Trials and praying to the gods that David would emerge from them victorious but the warrior had never actually elaborated on them. Seeing that it was around the time of the Trials, David decided to ask. Sir Barkogh laughed darkly and got up and began to explain.
"The Trials are a set of dangerous courses recruits for the Legion have to pass in order to be worthy. They range in a variety of tasks, from firing a bow to saving a damsel from a pack of wild dogs. The death rate is 7 out of 10 and major injuries are not common. You see this?" At the question, Barkogh raised his left hand, which had a large scar down the back and had a finger missing. "It was torn off during the Trials, by one of the many spinning mechanisms built to cut you in half or stab you down the middle. I got caught between two machines and in my rush to flee, I was not careful and my finger was sliced clean off! Oh the pain was terrible, i tell you!. The blood spewed out of the cut like a small river and my screams filled the room-"
"Sir, i think that's a good enough explanation for me..." David cut Barkogh off, trying not to throw up his lunch. Barkogh laughed at the boy's struggles and clasped him on the back. "Ahh don't worry, David. You're strong and are fit to survive fighting against me, one of the best in the Sixth Legion, considered the Cavalry and Charging Unit of the Dynasty. There is bloodshed sewed into my skin and war coursing through my veins. The other recruits are not prepared for their masters are all first-rate swordsmen that haven't seen the true power of battle. You've trained under the best and will be the best."
Several days passed and then the day of Trials came. David was sent into the Trial ring. He fought his hardest through the spinning blades, dropping boulders, rabid animals, arguing squires, and flamethrowers and eventually, came through. He was one of seven boys who'd been sent into the Trials. Seven out of twenty survived. It seemed the death rate for these Trials was much higher than ones previous. In conclusion, the survivors were knighted and officiated into the kingdom. More years passed and David rose in ranks. Like his father, he became good friends with the King and was eventually treated with the respect of the friend by the King. This, again, caused people to grow jealous. Several attempts were made on David's life, but Sir. Constantine Barkogh's training had paid off. No one was able to defeat David in battle.
Now, with great people comes great downfalls. David did not meet his downfall in the form of death or defeat. No, no, he met his in the form of the love of his life, the sorceress Kristine The Defiant.