We had just passed the great mountain wall last week and slowly but surely we were making our way towards Ulvenguard. Heading further southeast of the empire's territory we came across a small town, we didn't stop but we did see what this town had to offer. There were shops of all kinds, big and small, a few numbers of pubs and inns, and I might have been mistaken but there was likely a red light district as we passed by, there stood a human woman and a drow woman at the entrance of said district. The human woman had pitch-black hair tied into two tightly tied buns as her bangs came down to meet her eyebrows. There was a mean but soft look in her dark brown eyes, her lips seemed small but I imagined they were the softest kind of lips anyone would kiss, plump and symmetrical, I could see a smile form on those lips as she saw us pass by.
She wore a red dress that matched her heels, it had very short sleeves long slits on both sides that reveal her thighs, a round stand-up collar close to her neck, and a fastening across the right side of her upper chest. The drow woman next to her had dark grey skin, her corset hugged her waist tightly to accentuate her hourglass figure. Her snow-white hair was tied into a loose ponytail, the long violet skirt she wore also had two long slits along the sides to reveal her thighs, she had black high heeled boots, and was nearly covered head to toe in silver and jewelry, and her eyes were a pale grey that nearly matched her hair. I could have sworn that both these women had seen me through the window in the caravan wagon and gave me a sultry smile and a wave, but I simply shook it off as nothing. Though they have never left my mind.
As we made our way past this town we came to a large clearing near the forest that leads to the Black Mountain of the north. A mountain so large even at a distance it seems far too close. You would think that it would take a simple hike to even reach its base, few have taken the journey there, and it takes them several weeks to reach the base, and some say it takes months to climb it. Those people are mad. However, they do have a reason to do so. Many years ago, long before even my great grandfather was born, an ancient white dragon had flown to the summit of the mountain and it was said that it guarded a great treasure, a treasure that would make even a back ally drunkard the ruler of an entire nation. Since then the dragon had left the mountain leaving behind this bounty, so many have tried and failed to reach the summit, many came close, but never succeeded. Perhaps one day someone will reach the top of the mountain, create their kingdom and be the ruler of the great Black Mountain of the north. That would be the story of a lifetime. For now, however, we focus on the story at hand.
We made camp in the clearing, there were fires here and there to keep the nomads, refugees, and simple travelers warm and fed during the night. No one spoke to one another unless they were close friends or family. I sat next to a tiefling woman and her child and a human man. The human seemed strange, he was lightly armored and wore a large brown cloak. He had a thick black beard with spots of white, his hair was the same, though it was short. His hazel eyes were wide, almost in terror, they stared off 1000 yards in the distance. I did not want to disturb him lest I awake him from his nightmarish trance. The tiefling woman and her daughter on the other hand, though they seemed down on their luck, smiled, even the daughter who was wearing an eyepatch had a beautiful smile equal to her mother's. I stayed quiet as I heard their conversation. "Mama, can you believe it, we are so close to Ulvenguard. Our new home." The mother laughed quietly, "yes my dearest love, there the people will show us kindness. And you can see your father once again after all these years." I couldn't help but wonder who they might have been talking about, I was about to ask when some of the nomads came around with food. They gave us a bowl of thick mashed potatoes and two links of spicy sausage. Another nomad came around with a large steaming pot of some sort of reddish-brown sauce, it smelled amazing. They may ask a lot in terms of coin but they do treat those that travel with them especially strangers and refugees a lot like family.
As we finished eating and many were preparing to go to bed, far south of the campsite, a chilling howl was heard. The man who sat next to me stood to his feet and made a move to grab a sword from his hilt, but he had nothing on him, he then spoke, "The red elves...they know of our presence...they want us to leave." I watched as the whole camp held each other in fear, even the nomads themselves were terrified. I did my best to put on my war face. The face of an Ulfguardian. I put down my bowl and walked over to the direction the noise came from. Many tried to stop me, but when they saw my face they let me pass. I stopped where I could no longer see the light from the campfires, and stood there. "If someone is out there make yourself known." I could hear whispers surrounding me as if I were hearing the wind itself speak to me, it was a strange dialect of elvish I did not know if I knew elvish that is.
But in the darkness, I could almost see movement, and there I saw a pair of glowing eyes, similar to that of an animal in a dark room. Only these eyes met mine, but perhaps a head or so higher. I did not move. The woods themselves were silent, no one spoke and not even the trees made a sound. But in that instance, I could almost hear the sound of an arrow being drawn into the bow, and then WHOOSH an arrow whizzed right by my face hitting the ground far behind me. I stood my ground, as in their language I heard a voice say something to me, I could not understand it at the time, but I could tell it was close to "Stay far from our land." and with that, the eyes disappeared and as if by magic the sound of nature came back. I could hear the crackling fire and the murmuring of the other travelers. The young tiefling girl held my hand, "Are you alright?" She asked. Without even looking at her I said, "Never better. An Ulfguardian never shows their fear in the face of danger." The girl was shocked as we walked back to the campsite to get our rest for the night.
Another week had passed by as we made it to one of the few stops towards Ulvenguard. A small town known as Poppytown Village. Though it borders the forbidden forest of red elves, Poppytown is one of, if not the most peaceful town in the continent of Vetria. Everywhere you look there was a smile on someone's face. Music and laughter were filling the air. People of all shapes and sizes and various races were walking around buying and selling goods. I happened to stop by a bakery run by a very kind elven woman. She had blonde hair tied into a low ponytail, soft jade green eyes that hid behind a pair of glasses, she wore a green vest with an off-white shirt underneath. I didn't have much but I bought myself a pastry with whatever silver I had. It was so soft and moist, the sweet taste of that pastry never left my tongue for as long as I could remember. But nothing lasts forever, I waved goodbye to those who were going to stay in town as the rest of us continued onward towards Ulvenguard.
About half a day has passed and we have entered the iron forest. Here was the home of the ironwood elves, a strong people who have been known to help people far and wide through their land keeping them safe from Blood berserkers, dangerous creatures, even bandits. Though they have enough to deal with, the ironwood elves have a much more prominent problem, their main rivals. An extremist group known as the Sons of Midnight, hail from the valley of midnight, and every time it seems that one does two or three of them take their place. The group was usually known for their excessive use of fire and usually made up of humans, elves, and half-elves, mostly ones who are more magically inclined.
Without any sort of trouble, we made it to Ulvenguard's gates near the ruins of what was once blood berserker territory, a reminder of the skill and power Ulfguardians have, even against bigger and stronger opponents. Those like me who knew this was their final destination lept off the caravan, gathered our belongings, and walked closer toward this gate. The tiefling woman and her daughter looked upon it with awe, as well as others who came here for a fresh start. "Pardon." I heard a voice say, "You mentioned you were Ulfguardian yes?" I looked around and nodded, "Then would it be possible to, speed up this process of opening the gates?" It was in that instance that I remembered the one thing that was so important in the land of Ulvenguard. That is if there are no lit torches above the gates then there is no one to open them until midday the following morning. "See here's the thing…" I stated. After a good amount of explaining I told them to begin to make camp near the gate so that if attackers come by those coming to open the gates for travelers, refugees, or other ulfguardian natives and of course to light the torches would be there to help fight them off.
During the night everyone shared their reasons for coming to Ulvenguard. An older Dragonborn heard there was a five-story library in the middle of south Ulvenguard bay, a half-orc said he was looking for work with the outlaw queen. Though she isn't an official queen they gave her the title since it was once the title of her father the outlaw king. A leonin said he came to become a soldier, he wanted to become even more fierce and deadly by learning their fighting style.
They all talked among themselves laughing and having a good time when I heard someone ask me a question, "And you? Being a native and all, what do you wish to do when you return home?" I looked around then back to the fire, "I...I don't know. It's been a pretty long while since I've been in the homeland. I've been at sea for a few months after the death of my father, I helped sail through the singing sea, I worked by the docks for a few years in the empire, fell in love, and lost her almost a year later. Now I'm here, after so long. Thank the Allfathers I'm still here to witness it but, I have no clue what I'll do, maybe just go home, sleep until the next winter." As I looked from the fire I could see soft smiles from those around me. As we shut our eyes for the night I couldn't help but feel relieved to see the stars above my homeland once again.