Night draped Fort Ymir in a heavy silence, the sky above scattered with stars that shimmered over the towering mountains of the North. The fort's massive walls loomed like sentries over the hidden secrets within, higher than any ramparts in the Seven Kingdoms, their ancient stones cloaked in moss and frost. Behind these monumental barriers, House Eldrys lived in self-imposed isolation, their lives governed by ageless traditions and powers as mysterious as they were feared. But for Élyas Eldrys, only fourteen, these walls felt less like a sanctuary and more like a prison.
Élyas stood alone at the edge of the sanctuary, where the ancestral tree sprawled, its twisted roots burrowing deep into the frozen earth and into the hidden history of his family. The tales told that Fort Ymir's first stones were laid around this ancient tree as a tribute to the old gods and to the powers that dwelled within the Eldrys bloodline. From his earliest days, Élyas had heard the legends of his ancestors: the first Eldrys warriors who'd made a sacred pact with the tree to protect their descendants and guard their powers from the outside world.
Yet, while his family seemed content to live in peace behind the fort's colossal walls, Élyas sensed something different in this vast silence. Solitude weighed on him, and he couldn't shake the thoughts spurred by the stories whispered in secret by the servants—the tales of wars, of the southern kingdoms, of lords who built their power on the backs of the oppressed. With every story, a quiet fury sparked inside him. Why did his family remain here, sealed off and hidden away? Why did they keep their powers a secret, as if the outside world didn't deserve to see what they could achieve?
Élyas moved closer to the tree, his hand grazing its rough bark. He felt a strange pulse beneath his palm, an ancient beat echoing through the wood, almost as if the tree itself was calling him back to the promises of his ancestors. That night, a vision swept through his mind: he saw men and women in chains, their faces marked by fear and despair, and above them, greedy lords seated on thrones of gold and steel, surrounded by armored soldiers. These images felt so vivid, as though a plea for help had been carved into the very fibers of the tree.
Élyas's anger transformed into a fierce resolution. He had grown up hearing stories of freedom and justice, yet his family chose to remain secluded, bound by the cold walls of Fort Ymir. If his ancestors had made this pact, it wasn't only to guard their powers, but to serve as protectors and defenders. And Élyas knew, deep within, he could not be a mere bystander. No matter what they told him, he wouldn't allow the fear of the outside to smother the calling he felt.
At only fourteen, standing before the ancient tree and the imposing walls of Fort Ymir, Élyas Eldrys understood his destiny: he would not be a prisoner to his own legacy. He would break these chains, free those who suffered beyond the borders, and prove that House Eldrys was not a relic of a forgotten past but a shield for a better future.