Child of the Woods

The birds sang sublime melodies heard throughout the forest and the sun shone bright as an ember in a blacksmiths forge shining down on the beautiful family of humans as they sat alone on a blanket in Emerald Forest. The woman breast fed her newborn and at the same time was spoon feeding a burly man with fair skin and blue eyes. He smiled lovingly at her as their babe giggled for some unknown reason. The man and woman laughed gayly as they locked eyes. They were hopelessly in love and it was enough. A strange sound could be heard from the east. Someone was fighting the mountain boogum. The family ran and hid in a secluded corner of the meadow. Two Duergar were in the wood hunting farm boys, happy farmers and good wives. The slaughter was pointless, the good wives fought with every fiber of their being to protect their families but the Duergars made quick work of them and left the bodies piled in the village square. The village idiot came out to see what was happening and was decapitated by a single unarmed blow. The babe began crying loudly and the woman held a hand over his mouth in an attempt to muffle the cries but it wasn't enough. The Duergars discovered their hiding place and the man who was a renown warrior fought bravely to defend his lover and child but the two Duergars outnumbered him and broke his legs. He pleaded for mercy, he pleaded with them not to hurt his family. The Duergars tied him upright to a small tree and burnt him alive keeping the flames just hot enough to prolong the process as long as possible. When he finally died they slaughterd the woman and put the crying baby into a large sack. They hiked to the forest of Haon Dor and left the babe there to die as a sacrifice to their wicked gods. The babe cried throughout the night under a large and twisted dark oak tree full of squirrels and strange sloths who stared down at the whimpering babe with curious eyes. The babe grew tired of crying and lay silently on the forest floor exhausted when something unexpected happened. The twisted dark oak tree opened it's eyes and looked down at the babe. This tree was no ordinary tree at all. It was a Treant and it picked up the exhausted babe with it's branches. It fed the babe birds eggs and milk and gave the babe a name, Gwodon. Once Gwodon was old enough to become a warrior like his father before him he said goodbye to the kind Treant who had raised him and set off for the city to find the Guild of Warriors and begin his training.