The year is now 756 of the Age of Vigilance fifty-two years after the sixth blight. The world has known in this age nothing but peace since the end of the last blight. The four kingdoms of the central lands have had their differences, but no major wars or conflicts have broken out in the last forty years. The Order of the Wardens have all but retreated to their strong holds spread throughout out the world cleansing the blight in some areas and studying it in others some Wardens still venture out when reports of the creatures known as the Blighted appear in small groups and some simple travel to seek new members or just to explore the world.

          The Dwarfs of Thrumdar continue their fight against the blight in the underground though no major outbreaks have happened, their underground cities still bustle with life, their great forges burning never ending, their deep mines digging every deeper towards the heart of the world. To the south west of Thrumdar lay the Heartlands a vast open land of plains and forest this land was no kingdom of man or beast but it was still the native homeland of the nomadic Wolfkin people, a ferocious race of humanoid wolflike beings, their bodies where often lean and muscular built for speed and agility though they walked up right they could easily out run a horse on all fours a tactic they often employed when hunting. Their bodies where covered from head to toe in a short dense layer of fur that protected them from the cold and wind often in one of three colors gray, black, or brown, their fingers where equipped with short retractable claws that could be extended for climbing or fighting similar to a cats, their feet a mix of human and wolf with the bottoms having soft but thick pads their faces were also a mix between human and wolf with soft subtle features with a short but elongated muzzle that house their powerful fangs, it was said that some Wolfkin had such a strong bite that they could even rip through plate mail. Their heads topped with tall, pointed ears that twitched at every sound though it made it easier to tell what mode one was in thanks to their ears, and all of them were followed by a long bushy tail. Their eyes are often a deep amber and gold or icy blue, where mostly humans said for their slit pupils that afforded them the ability to see in the dark. Though the Wolfkin are nomadic by nature they do have a few permanent settlements in the heartlands such as Vrak’Thura in their language but better known in the common tongue as Scared Waters, a spiritual monastery built around an ancient lake fed by a glacial spring inside a dense forest at the center of the Heartlands. Just a few miles north of this forest a pack or tribe if you will of Wolfkin have set up their summer camp. About a hundred or so yurt style tents made from cloth and animal hides or Kraan-thur had been set up in a circle with the largest in the center around the perimeter of the camp was a six-foot-tall fence of cloth used to keep wildlife out of the camp. It encompassed the entire camp. In this section of the camp a simple but easily built wood and cloth stable was built with a wood fence circling it inside this well-crafted cloth stable was housed the packs Brakkron or known by every other race and those that spoke the common tongue Dire Wolves these giant horse sized wolves had been used by the Wolfkin for generations as mounts beast of labor and hunting companions those housed in the Kraaz or the den where the Brakkron not imprinted with a Wolfkin yet. Inside the confines of the camp near many Wolfkin roamed and went about their lives from as the packs defended the Krellar there was no direct translation into common, but Krellar served as a tribe’s law keepers and military though given that an average tribe of Wolfkin was roughly only a hundred to a hundred and fifty at a time each tribe had maybe at most forty to fifty Krellar. Given their biology and body build Wolfkin often wore little to no clothing when the weren’t interacting with non-wolfkin their typical clothing was more for function than presentation, a male might wear a simple loincloth and some leather bindings for extra protection or an apron if he was a craftsman. At other times if dealing with a non-wolfkin he may wear a pair of pants and a simple tunic out of courtesy. Same for females though they practiced a little more modesty than the males their clothing was still minimal at best with a fur or leather skirt or dress or in place of a dress a simple cloth wrapping around the waist and chest.

One large Kraan-thur set off aways from the others was decorated with small totems carved from bone and wood. A small fire pit sat outside the door frame which had a deer skull atop it. The inside was even more decorated with furs of foxes and rabbits, the leather hide of some fantastic beast covered one well-craved, tall-back wooden chair that sat next to a central hearth the smoke from the cooking fire escaping through the circle built in the roof for ventilation. A metal grill grate over the fires for cooking around the outer circle along the walls of the Kraan-thur where six separated areas divided by thick hide walls five of witch where built to be living spaces or bedrooms if you would say the one at the back housed a small nightstand and a large bed adorned with furs and cloth, the two one the left where smaller and each sported different items in one was a crafted spear and bow both made from bone, in the other a loom with several colorful threads interlaced in it. On the right side of the obvious master bed was a storage space where wooden shelves and nets hanging from the frame of the yurt style tent housed stored food jars and previsions as well as chest filled with other goods. And the last room on the right witch was adorned with symbolic totems a small wooden sword a child’s toy bits of leather and fabric thrown about the floor and on the cot that was in it.

Under neath a pile of furs on the cot something moved a long and thick bushy white tail popped out hanging from the side of the bed as the inhabitant rolled onto their side. A shadow fell over the bed and a soft but firm hand grabbed the furs pulling them back.

“Srak Turak Ta Thrak ar Trarak ke-ra dor norok zerna.” (Wakeup son, your father and siblings have already gone out to do their morning training.) the voice was soft but firm and came from a female Wolfkin clearly dealing with a lazy son. Her name was Lura witch in the urrak language spoken by the Wolfkin meant Moon. Moon spoke mostly in the urrak language rather than the common tongue as she was the pack leader’s daughter and married to the Grak Krellar or chief warrior. Lura wore a long dress made from deer hide and lined with fox fur, this extra layer of warmth was draped over own short brown fur which was groomed to perfection everyday her ears stood atop her head keen for any mischief her children got into. Her belly was rounded slightly the forecast of another pup on the way though she still worried about the three she already had. “Raa grak Srak Zarath, srak dor ta.” (I won’t say it again Shadow its time to wake up.)

"Raa srak Dhrak, grak-ka ra." (Leave me be mother I don’t want to get up.) Zarath tried to reach for the blanket of furs only to feel his mother’s cold gaze on him her deep amber eyes bored into his soul.

“Tharon dor ta sha kraal be'ul nor, ra dor zarat sharuk ru ke-ra danok dor.” (Tharon has been waiting for you by the camp entrance since sunrise you two were supposed to be hunting today.) Lura let out a low growl to make her point clear to Zarath he could be lazy all he wanted when there wasn’t work that needed done.

Zarath slowly rose from his cot a defeated look on his face. Unlike his mother and sister or let alone grandparents whose fur was usually a shade of brown or his older brother and father whose fur was solid black. Zarath’s fur was pure white like freshly fallen snow. His body was lean and thin almost like a twig but the definition in his muscles was visible for all to see he may be smaller than the average wolfkin but he could hit just as hard. As he stood and stretched, he stood about five foot five. He let out a deep yawn his short, elongated muzzle opening to show his fangs one of his prominent canines chipped slightly. He rubbed his eyes to fully awaken, as his left eye opened it was the same deep amber as his mother and his right eye was ice blue like his father’s. His ears were slightly longer than an average wolf kin and his left ear has a small V-shaped cut in it. Finally, Zarath let out one finial shake all his fur from the tip of his ears to the tip of his tail stood on end before flattening against his body again. He put on a simple leather vest and pair of cloth spun shorts grabbing a short sword made of bronze, his grandfather had requested it be made for his fourteenth birthday last month, he also grabbed a bow and bundle of arrows both crafted from maple wood.

"Ra dor ta naal." (I am headed out now.) Zarath waved as he ran past his mother who was stoking the fire in the central hearth of the Kraan-thur. As he burst from the flaps that made up the door, he ran into two other wolfkin his sister Luneth who looked a lot like their mother and his older brother Zalith who was the spiting image of their father. He quickly pushed his way past them, offering a small apology as he did, he heard his older brother call after him.

“Don’t let father catch you he is pissed you missed morning training Trakath (little brother).” Zalith shouted after Zarath.

“Bite me.” Zarath shouted back as he kept running towards the camp entrance. Today wasn’t just any normal hunt today he and his best friend Tharon were going to hunt the biggest game and complete the rite of two or the Jura'Rahl. Jura’Rahl was something he and Tharon had been wanting their whole lives of fourteen years two wolfkin of any gender around the age of fifteen pair up and first hunt a large game animal and present it to the current chief or pack leader of the tribe the two are then made a bonded pair known as the Thral'Rahl (bond of two). This is not some romantic or courtship thing; in order to join the tribe’s warriors (Krellar) they must always work as a pair. It is the way of the wolfkin to fight in groups of two as each partner could play off the others strength and weakness it allowed the pair to become a single unstoppable unit when hunting or fighting more humanoid opponents. It was one reason why the wolfkin had such a reputation of being such skilled combatants.

Zarath ducked and weaved through the camp, avoiding the adults as best he could to stay out of their way while they worked, some carried things in preparation for tonight’s feast, others simply doing their daily chores. Zarath ran past one Kraan-thur that had a large wooden table set up outside. As he past he snatched one of the bread rolls from the table and picked up his speed he could hear the women shouting at him as he stuffed his face. It’s not like it wasn’t free in the tribe anyway, but common courtesy was to at least wait for it to be offered to you. After a bit of running literally from the back of the camp to the front Zararh saw his friend Tharon leaning up against one of the wooden posts that held up the cloth fence that surrounded the camp. Tharon was a bit heavier set than most of the wolfkin his and Zaraths age but when your mother is the tribe’s head baker you can afford the luxury of a little fat on your bones. Tharon was snacking on a sweet roll his mother had given him for breakfast when he noticed Zarath, he offered him a wave as he stood up his belly jiggled a little.

“About time you showed up I was afraid you were going to sleep past noon again.” Tharon’s tail wagged behind him as he smiled at his friend. He wiped the crumps off his hands against the fur loincloth that matched his gray. He grabbed the spear he had next to him, a finally crafted weapon made from wyvern bone. It had belonged to his grandfather but as Tharon’s father was a craftsman rather than a Krellar he gifted it to Tharon.

Zarath came to a stop just in front of Tharon and smiled like a fool some of the crumps from the bread roll he stole still on his face. “I almost did but I think my mother would tan my hide if I slept any longer.” Both boys laughed as they began to walk towards the gap in the fence where two wolfkin welding metal swords stood.

“Honestly Zarath I don’t know what scares me more your mothers growl or a cave bear.” Tharon rubbed his belly as he walked to help him digest the food he had eaten for breakfast.

“What’s the difference, I bet my mother would scare off even a cave bear if it tried to come into camp.” Zarath laughed to himself while in his mind he was actual nervous of the idea, he could see his mother despite her soft features hunting down and killing a cave bear even while pregnant. As they walked a little way out of the camp Zarath stopped and turned.

“Oh, hold on a second almost forgot.” Zarath brought both his pinky fingers to his mouth and stuck them into the sides of his muzzle letting out two quick sharp bursts of air a whistle to call something to him. Tharon rolled his eyes, Zarath always waited to the last minute to call his bond. Suddenly like a fur missile shot from the gap in the cloth fence of the camp slamming directly into Zarath. It was a white furred Brakkron (Dire wolf). The beast was about the size of a Great Dane but was still only two years old, it had yet to reach its full size or get to the point one could ride it yet. The beast was fiercely licking Zarath’s face who was trying to calm the beast.

“Down Hura (Snow), Down girl its not play time it’s time to hunt come on, come on girl lets go.” Hura the Brakkron rushed off ahead of the two boys who quickly followed behind running through the tail grass of the plains. Though Tharon was on the heavier side he was still easily able to keep up with Zarath as they went to find their prey for the day. The boys were hoping to find a plain grazer, a large buffalo type creature or maybe even a woodland elk has ventured way from the forest, a simple deer would suffice for their Jura'Rahl but they wanted something that would impress the whole tribe. They wanted to be known by the tribe, the first Krellar’s to hunt down a wyvern since the times of their grandfathers or something like that as long as it was big they didn’t care what it was or so they thought unaware of how today would change both of them forever.