Role

Chapter 1

When he awoke again, he was resting in a warm bed. The sun was
shining, his entire body hurt. He was dimly aware of a massive man
hunched in the corner of the room.

The man introduced himself as a paladin, and Norhm recognized him as a
cloud giant. He was a Maran, and explained that the ship Norhm had
been held captive aboard was infamous for its participation in the
slave trade. It was headed south, and was due to make port in Seantryn
Modan. The freak lightning bolt was the will of the Gods of the Light,
and Norhm owed his life to them. He was to rest: a friend would take
care of him, and when he was well enough, they would return him to
Galadon to enroll him in the Warrior's Guild.

He learned he was in a lighthouse belonging to an elderly evlish
priestess named Elothien. In her younger years, she also had been a
paladin, fighting in the great wars against the darkness. Now she was
serving as a waystation for friends of the Light. He learned that the
war against darkness was on-going and fought on many fronts, and
that the Fortress was sworn to protect the Light and purge the
darkness.

Throughout the next several weeks, as Elothien nursed Norhm back to
health, she taught him about the various forces in the world, many of
which Norhm had thought existed only in tales. When she was away, she
gave him books to read about history, magic, nature, philosophy, and
religion. R eading came slowly to him, as he'd never had much occasion
to read in his life, but he enjoyed the books nonetheless. Through
Elothien's kindness, and the healing balm of knowledge, he was able to
come to terms with the tragedies he had endured. He stayed at the
lighthouse for several months after he had regained his health,
reading Elothien's books nad helping to maintain the lighthouse.

When the time came for Norhm to leave, he did so quietly. Packing a
haversack full of some bare essentials, he thanked Elothien for her
kindness and asked her how he could repay her.

Elothien smiled softly at him and said, "Go with the Light, Norhm.
The gods have blessed you with life; waste it not."