A Wolves Tale (Short Stories by w1nd)

[W1nd]

Snow continues to fall on vacant battle fields, the winds are so cold the undead have frozen still in their armor in the far north, unable to move. They stand like statues on a neverending watch of the dawn of each day and the solace of every moon rise. The cries of fallen avians can be heard echoing through the mountains and valleys as they sing a melancholy song for their fallen kin. They wind whistles through the trees as orcish wargs can be heard howling deep within the vast network of forests within the world of legends. Kingdoms are invigorated by the slow of the undead advancement and rally together holding their swords high they march into the maelstrom of war.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
FEBRUARY EDITION 1 Yr 4

[W1nd]

Spring air brings refreshing scents as the trees of war reroot themselves back in the great forest like their ancestors who fought in ages past. The air clears the battlefields of the stench of the undead as they are currently nowhere to be seen on the battlefield, it is unclear where the cultists have gone and their new sinister plan is for the world. The drums of war continue through the night as humans and dwarves unite in an attempt to stem the orcish tide of war. The orcs descended on the land like a tidal wave and looked to sink any kingdom that stands in their way to control the heart of the world of legends.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
MARCH EDITION 1 Yr 4

[W1nd]

The air is warm now, the drums of war have fallen silent as the orcs who chanted their war poem into battle are beaten back from the fray. Victory was almost in their grasp but in their bloodlust neglected the power of a true magic user and fell victim to one of their only weaknesses. Gnomes and humans alike rejoice in song and dance as the undead have mostly vanished from the world and legends and the invading orcish tide has been stemmed. For how long can the peace last? Great songs are told as thunderous cheers can be heard across the world of legends but there are still many great victories to be had! The orcs and undead may be battered and bruised but they will fight until every last one of them has died sometimes countless times in the chaos of war.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
APRIL EDITION 1 Yr 4

[W1nd]

The day was growing late and I was just chasing down a rabbit for my dinner when in the distance I heard the drums of war fall silent and the orcish horn indicating to me that war poem orcs and their human guides in these lands were routing from the field of battle. My dinner had gotten away for now but there was a much more interesting thing happening now and I would no doubt be feasting with the human and gnome alliance looking to defend the world of legends from the orcish invaders! As I raced back to the battlefield orcish warriors were stampeding in all directions to escape the fury of the humans king's greatsword as he chased them to the edge of the battlefield. With a sweeping advance he cut down three right in front of my eyes and held for a moment his blade dripping with green blood.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
MAY EDITION 1 Yr 4

[W1nd]

Winter is upon us once again with its fury, strange things now occur in the world of legends. Large groups of every race have been working together and have been very successful in controlling the lands as of late. The undead cultists, gnomes and human alliances are all in shambles clawing for every acres of land they can before the winter truly sets in. There is bound to be winter warfare and it is just a matter of time. All times of this conflict brace for their impending doom on the battlefield as winter brings terrors that race is ready for and on the darkest coldest nights vaste armies of undead can now be seen marching through the valleys, but we know now where they travel. Humans rejoice in their keeps having defeated the last great undead army before settling in for a long hibernation, watching their walls and keeping torches lit and fires burning throughout the night, every victory brings the human kingdoms closer together than they ever thought possible as the northern humans regain their strength.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
JUNE EDITION 1 Yr 4

[W1nd]

The cold winter air and snow makes even the wolves with the thickest coats shiver when it is head on. We run to the great northern woods for cover from the blizzard storm only to see the undead marching towards the south, towards the free human kingdoms who had just recently vanquished the undead and routed the great war tribe of orcs from the land. Stragglers remain and forge new alliances and bonds in order to survive, small bands of orcs, gnomes, avian all displaced by the terror of war. They have had enough and now they fight for their land once again it will be theirs, their ancestral homes returned should they be victorious!

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
JULY EDITION 1 Yr 4

[W1nd]

I trekked through the frozen lands of the world of legends searching for food during the great storm. I came across a lone pair of tracks, too small to be an orc but too wide to be that of an elf or any gnome I had ever seen. I began to hunt my prey. Several hours later I came across a lone figure cloaked in black, hood down sitting in front of a fire struggling to stay lit. I watched from my vantage point at the edge of the clearing as he spoke magical words and a fireball erupted in the center of the fire which instantly warmed the air. He spoke the language of the dead, surely he must be one of the undead cultists but this place does not stink of the undead. The figure began roasting a rabbit he had caught over the fire, I was starving, freezing, there had been no food for days. I moved in closer and the slightest compression of snow beneath my paws averted his gaze in my direction, he glanced at me as if to pay no attention and turned back to the fire. I crept up to his side and could see he was wounded, he must have been exiled, for why else would he be here alone. The food was now cooked and without saying a word he offered me some, as I ate our eyes never broke contact and at that moment his wound had vanished and so had his food. He smirked at me and placed his black hood back over his head and that moment he slipped away into the darkness with no trace of him to be found. I was alone again and the air turned frigid again as only ashes now remain. The food I thought I had eaten was nothing but an old bone with no substance. Was he real, was this an illusion?

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
JANUARY EDITION 1 Yr 5

[W1nd]

Hungry, cold, lost, without the rest of the pack I wandered alone through the frozen tundra in the world of legends. Creatures of every race had fallen victim to the icy maelstrom of winter storms. Finally nearing the edge of the tundra the tracks reappear as the ice and snow melts away giving way to the brown earthy soil below. I thought to myself as I continued to push forward enjoying the warmer air, maybe he was real afterall, clearly some spell was used to trick my senses. Horns of battle in the distance I began to trot, louder they grew as if calling to me in the distance. Running with vigor I sense danger and skid to a stop through the underbrush. I slide out onto the edge of a mountain overlooking a great lush valley protected from the harsh realities of winter. In the distance, several small plumes of smoke can be seen. Four great armies gathered on different vantage points surrounding a great fortress, the biggest in all the land known for their love of mage and high recruitment rate of new wizards, a veritable mages guild. They have sat atop their mountain for many years now and no one has seen a single army leave their palisades since the age began when their doors remained sealed to outsiders. The great armies surrounding their position all fly various banners and not one is allied with the other as small skirmishes break out along the edges of the armies formations. Sword, axe and hammer clash in the distance as all the races of the world unite on one battleground waiting to see who will make the first move. The air around me turns frigid as I feel a bone chilling touch of ice on my backside but as I turn the cloaked figure turns to dust and is blown away on the wind.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
FEBRUARY EDITION 1 Yr 5

[W1nd]

Long I slept on the ledge waiting to hear the drums of war or the great gates of the fortress opening I slumbered in and in the darkness a dreamscape appeared. The air was still and everything was frozen in place as I trot through the scene with no control of my actions. A shadow, I followed the hooded figure, as I closed in he began to look eerily familiar to me though I could not place him. I chased him around the forest faster and more stealthy than ever before not making a single sound. I came to a cleaning and as I saw him kneel down to the water his being began to fade into ash. I race to the edge of the water to get a scent at the very least of this phantom traveler that I have been stalking for days, or am I the one being chased. As I near the water's edge he is all but gone, ashes in the now fierce wind that scatters his essence. I look into the water and take a drink to revitalize myself and in the water I see my reflection, not of me, but of him. The world shakes and rumbles as I awaken to ice cold rain and wind beating against me.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
MARCH EDITION 1 Yr 5

[W1nd]

After a long journey back to the mountains I am refreshed from my travels. I hear the sounds of undead and humans up ahead and hide in the bushes. I recognized the banners of these cultists and I hid from view very far away from the road in case they had scouts flanking the ridges on either side. They did not fear anything as they marched away from the place where so many were massing before my departure. As I sat under a downed tree branch I heard a voice whisper in my ear, “Run”, I turned to look and only shadows vanished from sight. I snuck out from under the branch and ran with all my might away from the army of cultists and their human minions. As I arrived on the scene two armies were at each other's throats holding the entrance to the valley while the greatest of the armies was at the gates of the great fortress attempting to bash down the gates while using sheer numbers and their mastery of magic and stealth to chip away at the fortresses defenses. They could not hold out forever, I found a vantage point opposite the main gates and lay in watch as countless gnomes used everything at their disposal to break down the walls and take everything inside.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
APRIL EDITION 1 Yr 5

[W1nd]

I stirred from my slumber, in my dreams, I chased the shadow that followed me in the waking world as it did in the deepest corner of my mind. Whatever magic this was, it was surely powerful and this being that pursues me knows no quarter and can see into the deepest corners of my mind. Gnomish battle horns echo loudly off of the mountains awakening me with eyes wide open I gazed at the theatre of war. Just at that moment as if timed perfectly a mystic vortex envelops the great mage fortress and the entire structure vanishes. Imploding as it were all the spectators could only catch a glimpse through an otherworldly portal, the ground trembled and shook as a great storm erupted overhead. The portal collapsed into itself and with it sent a shockwave knocking down everyone and everything in its path including the trees which broke like matchsticks against its might. The shockwave was eerie yet beautiful from my vantage point but within seconds after it erupted a sonic boom followed which stole the very breath from my lungs as I gasped for air I hurried away to gather my thoughts and consider what had happened and where they may have ended up.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
MAY EDITION 1 Yr 5

[W1nd]

The winter approaches again and the trees finish their cycle of rebirth and begin their long slumber through ice and snow. Tonight marks a special time for all wolves in the world of legends. Not only is there a double full moon in the coming days but also the most powerful of all the moons shines bright tonight. The symphony of wolf song echoes off of every mountain and is carried by the wind to all corners of the world. Tonight the shadow world is not bound by the divide of material and immaterial and many magic users have placed protective spells over their entire cities in anticipation of the coming darkness. Even the cultists are nowhere to be found as the denizens of the darkest deeps will prowl the world of legends tonight. The wolves send out their warning to the world as dark magic can already be sensed on the wind. Winds of change are sweeping through the world of legends as many wars still rage on; warriors are caught in a maelstrom of fury within their own minds they turn to their battle brothers in blind rage striking down anyone in their path. Tonight even the wolves refuse to tread in the darkest corners in the world of legends for fear of transforming into something far more terrifying blinded with rage, hungering for living flesh and bone, driven only by madness. Hear the wolf song on the wind and cast your spells, the darkness comes for you, all of you.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
JUNE EDITION 1 Yr 5

[W1nd]

July 1st Yr5 - Swift Strife

General Stores Log
Entry One, Day Shift,

It has been some time since I have seen any travelers, adventures, or even merchants. I fear that this may be the end of my general store, the storm has made travel nearly impossible and there is always the fear of raiders and worse the undead. I feel like it has been an eternity since I have seen the sun as this storm seems never ending darkness almost as if the gods themselves block out the light. The wind howls outside and I can sometimes hear the sound of wolves near the windows but they have yet to attempt entry into the store. Worse still I am low on firewood and will at some point have to journey into the frigid wilderness to cut down some timber for the fires that keep me warm here on the road less travelled. I am overdue on a shipment I have already paid for and I am terrified that my good friend has been overcome by the storm….or worse. I maintain faith that they will still make it, but the storm grows much worse, a great tree fell last night. I will likely have no choice but to attempt to harvest its timber.

Sincerely yours,
The OWNER.

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
JULY EDITION 1 Yr 5

[W1nd]

Jan 1st Yr6 - Swift Strife

General Stores Log
Entry Seven, Night Shift,

.... It is ….. So cold. Still no signs of life anywhere near the store, this could be my last days. I managed to get the wood for the fire to stay warm but I have just run out of food. Not even the wolves come near the building anymore. This bite… the bite, when I was gathering the lumber for the fire a wild beast white as snow pounced me from behind snarling like a savage beast it bit me on my hand and arm and I am beginning to lose sensation in my right arm all together. I can barely scribe this entry. The fire burns bright and the store warm but it is as if my very blood in my body is frozen, my senses have become somewhat increased but that just makes it impossible to sleep at night. OH MY! A Customer....

Entry Eight, Night Shift,

The blood… all the blood… what have I…

the page becomes bloody and the writing becomes no longer legible

Posted UTOPIA NEWS
JANUARY EDITION 1 Yr 6

[W1nd]

Feb 1st Yr6 - Swift Strife

Adventurer's Diary,

Day 10.
Somewhere near wolf mountain,

The storm was not supposed to last this long and I have been turned around several times. I found myself walking through the same footprints I had laid in the snow days ago. It is as if some magical force is preventing me from reaching my destination. Wolves constantly howling night or day makes me feel fairly certain that this is wolf mountain. I am unable to see more than a few feet in front of my hands as this blizzard rages on. At night time the wolves test the boundaries of my encampment. Separated from my horse which ran away several days ago before the storm really started to hit hard I lost all my weapons. I have left my trusty shield and knife. That will not do so well against a sword but It may afford me protection from the wild life out here.

Day 15.
Somewhere near wolf mountain,

This must be the biggest, longest and most feral storm I have ever witnessed and seems to only be getting worse. I can no longer stay in this cave as I am starting to get snowed in and I dare not travel deeper lest I disturb something more wicked below, if there even is anything below me. I am nearly out of food now and have been unable to trap anything or forage anything. Spring will never come soon enough, there is a general store on this map I have, but it is very old and who knows if there is even anyone left alive in weather like this out there! The wolves have been quiet for several hours now, I must go!


Posted UTOPIA NEWS
FEBRUARY EDITION 1 Yr 6