The sun was ever forboding on the island of Mardoc to Guldivine. The days were hotter than anything he had ever experienced back in the Kingdom of Darkwood. There was no shade, no releif from the constant heat. There wasnt even much of a breeze, or clouds in the sky. The days were much longer than he was used to as well. As Edwin had told him, this was a sign that harvest was approaching. When the days were the longest, the crops were ready to be cut down and planted anew. Then when the days got the shortest, They would harvest again. This was the natural cycle of the island. According to Edwin, they did not have traditional seasons like Guldivine had experienced elsewhere. They didnt even know what snow or Ice was.

Guldivine spent the first week after meeting Mage in the tavern helping out Barbadd. He didnt move too much, but helped serve drinks and sweep. These were the jobs Melethan was more than happy to do for a chance to hang inside the tavern. But Melethan was too busy with the farm, as Edwin was also. They were recruiting people to help them with the harvest. It was a lot of work, too much land to cover with a Father and his kid. So Guldivine volunteered to help.

Mage would still show up to the tavern every night and meet with Guldivine and Barbadd, and they also introduced him to Edwin and Melethan. But he offered up no direct plans of attack against Mardoc. All he was certain of was that this was why he was here. Guldivine thought that he must be waiting for something to happen. The warlock had no real insights into the future. And he had no idea how to defeat the dragon. Like Guldivine, He knew it had to happen.

Eventually Guldivine went to Edwin's farm and started his work. He was given a hiding spot where he could sleep and call his own. It was an old cellar away from their farmhouse. The overgrowth made it quite hidden from normal view even in the daytime. Guldivine could hide there, in case anyone came looking in town.

These were the days of the harvest. When the sun was low in the sky and orange, and all the moons were full. When the villagers worked with purpose, and scoured their fields for the next cycle. There was that strange tone of melencholy between everyone... A sense of death and birth. These were the days that reminded a mortal man of just how mortal he was. The feeling didnt need to be said... But everyone felt it. These were the days of the harvest.

Dispite Edwin's strong resistance, Guldivine decided to train Melethan with the sword, regardless. They practiced around dusk, up near a cliffside to the north. Melethan had picked the spot, and Guldivine had crafted a wooden sword so they had a second to spar with. As the days went on, Melethan got better. Soon Melethan had the real sword, and Guldivine was using the wooden one.

On one perticular night, they had been practcing late. They were both winded from swash bulking back and forth for a half hour. They sat down near a large rock that overlooked the cliffside, out to the ocean beyond.

"The sword fits you well." Guldivine admitted, seeing Melethan treat it with care. "Its the right size for you. And since you kept your word and listened and trained, Id like you to have it."

"Its mine!?" Melethan asked.

"All yours. But you'd best keep it away from your father." Guldivine warned.

"I understand." Melethan said.

Then Melethan turned to Guldivine. "Can I ask you something?"

"What is it? Please, dont ask permission to ask."

"Is Mage... I mean. He's pretty strange." Melethan commented.

"Is Mage what?"

"Is he... I mean can he really do magic?" Melethan asked. "How!? What even is that!? I havnt seen anything like that! He made a fireball and threw it across the tavern with his bare hands! You should have seen it!"

"He can do magic." Guldivine said. "He is a Warlock. I have met their kind before. They are not like you and I. They are some last bloodline from the ancient times."

"The ancient times? Like When Mardoc was still around?" Melethan asked.

"I think so, yes." Guldivine said. "According to the people I came from, In the early days of the realm, three celestial beings made their children go to war across these lands to prove themselves. All of the supernatural and monsters are just remnents of their presence here. The Dragon and the Warlocks are from a time way before you and I, kid."

"How do you know all that?" Melethan asked. "Mage said you were a big deal in other places."

"He told you that did he?" Guldivine asked.

"I did him some favors." Melethan grinned. "He said your face was recognizable anywhere but on this island. That you are quite a swordsman. The best I think he said."

"Im afraid the rumors are overexaggerated kid, but one thing's for sure. Everyone wants to see my head on a spike." Guldivine admitted. "And I do know how to weild a sword. Which is why I am taking it upon myself to teach you."

"Yeah, he's kind of a weird guy though. Mage I mean." Melethan repeated himself.

"How so?"

"Well he seems very secretive. Like he is hiding something and not telling us. You seem pretty honest Guldivine, but Im not so sure about him. I dont know if we can trust him."

"Warlocks always have their secrets, kid." Guldivine explained. "I knew a Warlock before all this. I consider him one of the last friends I have back in my kingdom. I owe him a lot in fact. His name was Hayne. But he too was cagey, and bent the truth on lots of occasions. That didnt make him a bad person, as long as he was on your side. And I think this Mage fellow is stuck here just as we all are for now."

Melethan didnt question it further. Instead the two of them practiced a little while longer and then went back to Edwin's farm. Guldivine found his refuge in his little hiding space, and Melethan went back to his house, careful to hide the sword in the barn.

Three days went by before Edwin discovered the sword. Guldivine had actually figured it would have happened sooner, but he knew eventually Melethan would be caught. It was a necessary conversation to be had between him and the boy's father. Guldivine came to know Edwin as a man who had no imagination. He did not laugh or smile and was all buisness. That being said, Edwin deeply cared for everyone in his village, and even though the village had no mayor or leader, Edwin sure seemed to assume those responsabilities a lot. So when Edwin came marching across the field in bright daylight, red and cursing at Guldivine, throwing the short sword into the dirt by Guldivine's feet, He knew the farmer meant buisness.

"Guldivine, Dammit I warned you about giving my boy this sword!" Edwin shouted.

"He should learn! You should all learn to fight!" Guldivine protested. "You need to be ready!"

"Ready for what!? To fight the dragon!? My son should be ready to fight the dragon is that what you are saying!?" Edwin demanded an answer.

"If it comes to that! You are living on an island with a godlike creature who could decimate thus village in seconds." Guldivine warned. "It wouldnt be bad to know how to fight."

"And what do you know Mister Guldivine, Mister Traveled the world! What do you possibly know about this place!? You wash up here and think you can tell me whats best for my only son!? Here, Take your sword and leave! I dont want you around my farm or my son anymore! I'll give you three days to get off my land!"

Guldivine frowned. "So thats it then? Kicking me out?"

"THATS IT!" Edwin shouted in angry agreement. "AND STAY AWAY FROM MELETHAN!"

"KEEP THE SWORD!" Guldivine shouted back as Edwin walked away. "YOU MIGHT NEED IT!"

The words stung Guldivine as they rolled off his tounge. Somehow, he knew he would regret saying them. Edwin and Melethan were not bad people, just a little oblivious to how dire their situation was, and Guldivine knew that patience was the key with the residents of the Island of Mardoc. After all they had been living generations upon generations under dragon rule. Guldivine knew though just how oppressed these people were.

The next night after the heated exhange, Guldivine found himself at Barbadd's tavern, fishing around for a new place to stay temporarily. He knew he couldnt just hide on the island for the rest of his life, but the next few weeks were certainly a concern for him. After all, he still did not have much value to these people, other than his manual labor. Perhaps he could prove to them his actual worth... as a Hunter of the realm.

The tavern was unusually empty, aside from Barbadd and Mage who showed up every night since he arrived. The sun was setting another orange still air hot night.

"Still havnt found a place to lay low?" Barbadd asked Guldivine as the three of them sat at the counter.

"No one around here knows me well enough to trust me." Guldivine said.

"Well I trust ya, Laddie. And I would let you stay here..."

Guldivine cut him off with his own words. "But here isnt exactly hiding from any friends of Mardoc, I know."

"You need a place to stay?" Mage piped up.

"Edwin caught Melethan with a sword. The one I was using to train the boy." Guldivine explained to Mage. "I am no longer welcome there."

"Well that arrangement didn't last long." Mage mused.

"That Edwin has always been a stubborn goat." Barbadd added.

"Well its no matter," Mage said. "You can find yourself a bedroll and camp with me. I have a small campsite just outside of town where no one comes looking."

"Where?" Barbadd asked, astonished over something about the town of Skorn he was unaware of.

"To the south east a bit, on the long cliffside. I found a space of rocks that looked right." Mage said. "I did come prepared." He shot Guldivine a glance and then set down a pouch full of gold. "Get yourself a bedroll and you can sleep out under the stars at my campsite."

"Sounds like the only offer I have to take." Guldivine relented.

And so that is how the harvest went. Guldivine moved out to Mage's campsite, Melethan and Edwin kept their distance, and everything seemed to move on accordingly. For the most part, Guldivine accepted this life for weeks, and began to wonder about settling down. An island to get lost on after all was what he was after in the first place. Even if it wasnt his original destination, the Trade Islands, He was in a spot where the enemies of Darkwood would have a hard time reaching him. It could all well work to his advantage here.

. . .Until the day that the Zealots arrived. . .