Chapter 1: Those Two Guys
It's not often someone gets the chance to contemplate the first day of the rest of their lives, or at least, not on the actual day. A human teenager named Talon had been granted this rare chance on a crisp autumn day, but if he were to be honest, he’d probably rather not.He was 17 years old, and the first day of the rest of his life was also, incidentally, the day he began his training. Taking the time to consider this fact had been causing Talon considerable anxiety, as well as excitement, and at the moment he stood outside the gates to the address he had been sent, where he would be residing for the next year, dragging a large trunk and carrying a duffel bag.
Talon’s most noticeable feature was his hair, a deliberate ploy on his part, as he kept the impressive set of (bizarrely natural) black spikes slicked back, save for a set of equally spiky bangs at the front. Two of these strange spines were a bright electric blue that seemed to almost glow. His eyes matched this color, lending an eerie, almost lit quality to otherwise fairly attractive features, though he had always been self conscious about his nose being too long despite assurances to the contrary. He was dressed casually, in a blue hooded sweatshirt and jeans.
“You’re aware standing outside and looking nervous isn’t going to make things easier,” The voice at his side rumbled, “You do actually have to walk through the gate.”
The voice at his side, as always, was attached to a handsome half-orc named Donovan, who, despite being the same age as Talon, was at least two heads taller than him, and quite a bit more muscular; who was presently eating an apple. Unlike his friend, Donovan’s equally dark hair was kept in a fairly simple Caesar cut, though he kept the small fringe at the front off his forehead with a small application of gel. Donovan’s eyes were a light grey color, and while not as bright as his those of his compatriot, they still had a light to them, which helped to accent a strong jaw which supported the pair of small tusks that, along with the stone gray color of his skin, alluded to his orcish heritage. Like his cohort, the half-orc was dressed casually, wearing a black and red jacket bearing a pattern and logo from a popular video game, and a pair of sweatpants. Like Talon, he carried a trunk, though it was much larger and he had it slung over his shoulder.
“Well, isn’t the third member supposed to be a girl?” The human asked the half-orc.
“‘S what the letter said, is that seriously why you’re nervous?” Donovan replied.
“I mean, it’s not the only reason...”
“Swear to gods, man, if you start doing that weird thing where you try to cover your nose.”
“Shut up. Just walk,” Talon said with a note of finality.
“No, you,” Donovan replied, with a note of completely undermining him.
This was the usual cadence of their relationship. The two had met when they were only 7 years old, Talon having been sent to train under Donovan’s paternal grandparents, both orcs. Donovan had been the smarter and more insightful of the two even at that young age, and tended to give Talon a hard time even when the human didn’t quite get his snark. They had auditioned for this together, and the two were almost literally inseparable, generally being more like brothers than friends.
The gates to the property still stood in front of them, looking for all the world like a secret garden out of a romance novel. Massive hedgerows blocked the view of all but the tallest parts of the building, with an archway that lead into a arbor, both covered in grapevines, they reminded both of them of the forests where the two had grown up together. Talon approached the gate, which opened easily at his touch, allowing them onto a garden path made of stones and mulch, leading all the way to a set of steps that climbed a hill upon which the bizarre house rested.
The base of the building seemed to be a very large, Colonial style house, with three rectangular levels and a slanted roof, but that was where the normal architecture ended. From the sides of the house, odd towers rose like those of a castle, with wooden decks adorning the tops in lieu of battlements. A few balconies stuck out of the base house in various places, with large glass doors allowing access to them, and a covered porch protected the doorway from the sun. The two of them approached the large, oaken door, which was taller even than Donovan; apparently accommodations had been made for his height, or for very tall residents in the past. Talon raised his hand, hesitated for a moment, then knocked on the door.
It's not often someone gets the chance to contemplate the first day of the rest of their lives, or at least, not on the actual day. A human teenager named Talon had been granted this rare chance on a crisp autumn day, but if he were to be honest, he’d probably rather not.He was 17 years old, and the first day of the rest of his life was also, incidentally, the day he began his training. Taking the time to consider this fact had been causing Talon considerable anxiety, as well as excitement, and at the moment he stood outside the gates to the address he had been sent, where he would be residing for the next year, dragging a large trunk and carrying a duffel bag.
Talon’s most noticeable feature was his hair, a deliberate ploy on his part, as he kept the impressive set of (bizarrely natural) black spikes slicked back, save for a set of equally spiky bangs at the front. Two of these strange spines were a bright electric blue that seemed to almost glow. His eyes matched this color, lending an eerie, almost lit quality to otherwise fairly attractive features, though he had always been self conscious about his nose being too long despite assurances to the contrary. He was dressed casually, in a blue hooded sweatshirt and jeans.
“You’re aware standing outside and looking nervous isn’t going to make things easier,” The voice at his side rumbled, “You do actually have to walk through the gate.”
The voice at his side, as always, was attached to a handsome half-orc named Donovan, who, despite being the same age as Talon, was at least two heads taller than him, and quite a bit more muscular; who was presently eating an apple. Unlike his friend, Donovan’s equally dark hair was kept in a fairly simple Caesar cut, though he kept the small fringe at the front off his forehead with a small application of gel. Donovan’s eyes were a light grey color, and while not as bright as his those of his compatriot, they still had a light to them, which helped to accent a strong jaw which supported the pair of small tusks that, along with the stone gray color of his skin, alluded to his orcish heritage. Like his cohort, the half-orc was dressed casually, wearing a black and red jacket bearing a pattern and logo from a popular video game, and a pair of sweatpants. Like Talon, he carried a trunk, though it was much larger and he had it slung over his shoulder.
“Well, isn’t the third member supposed to be a girl?” The human asked the half-orc.
“‘S what the letter said, is that seriously why you’re nervous?” Donovan replied.
“I mean, it’s not the only reason...”
“Swear to gods, man, if you start doing that weird thing where you try to cover your nose.”
“Shut up. Just walk,” Talon said with a note of finality.
“No, you,” Donovan replied, with a note of completely undermining him.
This was the usual cadence of their relationship. The two had met when they were only 7 years old, Talon having been sent to train under Donovan’s paternal grandparents, both orcs. Donovan had been the smarter and more insightful of the two even at that young age, and tended to give Talon a hard time even when the human didn’t quite get his snark. They had auditioned for this together, and the two were almost literally inseparable, generally being more like brothers than friends.
The gates to the property still stood in front of them, looking for all the world like a secret garden out of a romance novel. Massive hedgerows blocked the view of all but the tallest parts of the building, with an archway that lead into a arbor, both covered in grapevines, they reminded both of them of the forests where the two had grown up together. Talon approached the gate, which opened easily at his touch, allowing them onto a garden path made of stones and mulch, leading all the way to a set of steps that climbed a hill upon which the bizarre house rested.
The base of the building seemed to be a very large, Colonial style house, with three rectangular levels and a slanted roof, but that was where the normal architecture ended. From the sides of the house, odd towers rose like those of a castle, with wooden decks adorning the tops in lieu of battlements. A few balconies stuck out of the base house in various places, with large glass doors allowing access to them, and a covered porch protected the doorway from the sun. The two of them approached the large, oaken door, which was taller even than Donovan; apparently accommodations had been made for his height, or for very tall residents in the past. Talon raised his hand, hesitated for a moment, then knocked on the door.
