The burden of the damned

[SoulReapingWolf 2258]

In the ancient and paradisiacal continent of Khalenwyr, nestled amidst sprawling deserts and lush jungles, there stood a small village inhabited by the proud and noble Kharajyr. Among them was Syn, a young Kha'Tigrasi. Syn and his family lived happily, his father taught him how to fish while his mother tried to educate him on the basic chores he'd have to master in order to become a productive member of the village.

 

However none of that would ever come to pass, Syn's village was raided by a ruthless band of slavers the year he had turned 7 years old. Poachers and pirates looking to make a quick profit by capturing young kha, turning them into slaves, and skinning any adults found in the village. Chaos erupted as the slavers descended upon the peaceful settlement, their malicious intent palpable in the air. Syn, only a child at the time, watched in horror as his father was skinned alive and later killed for trying to protect his family and people. With tears streaming down his face, Syn's world shattered as his father's life was mercilessly snuffed out before his eyes. Their rampage continued showing no mercy, spreading destruction and despair. Syn's heart pounded in his chest as he saw his mother, the only thing he had left, fall victim to the slavers' brutality.

 

In an act of sadistic cruelty, the slavers blinded Syn, forever robbing him of his sight. With his world plunged into darkness, the images of his parent’s deaths and the raid on his village burnt into his mind. For years the young Kha'Tigrasi was bound in chains and forced into a life of slavery. Transported across treacherous seas, Syn eventually found himself in the distant lands of Almaris, far from the lush homeland he once knew. Bound by his shackles and haunted by the memories of his village's destruction, he lost any hope of ever being something other than a damned slave. With each passing day, his despair, his hopelessness, his sadness, grew. Nourished by the bad treatment from his captors amidst the darkness that enveloped his existence.

 

But fate had other plans for the young Kharajyr, for the poaching of his captors had managed to capture someone’s attention. One fateful night, as the slavers reveled in their debauchery, their celebration was cut short by a party of warrior druids from the Vale of Nevaehlen. With sheer determination and an unwavering spirit, they fought until no poacher was left standing, freeing all the animals they had captured, as well as Syn. Though weakened and starving, he managed to find refuge in the shadows of the foreign land.

Blind and disoriented, Syn ventured through unknown territories, his senses heightened as he relied on his other faculties to navigate the harsh world. Each step he took was accompanied by uncertainty and the constant threat of danger, his will to survive diminishing with every passing day. As Syn searched for a new home, he came to realize that kind souls were nothing more than a legend, a fairy tale, no one would offer him shelter or sustenance no matter how much he begged. His nightmares, the hatred and darkness of the world around him fueling his desire led a young kha’tigrasi to become desperate to forge a new path.

 

Lost and forgotten, Syn begged for the favor of the Aengudaemons, wishing for their mercy, for them to grant him the tools to seek retribution against those who had wrought devastation upon his people. And then in his darkest moment the flames that had haunted his dreams took another shape, his long gone sight would never come back, but something else had manifested itself in his desperation…