The Hero’s Sanctuary
Erik Hardmark was a woodsman. He lived in a cabin in a large stretch of woods, where he cut down trees for timber and planted new saplings in their place. Every Sunday, he would take a cart full of his timber to a market in the nearest town, some seven miles away from his home. A little over two years ago, whilst on one of these visits, an oracle approached him to tell him that on March the 3rd, 2023, he would be visited at his cabin by a young hero, whom he must help on his journey. Today was that fateful day.
Erik was mostly a solitary man. He had never married and had little desire to. The closest thing he had to friends were the other regular merchants at the market he frequented, with whom he would occasionally have short conversations. But Erik loved his peace and quiet. He had grown up in a big city and worked in an industrial factory from the time he was fourteen years old, but it had taken him until he was thirty-two to save up enough money to buy his own home in the woods, away from all the noises he’d grown to hate.
The week before he left the city, he bought himself a magnificent axe. Bigger and heavier than a traditional woodcutting axe, it allowed him to cut down trees in half as many swings. It took a significant amount of strength to wield such a tool of course, but Erik was nearly two metres tall and big boned. This particular axe was an incredible feat of craftsmanship, so even after twenty years, Erik was still using it to chop his timber.
No matter how much Erik cherished his solitude though, he couldn’t help but be excited to be taking part in a hero’s quest. This would truly be a great honour for him. He’d read a lot of adventure books and knew that there was almost always that one kind stranger that the hero encountered on their journey, one that helped them by allowing them to rest up before their final trial. Often that hero would have just narrowly survived some dangerous situation, or perhaps just slayed some terrible beast. They would stumble to a stranger’s home, exhausted, and find a friendly face waiting to give them food and shelter for the night. Perhaps that stranger might even impart some wisdom to them that also helped them with their quest in some fashion. Today, it was Erik’s fate to be that kind, wise stranger. He didn’t actually feel particularly wise, but he at least felt prepared in the hospitality role, having bought a wide range of medical supplies and enough food to feed any hero five times over.
All morning and afternoon, Erik waited on his front porch in his favourite rocking chair. Just as dusk approached, he heard a fearful yell come from the woods, maybe a hundred metres away to his left side. He stood up and squinted in that direction, scanning for movement. He didn’t need to look for long, as he soon saw a young man – maybe thirteen or fourteen years old – come charging into the clearing that encircled Erik’s cabin. From behind the boy came a great roar, and Erik saw trees in the distance being (incredibly) knocked down, though he couldn’t quite make out by what.
“Sir! Help me, please!” the boy shouted at Erik the second he saw him.
Though he had not been anticipating a fight, Erik did not hesitate. He picked up his trusty axe and stepped forwards to join the hero.
What kind of creature is chasing the boy?
Will they need to fight it or might they find another solution?
What are the details of the quest the boy is on?