To be honest this story began just like all the others. One hero was made alone in a place few others were watching. But the one who was watching had a plan. This one hero. This lone being wouldn’t turn out to be evil or miss understood. No he would be more. He wouldn’t be alone on his way to nowhere. He wouldn’t have to wonder where he would go or what he would do. He would be taken care of. When he needed health he would be encouraged. When he needed companionship he would find a friend. When he died he would be resurrected. He would not stop on his way to the top. He would not be stopped. No monster, no challenge, and no foe could stop him. He would prove to all that even the loneliest and seemingly most unimportant soul, is worth more then anyone could have imagined. Griffin wings was his name when he started. And griffin wings it would be when he finnshed. He may be forgotten by many when this was done. But someone would remember him. Someone would remember what he did. And that would make it all worth it.
How it began.
When griffin wings woke up he had the distinctive feeling of being watched. “Fair ye well brother?” A man in a large robe two sizes too big asked coming towards him. “….?” Griffin simply didn’t understand. Seeing the look on his face the man laughed. “You don’t look like you understand why you’re here. You haven’t forgotten have you?” The look on griffin’s face said it all. “It’s alright, it happens from time to time. Come I’ll explain your situation more once we get you fed.” Griffin sat staring at the hand that the man held out to him. “It’s alright. my name is Desmond. But most just call me quirky. I’m a monk from the monastery up the mountain a ways.” Griffin slowly took the man’s hand and stood up. After shaking off the dust from the ground he finally began to take in his surroundings. He was in a dark cave. Evident by the stalactites and stalagmites sticking out from everywhere. Griffin didn’t understand how he knew this was a cave. He couldn’t remember ever being in one before, come to think of it he couldn’t remember being anywhere before. But yet he had knowledge of things he couldn’t possibly of known without going anywhere. Like the sun. He had a distinct knowing that the sun was outside this cave somewhere in the sky…. the more he began to think these things, the more he Bagan to get confused. How. When. Where. Why. The questions would pop into his head quicker than he could think up explanations. “This way!” The monk shouted out from Down the cave breaking griffin’s train to nowhere thoughts. He began to follow the oddly charming monk out of the cave.
When they made it to the monastery quirky had the other monks bring him food. The others complied seemingly used to hungry strangers. When griffin sat down to eat quirky sat across from him and began talking in a calm understanding manner. “So my fraind, I feel like you are coming along quite well. If you only could remember the name of your diety…” Griffin perked up at that last word. “Strong Soul!” He blurted out. Then jumped back at the sudden sound of his own voice. “Grand!” Quirky shouted with a jolly smile on his face.“You’ve finally spoken. And now we know who your diety is. Strong Soul. It seams a fitting name as any. Do you recall your own Name?” “G..griff…Griffin wings.” “Good. Now I don’t suppose you remember your purpose???” Griffin’s eyes looked on unsure. “I have no memories. And what is a diety?” “A namer is a mysterious being that creates a hero like you to do deeds in his or her name.” “Why?” Griffin laid down his sandwich ready to have answers. “We’ve been studying this odd phenomenon for years and we still don’t know the answer to that question. But believes range anywhere from new gods to evrything we know is really a computer game.” He suddenly burst out laughing. “What’s a computer anyway? Can you believe how dumb people can be.” Griffin gave a week smile. “Anyways. heroes appear in that cave everyday and we help them get ready to fight for Thier diety’s.” “Fight?” “Yes fight. There are plenty of monsters going around out there. And they all take it as their job to fight the heroes.” “I don’t think I’m that type of hero” Griffin takes another bite of his food. “Nonsense. There are no other heroes. You fight, you drink, you die, then you repeat. It’s a simple process.” Griffin spit his food all over quirky. “DIE.!?!” He shouts out. Quirky grabs a napkin and begins wiping off his face. “Of course. And then you resurrect so you can go again” “I don’t think I like the sound of that.” “I don’t blame you nobody does…. except maybe that one guy who….. well we won’t go there but the point is, it doesn’t matter if you like it, it’s your purpose.” “Well… what if I don’t care about purpose and I just become a fry cook? Or a male striper? I always wanted to be a fry cook. Or of course a male striper……… mayby I could become both…. oh and call myself HOT SAUCE.” Quirky stared at the newest hero for awhile. Griffin was sure he was trying to picture him as a male striper and wondered if quirky would be his agent. But quirky Was contemplating something else entirely. He was wondering why all the heroes that came out of that cave had exactly the same IQ. And for that matter why they all thought they wanted to be stripers. “…..so will you be my agent?” Quirky was finally brought out of his thoughts. “What?” Griffin looked just as chipper as could be. “I said would you be my agent?” Just then a large monk came in and said they had another visitor. " two in one day?" Quirky seamed incredulous. “Why we haven’t had two this close together sense the hero revolt in 419. Well I must meet this new hero. I’ll be back griffin.” Quirky left. Giving griffin the perfect opportunity to practice his moves. He got up and began doing the twist. Amazingly he was actually pretty good at it. About twenty minutes into his dance quirky came walking in with a heroine. They both looked at griffin surprised. But to griffin they looked impressed. He flashed them a smile and continued. Quirky was embarrassed by the young hero. And was thinking about kicking him out of the monastery for giving the new hero a bad example. But just as he went to speak up the new heroine began to laugh. At this griffin looked confused. “That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.” She said through her snorts and giggles. Finally griffin stopped and looked at the two. Quirky looks impressed. He thought. But this new hero was laughing at him. He felt his face flush. And quickly sat down to eat his sandwich. “Griffin this is Izumi the Azul.” Quirky said guiding the laughing heroine over to a seat at the table. Griffin sat quietly whilst quirky explained how hero’s work to her. “But what if I want to be a model?” She said when he was finished. “You were made to be a hero. It’s your purpose. To serve this…..Fidra you said her name was. And To kill any and all monsters you meet on your way.” The girl took him at his word. stood up and declared “well let’s get this over with then.” Then let out a sigh and walked out. Quirky smiled. “I love the easy ones.” Then he looked at griffin and asked “Why don’t you go with her? You might help each other.” Griffin liked the crumbs off of his plate and stared at him. “Now?” He asked. Quirky sighed. “Of course now. There’s no better time to do something then the present.” “But you haven’t given me a wapen yet.” “We don’t give the heroes wapens. Ha! We are in a monastery after all!” “Then what if I’m attacked by one of those monsters?” Quirky stood up and said. “That’s it your out! I can tell you’re just trying to stall. So as much as I hate to do it I’m kicking you out. You can come back as soon as you’ve built your deity a temple!” Quirky grabbed griffin by the arm and led him to the door. “B..but what am supposed to do for food? I Don’t have any money.” " if you kill a monster you can take it’s loot." “B..but what if the monster kills me?” Quirky pushed him out the door. And said “then you won’t have to worrie about food.” Then he closed the door, leaving griffin alone. “Just great. What am I supposed to do now?” Griffin turned toward the open road and began walking.
For a long time there was only road. But soon enough the road began to dive deeper and deeper into the forest. Griffin was to busy thinking about his stomach to notice the beast lurking in the trees. Watch him with hungry eyes. Then as he had his back turned it struck. Suddenly griffin was knocked down. Pain shooting through his back. He rolled over to find he was being mauled by an ‘Are we there yeti.’ The yeti grabbed him by the neck and picked him of the ground with just one hand. But just before the yeti could go for the kill a sudden shriek was heard. “Put him down!!!” The yeti took on a very fearful expression dropped griffin and ran away. Griffin looked around for the cause of the noise but couldn’t see anything. Deciding to call it a fluke he grabbed his sore neck and continued walking down the path. A little more careful this time.
It wasn’t long before he came to a town. Godvillewood. With out even thinking he went straight for the tavern. But when he got there remembered he Didn’t have any money. But before he left ready to call it a lost cause a fellow by the name of Mike offered him a drink. “Ah a new hero come sip some nectar with us veterans. Don’t worry about cash I just sold all my loot.” Seeing this as a great opportunity griffin agreed. He took the mug in his hand put it up to his mouth and took a long swolow.
This was the beginning of a long and sorry existence. Griffin found him self in a deep rut. Everyday he would wake up in some ally and head back to the tavern. There he would find a friendly hero and wait to be offered a beer. Then he would drink And drink until the hero would leave and then griffin would find another hero and do the same thing. He would be so out of it by then that the tavern would kick him out and he’d have to find shelter to sleep. This went on for week’s And weeks.
And then one day griffin found himself in an ally all alone but to drunk to care. He clutched a mug in his hand that held the few last drops of beer he managed to sneak away with. But before he could drink it a thought hit him. It was a wierd thought… what if I never stop… this thought was scary to griffin. Not because of what it was implying. But because it was a sober thought. He could sense it tugging at him. Somthing deep inside the confines of his mind he tried to fight it but he was to week from the beer to have any control. The thought struck him again a lot harder this time. A single tear fell from his eye. He could feel his mind clearing. Becoming more and more sober. And when the tipping point was reached the thought brought with it many others…. who am i.. where do I belong…. is this the end…. Griffin began to sob uncontrollably. Somthing was happening deep inside him. It was warm but cold. It was painful but comforting. It was fixing him…by breaking him. Griffin’s sobs came to a stop when he heard the voice. “Griffin?” It was so simular to the one that saved him in the woods. But deeper and stronger. “There you are.” Griffin looked around but couldn’t find the source anywhere. “I’ve come to set you free griffin.” “What?” Griffin was oddly worried about what that would mean. “It means I’ve come to release you from your purpose.” “You mean fighting monsters? Ha! I haven’t been doing that anyway.” “I know griffin. That is why you have been drinking. To hide your shame.” “I am not ashamed.” “That is what you think because you have been hiding from yourself. It doesn’t seam like a conscious choice, But it is. You have made the choice to not fulfill your purpose. And the shame of such a decision is such a burden you couldn’t carry it. So you found something. Somthing that seamed to carry the load for you. But it didn’t. It only hid it. The load has been on your shoulders sense the day you drank that first beer. You were just to busy to notice it was crushing you from the inside out.” Griffin wanted to argue with these words. But they resonated with such a deep truth that he couldn’t even work his jaw. “I understand your concerns with your purpose. Nobody ever asked to be lunch for monsters. And so with what god power I have left I will release you from your duties.” Griffin couldn’t figure out why but the thought of this made him very sad. “W..what will you do after that?” “I’ll probably try again with another hero. But if They choose like you then I’ll probably give up. No reason to make more suffer from the coming storm than necessary.” “The comming storm?” Griffin herd a sigh. “Yes. The monsters have been coming faster these days. It’s gotten so bad that some deities have had to create more than one hero. Even as many as six and over. I can’t even imagine that. Heck I only have one and look how much work I have had to put in.” “What about the monsters? I thought heroes were only to make a deity famous.” “No. That is a myth. Heroes are made to be protectors. To keep the monsters at bay. If it weren’t for the hero’s, towns like this Wouldn’t have a chance. Humanity might not have a chance…” “B…b..but why can’t the deities do something about it then? Why do you need Heroes?” “Because without them we have no control over what goes on here. It’s like electricity with out a wire. We have power but it takes somthing to bring that power here.” Griffin thought on this awhile. Then he spoke up “so I could be your ‘wire’?” There was no answer. “Hello!” Griffin called out. “Sorry.” The voice came back. “I just needed a snack thought I would run to the fridge while you thought that over.” Griffin didn’t understand. “oh. never mind. Anyway back to setting you free. Here we go, now witch button does that again?” “Wait!” Griffin said. “What if I wanted to be your hero?” “Well… it would save me some embarrassment… but that’s not worth your happiness.” “But…. what if I want to.” “You would have to be sure. I’m all into second chances but if you changed your mind in half a year we would both be unhappy.” Griffin gathered all his courage and made a decision. “I will be your hero…for as long as you want me.” There was an almost tangible joy in the air. And griffin felt happy and reassured about his choice. “Are you sure? It’s not going to be easy. There will be times you are barely holding on to life here. And times when it’s not even that. I’ll try to keep you alive but it’s not always possible.” “I’m sure. If that’s what it takes then I’m willing.” "ok then. I’ll set you on your first quest without beer. Join the “blue feather” guild." Griffin dropped the mug he was holding and set out to see the quest through.
This was the beginning of a long journey for griffin wings. Many Monsters would fall by his hand. And many heroes would know his name before it was over. But he kept his chin up and fought the the fight he promised he would. There would be high points and low points in his many lives. But he would never forget the moment his namer gave him a second chance. And also there were flying tigers. They were awesome and they were endangered. And griffin nearly ended the entire race… but that’s a story for another time.