In Hiligree,in the city slums of Darkbright. In the underbelly their lies the marketplace known as the Nob where many hands exchange goods and services both legal and illicit. A place where the rich don't do business,but the poor and most desperate will. A place where Arthur is looking for a job. A job that his friend,Timothy, was said to have given him. A fellow were-rat like himself. Were-rat are one of the many lycanthropes that wander Hiligree. There are were-bats, were-horses,were-tigers,were-bears and were-boars. The most notorious are the were-wolves. There are also many different kinds of vampires but the most notorious would be known as the Dracula. Powerful in physical and mental prowess,what we would call the stereotypical vampire. Other monsters do also prey on others in Hiligree,very few monsters hunt in the city , but it is not uncommon. Some species have adapted their behavior with city migrations.
As Arthur goes to the bar which is the meetup place of lycanthropes. He spots Timothy in the corner booth. He goes over their dodging and weaving the shady inhabitants of the bar. He slides into the booth. At which Timothy tells him theirs a old forgotten sewer nearby that is rumored to contain treasure. The treasure is said to be valuable ,and Timothy is willing to take a cut of whatever the treasure sells for. He knows this because in exchange for a small fee a cloaked woman gave him a manuscript of the old city and sewer complex. She knew their was a vault in one part of the sewer complex. She doesn't want or need the treasure because she was dying and getting old. And wishes to give the map to a "worthy successor". To which Timothy agrees. They are to meet up at a location in the modern sewer complex. At the stroke of midnight. So Arthur goes.
As it hits the afternoon, Arthur goes into the sewer complex. In the narrowly shifting hallways,he notices occasionally pieces of bone sometimes a skeletal corpse. Looking around more he sees them oddly separate from the rest of the body. He doesn't notice till a blade comes out of the wall from a cleverly concealed hole. And nearly misses him by a hair. He holds his head in a kneeling position,crawling on his hind legs. And as another one appears a second later he kneels even more. Finally a third one appears and he army crawls on his legs. The final trap is a gas coming out of a grate on the wall. It activates when Arthur crawls on the pressure plate. All of a sudden Arthur feels woozy. And he passes out. But not until he sees at his side an old wererat. Arthur then passes out.
As Arthur comes too he is in the dark. And as he wakes up. He sees the old rat. And he is strangely luminescent. His beard blows gently like theirs a moderate breeze. Yet it is not drafty.
"You have passed the test of the penitent"
"You have proven yourself worthy of my treasure,as I knew you would"
"It is said a King would unite all the people cursed of Hunger and Curse and in doing so free them and forgive them for their transgressions when they were transformed."
"You have been chosen to be that King"
"Unite the lycanthropes and free them from the Zodiac,then you must help others outside this realm that are oppressed. You will start with the lycanthropes and end with the devotees of green and the old faith. Know you will face many hardships,know you will be victorious"
"I was once a rat like yourself eking out an existence along with my tribe in the underground crypt of a forgotten king. It was the only home we knew. It wasn't until i led an expedition out of the crypts that my wife betrayed me for a evil god, an imposter. Using magic she became head of the tribe and turned my people against me.I was able to succeed in driving out the demon and I slew the sorceress that was my wife but not without dying. The survivors of that battle left the crypt. But not before pronouncing me a savior. But I fear my wife has returned to spread her revenge. I was able to contact the highest powerful being in all of existence . While she agreed to help me she said I could not intervene. So she sent you to me. You are my last hope. In this do not fail, the future of this world depends on it."