"It's amazing how people can see themselves as better or above others."
"How they can call some people barbaric."
"The vanity of humanity has led some to believe that only their way of life is the right and moral way to exist in the world."
"Seldom is it so."
"They do not even try to understand the people of the so-called barbaric nations."
"They do not understand those people's wants and needs."
"Or even why things were the way they are."
"How the environment and the constant clash of interests collide to create the nations and culture that appears throughout the world."
"These are the people who throw around phrases such as 'subhuman piece of trash' so casually, so easily."
"As if they alone have the right to decide what is moral, what makes someone a sentient being."
"Yet they forget that the moment they dehumanise their chosen enemy and deem them beyond redemption."
"Is when they become the very thing that they preach to be so vehemently against."
Reginald Coulan, creator and head of House Aurellion in Dynasties Online.
….
On March 25th, 4009 ASA (After Species Awakening)
Railius Aurellion and Ciradyl Erberos met for the first time.
Two figures who would send shockwaves through the world of Dynasties Online met on one fateful day.
Two individuals who would each become legends in their own right.
And share a love that would never end.
The day of their meeting began as any day usually did for Railius.
With the young fallen noble being beaten down to the forest floor again and again in training, which had only intensified as he slowly improved at fighting over time.
As Railius got close to the peak of the adept rank, his friends all having gotten to the expert rank months ago, Railius's training went from one-on-one combat to fighting against groups.
Railius could remember the first day when Aldorus changed his training regime to include him fighting alone against groups.
….
"Today, we have something special for you to do, my lord. As you have repeatedly reminded us, you need to be able to defend yourself when on the battlefield, so today, we will be practising fighting a group of enemies alone."
Aldorus said, leaning on his sword that was stuck into the ground, his sharp eyes watching as six elite Pelican Guards surrounded Railius, ready to attack him all at once as a soft breeze swept through the plains.
"Aldorus, isn't this a bit much? I'm only likely to find trained soldiers on a battlefield, not troops on the level of the Pelican Guard."
Railius complained, not wanting to get his ass beat once again in training as he carefully watched the wooden training swords and spears that were in the hands of his most loyal protectors who were all grinning at him.
The young lord of Aurellion shivered when he saw the usually stoic expressions of his soldiers light up with glee, knowing that they would take pleasure in getting back at him for all his shenanigans by ensuring that his training was as painful and instructive as possible.
After all, the Pelican Guard at this moment in time could be said to be at the peak of all soldiers, even being amongst the best unique units in the game, and it was rare for them to get an opportunity such as this to get back at their lord for dragging them into trouble time and time again.
"The Pelican Guards are among the most elite soldiers in the world."
"We must also consider that we will primarily be fighting against Chavaria in the future, and so there are no better men to learn from in this world than us, who have incorporated the Chavarian fighting style into our customised fighting style."
"Leon, our grand commander, served in the Chavarian military for nearly 20 years, having joined at a young age before leaving to protect you. So, while we have a unique fighting style, its base is still Chavarian."
"The same style that their entire military employs, from the lowliest recruit to the commander of their Imperial Guards, though they will have a few unique aspects to their fighting style, as everyone does when they reach a certain level."
Aldorus said with a wry smile, cutting off any chance of Railius escaping this training. The young university student could have, of course, ordered them to stop, but he agreed that there was no better training for him, despite how painful it was, as he had already experienced the dangers of the battlefield on more than one occasion.
Aldorus also happened to take pleasure in watching his lord struggle as they prepared him for the unrelenting flames of war, though he intended to teach, not just hurt. But if he could teach Railius a painful lesson while instructing him and get some small revenge for all the trouble he causes, then the Pelican Guard commander was not going to complain.
"Ready?"
Aldorus asked with a smile as Railius and the six Pelican Guards took their positions, the experienced soldiers standing equidistant from each other to ensure that Railius was well and truly surrounded.
"Begin!"
Aldorus shouted as the mock battle began.
Not that the training session would last very long.
Thunk!
Wood clashed as the first man took a stab at Railius that was only just blocked, though, from training with his men one-on-one, the young lord of House Aurellion was more than used to the frightening speed his men were capable of and it had unknowingly improved his instincts by leaps and bounds as he was used to fighting opponents far faster and more skilled than him.
Thunk! Thunk!
Within a second, two more strikes were quickly exchanged. Both soldiers, the old veteran and the young lord of a noble house, held nothing back as they fought and even seemed to be somewhat evenly matched.
This was a result of Railius's fighting style, which was based on analysis rather than speed or strength. So while he was weaker against newer and more unique styles, the opposite was true for styles that he was familiar with, which is why he could fight relatively evenly with the elite Pelican Guard whose veterans were at the peak of the expert rank and were capable of taking on two soldiers of the same rank.
However, unfortunately, this time Railius was not just fighting with one man, but six, and so, just as he ducked under another swing of his opponent's wooden sword and was about to hit him in the side, another wooden sword appeared and blocked his attack as a second man joined the fight.
A step later, pain shot from Railius's side, causing him to cry out as the first man's sword struck him. A moment later, as he was reeling from pain, the second man struck, hitting his shoulder, a strike that would have cut him from shoulder to waist if the sword was made from steel and not wood.
The two ageing veterans, who had experienced the worst the battlefields had to offer over the last 30 years, were accustomed to fighting together against their foes and worked seamlessly together to dispatch Railius within seconds.
Seeing how quickly he fell, the fight stopping as soon as the second, more mortal blow struck, it was no wonder that these Pelicans were feared throughout the world for their skill and ability to work together, as they could kill a man in mere seconds.
And this was no easy man to kill, either, as Railius had long surpassed the skill of the average soldier.
It took no more than 5 seconds after the fighting had begun for Railius to be pronounced 'dead' or, at the very least, mortally wounded by Aldorus, the referee of this practice fight, who smiled as he saw that hid men were still as good as ever and had not lost their touch when they only had either themselves or bandits and raiders to fight against.
Aldorus had seen how some soldiers, over time, lost their touch due to not having an opponent of their calibre to fight against and was glad to see that this problem had not spread amongst his own men.
Aldorus' worries were not unfounded, as it was not uncommon for royal guards or an established personal guard of a ruler to become corrupt as nobles and men of influence looked to put their own proxies near a ruler to expand their influence and power or act as spies so that they could accurately gauge the mood of their ruler.
Men who answered to their patron more than any member of the royal family, and some guards like the Praetorians of the ancient Roman empire, even became so powerful that they could decide who the next emperor could be.
Watching as Railius took up position again for another round, the Pelican Guard Commander couldn't help but smile.
Because his lord could have no better teachers than his current ones when it came to fighting against groups and would give the last scion of House Aurellion the skills he needed to survive the many battles and wars that he would fight in.
….
Railius Aurellion entered the tavern battered and bruised from his daily training, a common occurrence since Aldorus had decided that he needed to train in fighting while surrounded by enemies on the battlefield three months prior.
A skill that was likely to be unvaluable in the future.
And training that sent him to bed sore every night despite this supposedly being a leisure trip to see the world.
Though these days, he lasted far longer than he did before and required four men to successfully corner him rather than the two it took to take him down before.
It's incredible how much effort and talent Railius could show when the alternative was being hit by wooden swords for hours on end.
Although he had not yet succeeded in defeating his training partners, he had made excellent progress.
In fact, apart from those players who managed to survive the many wars that were beginning to pop up around the virtual world, he was likely to be able to beat every other player in the game thanks to his relentless training with his Pelican Guards who showed no mercy as each knew what was at stake.
The safety of their young lord.
And it was not something that they would take lightly, considering the stunt that Malwin and Leon pulled off in Nathia.
As he and his party passed, the other patrons sneered at him. The tavern in the capital city of The Kingdom of Pelthas was filled with elves who were not known to be the most welcoming race in the world of Dynasties Online.
Elves always were a prickly bunch of cunts at the best of times and unfortunately for Railius, these were not the best of times.
Even in the most progressive kingdom of theirs, the Kingdom of Pelthas, looks of disgust at other races than themselves were still more common than not.
They were better than their neighbours, the Baernthas Principality, who were the most bigoted, but as with all forms of discrimination, they died very hard deaths even if the prejudice people have against these previously discriminated people can hardly be seen or no longer was publicly accepted.
After all, in the Principality, most of those who were not elves were slaves and treated no better than animals or furniture. It took more self-control than usual for Railius to let such barbarity continue unanswered, but this was the way of that kingdom and its culture, and it was not his place to decide for them what they saw as right and wrong.
Dismissing aspects of another culture, no matter how repulsive you find them, or thinking that yours is superior, is a hazardous road to take and can lead to many unexpected and catastrophic consequences, as well as superiority complexes that can cause the culture to develop in a more barbaric way in the first place.
And not one that Railius wanted to go down, well, not yet, anyway.
When Railius first heard about how elves were one of the most discriminatory and racist races in the world, he was surprised.
This is because, unlike many others who preferred to read more modern literature, he always preferred the older books like The Lord of The Rings, so when he thought of elves, he thought of the beautiful and wise people of Tolkien's mythos not the short sited bigoted sentients that seemed to be so prevalent in Dynasties Online.
However, their arrogance stemmed from somewhere, as despite some of their barbaric practices, much like the Romans of the ancient world, they were far more advanced than their contemporaries in many ways, especially in their magical technology, which was the best in the world.
Elves were naturally attuned to magic; however, apart from giants, they had the lowest birthrate of all the races in the game. As a result, while they lived longer than the other races, their population was one of the lowest, especially when compared to the far more numerous orcs, goblins, Beastmen, and Humans.
Due to their long lives, they also have the most experts in the world, with many more masters and grandmasters among their ranks than any other race, making them a formidable force. This is why they still maintain many kingdoms in the forests, where they are strongest, despite their low population.
This included many grandmaster mages, and it was even rumoured that one of the elven kingdoms had a divine figure amongst their ranks, though this had never been confirmed or believed by the outside world as such a figure had not been recorded or seen for over a thousand years and those with power would rather believe such a nuclear figure could no longer exist than tremble in fear at its might.
After all, in the ancient chronicles from over a thousand years ago in Dynasties Online, it is said that divine mages were so powerful that they could crush armies with one spell, but there was one aspect of them that was far more important.
This aspect was the ability to cast magic even in the presence of antimagic crystals due to their overwhelming power that can be compared to that which even gods can wield.
It should not be understated how terrifying that is.
Magic is one of the most powerful things in Dynasties Online, capable of producing miracles that people could only imagine.
Warfare was forever changed with the discovery of antimagic crystals, making strategy far more important than spells that could wipe out thousands of men in one go, as had been the case on the brutal battlefields of the past, where corpses could be found for miles around.
After all, magic was the primary weapon of the gods and has been used many times to demonstrate their might or punish individuals who dared to think themselves their equals.
Unlike in the real world, where gods are seen as nothing more than myths conjured and created by humankind to help explain and reason things that happened, which seemed otherworldly at that time, in Dynasties Online, gods were a hard, cold fact, not some illusive concept used to control the masses by the powerful or something hard to prove exists.
They were the pinnacle of power, able to change the tides and wind with a snap of their fingers.
But that is not all that is advanced about the elves. From sewage systems to administrative structures, all were more advanced than Railius had seen anywhere else. The roads were paved with a smooth stone surface, resembling a modern highway more than the collection of uneven stones found in most other places with paved roads or more advanced infrastructure. The only place that Railius thought even came close to the wonders that he saw in the elven kingdoms was what he saw in the capitals of the other nations.
The only thing that was not the most advanced was their weapon technology and craftsmanship skills, as the gnomes and dwarves were largely looked down upon, though Pelthas has begun to improve due to their more accepting nature compared to the other elven kingdoms who keep themselves relatively isolated compared to the rest of the world seeing themselves as the pinnacle of civilisation and culture.
And like all those who think themselves perfect, they stop evolving and, before they know it, find themselves not as winners but losers.
Railius and his small group, which included Aldorus, Railius's three friends Norfaelor, Jordis, and Vegrif, as well as Captain Cedrick, were quick to order their drinks and sit down. Only then did a group of around eight elves arrogantly enter the tavern and approach their table.
One look at their clothes allowed Railius to realise that they are part of the elvish nobility and apart from himself the young lord had not come across bigger or more arrogant assholes than elfish nobility.
Their seats were in the corner and out of the way, but the entitled elf still came over to them, wanting to flaunt his power and satisfy his vanity.
"Those seats are ours."
The lead elf said, arrogantly puffing out his chest as if he were the most important person in the world.
No one at the table stirred, continuing to drink as if nothing had happened, paying no mind to the group of arrogant elves at all. Everyone there was accustomed to such antics by now, as nearly every town and city had its share of pampered pricks who tried to use their status to get their way, reveling in the power they wielded to do as they pleased.
"And they are very comfortable. I can see why you consider my seats to be a cut above the others, but unfortunately for you, we have grown quite attached to them."
Railius replied with a wry smile in an exaggerated manner, emphasising his ownership and not moving an inch as he continued to sip on his lemonade as if he didn't know that a fight was likely to break out.
"Do you have any idea who I am?"
The elf shouted in anger, offended by the half-breed dwarf's nonchalant attitude when dealing with him and his betters, which drew looks from the surrounding tavern tables interested in the commotion as nothing was more entertaining than watching drama unfold from the sidelines that had nothing to do with you.
"An arrogant asshole obviously."
Railius said with a calm, mirthful smile, drawing sighs from his table as everyone else shook their heads slightly.
Because now, any chance of deescalating this conflict had just been blown up into a thousand pieces by Railius.