Chapter Text
Your life is simple. Equipped with the knowledge that the shadows of the world should be feared. It's not irrational. There are creatures from beyond the human realm lurking in the dark.
For generations your family has filled a secret role in the world around you. Fighting monsters and keeping the citizens, or the ordinary as you call them, of the cities you travel to safe. Infestations squashed, clans culled, shadows purified, and serpents slayed. You are a fine warrior but you are nowhere near as in tune with the arcane magic of your world as you want to be. You make due, of course, but you’re no witch or wizard.
Your grandpa, from what you can remember, was the strongest of you when it came to understanding magic in the world around him. No one in your family talks about him much anymore. When you were young, he left to settle down in a secluded town, starting a farm and slowly cutting off communication with his family. Remembering the bond you shared with him was difficult and you could never bring it up to your parents. It made them angry.
Once you hit thirty, you set out on your own. The family usually works together as a group but you wanted to hone your skills on your own, become stronger and more useful. Your parents weren't crazy about it at first, but warmed up to it eventually.
Things were going fine.
Well things were going fine, until you received a letter. It was a curious thing, how did it find you? It more or less just showed up. One moment it wasn’t there and the next it was. You have no permanent residence, no mailbox to your name. Nothing of the sort.
The pieces fall together as you read your name on the front. It was his handwriting, as if you could ever forget it. Your grandpa. The temptation to rip it up without even opening it was strong but then the fond memories of him flood your mind and before you can stop yourself you are reading the letter.
“If this letter has found you, that means you must be in dire need of a change. The same thing happened to me, long ago. I’d lost sight of what mattered most in life… real connections with other people and nature. Isn’t that the reason we do what we do? When the feeling hit me, I dropped everything and moved to the place I truly belong. I’ve enclosed the deed to that place… my pride and joy: Hollow Farm. It's located in Stardew Valley, on the southern coast. It’s the perfect place to find what you have been searching for. There is divine magic here but I must warn you that there is also a terrible danger. I have spent my life protecting the valley from it but I am running out of time. If you accept this gift… I know you’ll honor the family name, my dear. Good luck.”
“Dire need of change… what I have been searching for?” You mutter aloud. With anger and confusion you slam the letter face town on the table. All these years of silence and he sends you this? “What did he mean he was running out of time?” Your mind panics and your eyes catch something small scribbled on the back of the letter.
“Seek out the Wizard.” Is scrawled in his perfect penmanship with coordinates to a warp location.
The ever deepening frown on your face starts to hurt. How did he know you were unsatisfied? Were you unsatisfied? The one kind thing your parents ever said about him in all the years after he left, came to your mind, that he was the strongest of you. He had the strongest connection to The Sight. You re-read the letter again. What did this mean?
There was only one way to find out. After packing a bag of your essentials, you pull your scepter from your belt, say the coordinates out loud and raise the scepter above your head. With a pulsing light and a zip noise you are transported to a dense forest. The smell of wet earth and spring fills the air around you. Looking out of the tree line you see a tall stone tower with vines creeping up the sides.
A whooshing comes from behind you and you whip around to see a man standing there. Black cloak and hat, amethyst hair and a pensive look on his face.
“I’ve been expecting you.” He spoke in a low voice, deep and ancient sounding.