Winter fell over Helovia in what felt like a single night. Perhaps I had been distracted by all the changes unfolding before me to recognize the signs of the cold season, but either way, there it was draping the land in a formidable jacket of icy gloom. The Edge felt whimsical this time of the year, with the frozen gusts of salty air rushing up from the cliff creating dissonant tunes that reminded me of summer. However, whether it be restlessness or mere insanity, I had decided to wander eastward to the Threshold in hopes of easing my need to fulfill an ever-rising sense of duty to my family after so much turmoil. Failed King or not, my duties still lie at the very heart of the land itself. I had been fettered to the soils upon Mirage’s first proposal that I call them home and a magnificent home they had provided me… Now it was time that others knew of the incredible powers within the mists of the World’s Edge. I had come back to Helovia and now the process of building up the shattered soul of the great land beside the ocean had called me to arms.


Silly as it were, I was slightly nervous about once again weaving my way through the dense forest of the claiming grounds. I feared what kind of creature I had become in the time I’d spent away from Helovia and how it would impact my ability to openly express welcome to newcomers. The desolate landscape of the uncharted lands had shaped me in many ways and as it appeared, not all of them were good. I had learned courage and survival, but I had also adopted a cold nature in lieu of experiencing absolute loneliness. There was no doubt that I knew within myself there thrived a wholly virtuous being, but he had been lost under the open sky when those lonely nights brought terrors unknown to my vulnerable heart. In time, I hoped to regain that part of my past and today was something of a test to learn if it could indeed manifest itself once more.

Upon reaching the brink of the Threshold, I paused, my neck craning toward the early morning horizon just beyond the wall of wood that stretched into a vast eternity. It lie before me like a challenge awaiting my attention and yet such a simple task felt daunting. With measured steps I split the veil between the soft morning rays and the shadows of the forest, casually timing each footstep with the sound of a wide hoof upon the hardened grounds. New scents rose up from the dry, bothered grasses and each of them seemed erotic and strange. I wondered if these scents, stale and fragrant alike, knew something of my troubles in the uncharted lands beyond Helovia. Had they previously called them home as well?

I wasted no time in sifting through the quiet trees until I breeched an open clearing. In the heart of the opening waited a painted lady who in many respected reminded me of my new Queen, Kahlua. But the painting was the only feature that spoke of their similarities. Since I did not want to alarm the mare by barging into a possibly private moment, I whuffled softly to her before carefully approaching. My shoulders felt tense as I drew closer and I knew my eyes were searching for some fort of threat in her that I wasn’t sure I’d even find. However, upon glimpsing her jeweled eyes, I was suddenly taken aback by the striking feature. I pondered briefly where she had acquired such color in a world so plagued by various shades of grey until I had come close enough to utter brusquely, “Welcome to Helovia.”

I did not come close enough to stand astride her, but instead settled before her like the towering beast I knew I appeared to be. Her gaze seemed to be a question filled with a need for answers and I hoped that I could once again become a man who could answer them. “I’m Thor of the World’s Edge… and you are?” The words felt flat on my tongue and sounded nothing like the valiant being I’d once been, but they felt more natural than any conversation I’d yet had since returning home.

Thor