Prologue
A crashing sound emanated through the forest, though there was no one to hear it. A tree fell, its trunk smashing through green foliage, but no one could see it. A shadow flickered..or was it a Shadow's shadow? Uncertain. A cloaked figure seemed to morph out of the shadow, but the shadow remained fixed. It rested upon the trunk of the tree, and as the cloaked figure looked about, he frowned. The cloak itself was black, but his hand, barely visible under it, was a strange sickly purple, as though infected with some ailment. But it did not seem like it would be changed. It seemed fixed. The cloaked figure's lips were barely visible under his hood, curved in a frown. "So...this is the next one?" He sighed. "I rather liked it." A shrug, and the hood went down, revealing short dark brown or black hair, dark skin, and a troubled face. Lines showed great age, and a furrowed brow showed a sense of restlessness. He wore elvish ranger garb, a simple tan shirt with a dark grey vest held together by leather cord. "Now what?"
A crack of a stick, and his face swerved to the left, as he drew a longbow from the shadow. "Back off." He commanded the approaching orc. It charged in rage, and was impaled by an arrow which soared from the bow without sound. Sighing yet again, the man faded back into the shadow...and was gone.