And still even more options.

Reyes of Andor.

To the north west of Tharros lies the empire of Zoracia.

In Zoracia the relationships between those in power is extremely unstable, this is the reason why Emperors have come and gone in fairly quick succession. That is why backing a losing Emperor in an election for a new one, can be a really bad idea.

This is what Reyes of Andor found out three years ago when his father backed the wrong candidate.

Reyes' father was executed by the new Emperor, and most of the lands and wealth was taken from the Andors.

Both Reyes and his brother Eamon wanted to take ****, and organized a plot to **** the Emperor.

Unfortunately their plot was foiled, and the both of them were exiled from their house and Zoracia. A small price to pay to keep their heads attached to their necks, but it meant that they might never see their family again.

Now Reyes was an independent mercenary, using his skill in archery he was usually employed by the merchant families of Kamdara and the Dunedin Kingdoms as a guard of their ships and trading caravans or he participated in archery tournaments. Eamon had gone down a different path, using the connections their family still had he became a trader, as it turned out Reyes' brother had quite an eye for business and he quickly became a rich man.

Eamon had settled in Tharros, and had sent Reyes a letter asking him to come visit him there.

So he had booked passage on a small merchant vessel heading for Tharros, and promised the captain to provide protection when necessary.

Reyes, now 21 years of age was a six foot tall man, with a slender but muscular frame. His pale blonde, almost white, hair is combed back which gives people an excellent view of his amber coloured eyes. That combined with his hawk like brow and aquiline nose give him the appearance of a bird of prey. A longbow made from Rebbun wood, a wood which is noted for it's strength, flexibility and silver colour was strapped to his back, with a full quiver of arrows to his side.

[Editor's note: Reyes story takes place after the crosier's been returned to Dacca.]

Aram.

Eighteen years ago Aram was born in the town of Argyle, at the age of fifteen he became apprenticed to Argyle's local blacksmith. Unfortunately it wasn't a very exciting job, he mostly made and fixed farming tools, only rarely did he get to make or repair armour and weapons for the guards of merchant caravans.

Once he had hit eighteen, Aram was a man of 6 foot 8 with muscles that would make most warriors jealous. As well as a handsome face, with a chiselled jaw, a straight nose and dark hair and eyes that got him quite a few girls in Argyle.

The reason he had left Argyle was because he wanted to improve his skills as a blacksmith, to make weapons and armour that would make him famous around Erodoria. That, and when he had reached the age of eighteen, the wife of his master had seduced him. The woman had been in her early forties, but with such a youthful appearance that she could be mistaken for a woman in her twenties but with the heavy breasts, wide hips and full heart-shaped ass that most woman her age had. The blonde had entered the smithy when her husband had stepped out for the day, and stripped right then and there making some excuse about it 'being far too hot' in the smithy.

They had spent the entire day fucking, at first the woman was bent over the anvil with Aram feeding his fourteen inch cock in and out of the woman's tight bunghole at a fast pace with her screaming her head off, and her then sucking his cock back to a full erection so he could pound her pussy. This continued, until she passed out in the smithy, both of their bodies covered in sweat and grime and smiles plastered to their faces.

Of course Aram had left the next day, the smith's wife was still passed out in the smithy when he had grabbed all the money he had, and skipped town, and headed for Tharros hoping to find a new master and maybe do more with his life than make farming equipment.

Unfortunately it didn't go completely as he had hoped, most of his money had been spent along the road, to sleep in inns and eat his meals. The rest of his money was lost when he reached Tharros, and he was mugged when walking down an alley. He had found a new master though, an old fat dwarf who barely had any hair left, and what hair he did have was as white as snow. He had learned Aram a few things about making swords, axes and how to properly sharpen them and how to make several pieces of armour. That was when the old dwarf wasn't drunk, sleeping or in one of the Kettle's local establishments. And in the end the dwarf severely underpaid him, and took credit for his works. Unfortunately for Aram, he had nowhere else to go...