Challenge #02949-H026: When You Assume
They were a HERO! That is what everyone said they were. They crushed nests of kobolds before those imps could spread, destroyed dragons for the gold freeing the kings that sent them after the dragons from their scaly wrath, cut down teiflings where-ever they were found to ensure those demons could claim no souls.
They were a hero, everyone said they were... right?
So when they entered the city to cleanse it of the blight said to exist there, seeing all that existed there, why did it feel so... wrong? They had a job to do. They raised their blade to strike when someone grabbed their hand from behind. Face to face with the elf..... everyone said they were a.......... but... were they?
A premise - a "Hero" comes to New Hope with the intent of wiping out the "evil" inhabitants. And learns a lesson they never forget.
https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-02868-g311-to-change-the-world -- Lessons
Everyone is a hero in their own narrative. Nobody sets out with a sword and a hope of being a great adventurer with plans to cause as much chaos and devastation as possible. Things just... tend... to happen that way. Mostly because Adventurers have a solid streak of 'dumbass' in their makeup. Ardin the Protector set out to eliminate all evil in the world. To him, that meant all evil creatures.
Through his eyes, every Tiefling was a devil-spawn waiting to drag innocent souls into the assorted hells. Every Orc was a savage Barbarian destined to destroy an innocent village or to become part of a rampaging horde. Every Kobold was a sign of an infestation that was a sure sign of rot and corruption. There was no other way to see it. If you did not agree with him, you were allied with evil.
He was a great hero. Especially if you listened to his Bardic sidekick. He had liberated so many places from evil creatures. He wore a bugbear's fur as a trim on his cape. He had dragon teeth on his necklace. He had rings and bracelets made from Tiefling horn. And worse, he had heard of New Hope. Through his eyes, it was little more than a nest of pure evil. It was crawling with Bugbears, Goblins, Orcs, Kobolds, and assorted halfbreeds. There was even talk that it had been founded by a Tiefling. How it had been allowed to prosper was beyond him.
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