The town of Bale" Nestled at the base of what was once referred to as the "Dragonmount".
It is one of the smaller, and older towns in the realm. It is also a town that for some, still to this day, lives in somewhat infamy. That infamy came as a direct "war" of sorts...On one side of the conflict was the residents of Bale, and the mercenaries that were hired.
Then on the other side were" Well to put it plainly, on the other side were dragons. A great amount of dragons. Mind you, these were not the greater of their kind, nor were they wyvern like. These were dragons, and small forces of nature in their own right.
It was a conflict that had lasted generations, with each side taking such a toll in the way of casualties and collateral damage. And ironically, it was a conflict that one Brian Ravenlock had taken a direct hand in, himself. It was years ago, that he had arrived to this once grand town.
Not grand in the sense of size mind you, as Bale had always been a smaller type town. I refer to grand in the feeling the town offered. Such a welcome place indeed, before the "war". A literal piece of history, as many had come to see the spectacle that was the "Dragonmount", which Bale rested under.
But we are not here for that kind of a history lesson. We are here for a lesson of a—- darker nature.
A more realistic view in which the town of Bale was forced to look upon itself, sans rose tinted glasses. You see, what people did not know was that Bale itself created its own problems when it came to the dragons. Well not Bale per se, but the people of Bale with one of the most basic of human vices" It was their greed, that had created the issues with the dragons.
Of course who could blame them' I mean let's be honest here. Dragon scales get a good amount of coin, not to mention fangs, hides, and heavens know what else. So imagine what kind of coin a person could get for these things back when they were that much harder to come by, hmmm"
Exactly.
Of course, in order to "procure" some of these wondrous pieces, one would have to take down a dragon. And grown dragons were not willing to help with the effort of taking themselves down, for the looting of their corpses. So another option was pondered, and soon came to light in a most horrific of fashions"
They would hunt juvenile dragons, instead. And they did that, and they did it rather well"
Juvenile dragons, dragon eggs, and even the wee ones themselves, were hunted and taken. Destroyed and looted in such disgusting manners!
Business was good for a brief time" Until the hand—- er claw of
retribution, laid the proverbial smack down upside the head Bale, and its people.
The dragons had declared war. And it was a bloodied conflict that lasted for so long, that many had even forgotten how it began. Well many of the Baletons, that is" The dragons knew damned well why they fought. When the upper hand had been lost, the people of Bale sought help from the outside.
That is when Brian Ravenlock had first come to the town. T"was at the request of a man who called himself "Alucard", a dragon hunter. Teaming with Neo, and a nameless female, Brian stood against the dragons, in defense of Bale. It was during this conflict that the deadly secret of what the people of Bale had done way back when finally came to light.
Too little, too late of course.
The damage had been done, as literally more than half the town was decimated...
What was left of the dragons fled the mount. They were lead away by a mysterious woman, atop an elder bronze. As to where they went, there were no clues what so ever. And with the dragons gone, the people of Bale began the rebuilding process.
It was a rather slow endeavor, but with assistance from Rhy'din and other cities, and a new direction the town of Bale once more began to reclaim its former grandeur. Still, there were some that clung to the old ways"
Some that would hunt, that which should never have been hunted to begin with...They did so in such an arrogant, yet secret manner.
In fact many had no idea" But "he" did, and he knew for a fact, they did it presently. But "He" did...And with "him", another knew"
Pestilence"
She knew exactly what had happened, and it angered her in such a glorious manner...
Such unadulterated fury that made even Jadden's look tame by any comparison.
So when he had asked her, to make them play for their transgressions against her own kind...When she had been asked to tear their world asunder to balance the scales of injustice, she had no issue what so ever...
Father had asked her...And being the good 'daughter" she was, she would do as asked.
And she did just that'
If one were to approach Bale, the first thing they would see would be flames, and smoke"
Perhaps if one were sensitive enough they would detect a rather distinct scent. Rotten, and rather decayed" Coupled with what commonly would be described as "burnt meat"...
On arrival one might note, the rather impressive collective of vultures, and buzzard about the town itself, and its fields.
The rotted crops surrounding the town itself...Withered fields, coupled with dead livestock abound. One would also see a severe lack of populace, when it came to said crops, and what not.
They would see the flame and smoke came from several bonfires...And if one were to look closer they would see that what had been burning, was in fact the bodies of human beings.
They would find the town itself, barricaded" Wagons, tables, stone and anything else that could be used. They would see guards atop the gates, and as with the surrounding fields, they would see that there was a severe lack of populace to the naked eye.
They would see the flag of Bale itself, posted high above the gate. It was upside down"
A sign of distress.
And it was distressing indeed, for the pestilence had been set upon Bale itself..
Man, woman and child" Animal and crop alike. They were each affected to such a degree. Many of which were put to death for fear of a spread...The town had been locked down to attempt to keep others from experience what had befallen Bale.
Perhaps it was one last noble act of a dying people, to make up for generations of near genocide.
Either way' T"was too little, too late" For his daughter had done her work". Her impact felt in such a devastating manner, that the town of Bale would never forget what came upon them'
An eye for an eye' And a tooth for a tooth.
