The day was warm, and under the metal of your armor, you was unbearably hot. You softly pulled the reins of the white mare beneath you to a halt, and slowly turned your head to the left, listening. Just under the rustle of foliage and birds chirping came the sounds of fast-moving water. You let out a sigh at the thought of the cool waters and pressed your heels into the horse's sides to move her forward into a trot.
As you two trotted along, you caught sight of the emblem of The Paladins on your gauntlets, and felt a sense of pride; you had worked hard to get to the point of wearing the beautiful gold and silver symbol. The Paladins had been created by the twelve knights of legend, members of Charlemagne’s court in the VIII century, in response to dimensional rifts opening and spilling forth demons across western and central Europe. You had joined the order when a legion of demons razed your village to the ground and killed your family.
The sounds of the river grew louder as you broke through a dense line of trees, shaking the lingering coldness that locked your muscles when you thought of your deceased family. You left the mare to graze while you grabbed your water skeins and strode to the river, removing your gloves. You bent down and was setting the skeins down when you heard an unnatural silence ripple out from a point in front of you.
You searched the shadowed forest on the opposite side of the fast-flowing river and your eyes met a set of burning, red eyes. The beast seemed to leer at you as you quickly shot to my feet, steadying your figure. As it lumbered out of the woods, you gazed at its monstrous form.