Chuck Westwood. That was his name given to him at birth. Their village had a weird tradition where they would name their kids based on which side of the village they were born. The village itself was divided into four equal quarters. North, South, East and West. There were many cases where the son of a Mark Southwood, would be born in the north section of the village and be named a Northwood. It was kinda detrimental, but the villagers respected and honoured the tradition without an ounce of hatred towards it.
Luckily though, Chuck was born in the West, just like his dad. His dad had died of a boar attack, three months prior to his birth. His mom was weakened after childbirth, but she lived for five more years and eventually perished to an unknown illness.
Chuck was then adopted by his uncle Matthew Westwood. His uncle was a rather odd man in the entire village. He always wore a suit, even when it was hot . He was funny to the kids all around the village. He always wore an amusing monocle that he had found somewhere in the forest outside of the village.
Matthew also had access to a ton of books that he had found everywhere from his younger days. It was a huge taboo to exit the village and go to the dangerous forest alone. People always used to band together to hunt for meat and vegetables.
The only exception was Matthew, who when he was 16, used to run away and return with a bunch of weird stuff he had found in the forest. The villagers at first punished him, but as time passed they stopped caring, as he never stopped sneaking out. As he got older, he also paused his activities, gaining him the title of an eccentric.
Chuck grew up with him for most of his childhood. All he had were vague memories of his mother, but he did remember her warm embrace. He had always considered himself "unlucky" and "cursed". His uncle used to say that he shouldn't think about it a lot as the average life expectancy in this village was fifty years. But Chuck couldn't help but feel sad, despite no one in his village criticizing him.
Chuck always used to sulk alone, missing his parents. Matthew used to try to cheer him up to no avail. Chuck understood that, he needed to be hated for what he had done to his parents. He felt responsible and like a kid, he wanted to throw tantrums. What baffled him most was that no one in the village ever hated him. He thought he wasn't worthy of life, so he decided he needed to be hated.
And Chuck decided to do one thing he could do to get their attention to him. He snuck out of the village!! The first time he did it, he was exhilarated. He was seeing trees larger than him, the sky seemed endless. There was the huge Tower that wasn't visible from his village, but he had read about it in the books that his uncle had brought. Chuck was amazed at these sights..
When he came back from the outside back to his village after a few hours, everyone scolded him. All Chuck could do was lower his head. But he was smiling. He was finally being punished for being alive instead of his parents. But he was seeing concern in them, rather than anger, which made it even worse. His uncle was a goofball still, not giving a crap about the whole incident. So Chuck's resolve hardened.
Chuck used to read the books in his house everyday. So, he was more mature than the other kids in his age. There were a lot of books that talked about different stuff. Some where storybooks, some told real life incidents. Some were legends of the Towers and Gods. Some wbere basic friendship tests. Some were quizzes and some were in a language that he didn't recognize, but he somehow learnt how to.
But the most special one was the one his uncle had above the fireplace in his home. It was his most prized possession. He called it "The Book of Fireflies". Chuck didn't know what it meant, but he never dared to even touch it. Until now.
One night, when his uncle was asleep, he sneaked into the main hall of the house and took the book. He hid it under his pillow. The next day, Matthew woke up, but he didn't notice the missing book. He was on about his usual hijinks, so Chuck left the house. He came back and was watching through the window to see how he would react.
Matthew was freaking out when he finally saw that his book was missing. He was searching every book and cranny for it.
Matthew: My book!!!! Where??! Oh my God?
Matthew would groan when he saw that his book wasn't at the place he was searching. Chuck was watching this and he smiled. He knew that Matthew would find the book under Chuck's pillow and then scold him for it.
But as Matthew found the book under Chuck's pillow, he paused. He then smiled and put the pillow back on it. And he went back muttering something.
Matthew: I see, it was with him huh. Guess he was interested in reading it...
Chuck was petrified in awe. Why wouldn't anyone punish him? As far as he knew, he caused misfortune to everyone around him. Chuck missed his mom, and he blamed himself. He just wanted someone to justify that hate, by saying he was the reason for his parents' death. But no matter what he did, no one in the village questioned it. And even if they did scold him, they would never ever mention about his family.
So, after this long, he finally understood that, everyone in the village loved him dearly. They weren't just showing him pity. They all genuinely cared about him. And that day, Chuck became the boy he was meant to be. He finally accepted the love his village gave him, and returned the feeling.
Chuck was only eight years old at the time of this revelation.
Then, two more years passed. He had friends all over the place. He introduced himself too every one in his village, got to know everyone and befriended them. Chuck was a boy who everyone liked in that tiny village.
Matthew had let him read the "Book of Fireflies" and explained parts of it for him, as Chuck wasn't aware of the language. Matthew said it was a magical book, despite Chuck not believing it. But Matthew always doubled down.
Matthew: This is A Magical Book!!! It says so on the cover!!
Chuck: It is not!! Magic isn't real!! And you can't make up stuff, just because I can't read it!!
Matthew: But it says here that it is...
Chuck: No!!!
Matthew always tried his best to explain that he learnt reading this language just by reading it again and again, and "figuring" out the pronunciation of each letter. Of course, no one believed him.
Matthew: When in doubt, always use the spells in the Book of Fireflies. It'll always help lost people. That's what this Eternal Tome is for!!
Eternal Tome. That was what he called it. Chuck couldn't care less. According to Matthew, this Tome was called "The fireflies Tome". And it is a magic book, that allows the user to find their way back from wherever they are lost. People who travel in the night usually use it to traverse through harsh environments. This magic would create a bunch of fireflies who light up and guide the way. Chuck liked the sound of that, but when he asked Mattbew to prove it, he couldn't. He said that he wasn't "at heart" with the Book. Chuck always used to sigh and dismiss him.
Matthew: Also. It says that there are 151 such Tomes in the world. Man, I wish I could collect all 151 Eternal Tomes!!! I know atleast one would grant me powers!!
There was no hatred or thirst for power in his voice. Just a childlike wanting for superpowers.
Even after all this time, Chuck used to yo out the village every week. He hadn't encountered a living being in the forest, which he was thankful for. He had found a lake in between the forest too. He had been scouring the entirety of the forest for two years and now he knew almost every route.
He hadn't explored the region near the lake a lot, cause he was scared wild animals would sight him from far and attack him. But this day, he was very thirsty and he needed some water. He cupped his hands and drank the water and quenched his thirst.
???: So....who are you..??
Chuck was scared to bear another person's voice behind him. He fell down and turned to the person behind the voice.
And now in front of him were two people. One was a huge monster-like fatty man who looked like a beast. And in front of him was a normal sized human with a lot of tattoos and huge porcupine-like hair.
Dreacon: I believe I asked you a question, insect...