An elf located in a forest, he was newly of age, having just hit his 11th
decade. Eager to see what was outside of the elven village, he traveled many
times to the edge of the forest, seeking what was beyond the trees. In time, he
came to a hut, as close to the forest as it was to a nearby human settlement.
There, he discovered an old wise woman, a user of an occult magic that was new
to him. Indulging his curiosity, she allowed him to watch as villagers would
bring their wounded and sick to her - her esoteric practices somehow producing
the exact effect she desired, healing the wounded and curing the sick. And when
it came to the people who hated her more than they appreciated her, all it took
was a declaration of what would befall them, and it did, as they found
themselves sickened by some of the very maladies that they often came to her to be cured
of. He even earned the trust of her cat, who would often follow her as closely
as her own shadow. In time, he began to visit her more and more, until she
offered to teach him the sort of magic that his own people shunned, witchcraft.
He studied under her, marveling at her stalwart spirit. She told him of the
coven she belonged to when she was younger. She told him of the moon, and how
the trees and animals whispered to her as any elf. And together, they would
dance under the moon.
Unfortunately, though she was younger than him, she was old by human standards,
and soon after learning everything that could be taught about witchcraft, she
passed away, leaving him alone in a human village, having distanced himself from
his own elven village. Her familiar, the cat he had always seen her with, had
vanished. It was about this time, fallen asleep after a night full of grief,
that he felt a presence - an entity that sought to teach him wisdom, as it
taught her. He accepted, and awoke to find another mind touching his - that of
a seemingly simple toad. Gathering himself, he gathered her materials and with
the aid of his familiar, began to put what he learned into practice, steadily
learning the ways of the witch, guided by his mysterious patron.
28 years later, he finally achieved a competent skill in his witchcraft. It was
at this point that, in another dream, his patron told him to find his way
elsewhere. If he hoped to help the denizens of this village, he must become
more powerful, and he would not gain his power in this village. Gathering his
supplies, his master's athame and spell components bag, and the crossbow he had
purchased from a local craftsman, he set off to seek out the power that would
allow him to truly succeed his mentor.