"Cuckoo" - Chapter 1: Origin of the wild man

Our story begins with the tale of how a boy called Klein grew up into a madman living in the woods.

The land of Appanila is rich in lush nature and grand landscapes but it is ruled by a cruel emperor called Tartan. The people of Appanila are abused and exploited by Tartan, forced to work with no sleep and punished for silly reasons. In the tiny village, lived a small boy called Klein, he was naive to the world around him and just did as he was told. Until one afternoon, Tartan's horsemen arrived in his village, killed his parents and kidnapped his sister. To avoid death or tragedy, Klein ran away from his village as the guards burned it down. 

Years passed, Klein grew into a man of the woods and felt burdened by memories of his past and often feeling responsible for what happened to his family. He spent many nights wondering and worrying about his sister, he cried every full moon when he remembered witnessing his parent's murder. He wandered the woods, hunting for meals and using fallen branches to build creative projects. Alone, haunted and socially deprived, Klein fell into a state of madness influenced by the solitude and emptiness of his home. 

Sure, people would walk by but Klein feared humans enough to be cautious about how dangerous they could be. Thanks to slick hiding skills, no one ever spotted or found the bushy bearded wild man of the woods. Klein's projects included a home, spears, swords, carvings and traps for potential food. Despite the self inflicted guilt, insanity grief and sadness, Klein managed to find happiness in making things from the things around him. At daytime, he felt content working on his projects. Then one day, things were about to completely change for him.

Author's Note

Opinions and comments are encouraged.

Reviews

[erifnidne]

This was a nice intro into the character and I'm interested to see where things escalate from here.