Y is for...Yggrich by Mysti Parker

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Can you believe we're almost to the end? And since no one else wanted poor letter Y, I thought I'd share a little more of my fantasy world with you. "What the hobgoblin is Yggrich", you ask? "I can't even pronounce it." Not to worry, because you won't see it that much. Yggrich is not exactly a vacation spot. It's a province covered almost entirely in swampy, mossy forests at the southern tip of Innessa, the main land mass where my Tallenmere series takes place. Sit back, children, and let me tell you about the inhospitable Yggrich, where ogres and trolls fight for domination.

Y is for...Yggrich 

You hear the word ogre, and you immediately think of Shrek, with all his onion-y layers of goodness. Sure, he's big and loud and smelly. He loves his swamp and is fond of his bodily functions. But, shall we be truthful here? Shrek is really just a lovable teddy-bear in green skin.

Not so in Yggrich. The ogres and trolls didn't choose to be there. Oh, no. They would much rather live on the rich, fertile fields of Leogard, take over the palace, dance on King Leopold's throne, and do unspeakable acts on his banquet table. Had it not been for magical wards and the efforts of paladins and rangers, they would still be roaming the Southern Plains, doing their best to feast on anything that moves. Trolls find elven meat highly desirable, second only to halfling meat and the occasional sheep. Ogres aren't picky in the least, which is one reason the trolls detest being forced into close contact with them.

Yet, they both agree on one thing. They hate the dark, dank province of Yggrich, where the only things to eat (besides their neighbors), is what lurks beneath the slime-covered waters and slithers along the limbs of night willows. Some of those things are small and spear-able. But, that's not the problem. The problem is that some of those things are big enough to eat the hunter. No, Yggrich is not a place anyone wants to be.

Every once in a while, a rogue ogre or band of trolls will make it past the borders, desperate to get out of their forced relocation. To illustrate, let me show you this scene from A Ranger's Tale:

From Ch. 28 (Caliphany):

I pried at the crude metal bars with my fingers. “Let me out of here, you ugly monsters!”

That only prompted more laughing from my victorious green captors.

My first mistake was coming here alone to face an unknown number of foes in unfamiliar territory. I had spotted three trolls around a campfire, and then I spotted the makeshift sheep pen some distance from them. Another bout of nausea overwhelmed me, and when I decided to let the sheep out before killing the trolls, I made my second mistake. As soon as I opened the gate, the stupid sheep tried to pour through all at once, trampling each other and making quite the ruckus.

The three trolls from the campfire came running. I had to drop concealment to pull off my shot. Nocking three arrows along my bow, I held it horizontally and fired. They all fell, but before I could celebrate my first successful multi-arrow kill, three more grabbed me from behind. And then I was stuck in a cage, dangling from a tree.

“What’s we gonna do wit dis one?” asked the smallest troll. “Cans we puts her on da fire? She will be’s yummy, yes?” He tossed some kindling on the roaring fire and danced around excitedly.

The largest troll scratched around the warts on his chin and shook his head. I presumed he was the leader of this band. “No. Look at her. She one of dose pretty elfies. She fetch a high ransom, me bets.”

When I held up my hands to incinerate them all, a slender troll with feathers on his head held up a reed and blew a dart into my thigh. I pulled it out, but my vision blurred. The rough metal edges of the cage bottom pressed painfully into my cheek as I fell. Try as I might, I could not hold my eyes open.

I heard the echoing voice of the troll leader as the poison lured me into unconsciousness. “Good. Now she quiet. We send word into Leogard city—give us thousand gold or no see pretty elf again. Two days we give dem. Then you’s can eats her, Grak.”

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Ok, I know what you're thinking. Why even ask for ransom, when they'll likely attract more attention that way? I didn't say they were smart, did I? Just read A Ranger's Tale and you'll see how Caliphany gets out of that mess. She's very talented at getting into messes. Just ask Jayden. Once you're done with that, of course you'll want to read Serenya's Song, and lucky for you, it's coming tomorrow!!!

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Mysti Parker divides her time between raising three crazy kids (4 if you count her husband), running this blog, and writing about the magic and mayhem of Tallenmere. 

To see the world where these gods and monsters wreak havoc, while ill-fated couples battle unspeakable forces to find true love, read her Tallenmere fantasy romance series, starting with Book One, A Ranger's Tale. *See Publications and where to buy at top of blog*