Just for Button: Cleaning Out the Attic

  ~Sword Bearer~

  Iris Siris deftly wrapped the camouflage cloth around her bright red hair, tucking it behind her pointed ears. She placed a length of cord on the underside of the end of her hair and rolled it upward, tying it up into a bun so that it would be out of her way and out of the reach of prying hands.

  “I should not envy you child, yet there are times I do. The matter stands however; if it were not necessary, I would not let you go.”

  The young elf glanced up at the silver robed cleric, smiling. “Father Carign, I am a legal adult now, and no longer a ward of your church. If you have learnt anything about me in the past years you have tried to teach me, it is that no one can stop me from doing what I want.”

  The elder elf sat wearily on the small boulder beside her, “Iris, in a situation like this, I would tie you down.”

  “You doubt my skills?”

  He shook his head. “In the history of our long lived tribe, only one has succeeded in slaying a master vampire. Each time before now when we came across one, we would move. Let that be a warning as to their power.”

  “Moved? We flee from nothing!”

  Father Carign sighed, “We know when we are out matched. Nevertheless, we are stuck in a situation from which we cannot flee.”

  “Where is the one who killed the master last time?”

  “We found the master vampire dead, the slayer’s sword still sheathed within him. The ground was soaked with blood. He is no more. But, that story brings me to your present.”

  “Present?”

  He signalled towards the trees and a squire approached, carrying a red satin pillow on which rested an unsheathed sword. “This sword,” he said, picking it up gingerly by the hilt, “is ShadowSlayer, the sword made and wielded by the last slayer. There is no sheath; we could not find it and no other sheath will fit. This sword is enchanted, and the council of elders wish for you to wield it. May it bring you advantage in battle.”

  “I’m sure it will Father.” She took hold of it when he offered her the hilt.

  NOTES

  Maellyra’s back-story doesn’t happen until after the other characters encounter certain people. Winter Moon Falls part two begins two to three years after part one.