Drayk
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Posts: 82
(6/11/03 8:03 pm)
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A thane's search
Drayk sat amongst his friends and family in his guild... Ravenild now at his side... He wondered if he now had the courage to speak... The ability to at last share this story.
As the meeting ends, he stands and speaks.
"Friends, I ask that you hear a story I feen I need to share with each of you. Please sit as this may take a bit of time."
<He motions to everyone to take a seat>
"You all know of the Jamtland Mountains. In you're travels there you may have passed a hut, inhabited by Fenrir now I believe... It stands on the site of what was once a fine house. In that house, a small family once lived. The mother a trapper, the father a hunter, they lived with their children their alongside the lake.
The oldest of them was nearly a man himself, his days spent learning his fathers skills, but his nights spent staring into the sky, contemplating his future and wondering why his heart seemed to pull him away from his fathers trade. Often on these nights, the youngest daughter Syllana would come and sit by his side, taking his hand in hers, staring up at the stars with him. As she would sit beside him, a child of no more than 6 seasons, he would look down to her and could not help but smile and think that perhaps she was the reason he was here... he would look down at her and she would smile up at him, her icy blue eyes projecting the innocence of youth and the love of her brother.
As he had grown, he had spent much time learning the lands, his father knowing them intimately. Always able to point out a particularly good hunting spot or a place to be avoided for fear of unkillable beasts, or worse, the possibility of outlanders roaming the lands in search of supplies, or simply slaughter. When they had run across some in the past, his father had always known a spot to hide them until the danger had passed. In this way he learned the lands about his home and worked hard to improve his skills, but he never could quite catch the use of the bow his father swore by and often times, when the weather was dark, as he would take aim on a beast, he would feel a twinge in his fingers, like you feel when the storms begin to roll in and your hair starts to stand on end. It would foil his shot and he would often shoot wide, cursing himself for his clumsiness. Many days passed like this, he and his father hunting thru the hills, wandering the lands, attempting to better his skills, but his mind always wondering why he could not master them.
One day, as they hunted a location close to their home, they reached the top of a hill and saw below them a group of outlanders, followers of the one god they could tell from the friar, cleric and paladin amongst them. Quickly, they fell back below the crest of the hill. His eyes looked to his father and he could see the fear in his features, something he had never before seen there. He realized at that moment that the raiding party was heading towards their home near the lake. The 2 of them moved swiftly, following a path his father knew threw the back country to speed their way without intersecting the outlanders. As they approached the final hill, the teen felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.
They climbed it quickly, but upon reaching the summit, he knew immediately they were too late. He stopped momentarily and saw his brother below, just 14 himself, attempting to fight off 2 of the outlanders with a sword that had been given him by their grandfather. He had trained hard, but had little true experience in battle and was struck down shortly after dealing a few blows. He looked up and saw his mother, in a window with one of his fathers bows, firing it repeatedly in a futile attempt to stop them from entering the home. But for every arrow she fired, the cleric simply waved his arms and healed the wounds she created in her enemies.
He realized now that while he was standing and watching his father had continued on ahead and was closing with them now, he had thrown down his bow and pulled out the spear he saved for big game in an attempt to drive them from his home. He rushed down the hill, his eyes on his father, watching as the spear pierced the armor of the paladin, killing him in a single blow, but he was unable to avoid the staff of the friar which clubbed him from behind, knocking him to his knees. He screamed out to his father as a mercenary thrust his dagger into his back and his father fell forward to the ground. A nearby scout had found a target in his mother, he saw several arrows fly in thru the window to pierce his mothers chest.
He had but one goal now... to save his sister Syllana, but as he approached the house, he felt a powerful rage come up inside him, his hands tingled and he stopped, looking upwards. He let out a cry of rage raised his hand in the air. To his surprise, a bolt of lightning flew from his fingers to the sky and then back down to strike the mercenary that had slain his father. Taken by surprise, the mercenary turned, but with another yell, the teen called down a second bolt, this one killing the mercenary in a flash of lightning. In a rage, the teen charged forward, he flew past the cleric, picking up the sword from his dead brothers side and a shutter that he had been repairing. He ran into the house screaming his sisters name.... "Syllana!!!" When she did not respond, he realized she was not inside so he rushed to the door once again.
As he raced outside, he came back upon the remaining outlanders gathered there. He knew he had little chance to survive but he had to try to find his sister. He charged the cleric, using the shutter as a shield, he threw his shoulder into him, stunning the cleric long enough for his sword to find an opening. He turned quickly and found himself facing an armsman, he fought hard, but his strength was running out, he blocked several blows with his shield and his sword, but the long pike the armsman carried was difficult to fend off and it soon found its way inside his guard. With a slashing motion, the pike came down, ripping thru the tunic he wore and cutting a deep gash from his left shoulder, across his heart and diagonally across his chest. The teen fell to his knees and the pike came down again, striking him sharply across his head. He fell to his side and rolled backwards as if dead, unconscious now to all around him.
Several hours later, the teen awoke, pain running through him, the gash across his chest still bleeding, but bandaged. He gathered himself and stood to see the house of his youth had been razed to the ground. He looked about, but did not see the bodies of his family. He ran to the lake and looked down the shore. He saw there three crosses erected over 3 mounds. He realized then that the outlanders must have buried his family there. He ran to the crosses and collapsed, weeping tears such as he had never wept before. After a time he stood and realized that there were but 3 graves. Syllana had survived and likely had been taken by the outlanders. His own wounds must have been tended by them. Why would they do this? He could not understand why they would heal him, yet take the only one left that he cared for.
He gathered the remaining items he could from the remains of the home... A cloak his father had given him, the sword from his grandfather and a flower that Syllana had treasured that had fallen to the ground outside. He searched for days but was unable to find the party which had attacked them and realized that they must have returned to Albion with his sister in tow. It was then that he dedicated himself to doing all in his power to finding her once again. He learned much in the ways of Thor and found his magic to be powerful in battle. He trained in the ways of warfare with a sword and shield se he could defeat any enemy before him. And every time he goes to the land of the one godders, he continues to seek out his sister, wondering what has happened to her, but never giving up on his hopes of finding her."
And with that my friends, the tale is done, except for one part I have withheld til now.
<He removes his hauberk and tunic revealing a scar on his chest running diagonally from his shoulder across his heart>"
The tale is my own. My life before I met each of you. I speak it now in hopes you come to better understand me and why it is I seek the lands of the onegodders and shall continue my quest to find my sister. My thanks to you for hearing my tale"
<ooc>
I told this story at the guild outing and some asked I place it hear as well to be heard by all who come to visit....
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