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I can still remember the clang of the hammer on glowing steel, and sweat dripping off my brow as my father and I worked hours on end in our hand built forge. "The hard work is good for you lad, it builds character" my father would say. My father was a man of complex character who was well respected in our village. I had never met my mother for she had died while bearing me (so I was told), but my father claims she was sent to him from the Gods since she had magically appeared in front of him one day out of the thin air! (At the time I though he was making it up) In my youth we lived in the forest north of Minoc where our average day mainly consisted of mining for ore in the morning, forging weapons till dusk and ending the day with a hot meal and a game of chess. My father would talk little of his younger days, but I always suspected he was much more than just a common blacksmith, for the days we would travel to town to sell our goods, the town folk seemed more than willing to help us with an excited yet fearful attitude. Maybe it was the fact that he stood at least a foot taller than the average man and had the strength of four! One day while working in the forge with my father we felt and heard the thunder of several horses approaching. My father took a glance out the window an in a surprisingly calm mood knelt down to me with his hand on my shoulder and said, "Corwin. If I am to die today, seek your Mother Dara. Yes, she is alive." "But Father!" I exclaimed. "There is no time lad now run to the mines for shelter!" my father yelled. He grabbed a backpack and a sword, gave them to me and shoved me out the back door. "Run lad!" He shouted. I started running as fast as I could through the woods but something made me stop and go back. I hid behind a cluster of trees near the front of the house watching. What I saw that day made me realize that my father was not just a common smith. There were eight evil warriors on horses armed with maces and crossbows. I watched my father hurl a massive war ax through one of the men to his death then he drew a viking sword and took on 3 men at once. He was surprisingly winning as he beheaded another, but it was soon over as the archers filled my father with a series of crossbow bolts. He never stopped swinging until he was dead. The men then proceeded to raid our house of gold and weapons, when they were through they set our house and forge a fire. Tears filled my eyes as I watched the flames burn our house to the ground. I was only fifteen years of age when my father was killed. With only a sword and a backpack full of supplies I wondered the land aimlessly and with great sorrow. For weeks I lived off berries and fruit, sleeping in the open forest, hiding from monsters and murderers. I finally wandered to the town of Minoc. There I sold some iron ingots from my backpack got a decent meal and slept for a couple days in the local inn. I stayed in the town of Minoc for many months. There I mined in the nearby caves; sold the iron ingots I produced, and cried myself to sleep thinking of my father. Over time the sadness of my fathers death turned to anger, anger towards the men who had brutally killed him.I then began to buy armor and weapons with the gold I had earned and started getting trained the ways of the sword from the local weaponsmith. My teacher was very impressed with both my strength and the speed in which I had learned. Slowly I began venturing back out to the forests, hunting animals for food and occasionally getting into battles with monsters. I felt much more at peace in the forest and it was obvious to me that I thrived off the victory of battle, and the independence that it brought. With a newfound spirit I decided to explore the great land of Britania. Without any real direction in life I made my own quest to visit all cities of Britannia and search for my Mother Dara and learn as much as I could along the way. For years I traveled the land going from city to city battling the evils of the world as I went. At times I traveled with other warriors but I was mostly alone in the world. I gained much experience along the way, I ventured into the depths of dungeons, traveled by sea to distant islands, and prayed at the ancient shines I came across that I would strive to be a virtuous man. With the rise of wealth and fame in my life grew an emptiness inside me. I realized that I did not have any real mission in life and as I gazed up at the stars one night I reflected on my past as I drifted into sleep. I suddenly woke from an enlightening dream. "Dara!" I yelled. My Mother Dara had spoken to me in my dream. She said that she was no longer in my plane of existence yet she has been watching me. She explained to me that my father was a great warrior in his younger years and that she was born into a mystic clan called the Druids. She expressed that given this bloodline, I possessed the mood of a warrior in combination with an inclination towards magic. The last thing I remember was she saying she loved me and to seek the druids for your fulfillment in life. When the sun broke that morning I was gleaming with energy and spirit. The real strange part was that I was not in the same location I fell asleep at! I ran along a path to town called Moonglow. The first thing I did in Moonglow was seek a mage shop and began my training in the mystic art of magic. I spent much of my time training and reading as much as I could in the town's lyceum. I was amazed at the power of my new skill, and it made my encounters with evil much easier. Having the ability to heal myself allowed me to go up against the toughest of monsters. Once my master taught me the spells for travelling long distances, I began to travel the world some more. I had heard rumors in town that someone had found passageways to a new mystical land. Upon traveling to this new land I came across some strange monsters in a desert. It was there that I met Auldrek. We battled the monsters for hours together and after a lot of blood and sweat we came up victorious. As dusk set in we made a campfire and talked for a while as we split up our loot. Auldrek spoke of his mystic clan call Tautha De Danann and the nature in which they work. My eyes widened, It was then that I saw my destiny unfolding in front of me. Soon later I was asked to meet the clan and was accepted as a member. I am truly happy to be a member of such a tight group of great people. Last modified: 06/11/99 |
