Clarice Imladra

8/10/2019 Clarice Imladra

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It happened so fast she didn't even have time to turn. The spike went right into her spine. She felt the

poison enter her blood and then she turned pale white. Her mouth began to foam and she fell to her

knees, and then she fully collapsed, lifeless.

Clarice and Carac Rolfe lived in a poor village on the outskirts of the Imladra kingdom. The roofs were

made of thatch. The huts were clay with a few rugged wooden beams holding the structure. The people

that lived there either hated the citizens or loved them. There was no in between. Clarice was 17 and

had long, brown, knotted waves. She wore a simple and ripped grey dress that hung just below her

knees. Her brother Carac was 8. He had chopped brown hair and wore a rugged tan tunic with a scrappy

rope belt and ripped up dark trousers with an indistinguishable color. They did'nt wear shoes. Shoes cost

two silvers and they needed to spend that money on food. Clarice was a responsible girl but her brotherhad a disease. It affected his brain. He played make- believe still but all the other children had stopped

when they were 6. No one would teach Carac because he couldn't focus or listen. He had imaginary

friends that would give him stuff. He went into his hut with a large rock cupped between his hands. He

had borrowed someones charcoal and drawn a face on it. He named his rock Tribbler. Tribbler the rock

still sat by his cot in a mound of dirt and other scraps that were thrown on the ground. Carac had an

endless imagination. It wasn't a bad thing it just didn't make him very helpful when doing work. Clarice

had recently heard that a knight from Imladra Castle had been slain. A messenger had announced it in

the square. The castle sent a messenger to each village every ten days to tell them what was happening

within the kingdom. He had said that it was Sir William, the brother of Lady Avalon who was supposedly

the most beautiful Lady in the whole kingdom. She was somehow related to the king. Was she hiscousin? No. Niece? Not that either. Maybe it was his son's cousin. That sounded complicated so it must

have been right. The king's son had died killing what was supposedly the last dragon. That made Sir

William the heir to the throne. But now that he was dead the successor would have to be Lady Avalon

since he had no nieces or nephews. The whole kingdom was grieving Sir William's death. Clarice and

Carac's mother had gone to seek an audience with the king a few days ago. It was a long trip when you

were riding an old donkey. She had gone to ask assistance with Carac's disease. The kingdom would

mourn for three days and Sir William's relatives would grieve for five. There was a market at on of the

larger villages that would be open after the mourning period was over. Clarice would leave Carac in the

care of a nice old woman that had never had any children of her own. The woman loved Carac, she

refused to teach him but she had helped him improve his manners. She thought his imagination was

amusing and enjoyed seeing his mind at work. Clarice would then go to the market on a borrowed mule

or donkey. She would spend the two silvers that she was given as payment for helping at the market.

The silvers would be spent on food. The weavers and seamstresses would give Clarice their scraps and, if

she was lucky, what they hadn't sold. Clarice used these to make clothes for herself and Carac. She had

yet to collect enough scraps for a tunic or dress but she was close to finishing. It would be grand and she

might get a job at the castle where she could send money and clothes to Carac. Their mother was always


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busy at the weaver's. She picked up after them but she made 1 silver every month. She wouldn't accept

a job at the castle because it was too far away from Carac and he wouldn't be allowed. After the three

days of grief she grabbed her basket and strapped it to her neighbor's mule. They reached the market

early. That was a first. The weaver smiled and waved her over to a table she was setting up.

"I'll give ya a bronze coin if ya do this for me," the woman offered.

Clarice eagerly accepted. A bronze was a lot to her if she was just setting up tapestries on a table. When

the table was set up she slipped the bronze into her little pouch made of scraps to small even for her.

The seamstress gave her a silver to do all the setting up. That was a lot of work. There was fabric

wrapped around thin planks, spools of thread, porcupine quill needles, and of course the simple clothes

that villagers wore but these had a little color. For the first time the woman that served squirrel and

mouse stew asked Clarice to ladle the stew into clay bowls. For that she received a gold coin. Clarice hadnever held a gold in her own hands before. With the gold she could buy fabric. No. She thought. Her

mother had always taught her to save her money and only spend it on necessities like food. By the time

Carac actually needed new clothes, Clarice would either be done making them or have a job at the castle

and Carac would have new clothes whenever he wanted them. Carac, through his diseased mind, also

knew that it was important to be practical. He would never ask for new clothes unless his old ones were

hanging off of him. The first thing he would ask for would be shoes. Then he would strut around showing

off. Clarice chuckled at the idea. After she had earned her silvers and scraps, she packed up and went

home. The village was still mourning but she decided to go to the castle and ask the king for a job there.

She talked to several villagers about buying a horse from them and finally after offering her two silvers

and bronze she owned an older black work horse. It would be slow but at least it would be faster than adonkey. She told the old lady that watched Carac that she was leaving and that her mother would be

back in a couple days. With that, she packed up some food and the one gold that she had left. She

reached the middle of the forest by nightfall the next day. Halfway there. Clarice considered stopping

but decided against it. About midday she found herself falling asleep while riding. The horse came to an

eager stop by a stream. There they rested and she accidentally fell into a deep sleep. She had a dream

about a hideous monster that was in a labyrinth. The creature had the contorted face of a man with

thick curled horns that were pitch black. It had the body of a lion with a dusty golden mane that

surrounded the face. The tail was that of a scorpion's and deep almost black dragon wings extended

from its body. In her dream she saw every angle of the monster and the feeling of death hung around it.

The creature brought its tail back and released a tiny thorn. She saw two women walking silently up

ahead. The thorn struck one and she collapsed. Clarice woke up. The sun was beginning to set. The

sturdy black horse was happily grazing in the soft weeds. The horse reluctantly picked up a steady gallop

and soon the pink light of dawn sparkled off the battlements of Imladra castle. Clarice had never seen

the castle but it was even more magnificent than the stories she'd heard. She loved the new sound of

hoof beats on the stone causeway. She stopped her horse and tied him to a pole. She slowly walked up


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the stairs in the direction that a guard had pointed to. After going the wrong way a several times, she

finally found the throne room.

"Can I help you?" the guard asked, looking her up and down.

She suddenly felt self conscious about her clothes, "I- I wanted to speak with the king?"

"What about?" the other guard demanded.

"Maybe getting a job here?" She stammered.

"Right, please wait here," the guard disappeared into the room.

He quickly came out and opened one of the large oak doors. She walked in trying to look as formal as

possible. When she had almost reached the foot of the throne, she knelt down on one knee and bowed

her head. She counted to five and stood. The king wore a gold spike crown with a ruby set in the front

one and sapphires set into the others. He looked kindly at her.

"What can I do for you..." he stopped.

"Clarice, Clarice Rolfe my lord," She bowed her head.

"What can I do for you Clarice Rolfe?" he asked.

"My mother came to see you this week about my brother," she began.

"Yes, the boy with the diseased mind. What about it?" he prodded.


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"Ah! My dear this is Clarice Rolfe, she is going to stay with us for a few days while she waits for her

response from the king," he explained, "Clarice this is my daughter Shiloh, she works for the Lady

Avalon."

Shiloh bowed her head and then went into her room. Clarice went into her own room and sprawled

on the bed, immediately passing out. About an hour later she was woken up by Shiloh's hand on her

mouth.

"Shh! Don't wake my father!" She whispered.

"What's going on?" Clarice whispered back.

"I'm going to help you, just don't make a sound!" Shiloh grabbed a pillow and blanket from the corner of

the room and bunched them under the quilt that Clarice had been using.

Clarice stood and quietly followed Shiloh into what Clarice could only assume was Shiloh's

bedroom. Shiloh crawled under her bed and pushed a wooden box aside to reveal a trap door. It

opened to reveal a dimly lit stone cave. With difficulty they dropped down into it. There was a wooden

chest to one side and various obstacles strewn about. Shiloh moved the chest and stood on it to closethe trapdoor. Then she opened the chest. There were five sets of men's clothes and three sets of

armour. Carefully, Shiloh handed a white shirt and flannel trousers to Clarice, telling her to put them on.

Awkwardly, Clarice obeyed and changed in the darkest corner. Shiloh changed too and brought out two

rough-edged swords. She handed one to Clarice and set the other one on the ground. Shiloh went

around and straightened the various obstacles. Among them were several seamstress' mannequins but

these were wearing leather armour instead of fancy ball gowns. A few of them held long sticks or stone

shards but mostly they were defenseless. Clarice stood by the chest, shifting from foot to foot trying to

get used to her new clothes.

"Stop standing there like an idiot and help me stand up the obstacles!" Shiloh ordered.

Clarice obeyed her and helped. When they were done Shiloh sighed and then grabbed her sword.

Clarice also lifted hers from the ground and held it in front of her just in time to stop Shiloh's sword from

going into her eye.


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"Nice reflex, you're a natural!" Shiloh exclaimed.

"A natural what? And why am I holding a sword and wearing trousers and a shirt?" Clarice

demanded.

"A natural swordsman! You're holding a sword because I'm going to teach you how to fight, and the

shirt and trousers are because they are easier to move in than a dress," Shiloh explained exasperated.

"Why are you going to teach me to fight?"

"Because I want to, because I can, and because you look like you'll need it someday."

"Why do you want to?"

"Because I've always wanted to teach someone, it gets lonely training with things that can't even move."

"How do you know how to fight?"

"Because my father makes swords when he's not doing a commission so he always has some lying

around. I take one every time he has too many to keep track of. I decided to teach myself to fight, so

one day when I was off, I watched the knights train and copied their skills."

"Why do I look like I'll need it some day?"

"Are you questioning my whole explanation on why I'm teaching you?"


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"I guess."

"Fine, have you read any books?"

"Only school books."

"Bad things happen to good people. For example, The Child of Lune, bad things sertaintly happened to

her."

"What's The Child of Lune?"

"You've never heard of it?!?!?!?"

"No, I havn't."

"Ugh! Would it kill you to read a book for fun?"

"I would need to actually buy a book first, but the little money I have I use to buy food and to take

care of my brother. So I guess in the long run if I bought a book instead of food it could kill me."

"I'm not the richest person either but I have a job, and so does my father!"

"That's the difference between us, you have a constant job, and so does your father, you get paid a

lot of money. I help at a market once every few days where I make no more than two silvers, three if I'm

lucky, and my mother picks up scraps at the weaver's where she makes a silver every month. We

combine the money and have enough for food. The clothes I'm wearing are five years old. I don't have

money."


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"Sorry! I didn't mean to offend you. I'll ask if I can borrow Lady Avalon's copy of The Child of Lune."

"Alright, so what do I do with this sword?"

"Follow my lead, I'll start with the basics."

Shiloh stood towards the center of the cave and spread her legs a little and slightly bent her knees.

She held the sword hilt with two hands and positioned the sword above her right shoulder. Clarice did

the same. Shiloh moved into various positions from her fist position. Then from that position she swung

the sword in every direction. It sliced through the air. Clarice followed her every move carefully. She did

drop the sword several times though. Next, they moved at the same time as swinging the sword around.

This was even harder and Clarice was having a hard time keeping up.

"Please Shiloh, I have to sleep, I rode all night for two nights to get here and when I got here at dawn I

was put to work with your father. I'm going to be working for him tomorrow as well and I need to catch

up on sleep."

"Fine, I'll try to get you that book tomorrow. Change back into your dress and put the clothes and

the sword in the chest."

Clarice did just that. Shiloh stood on the chest again to open the trap door, and then pushed it back

against the wall. The she pushed Clarice up through it, warning her about the low bed. Clarice then

jumped and grabbed the edges of the gap, hauling herself up.

"How did you do that?"

"Shh!"

"But how?"


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"I've been doing this for a few years now, I'm strong."

"And no one knows you do this?"

"No, just you, now shush!"

Shiloh pushed the box back over the trap door and escorted Clarice to her bed. They said goodnight

and Clarice in total got far to little sleep. The next morning she awoke before dawn and walked out of

her room to find the home empty. She looked in Shiloh's bedroom to see if she was there but she

wasn't. She walked out the front door to find several people making their way quietly down the passage.She found Shiloh looking out a window at the courtyard. Someone had taken her black horse, she

assumed he was put in a stable. There was a group gathered down in the courtyard. They were mostly

knights. The king was there and so were a few beautifully gowned women she assumed were royalty.

There were three horses packed with several bags. There was one woman who mounted one of the

horses and a knight who mounted the other empty one. The woman wore a dark cloak and a brown

dress with hazy boots that might lace up the outside. From where she was, Clarice couldn't see details.

"What's happening?" Clarice asked, feeling the need to whisper.

"I'll tell you later," Shiloh replied.

The three horses turned and galloped out the gate. The crowd dissipated and Clarice followed Shiloh

back to the blacksmith's home. The wooden door opened in from a stone passage on the ground floor of

the castle. It wasn't exactly a house so much as a large room with separators. The blacksmith served

Shiloh and Clarice each steaming bowls of porridge. Shiloh placed a thin, leather bound book on the

small table. The cover was blank but the first page contained the title written in elegant letters. 'TheChild of Lune'.

"The Lady Avalon is on a quest to find her brother, Sir William's, killer. The king required her to take

a knight. Lady Avalon chose Sir Matthew. What we just saw was them leaving," Shiloh explained.


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"What about the book?" Clarice asked.

"How fast can you read?" Shiloh interjected.

"I don't know, I think I could read this in a day," Clarice hesitated.

"How about this; You make lunch and supper and wash the dishes and I will help my father and give

you the money you would have earned. Between cooking and dishes that leaves you time to read and

rest. Deal?" Shiloh smiled.

"Sure, deal," Clarice was barely functioning on the two or three hours of sleep she got.

Shiloh finished her porridge and place the bowl in the wash basin. When Clarice finished her

porridge she scrubbed the wooden bowls with a cloth flecked with steel. Shiloh's father was already

heating up the furnace and working the bellows. Shiloh was filling up the barrel of water with small

buckets. Clarice went back to her room and slept for a few more hours. She awoke feeling refreshed and

went to Shiloh's room to look out her window. The sun was high in the sky. Clarice looked around the

kitchen and found nothing. Shiloh's father gave her a gold and told her to do something less expensive

then kraken meat. Clarice made a small fruit salad with pieces of goose meat on the side. After she

cleaned those dishes, she sat on her bed and began The Child of Lune. It was an invigorating story and

she was almost done with it when Shiloh poked her head in and informed her that it was time for her to

make supper. She bought broth and herbs at the grocer's and made a soup using the left over goose

meat. After the dishes were once again clean, Clarice finished the book. She discovered that she was not

a fast reader and, in fact, was a painfully slow reader. Shiloh took the book back to Lady Avalon's bed

chamber and then everyone went to bed. After an hour of sleep, Shiloh again woke Clarice up and

demanded that they train together again. After spending a week with the blacksmith family Clarice was

finally called back to see the king. He looked very sad.

"There is both good and bad news. But I'm afraid the bad news will cancel out the good news. The good

news is that you have two options of work. Lady Anne Marie needs a new maid, or you could continue

working at the blacksmith's and earn a little more than you have been. To be a maid pays better but you

never have to leave your home if you worked at the blacksmith's," The king explained slowly.


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"I would like some time to think, my lord," Clarice dreaded the bad news.

"The bad news is that your mother was killed by bandits and your brother was taken by a dark rider on a

golden dragon," The king looked at her gravely.

Clarice didn't feel anything. She didn't hear or see anything. Her knees cracked on the stone, and

then her head. The last thing she saw before blacking out was the stream of blood that trickled from her

head down the stone floor. She woke up in a wooden bed with white sheets. The room was tidy and

there was a wood table of various concoctions. Next to her was a small stand that held a steaming cup

of something that smelled like bile. Her knees burned and she had a crushing headache. An old man

walked over. He war a dark purple robe and had white hair that sort of curled above his head. He smiled

at her and handed her the steaming cup. Hesitantly, Clarice drank it. It tasted vile and she wanted to spit

it out. She cringed as it burned down her throat. The old man looked pleased and took the cup. Clarice

suddenly felt dizzy. She woke up to the old man smearing some kind of paste on her head.

"It won't take long to heal deary, I have procured for you a salve that shall clot the blood and mend the

skin by the end of the day. The drink was for the pain but I think you can manage now," He stepped

back.

Clarice tried to stand but her legs wouldn't hold. They throbbed and her knees were coated in a

layer of dried blood. The man helped her to stand up and she soon gained her balance. Shiloh greeted

her eagerly. Shiloh made another deal about their working arrangements. By the end of the day Clarice

had accomplished making two meals and cleaning dishes. She expected only an hour of sleep when

again Shiloh woke her.

"I've got a head injury and my knees are hurt!" Clarice complained when they were in the cave.

"Deal with it, the king told my father about what happened to your brother and my father told me.

You need this training now more than ever!" Shiloh tossed Clarice a sword.

"What do you mean 'now more than ever'? why would you think that?" Clarice caught it.


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"You're obviously going after your brother, you might need the help of a good sword not to mention

how to use it properly," Shiloh quickly changed.

"But there's no time to learn everything in one night!" Clarice called from the corner she was changing

in.

"No! Not in one night idiot! You will leave no earlier than the end of the week!"

"But-"

"Shut up! I'm doing you a favor!"

"How?"

"You need training for one. You need to go to the archives and get maps of the world, maps of the

kingdoms and forests. You need a book of creatures and you need to learn what to do with them. Youneed survival training and everything. If you go tomorrow you will die."

"Well don't be over dramatic."

"Trust me, you'll be glad you waited. Besides you can't very easily save your brother if you're dead

now can you?"

"I guess not, fine I'll wait."


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"Great. I will send an anonymous commission for a good sword and some armour. I know how to

make chain mail. For know I want you to cut the heads off of all those dummies without touching the

ground in five minutes."

"What? I've never done anything like that before!"

"Time to speed your training up!"

They trained all night. The next morning Clarice gave Shiloh all the money she had earned for the

anonymous commission and Shiloh measured her with a long, fragile string. During the day, Shiloh

worked on the chain mail while Clarice helped the blacksmith make the armour and sword. By night they

would train. They were fighting each other, wearing increasingly heavier armour. By Sunday the sword

and chain mail tunic were done. Clarice could now fight pretty well in full knight's armour, helmet and

everything. On Monday the blacksmith let Clarice have a couple days off. By that time Clarice had

decided to continue working for him. Shiloh was very excited by that news.

"This is great! And now you have a few days off we can do other stuff!"

Puzzled, Clarice followed Shiloh into her room. Shiloh grabbed a thick leather bag from her trunk. Inside,Shiloh carefully wrapped the sword in cloth and laid it at the bottom of the bag. She folded the chain

mail tunic on top and added a pair of leather leggings and a white shirt that she had brought up from the

cave. She put in a dagger and a pair of tall boots. Shiloh grabbed her own stuff as well as two quilts and

cloaks. They ended up needing separate bags but two was still a good number. Shiloh said goodbye to

her father and then they left. Their horses were tacked up quickly, Shiloh was borrowing one but Clarice

still had her sturdy black horse.

"Name him!" Shiloh blurted while they were giving their horses extra carrots.

"Name him what?" Clarice patted her horse's neck.

"Ooh! Something royal!" Shiloh exclaimed.


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"What about... Forthwind?" Clarice suggested.

"Forthwind is perfect, just like Lord Forthwind that lived about a century ago!" Shiloh agreed.

"Who's your horse?"

"His name is Athelos, like the king's son."

"A tragic and beautiful name for your horse."

Shiloh nodded. Mounting their horses they galloped out of the castle and into the dense forest. The

castle was built into a mountain so they were on a slant. They reached the same stream Clarice had

stopped at a couple weeks before. Clarice suggested that they head towards her own village but then

forgot her brother would not be there to welcome her. They tied the horses and sat quietly on the

grass for a while and then Shiloh forced her to stand. Clarice changed into her other clothes and donned

the chain mail. Shiloh pulled a belt out of her own bag and tied it around Clarice's waist and then

attached the sword to it. Shiloh pulled on her own leather armour and showed Clarice what sticks to

gather to make a tent. By noon they had gathered enough sticks to build a good sized tent. Shiloh

demonstrated how to sharpen the tips with the dagger so that they would fit together. When the knife

went dull Shiloh sharpened it on a rough stone. Clarice was sent with a particularly sharp stick to catch

some fish. Clarice didn't need help with that, she knew how to spear fish. She learned how to do that

when she was little. She had learned how to throw a spear and shoot a bow and arrow to catch food

when they were desperate. The forest was far from her village so she never had the desire to catch her

own food. It was a lot easier and a lot safer to buy it from the market. When Clarice returned with the

stick piled with fish, the Tent was mostly built. It was a large triangle. Shiloh had gathered vines and

wrapped them around the sticks to give them support. Her hands were cut from the thorns. Clarice

grabbed several more sticks and carved them into thin strips of wood. She tied the strips together withthin vines so that there were no gaps. Shiloh had found a big sharp rock by the stream and handed it to

Clarice who then found a fallen tree. She brought the rock down so hard on the trunk that a whole disk

came clean off. Clarice shaved the disk so that it was flat and even. Shiloh took her dagger and drove it

into another tree, letting the sap flow. She snatched the disk and coated the edges in the sticky sap.

Clarice wrapped the sticks around the disk and waited for the sap to dry. It became a leaky bucket but it

leaked slowly. They started a fire and cooked the fish on some rocks. Shiloh boiled some herbs she


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"Yep! Go grab those big branches over there," Shiloh pointed a few feet away.

"How am I going to make a bow and arrows from a bunch of sticks?" Clarice asked half-heartily.

"By carving them," Shiloh replied.

Shiloh cut a curved bow out of the biggest stick and glossed it with tree sap. While the wood dried,

Clarice took a long vine and rolled it on a rock until green juice seeped into the rock and the vine was

wet and twisted. While that dried as well, Clarice shaved rocks with her dagger until they were sharp

and shiny. She cut several sticks into smooth and strait poles and then cut a groove in the top. The

groove she filled with tree sap and then put the arrow head in it. The arrows did not dry very

quickly.Shiloh threw her dagger at a magpie and struck it down. Clarice cut some of the feathers into the

appropriate size for her arrows and Shiloh cooked the meat. They glued the feathers to the inside collar

of their cloaks with sap. When the bow and string were dry, Clarice threaded the vine through little

holes Shiloh had made at the top and bottom of the bow. The wood was supple and the vine didn't

break. It was a good bow. The first arrow was also dry but didn't fly very strait. She spent the whole

morning fixing the fletchings on her arrows while Shiloh laughed at her mistakes. The magpie tasted

good and they were continuing their journey by noon. They were tracking back to the castle but by a

different route. When they did stop and set up their tent, Clarice had a chance to catch their meal with

her new weapon. Now the arrows flew strait. They ate squirrel meat with fur because Clarice was

skinning the animal and cooking it. Shiloh pretended she wasn't there unless it was an easy task. They

were robbed by foxes and wolves a few times but now some of them were dead. The next day they rode

into the castle at nightfall. Clarice had changed back into her tattered gray dress and leggings and Shiloh

wore a simple lavender dress with a patchwork apron. They carried their belongings to their home while

their horses were cared for. They stored their clothing, weapons and tent in the cave below Shiloh's

room. They slept all night peacefully. It was the first night since Clarice had started helping the

blacksmith that Shiloh had not woken her up, other than their few days off. That morning there was a

lot of screaming in the courtyard. Two horses had galloped in. One carrying several bags and one

carrying a body.

"That's Sir Matthew!" Shiloh gasped.

"I don't know who that is," Clarice stared at the body.


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"He was accompanying Lady Avalon on her quest," Shiloh explained.

"What just fell out of his tunic?" Clarice pointed to a small piece of parchment that had floated to

the cobblestone ground.

The king rushed out and picked it up. He put his hand to his head and knelt, his shoulders were hunched.

After a while he finally stood and read the parchment aloud to everyone.

"Sir Matthew died with sword in hand defending my life. I have decided to continue on my quest

but wanted to send his body home to Imladra. There are strange rumors about a dark wizard who rides

a golden dragon in these parts. Some say that a war is to be expected on the kingdoms. I do not know if I

should believe these tales but it is better to be safe than sorry. My sincere apologies and condolences,

Lady Avalon of Imladra," The king read clearly but there were tears in his eyes.

Shiloh looked shocked. Clarice kept forgetting that she worked for Lady Avalon. Shiloh turned and ran

down the corridor to the house. Clarice chased her but the house was empty. The door to Shiloh's room

was closed. When Clarice entered she saw no sign of Shiloh any where except that the box was no

longer covering the trap door. Clarice pulled it open and put her head into the gap. Shiloh could just

barely be heard whimpering. She dropped down into the cave, pulling the trap door shut as she fell.

Shiloh stopped whimpering. In search for Shiloh, Clarice tripped on her leg and nearly fell on top of her.

"I'm so sorry," Clarice murmured.

"It's not your fault but Avalon has been gone less then two weeks! Sir Matthew is already dead.You

need to leave at dawn," Shiloh sniffed.

"Why?" Clarice sat next to her.

"To find your brother of course!" Shiloh leaned against Clarice's shoulder.


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"I know, but why do you want me to go now all of a sudden?" Clarice wrapped her arm around

Shiloh.

"Promise me that when you leave you will find Avalon," Shiloh stared at Clarice.

"What about Carac?" Clarice's eyes widened.

"Avalon will help, I know her."

"Alright, fine. I promise."

"We should get you packed for your journey tomorrow."

They stood and Shiloh walked over to the big chest. She pulled out the chain mail tunic and belt,

and the sword; and of course, the tall, leather boots and dagger. With great difficulty, Shiloh and Clarice

resurfaced and shoved everything in the strongest bag they could find. Before lunch, Clarice was

summoned by the blacksmith.

"Clarice!" He called, "I need your help with finishing this commission!"

The armour that Shiloh had requested for her was almost done. They skipped lunch and worked

until supper. The blacksmith was proud of his beautiful work. Clarice had worked the bellows and

replaced the water in the barrel when it got too dirty. All she had to do was open a hatch and dump it

down the mountainside. Shiloh had prepared a warm herb and chicken soup, with garlic toast.

"The king told me about your little brother Clarice. I cannot help but notice that it was a little over a

week ago and you haven't done anything. I would encourage you to look for him but I fear for your life.

Do you have plans to find him?" The blacksmith asked, taking a spoonful of soup.


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"Sir, I do have plans to find him. I was preparing to leave all week. I feel I must leave at dawn,"

Clarice explained, looking carefully at Shiloh.

"Dawn? Is that so? Then take the armour that I made, I can make more!" He exclaimed.

"Father, I have a confession," Shiloh interjected.

"Do tell child," he looked at her kindly.

"Ever since I saw the knights training on the field I wanted to be a knight. When you had an

overflow of swords I took one and started to teach myself how to fight. I use a cave that is below my

room," Shiloh explained everything, from her desire to learn to fight to begging Clarice to leave at dawn.

To Clarice's surprise, the blacksmith just nodded. He didn't get mad, he just listened. When Shiloh

finished he smiled.

"I notice that every time I have a lot of swords one or two go missing. I also noticed that the

anonymous sword commission just vanished. I thought it might be you but I had no idea that you were

training yourself!" he chuckled.

Shiloh looked extremely relieved. After they had finished their meal, Clarice cleaned the dishes and

Shiloh and her father helped Clarice pack. It took a while to get together a clean rag and food and the

many other things she would need. As soon as Clarice's head hit her pillow, she fell asleep. She had the

dream about the horrible monster with the face of a man again. She was sweating and shaking when

Shiloh woke her up. It was still dark. The blacksmith was making porridge with berries and cream. Shiloh

heated a pot of tea over the hearth. Clarice changed into the white shirt and trousers. Her fingers were

weak and she was barely able to pull on her boots. They were silent while they ate. Clarice wanted

nothing more than to curl up under a warm fleece and go back to sleep. But, of course, that was out of

the question. Her brother needed her. He was a little boy with a diseased mind, there was no telling

what had already happened to him. It was too late, turning back and giving up was not an option, not for

her. After the meal was gone, Clarice cleaned the bowls under warm water. Her hands stopped shaking

and she felt a general sense of warmth spread through her body. Shiloh helped her put on the chain mail

and armour and weapons. Clarice pulled her hair back and Shiloh braided it around her head. Her


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armour was basic. A chest plate, a helmet, the arm and leg plates, but nothing additional like shoe

covers or gloves. She needed to ride fast and safe. Shiloh did give her a pair of riding gloves that had

been her grandmother's. The blacksmith said goodbye and wished her well. Shiloh carried her bag of

food and tools. They walked down the stone steps and came into the courtyard. Clarice was about to

request Forthwind.

"No! Take Athelos, he's faster and stronger. Leave Forthwind with me so that he'll be safe when you

come back," Shiloh exclaimed.

"Fine, I'll take Athelos. But Shiloh, I don't think I'll be making it back alive," Clarice agreed.

Shiloh knelt and sobbed. Athelos was brought out and her bag was strapped to the back of his

saddle. Clarice said goodbye to Shiloh for what she thought would be the last time, then mounted

Athelos and galloped out the castle, regretfully looking back. Shiloh was standing and waving and crying.

Clarice felt a great sadness in her heart. But it lessened each day she grew farther from the castle. By

nightfall the first day, she had reached her village. It was a little of her path but it was home. She ate

supper with her mother and slept in her own bed that night. Her mother had been wounded by some

creature on her way back from the castle. It had poisoned her and she was dying. When she woke, at

dawn, her mother was gone. Her frail body lay motionless on her bed. Clarice knelt by it and cried. She

buried her mother and left at noon. She reached the limits of Imladra by dark and a patrol caught her as

she was entering the next kingdom.

"What's your business here?" Their captain demanded.

"I come in peace. I mean to pass through here to get to my destination. A little help would be most

welcome," She tried saying.

"A woman in the dress of a knight!This is a first. And she's claiming to be passing through! You must

come with us fair lady!" the captain laughed.

"What for?" Clarice shouted above their jests.


21/65

"You must meet our king!" another shouted back.

"He will think you are most fair!" another poked her horse.

"No!" Clarice pulled back on the reins.

Athelos reared and backed up.

"Dear me boys, she's trying to escape!" the captain jeered.

"Draw your swords comrades!" one held his sword high.

They all attacked her. She fought them off one by one until they left her alone. They laughed at her still

but they kept their distance. Athelos snorted and stomped his hooves in defiance. She gathered the

reins and continued on her way. She pushed through the night and on through morning the next day.

Athelos stopped himself at a stream and grazed. Clarice ate a little bread and then they continued. She

had no desire to stay in that kingdom. She was currently still in the kingdom of Symatrial. It was one of

Imladra's greatest enemies. There were several battles fought over land. With her determination and

Athelos' speed, they left Symatrial around dawn the next day. She crossed over into the next kingdom.

Thaskel. Clarice dismounted and walked beside Athelos into the nearest village. She was greeted

warmly. Keeping her promise to Shiloh, Clarice asked about Avalon. No one could help. She finally rested

the day and night at the inn. The innkeeper was kind and directed Clarice to a room in the upper levels.

She entered her room and left her bag on the cot. With a immense difficulty, she removed the armour.

That left her wearing the white shirt and dark trousers with the chain mail tunic. There was moaning

across the hall. Clarice strapped the sword to her waist and knocked on the room opposite from her's.

An older lady with a young girl opened up the door.

"What can I do fer ya child?" the old woman asked gently.

"I heard moaning and I wanted to be sure every one was okay," Clarice replied.


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"Oh, aren't you a sweet girl. I am tha healer of tha village. This little'un is learnin' my trade," The

woman explained.

"Very well," Clarice turned.

"Wait, child! Do come in won't ya?" She beckoned to Clarice.

"I have to rest. I'm looking for someone also. I don't believe you have seen a woman who goes by Lady

Avalon," Clarice asked.

"Why yes child! I do! Please enter!" the woman turned towards the cot.

Clarice entered. On the cot was a woman with beautiful and long brown hair. She was shaking and

there were quilts piled on top of her. From what she remembered about the woman who left for her

quest, it did appear to be Avalon. Clarice walked up to her placed her hand on Avalon's forehead. Clarice

felt warmth radiate through her body. Avalon stopped shivering and sat up slowly. The woman that was

in the room screamed 'Witch!' and ran away with the little girl. Clarice stood there, not knowing what to

do or say. Avalon stared at her, looking shocked.

"What happened?" Clarice asked.

"I do not know but I think you saved my life with magic," Avalon shook her head.

"Magic? That's impossible, I've never even witnessed magic, let alone had it," Clarice sat on the

wood floor.

"Not always, I have read that if you care about someone enough you can use magic without knowing it,"

Avalon explained.


23/65

"But how?" Clarice looked up at her.

"I read that everyone has magic but not everyone has the power to use it, maybe you will learn to use

your magic now that you have discovered it," Avalon pondered.

"Maybe," Clarice mused, "By the way, My name is Clarice Rolfe."

"I am Lady Avalon of Imladra, how did you find me?"

"I live and work with the blacksmith at Imladra castle. I am friends with Shiloh. When the body of Sir

William came into the castle she feared for your life and asked me to find you."

"Why would you come?"

"My little brother, Carac, was captured by a dark wizard on a gold dragon. At least, that's what the

king told me."

"I seek revenge on the one who killed my brother, but, he is already gone. If there is a chance that I can

help save a life then I will do what I can for you."

"Shiloh asked me to accompany you."

"Accompany me? I will accompany you! I am at your service!"

Clarice slowly stood and walked over to Avalon, who was preparing to go back to sleep. Clarice then

smiled and turned to her own room. At dawn, Clarice and Avalon galloped out of the village and began

to enter an uninhabited forest. The forest was a hundred miles from beginning to end. There were

monsters of untold danger and power that roamed the trees. At the end of the forest stood a tall and

dark, snow capped mountain. It was storming above the mountain and the dark clouds were extending


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outwards, covering the forest. They rode all day and most of the night. When they stopped, the horses

grazed and they ate the squirrel that Clarice had struck with her dagger. Their fire was small and only

cooked a few bites of meat at a time, but it was big enough to light a bit of what was around them.

Avalon no longer wore the gowns that she left with. In fact, her clothes were similar to Clarice's. The

only difference between them was that Clarice actually had armour and Avalon had a beautiful sword.

Clarice didn't bother collecting sticks for a tent, she simply rolled out her quilt and slept on top of the

blanket that went under Athelos' saddle for decoration. She used his saddle as a pillow and Avalon did

the same. The stars shone through the dense leaves. It was as if the goddess Centurii was giving them

light for their journey. With that pleasant thought in mind, Clarice forgot about her first encounter with

magic. She jumped to her feet that morning when she heard Avalon screaming. There was a large golden

dragon with the cloaked wizard on it.

"Who dares enter my domain?" The figure hissed.

"I do!" Clarice shouted angrily.

"NO ONE enters my domain!" It hissed again.

"Who are you?" Clarice demanded.

"If you are here then you should know who I am!" The voice seemed to be female but Clarice wasn't

sure.

The dragon's powerful wings blew the trees onto their sides. The figure had a dark hood pulled over

its head and its face seemed to be made of shadows. The robes fell around it arms. Gloved hands

gripped a leather strap that looped around the dragon's head like a bridle on a horse. The veiny skin on

the dragon's wings was silver and appeared to reflect the setting moon. The hooded figure seemed less

terrifying in the coming gray of dawn. The shadows in its hood lessened. It knew this as well and turned

the dragon towards the mountain in the distance. They were gone in an instant.

"Well, if we ever run into it again just talk till dawn and then it leaves." Avalon breathed.


25/65

Clarice nodded slowly. They mounted their horses in silence and rode deeper into the forest. When

they stopped for their midday meal of bread and cheese, they talked about what had happened.

"It said that we should know who it was," Avalon remembered.

"But we do not," Clarice ripped off a piece of bread.

"Perhaps we do, perhaps we just do not remember," Avalon pondered.

"Doubtful, the only thing I've heard about it was what it looked like and that it took Carac," Clarice

shook her head.

"There is a rumor that myth of The Child of Lune is real, and she lives on that mountain." Avalon leaned

back on her arm.

"I thought that the myth was old," Clarice said through a mouthful of cheese.

"Not exactly, there was a prophecy about it included in my copy of the myth. The story was written

about 50 years ago, the prophecy seemed to date back centuries to when Centurii walked on this land."

Avalon explained.

"What did the prophecy say?" Clarice asked.

"I don't remember exactly but it said something about the goddess Centurii walking free among the

waters when the child of Lune had fallen again, there was more but I don't remember it," Avalon closed

her eyes.

Exhaustion set in and they both fell asleep on the grass with their horses. A low growl jolted them

awake. Clarice looked around frantically. A large grey coyote stepped from the shadows of some trees.


26/65

Its intense yellow gaze was locked on their satchel of food. Clarice grabbed the knife of her boot. The

coyote stalked forward. Clarice raised the knife, ready to throw it. The coyote didn't notice, or didn't

care. It pounced on their bag and ripped it open. Clarice plunged the knife into the animal's side. It

whimpered and fell limp as blood streamed out of the wound. A little girl ran out of the trees. She had

matted brown hair and hazel eyes. She looked to be about six years of age. Avalon stood and tried to

grab the little girl. The girl bit Avalon's arm and ran to the coyote. The girl furiously pulled the knife out

of its side and pushed the coyote's skin together, as if trying to force the wound closed. The blood

stopped seeping out and the coyote's fur melded back together. It raised its head slowly and licked the

girl's hand.

"H-how did you do that?" Clarice stammered.

The coyote stood and cocked its head. The girl didn't seem to understand either.

"Canis Lantran," The girl pointed to the coyote, "Canis Lupus," the girl pointed to another grey coyote

creeping out of the trees.

"Uh, Clarice," Clarice pointed to herself.

"Avalon," Avalon copied Clarice.

"Canis Latrupa," The girl pointed to herself proudly.

"Canis Latrupa?" Clarice asked.

The girl nodded vigorously. Canis Lantran glared at them and herded Canis Latrupa into the trees

with Canis Lupus.

"Canis," Clarice murmured.


27/65

"Pardon?" Avalon looked at her, puzzled.

"All their names began with Canis," Clarice pointed out.

"What are you getting at?"

"Well, the little schooling that I had taught me about ancient text."

"All their names are straight from the ancient text," Avalon added.

"In the ancient text, Canis is dog. Canis Lantran is ancient text for coyote and Canis Lupus is ancient text

for grey wolf, but if they are both grey coyote's then I don't understand the names," Clarice explained.

"Centurii never created grey coyotes. Grey coyotes are hybrid coyote and grey wolf which explains

the little girl's name: Canis Latrupa which translates to dog and a combination of Lupus and Lantran. The

adults might both be grey coyotes but in myth a pairing of grey coyotes the male must assume the greywolf name and the female must assume the coyote name so that their pup can be named using a

combination. These names are titles according to several books I've read. See, they have their real

names and then they have their titles so that other families can tell who the authority is," Avalon

concluded.

"This is what happens when you have books to read for fun," Clairce smirked.

"What happens?" Avalon looked concerned.

"You become a genius of your own making!" Clarice laughed.


28/65

"Thank you?" Avalon still looked worried.

Clarice laughed again and mounted Athelos. Avalon shoved the food satchel into another bag and

mounted her own horse Ayleth. Clarice, though her mind was fixed on the mountain, still thought about

how Canis Latrupa healed Canis Lantran. Unless All Canis Lantran needed was her skin pushed together

to heal herself. It was a mystery she suspected that would remain unsolved. Lost in her own thoughts,

she didn't pay attention to what was happening around her. She something nagging at her thoughts. She

turned to Avalon but she was gone and so was Ayleth. Pulling Athelos to a sharp stop, she looked

around for any sign of Avalon or her horse. There were shouts of laughter in the distance. Athelos'

hooves thundered on the ground as they rode towards the noise. She stopped behind a thick mass of

vine. The sun was beginning to set and the shadows made it hard to see through the gaps in the vines.

The shouting was coming from a group of five. There appeared to be four men and one young woman

who was probably only 14 or 15. The men all seemed to be at least 18. A large campfire was burning in

the middle of the clearing with a rabbit roasting on the spit above it. Ayleth was rearing and snorting in a

small pen made of logs. They were digging through the few bags that were strapped to Ayleth. Avalon

was bound to a large oak with rope and she had several cuts on her face and a strip of cloth was shoved

in her mouth. Clarice slid quietly off Athelos and walked to a nearby poplar tree. It was on its side but

wasn't quite dead. The branches were supple and Clarice broke a few off. Sap flowed from the bark. She

sat on the tree for about an hour shaving the bark off the branches with her knife. Her longest one

didn't bend as much as she'd hoped and the small branches didn't bend at all. That was good though.

She didn't have many rocks around her and none of them would sharpen well. She cut rough blocks out

of the tree trunk and out of those cut arrow heads. The moon was now high in the sky and the shouts

had died down. Clarice shoved the wooden heads into the arrow shaft and cemented it with sap and

vines. She dug around in her bag on Athelos' back and found her cloak with feather linings. Gluing a fewfeathers onto each arrow with more sap, Clarice hid with Athelos behind more trees for the night. She

shook herself awake at dawn. The sap was almost dry. Clarice looked through the mass of vines at the

campsite. They were all sleeping, including Avalon who was still tied to the tree. Now that everyone was

asleep, Clarice assumed she didn't need a weapon to free Avalon. Silently, she stepped around the trees

to stand behind Avalon. A twig snapped under her foot and the group jumped to their feet and ran after

Clarice. They chased her for what seemed to be hours. Finally, they turned and ran back to their camp.

Clarice stood panting for a while. The group wouldn't stay at their camp for long. She whistled for

Athelos, in minutes, she heard his hooves pounding down the path. She rode back to her hiding place

and gathered her stuff. The sap was now dry and the fletchings and head were firmly cemented onto the

arrow shaft. She looked through the vine mass at the camp. The fire was stomped out and the groupwas gone with Ayleth and Avalon. Her legs ached from running so far and being on Athelos didn't help at

all. Clarice followed the sound of shouts and muffled screams. She chased them long into the afternoon

and was still unable to find them. At last, when the sun was setting, she found them building a fire in the

same place that they had started in. Clarice had chased them in circles. She notched an arrow and

focused on the tallest member as she pulled back on the bowstring. He was tying Avalon to another tree

and this time he tied a strip of cloth around her eyes. The girl was wearing Avalon's chain mail tunic and


29/65

sword, while Avalon was left in her white shirt and flannel trousers. Even her fur boots were taken. A

rope was tied around her hands and feet and another piece of rope shackled them together so she

couldn't stand. Her waist was wrapped in chain around the base of the tree and neck was roped to the

tree. The girl walked over to Avalon and ripped the gag out of her mouth. Clarice lowered her bow,

curious.

"Who are you?" The girl demanded.

"Why would I tell you?" Avalon retorted.

"Would one of you get my dagger?" The girl gestured carelessly behind her.

"What dagger? I only see a knife," one of the men said.

"By the Goddess Centurii! You're idiots! There is no difference between a knife and a dagger just

give it to me!" The girl said exasperated.

"Fine!" The man exclaimed, handing the girl the knife.

"We didn't get a chance to do this last night because we were all tired, so I'm going to do this

properly," the girl began, "My name is Malkyn, these are my comrades: Ulric, Berinon, Cassius, and

Xalvador. Now it's your turn."

"No," Avalon spat at Malkyn.

"No? Let me try again!" Malkyn sliced down Avalon's neck with the dagger.

"Alright!" Avalon shrieked.


30/65

"Name! Now!" Malkyn shouted.

"Avalon!" She panted.

"Right! Where are you from Avalon?" Malkyn sighed.

"Imladra," Avalon hung her head.

"And who are you in Imladra?"

"Lady Avalon of Imladra."

"And who was your friend that tried to free you?"

"Don't you dare," Clarice whispered.

"No," Avalon refused.

"Again? Well we're back to the fun way then!" Malkyn cut down Avalon's face.

"Not happening," Avalon forced.

"Still?" Malkyn took the dagger and stapped Avalon's arm.


31/65

"No!" Avalon screamed.

Clarice raised her bow and, without aiming, shot Malkyn in the leg. Cassius, the tall one, ran to help

Malkyn. Now that they were next to each other, they looked similar, they both had brown hair and

similar faces. Clarice couldn't see details. She only made three arrows and used the other two on

Cassius. Clarice leaped out of the trees brandishing her sword and fought off Ulruc, Barinon and

Xalvador. They weren't very good with a sword but they were strong. They were all huddled by their fire

and watched as Clarice untied Avalon.

"Release the horse," Clarice commanded.

Ulruc, the shortest, walked slowly over to Ayleth's pen and removed the logs blocking her. With one arm

wrapped around Avalon and the other holding her sword, Clarice walked backwards to Athelos. Out of

view, they rested for a while. Clarice ripped a strip of cloth of of her cloak and wrapped it around

Avalon's arm. At nightfall, Clarice stood and walked back to Malkyn's campsite.

"Everything you stole from my friend you will gather and give it to me," Clarice pointed her sword at

Malkyn.

They obeyed and Clarice quickly walked back to Avalon. They sat in the dark for a while, shivering. The

wind was cold and there would be snow soon. Not even their quilts and cloaks kept them warm. The

next morning, there was snow falling gently on the leaves. She shook Avalon awake. Clarice quickly

gathered their things and pulled herself onto Athelos. Avalon swayed back and forth as she pulled the

tunic over her head. She gasped as her arm caught in the chain and almost crumbled to the ground.

"Not used to pain are you?" Clarice smirked guiltily.

"As a royal member of the kingdom I was educated and tended to at all times, no I have not experience

a stab wound," Avalon snapped.


32/65

"Sorry, I cut myself on so many things when I would hunt for my family. My arm got infected and

the only way to get it out was to slice down my arm. My father told me to do it myself so that I could

have knowledge of what to do if it happened again to me or my brother," Clarice remembered her

childhood.

"What happened to your father? You never talk about him," Avalon mounted Ayleth.

"He died," Clarice gritted her teeth and spurred her horse.

"How? If you don't mind my asking," Avalon guided Ayleth at a trot.

"It was horrible," Clarice pushed Athelos faster.

"But how?" Avalon quickly followed.

"When I was 10, the year after Carac was born, My father took me into the woods to hunt that

night, that was our tradition because more animals were out. It began to storm so we started back to

the village. It was raining so hard that we lost our way. The lightning started a fire and we could barely

stay ahead of it. We ran as fast as we could but my father tripped on a tree root and fell. He told me to

go on without him but I didn't listen. He was wrapped in fire and I should have left him, it would have

made his death faster. But I grabbed his arms and pulled him to a stream and jumped in it with him. I

basically carried him up the stream. The fire didn't reach my village so I pulled him across the ground

and into my hut. He was screaming. The worst part was that he survived to the next day. I wasn't

allowed to see him but I snuck into the hut where they were keeping him to say goodbye. He told me

that he loved me and that he was sorry. He was sorry, and I held his hand as he died! I blamed myself for

so long, why didn't I learn the paths better, why didn't I get him sooner, but it wasn't anybodies fault.

My mother started to lose control of her mind and only recently was cured. But I carried my father to his

death! Imagine what that does to someone! A ten year old saving her father only to watch him die the

next night and blame herself!" Clarice wiped tears from her eyes but it was no use.

"That's terrible!" Avalon murmured.


33/65

"That's how I got this," Clarice leaned down and pulled up her pant leg to reveal a large burn scar

that covered almost her whole leg.

"That's terrible!" Avalon repeated in a whisper.

"I was 10!" Clarice shook her head.

They rode on in silence. The mountain loomed closer and closer. They were only a few days away from it

by nightfall and the snow kept falling. It was officially Winter. Clarice gathered enough sticks to make a

tent and found a tree covered in vines. Avalon helped her build the tent and wrap it in vines. They slept

soundly with no interruptions. Clarice had another dream about the creature but this time it seemed

vivid and almost like it was real. She jolted awake and whipped her head around looking for it. It was

barely dawn but she was no longer tired. Avalon tapped her shoulder.

"We need to get going," Clarice stood.

"What's wrong?" Avalon asked.

"Nothing, we just really need to leave," Clarice rolled her quilt and strapped it to Athelos.

"Is something troubling you?" Avalon pulled herself up.

"No, no! I think it's best if we get to the mountain as soon as we possibly can," Clarice began to

deconstruct the tent.

"I agree but the sun is still rising," Avalon helped wrap the sticks into a bundle with vines.

"Therefor if we leave now we will get even farther by nightfall than if we leave later," Clarice

insisted.


34/65

"Obviously, but something is definitely bothering you," Avalon strapped the sticks to Ayleth and then

attached her own quilt.

"Maybe the fact that my brother has been gone for almost three weeks now and we don't even

know if he is at the mountain!" Clarice almost shouted.

"I apologize. Let's be off then," Avalon mounted Ayleth.

"I'm sorry too, let's go," Clarice nodded.

They set off again. The closer they got to the mountain, the darker the forest seemed to be. Glowing

eyes could be seen in the shadows. Clarice had a sense of foreboding. The eyes seemed to follow her no

matter which path they took. Even when she couldn't see eyes she still felt like she was being watched.

She stiffened and then the hooded figure on the silver-winged dragon spiraled towards them. The

dragon opened its massive jaws to reveal fangs the size of falchion swords. Its serpentine toungue

flicked in and out. Smoke billowed from its flaring nostrils and its silver chest glowed orange as a ball of

fire was launched from its throat onto the trees. Clarice froze, memories of her father's death flashed

before her eyes.

"Clarice!" Avalon shook her shoulder.

"W- what?" Clarice snapped out of her trance.

"There is an elemental on a dragon catching the forest on fire, you need to focus!" Avalon's voice

was filled with terror.

"R- right, right, sorry," Clarice stammered.


35/65

Avalon muttered something about death but Clarice couldn't make it out. The figure thrust out its

hand, and lifted Clarice into the air. She was suspended in the air surrounded by shadows that wrapped

around her arms and legs. She couldn't move. The dragon reached its claws towards her and snatched

her from the sky. Clarice began to lose air as the dragon crushed her ribs. She couldn't even scream. No

air would enter her lungs and she slowly began to suffocate. It seemed to take forever, but at some

point, she passed out. She entered her dream again and it seemed closer than ever. The monster

appeared to be able to see her, it lashed at her with its massive paws. Thorny objects were launched at

her from its Serketine tail. Its eyes were bloodshot and several scars ran across its leathery face. Bits of

dirty mane dusted the stone floor. She searched the cavern for her sword but it was nowhere to be

seen. As she ducked another thorn she saw it underneath the monster. She reached for the knife in her

boot but it was gone. The creature's cry sounded like a mix between a lion's roar and a man's shout, but

it also had a sort of hissing to it as well, like that of a snake or a bug. The sound was deafening and it

made the rocks crumble. Rocks! Clarice thought with excitement. She rolled towards a pile of sharp

stones. Grabbing one, she threw it with all her force at the monster's face. It pierced its eye and blood

ran down the stone and pooled on the stone. It stumbled to the side. Clarice sprinted towards her sword

and grabbed it right as the creature was recovering. It shook the rock out of its eye leaving a bloody and

empty socket. It charged at her and reared up on it hind paws. Clarice took her shot and shoved the

sword with all her will up into the monster's chest. Blood spattered her face as she saw the top of the

blade emerge from its back. The creature fell, dead hopefully. Clarice woke with a start. She was lying in

a pool of something sticky. She noticed that she was still wearing her armour and was only missing her

weapons. There were bars of some kind all around her. Instead of seeing the stone floor upon looking

down, she saw that she was on a stone slab suspended several feet above the cave floor. The bars

around her made a dome above her head. A thick chain coming down from the ceiling held her cage. As

her eyes adjusted to the darkness that was lit only by a singly torch, she saw several other cages like

hers. The closest one contained and old man dressed in tattered rags. He didn't even look at her.

Footsteps echoed through the cave and the hooded figure approached. It reached out its hands and a

bridge appeared connecting her cage to the ground. It wasn't an ordinary bridge though, it was made of

dark shapes that twisted and turned making the bridge bumpy and smooth. The figure seemed to float

up the bridge towards her. Then it knelt and pulled off its gloves. The hands were slender and bony. It

reached up and pulled away its cloak, letting it fall to the ground. It held out its hand and produced a

ball of white glowing energy that lit up most of the cave. It reached up and pulled something out of its

hair. Its hair reached down over the edge of the bridge and glowed with a strange whiteness. The 'it' was

obviously now a 'she' unless Clarice had a concussion.

"My name is Selene," She had an icy voice.

"H-hi?" Clarice rubbed her head.


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"What is your name?" Selene's voice softened a little.

"Why?" Clarice drew back.

"Because I must have something to call you child," Selene seemed surprised.

"Alright, my name is Clarice Rolfe," Clarice immediately regretted saying that.

"Clarice," Selene repeated softly.

Selene stood, and walked back down the shadowy bridge, her hair flowing behind her. She didn't

make the bridge go away and instead grabbed her cloak and left.

"You don't want to be tellin' your name to that kind of person lassie," the old man said dryly.

Clarice stared at the ball of energy that floated just out of her reach. Selene came back.

"Here," She pushed a wet rag through the bars.

Clarice looked at the substance she had been lying in. It was blood. She quickly mopped it up and

returned the rag to Selene.

"I have food for you. That was quite a journey you had while you were asleep," Selene handed Clarice a

piece of bread and a cup of warm water.

"Do you mean when your dragon crushed the life out of me as well as my ribs?" Clarice said bitterly.


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"Quite right. Her name is Lune," Selene sighed.

"Who?" Clarice asked.

"My dragon. I named her after my mother," Selene seemed expectant.

Lune. Clarice knew she recognized Selene's name. In the fairy tale of The Child of Lune, the mother,

Lune named her daughter Selene shortly before she died.

"No!" Clarice exclaimed.

"What?" Selene seemed pleased.

"But it's just a story, it never really happened! How is it real?" Clarice pressed herself against the back of

her cage.

"I ensure you that it is not a story. My father wrote it. To help me accept my role as the new queen

of my kingdom, he got me a dragon egg of the rarest kind. I named it Lune so that I would always

remember my mother's cause," Selene explained vaguely.

"Eat now. If you are good than I will move your brother to a closer cage. If you are not good than I will

make you watch my spell," Selene ordered.

Selene descended the bridge and waved it away. Clarice watched her leave.

"Carac!" Clarice shouted.


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"Clarice?" Came a voice from the dark.

"I'm here to save you!" Clarice shouted back.

"From what?" the voice responded.

Her heart sank.

"Clarice?" the voice shouted.

Clarice didn't respond. Something stopped her from responding. Instead she ate her piece of stale

bread. Carac's voice continued to call. She sat in silence, staring at the glowing orb. As she stared into

the orb, she thought she could see a shapes emerging. She could see the creature from her nightmares.

It seemed as though she was looking through a window.

"There are two types of manticores Clarice," Selene appeared in front of her sitting on her dark

bridge.

"What?" Clarice jumped.

"The creature from your nightmare, it is my manticore," Selene pointed to the orb.

"Wha- what type i-is you/*9cxrs?" Clarice stuttered.

"A Manthikora, it is the eastern species," Selene smiled.

"What might the other type be?" Clarice was trying to keep the topic away from herself.


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"The Mardkhora, it is the southern species," Selene stared at the orb.

"W- why do you have a-a manticore?" Clarice stumbled over her words.

"Please, he's a Manthikora and he's mine because he saved me."

"H-how, or, or when did he save you?"

"When I was first living in this mountain I decided to collect rare breeds. I captured a Mardkhora

and my Manthikora and kept them in one of my caverns. When I went in to see them one day, the

Mardkhora attacked me. My Manthicora saved me by killing the Mardkhora. I separated my Mardkhora

into usable ingredients and let Lune eat the rest."

"Ingredients?"

"Manticores have many elements that can be used in potions, poisons, spells, weapons, and food ifyou are brave."

"What elements?"

"Why are you so interested?"

"Because it sounds interesting."

"That is very odd! No one has ever wanted to talk to me about anything!"


40/65

"Maybe because you crush their ribs and give them concussions?"

"I don't do that, Lune does!"

"Okay! What elements of manticores can you use?"

"You seem very keen on not talking about yourself."

"Oh no, not at all! I'm just very intrigued by what you seem to do!"

"I propose a deal, a very common deal I might add, I will ask you a question and you can then as me

a question after you provide me an honest answer and I shall do the same."

"Alright that would sound very fair."

"Except what?"

"It would sound fair if I weren't stuck in a cage suspended six feet above the ground by a chain that

looks concernedly old and rusty."

"Very well, I will open your cage for three minutes and if you have not left it when that time is up

then you will never leave it."

"Then open it."


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"Why did you put me in a coffin?" Clarice stared at Selene.

"Because I thought you were dead. I guess your armour protected you. Most who fall or jump die,"

Selene appeared to think she sounded reasonable.

"Then how do I not feel pain?"

"Because when I heard you pounding, I took away your injuries as well."

"W- why? If I may be so bold."

"Because I have no desire to listen to you whine incessantly."

Clarice shrugged. Selene led Clarice to a stack of animal skins. They sat on the skins. Selene cast a ball of

green light onto the stone and a small greenish person with dragonfly wings walked out. It had black hair

that spiraled around its shoulder and thin pointed ears. It wore a glowing gold gold circlet around its

neck and it had a leafy brown tunic that stopped just above its knees. It carried a large tray with food

and a pitcher on it.

"Chicken, berries, soup, tea, Excellent! Thank you Theta," Selene took the tray from the thing.

"Who's Theta?" Clarice asked warily.

"My pixie of course! I name the creatures I own after letters from the ancient alphabet," Selene

explained.

"Why do you have food?"


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"Because whomever enters this particular cavern is to be treated civilly and tended to, some."

"Then why did you put me in a cage?"

"I didn't know who you were and you were in my territory. Now, eat, you will feel better."

"I sincerely doubt that anything will make me feel better."

"Humor me. What say you about that deal we made before you tried to kill yourself."

"I didn't try to to kill myself, you did, but I did not."

"It does not matter anymore. What matters is our deal and if you go back on it then I will lock you

back up."

"I guess I don't have a choice then, do I?"

"There's always a choice but some are more appealing than others."

"I accept your deal. Proceed with your question."

"Good! Where do you come from?"

"Imladra. That was an easy question."


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"I would like to establish a little trust between us so that I can ask you the ones that I really want to

ask."

"Trust? You expect me to trust someone who broke my ribs, suffocated me, gave a concussion, knocked

me out, locked me in a tiny cage, made me wake up in my own blood, fed me stale bread and old water,

pushed me out of my cage so that I passed out when I hit the floor 12 feet down and than locked me in a

coffin because you thought I was dead?"

"I said a little trust not complete trust."

"A little is a stretch."

"Just ask your question."

"Fine. What ingredients can you collect from a manticore and what are they used for?"

"I have a list I can give you. Theta!"

Theta came running in and handed Selene a piece of parchment. Slightly smiling, Selene passed the

parchment to Clarice. There was a long list on it.

Manticore, Manthikora, Mandkhora uses after the body is dead

Eyes- potions, poisons, see pages 96-105 of Eyes for Everything Brewery Book

Teeth- decoration, potions, poisons, see page 34 of Brewing With People


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Tongue- various poisons, see page 82 of The Book of Poisons for Mountaineers

Mane- decoration, shifter potions, see page 102 of Potions for Keepers

Skin or Fur- decoration, containers, clothing

Brain- potions, poisons, see page 95 of The Genius Book for Brewers

Lungs- potions, see page 66 of Breathing Magic

Heart- various poisons, see page 85 of The Book of Poisons for Mountaneers

Liver- various poisons, see page 83 of The Book of Poisons for Mountaneers

Stomach- potions, poisons, see page 104 of Potions for Keepers

Intestines- poisons, see page 32 of Poisons for Keepers

Poison Sack- poisons, sleeping droughts, weapons: dip, see Uses for Manticore Poison

Spikes- decoration, poisons, sleeping droughts, shifter potions, see Uses for Manticore

Poison

Tail Spike- potions, poisons, decoration, see Uses for Manticore Poison

Tail- decoration, potions, poisons, see page 489 of Brewing Tails


46/65

Claws- decoration, potions, poisons, see page 103 of Potions for Keepers and page 30

of Poisons for Keepers

"My question is, why are you here?" Selene said after a while.

"Uh, erm, I was just, you know," Clarice stammered.

"Be honest!" Selene snapped.

"Of course, I um, I came for my brother," Clarice dropped the parchment.

"Okay!" Selene clapped her hands together.

"I want to know why you took my brother," Clarice gritted her teeth.

"Because he's a very promising little boy and you don't appreciate his mind," Selene cocked her head.

"Promising how?"

"Ah, ah, no! My turn. Would you like to see your brother?"

"Yes! Yes of course I would!"

"Tough, the only way to do that is if you try to run."


47/65

"Thank you."

Clarice jumped of the pile of skins with the parchment and ran. It was like running through a maze with

no entrance and no exit. She had to find Carac. She could hear Selene's footsteps behind her but it didn't

matter. She found a room with a large cauldron in the middle. It rested on top of brilliant white flames.

There were shelves and cupboards full of vials of liquid or spines and other stuff. There was a shelf

labeled Manticore/Mandkhora/Manthikora. She found a small bottle marked Manthikora Poison, Clarice

grabbed it. She turned and stood face to face with Selene. Pulling her hands behind her, she uncorked

the bottle of poison. Shaking her head, Selene took a step back. Clarice flung the poison at Selene. Her

face turned red and began to burn. Her skin bubbled. Selene screamed and Clarice ran. Selene yanked

her back onto the stone. Clarice flipped around. Selene poured some kind of liquid on her face and, as if

watching a scar that would take months to heal, the skin scarred in a matter of seconds. Her once red

and bubbly skin turned white and ridged. Selene grimaced. Clarice began to back away but Selene

grabbed her arm, ripping away the armour. Not that she had a choice, Clarice followed Selene to a

shadowy corner of the room. There were shackles attached to the wall. Frantically, Clarice hit and

screamed but it was all in vain. Selene snapped the metal cuff around her wrists and ankles. She was

standing there, stuck and unable to even kneel. Her arms and legs could only move a few inches away

from the stone wall.

"With someone as surprisingly smart as you, I cannot risk anything," Selene stepped away.

"Why are you doing this?" Clarice demanded.

"Because I need motivation," Selene dusted herself off.

"Motivation for what?" Clarice began to get a sick feeling in her stomach.

"I believe you mean 'motivation for who?' and I will show you in a minute," Selene winced and

touched her face.

"Fine, for who?" Clarice tried to pull away from the wall.


48/65

"Is it not obvious?" Selene made an expression of mock sympathy.

"Let me GO!" Clarice shouted.

"Oh, my dear child no. Your dear brother must have motivation and you are all I have," Selene made

a sad face, then smirked.

"But he will see me and not listen to you, or he will hear me!" Clarice said in hoping.

"I have a solution to both! I have a barrier around where you are so that only I can see you!" Selene

contorted her face into an expression of gruesome pleasure.

"I do not think your barrier blocks sound does it?" Clarice tried harder to get out.

Selene pulled a thick strip of canvass from her robe. She shoved it into Clarice's mouth and tied it

behind her head. Clarice became as loud as she possibly could. Selene replaced the canvas with a rope.

Clarice did not quiet. Selene took a thin piece of wire and wrapped it around Clarice's neck. She pulled

on the wire and Clarice lost her ability to breath. She was slowly being strangled. As she was about to

pass out Selene stopped. Clarice could not make a single sound. Selene turned and left the cavern. She

was only gone for about five minutes. When she came back, she was leading Carac, who seemed eager

to be with Selene. Clarice tried to shout to Carac but her voice wouldn't work. The only thing she could

do was watch.

"What are you doing?" Carac asked.

"I'm making something," Selene sounded sickeningly sweet.

"What are you making?" Carac asked again.


49/65

"A surprise!" Selene went to her cauldron.

"You told me that Clarice would be here but I don't see her," Carac looked right past Clarice.

"Trust me, She is here, you simply do not see her," Selene knelt down in front of Carac.

"Can I help with your surprise?" Carac looked at her innocently.

"I would be glad of your help!" Selene smiled.

"What happened to your face?" Carac tried to feel the scarring.

"I got attacked," Selene drew back.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Carac looked down.

"What is your name?" Selene smiled again.

"No, don't tell her," Clarice tried to shout. Nothing came out.

"Um, what is your name?" Carac swayed back and forth reluctantly.

"My name is Selene," she rubbed Carac's arm.

"I am Carac," he twitched nervously.


50/65

"Well, Carac, I need you to give me some of your blood," Selene stood.

"What for?" Carac looked up at her.

"It is something that will help me heal," Selene looked grim.

"Okay," Carac hung his head.

"Just give me your arm," Selene pulled a knife from her robe.

"Okay," Carac held out his right arm.

Selene took his arm and made a large slice. Blood poured out and Carac began to cry. Selene ran to a

nearby table, dragging Carac behind her. She grabbed a large glass vial and held the opening up to the

gash in his arm. The vial quickly filled up with thick red blood. Selene covered the wound with her hand

and pulled away. His arm was stained red but it was no longer bleeding. Selene walked up to thecauldron and held her own arm over the bubbling concoction. She drew the knife over her own skin and

allowed the blood to stream into the mixture. She turned to Clarice and winked. Then, she poured

Carac's blood into the cauldron. Dark smoke rose into the air and swallowed Carac and Selene. Thunder

boomed in the distance. A strange lightness flashed through the room. Clarice saw a large hole in the

stone that led out of the mountain. Lightning flashed through the sky and it began to rain. Out of

nowhere, fire erupted into the night. The smoke dissipated and she could see her brother. Clarice

struggled against the chains and they clashed against the stone. Carac looked right at her. She shouted

as loud as she could. Her voice had finally come back. But she couldn't say much through the rope in her

mouth. Selene waved her hand and the bindings fell away. Clarice tore the rope away and ran to Carac.

He screamed as she grabbed him.

"Carac! Carac, it's me! Clarice!" Clarice hugged him

"Clarice? Why can I not see you?" Carac calmed down.


51/65

"Because of-" Clarice was cut off.

"Because she walked into a trap. She is the one who attacked me Carac!" Selene grabbed Carac's

shoulder.

"Why would you do that Clarice?" Carac stepped away from Clarice.

"Because your sister is losing her mind, Carac," Selene waved her hand.

"So, I will take care of her," Carac grabbed Clarice's hand.

Selene turned back to the cauldron and raised her arms. Clarice grabbed Carac and ran as far as she

could. When they reached the archway leading to the next cavern, something blocked them. They ran to

each passage, but each one of them was blocked by some kind of force field. Selene was chanting in the

ancient text. The cauldron sparked and smoke flowed over the edges. Selene fell silent and turned to

Clarice.

"It takes a lot of power to heal someone but it takes a great deal more to bring someone back from

the dead," Selene stepped towards them.

Clarice thrust her arm in front of Carac and pushed him back. She could feel his fingers pressing into her

arm. Selene pointed to a gap in the stone wall. Clarice cautiously walked towards the opening. Carac

clung to her. Looking out the gap, Clarice could see Avalon running with Ayleth up the mountain. They

were dodging spurts of flame that were launched at them. Clarice shook her head and grabbed Carac's

shoulder. As Clarice turned away, she noticed a large passage that lead down on the opposite side of the

room. It was so large that she couldn't see how she couldv'e missed it. She pulled Carac over to the

passage and ran down it.

"Clarice!" It sounded like Avalon.


52/65

"Avalon?" Clarice called down the tunnel.

"Clarice!" Hoof beats followed the shouts.

Clarice strained her eyes to see in the dark. Ayleth was galloping towards her with Avalon in tow. They

stopped in front of Clarice.

"Who is this?" Carac asked.

"Carac, this is my friend, Avalon," Clarice pointed to Avalon.

"This is my horse, Ayleth," Avalon patted Ayleth.

"Avalon, this is my little brother, Carac," Clarice put her arm around Carac.

"Greetings, Carac!" Avalon smiled, "Clarice, I tied Athelos to a tree at the base of the mountain."

"I thank you," Clarice nodded.

They walked down the passage while Clarice recounted her experience.

"She is planning on bringing someone back from the dead?" Avalon shrieked.

"That's what she told me," Clarice was confused.


53/65

"Do you realize how much power and energy she would need to gather to do that?" Avalon turned

around.

"A lot," Clarice was still confused.

"The only person she would want to bring back would be Lune, her mother. Lune has been dead for over

50 years if the legend is correct. She does not possess that kind of energy or power to bring back

someone who has been dead for that long. The spell that she is meant to kill the inhabitants of the

nearest kingdoms and harness their energy for herself. That is how she will be able to raise Lune. We

have to stop her!" Avalon explained as they ran back up the passage.

Selene was nowhere in sight. The cauldron was steaming and smoke was still flowing over the

edges. There was a large piece of parchment on the table. It was a map of the world. The word Emlyn

was written across the top in fancy letters. The map was a square and it was divided into fourths. in one

square, the kingdom of Imladra was drawn. In the edge of the square was Selene's mountain. There

were many other kingdoms in the same square but Clarice didn't know them. Clarice lifted the map and

noticed a smaller one lying underneath. It was of some kind of mine.

"The Aqueduct," Avalon whispered.

"Pardon?" Clarice looked up.

"Selene is planning on poisoning the kingdoms through the Aqueduct somehow. Each section has one

and it supplies fresh water for all the kingdoms in the sector. If she does that than anyone who drinks

that water will die!" Avalon explained.

They turned and Clarice pulled Carac with her. Selene stood in front of them. She held out her hand

and beckoned to Carac. He looked at her questioningly but walked over to her anyway. Selene produced

a cup and a vial filled with deep maroon liquid and haze. She poured the vial into the cup and sloshed it

around. She offered it to Carac. He refused it and tried to get away. Selene pulled him closer and

wrenched open his jaw. He shouted and gurgled as Selene forced the liquid down his throat. She twisted

him around to face Clarice and Avalon. His face began to steam and his skin turned a sickly yellow color.

Documents

Clarice Imladra