book 1
Dragon Sword

Ch.1

A girl, only at the age of twelve, sat on a stool sharpening knives on a stone. The girl's hair was an orange gold that shimmered slightly in the dyeing sun. Looking carefully at the knife she had just finished sharpening, she put it down and picked up another. Now she started sharpening that one. Footsteps could be heard outside the armory door were Annalett worked. The door swung open and a man of average height, that had a fair skin color like Annalett, and happy green eyes walked in the room.
"Papa!" Annalett said, "I'm almost finished sharpening these knives for you shop."
"Good, Anna," the shaggy haired man replied. The man's name was Jacus, and he owned the town of Slandilvillas's only armory and weaponry shop.
Quickly the slim girl finished sharpening the last knife, and set it on a shelf, along with the others, so that customers could look at the selection they had, and chose.
"Now go to the house, and wash up for supper, Anna. You did much help for me today."
"Your welcome, Papa," Annalett said, giggling, and ran to the house.

In the house, a woman that was in her mid thirties, worked pealing potatoes in the kitchen. The house was the floor above the shop, and had three rooms, a kitchen, and living room. The family ate in the kitchen. Annalett's light footsteps could be heard as she walked briskly through the corridor to the only bathing room. She filled the bowl, that was the sink, with water from a big pitcher that was also on the table, and plunged her dirty hands into the cold water, and splashed her face. Picking up a towel that hung on a hook nearby, she dried herself, and went to the kitchen, were her mother was starting to boil the potatoes for the soup they were having for supper.
Just when Annalett entered the kitchen, there were sounds of hooves outside, and screaming, and yelling. Annalett ran to the open window in the kitchen that faced to the front of the house.
"Oh my!" Came Annalett's mother's voice behind her. A band of bandits were attacking the town.
"Dear child, you must go, I will go down to your father and help him keep the bandits away from the house. Grab your brother, and run. He's at his friend, Charlie's house." When Annalett hesitated, her mother pushed her toward the second stair well that led to the back door, and yelled, "Go, Anna! Get you and your brother to safety!"
With that, her mother disappeared down the front stair well, so Annalett had no choice but to go down the back stairwell. When she made it out of the house, she was on a back lane that people rarely used. She ran in the direction she knew her brother, Brendan, would be. She stopped at the end of the lane, and turned to the only direction she could, across the main street. The bandits would most likely see her if she crossed, but she had to get to her brother.
Annalett ran across the main street, which was the widest street in the small town, as fast as her twelve year old legs to run. She abruptly stop when a huge pain that started at her left shoulder and went down to her right hip, her jaw dropped in a silent scream, and as she turned to her attacker, she saw him lift his sword up for a second attack. In the few seconds before she was knocked out from the blow, she saw her attacker's face. His eyes glowed red, his face had many scars all over, his teeth were crooked, shown in the man's grin. And the man's hair was more black than midnight. That was the last thing she remembered that day. Her attacker's face.

~~~~~~~~~~

First chapter of Fifteen chapters! It would be greatly appreciated if I could get feed back, and a few ideas for a title!

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 2
Annalett woke up, and the first thing she was aware of was the pain on her back and face. When she opened her eyes, she realized she was on her stomach, laying on a bed made of logs, bearskin, and rope. Looking around, Annalett realized she was in a tent, and by the brightness of the tent, it was daytime. She started to get up, but pain and dizziness made her lay back down. That was when she was aware of the bandage over half of her face. The blue eyed girl tried sitting up again, this time slower. She succeeded in sitting up, with her feet dangling off the bed.
Just then someone opened the door to the tent she was in, and a small, blonde lady came scurrying in.
"Oh, your awake. You've been asleep for almost a week. Your lucky your only badly wounded. If Captain Coren hadn't found you when he did, you would be dead..." the lady kept on talking about the work she did to help save Annalett, all the while changing her bandages. Then she left, and came back in with a pile of cloths.
"I've been asleep for a week?" Annalett asked, bewildered.
"Almost," the lady replied.
"W... where am I?"
"Oh! I forgot about that... You are in a tent," Annalett glanced at the lady with a look in her eye that said no duh, "in the camp make by the Duligain Rangers who came to the town when they had gotten word about the attack by a boy who came from the town."
The lady finally took a breath from speaking, and this gave Annalett the chance to ask another of her many questions.
"Are there any other survivors?"
"Yes... A bunch of orphans from the orphanage and their care taker, a stable boy, a mercantile keeper, and a few wives... now widows... survived."
"One of the wives... did any of them look about my height, my blue eyes, brown hair that's in a bun and wearing a yellow sun dress?"
The lady thought for a moment then sighed and said, "I'm afraid not dearie. If they didn't survive... they were either kidnapped by the bandits or burned... I afraid the whole town has burned to the ground."
Annalett suddenly felt pangs of sorrow in her, her eyes became moist and her breathing became heavy. Quickly the lady changed the subject.
"I'm Mrs. Queensly, by the way. Try on these cloths," she indicated to the cloths she had carried it, "and see if any fit you, and if you like them. Then if you have the strength try coming out for lunch. I'll be in to check on you in a bit." Mrs. Queensly then scurried out of the tent, leaving Annalett in it by herself.


About a half-hour later, Annalett was dressed in a light blue sun dress, and stepped outside of the tent. Around her were men in ragged, ranger clothing running around. Horses were tied to poles in the ground, tents were everywhere, and there were fires here and there. People huddled and cooked around the fires.
Mrs. Queensly was at the nearest fire, and saw Annalett come out, and walked over to her.
"Come child, over to this fire. I have a nice fish stew cooking. And I would like you to meet Captain Coren, the man who I told you about." She took Annalett's arm and led her over to the fire, were a few men sat on logs that were around the fire. A tripod stood over the fire, with a bowl hanging on it with a rope over the fire. The smell of the stew made Annalett realized how hungry she was, as she licked her dry lips. She sat down, and Mrs. Queensly nodded to the man sitting next to her.
"This is Captain Coren. Captain Coren this is..."
"Annalett," Annalett said shyly. Captain Coren was a big man, about two feet taller than Annalett's four feet and five inches. He had shoulder length, straight brown hair, with a brown beard that was showing some signs of aging. His hazel eyes had a lively look in them.
"So you're awake, young missy," came the Captain's low rugged voice. "You were in a terrible state when I found you! Nearly dead, with blood all over your face and back. That dress of yours was stained all over."
Annalett tried to smile, but the thought of what he was telling her made her shiver. She had to turn her head to look at Captain Coren, due to the bandage over the whole half side of her face.
"Thank you... for saving me, Captain Coren," Annalett stuttered, unsure of what to say.
"Hey CC!" came a young boy that ran over to the fire the group was at.
"Yes, Morcun, my boy?" replied Captain Coren.
"Charlie, Sammy, Joseph, and I were going through that burned up town... and look what we found buried is some ash!" The boy, who was only a year older than Annalett, and had shaggy black hair, black eyes, and a handsome face, held up one of the daggers Annalett had sharpened the day of the bandit attack. Her eye, that wasn't covered with bandage, widened when she saw the dagger. Captain Coren noticed this and patted Annalett on the back with a big hand.
"You recognize the dagger, Lassy?" He asked, and Annalett nodded.
"that's one of ten identical throwing daggers my papa sells..." she stopped for a moment, "used to sell at his armory-weaponry shop." The boy, who Captain Coren had called Morcun, looked at her with sad eyes.
"I... I'm sorry... I'll go put it back if you want me too..."
"No!" Annalett bursted out, though she didn't really know why. "No... just bury it in the dirt under the old oak that's at the town gates... or should be."
"The old oak? It's still there, it only has a few scratches and burn marks, but still there." and with that, Morcun ran off with his friends. Annalett was watching him run off when Mrs. Queensly shoved a bowl onto her lap.
"Eat girl, so you have the strength to do what girls do... run around and giggle." Mrs. Queensly said, pouring a bowl of fish stew for Captain Coren.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

wow. thats really really brilliant. i can't wait to read more!!! keep up the good work!

_________________
<center>

[font=Times New Roman]
Hello, I'm Amoniel
[/font]</center>

Thanks!

Ch.3


Over the time period of around three weeks, the cuts on Annalett's face and back became scars that she was going to have for the rest of her life. She got aquatinted with all the Duligain at the camp, and ran around with the boys more than hanging with the other girls that were daughters of the rangers. The weather turned cold, as fall was ending and Winter was beginning.
"Every winter," Mrs. Queensly explained to Annalett," All the Duligain get together in the same place every year."
"The Duligain aren't always together?"
"No, they separate into groups of twos or threes, every now and then a single person goes off on they're own... Now... every winter when they get together, the night before New Years Eve night, we have a party, and dance behind a huge bonfire. Then that same night, people give gifts... only not personally. During the night the people giving gifts sneak out and set their gift, with a note, at the front of the receiver's tent door."
"Oh," Annalett said, partially understanding.
"So in about a month... you should have a gift to give at least one person. It's a rule we made that everyone must give at least one gift."
"Okay"
The group of Duligain rangers stayed in that camp, because that was the meeting place, a crater kind of thing a few miles from Slandilvillas. The month before the great giving, as it was called, Annalett spent her days helping going through the ashes of the town. When she came to the house her brother was the night of the bandit attack. Going through the ash she found the scorched bones of a woman, Annalett's brother's friend's mom. Then she found the skull that would be the same size as Brendan's would be, but one of the molars were gold. That was defiantly not Brendan. Annalett searched the house all day, but that was all the bones she found. Walking to what was the front door, she sat down on the stone stairs that still stood, tears coming down her face.
Then she heard faint music. Standing up, Annalett headed toward the music. The tune sound familiar, too familiar. Not long after walking toward it, she saw a group of boys standing around something that one of them was holding. The boys were the ones she usually hung out with. The group included Charlie, Sammy, Joseph, and Morcun. Annalett pushed in between Sammy and Charlie to see what Joseph held. It was a music box, the outside dirty and scorched. The lid was up, and that caused the music to be made, and caused three little horse figures spin in circles in the middle.
"Hey Annalett, look what I found!" Joseph said, holding the music box up to her, "I found it in the ashes of the house behind me. I'm surprised it wasn't destroyed like everything else."
Annalett looked at the music box, then at the pile of ashes behind Joseph, then back at the music box.
"That's my house... and that's my mother's music box" She stated, and all four boys looked at her.
"Well... isn't this where you found that dagger, Morcun?" Annalett asked, and the thirteen year old boy nodded.
"If it's yours, then you keep it, Annalett." Joseph held it out to her. Carefully Annalett picked it up, feeling how fragile it was in her hand, and carefully closed it. Setting it carefully on the ground, she started digging in a certain spot vigorously. Eventually the four boys started helping her, and when the hole was almost a yard deep, they hit something in the dirt. Annalett moved the ash and dirt away from it with her hand, revealing a wooden door in the ground.
Carefully opening the door, she hopped inside the room under it, and looked around. Everything in the room was still in one piece. Annalett ran over to a chest in the corner and opened it. A bunch of old musty papers were inside. She heard the boys come in the basement and start looking at all the old stuff that was there.
I don't remember this chest ever being here, she thought, going through the papers and finding one with red ink scribbled over it. Annalett read it and this is what she read:

Jacus Merwell is charged with treason for selling
weapons stolen from the king, and selling legal
weapons without a license paper signed by King
Armerion II(long live the king). If you do not turn
yourself in, the royal guards will come and persecute
you, your wife burned, and two children taken to
proper custody.
Captain Erellion Darkright

Annalett went wide eyed when she saw this. Folding it up, she put it in her trouser pocket, and went through the chest again and found a small leather bound note book. It had no title, and the first page was empty, but the second page had writing on it. Reading the fist sentence, she closed it, and put it in her other leather pocket. Now Annalett turned to look around the room with the four boys. Old weapons were the majority of the objects in the room, with a few cloths, furniture, and old food in jars with corks that were sealed with wax. This was the second time Annalett had been in the basement. The first time was when she was around five years old when they first moved into the house.
Going through the weapon, a glimmer of red on the hilt of one caught Annalett's eye. She picked up the sword, and dusted the dusty hilt off with her hand, showing the end of the hilt had a gold clasp with a ruby the size of a human eye. The other end had a dragon, wings spread up toward the blade, and head laying on the silver blade, with it's tail curling around the handle. There were inscriptions on the blade, but it was on another language.
Papa never sold any swords like this before, she thought, bewildered. She grabbed an extra sheath, and put it onto the sword, a perfect fit. Then found a rag and tied it around the hilt so no one would see it, and put the belt with the sheath and sword, around her waste and buckled it. Looking around again, the slim girl picked out a few throwing daggers, and found an old black cloak, that was surprisingly not moth eaten. When she was done, Annalett looked around and saw that the boys had picked out some weapons for themselves. Morcun had a sword like the one she wore, only the jewel on the hilt was sapphire, not ruby.
"It's all right if we take these things. Is it, Annalett?" Asked Sammy asked, and Annalett nodded her head.
"I'm getting out of here now, the light is fading, and we should get back to camp," Joseph said, and the rest nodded in agreement. So out of the basement of the burned down house they went, and Annalett had grabbed the music box before following behind the group of boys.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 4

As the New Years Party got closer at hand, Annalett attended classes with the boys on how to fight, and create weapons such as bows and arrows. When it came time for her group she was in to make bows, one of the older Duligain brought them into Rawwood, that was just south of Duligain crater. Duligain crater was the place the rangers met every new year. In Rawwood, the group looked for sturdy sticks to make good bows. Not even a few miles in the forest, Annalett found a fallen tree, and one of the branches that had broken off was the perfect shape for a bow. Testing it's strength by bending it, she came to the conclusion that it would make a sturdy bow. Next she went to find good sticks for arrows, and searched for feathers and the right kind of rock to use to make into arrow heads.
An hour later, with all this done, Annalett and the group went back to Duligain crater to start working on their weapons. With a dagger, Annalett carved her arrows, and on each one carved 'sure wind' on each one, then with thin rope tied the arrowhead and swan feathers she had found, onto the arrows. Next came the hard part, making the bow. The bow had to be carved so it was thin enough to be able to bend slightly, but not too thin that it would break easily. To do this, they were instructed to make circles with their hands, the tip of the thumb by the first finger joint, and that would be about how thick the bow should be at the handle for that particular person. When this was done, Annalett carved a horse head at each end of her bow, and carved vines all over the rest.
For the string, they were given three different color horse tail hairs that were to be braided together to make the rope. There was black, white, and brown. Most of them picked black, but Morcun chose brown, and Annalett chose white. Once done, they were to test the bows and arrows at the make-shift shooting range. The targets were bales of hay, and the shooters were to stand about fifty feet away, standing behind a line drawn in the sand. Soon they all started shooting, and Annalett hit bullseye every time, and the boys stopped to watch her after awhile.
"Wow!"Charles exclaimed, "You're... great with a bow. Have you used one before?"
"No," Annalett said, putting her bow down after shooting her fifth arrow and it landed right beside the other four," but I feel like I just know how to do it... like I was meant to use a bow."
The only one that hadn't stopped shooting was Morcun, who had shot three arrows, and each made it to the bullseye as well. When he did stop, and saw what Annalett had done he called to her:
"Looks like we're evenly matched"
"Hm... but you've had practice before, haven't you? I bet if you didn't, I could beat you," came the reply from a smiling Annalett.
"Bet not! I hit the target my first try too."
"No you didn't," Charles said with a smirk.
"Yeah, you couldn't hit even the edge of the bullseye for the first week like the rest of us!" stated Sammy, waving his arms referring to the other boys around them.
"It's not a good thing to lie," said another boy by the name of Crismisn, "especially when there are witnesses to go against it." This received a glare from Morcun, as he stalked away. Annalett watched after him, slightly laughing.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 5

The day of the New Year gathering came. The group of Duligains had increased by a few dozen, and people all around were laughing, joking, and talking. Younger ones ran around playing games like 'slay the dragon' which the dragon would be a choice horse or dog. Some decoration hung on tents and horse hitches. In a few hours the party was going to start, now some of the older rangers told stories to the younger ones, and girls were putting makeup and fancy dresses on to impress their crushes or boyfriends. It was a whole community, everyone knew everyone else, and everyone got along.
Annalett wore a plain, ruby red dress, with trousers underneath to keep her legs warm, boots, jacket, and her hair in a messy braid. As she walked to the closest fire a snowflake landed on her nose and melted, snow crunched under everyone's feet. Annalett spotted Morcun, he wore his regular tan breeches, boots, and brown jacket, but also wore a sapphire blue shirt underneath his jacket.
That's a strange coincidence, Annalett thought as she fingered the ruby on the hilt of her sword, that our swords are alike, only his is sapphire, and his shirt is sapphire blue, while mine has a ruby, and I just happened to wear my red dress today. Shaking her head she dismissed the thought, and went over to the fire. Sergeant Gurundol, an elder, told the story of how he slew a demon. Demons were strange creatures. They were a kind of shape shifter, but their true beings had eight legs, and walked like a crab. They had a stinger, like a bee, and two monkey like claws. Also, two antennas, and four eyes made the face of the demon.
Annalett listened to his story, and when it was done, it was dark, and lamps were lit at every corner of every tent. Music was starting, and at another fire dancing could be seen, and laughter was also heard. With a smile, Annalett jumped up, and ran over to the group of dancing people, and started clapping her hands to the beat. She didn't notice someone coming up behind her, and when she was tapped on the shoulder, jumped slightly. Looking around, she saw Sammy, his auburn brown hair slicked back, and green eyes glistening in the firelight.
"Can I have this dance?" he asked, holding out a hand, with a smile, she excepted and the two started dancing with the others, her dress swirling as they turned. The music made the night lively. When that dance was done, a boy name Carlos asked her next, then Joseph asked her. The fourth dance, she decided to sit down and take a rest, then noticed Morcun on the other side of the fire. He noticed her, and when the music ended the song, he walked over to her.
"May I dance with the fine lady?" asked he, holding out a gloved hand. Annalett accepted, and he helped her stand up. When the music started they started dancing. Annalett twirled, and switched partners as everyone else dancing did. Soon she made it back to Morcun.
"So why dance with me? The girl who beats you in archery?" a shrug was the only reply. Everyone held the hand to the person next to them, making a circle around the fire, and they started skipping to making the circle go counterclockwise. Annalett smiled at the fun of the dancing. A few hours later, when everyone got tired of dancing, they all went to their tents.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 6
Unlikely Gift

That night, Annalett was one of the first to leave a gift at someone's tent door. She had given Mrs. Queensly a necklace and a new dress. After dropping her gift off at Mrs. Queensly's she went to her own tent, and went strait to sleep. When she awoke, it was still dark, but dew had settled over the land, showing it was early morning. A wining had wakened her, like the cry of an animal, just outside her tent.
Opening her tent door, she saw a black foal wrapped in a blanket laying there, helpless, and shivering from the cold. It looked up at her with loving black eyes that said 'I'm cold, do you have something for me to eat?' Annalett was unsure with what to do with the foal, then noticed the white crescent moon on it's forehead, between it's eyes. With a sigh, she dragged the foal on the blanket into her tent. When she did so, a note flew from the blanket. She picked it up and read it, and this was what was scribbled on it:

Dear Annalett
This is my gift to you, given during the New
Year Gathering. The filly's name is Mostrien
which means moonlight. She had lost her mother,
and now is given to you to take care of.

That was it. It wasn't signed or anything. Confused, she unwrapped the blanket, and saw that the filly's hind leg was slightly swollen, and it's ribs were easily seen, even in the dense light from lanterns outside that came through the partially open tent door.
"Poor thing," she muttered, but was unsure what to do. Then, with an idea, wrapped the filly, and left the tent, quickly returning with a waterskin filled with milk. Carefully, she lifted the filly's head, and put the opening of the waterskin by the filly's mouth. Mostrien drank quickly, milk spilling from its mouth now and then, and soon finished off the milk. With a full stomach, it lay down, and went to sleep, and Annalett did the same.

~~~~~~

Annalett woke up, with the sun high, and two loving black eyes looking down a long black nose at her. With a start, she sat straight up, making the filly jump and go to the other side of the tent.
"How'd you get in..." but then stopped short, remembering last night. Sighing, she left the tent and came back with another waterskin with milk, and fed the filly. After ward she inspected the swollen leg. There was a small cut just above the hock, and that was what must have started the infection. Running out of the tent, she found some bandages and medicine. On her way back she saw Mrs. Queensly wearing the dress she had given her, and also saw Morcun. He looked like he was having a hard time keeping emotion from showing in his face when he saw her, and Annalett eyed him suspiciously.
Back at the tent she put medicine on the cut, and wrapped the leg in bandage, and found a smelly present from the filly, on the floor of her tent. With another sigh, she slowly led the filly out of her tent, and tied her to a post, then worked on cleaning out her tent. She opened the door to her tent, and the windows to air out the smell.
"What you got there, lassy?" Came Captain Coren's rough voice.
"I found her outside my tent last night. Seems she's my present. And my present left a present on the floor of my tent." Annalett retorted. The captain just grinned wide, and walked on.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 7

Over the next weak, Annalett nursed Mostrien back to health and soon her leg was better. By the time the filly was fully healthy, over half the Duligains had left for their travels. One day, the second day of the second weak of the new year, Captain Coren came up to Annalett.
"Annalett. You have a decision to make. None of us are going to stay here all year round. The woman and children go to towns to stay the rest of the year. The men travel about, doing certain duties to the land. Now you don't seem the type of lassy that would want to go with the woman and children, so this is your choice. You go with them," he indicated to Mrs. Queensly and the other women, who were sorting out the children for travel, "or you can chose a gang of ranger to go with, but you would be the only girl in which ever group you chose to go to. I'm traveling with Sammy, Charles, and a few others. Sergeant is taking the rest of the boys. All the others are gone by now."
Annalett thought for a moment. "I think I'll go with you. But the only horse I have is Mostrien, and she's too young to ride, much less travel far."
"We have an extra horse, and I think she can keep up. I've never seen such a spirited filly in all my years." as if to reply to the mention of her, Mostrien gave a whinny, and nudged Annalett.
"All right," She said, smiling. They departed the next day. First the two groups of rangers rode together, but soon split at a fork in the road. Captain Coren's group heading south toward Thumb bay, Sergeant's group heading east. Traveling was slowed only slightly with Mostrien trailing behind Annalett on the horse she rode. Days of traveling, scouting, and camping turned into weeks, weeks turned into months.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 8
After a year of traveling, the group came together again for Annalett's second New Year gathering. Her hair had become longer, and curves had started forming on her body. Her face was more stout, and eyes softer. Mostrien had also grown to be a hyper yearling, and Captain Coren had a few more gray hairs. Her group was the last group to arrive to Duligain crater. A familiar, yet almost unfamiliar face greeted them. Morcun had been on guard when they arrived. He rode over on his bay stallion, and greeted Captain Coren and his friends. For the year he had gone with the sergeant, and his group was one of the first to arrive. His hair was a little longer, and scraggly, his dark eyes were different, more stern, then last she saw him, and bit more muscular. Annalett was now thirteen, while Morcun was fifteen and more handsome. The bow he had made was in a quiver over his back, and his sword tied to the saddle.
The others had also changed over the years. Joseph had gained much weight despite much exercise. Sammy had shaved his head, and Charles had grown almost two feet taller. They all were glad to see each other again, and the month of the New Year gathering seemed to go by faster than last year. No one left when it was over though, and when it was spring, Captain Coren called everyone together and announced the reason no one left.
"This years there will be a race. We have one every ten years. It will take four days, one race each day. You all who want to race will be put into three groups, each racing a different day. The last race will be between the three winners and the three people who make second place."
So they were put into three groups, each having about twenty competitors. Annalett was against men she barely knew. Morcun was in a group with Captain Coren and the sergeant. Sammy, Charles and Joseph were in another group. Annalett was the only girl to enter the race, and the youngest, with the youngest horse because she had decided to race with Mostrien even though she was only a yearling.
Morcun's group was the first to race. They were to race out to the ruins of Slandilvillas, and ride around the perimeter of the town, and come back. First one across the finish line, a ribbon on the ground, would be the winner. They lined up along the ribbon and when Mrs. Queensly dropped her blue hander chief, they were to start.
"Ready!" she called "Set! Go!" she dropped the hanker chief and they were off.
Captain Coren started out in the lead, with Morcun in second. The race out to Slandilvillas was a few miles, but those miles were gone when they were all racing their horses at top speed. As they turned to the outskirts of the town, Morcun bypassed Coren on the inside, and gained first place. Then another ranger came up on the outside and took first. On the long run back, Morcun urged his big stallion to go faster, winning the race by a head.
The next day Annalett's group went, with Annalett in first place in a strong, tough looking brute in second. Then the third race Sammy won by a long shot, and another ranger in second.
The fourth day and the fourth race came. This time they had to ride out to Slandilvillas around the whole town, like last time, and then South to Rawwood were a marker was set up around the marker, and back to the finish line. They lined up. Annalett, Morcun, Sammy, Captain Coren who was second in Morcun's race, and the two others. When the hanky was dropped, the six racers were off, Sammy and Coren in the lead, with the big brute behind them, and the other ranger last with Annalett and Morcun just in front of him. Annalett urged Mostrien into a faster gallop, bringing herself to second, with Sammy in front of her. Annalett heard a POW and looked back to see that the big brute just punched the other ranger in the face, knocking him off his horse and out of the race. Now the brute, whose name was Jollman, was catching up to the Captain.
Turning back toward were she was going, and heard Mostrien snort.
"C'mon, half way there," she urged the mare.
The racers made their way around Slandilvillas, they started going south toward Rawwood. Annalett urged Mostrien to go faster, and the mare nickered and quickened her long pace, catching up with Sammy. Soon the two were neck-in-neck. Rawwood was just a line now, getting bigger until they made it into the trees. Annalett had to duck due to low branches. The marker was a man holding up a bright orange cloth. When the two riders turned, Annalett was on the inside, so was now in the lead and Sammy almost ran into a tree, causing him to fall farther behind. But that didn't help Sammy, on his dappled gray stallion, was catching up. They were neck-in-neck again as the finish line came up. Mostrien had a burst of speed just as the passed the finnish line, winning by only inches.
Captain Coren came in third, Morcun fourth, Jollman last, and the sixth racer limping in, a hand on his bruised face, leading his horse. There was a cheer and everyone surrounded Annalett and handed her a small silver goblet that had the number one engraved on it. The next night they partied, either for fun or for celebration from the race. Sammy sulked in his tent the whole time, upset that he lost to a girl. Annalett ended up dancing with every boy there, even the Captain and many others and danced with Morcun last. Then they went to bed in their tents and the next day left for travels.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 9

Annalett was fifteen at the end of the gathering, two years since the race, she decided to set off by herself, as did Morcun and Sammy. She started by going west, over the Lore mountains, then followed Spine river south past Moonfire marsh and into the land of Cranes. This took her about a week, and she stopped in Willow town for another week, staying at the Silver Dragon Inn. There she heard new of the king of Salerno that had ruled for nearly fifty years, the longest any king had lived. The people spoke about him as if he was an evil man, sending a strange man who claimed to be the sheriff, and go around with a group of bandits and burn down whole towns at a time.
"Would this be King Armerion II?" Annalett asked them one night, and they nodded disgustedly. "And would the sheriff be Erellion Darkright?" again they nodded. Annalett thanked them, and went to her room. When there, she locked the door and took out the notice she had taken from the stone chest, in the basement of her old burned down house many years ago. Staring at it blankly, sudden rage came through her, and she crinkled up the paper and gritted her teeth. A strange tingling feeling came through her, and she felt that nothing could stop her for a few moments, before the sensation stopped. With a sigh, Annalett put the crinkled up paper in her pocket and went to bed.

~~~~~~~~~~

In the morning, Annalett woke up, feeling a little tired and irritable. When she went down to the tavern, which had a few lonely men in the corners babying their beer. A bard, who had not been there last night, tuned a wooden lute. Annalett went over to the bar, and ordered some wine, and sat at a table, not far from were the bard sat on a chair, looking around the room. His hair was brown, and slightly shaggy. His strong build showed that he traveled much, his face stern, and a beard grew from his face, and ears slightly pointed. When he spotted her he asked;
"I am Adoven Joysword. Do you have a request for a song, m'lady?"
Annalett thought for a moment then nodded, "Do you know 'Lady Daraga'?"
The bard nodded, and strummed his lute before beginning a tune, then began singing, his voice rich a deep.

Oh! Lady Daraga, elven maiden fair,
Long ago lived in an age of wonder.
Her hair catching silver moonlight from the full moon.

A maiden by sword, a maiden by bow.
Oh! Lady Daraga, an elf so bold.
She slew a dragon,
far from her home.

Oh! Lady Daraga, elven fair,
Nothing scared her, her courage strong.
Her sword of fire,
Lit the night, as she slew a beast,
That caused a fright, one night.

A battle there fought,
As long as day and many a night.
The beast she slew, yet wounded she was.
Too wounded in fact, that she couldn't be healed
By the best of the healers around.

Oh! Lady Daraga, elven warrior,
Died that night,
On that moonlit night,
Above the beast she slew...

When he finished, Annalett had finished her drink, and was sitting back in her chair. Also at that moment, a figure in a hood walked in. The man was obviously a Duligain, for his cloths were the traveling type. Annalett licked her full lips, and thought of her high cheek bones, stout chin, and chiseled features, and imagined her friend's faces. She smiled when she remembered Sammy had grown a beard to go with his bald head. The figure walked over to a part of the bar that was closest to Annalett and bought a beer. Annalett eyed him curiously then with a sigh walked out of the back door to the stable and walked to the stall were Mostrien was kept. The filly had grown into a fine mare. Her mane was long and luxurious, as was her tail that almost touched the ground. The black forelock almost covered her eyes it was so long, feathers by the hooves when with thick, stout legs.
Mostrien nickered as her owner came in. Annalett had also changed over the course of three years. Her red-gold hair was now almost to her waste, her blue eyes even more striking, and her figure was slender and her feminine curves all grown. She had grown a few inches taller, making her five foot six.
"Hey, girl." Annalett cooed, and she received an answering whinny.
"Nice horse," came a deep voice from behind her. Annalett turned to see the hooded stranger from the Inn. She hadn't heard him come in.
"Thanks" she said, unsure of what to say.
"Could I get you a drink inside?" He asked, his voice low and haunting.
"Uh... sure, I guess."
"Maybe it would help if you knew who you're getting a drink with." The stranger pulled down his hood, showing hypnotizing black eyes, a stern face, and shoulder length black hair that was all a mess.
"Morcun!" Annalett gasped, then hugged his neck. "What're you doing here?"
He shrugged, "just going with the wind, I guess. Honestly, I didn't expect you to be here. I thought you went East."
They walked back to the Inn, and Morcun ordered two mugs of ale, though Annalett didn't drink hers for she didn't like it's taste. They sat at a table, across from each other. Annalett fingering the scar down her face nervously, Morcun spinning his cup in his hands. The bard came over to them.
"So it seems you two know each other." He said, turning a chair, then straddling over it so he leaned on the back.
"Yes, we know each other..." Annalett said with a smile, then noticed the bard's ears were slightly pointed.
"Are you an elf?"
"Oh, no... half-elf. My father was an elf, my mother a human. It's quit interesting living on the middle of gruffness and fairness." this made both Morcun and Annalett smile. "Now what might you be?"
"We're Duligain." Morcun answered.
"Ah! It's rare to see even one Duligain on this side of the Lore Mountains!" They talked for awhile, then Adoven said he had things to do and walked off. Soon after Annalett and Morcun went out for a ride.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 10

The two rode through Moon forest, which was less then one-fourth the size of Rawwood.
"Annalett, I didn't come here by accident. I came looking for you, and found something that you might want to hear. It's good... and bad," said Morcun, reining in his bay stallion to a stop, Annalett stopping right next to him.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Well, I've heard that a boy who was taken from home, or supposedly rescued from abusive parents, was being kept at the castle of Salerno, more commonly known as Mountonton."
"Why would I want to know this?"
"Because, the boy is as old as your brother would be. I've heard you talk about him, and I've seen him being taken from Riverton to Mountonton. He would be about nine, right?"
"Yeah, and have the same color eyes as me, and my father's brown hair." Annalett stated, and Morcun nodded.
"Exactly! You seemed like you want something exciting to do, well here it is, screaming at you."
"What?"
"I mean, you, and me if you want me to come along, can go save your brother. Everyone that knows you knows that you hate the king and his captain. This captain is most likely the one that gave you the scar across your back and on your face." Annalett fingered the scar down her face.
"All right, and I'd be honored if you came with me. We can leave to head to Mountonton tomorrow. Now lets enjoy our ride first." Annalett said. Morcun agreed and the two rode through Moon Forest. Then when they got back to the Silver Dragon Inn it was nightfall, so they went to bed.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 11
Traveling

Annalett and Morcun left at the break of day to head to Salerno. Instead of following Spine River, they went straight North-east toward Lure Mountains, and went through a small part of Rawwood. This took about a week when they arrived at the remains of Slandilvillas, which following the Spine River would have taken twice as much time. They stopped and camped a few nights just outside of the burned down town, were the ashes still ramained.
Annalett went to the old willow tree just outside of the town, and started digging. Soon she came upon a dagger that was rusty, scratched, and bent. Morcun came up to her and saw what she held, understanding, he put a hand on her shoulder.
"I remember the day I found that. It would be the day we first met." He said as she nodded, her eyes welling with tears.
"It seemed so long ago," she whispered, "Yet I remember the day of the raid like it was yesterday. The one thing I remember the most would be my attackers face. It haunts me in my dreams, every time I close my eyes I see those glowing red eyes and that smile that could wake the dead..." she trailed off in remembering the day. She put the dagger back, and buried it again, patting the soil. They walked back to their camp together and ate their supper of hunted deer silently. As they prepared to go to bed, each laying their blankets on different sides of the fire, Annalett found, in her bag, an old music box. She wound the key, and let it play, humming to the soft tune then started singing to it.

"Under the stars at midnight
the moon watches over you.
Under the stars at midnight,
I love you.

My heart is always there for you,
I am always there,
just for you,
I am here,
just for you... you...

Dance under the stars at night,
sing to the moon,
laugh and play,
cray and mourn...
Live life like no ones lived before.

Dance, dance, dance, dance,
under the thousands of stars,
the moon smiles upon you,
sing upon the night.

Dance like there is no one there,
Live like no ones lived before,
Sing like something's there for you,
and catch a falling star..."

The music box stopped, and Annalett stopped singing as well. She set it down next to her and lay down to sleep, not knowing Morcun watched her through the fire, and also eventually went to sleep.

~~~~~~~

The next day came, and they arose around the same time at daybreak. Annalett packed up the horses, while Morcun put out the fire, and buried the whole they dug to put the fire in. They left a few hours before noon to cross the Plains of Salerno. On the other side they would come to Laketon, a small town by the edge of Slerson lake, that was a little bit bigger than Willow town. When they arrived at the town, a few days later, the town seemed quiet, and all the people were dressed in black and slowly walked through the streets. They watched as Morcun and Annalett passed by, who of which were quite nervous at the silence in the town.
"I have a bad feeling about this place... we should leave as soon as possible." Annalett murmured to Morcun. He nodded in agreement while watching a broad shouldered man who came close to the horses, most likely a thief. They quickly left the town, glad to leave the town where there was no laughter or children playing in the streets. It was another day to Mountonton, that was a great fortress that stood at the base of Dragonfont Mountain. A single tower, which was the castle, was surrounded by a town, which was surrounded by a fifty foot wall with a huge metal gate.
As the gates opened, squealing on un-oiled hinges, they made their way inside. This town seemed much more cheerier than Laketon. Children scuttled by, playing with sticks as pretend swords. They came to the market, which was bustling with people. It was hard to get through, and noisy. Mostrien rolled her eyes at the loud noise and the many people, not used to such a crowd. The two Duligains made their way out of the main market to a street that was all inns, taverns, and saloons. They didn't stop there. Instead made their way to another gate which led to the tower that was the castle. Guards stopped them.
"What is your business here?" the taller one asked, pointing his spear tip at them.
"We are here on an important errand. It's a secret, so we cannot tell you." replied Morcun coolly.
"None can pass through this gate until they state exactly what they are entering..." he was cut off as a man with no hair what so ever on his head, and a gold robe came forward.
"Guards, stand down. Captain Darkright has been waiting for these two." the guards just glared at him, receiving a piercing glare back from orange eyes, "I said stand down! I have orders from Captain Darkright that these two are to come straight to his office..." he hissed. Annalett thought she saw a hint of purple light around the strange man's clenched fists. The guards backed to their posts, glaring again at the man in the gold robe.
"Please excuse them for their... rudeness... please follow me this way. The four-legged beasts can come too." he said, scurrying through the gate. Annalett and Morcun looked at each other questioningly. They didn't expect this to happen. How did this Captain Darkright know they were coming? They followed the man into the tower anyway.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 12

Annalett and Morcun dismounted and followed the man down a series of passageways and up many flights of stairs, leading their horses the whole time. Soon the man stopped at an eight foot, wooden door with gold bars, a gold knocker with a lion holding a ring of fire, and a silver handle. The robed man turned to them and cleared his throat.
"M'lady," he nodded to Annalett, "M'lord," he nodded to Morcun, "You two... or at least m'lady, the Captain has been expecting. He knows you are here, and is glad you came. For, you see, many years ago your father was one of the most wanted people on the captains list for selling weapons stolen from the king's forces. A few years ago that problem was taken care of, and your brother taken into proper custody. There was a search for you, when Captain realized the mistake he had made, hurting you." with a somber face, he opened the big door, and gestured for them to go inside.
The room was big, with a high ceiling, no other doors, and no windows. A fireplace and a few candles were the only sources of light. The walls were covered with shelves stuffed with books that were old and new. Books were piled on the floor and on the big oak desk in the middle of the room with paper, quill and ink. By one wall, a man stood, seeming to look for a book. He faced the other way, so Annalett couldn't see his face, but she noted the black hair.
"Captain, your guests are here." the robed man said, and left.
"Welcome, Annalett and Morcun. As you have been told, I have been waiting your arrival." the man turned, revealing a grin that revealed disgusting yellow teeth, scars all over his face, and red eyes that seemed to almost glow. Annalett gasped, remembering the face of her attacker all those years ago.
"I must ask you something urgent, dear child," Captain Darkright said, seeming to ignore Morcun, "will you join your brother and help me rid the land of evildoers like your father?"
"I will never help you, or the despicable man you call a king. What have you done with my brother?" Annalett snapped, hand going to her sword's hilt. Her blue eyes stared fiercely at Erellion's red eyes. He kept his cool and snapped his fingers, and a servant came in with a child who's head was covered with a bag, and his hands tied behind his back. The bag was pulled away, revealing a young boy about the age of nine with the same eyes as Annalett, and long brown hair. He was gagged, and when he saw Annalett he tried to smile.
"Annale? Is tha ou?" he mumbled passed the gag. Annalett stepped toward him, but out of the corner of her eye saw Morcun motion her to stop.
"Yes, Brendan, it's me. Are you okay?" She whispered to him, glad that he remembered her. He shrugged, and Annalett gave him a reassuring smile, and turned to Darkright.
"Let him go!" she demanded. Erellion lifted an eyebrow.
"Now why should I do that?"
"Let him go!" she yelled, unsheathing her sword.
"Ooh, you have a sword, I'm so scared. What are you going to do? Poke me?" he chuckled. Annalett gritted her teeth, and saw Morcun unsheathed his sword also.
"I'll kill you if you don't let him go!" she yelled at him. Erellion smiled, snapped his fingers and drew a mighty longsword, twice the size of Annalett's sword, with a lion on the hilt. The bag was pulled over Brendan's head, and he was taken out of the room, the door closed behind the servants.
"So be it," he said, jumping toward them in a first attack. Annalett quickly blocked; the battle started.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

Ch. 13

Annalett easily blocked the first blow, though the man was a lot stronger than herself. For a moment the blades locked and kept inching closer to her neck, then suddenly Erellion turned and hacked at Morcun who did his best at blocking the blade that went so fast that it was hardly visible. Annalett breathed deep and the room changed by magic. The walls melted away showing miles of molting liquid. The ground turned to rock that cracked and the ceiling disappeared showing red clouds. While this happened, Erellion seemed to have disappeared, leaving Annalett and Morcun alone.
"I saw him jump into the lava," Morcun called, and just that moment he appeared between them like a man made of lava. Erellion turned to Annalett.
"That pitiful man you call a father was not your real father! I am!" came a distorted voice from the man made of lava.
"You aren't my father! I could never be the daughter of such an evil man!" she yelled back at him and jumped back as he lunged at her with his sword that dripped with orange burning liquid.
"I tell thee the truth. I am your father. None of your 'family' had your hair, I had that hair before an accident."
Annalett was silenced with this for a moment then yelled.
"And what about my brother? He has the same eyes as me, and I have the same eyes as my mother!"
"Your brother is just an orphan they chose that had the same eyes, obviously. And your mother tricked you about many things with spells." He lunged at her again, but Annalett dodged and ran over to Morcun, tears rolling down her face.
"It's not true," Morcun whispered in her ear when she was next to him.
"I know..."Then everything went black.
Next thing she knew, she stood alone on the top of a stone pillar, lava steaming miles below. Two pillars, on on either side of her, also stood. Morcun was on one, a fresh gash on his shoulder, sword at his feet, his eyes showed he was in pain, and his face emotionless. On the other stood Erellion, finely dressed, looking friendly. A white light made him look inviting, while by Morcun, no light made him look unwelcoming. A stone bridge stood between Erellion's and Annalett's pillar, while a rickety old bridge stood between Morcun's and Annalett's pillar. The stone bridge looked sturdy while the wooden bridge had rotted planks and the rope that held it was frayed.
"Dear daughter," came Erellion's now smooth voice, "you now have a choice to make. Come to me and I will grant you all the wishes you want. Join me and we will rid the land of bad doers. Chose 'him'", he indicated to Morcun, "And you may fall into the lava just before you will reach him... but will he save you? And you will feel my wrath."
Annalett looked between Erellion and Morcun. Morcun looked sad, and in pain. Erellion looked proud and strong.
"The choice was made even before I met 'him'", she whispered, and ran over the wooden bridge, it fell under her feet into the lava before she reached the other side. She felt herself fall for a second than felt herself hit the wall of the pillar. Looking up, Morcun held her hand with his good arm, his face distorted with pain. Just as he pulled her up, they heard a mad distorted voice say. "Wrong choice!", and the surroundings changed again. Now they stood in a forest, Erellion in black cloths, with his sword, facing them.
He lunged at them, and Annalett dodged too slow, he got her in the back with a flaming sword, reopening the scar down her back. Her eyes bulged with pain. She heard Morcun scream and heard a clash of metal against metal, and fell to her knees. Time seemed to slow for her, and she picked up her sword and stood up in one solid movement, turning to hack at Erellion. He blocked easily, but Morcun got him in the arm with his sword, and howled in pain. Knocking Annalett's sword out of her hand, he cut her down the face, opening the scar on her face, too. She fell back against a tree, holding the cut, thick blood running through her fingers.
"I could have granted you immortality! Now you will die!" He yelled and was about to give a third blow when Morcun came between them.
"Get out of my way boy!"
"No"
"Get out of my way!" Erellion howled, and pushed him aside with inhuman force. Morcun hit a tree hard, making it fall onto of him, while he lay on his back, stunned, blood coming from his nose and mouth. Erellion turned to Annalett, lifting his sword.
Annalett's eyes searched for her sword, but couldn't find it, but found Morcun's that had landed next to her. She picked it up, and the sapphire jewel glowed blue at her touch, Erellion screamed. He covered his eyes, giving Annalett the chance to attack. She thrust her sword at him, stabbing him in the heart. There was an ear piercing scream, and everything went black.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08

thats really good! i like her character, and her personality, its different and appealing!

Thanks! Any ideas for titles for those couple of chapters with none? Or should I keep to the original titles?

Heres the next chapter:

Ch. 14

Annalett woke, lying on the ground, with a black muzzle nudging her face. Tiredly she pushed it away with a hand, but it came back and pushed her shoulder fiercely, causing pain to go up and down her back. With a groan, she slowly got up, wiped herself off, and saw that it was Mostrien that had waken her. There was blood on the filly's nose. Annalett couldn't open her right eye; the eye where the scar had been reopened by Erellion. She could barely move due to the cut on her back. Looking around, she was back in Erellion's office room, hers and Morcun's horse were by the big door which stood open. A pile of ashes lay were Erellion once stood, and some of the books were just starting to catch on fire for no known reason.
Annalett spotted Morcun, pinned under a beam from the roof, that must have been the tree when the room was a forest. She ran over to him, and pushed the beam, pain shooting up her spine, but it didn't budge. Breathing hard, she tried again only this time Mostrien and Morcun's horse helped pushing the beam with their noses. After a moment of pushing, the beam fell away.
Morcun groaned when he tried sitting up with Annalett's help. His chest was cut open, from his left shoulder to his right hip.
"What happened..." he murmured, coughing up blood.
"I killed him, using your sword. When I picked up your sword, there was a bright light that distracted him, so I thrust my sword into his heart," she said with disgust. Remembering all that had happened made her stomach roll.
"Lets get out of here," she said, and Morcun nodded. She helped him to his feet, and then slowly made their way out of the building. Outside, there was no one there. Not a guard, a villager, not even an animal. Carefully they mounted, and rode through the city streets that were vacant, not a soul in sight. Suddenly many men jumped up onto the roof of the houses with bows, and start shooting at them. The horses went off at a gallop, but Morcun's horse got shot in the chest, causing it to fall down, bringing Morcun with him.
"Morcun!" Annalett cried hoarsely, riding over to him, and helping him up from the saddle.
"Jump on behind me," she said, and he did so with much help from Annalett. An arrow went by, inches from Annalett's head. They galloped out of the city, arrows following, sweaty, bloody, and tired. They galloped away as fast as they could for as long as they could. After nearly a day of this, Mostrien stopped and when Morcun fell off, Annalett sloppily dismounted, and went to his side. Mostrien went to lie down, coughing and sweating. Annalett studied their surroundings. They were in a desert, it looked like. Sand surrounded them on all sides, though the shadow of the Great Mountains could be seen to the south, and the huge peak of Great Mountain could be seen to the East. Annalett still couldn't open her right eye.
"Were are we?" came the weak voice of Morcun.
"I don't know... I think we're in the Piamfodnt desert. I can see Great Mountain, and the Great Mountains... man, that's confusing..." she felt Morcun nod since his head lay on her lap now and she studied the horizon.
"We need help... Mostrien can't carry us both any more, there's no source of water here except for the oasis at the far south of the desert..."
"Our only hope is friendly travelers..." Morcun said, trying to sit up, but lay back down from pain from his chest. They sat like that for a long time until it was dark out, and the stars were out. Annalett was able to use her cloak to make a pillow for Morcun, and made a fire with brushwood. With the water from a waterskin, and a piece of cloth ripped from her cloak. She wiped her face off, then ripped off Morcun's shirt which was all bloodied, with splinters all over it. The skin underneath was dirty, bloody, and scratched, but other than that, his body was tan and muscular. She tenderly washed the deep wound that went from his shoulder to hip. Then she took needle and string from the saddle bag that all Duligains kept handy, and stitched it up, the whole while, Morcun's face contorted with pain. When that was done, she washed the wound one more time, stripped his shirt into strips and bound the wound. Next, Morcun sat up carefully, and they faced each other so he could stitch up the wound in her face. He left the eye alone, though she still couldn't open her eye. Then she turned around, and lifted the back of her shirt, wincing when the cloth pealed off some of the scabbing cut. Morcun washed and stitched it up. She cut up an extra shirt to bound the wound. While she held her shirt up, making sure to keep her breasts covered, Morcun wrapped the strips around her. The whole time, they did this in silence.
They lay down to rest, too tired to bother with watches. Annalett slipped in and out of sleep all night, having nightmares of the battle. She couldn't get Erellion's face out of her mind. It kept coming to her, accompanied with the sight of the tree, or beam, falling on top of Morcun, then a bright blue light. When she awoke around the fifth time, it was daylight, and Morcun was sitting up by the fire. Two horses stood behind him. She rubbed her eyes, but the two horses were still there.
"Where'd that horse come from..." she started to say, but the question was answered as Sammy walked up to them, bald head shinning in the light, and slightly red from sunburn. "Hey Sammy. What have you been up to?"
"Nothing much," came the reply, "just saving a couple of friends from dying out here in the desert. Mind telling me why I had to save my friends?"
"Hm... just killing one of the biggest bad guys around."
"And who would that be?" at this, Annalett turned her head, so Morcun spoke.
"Captain Erellion Darkright. Found out he was the one who gave Anna her scar when we first found her, and he and a group of others burned down the town." a sour note could be heard in his voice.
"Captain Erellion? Really? I'd never thought he would be the one behind this..." for a moment Sammy looked liked he was thinking then stated, "Then why, Annalett, didn't you answer me? Just getting revenge for your loved ones couldn't have been that bad."
"It's not just that," Annalett answered, "He said... he said that the people who were burned were really my parents, and that he was my father. I don't know if I could believe him."
"Well, don't let something like that get you down. He probably said that just to trouble you as it is now." Sammy smiled a heartily smile, making wrinkles on his forehead.
"I hope so." Annalett replied. They stayed there for another day and a night, and then set out again toward Duligain Crater were some of the woman had already started making camp. Annalett and Morcun got better stitches and bandages and were able to have time to heal. Morcun got a new horse, a big black stallion with a white stripe down his forehead, and three white socks.

_________________

(}--{)Imagination Inspires Ideas -Zandain(}--{)
Married Cloud Strife 9/17/08