| The shaman brought Kat and Clara to the wreckage of his forest village. It was similar to the aftermath on the Plains of Clay that Kat and Clara survived. All around them were the remains of townsfolk and structures. "Horrifying," Kat said. "It reminds of home." "You've seen the worst," Keilich said, climbing over remnants of what was once his church. "But I have something special to show you, something that once resided in my church." Keilich led Kat and Clara to a small area where he kept what belongings remained after the hurricane. Among them was a rolled sheet of parchment. "You must see this," Keilich said, unrolling the parchment on the ground before them; Kat and Clara knelt down to take a closer look. On the parchment was a rough drawing of a sword. It was, however, no ordinary sword; instead, it was drawn in such a way that suggested that the sword was of many different pieces -- some of them were even suggested to have strange runes carved onto them. "This sword," Clara began, "what does it represent?" "This is the Sword of Many Parts," Keilich said. "It is truly an artifact of worldly importance, as each of its portions is imbued with a great power or enchantment." "Could it be of use to us on our quest?" Kat asked. "I have never learned of any such sword." "Certainly," Keilich replied, pointing out certain portions of the sword on the parchment. "For instance, let's examine the blade -- it contains two parts and must be reassembled by hand. Its runes are rumored provide a valuable secret to the destruction of evil, but no mortal has ever been able to read them. Then there is the socketed hilt, made of crystal bars and gold trimmings. There are also six gemstones that may fit in the sockets, each with their own special powers. Even the hilt itself is enchanted. The green orb in the bottom of the handle also has a very special power, one that only few have been able to use. It once stayed in my church for years, but then something terrible happened. As of recent, the townsfolk began to be driven to hatred of each other by the mere sight of the sword; I think they all wanted to be the one to keep the weapon and harness it's powers. They fought over it towards the downfall of our village; their greed and hatred led to their downfall." "How did all the pieces get scattered?" Clara asked. "S'Allumer's great hurricanes about the world led to it disassembly," Keilich explained. "Any person may reassemble the sword at any time, but only those individuals who are strong in body and mind are able to find the parts, and only those true of heart may be truly able to use the sword for what it is truly intended. Now the pieces are scattered around the world, and only a few remain -- among them, the three of us -- who may be able to yet find them and rebuild our dying planet." "If it is for the sake of the persistance of life," Kat said, "than it is part of our great quest. We will travel as far as we must to find all the pieces of this sword and restore harmony to the world." "This is indeed a most fortunate turn of events," Keilich said, smiling. "I will aid you in your adventure." "Certainly," Clara said. "We are happy to have you with us." "Thank you, kind ones," Keilich said. "Now, let us be off. We must continue on, before it becomes too late to travel. Many hours remain until the end of the day." And so, Kat, Clara, and the shaman Keilich journeyed deeper into the forest; Kat placed Keilich's parchment scroll into her sack. The three travelers headed into the darkness, eventually setting up camp, laying on blankets of thick cloth Clara had brought along in the sack. Before going to sleep, Kat withdrew her diary, and wrote down her account of the first full day of travel, before finally collapsing on it, falling fast asleep. Back to "TAOK&C" Back to Stories Back to Home |