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[Cristiana Smythe]

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Cristiana sat quietly looking up at the clouds floating by, and wondered where they were going. “I hope you don’t mind” she said quietly, “but I think it’s time to follow them”. “You’ve taught me my lessons well, and I can open my own forge somewhere near a huge mountain”. She was hoping her parents wouldn’t be upset with her, but this was something she had to do. Cove was a wonderful quiet little place to grow up in, but she knew she couldn’t stay there any longer. One last goodbye and she turned to go. She had already packed her things; the only thing left to do was actually leave. She had tried so many times before in the past month, but had been unable to put one foot in front of the other. This had always been home, and home is a difficult place to leave. She hoped she might return one day, but who knows what the future will bring.

Memories of her past came flooding into her as she packed away her childhood. She could hear her father say “We all come to a time when we put away the toys of childhood and start life anew, try not to be afraid of that time when it comes firefly.” But she was afraid of tomorrow, and no matter how much she tried to be brave it was a cold lump in her chest that she could not shake. She carefully folded the blanket that she and her mother had been working on and would now never finish. A tear dropped onto it has she placed it in the chest on top of the rest of what had been her past. Memories of all her mother’s warm words and warnings were etched in to fabric and as she closed the lid for the last time she once again heard her mother “Ware the oracle child, nothing good can ever come from knowing tomorrow too soon”. With the packing done the only thing left to do was the actual goodbye.

She closed the gate on her way out but couldn’t help to look back one last time to say good bye yet again. The flowers she had placed should stay fresh for another day or two. Her mother had always loved fresh flowers and she didn’t want to leave them without happy thoughts. Her eyes welled with tears as she turned to go. Maybe she wouldn’t come back here. Maybe she would never see this place again. Who knows, with all of the ogres running about, she may not make it to Trinsic. Why Trinsic to start a new life? Well where better for a crafter of metal to make a living than in the City Of The Paladins. The cemetery gate shut soundly, Cristiana set off in search of her new tomorrow.

Catching a boat to Britain was easy from Cove, merchants regularly make that trip. The weather was another story, and not an easy one. She remembered little of the storm, the men yelling, the horses baying, the sound of wood splintering then nothing but wet all around her then - thankfully - darkness. Like most things that are comfortable to her however, it was not to last. She awoke on the shore line among the broken and shattered crates from the ship, deep in sand. Her everything hurt and much worse, where were her tools!! Her ingots were the things that would make her new life! Flustered and more than a little shaken and afraid she began a frantic search of the flotsam that washed up with her. Her search is brought up short by the loud roar of a creature she had heard about so many times in her Mom’s night time tales. An Ogre! Before she could find a place to hide it was coming at her, ‘they are much faster than mother ever said they were” she thought just before the giant tree it was carrying hit her knocking her to the ground. The next few minutes are just flashes of flesh and armor, wood and steel clashing against each other as if the very gods where fighting right over her. Then a face, well not face but an extremely nice piece of handy craft, perhaps the best helm she had ever seen leaned in over her. “It will be alright child, I will take you to see the Oracle at Stone Gate, she will fix you right up”. Before she could beg not to be taken to an oracle, before she could explain how good she had been, she was lifted off the sand and into the arms of the armored man. Then with a deep breath and spreading sense of calm the man lifted his head and shouted “SANCTUM VIATAS” and they were gone.