Halistanis Aerthe the Seeker of the Coven

PK Gank-O-Meter

Role

Chapter 6

Darkness . . . Bright flash of light.

A small baby-girl in a cradle made of wood and sheeted with moss.
She is playing with some colorful stones and sun speckles. Smiling,
mumbling. As happy as only a child can be. Two figures, a woman and
a man, are standing nearby, hugging each other, watching their child's
every movement in silence, smiles on their faces.

Woman: Just look at her. Isn't she the most beautiful thing in the
world?
Man: Not as beautiful as her mother. But one day, who knows. She
might become as beautiful as you are, my heart. And it is certainly
worth living to see that day, yes.
Woman: And as smart, brave, and smart as her father.
Man: With a voice that will charm everyone around. Who knows what
she can become? A famous bard, a fearless huntress, a wise witch. The
time will show.
Woman: Yes, the time will certainly show.

The girl laughs, and they kiss each other. Happiness and confidence in
their every move.

Darkness . . . Bright flash of light.

Four-year old girl is watching something among the branches of the
ancient tree. Her face is concentrated, her mouth is half-open. She
doesn't seem to notice anything around her, only the thing that she
observes. The elder elven woman is approaching her from behind,
obviously intrigued by what can cause such an interest.

She approaches and sees a spider web among the branches. A huge
spider has caught a bumblebee, and the girl observes their ruthless
fight, the fight to death. The bumblebee is obviously larger and more
dangerous, armed with a huge poisonous sting, trying to break the
webs, trying to sting the spider. The spider is smaller but moving with
deadly grace, weaving more and more bunches of sticky web,
entangling the foe with it, trying to paralyze it. They watch the fight in
silence. And in some time patience and slyness defeat size and
strength.

The woman touches girl's shoulder. She shrieks and jumps, turning
around to face the disturbance. Her eyes are filled with tears.

Woman: Greetings, Halistanis.
Girl: Gre..greet..greetings, Elder.
Woman: So, what have you learned from today? What have you seen?
Girl: I.. I.. I don't know, Elder. I pity this poor bumblebee. I don't
understand. Why should they kill each other?
Woman: That's the circle of life, dear. To survive one of them must
die. And that one will be the best, the strongest, the smartest, the most
vicious. And the one who will win will breed its family. The weaker
will be the food.
Girl: But.. but..
Woman: There is no BUT, my dear. The Death comes to each of us,
sooner or later. And we must be ready to face it. But only the weak and
dumb will perish. The strong and smart will live, will become better
with every confrontation. Will learn both on their mistakes and
mistakes of their enemies. The former is easier to remember as it
comes with pain, but the latter is more preferable due to less suffering.
Girl: I think I understand, Elder, but still..
Woman: There is no 'still', Halistanis. None of it. And now better tell
me, what have you seen? What else have you learned.

A girl pauses for a moment, deep in thought.

Girl: I've learned.. learned that it is no strength and size that matters. It
is wits and speed. It is careful preparation. It is ch

Role

Chapter 5

Darkness . . . Bright flash of light.

Two children, a boy and a girl, are sneaking behind the walls of a large
hut, the central hut of the village. They are approaching a small crack
in the wall and stops there for a moment. Boy is obviously scared, his
lips are shaking a bit.

They are whispering to each other, obviously scared to be caught.

Boy: Halistanis, what in the name of the Ancients we are doing here?
Do you realize what will happen if Elders will catch us trying to listen
to their discussions, do you realize that..
Girl: Shh! Shh, Gwynbleidd. Stop shivering, damn you. I won't be
surprised if they hear your teeth chattering! I want to know what they
are talking about.. My father is there. He was angry and nervous the
whole day. Something bad is happening, I just need to know..
Boy: Something bad will happen if they find us here, stupid girl! They
will..
Girl: Sssh! Shh, I said. Just listen. Or leave.
Boy: Leave? No way. But if they..
Girl: Sssh!

They listen to the voices inside the hut.
Voices are arguing, a lot of anger and disappointment in the air. A lot
of fear.

Woman: They won't leave us alone. They say they need the trees of
our valley, they say only them can be used to build large ships and
palaces. They say our river is too convenient to float them right to their
cursed city. They..
Man: Yes, they won't. But what is our choice? To leave everything
that belongs to us? To leave the place where we were born, to leave the
place blessed by Ancients themselves? Look what they propose to us in
exchange!

A sound of coins dropped to the floor.

Man: Useless pieces of metal! They say become like us. They say
civilized you will be. What does it mean to us?
Woman: It means the death of everything we value, the death of our
village..
Man: Exactly! And we can't allow it to happen! Not till we are alive.
Another woman: But.. But they are stronger. They have better
weapons, armies of mercenaries. They have ships.. And horses..
And..
Man: So what? We simply cannot allow these things to happen! Do
you understand? Till at least one of us is alive, we won't let them come
to our valley. We will fight if we need to. We won't give up.
Remember the face of our Ancestors! I want to look at their eyes with
pride when I am dead. I won't give up! Anyone else with me?

A chorus of voices. Most of them cry: Yes!

Girl: I am so proud of him, so proud of my father.
Boy: I understand.. But.. What will happen to us?
Girl: We will see, but..
Boy(sadly): Yes, we will see.

Darkness . . . Bright flash of light.

The early morning. The mist. The coldness in the air.
Sudden scream. One more. And more.
The sound of a bow-string. The arrows' whistling.
The smell of burning wood. The smoke. The huts are burning.

Halistanis is awaken, she is running through the village to her hut.
Screams in the air.
"The forest is burning, burning all around!"
"We are surrounded by them, they are everywhere!"
"Fight! Fight! All together, we must fight!"
"What happened to the scouts! Damn it, what has happened!"
"There is no escape, too many of them!"

Smoke is stinging the eyes, she can't see anything. Her lungs are
burning, begging for air. But she keeps running, running to her hut,
running to everything that is of v

Role

Chapter 4

The pain.
THE PAIN in every muscle, every inch of her skin seems to be
burning.
Some sounds. A gentle touch of a claw.
Something cold on her face.

She opens her eyes slowly.
An old woman is standing here, pouring some cold water on her face.
She notices as the girl opens her eyes and smiles with a strange
crooked smile.

Woman: Ah, the child. You are stronger then you think, it seems. And,
what is more important, you are still alive. Stand up, it is time for us to
leave this place.
Girl: I.. I.. Just leave me.. I just want to die. As all of them. Just..
Elder, please..
Woman: The choice is always yours, child. Stay here and die, and
breed the weeds that will grow here. Or stand up and live. And prove
that you are stronger then they think you are. Then YOU think you are.
The Death will take its toil anyways. But decide for yourself, who you
are. The prey or the hunter.
Girl: They all dead.. I don't want to live.. I am broken, broken
inside.. There are no reasons to..
Woman: Are you that sure, girl? There is always something to live for,
to fight for. You just must find it in yourself. Look! Look around
yourself!

Girl slowly raises her head in attempt to look around.
All she sees are ruins of the village, corpses all around, piles of ash,
and.. A raven. A huge raven sitting right be her, looking at her with
some strange curiosity. She recalls claws touching her body, a beak
touching her face, trying to awake her.

Girl: What.. what is this thing, Elder?
Woman: Who knows, girl, who knows. May be just a predator ready to
feast on your flesh when you give up. Or may be a friend, new friend
of yours. Or may be a sign, a sign from the Ancients. Or may be it is
nothing. Just nothing. The time will show. The real question is whether
you are ready to live and see. Whether you are ready to stand up and
walk with me. The choice is yours, youngling. The choice is always
yours.
Girl: But I am so hurt, Elder, I can hardly walk, I can't..
Woman: There is no such word as "I can't", stupid girl! Stand up! Or
die! Choose! We have no time!

The pain. The blinding pain in every muscle. But she stands up.
Slowly.
The woman is here to give her a hand, the raven still watching.

Woman: Good girl! Good! Remember what I told you of Spirit, of
Inner strength.
Girl: I don't know.. The head hurts..
Woman: That's nothing. In time you will recall, and understand. Yes.

And they both walk towards the forest, the raven following them.

Role

Chapter 3

After the destruction of her village, Halistanis and the old witch left the
ruins and headed to the place deep in the Jade Mountains. Using the
paths known only to her, the old hag led them to the ancient place,
place of power, the Circle of Druids. There they found peace and help.

Druids healed most of the wounds and burns that covered her body, but
they couldn't help to remove the deepest scars on her body and soul.
The left half of her face was mangled forever, and her beautiful hair
will never be the same again. But even deeper scars are inside her,
scars that even time could not heal..

The Circle has become her new home, and there she learned a lot of the
paths of Nature. She learned of the value of Life, the eternal circle of
Seasons, and the wisdom of Death. She learned to listen to the winds,
the trees, the water. She learned to find the answers inside herself.

She learned about Amaranthe, and she decided that she will join the
Coven some day.

Through the years she carried her hate to civilization. To the cities. To
the armies. She swore to dedicate her life to destroy these things at all
cost, to become the warden of all the things that she values, the hunter
and the destructor of the things she hates. She decided that she will be
the harbinger of the Crone, the teacher, the hunter.

The raven who joined her on the ruins of the village has become her
only friend. They travel together wherever she goes, and some say they
not only share food, but thoughts, hopes, and hates.

The time has come for her to step on the path she has chosen, and she
headed to place of worship. To the place where she hopes to hear the
voice of the Crone.

Role

Chapter 2

A sunny grove.
Middle-aged wood-elven female is moving among the trees with a
sharp sickle in her hand planting some seeds into the soil and removing
old dry branches where it is needed. She is murmuring something
under her nose and it seems that she is talking to the raven on her
shoulder. As she moves closer you can hear some of what she is
talking about.

-So, Ash, what do you think of all this Nexus conflict? What do you
think, my dear, should we give them a chance? A shadow of a doubt?
Should we let them live, or should they be hunted for their constant
attacks on the Tree and all the help they provide to defilers and
slavers?
-Yes, I know, my dear, I know. I know they are helping us as well
sometimes. Though, to be honest, I've never saw it happening.
-What are they doing after all? They are interfering in the Cycle. They
are helping those who are weak to grow in power. They are helping
those who are useless to survive. With their help weak seeds find a
place in the world.

She shakes her head in dismay. With a precise motion she removes an
old branch on the one of the trees.
- Well, now new weeds can grow here.

-I don't know, Ash. It doesn't feel right to let them interfere in our
Hunt. And I think as we go on doing our best for the Dream, the
stronger Thar-Eris becomes, the more annoying they will be.
-I should talk to Tsyda, probably. Nanorab has a long tongue, but he
cannot justify their actions. He is just not smart enough. Just a claw he
is, a paw of the Rift. Mage should be smarter. Yes, we should talk to
her.
- But what we do so far, Ash? Yes, we won't strike them so far, I
think. Only defend us we will, yes.

She snorts all of a sudden.
-Just think of it, Ash! They told me I can call them for help when I
need to. Like we would ever care to! We don't need their help. We
don't believe in half-friends, in half-wars, in half-countermeasures. We
would never accept help from anyone of their kind, no. We would
never ask for it.
-What do they know of us, Ash? Nothing! At all. We saw how half-
countermeasures end up. We saw how smiling merchant can turn into
merciless killer. Yes, we saw. We don't need help from anyone. You
and me, we are strong. With the help of Mother, we can be self-
sufficient. We remember our childhood, we remember our lessons. No
charity, no help from others. Be strong, or breed the earth.

She rubs her burned face under the mask.
-Oh, Ash, and what about Twist? Yes, you saw him coming to us this
moon, proposing his help. For sacrifice. Yes, for sacrifice. For our
body and what was in it. But what her proposed for it, have you heard?
Nothing you and me cannot achieve by ourselves. Would we accept
any help in something we can do ourselves? Yes, Ash, I don't think so
as well.

Role

Chapter 1

She sighs.
-If he only proposed us to grow at least one grove on the Imperial
lands or in one of their cursed cities. If he only proposed us to protect
our forest from cursed Nightwalkers and their dark portals. If he only
proposed us to place a ward on Huntress. Yes, Ash, we would accept it
for sure. We would bring him anything he wishes, we would sacrifice
our blood and flesh for it. We would care little of how much it would
cost, yes. For us, of course, not for the Tree.
-But what he proposee? Something I did after it by myself. Slaying
lich, blah. With a bit of luck we can cope with this menace. Growing
trees somewhere I can grow them myself? Blah. No, I think it was a
trap, Ash. To live us unprepared for the moment when Nexus strikes,
yes. To weaken us in the face of Order. Who will protect the Tree if
you and me are not ready? Cubs? They are not strong enough yet, no. I
think we did right, Ash.

She grunts something.
-Yes, Ash, I realize it might have been a mistake. But with Gods you
never know. They play their games, games we cannot understand. May
be his gift would be generous, but can we really trust one of those who
lead the Rift? I don't think so, no. We did as our heart told us, yes. We
should never be sorry to follow what our heart says, shouldn't we?
Yes, I believe so, Ash.
-On the other hand, when Nanorab has arrived with his imperial
lackey, we were ready. And protected the Huntress. We saved her life,
Ash, yes. It was worth it.

She chuckles.
-Have you heard the rumors younger hunters told us? Yes, those who
return from distant raids on Imperial Lands and cities. Yes, the rumors
from their whorehouses and inns. Knows what they, in cities, talk of
us? Of you and me?

She grins.
-Yes Ash, they call me greedy, seeking for artifacts of power. Seeking
for weapons that can slay them in one strike, seeking for magical
trinkets that turn skin to steel so their swords just scratch us, yes. And
you know, Ash, to some extent these rumors are true. Yes, this is why
we had to visit those tombs, Ash, and slay those undeads. Yes, this is
why we visit magic towers and grim swamps. We are seeking for
means to stop them. Not let them approach the Tree. Not let them chop
the forest or expand cities.

She groans.
-Yes, Ash, I do remember! They do not know what it is to have your
whole world destroyed in one night, just because you were not
prepared. I do remember the pain, I do remember the ashes. I do
remember! No matter what they, inside cities, think of us, yes. The
Tree is protected, the cubs are growing strong. The Dream is nearer
with each day, I feel it. If it costs us reputation among city dwellers, so
be it. Not like we care of what they think anyways.
-We will be ready when they come. We will strike first and learn
them to respect us. They do respect strength. They will have no choice.
-And those who throw insults we will teach. Teach with pain and
suffering. Teach with scars.

She nods slightly.
As Halistanis walks further along the grove, her voice is getting less
and less hearable. At last, this strange pair disappears from the view.

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