The
Journal of Acinonyx
[The following piece is
something I wrote many years ago, when I first began playing Dragon's
Gate. While I know many more things today than I knew then,
about the game and the world in which the characters inhabited, the
tale was written in an attempt to explain how the character, Acinonyx,
became a citizen of The Spur and the continent of Aridath.]
Harvest
Moon--Phase 4--Day 6
Never before have I seen
the value of the written word as I see it now. I have never thought of
myself as one who would need to record events, as my memory, without
boast, has always been infallible. There was a time when the people
from the village of Grimphol Ridge would gather after their Sevenday
nooning to hear Acini Langdonner. Tales...I would recite full epics,
sagas, legends, histories, and lore, all from memory. There was no
small amount of pride in having such a unique ability in a village of
very few unique individuals. Then IT started... I no longer trust my
mental facilities and that of my sanity is questionable. For one to
understand my situation, I must delve back in my mind, to a time when
I know the memories to be truth. I will begin a day three moons gone,
soon after the celebration of my 23rd summer solstice.
--Solstice Moon--3rd
Phase--Day 1
Pharn and Stil, sons
of the miller, Jaen, took ill this day. They make the fifth and
sixth to have done so in as many days. It begins with flushed, but
clammy skin, sunken eyes, dehydration, or hot and cold chills.
Mattin Dom, Head of the Village Council, dismissed the first four
taken ill, blaming it on the occasional summer fevers. No one had
thought to disagree. Now, there are many who talk in hushed
whispers.
--Solstice Moon--3rd
Phase--Day 2
Seven more took ill
today, one being the wife of Mattin Dom. He and the local healer
conversed, but refused to make public knowledge of what was said.
I, being an extra set of hands, do what I can to aid those in
need. Some of those who've become sick have advanced into what
appears to be a second stage. They are first wracked by severe,
uncontrollable trembling and finally lapse into a state of
delusional semi-consciousness.
--Solstice Moon--3rd
Phase--Day 4
Eight are now dead. I
was unable to get an entry in yesterday as now fully half the
village lies ill. I spent every waking hour tending them and
helping to dispose of the dead. The village and surrounding
landholders have been quarantined, signs posted to ward away
travelers and that help was needed. All those still healthy were
forbidden to leave by the Head of the Council and the local
militia.
--Solstice Moon--3rd
Phase--Day 6
Word was received by
pigeon that the quarantine had been noticed and a unit of guard
had been dispatched to enforce it. Several more are dead and no
word yet of a cure. Flashes of hot and cold have taken me.
--Solvest Moon--Phase
2--Sevenday--morning
Nearly three full
phases have passed since my last entry. The fever that took me
broke early this morn. After a quick search, I have discovered
that I am alone in the village. The rest are dead, every person.
Most in their homes, but some without, sprawled out as if with
their last reserves fear took them and they tried to leave but
found themselves sapped of the energy to get away. I know not why
I alone survived the fever, but certainly no one else who
contracted it lives to tell the tale. I have no idea what happened
after I took to my bed or even what transpired outside of my small
room. The reek of decay hangs heavily.
When I recovered at
last from my fever-dream, it was to a silent world. Even the
animals, several head of horse, dogs, and other livestock also lie
dead. I have seen no carrion-eaters as if they, too, sense the
danger. I must gather the last of my strength and find food and
water less I only survive the fever to die of hunger.
--Solvest Moon--Phase
2--Sevenday--evening
Luck was with me. I
found pantries and storerooms stocked with preserved and dried
fruits and meats. I do not recall ever needing to eat so much.
Once my hunger was sated and my survival assured for a little
while longer, realization of my situation sank in. Everyone I have
ever known is dead. For hours I have grieved. I can't stay here
any longer. Even in my weakened state, I must leave. With two
journey-packs of provisions, I set fire to the whole of the
village, and under a moonless sky, I set off on West Run Road, the
inferno that marked my past lighting the road toward my future.
--Solvest Moon--Phase
3--Day 1
I didn't rest until I
encountered the banks of the Whey River. The hunger took me again,
and I ate a good portion of my provisions that afternoon. Up until
this point, I have not allowed myself to think of anything but the
present. I have no idea where I am to go. As for the past...again
I grieve.
--Solvest Moon--Phase
3--Day 4
Yesterday I passed
the place where the guard should have been posted to maintain the
quarantine. It was deserted.
--Harvest Moon--3rd
Phase--Day 2
I entered the city of
Hallowdern today. The events of the plague of Grimphol Ridge, now
nearly two moons passed, still fogging my once clear memory.
Dreams come to me each night. There are giant winged creatures.
Men, half formed of human flesh and half of scales and clawed
hands. Sometimes I feel like I am hearing whispers in the back of
my mind, as if someone is trying to speak with me through a thick
door and I can here the sound of their voice, but not make out
their words.
--Harvest Moon--3rd
Phase--Day 3
Out of provisions
again, I was forced to use my money for food, which I never seem
to get enough of. Also, the close proximity of people has caused
me to irritate easily where it had never bothered me before.
--Harvest Moon--3rd
Phase--Day 4
Something odd
today...my clothing fits much tighter than it had before, I am
sure of it. The sleeves pull back against my shoulders and my
breeches are tight around my thighs and calves. I, who have always
been rather short and slight of build, seem to be going through a
second growth spurt, despite my 23 summers. Luckily I have funds
enough to purchase a better fitting attire. Just something of a
note, I have reason to believe I was being followed today, but by
whom, or why, I have no clue.
--Harvest Moon-3rd
Phase--Sevenday
Today I truly
frightened myself. In a room I rented, on of my knees gave out
suddenly, and before I could catch myself, a flash of light in my
mind blotted out my vision and pain seared through every nerve in
my body. I don't know how many hours have passed with me in this
state as all I remember is the pain, but it is now fully into the
night. And the room... The cot is shredded and the small table
beside it is splintered into little bits. There is no way I can
explain what transpired here nor can I pay for the damages. I will
have to steal away into the night.
Harvest Moon--Phase 4-Day
6
So, here I am where I
started this tale. I am six days out of Hallowdern, resting in the
hollows by day and traveling by night. I still hear the whispering in
my head, slightly louder that before. I am afraid that the plague back
in Grimphol Ridge did something to my mind, and I am barely clinging
to my sanity. It scares me, but I know not how to stop it.
Harvest Moon--Phase
4--Sevenday
I traveled the rest of
the night and throughout the day. The feeling that I am being watched
and followed persists to the point where I am jumping at shadows. The
pain in my head continues as well. I fear it is merely one more sign
of my pending insanity.
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
1--Day 4
Either my sanity is
completely gone or the most incredible thing happened today. The
entity that has been following me has finally chosen to reveal itself.
It was neither a human nor some evil creature. It was a being, as I
have never seen before. His hair was white blond, his eyes as red as
rubies, but the most startling part was that he was hardly a foot tall
and had the most beautiful fine veined wings sprouting from his back
such as to make a butterfly envious. He revealed his name to be Tuk
and he was of a race of people called Secian.
Tuk proved to be a very
likable little person, full of humor and kind words. I asked him why
he followed me, and he said with a smile that someone wanted him to
find me. But who would want to speak with me? Who would know me? I am
not particularly outstanding in any part of my being. It couldn't have
been from the damage in the inn because Tuk had been following since
long before then. He wouldn't reveal who had sent him when I asked,
but rather went ahead and started telling me tales of all the things
he had seen during his quest to find me. I can't bring myself to
believe for a moment that he would bring harm to me in any way. Rather
it seems as if he was just so excited that he completed his assignment
that here merely wished to surprise me with the identity of his
employer. Which brings me back to who would go through all this
trouble to see me?
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
1--Day 4
My encounter the day
before was not delusional. When I awoke this morn, little Tuk sat only
two feet from where I slept. His reduced, but perfectly proportional
features watching me with utter stillness and his eyes twinkled gaily
in the morning sunlight like little bursts of flame. He asked me if I
would be willing to return with him to his home. Having no destination
in mind, and refusing to believe that the little Secian would ever
cause me harm, I agreed. To me, one place is as good as the next since
everything I had ever cared for is gone beyond retrieval. He has just
informed me this night that we shall arrive at his home and
destination before the passing of another night.
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
1--Day 5--Morning
This morning I awoke to
quite a shock. It was one thing for Tuk to say we'd be arriving before
the passing of another night, but quite another to wake up at the very
location. He giggled when I asked him if I had finally gone completely
insane and forgot and entire day's journey to this place. He bade me
to follow him, and caught up in his enthusiasm, I couldn't say no. The
air here is considerable cooler than it had been yesterday. Whenever I
mention it, Tuk just grins broadly and nods. Finally, I ask him,
"Where are we? He said simply, "Dragonspire." The
announcement came as such a shock that I tripped and fell hard down
the shale slope we were on. A gash the length of my hand bled thickly,
the bright crimson blood staining the leg of my britches. All giggles
suddenly ceased at Tuk flew swiftly to my side. He said not a word,
but before I had had time to even react, he placed his miniature hands
over the injury and suddenly it ceased to bleed. Even the momentary
pain disappeared to barely a dim memory. When I asked him what he did,
he smiled a little wearily and winked at me.
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
1--Day 5--Evening
If anyone can have a
single turning point in his or her life, tonight was that night. After
what has transpired these last few hours, I know my life will never be
the same. After my little accident, Tuk guided me up the slopes of the
mountain, the Dragonspire. The revelation of the location took me
completely by surprise. The Dragonspire wasn't anything if legendary.
A full half of the tales I used to recite mentioned the name at the
very least, but even more shocking was the fact that the Dragonspire
is several hundred leagues north of where I went to sleep last eve.
When I asked Tuk how we got here, he grinned and said, "Magick."
I followed him into a cave that had walls that glowed with
phosphorescent light. We eventually emerged into an enormous cavern. I
was in this cavern where I met the shock of my life. Staring down at
me from over 40 feet was a massive golden dragon. I froze so
completely, so sure I was seeing my last moments, that I could not
even breathe. Then the cavern filled with an echoing boom, emanating
from the beast before more. The dragon was laughing. After reassuring
words from Tuk and the dragon, yes, it speaks quite fluent common, I
was able to relax and eat a meal fixed by none other than Tuk himself.
The dragon's name is
Kaemendal'a, and Tuk, as they have explained it to me, is
Kaemendal'a's bondmate. Before I had a chance to ask, they booth took
turns explaining to me the significance of the bond. Dragon's go
through several metamorphoses in the span of their lives. These
changes are so drastic, so painful, so traumatizing that a dragon
without such a bond faces certain death. Why someone like Tuk I asked.
Because Secian's are, by nature, empathic and are unsurpassed as
healers. They are the hands that guide the dragon through these
traumatic experiences. The dragons on the other hand, protect this
little race and offer them unswerving companionship. I have never
before heard of a more powerful example of symbiosis. Amazing. I go to
sleep this night with five more questions to every answer I was given.
Kaemendal'a is the most amazing...person...I have ever had the
privilege of speaking with.
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
2--Sevenday
No! This isn't happening!
It can't be. But why would they lie? I had a long talk with
Kaemendal'a this afternoon. He told me, in depth, about the stages of
a dragon's life. They begin in a form indistinguishable from humans.
They go through a pre- or pseudo-metamorphosis in their second or
third decade. This pseudo change is not nearly as traumatic as the
real changes, but it's change none-the-less. After this
pseudo-metamorphosis, they are called a draco. They still resemble
humans for the most part though will slight variations. He told me of
the other stages, drake, dragon, and Great Dragon. He also told me
that when a female conceives, she goes through an additional
metamorphosis, this time regressing to her humanoid form. In this
state, she gives birth and raises the child for five to ten years and
prepares the child for its first pseudo-change, which is painful but
can be survived without a Secian bondmate, though a bond will make it
much smoother for all involved.
He can't be right! This
isn't happening to me! I am Acini Langdonner of Grimphol Ridge! I was
the daughter of a forester. I raised cubs of wild animals.
To me, this is what he
said:
Twenty-five summers past,
a great struggle coalesced between the members of the Imperial Council
of Dragons, the single most powerful political body in the world and
the rest of our great race. The council and its supporters were split
almost evenly in numbers and power during this struggle, very few
other than myself would admit this to being a war. But a war it was, a
war for power. Some dragons just weren't satisfied with the power they
had. They wanted the whole of the rest of the world to worship them.
To meet this end, they sought to destroy the places where these people
worshipped, trying to break their spirit in hope that by doing so,
they themselves would become the objects of worship. They felt that
these people could spend their energies better worshipping a tangible
immortal as opposed to the illusions they followed.
Twenty-five summers ago,
the Wise Dragon who stood over the entire Council tried to maintain
the Unity that the dragons had held on to for so long. Dragons
fighting dragons. There is no worse thing imaginable. This Wise
Dragon, he fell in love with the only one who was not vying for power,
the only one who wasn't trying to undermine the others or imposing her
power over the smaller races, the only one who fully stood at my side.
I never felt such love in all my years. Her names was Alamadaea'a, the
most beautiful dragon I have ever set my eyes upon.
One year later she
announced to me that she was carrying my child. I was overjoyed. No
dragonette had been born in several decades. Soon after, Alamadaea'a
began her change back to her human form. When she had completed her
transformation, she was no bigger than you are now, and still I loved
her dearly. Unfortunately, the change couldn't have come at a more
horrible time. Those same power-hungry dragons saw her transformation
as a point of weakness to get at both of us. They sought to use her
smaller size as a point at which to strike. Some of the younger ones
didn't even consider her a dragon any longer, having never seen the
reverse transformation in their lifetimes. The only thing that saved
her many times when I couldn't been there was the fact that she
retrained all of her draconian magicks, and as a shaman, second only
to my own magicks. At any other point in our history a female in this
state would have been watched over and revered by the whole of the
Lair. This is how far our ideals had crumbled. We agreed that is was
no longer safe for her to stay in the Lair in her state. So, she left
in secrecy, gave birth and fostered the child to a trusted human
family so that she may return to help me. If a dragon is without its
child, it will return to its draconian shape almost immediately.
Dharkdhan Moon--3rd
Phase--Sevenday
I spoke to Kaemendal'a
today at some length, much of the early trepidation I had of him has
completely vanished. Actually, I find that I could literally listen to
him for days. He never wastes a word and with each thing he says...I
can only wonder at the wisdom and intelligence of his mind. I would
never have thought it possible for something so large, and well,
carnivorous to be so kind, gentle, and caring. He told me that he had
always known where I had been as I grew up, but for my safety, stayed
away. The other dragons, he said, would not wait a moment to dispose
of me if they had known that I still lived. That thought chills my
blood. He explained to me that he had to send Tuk for me now because
when a dragon goes though a change, even the pseudo-change, every
dragon, at least remotely depending on their adeptitude, can sense it.
It was only a matter of time before they realized it wasn't an older
dragon changing and would come for me. He sent Tuk instead of coming
himself because while the other dragons would be watching and waiting
for him to do just that, no one would notice one small Secian
exploring...they love to meet people. And even if they wanted to
follow Tuk...there is no one alive short of another Secian who could
keep up with a Secian who didn't want to be followed. Regardless of
disputes between dragons, the Secians would not allow harm to befall
one of their own if it were in their power to prevent it. Kaemendal'a
had been worried that he would not find me before someone else did or
before trouble aroused as a result of my change.
Dharkdhan Moon--4th
Phase--Day 2
Another episode, more
intense than any before, but it was bearable with both Tuk and
Kaemendal'a weathering through it with me, Tuk easing the pain, and
Kaemendal'a, his voice in my mind, strong and reassuring, a point of
focus in a whirl of terrifying, unclear thoughts, a secure anchor at a
time when I thought I would be swept away. Something occurred today. I
don't know how I know it, but without a doubt, I know that this was
the last of my episodes. The changes, however minor, have been
completed. But I am weary. I will continue this in the morn.
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
4--Day 5
According to Tuk, I have
been asleep since I concluded my last entry. Tuk assures me that this
is normal. It's the body's way of regaining the massive amounts of
energy it took to make the change. He also explained that that was why
I had eaten so much in the recent months...Oh my! I don't feel any
different, but none of my old clothing fits. It's not just snug, I
can't even get my shirt I wore just a few days ago passed my shoulders
nor my britches past my calves! Luckily Tuk anticipated this and
brought me a large plain gown to wear until suitable clothing could be
made. I stood, and fell down almost immediately; my muscles, unused
since my last episode, were not expecting to support more weight than
they were previously used to. Tuk, who has been discretely monitoring
my progress the whole time just informed me that I've added 100 pounds
to my mass. One hundred pounds! But, oddly enough, I don't feel fat.
When I mentioned this to Tuk, he said the weight was gained in muscle
mass, not fat. When I finally stood again, on shaky legs, I noticed
that I now stand taller than the mirror in my sleeping area. The
ever-inquisitive Tuk set to measuring my new stature. I have grown
taller by 7 full inches! When I looking in the mirror finally, I was
shocked yet again. My eyes were no longer their brown of old, but a
bright, gleaming silver. Other small changes I noted as well. My
fingernails, once identical to those of a human had turned a pale
grayish-silver and have become considerably thicker, a small fraction
longer, now ending in points where they once rounded off. My skin,
when I scratched it with my new nails along it, proved to be much
thicker than it had been and it now has a silvery hue, as if someone
had sprinkled a fine silver dust across my body. Then, when I drew
blood biting my lip, I immediately knew before I looked that my
canines have become much sharper...more like a meat-eater's.
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
4--Day 6
I spent most of today
relearning how to walk, learning to control my new distribution of
mass and my new, higher center of gravity. I can lift several times
what I could lift only a week ago. While this is more than a little
scary and will take time to get used to, it is amazing. If anyone back
home could only see me, little Acini...I wished their lives had ended
better. Today, only after setting fire to my bed, did I realize I now
possessed at least some dragon magic.
Dharkdhan Moon--Phase
4--Sevenday
Kaemendal'a decided today
that I was to start my formal education, particularly in the arts of
magick and in the draconian language and history. He started my
lessons by explaining the laws of draconian magic, where the magic
comes from, and what it affects.
Soldark Moon--Phase
1--Day 1
I have never been so
tired in all my life! Who would ever believe doing something so
insignificant as creating a tiny ball of light could take so much out
of you? Kaemendal'a assured me that it would get easier with practice,
but for now, it is all I can do to climb into bed.
Soldark Moon--Phase
2--Day 2
As both a part of my
lessons and as a reward for my efforts yesterday, Kaemendal'a took me
for a ride up in the sky around the Dragonspire. I never would have
believed anything could be so beautifully breath taking. One day I
shall soar within these skies...
***
Solstice Moon--Phase
2--Day 5
Today I received a
pleasant shock. I returned to Kaemendal'a's Lair after gathering a few
trinkets for my little collection only to find a feast prepared in my
honor. There were celebrating my 24th Summer Solstice. I was so happy
and touched that I started crying and giggling at the same time. Tuk
was laughing so hard he couldn't fly for an hour afterwards.
Solstice Moon--Phase
2--Sevenday
I find it hard to write
this night. Perhaps it would be best if you were to hear the exact
words as Kaemendal'a spoke them to me.
"Acinonyx, my child,
I have some new that may be hard for you to hear, but hear them you
must. Today I spied, while soaring high up on warm thermals, several
dragons flying in the area surrounding the Dragonspire. They did not
know I watched them while they circled about the spire, weave their
magicks to probe my lair. While their magicks could not match those of
a shaman, they may have one among them with enough skill to find a
whole in the protections I wove. But even if they did not detect your
presence this time, it will not be much longer until they learn of
your existence. You are no longer safe here."
I said, "If I can't
be safe here, with you, where can I be safe? You are the best
protection I could possibly have."
Kaemendal'a shook his
massive head. "No. I have planned for this moment since the day I
learned you were to be born. I have created a means to send you to a
place where you may be safe from them, where you need no live in
hiding or fear.
He led me down through
his lair, through a winding labyrinth of tunnels. We came to a stop in
an enormous cavern, time and again the size of the main cavern, which
is large enough for Kaemendal'a to stand on his hind legs and open his
wings to their full span and still have room to move around. The walls
of this cavern weren't just volcanic stone as the rest of the lair,
but the entire structure was in itself a giant vein of crystal quartz.
The entire cavern was its own light source, and the walls reflected
like thousands of tiny prisms. But the cavern is something I only
noted in passing. It was the thing at its center, a marvelous life
size sculpture of two dragons, one pure gold with eyes of emeralds and
one black with eyes of rubies, grappling each other in what was either
a dual or courtship...I couldn't tell which and didn't ask. Just below
their intertwined necks was an archway, only a little higher than my
head. Through the arch shimmered a substance that rippled like a pool
of silver water.
"Next to you, this
is my best piece of work, but when concerning the survival of our
kind, to keep it from destroying itself completely and more
importantly, your survival, I could do no less than the best. This is
the Dragon's Gate. When you step through it, you will enter a new
world a new time, similar enough to this one so that you will be able
to make a home, but without the presence of those who would destroy
you without hesitation."
I asked him if he was
coming with me.
'No. I designed the gate
with size in mind. No dragon beyond its first stage will be able to
fit through that arch. If the gate is altered in any way, it will
cease to function. Therefore, I cannot go and no other dragon knows
the magick to replicate it. And, before you say it, once you go
through, you may not return, and your link to me will not work across
the barrier. You will be the first through the gate, but you will not
be the last. There are some dragons who are still loyal to the Unity,
who have conceived children of their own soon after your birth. They,
too, wish their children to go through the gate so they may start
anew. They know the importance of this.
"Because you will be
the first and because you are my offspring, the establishment of the
new Council of Imperials rest with you and the new generation of
dragons will rely on you to take my teachings and guild them to the
right path. I wish I did not have to push this burden on you, but I
have no choice. I know it is within you to build and maintain the
Unity we once had."
Before I had much time to
react to his speech, Tuk was shoving a sack into my hands, full of
hugs and kisses and assurances of success. Kaemendal'a draped one
talon around me as I hugged his long, soft neck. I remember thinking,
why were they so in a hurry to see me off? The last things I recall
seeing were two large emerald green eyes regarding me with fatherly
pride. Do dragons cry?
Day After the Crossing--
Forgive me for that lack
of a date, but I know not how the calendar is in this new place. Even
the season is different than the summer I left. I have come to a city
called Spur where I have already picked up some of the local tongue,
but not without the aid of what I know now to be my draconian memory.
In the sack, Tuk had given me a few items from his hoard of treasures.
First were a few very large, very pure diamonds from his own little
horde and a note reminding me that I would need money once my
provisions ran out. One of the first things I did was deposit them in
the bank. The teller and the appraiser both went ghostly white when I
brought them in. The teller acted like I was a childhood friend
afterwards. I think they were worth quite a bit.
What is this? At the
bottom of the sack is a piece of parchment...fire and rain! This I
cannot keep to myself. I am going to have to preserve it for all the
dragons yet to come so they may share my father's wisdom and dreams.
Salutations my children,
By your reading this then
the crossing has been a success. The history of our kind is very old,
all the way from the day of the First Dawn. In recent times relative
to that first day, our history nearly came to an end.
Greed, selfishness,
hunger for more power than we could handle which had only inflicted
the smaller races rooted itself at last into Dragonkind where before
such emotions had never bothered us. This nearly destroyed us
completely. Fortunately, there were a few left unaffected and those
few remembered the oldest of our laws and strove to preserve them.
Your parents were some of those few. They remembered that it was our
duty to preserve the balance of the land, to oversee and protect the
lesser races from themselves because they do not have the natural
resistance to the sporadic emotions which drives them to act hastily.
But we must remember, without evil, there is no good, without chaos
there is no order. It is up to us to stay in the middle, to keep those
in balance, letting neither overly dominate the other for any long
periods of time. They are free to have their little squabbles and
arguments as it is nature's way of maintaining that balance. You, I
know, are better than that. I trust you to keep your heads while the
rest of the world looks hopeless. It will be by your example that they
will try to emulate. Regarding their worship...these smaller races,
lacking our sight and knowledge of the world on all planes, have need
to carry an illusion to drive them, to keep them within themselves,
for without, they would wonder aimlessly, without purpose. Again, we
need no illusions to know what must be done for we see the world as it
was meant to be seen. However, I do caution you, ours is a world of
magick and there is power in belief, which in itself is a kind of
magick. This magick, when the belief is strong enough, has the power
to destroy life, even our own. Here are the laws of the Kin as handed
down since the First Dawn:
1. It is unheard of for
one of the Kin to bring harm to another of our Lair.
2. No one of the Kin shall ever lie to another of the Kin.
3. The Kin do not involve themselves in war unless
a. One of the Kin is first attacked;
b. The balance has been disrupted for too
long.
4. If someone of another race has disgraced you, while it is your
decision for the action you take, the Kin usually prefer to do thing
covertly and with cunning execution so that the offender will be so
frightened that they dare not repeat that action again.
5. The Kin are the protectors and champions of the Little Ones.
Without them, we would cease to be.
