Knight, Sword, Diadem

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Aatnir
Wayfarer
Posts: 19
Joined: Sat Jul 28, 2012 7:33 am

Knight, Sword, Diadem

Post by Aatnir »

Here's a bit I wrote last summer, completely unrelated to LOTR or rangers in any way. Be
WARNED: Towards the end it is very graphic. (violence type)

A valiant knight treads onward, together with his troop. They are weary
and worn, but they fight to save a woman known only in name to them. Within
the hand of the knight he bears a jewel encrusted sword lined in the
finest silver. He rides toward the palace she is held to free her, but he
knows the sword alone, which is the only key to her bonds, is not enough.
He must also place upon her head a diadem of a silk spun out of the purest
gold to restore her will and to break her free of the prison. He must ensure
the safe delivery of the sword, but must also continue his quest for the diadem
and knows not how to go.
They passed beyond the gates of doubt and the valleys of depression, and
suffered the many trials and temptations of the entrapments they face, but
conquered them all in love for the woman and in determination to release
her from her prison. They happened upon a creek that beheld a mermaid of
brown hair and eyes of sapphires, one of the few beings in this realm that
can be bound by their word. This mermaid in particular was driven by a
curiosity of these men, to where she may no longer keep silent, and swore
to do whatsoever the men may ask of her in return for the knowledge of their
quest.The knight dismounted from his horse and knelt by the water, running his
hands through the lady’s hair pulling her gently closer, and kissed her
tenderly on the lips. The mermaid was captured by the moment but the knight’s
mind was on matters that trouble him. A wise man from the knight’s troop was
upset by this and asked, “Why doest thy lips embrace another’s so readily when
thy heart is not behind it?” The knight looked to the man and then gazed into
the mermaid’s eyes. He spoke loud enough for all to hear, “This kiss is for
another, trapped within the walls of her own ice palace by a sorcerous beast
that has taken control of her mind for many years. Though the beast has long
since passed, his hold remains as strong as the day he cursed her. She knows
not my name, but through my travels I have come to love the woman, more than
I value my own life, learning more and more of her as I fight to free her.”
The knight stood back up and looked toward the wise man, “This kiss is for
her.” He looked back down to the mermaid again. “Pray, I, she accept it, for
mine own heart’s sake. Take this, I charge thee” he said as he handed the
mermaid the sword. “, and deliver it unto her. She will be unclear of its use
until the time of her redemption, yet in time, all will be made clear.”
At these words a single tear fell from the mermaid’s eye, she asked the knight
why he would not go be with the woman he spoke of, as he climbed back onto his
horse. “My mission is to save her no matter the cost to myself. I will
undoubtedly be put through many hardships, and I know not whether I shall
gain the prize in the end or be placed in eternal sleep, but I pray in time
that God wills that my path shall lead to her and hers to me. Even if it is
not so, let God’s will be done.” And with these final words he rode off, his
troop following behind him, to find the diadem of silk that may let her will
be her own once more.

As we rested that night, the night watchman tripped on a bit of string
that ran between two trees, and as he did this there came a 6 foot blade
that severed the man in half before he could let out a scream. Within
minutes the camp was surrounded by savages who had their bodies cut to
ribbons, shredded and painted, were they no longer resembled men, save
the breastplates of armor they must have stolen from previous soldiers.
They set our tents on fire as we slept. The ones who were lucky never
woke up. The unlucky ones ran out their doors straight into the pikes of
the savages. Everyone who survived the camp was forced to run through the
swamps for 5 days and nights without stopping, by the 5th night the feet
of the ones who made it were so bloody they were attracting water dwelling
carnivores from miles around. The ones who were unable to make it were
brutally tortured before they were killed, losing a finger here, a toe
there, forced to eat their own parts, and clubbed to death with their own
limbs, still attached but broken beyond repair. These were still not the
most unlucky. The most unlucky, those of us who made it through that ordeal
alive were the ones who had to torture them. It was no matter of choice,
by that far into the running we were so tired we couldn’t fight back. They
tied planks and strings to our hands and arms and controlled us like a
child’s puppet, forcing us to do their bidding. I had to look into the eyes
of the wisest man I ever knew as I cut off his ear and ground it in his
mouth. I had to feel the crunch in his mouth as I forced him to bite into
his own toe. These are images I will never forget, the image of a wise
elderly man whispering his last words to me through sobs and tears of pain,
“It’s not your fault.”

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I had a third part, but A. I can't find it. and B. I didn't like it anyway.
Image
^May the shadows protect you.^
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