Forgotten Realms Fan Fiction ❯ The Fateful Coin ❯ Chapter 7: Journey To The Spine ( Chapter 8 )

 

 

Chapter: Seven

 

Journey To The Spine

 

 

 

Thalen looked at Anashra, as he ran his eyes up and down her lithe form. “You a Drow? Do not make me laugh there are not any Iskadrow. ² That's a poor joke on your part, every village idiot knows that Drow do not have wings. If you a Drow then, I will eat my shorts.” Anashra glared daggers at him, her eyes flashing red briefly; “Fine then doesn't believe me, but I sure hope you find them tasty.” She stood up, and felt the fabric of her shirt protest as it had stiffened with her dried blood. She gave him another glare; this had been one of her best shirts. She stomped off to her pack and began to dig though It. Shit! All I have left to wear is my Dagor-biath ³! She swore inside her head. None of her other clothes would do, they were all dresses and unsuitable for trudging around in the wild. Anashra grumbled under her breath, she really did not want to wear the Dagor-biath. Cursing, she snapped at Thalen and told him she would be back in a few minutes. After walking a safe and decent distance away from camp, she stripped out of her ruined clothing and began to put on the Dagor-biath. She could not help but frown at the divided fighting skirt, it showed way too much leg; and the tight fitting corset like top was making her blush. Ugh. She felt like she was naked. Her wings showed all too clearly, she would have to do something about that. She shrugged on the leather armor and picked up her ruined clothes, they would have to be burned. Thalen had better not laugh, was all she could think of as she headed back to camp.

Thalen sat by the dying campfire and wait for Anashra to come back, he assumed that she went to change, as she had been drenched in her own blood. Thalen slapped himself and shook his head in disgust. Her face was stuck in his head; and he did not know why. Get a grip on yourself, and stop being such a twit. You just met the woman yesterday! A soft crunching noise announced Anashra's return, Thalen looked up at her in surprise, her long blue hair had been done up in a very long braid that hung down to her knees, and she was wearing something that made his heart beat a bit faster. “What in the name of sweet Mystra are you staring at?” Anashra growled at him. “It is your fault I had to wear my Dagor-biath, so close your mouth before you let a fly a land in it.” Thalen felt his cheeks flush, and he closed his gaping jaw. “Dagor-biath? What is that? I never heard of a Dagor-biath.,” he said. She scowled at him and replied, “A Dagor-biath is battle dress, and you wouldn't know about it because it is an Elven term.” She gestured, “This was made for me upon completing my basic training. No two Dagor-biath are alike, they are custom made to suit the fighting style of the wearer.” She blushed and made a disgusted face, “To my misfortune, the Elf who made mine was also interested in making it look “Pretty.” Thalen shrugged and said, “We need to get going, we have dawdled around here enough, and I need to return to my campsite to collect my gear. Also, if we want to find this Therin of yours; then we need to hurry before the passes become blocked with snow. Icewind Dale is a place with an extremely short summer season, though it is never summer there. I am not crazy enough to wonder around in the Spine during the winter that would be like taking fool's gold.³” Thalen watched as she nodded and began to help him pack up her camp. A few minutes was all it took, and they began to walk back to Thalen's camp.

 

After an hour hike, though the forest they finally reached Thalen campsite. Anashra watched and waited quietly while Thalen packed up his camp. When he was finished, he slung his pack over his shoulders and began to rearm himself. Her eyes widened as he made about ten knives disappear into his clothing; leaving not a hint of the concealed weapons. “What did you do before you became a werewolf Thalen?” she saw his face darken a bit and then he replied, “I was a thief. Why are you looking at me like that?” Anashra's face was full of shock and disgust. “Quit looking at me like I am some kind of murderer. If you are going to start spouting off about how stealing is wrong, stuff it.Wrong or not, steal and live or die; that was my reality. You try being so hungry that roaches appear to be tantalizing, because you have not eaten in a week. Then maybe you'll be closeto knowing what it is like.” He looked straight into her eyes and said, “When you are hungry enough, there is no limit to how far you will go to end your hunger. None. The will to live is stronger than any other instinct. No one ever grows up wanting to be a thief; Shit happens, and it is called life.” Anashra let out a soft “Oh.” and turned away. “Someday I might tell you about it, but I don't feel like explaining to you about my old life at this moment. I would like to get going before the nine hells freeze over, we need to be long gone from here. I really don't want to be close to any people 17 days from now.” With that, he turned and faced north, and began to walk away. Anashra followed him without comment, her mind on what he had said.

 

Nine uneventful days later....

Ah crap, Anashra thought to herself. Tonight is the new moon, tonight I will be a Drow again. An evil thought crept into her head tonight Thalen eats his shorts! This caused her to snicker, a bit too loudly; for Thalen turned around and asked if she was feeling all right. She croaked out that she was fine, but then she had a mental picture of him eating his shorts and burst out laughing. Thalen just shook his head and gave her a worried look. Thalen called out, “It shall be dark soon, let's find a place to camp.” By the time, they had found a defensible campsite the sun had nearly set. Anashra sat down by the fire and waited for night to fall, as Thalen began to make dinner, as it was his turn. Suddenly, she felt a chill run down her spine; night had fallen. The change had begun. Anashra's heart began to beat fast in her chest, an icy feeling spread down her limbs leaving them feeling cold and numb. At this point Thalen looked up from what he had been doing, only to see Anashra's hair turn stark white. “What in the nine hells?” he swore, getting more and more stunned by the minute. Her eyes turned red, her skin near black, and finally her wings. The change complete, she stood up. “Thalen, I told you so.” Thalen just sat there, mouth agape. Thalen finally pinched himself, and said, “No more fire-wine for you, Thalen. You've had way too much in this lifetime.” Anashra went over and sat beside him, “You see Thalen, and you aren't the only one who is cursed.” She sniffed the air and said, “Dinner's burning.” Still in shock, he removed the pan from the fire and sat there staring at her. “You see Thalen I need you, I need you to protect me from myself because I cannot. I need you to watch over me when I am like this.” He looked up into her eyes and simply nodded, he knew how she felt; words were not needed. Long after he had gone to his bedroll he lay awake thinking about her, and the last thought that he had before he went to sleep was *At least with her around life will never be boring.*

 

Notes:

 

1. Iskadrow:

An Albino Drow. Usually meant as an insult. A DEADLY insult.

2. Dagor-biath:

Elven, literally: Battle Garment

I made this up, as to my knowledge, it does not exist. But I did use real Elvish!

3. To take fool's gold: To attempt a quest so foolish that Only Torm the maimed god would attempt it.

 

Oh and if any of you are wondering, what Anashra's sword is named it is “Evermorn”

It is 2 am so I am so going to bed now.