"Firehand"

The day dawned bright, and clear. It was always a joy to awaken to the sounds of the forest. The squirrels scolding, and scrambling in the branches, the many and varied forms of bird-song coming to the ear, all formed what seemed to Strongbow, a sweet symphony of creation meant for him alone. And alone he was. Strongbow stared at his empty quiver. He had spent the last of them against a giant the previous day. "I just hope I can make it to Red Larch in one piece," he thought. He gathered his belongings together for the journey ahead and set off at a brisk pace. The gods must have been smiling that day, for Strongbow met with no trouble on the way.

After resting at the inn and purchasing more arrows, Strongbow was about to leave Red Larch, when a horseman came charging up and reigned in his horse directly in front of him. The rider looked him over and then spoke.
"Are ye the elfie dat be named Strongbow?" he inquired.
"Uma." Strongbow cocked an eyebrow and waited.
"Hrmph, well, ye fit th' deescripsh'n I 'spose, tho y'all look alike to me..," he mumbled the last part as he reached into his pouch and pulled out a scroll. " 'ere, message from some'un name o' Princess." He tossed the rolled parchment to Strongbow, wheeled his horse, and rode off.

Alone once more, Strongbow unrolled and read the message. The graceful script flowed down the page like water. "Ah, good," he smiled, it wasn't an emergency. He wasn't looking forward to running all the way to Neverwinter, but he was looking forward to seeing Princess, now he could take his time... well, he might run part of the way......

The miles passed quickly and the forest was starting to thin as Strongbow approached civilization again...if Triboar can truly be called civilized! He had uneasy feeling that he was being watched, and he had been feeling this way for about the last ten minutes or so. Strongbow paused and looked about. "Nothing... hmm... but something isn't right," he said half out loud to himself, "Better look around a bit, just to make sure.."
Strongbow darted into the trees to the left of the path. He would make a circuitous route south, cross the road and go north, and arrive at the same spot in about an hour he figured. No problem, right?

Wrong! About five minutes after he left the road, Strongbow crested a small rise, and there, not 50 yards directly in front of him, hovered two very ugly and vicious-looking eye tyrants, or beholders as they are sometimes called. Strongbow froze in his tracks, but it was too late, they had already seen him and were wasting no time in pursuit of their quarry. Then something strange occurred, not with the beholders, but with Strongbow himself. As he reached instinctively for his bow, he instead felt his fingers tighten around his sword hilt. He had begun the "dance" that his swordmaster Riklaun had taught him, when suddenly he seemed to lose himself in the steps. It was as if he was someone else, as if a spirit had entered his body, for he had no conscience control over his actions.... he only knew that he had to slay.

When the battle was over and his vision cleared, a peace like he had never known before, stole over him like a warm blanket, filling him with serenity. It was then he heard the voice speaking to him, seemingly from nowhere and everywhere at once!
"Strongbow.. yours is the true heart of a Bladesinger. This I know, for in your veins runs my blood. I am Lord Amarynth Firehand, an ancient and honored Bladesinger from another world, and first in the line of Firehands. It is my spirit you feel when the frenzy comes over you and you lose yourself in your art. Do not fight it Strongbow! It is your destiny. Know also that you must continue the line, for you are the last of the Firehands, and our spirit must live on to safeguard our People from those who would see us perish!.... Look for the sign.... the sign..."

As the last words of the spirit echoed in his mind, Strongbow did not speak. He could not. He was both sticken, because of the human female Princess, whom he loved, and overjoyed, for he had found his true name, Firehand. His confusion did not last however, for he knew then that his path now lay before him, he had but to step upon it.

That evening, as Strongbow was bedding down for the night, he started wondering, what could the sign possibly be? He stared into the flames of his campfire for hours, thinking, trying to to concentrate. Unable to come to any conclusions, he decided to get a fresh start on this tomorrow, it had been quite a day, and he was extremely tired. As he lay back in his bedroll, he looked up into the heavens, trying to pick out the different constellations that he knew. His jaw dropped suddenly in astonishment. He could not believe what he was seeing, he rubbed his eyes just to be sure... Yes! There it was! A new group of stars had appeared in the night sky, and by the way they were arranged, he knew deep inside what they represented. They were in the shape of a dragon!

The following morning he was still thinking about all the events of the day before. A dragon? Hmm..what could it mean? "Well, Neverwinter is still miles away, and I've a Princess to meet," he said and smiled. "Perhaps I'll think of the answer along the way."

And so Strongbow began running.....

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