Chapter 13 - Sylvan Overture

Where ancient spirits guide the way,

And shadows teach what light conceals,

The student learns what masters say:

Broken hearts make the sharpest steel.

“Raven…” Elanor said, tentatively.

He stopped and looked down at her. Elanor’s eyes were fixed on the treetops.

“I think they’re talking to me,” she said.

Raven laughed.

“Well, they didn’t waste any time, did they? It usually takes years of training to begin hearing the spirits.”

She turned toward him to see if he was making fun of her, but his expression was serious.

“Come,” Raven said, “let’s get you to the compound.”

He led her down and through the winding trail. The trees seemed to reach high enough to scrape the heavens.

Moonlight filtered through in spots, but Elanor still found it nearly impossible to see the path in front of her.

The entire way, the trees and spirits continued whispering to her.

They told her she was safe.

They told her she would learn to be that which was feared in the night.

They told her she was the child of legends spoken of since these towering trees were just saplings.

The whispers felt like a warm embrace on her psyche.

After an hour of navigating the forest path, a village of sorts came into view.

Although, village wasn’t quite the right word for it. It was more of a training complex with small huts as barracks.

As Raven and Elanor emerged into the open space, a tall elven woman stood waiting for them.

“Ah, there you are,” she said. “The spirits told me they’ve been talking with you.”

Raven smiled proudly.

“Elanor Veralyn,” he said, “this is Sapphire Nightwhisper. Sapphire will handle the next stage of your training.”

Sapphire Nightwhisper stood well over six feet tall. Almost a head taller than Raven. A long, sleek bow was over her shoulder, and two daggers hung from her belt.

She had black hair that didn’t reflect the lantern lights that surrounded the entrance area in which they stood.

She wore simple dark leathers, and Elanor noticed that they were so well oiled and conditioned that they made no sound when Sapphire moved.

Yet it was her eyes that really caught Elanor’s attention. They were ice blue. Even her sclera was a faint shade of blue, rather than the white of others’ eyes.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The color was one thing. But the way her new trainer looked at her made Elanor stand a bit straighter. It was like those eyes could pierce her soul.

The intensity of her gaze was uncomfortable, but Elanor held her ground.

“Marvelous,” Sapphire said. “I can work with this. Raven, you may take one of the beds in number three. I believe you have your next mission in the morning?”

Raven bowed his head.

“Yes, Sapphire, thank you.”

He turned to Elanor.

“I’ll be leaving in the morning. But you’ll be in good hands with Sapphire.”

Elanor nodded, tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

“Will I see you again?” she asked.

Raven looked at the sky and laughed.

“You can bet on it,” he said. “Although you’ll be here for a long time. I’m sure Sapphire will give you more details on your training regimen in the morning.”

He rested his hands on her shoulders, and pulled her into a tight hug.

“When you’re done here in The Widow’s Shroud,” Raven said, “you’ll be a full-fledged assassin.”

“And also an adult,” Sapphire added with a smirk.

Elanor looked up at them. “Wait, you mean I’ll be here for that long?”

Sapphire knelt down on one knee and met Elanor’s gaze.

“Starting tomorrow morning, I’ll not go easy on you,” she said. “But for tonight, we’re going to stay up and tell each other stories in front of the fire. Once you realize what’s at stake, you’ll see why taking the time to train properly is so crucial.”

Raven nodded, a solemn look on his face.

“Elanor, if you push and challenge yourself every day, you’ll hardly notice the passage of time. I myself was here for…”

He looked up at Sapphire.

“Six years,” she said.

“Hah! Six years.” Raven continued. “I was younger than you when I started, but I was also clumsy and lacked much of the innate talent I think you have. Just focus on your studies and training, and know that this is extremely important.”

Elanor sniffled, but nodded in agreement.

They spoke a bit longer, and Raven said his goodbyes, retiring to one of the cabins.

Sapphire led Elanor to the largest cabin, and they sat on thick fur rugs in front of the fire.

Sapphire allowed her to have exactly two glasses of wine and three chunks of bread as they told each other their stories.

Elanor described Willowmere, the small village where she grew up.

Tears streamed down her face when she recalled that, due to some perceived affront to Lord Goldenvale’s fragile ego, he put everyone to death and burned the village to the ground.

But it was her own parents who were the first victims to that man’s hubris.

Elanor made fists so tight that blood dripped from them from digging her nails into her palms.

Sapphire reached out with both hands and held Elanor’s in hers. She closed her eyes for a minute, and a warmth flooded Elanor’s body through her hands.

“What was that?” Elanor asked. “I feel…”

“Clear,” Sapphire said. “It’s a gift passed down through my family. When I share stories with others in an intimate setting such as this,” she opened her arms wide, taking in the whole great room around them.

“Well, let’s just say karmic balance is restored and you can move on.”

Elanor took a sip of her wine, looking at Sapphire thoughtfully.

“I… I don’t know what to say. I don’t feel like I deserve any of this kindness.”

Sapphire laughed. It was a beautiful sound.

“First of all,” she said, holding up one finger, “what you didn’t deserve is everything that’s happened to you before.”

She held up a second finger. “Secondly, you may rethink your opinion of my kindness when we begin your training. It won’t be easy. Although I have a feeling you’ll take to it better than most of my students.”

Sapphire raised a third finger. “Lastly, and most crucial, I need you to remember that the way those bastards treated you reflects on their nature. Not yours. You did nothing to deserve any of it. But yet, instead of wallowing in sorrow, you found a way not only to escape, but to exact vengeance on those who wronged you.”

Sapphire reached out toward Elanor again, brushing a tear from her cheek.

“And that…” she said definitively, “that I can work with. We’ll hone it. Channel it. But while you’ll learn how to focus your anger and vengeance, you’ll also learn how to shut it down and bury it. Because an assassin driven by emotion can be manipulated. You’ll learn how to enjoy life just as much as you’ll excel at taking it.”

They spoke a bit longer, but Elanor knew the night was drawing to a close. And the dawn would bring with it a whole new life for her.

A life that Elanor couldn’t possibly be more excited to explore. Because she was tired of being weak. The new skills the System had given her were great, but she didn’t really know how to use them yet.

And the sparring she’d done with Raven during their long journey from Myrrindel only made Elanor hungrier for more.