Chapter Three

The first mentions of the Blind Witch Birthmark come from an ancient record more than five millennia old that describes the death of a god and the rise of a demon thanks to a Blind Witch.  

-Encyclopedia of Cursed Birthmarks. Authored by Arneus Cragan the Historian

Looking up at the sky as he trudged home Taran was surprised, Garret was right. There was going to be a storm, a bad one. Menacing black clouds with a ghastly red tint filled the sky, any moment now it would start pouring.

Picking up the pace he groaned and rubbed his temples, he had a splitting headache. Rather than being physically tired he was mentally exhausted, Gymir had started to teach him the legacy of the Ferrus clan, it involved a unique set of runes that could be inscribed onto a smith’s creation to enhance it. There existed thousands of runes, divided into sets, one for each variation of the bloodline birthmark.

What he was learning was the basic runes taught to every smith in the Ferrus clan, they were an improved version of the runes used by other blacksmiths. They were also most importantly not limited to those of the Ferrus bloodline. Even though he could only learn a small section of the total legacy there were still hundreds of runes he had to memorize and that was the first step the next was learning to use them together to apply the correct enchantment.

Even spending the entire day he had only put about half to memory and there were less than twenty he was sure he could reproduce without a defect.  Of course Taran had not complained. First of all he knew how unique a chance this was. Secondly Gymir had memorized every single one of the thousands of runes of his clan, the few hundred Taran had to learn were the least complex of the bunch.

Arriving at the small single storey cabin he called home he unconsciously smiled, relaxing as the day was finally over. Pushing open the door he stepped into the warm, firelit living room of his home. Before he had even stepped inside he was greeted by the excited cry of his sister Elizabeth. “Brother you’re home!”  

Right away his eyes landed on a bubbly little girl with a mousy brown mop of hair and the same ivory completion as their mother. Dodging several pieces of furniture she ran towards him, arms flailing about as she searched for him, she had been born blind.

Brushing Taran’s leg with her fingers she smiled and immediately wrapped her arms around his leg, hugging it tightly. Being only about two feet high, his leg was like a small tree to her, “Got you!” she said happily, she had missed her brother, she only got to spend a few hours with him every day.

“Up you go.” he said, bending over to pry her from his leg and lift her into the air, putting her very carefully onto his shoulders, her small hands gripping his hair for support. Thankfully their house was built with their father in mind, so she was in no danger of a bump on the head.

“So what did you do today?” he asked as he walked slowly around the room, letting his sister enjoy being a giant.

“I carried books for mommy and listened in..inten..intently during today's lesson.” she said proudly, using a new word she had learned. Taran’s mother was the daughter of a Count and had been tutored extensively from a young age and so she taught a variety of subjects to the children and even to some of the adults of the village when they could spare the time.

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“That’s good, you’re going to be very smart one day. Much smarter than me.” he teased  playfully, lifting her from his shoulders and kissing her on the cheek before lowering her back to the ground.

For a moment his gaze landed on her eyes and lingered there, her eyes were completely white except for an empty black circle, the Birthmark of the Blindwitch and the reason why they fled, like the red crown on Agiads it was a Cursed Birthmark, unlike the red crown it was a Spirit  Birthmark. It was also the reason they were on the run and why his brother died, not that he blamed her, neither did his parents she was family, it was as simple as that.

“Auntie also showed me how to weave grass together to make jewelry. I’m going to make one for everyone in the village, so far I made presents for you, daddy, mommy and Argent.” she said, opening the small pouch that hung around her neck, she stored her treasures inside. Most of the things inside were odds and ends she had either picked up or been given by the villagers, everyone absolutely adored her.

Reaching inside she pulled out a large ring made of a blue-green grass that was woven in a very simple braided pattern, “Look, look, isn’t it pretty.” she said, grabbing Taran’s right hand and slipping the ring onto his index finger.

“It is, it is. Thank you and I’m sure everyone will love them.” he assured, happily tousling her hair as he examined the ring closely. The grass still looked fresh and alive despite having been plucked several hours ago, it was also incredibly tough and elastic, stretching to fit snugly around his finger, and yet he was certain he wouldn’t be able to easily break it. Not that he would try too.

“I also saw a- Mommy and daddy are here!” she cried, turning her head to the door and smiling. Deciding to ignore her brother she ran back to the door, arms flailing about once more, this time finding her mother’s leg, “Argent is here too.” she said, her sightless eyes focusing on the large silver wolf that followed after her parents, Argents steps were too light for her to hear on dirt, he was the only one in the village that could sneak up on her.

Arm in arm his parents entered while smiling at one another, still as in love as they day they were married if not more so. They always walked home together. “Eliza.”  Silvia cooed, picking up her daughter and kissing her cheek before handing her off to her husband, who did the same, earning a sputter from Elizabeth tried to pull away, her daddy’s stubble tickling her cheek.

Taran’s mother  Silvia, was the polar opposite of her husband, where he was like a man roughly hewn from stone, she was a woman like still pool of water, soft, delicate and flawless. Even s of hard living didn’t stop her from aging well. Her every movement filled with a natural grace, something that her upbringing only strengthened as did her slight figure. Bright blue eyes shone from her heart shaped face, an immediate draw that only further perfected her features, something that even her few wrinkles failed to ruin. Add to that, beautiful pale skin, waist length raven black hair and it was no surprise she still turned heads.

“Good day?” Silvia looked towards her son.

Nodding, Taran grinned despite his exhaustion, Yes, Gymir is teaching me a lot.”

“Good.” she replied giving her son a hug before slipping past her him.Using a cloth she pulled a pot from above the fire and carried it to the table, placing it over the black mark that had been burned into the table by previous meals.  Lifting the lid a mouthwatering smell wafted from pot, “Venison Stew. Eat up before it gets cold.”  she ordered with the authority of a loving mother and wife as she wielded a ladle and served everyone a large portion there was even a bowl for Argent placed on the floor.

Stuffed with food Taran was the first to collapse into bed, almost the same moment he was finished shoveling the food into his mouth, he didn’t even bother to change. Elizabeth was the next, put to bed by her father shortly after she finished eating, of course like all adorable children she also managed to beg a quick story out of him. At some point Argent had vanished, but that was just the way he was, the large silver furred wolf would show up at a different home each day and mooch a free meal.  

With the children in bed and the dishes done Silvia and Fulgan curled up together in front of the fire, her head resting on his chest as they listened to the rain.

After he was certain his children were asleep he carefully tucked a stray lock of hair behind his wife’s ear, a soft sigh escaping his lips, “Are you happy?” he asked, knowing this wasn’t the kind of life she had imagined when they got married. Then there was their first child, gone from this world, his body left to rot in the mud, all because he was too weak to protect him.

There wasn’t even a pause before she pinched his side with a sharp “tsk” before kissing  his chin, “Yes, I have you, two lovely children and a place to call home, nothing else matters.”she replied closing her eyes and getting comfortable.