The orange-haired gnome cleared his throat and raised the parchment. "Let's see, where did we leave off?"

The halforcen lad seated in the crowd in front of the gnome straightened up. "Morien's animal guide just pissed on a big rock!"

The human lass seated next to him prodded him with her elbow. "Delicately put," she spat sarcastically.

The gnome who called himself Badger gave a smirk. "Ah, yes. Morien and Fjolnir had arrived at Stopping Rock..."

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I began to make camp near the great stone, Stopping Rock. Fjolnir trotted off, no doubt to hunt for food. The sun had barely moved and hung still near the horizon by the time I had finished making camp. I decided to use the remaining daylight to rehearse my battlesong. I readied my fire-hardened spear and took the first position. I closed my eyes and drew myself inward. I could hear the song within me. I drew a dried mushroom with a red cap from my belt pouch and tasted it. My body began to move with the rhythm within me- the beat of my ancestors:

"Yaw, haw, the way of blade

weapon drawn and pray-ers made

remember blood our brothers shed

fields on which our sisters bled

fathers building family's stead

and mothers slaying demons red"

I felt in me a spark- the breath of the muse upon me. I cultivated the spark until it became embers. I began to sing a song of my own creation:

"I see before me darkness deep

within the blackness, death it creep

I walk alone into the void

to see my home's despair destroyed"

The song spurred me on. I whirled about, deep in the mind of the song. My heart pounded as a drum would. I thrust my spear then whirled again, cutting the air around me. I felt a rough breeze touch my back, wetted with perspiration. It was cold, a gentle correction. I spun about to face the breeze, planted my feet onto the hard earth, and thrust the point of my spear into the wind. The wind yielded and swirled around me. Faster, faster.

"I must be fast, my weapon swift

against my foe I must be stiff

anger rise, a fur-ious shift

bring to bear I must my gift"

"You mean my gift! That which upon you I've loaned."

My dance stopped as I stumbled to regain balance. I turned to face the source of the voice. Fjolnir stood near the fire, two dead rabbits lay before him. His eyes reflected the firelight and shined through the dark of the starless sky.

It was dark. How long had I been dancing?

I raised my chin. "I have not forgotten."

Fjolnir simply stared back in reply.

"I speak truly!"

"You do not. The redcap lays bare your inner heart. It is filled with arrogance."

I grew hot with anger.

"You chose me!! Do you doubt me now?"

"The eyes of your heart deceive you. You are blind. It's as if I've taught you nothing."

I stomped upon the cold earth with indignance. "I perceive my enemy, I strike truer than I ever have! I am not blind! I've taken all your teachings well!"

Fjolnir lowered his snout slightly, intensifying his gaze.

"Only some. Not all."

My fists were tight as stones.

Fjolnir took one of the rabbits with his mouth and looked again to me.

"Go alone then, great one, and show me what you have learned- and also what you have not."

I raised a fist, preparing to respond. All that came out of me was a guttural yalp. Fjolnir turned and trotted off into the darkness.

Then I woke. The sun was just beginning to peak from the horizon into the morning sky, covering the stars in a blue veil. I moved to rub my eyes and realized I was still holding the red-capped mushroom. When I rose to my feet, Fjolnir was nowhere to be found. I broke camp and continued alone. It was anger and wounded pride which spurred my steps, as well as a desire to prove Fjolnir wrong. I was unbested among the Wolf clan. I had led my warriors on raid after raid, my honor and prowess tested with each one. I held the ferocity of the wolf within me, and had mastered the art of bringing it to bear against my enemies. Only some?! Whatever lesson that Fjolnir thought had eluded me, I couldn't fathom.

By midday I was getting close to Radek's Mine. I could feel it before I could see the signs. The ground seemed to grasp at my feet like it was willing me to stay away. The whisper of the wind quieted to lifeless silence. The trees here were hollow, twisted corpses.

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I arrived at the entrance to Radek's Mine. It was a yawning, stone maw which swallowed the light of day. I produced a torch from my pack. I found it more difficult to light than usual. It was as if the torch itself was hesitant to take flame in some attempt to dissuade me from entering the mine. I pushed away the thought that this was an ill omen, and eventually I was able to light the torch. I breathed a deep sigh and stepped into the gaping mouth of the earth.

Step by step I traversed the rocky and uneven cave floor, moving deeper into the belly of darkness. Shadows danced about the edge of the desperate light of my torch. The air had a stale, oppressive chill. I fought back a deep instinct to turn back and continued. The path winded and snaked. At one point it narrowed so much I had to take off my pack and sidestep through a gap that was barely wide enough to let me pass. Finally the passage opened into a wide cavern dimly lit by faintly glowing fungus. The floor of the cavern met an underground lake that stretched as far as my eyes could see. In the center of the cavern, at the shore of the water was a square altar upon a dais. The altar and the dais both appeared to have been carved from the same stone as the cave walls. Upon the altar, gleaming in the blueish dark of this cavern, was an iron object. The Talon.

I placed the still burning torch on the ground by the narrow passage from where I'd just came. I had come this far and the only creature in this cave was me. I reasoned the demon had to be close. I took my spear in both hands and quietly crept toward the stone altar. The Talon was a dagger roughly as long as my forearm with a wide blade that bore tiny marks of use. The Talon's metal caught the faint light of the fungus above and almost seemed to glow. As I reached my hand towards it a soft pale light began to emanate from the blade. At the edge of my vision I caught a glint at the edge of the dagger's light. Then another. And another.

I looked up, my hand still stretched toward the dagger. The glints of light were eyes, more eyes than I could count in that moment. All of the eyes were set into the head of a creature much larger than me bearing a rough, notched carapace and two pincers as long as I was tall. The creature made no sound as it emerged from the water and approached the altar on spiney segmented legs as thick as tree trunks. It loomed over me, its countless eyes like glass orbs reflecting the Talon's glow.

Every fiber of my being urged me to run. I struggled against the panic, knowing that escape was no longer possible. Then the demon lurched forward. I reactively snatched the Talon with one hand and thrust my spear forward with the other. I heard the tip of my spear clatter against the creature's carapace as if I had struck a boulder. The pincers of one of the demon's great claws snapped in the air in front of me with a crack. I stumbled back and the creature made a sound like a thousand rattling branches. Each of the creature's multitude of eyes seemed trained on me.

It brought one of its claws in front of its face like a shield and charged forward. I dove out of the way and rolled to my feet. The creature began to turn and one of its massive spiney legs struck me, taking a chunk of my furs. Regaining my footing, I saw there was a gap in the demon's carapace where its leg met its body. I leaped forward and thrust my spear into it, striking true. The creature shuddered and let out a low rumbling sound. It threw its body toward me and I couldn't avoid its sheer size. I hit the cavern floor hard and felt the air in my chest escape from the blow. I heard the creature rattle as it scuttled toward me. I struggled to breathe. This was like no foe I had ever faced. I felt a sharp prong of panic in my chest as the creature raised a claw overhead, surely aiming to crush me against the rocky floor. The sharpness in my chest became a hot flame as in an instant the panic turned into desperation- and then into rage. I gasped and threw myself aside. As my body rolled, I felt the shock of the creature's claw striking the ground where I had just been.

Thoughtlessly I took the Talon and stabbed at the claw beside me. I heard a crack as the dagger broke its carapace and a warm goo spurted over me. The creature let out an inhuman shriek and stumbled backwards. Not wasting a moment, I struggled to my feet and pressed the attack. As I rushed towards the demon it brought both claws in front of its face defensively. I jabbed the Talon into its claw and the creature screeched in pain. It brought one of its forelegs forward to push me off. I twisted the blade with all the strength I could muster. I heard its carapace crack further, and its reactive movement left an opening. I pulled out the Talon and thrust my spear at the creature's face. There was a sickening gush as the tip pierced one of the demon's eyes. It roared and panicked. It moved so suddenly and quickly that my eyes couldn't quite follow. Something struck my off-hand and I lost my grip on the Talon. Instead of it hitting the floor, I heard a splash. Another movement and one of the creature's claws was before me. Like a shieldmaiden setting against a charge it shoved me back towards the water. The water. Where my only advantage had just gone. I turned and saw the faint glow of the Talon begin to fade beneath the mirror-like waters. Without another thought I dove in, following the light.

I struggled through the dark waters, pulling myself deeper into its depths stroke by stroke. I heard a dull noise behind me as the creature plunged into the water after me. The light of the Talon grew dimmer and dimmer. I felt a shock as something like rocks forcefully gripped me, its pressure forcing air out of me into bubbles. I felt the water rush around me as the demon's claw thrust me deeper and deeper. Still in its grip, my legs buckled as I collided with the lake's floor. Were it not for the waters I would have cried out in pain. I groped around me, desperately trying to find anything I could use to escape the creature's grip. My hand fell on a sharp object that pricked me. I turned my head and saw the pale glow of the Talon turn red. As if in response to an unthought wish it was in my hand. Suddenly I felt the will of the Talon. It was a hunger.

I brought the dagger to bear and stabbed the claw that gripped me. The sound of the creature's groan was amplified underwater, and it loosened its grip. I held on to the claw and began to pull myself up its arm. I felt the demon move, trying to shake me off. I jabbed the Talon into its arm and renewed my grip. I felt a rush in the waters around me, no doubt it was the creature's other claw trying to grab me. I pulled myself up and the glint of its countless eyes caught the blood-red glow of the Talon. I pulled myself to its face and stabbed. The creature moved violently, and I stabbed again. And again. And again. In a moment the creature's dark viscera clouded the red glow of the Talon. Involuntarily, my body seized and I drew in a chest full of murky, disgusting water. Then there was nothing.

When I awoke I was coughing and hacking violently. My entire torso felt like it was being wrung out from the inside. I pulled myself onto my hands and knees and my body lurched. I vomited lake water and offal onto the cavern floor.

I looked up and realized two things. First, I was no longer in the water. Second, Fjolnir sat before me with an intense gaze. I wanted to respond, but another wave of nausea sent my innards a twist and more viscera-colored lake water spewed from my mouth.

It suddenly became clear what had happened. Fjolnir must have dragged me out of the lake after I went unconscious. I had no response. I was a fool.

Fjolnir brought his snout close to me and gave a few probing sniffs. I had finally stopped vomiting enough to take a labored breath.

"Fjolinir... I..."

He pressed his snout into my hand and I felt the sharp pain of where the Talon had pierced me earlier.

"Fine."

I crawled to the stone altar and reclined against it. Without another word, and without looking Fjolnir in the eye, I bandaged my wound. He came close and curled up against me. It wasn't long before sleep took me.

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The orange-hared bard stopped reading and looked at his audience. "And that so goes the story of the first of Morien's many deeds."

The patrons of the Hoof and Stew tavern began to applaud Badger. He rolled the parchment and slipped it into his pack. "Morien's delve to retrieve the Jarlbane Talon is something we all can learn from."

The halforcen lad raised his hand, "That no matter the odds, you can succeed if you persevere!"

Badger shook his head. "No, my boy. Morien did persevere, but in doing so he would have met his end in the watery depths of the cavern."

The human lass spoke up. "That no matter how great and powerful you are, pride can be your downfall."

Badger smiled. "Precisely!" With a gesture of his hand, soft illusory music began to fill the tavern. "There are plenty more tales to spin, but for now this old storyteller could use a piss and another drink."