Cynari's muscles tensed as she lay on her bed. Listening carefully, she could tell the there two others in the room besides herself.
Waiting till the last moment, Cynari rolled off to the side just as the the two intruders leaped at the spot that she moments ago was in. With battle honed reflexes, she reached out and deftly caught her two would be assailants.
Shrieks of dismay resounded in the bed room but just as quickly turned to peals of laughter and giggles.
"Mommy! Mommy! You cheated!"
Said the girl.
"No, you two were just too noisy, I heard you both when you opened the door. Besides, it didn't help that both of you were giggling."
Cynari smiled at her children.
The youngest, her daughter jumped up and hugged her mother.
"We were playing assassins!" She giggled.
Cynari nodded.
"Thinking about your Day of Choosing?"
Both children nodded.
The Day of Choosing is when young Fier'Dals took on apprenticeship into one of the major guilds, so that in time, they would grow up to be a druid, warrior, rogue, a bard or ranger.
Cynari smiled at them, Nadiari she knew would one day be a druid or perhaps a bard, it wasn't in her nature for cloaks and dagger work, she was just too impatient.
Looking at Wren, she frowned slightly, he had his father's girth and strength though still retaining that fluid grace that mark all of elfin blood but unlike his sister, was more quiet, more reserved.
"So, what do you want to be?"
Though the question was directed at both children, Cynari
spoke to Wren.
"A Rouge!"
Nadiari said with enthusiasm.
Wren tussled his sister's hair.
"You still have another 2 years before you have to make that choice Nadi..."
"I don't know mother. Father says I am warrior material, but I am not so sure that is what I want to be."
Taking a deep breath he continued.
"Tell me about the Rangers."
Cynari nodded, she had expected it.
"Rangers of Kelethin as you know are the fighting arm of the Soldiers Of Tunare."
"To be a ranger, is not an easy thing. You have to be dedicated, to be able to sacrifice and most of all have the courage to wear a ranger's mantle."
Cynari then motioned her children to sit down while she dragged out a chest from under her bed.
"I want to show you something."
With care she slowly removed a set of armor from the chest. It was of the chain mail sort, with each link fashioned to look like small leaves interlocking and over-lapping each other to form a protective layer.
Cynari smiled as she placed the suit on her bed, even time has not robbed the suit of its color of lustrous ivy green.
"Its beautiful!"
Whispered Wren.
"Yes, and I'll tell you a story of it and what it means to be one to wear it."
Cynari closed her eyes and with a deep sigh she continued.
"Back when the world was a lot younger, many a ranger would seek quests and deeds to earn armor such as these you see. At the time, very little could compare to these. Only the very few who were able to travel to the Planes to challenge the Gods and their minions could hope for anything better.
Even so, the quest themselves are no easy tasks. Many of the tasks involved in tracking down vile creatures or obtaining rare or hard to obtain materials."
She then pointed to both the gauntlets and the leggings.
"Those I could not, would not have done without the help of a true Ranger."
Both brother and sister sat transfixed as their mother spoke, her stories were always of her past as a ranger, of wondrous places that few have seen or heard. But they knew that the tales she told were true events and not just tall tales to keep them quiet. Many a time they have seen Kelethin's own elders come to talk to their mother on matters only adults would know.
They noticed she shivered slightly as she continued.
"I was tasked to seek out Wiltin, he had stolen the Quiver of Kitichor and it was my task to retrieve it. Oh how I nearly did not not went through with it! No matter how long I waited or how many of his accomplices I have slain, none would tell me of his where abouts.
I was almost lost to despair when a dear old friend of mine came to help.
I remember him saying to me "To be a ranger is to be patient, we will succeed where others have failed because we have the will to outlast our opponents."
And together he and I did so.
We sat there laying in ambush waiting for Wiltin to show up, for weeks we waited, till at last, Wiltin thinking that it was safe, came out of hiding."
Cynari smiled.
"We were like a storm unleashed! Wiltin fought us to the bitter end but we reclaimed that which he stole."
Cynari gently touched the leggings, then fingers slowly found their way to the gauntlets.
"This too, would not have been mine, if not for him.
It was by far the most difficult of all the tasks that were set onto us. I would have given up if not for him. He said "It is now a matter of pride, I know no one would fault me for not being able or willing to complete this task but I would know, and I fault myself for being less then I could be."
Cynari sighed.
"He taught me what it meant then, to be true as a ranger. For to be a ranger, one has to be willing to face all odds, and have the will to succeed."
Turning to her children Cynari motioned them towards the door.
"Now you two go out and play. Shooo! Out you two!"
Both of them jumped off the bed and ran outside.
Wren however stopped just outside the door and turned to watch his mother.
Cynari slowly, reverently repacked the armor in her chest. Handling each item with care. As Wren watched, he saw tears stream down from his mother's eyes.
Closing the chest, Cynari pushed it again under the bed and closed her eyes, lost in her memories.
"I miss you."
Wren didn't know if she meant of being a ranger, the armor or the person she spoke of.