She was not a wraith however. Merely old.
Legends had spoken of the 10 Djinni bound in rings. The I-Ching had been seconded by Tarot - this was the time. Grave dangers beckoned and the world teetered on the precipice.
Say what you would of her. The fate of her home, her nation, and her family was of overriding importance.
Cologne looked down at the boy sleeping in his bedroll, with two equally young girls to either side of him.
Saturn: the djinnya of destruction and silence. The Soldier Of Death.
Moon: the djinnya of healing and compassion. The Soldier Of Life.
With two rings this boy had managed to gain two of the basic underlying dualities of the universe - the yin and yang of Life and Death. This made the boy strong - potentially very powerful.
It was the way the two clung to him in their bedroll, and the way his arms protectively held them, that decided Cologne. She could have struck - silently and precisely. Their Master dead, the two djinnya rings could be collected and potentially benefit the tribe.
Except that Cologne had a couple of problems with that. One was that these two would probably turn their full power upon restoring their Master - for he clearly had their trust. Another that she had trouble with the idea of killing a child in their sleep - she was a warrior of a tribe of warriors. Hitting them when they weren't looking was acceptable, below the belt - situationally acceptable. If this child were a menace to the village, she could have slit his throat without a qualm. He wasn't though, and that he had two indicated he might yet gather them all.
There was another thing, entirely different. She had snuck close and unobserved. The panda was an idiot, but an idiot who knew something of the Art. Once during their practice-play, two of the children had fallen into synchronicity and become the Art for a brief moment.
What to do, however.
Killing the boy and taking the rings was out. She lacked the purity she had had at that age and couldn't use the rings herself. Besides, she was supposed to set an example - being the Matriarch and all. Stealing the rings by another method was also out.
Cologne finally decided on a course of action. She would:
Admittedly, this is a different role entirely for the 'Old Ghoul', but i thought it would make for an interesting change.
(Posted Mon, 10 Jan 2005 18:34)
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