Wednesday 26 June 2013

EXCERPT - VERSES OF ATHINE - THE DAUGHTER OF ARES CHRONICLES BY SHANNON MCROBERTS


EXCERPT


“Athine, hold the sword in one hand and cast a spell with the other!”  My mother, Raelin, was always barking orders.  It was always practice and then practice some more.  Didn’t she know how bored I was?  I had been practicing for eons to protect a land that was at peace.  I could cast magic with my eyes closed and my fighting skills were second nature to me.  Why did I need to practice so much if my skills were already honed?  

“Mother, this is useless.  No one has attacked Olympus, Draosia, or Ximira for several centuries.  Why must I keep practicing to be a protector of the lands with these poorly made weapons?  They break when I use them.  How can I possibly fight with this stick?” 
“Athine, you are a goddess of war born from three different bloodlines.  You must to live up to your legacy.  That is why you have to keep practicing.  I do not know why the weapons keep breaking.  Maybe if you focused more on using your Sh’cersay and less on your poor attitude the weapons would perform better.”
Ah yes, my ever present poor attitude.  Perhaps it was borne out of sheer boredom.  I had no desire to be a warrior protector.  That was supposed to be my mother’s job.  Yet, she kept trying to make it mine. Something about a vision or prophecy; I never really paid attention.
“Athine, stop day dreaming.  Andraste and Sabrina will be here tomorrow for your A’samrad.  Do you want to embarrass your grandmother by not completing the rite of passage?   As a potential ruler of Ximira and maybe even Olympus you are expected to do well.  Anything less would be an embarrassment to the bloodlines; all three of them.”
“Embarrassment?  Potential ruler?  Has anyone asked me if I cared lately?  I practice day in and day out just for the possibility that I may be ruler of a humdrum, peaceful country.  Maybe if I did fail the A’samrad you all would let me be.  I have no desire to be a ruler.   I do not care that my entire family is of noble immortals that love to rule.  I want to see other worlds.  I want to live a life of adventure.”  
How much clearer could I get?  I had no desire to rule any of these lands, yet they all hoped I would rule one day.  Any of my other siblings, cousins, aunts, or uncles would love to play this role.  I was meant for so much more, but alas no, becoming a “ruler” keeps being dumped on my lap.  I secretly wished I could fail the A’samrad and become an embarrassment.  That way I could go off on an adventure and discover what lay beyond the walls of our palace.  I knew there were harsher worlds out there ready for me to conquer.  I just had to get out of this world to find them.


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