She was deeply entrenched in the world of man. In her homeland, women were not considered the equal of men. Not worthy of honor or praise. Not fit to do a man's work. Their place was in service to men as wives, daughters, wenches and maids. As a daughter of a poor family, she was raised to be silent in the presence of men, to answer their demands with obedience and to accept their decisions as final. One day, the landlord of her family's home came to demand a tax, and her poor father was unable to pay as much as the lord wanted. He demanded her hand instead and her parents, though aggrieved, were willing to sacrifice her freedom for the good of all of their children. As she stared out of the window of the carriage that hastened her to a new home, and what she considered to be a most horrible fate of being married into the service of a nobleman, her heart cried out for justice and it was answered. Bandits attacked the nobleman's carriage, slaying his guard, and robbing him of all of his riches before sending him away naked in his coach with only one of his horses to see him home. In the commotion, she had slipped away into the shadow of the trees, and believed that the bandits had not noticed her. However the leader of this unruly pack, a roguish tiefling, had spotted her indeed, and had actually made a slight diversion to let her escape. While his men sorted the booty, he slipped off in her direction and quietly presented himself to her. She was afraid, thinking he meant her harm, but her bold heart would not be so easily daunted. She reached for a fallen branch and made to defend herself... and was surprised when his bemused expression turned to laughter. He insisted that he meant her no harm and offered for her to join him for her own protection for the time, and travel with his band, away to happier lands than these. She accepted his offer and thus traveled away with the thieves unto countries where things were not so grim to her as in her home. As they traveled, she imparted the tale of her tragedy with the band of rogues and when she mentioned her feelings immediately before the attack, a round of laughter went up before the bandits called out an amused round of praise to Avandra. Having never heard of this goddess who was unknown in her homeland, she enquired and the bandits told her much about the Lady of Freedom. In her heart, she, as well as they, knew that Avandra had meant her to meet with them, and she wondered even if Avandra had sent them to save her and show her the way to this goddess who she immediately accepted as her patron deity. In her heart, she knew she had found her path.

Eventually she parted ways with the bandits, though thankful for their efforts, and having come to understand and accept the teifling kin a bit better for the journey. She had set out on a journey to a temple of Avandra, determined to learn more of her ways and join others of her followers in just causes of freedom. She traveled and traveled, seeking this temple she had learned of, one very far away... and in her travels she became strong, for it was not without trials that she walked each day closer to the horizon. It had been a year that she had traveled, seeking this temple, under the direction of others of Avandra's following, when she came at last to the shore and stared out at the beauty of the ocean, her heart welling with confusion. Why had they lead her astray? Why had other followers of her goddess sent her in this direction, seeking a temple that did not exist? .... and it was then that the confusion melted away and her heart brimmed with joy... For Avandra was the goddess of freedom... of travel and adventure... and her temple was not an enclosing mound of decorative rock... but a sprawling world before the horizon... and any place that lay beneath the sky was a grand place to kneel down in her worship... And she, at last, had come to understand that. Now that her heart fully accepted Avandra's ways, she continued traveling, seeking adventures and enjoying the freedom of living in the open without restraint. This is how she became a cleric of Avandra.

Disclaimer and Copyright: This short story is completely original. This is my work and my art. If there is any similarity to another work it is merely coincidence. Please do not distribute, copy, or otherwise steal this work. If you do, I curse Swedish Fish on you.

"Goodnight" Copyright (2007) Arsiei Rei Darksbane