Tara

Former Weapons Mistress of Cader Idris

Ve'Kyna (Huntress)

Myrddn and Glyns lived on Cader Idris (a mountain in Wales whose name means Seat of the Lion). They were married for many years, yet never blessed with children. One day Glyns felt the life inside her, knowing it was the daughter she always yearned for. Tara was born strong and healthy.

She grew up free in the mountains. Learning to hunt from her father and learning the skills of defense from her mother. She learned to listen to the mountain. It told her stories of old and the secrets of the goddess and taught Tara to love the power of the mountain.

On her 13th birthday, tragedy struck. A group of wanderers killed both her parents while she was on her beloved mountain. Her heart was filled with rage and revenge. Once the funeral was finished, Tara burnt the home of her youth, and began her plans for revenge.

She wandered down the mountain to the Llan Fawr forest. There she thought to find food and shelter until she could make her plans. One day, as she was hunting and gathering wild herbs, she saw a tribe of women. She had never seen such women; they stood tall and carried weapons and they seemed to belong to the forest and it was obvious from where she spied on them that they cared for each other. She tried to hide while she watched, but one of the women had spotted her and snuck up behind her. She was taken over to where the rest waited.

One of the younger tribe women engaged Tara, thinking she would be easy to defeat. Tara picked up two round sticks that lay at her feet. She stood proud and began defending herself. The tribe watched as Tara fought with their tribe's youngest warrior. The warrior and Tara fought hard, but the warrior prevailed. As she was going to give the killing blow, a tall blonde woman gave an order that stopped the final blow. As Tara scrambled to stand, she looked for an escape route, but there was none to be found. The tall woman approached Tara, touched her head for a few moments, then turned, and gave a command to the others. They bound Tara and took her with them.

Tara was frightened, struggling to get free. Even so, she felt that the women seemed to be gentler than she expected. She finally stopped struggling and let them lead her. After a couple of hours, they came to a village in the forest.

The village huts were different from anything she had seen before. There were only women in the village. Then she remembered stories her mother had told her. Stories of her mother's ancestors, and how they left the world of the mountain, and told stories of great warrior women. Now fear crept back into Tara's being. Yet her pride kept her standing tall.

The tall blonde loosened Tara's bonds. She took her arm and guided her into a hut that smelled of herbs smoking on the fire. There were two women sitting and having some kind of discussion. One was dark haired, wearing a necklace made of teeth and bones. The other was dressed in a long tunic and trousers and on her head she wore strange feathers.

The tall blonde warrior bowed and began recounting the tale of Tara and the youngest warrior. At the end, the dark haired women stood up, and said, "I am Llinosyn, Queen of the Amazons of Cader Idris. Trofonywd has told me of your bravery. Tell me about yourself."

Tara noticed the other women were all watching her. At first, she thought to remain silent, but the eyes of Trofonywd seemed to warn her. Tara told her story of pain and the desire for revenge.

Queen Llinosyn spoke, "You have trespassed in our forest, yet you defended yourself with honor. We will take you into our tribe, teach you the way, and then you may once again be tested in a battle with a warrior of my choosing. If you survive, you may live as one of us."

Tara said no more. She vowed in her heart to never forget her promise to take revenge for her parents.

Over the next two years, the entire tribe taught Tara. Trofonywd, the Weapons Mistress, took particular interest in the girl and trained her in a variety of weaponry and combat skills. She needed little help learning to hunt and track, but she enjoyed learning the unique weapons Trofonywd showed her. She grew tall and strong. Her blonde hair grew thick and long, falling down to her waist. Her eyes remained a bright and intelligent green.

One day, Queen Llinosyn gathered the tribe. "Today, my sisters, Tara will prove her worth. Once again, she will fight Kowchlly, the warrior who challenged her in the forest the day we found her. Kowchlly and Tara go prepare. Trofonywd will choose the weapons."

Kowchlly and Tara came to the circle. Trofonywd brought two staffs, one for each of them. Kowchlly chose the staff of her mother and Trofonywd gave the other one to Tara. When the Queen gave the command, the two young women began.

They fought well, knowing their weapons and each other's ways. Finally, after what seemed like hours to Tara, Llinosyn stopped the fight. She stood in the middle of the circle and said, "Kowchlly and Tara you have both made me proud. Tara, you have proven your worthiness. You will now be called sister to our tribe. Once she has made her first kill, she will become the daughter of Trofonywd. Let us celebrate the joy of this day!"

As the years went by, Tara grew strong in body and mind. Trofonywd taught her all she needed to know. After a time, her adopted mother gave up her position to Tara with pride.

Even though she was happy, a part of her always remained troubled. She knew she must keep her promise to herself to avenge her parent's death. As time flew by, she finally made a decision.

In her 30th year, she asked her Queen permission to leave the tribe on a quest. Llinosyn urged Tara to reconsider. If she left now, she would lose her position within the tribe. Tara did not relent. She had to fulfill her promise to her parents.

Tara's totems are the spider and the panther. She is skilled with the bow, the sword, the staff and with various knives.

Tae'Nah athelfi arche: 09 May 2007

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