The two knights battled furiously, lashing out with their swords and skillfully parrying their opponant's thrusts.
neither knight was well clad for battle one had a mail shirt and an intricate sword belt. The other had no protection but a helmet which covered the knight's face and hair. the first knight had stringy dirty brown hair and was a middle aged man, but the second knight could have boy or girl or peasant (though neither girl nor peasant seemed likely because of the fighter's skill.)
the fight continued doggedly but both the fighters were tireing. suddenly the brown haired knight saw an opening an stabbed. the helmeted knight was not able to block the thrust in time and felt the sword slide into the heart.
"No man can defeat me,"the brown haired knight called triumphantly as his opponant fell to the ground. he walked foreward and reached down to take off his rival's helmet but was so shocked by the cascade of long black hair and youthful face looking up at him that he did not see the last desperate thrust the girl made. then he too fell.
neither of them saw the 2 who were watching them fight from the nearby cave in the cliff wall.

(( cool... ))

Nearby, they watched the girl fight and were impressed. One, a tall man with a waist length white beard, said, "She could do it,"
But the other disagreed, "She's too young. She could easily be defeated,"
"Not with practice!" the first man said.

The second man waved a hand and the picture of the fight dissapeared. "The future is not set in stone."
"But it comes about in one way or another if you try to avoid or alter it!" protested the other. "Send her home, there is no place for her here!"
"No, Geran. She needs the training as much as the boys. We will find her a mentor so that she can continue, her last year with us is almost up." When Geran tried to protest, the older man held up a hand to stop him. "You know that if she is not taught to direct her talent, she will destroy herself before ever having a chance to confront that future."

((What happened to the red hair?))

(( when was there red hair? ))

nothing, that was for dragon_eyes.

((this is a test to see where this story is going if other people write it--- to mystery girl----))

((oooo i like this!))

Geran sighed. "I just don't want to see her get hurt."

"she needs the training though! to survive!"

"Even if she DOES survive to what gain will we have? Isn't that what this world is about? Isn't survival what life is? We never enjoy life. We can't make it work like that."

"that si what life is about, survival, that is the reason there is life! and a dark time is coming, and she has to be ready!"

"But can't she have a different life of survival? She won't want this!"

"she needs it!" he said sternly and he looked back toward the fight, ending the conversation. The girl was actually exceptionally good, she could survive easily in this new world over run by magical beings.
___________

the man thought back to the beggining of this terrible age, it had happened three years ago when the portal from the magical world had opened. Wild and evil magical biengs ran amock killing and destroying. now there were only a few humans left, not even over three hundred from the entire world! the humans that are left must revolt......

Geran looked sadly to the girl. Why her? He knew that she might not make it. The magical denizens of the world were gaining control. Even the humans were starting to be influenced by such powers. Lycans were on the hunt. Wizards were searching for experiments. witches were finding prey. Demons were running amok. She wouldn't be able to handle it all... not on her own. Geran sighed. What if he was a target? What if they were going to kill her? All sorts of questions were running through his mind as he watched the spectacle.

she was amazing, but she needed someone to assist her on her journey and surrvival. but who. geran thought.....

Damien!
He would be the perfect one to guide her. As part human part sorcerer he would aid her in many ways. Though he was part magic he had been raised mainly by his human mother only learning of his magical powers after her death, but very powerful none the less. Since then he had vowed to defend his mother's people. He could train her sword and sharpen her senses to the evils that lurked beyond every turn, all the while guarding her.
Geran now told his friend of this thought.

geran's friend went to another friend who went to another and so on until the message reached Damien.

Damien nodded and set off for Geran...

" That her?" Damien asked nodding towards the girl who now lay beside the small pool about a yard from the other knight's body.
"Yes," Geran confirmed. "Jace the healer has gone to gather what he needs to heal her wounds."
"Why did you send for me? Surely Jace can heal her and the masters would train her well. Why must I be the one?"
"She's different from the others. I have a feeling that she will play an important role in bringing peace between the magics and humans and THAT is why YOU must be the one. And.."

(( Cali, I'm confused now, Damien has strong powers and wasn't brought to heal her, he was brought to be her companion as she is training and to teach her what he can.))

"I do not want you to cure her, but to teach her and go with her on journey after she id trained." geran siad

((okay, sorry i'll change that.))

"What! I have my own battles to fight, I don't need to be fighting her battles too."
"You won't have to," Geran explained patiently," She will fight her fair share, but there is only so much time we can spend on her training. We can't give her the in training that she needs in order for her to reach her full potential, that she must learn from experience. And you, my dear Damien, are going to make sure she lives long enough to have those experiences and be her council when needed. You will have plenty of time to carry out your own work at a later date. Besides, if she is able to bring peace, there may be no more reason for you to fight.

"I have my own life!" he exclaimed "I DO NOT want to babysit a little girl!"
Geran decided to tell damian something he swore never to tell anyone "Damien she is the one."
Damien stared at geran "the one?" he gasped "from the prophecy?"
"yes" damian replied

"But," Geran continued, "you are not to say a word to her regarding the prophecy or treat her any different. If anything you should be harder on her. She can succeed, no, she MUST succeed and you have to help her."

Damien bit his lip, "It may be hard, or easy. Depending on her strengths she has already gained."

"look at her fight Damien! i can even see she has power! it just needs to tamed and conditioned!" geran exclaimed

((I thought she was already down before Damian got there?))
"IT is not only experiance she needs, Garen. She needs knowledge of what is happening in this world. and does she even know..." his voice tapered off.
Garen turned his head to look at Damien, "Does she know what?" he paused to see if an answer was forthcoming. "U shouldn't be keeping things from us we are one of the last groups of humans on this planet."
"Garen u will be told when u need to know I have been studying the prophasy and the events that surrounded it's writing. I have discovered some things that would be dangerous in enemy hands, so yes i am keeping things from u."

((wait wats the girls name??))

(( should be something kind of magyk sounding that starts with S))

((here's a list of ideas for names and meanings. We can start there.
Shamira - protector
Sezja - protector
Kandra - magical, water baby
Sada - pure one
Saleema - healthy, protected
Sanjaya - victor, winner
Saskia - protector of mankind
Satria - warrior ))

((lets go with Kandra!))

((hang on kendra is the name of the girl in dragon lord))

((it is? :-) what a touch of irony. I just typed in magic and that was one of the only ones to come up. BTW it's Kandra not Kendra. I like that one too.))

((I'm all for Saskia. It goes a little more specific.))

((kandra! im putting it in!))
kandra, lay down on the ground in pain, waiting for her healing powers to work

((i thought she was already down at the beginning. u know when she got stabbed in the first post?))

((Yeah, she was. Tale, check the first post.))

((i'm confused now.))

((i fixed it))

((thanks!))

She had always been a fast healer. As a child, her scapes and bruises were gone within a few minutes and she never suffered any of the normal childhood maladies. She had later learned this was thanks to her maternal great-grandmother who had been half fairy.This was the most serious wound she had ever had and as moments passed, she wondered if her few drops of fairy's blood would be able to heal such an injury.

She felt the stab wound heal and she stood up. Kandra saw the two men arguing and walked over to them

Geran did a double take as she slowly walked up to them, a guarded expression on her face and her sword held at ready in her right hand. She looked over the two men before her. One, an older man who, with ample white hair, radiated wisdom. The other, a younger man, perhaps 4 years ahead of her 18 years, had thick ash blonde hair and a strong physic. His face was shadowed but she descerned a strong chin and high cheekbones under hooded dark eyes. He, unlike his companion, had the markings of a warrior.

((Oops! My computer went wacky on me and I had to restart it :-))

((wow, two of the same post!))

(( good one M G!))
"Garen what's going on? U said this battle was a test then u aren't even watching."
"Yes sorry Kandra, well that wound must have been bad u laied there for nearly 20 minuets."
"Well thats what i get for letting my gaurd down and getting stabbed in the heart." she murmmered something else under her breath that neither of the men caught, but Damian thought he heard the word 'elf'.

((DE - where you headed with that 'elf' bit? I can't think of anything.))

((never mind the elf bit i may not go anywhere with it in ...this story ))

"You had me worried. I actually sent Jace to get some healing herbs in case you were too badly wounded." Geran said.
"Hold it. I thought you were human. You can't heal yourself." Damien said to Kandra.
"I'll explain it to you later," Geran said to him.