[ TT ] An army approached the pass . Only one being stood in there way . They did not plan to survive , just survive long enough .

He saw the plume of dust approaching from the distance through the window of the hut. He knelt down and began to sharpen the edge of his blade. 
 
 It was a crude old thing, more of a slab of metal than a proper sword. Most people did n't expect him to be able to wield it, considering his slender, short frame. 
 
 He had n't expected to be able to wield it when the grand weaponsmith had passed it to him. He'd thought it was a joke at the time. 
 
 He was a bit of a joke amongst the Corps after all, with his short height and tendency towards gentler pursuits. But the grand weaponsmith had forget a weapon personally for him- it was a bit impossible to refuse such an honour even if he wanted to. 
 
 He carried it everywhere. The smith said that it was sword that was meant to be carried. After a while, he found that his shoulders no longer ached and that his blows had become strong enough to cleave a man with one swing. 
 
 The grand weaponsmith was long since dead, his works forgotten with the decline of the court. But he kept the sword. He practiced every day in the manner the smith had instructed him. 
 
 `` Where are you off to now?'' 
 
 The smith's daughter was a sprightly young thing, the age of his own child perhaps, if his daughter had survived the purge of the court. She had her father's smile, and the same kindness in her eyes. 
 
 `` There seems to be a dust storm coming by,'' he lied easily, `` I'm going out to warn the villagefolk. You should probably batten down at the church.'' 
 
 She smiled at him, a little sadly. He suspected she knew what he meant, so he stepped quickly away before she could beg him not to leave. 
 
 `` I'll see you soon.'' she said, almost as he had passed through the door. 
 
 He smiled at her, `` Of course...'' 
 
 He walked alone, away from the cottage on the hill, his home for a few, wonderful years. The edge of his blade gleamed with the light of the rising sun. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

