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Dream Pirates' Jewel

A Short Story by Brad & Cynthia Lineweaver

Edition Used for Analysis:
[Tales of the Witch World 2] (1989) Published by TOR, PB, 0-812-54757-8, 978-0-812-54757-3, $3.95, 343pg ~ cover by Victoria Poyser

Synopsis:

Sulcarkeep has been destroyed and two of the surviving ships from the fleet find a new harbor on the southern shores of High Hallack. On one of the fleets excursions Gatil returns with a young girl frozen with fear. Gatil knew that the girl had powers for she used them to save his life. He gave her to the village witch Teo for raising and teaching, who proclaimed the little girl to be more powerful than she. All was good for several years and the village prospered, until the day when Mryna the little witch girl has a dream about a dangerous sea creature. The next morning a ship went down right outside the harbor and none survived. After several more ships are lost the village decides to attack the creature but to no avail. Then Gatil and Mryna are discovered to be missing only to be found rowing out to battle with the creature themselves.

Timeline Points:

After the fall of Sulcarkeep the settlement of 'Osberic' founded in the south of High Hallack¹
The bay they find is surrounded by mountains, keeping them from the Dales which are still in chaos in the aftermath of the war. Falconers as well as Sulcars settle here, and so do some others. Myrna was brought to the port by a sailor named Gatil. He rescued her from a pirate that had raided her village in Estcarp. He brings her to Teo, another one of the Old Race, to see if she can be brought out of her shell shock.²
As Myrna grows to adulthood she becomes more and more talented in Power and finally has a vision. The same night she tells Teo of it, a monster begins attacking around Osberic. The next days see the loss of fishing vessels and and Alizon trading vessel.³
At the meeting Teo tells of Myrna's vision and her inability to find Gatil. When sent to bring Myrna to the meeting, she finds that Gatil has instead taken her. She finally finds them setting off in a boat together. Myrna is able to use a jewel to bring the monster out of the sea, but Gatil dies afterward. It is finally revealed that her mother was a Witch and her father Gatil and the jewel had somehow caused them to have sex and produce Myrna. Years later the jewel drew Gatil back to his daughter and it to finish everything.⁴

Footnotes:

3. p124. 'The next morning, a merchant ship from Alizon was warned from the shore to try a different landing farther up the coast.' (This must be long after the Invasion, maybe even after The Warding of Witch World if trading ships from Alizon are allowed to land in High Hallack at all…!) The Dales were in disorder for some time after the Invader War. The earliest Osberic could be founded would likely be the Year of the Unicorn (the Year of the Hornet being when the final fighting occurs). Depending on when Witch World this'd minimally be 9-11 years after Sulcarkeep's destruction. Given that Theo has been there at least 10 years and it seems Myrna the same, the story could take place 29-31 years after Sulcarkeep was destroyed and at least 20 years after the war, though even further in the future is technically possible.

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