Kellyn Mulryan
Dwarf, sword fighter, prisoner at Blackvale Castle, born Glen Tosh, first appeared in Scattered Stones.
“Stop!” shouted the guard. “You can’t go in there!”
Kellyn ignored the quackpod and kept running. As she drew water from the well in the courtyard, she had seen Merk cross the open balcony and enter his study. He had been absent from Blackvale Castle for several days, and this was the first opportunity to inform him of the tragedy that had occurred to his favourite prisoner.
She reached the door, flung it open and raced inside. Merk stood admiring a painting on the far wall. He glanced in her direction but remained silent.
The castle guard tackled her to the floor before she could speak, knocking the wind from her lungs. Another guard jumped in to help subdue her.
Kellyn punched, kicked and scratched to break free but ultimately, she became pinned with her arms secured behind her back.
“Our apologies, My Lord,” said the guard, as he jerked her to her feet and placed his hand firmly over her mouth. “We’ll see that she’s punished for her disobedience.” He began dragging her away.
Kellyn clamped her teeth down onto the guard’s hand. He grunted and pulled free. “I need to speak with you!” she shouted.
Merk shrugged and returned to admire his painting.
“Your pet is dying!”
He shot her a deadly glare. “Halt!”
The guards stopped at the threshold.
“Which pet?”
“Isla.”
He raised an eyebrow and looked to the side as if to contemplate her answer. “Release her.”
Kellyn wrenched her arms from their grip and scowled at them. “Check your ego at the door, dingleberries.”
“Leave us,” said Merk. The guards exited quickly, and he eyed Kellyn. “Dying in what way?”
“You haven’t noticed? It began before you left.”
Merk nodded reluctantly. “She seemed disturbed but…” He clasped his hands before him. “Tell me more.”
Castle Keepers Vignette: Almost five years has passed since Isla was kidnapped and Bronwyn left Maskil in search of her. In many ways, not much has happened; the inhabitants of the Land of Ath-o’Lea have continued their daily routine. But if you look deeper into the individual lives you’ll see much has changed in little ways.
The Castle Keeper vignettes provide a glimpse into the time between Shadows in the Stone and Scattered Stones. You’ll have already met many of the characters, but some you will meet in Scattered Stones.
These vignettes won’t be complete stories, only 300 words of a moment. I consider them exercises in writing and editing. I hope to write two a week and post them on Mondays and Thursdays as we lead up to the release of Scattered Stones, the second fantasy novel of the Castle Keepers series, on May 6, 2016.
The collection of vignettes will be organised on the Castle Keepers Vignettes page. On the first of each month, I will post the schedule of the characters I will write about that month.
Diane McGyver 