My first hunts were to places that now seem so mild, but when I was younger, were challenging, even fearful for me.  One such was the Undine hut.  I spent many hunts there with D'Ead and Fafnir, Lamprey and various others, learning to bash the walking dead.  On one of my first hunts there, I saw that one could adopt the form of the shambling attackers by brushing against the Wraith deep inside the underground cavern. But as I did this, I stumbled into a dark place, was quickly overborne by unseen attackers, and fell.

Natas came to save me that day. I was so impress that he could just wade into the dark, ignoring whatever was lurking there, catch me up on his chain and drag me out to be healed.  The cave was suddenly illuminated after he arrived... I thought he had done it, but he said not.  My eyes were so dazzled by the sudden light that I scarce can describe what I saw, or even recall it.  :P

From the Undine Hut I branched out to the beaches, the forests, and eventually to 'Noids.  These became my regular grounds for some time, but now and then I would enjoy the treat of being taken somewhere far more dangerous.

I recall one day, we heard a new area had been discovered, and Geo was kind enough to take me along.  Now known as the Estuary, it was full of creatures no one had every seen before, some which looked and were terrible, others which looked deceptively mild, but were quite fierce.  Predictably, I was again dragged home on a chain.

Other areas at that time seemed equally hard, and I would simply fall and be dragged home, often without having hit more than a vermine.  But now I hunt some of those places regularly and realize how much stronger I've become.

Folk in Puddleby were remarkably kind to me when I first arrived.  Within my first few days, I met Geotzou, who showed me how to use a sunstone, and how to toggle for help is I fell somewhere alone.  I still recall how hard it was to just let the baby rockodiles bite and bite, so he could chain me back to town center and introduce me to Stora.

Though I was at first bashful about speaking to older fighters, many others also went out of their way to invite me on hunts and help me learn the best way of dealing with creatures that were too tough for me to strike head on.  Some went even beyond this and offered me coins, weapons, and clothing. Ceowulf was kind enough to give me a flail, and Mira Willow offered me the beautiful blue clothes that have become my favorites. Alexa taught me to fish, which I still sometimes do when I don't feel like hunting (and have space in my pack).

When I began to be a a bit more skilled and could tag creatures pretty reliably, a whole new world of hunting opened up.  Gone were the seemingly endless hours of killing slugs.

After my decision to become a fighter, I spent endless days hunting rats in the fields and towers.  Now and then some kindly and more experienced fighters and healers would take me to the Undine Hut or to the Myrm Hive, or to Kitty Beach, but I felt my lack of experience and skill keenly and determined to advance as much as I could on my own for awhile, so as not to be a pest.

Doing this terrified me, however.  I did not know the lands at all, and in spite of studying maps, I was often lost when traveling only two snells out from town center.  As I crossed snell boundaries, my heart would leap into my throat in fear of what might be waiting on the other side.  I would hunt until I was a sickly yellow hue, and then retreat to town where I would as Stora to heal me.  Often during these times, there were only a few other exiles to be found, and I was well aware that if I feel, there might be no one to help me.

Eventually I got a bit stronger, and got to know the farms and then the fields right around Puddleby.  But I still sometimes suffered nasty shocks, like walking into Witkus' weapons shop and being set upon and killed by Darshaks.  I hadn't know they could even enter buildings in Puddleby.  Luckily, by then I knew how to toggle for help and had told people I was headed south; seeing I fell to 'shak, they checked the shop pretty soon.  During this time, a number of older fighters were very kind to me.

My earliest days in Puddleby were difficult.  On Gradi, day 34 of Summer, 578, I wandered into town, dazed and unsure, and found my way into a seeming safe garden to rest.  Without realizing my danger, I stumbled into a cloud of sparkling lights, which transported me to a forest and killed me in the process.  Once there I was grabbed by a horrible one-eyed monster that I would later know as an orga and dragged off.  I was deposited in the midst of a village and lay there helpless for hours until Kalypso, the only person I knew in the lands, sensed my plight and came to rescue me.  She dragged me back to town and healed me.  After such a traumatic entry, I cowered for weeks in the library, before finally venturing out again.

Eventually, shame at my cowardice overcame that fear, and I ventured forth again.  Still hardly knowing who I was or what I was to do.  Kalypso again assisted me by guiding me to places where I could gain clarity.  I soon recalled that I was a Fen.  My abduction left me determined to never be so helpless again, and I chose to follow a fighter's path.  But that very day I suffered another ignominious defeat.  


Within moments of entering the town hall, I was assaulted and fell to a vile kudzu, part of an invasion from the forest.  Kalypso healed me again. Falling prey to even a simple plant infuriated me, and I resolved to never be so helpless again.  I became a fighter.

I am ready to write of my life as an exile.  I will reach back into memory and try to catch up.  The first sorry months will be condensed to spare