The Bard's Apprentice

Long ago there was an old man, a storyteller of such great skill and reputation that young people came to him from all across the land, begging to be his apprentice. After many years of refusing them, finally the bard relented, taking on a young half-elf female as his apprentice. For months they travelled together and the bard passed on his knowledge to the apprentice. The apprenticeship was not easy, for the master demanded perfection from his student, but she was determined and hard-working and eventually proved herself worthy of his secrets.
One day, when travelling through a dark forest, the bard and his apprentice were set upon by seven great dire bears. Though the apprentice was quick and skilled with the rapier, she knew that her master's fighting days were well behind him. "I will protect you," she said, "but I believe these bears will be the death of us both." The bard, smiling as though he was not facing certain death, said to his apprentice, "How much you have learned, yet how little you know. It is not just the words of a tale, but also the telling of it that has power." With that, the bard began to recite the tale of a foolish bear cub who was stung by a hive of bees and though the animals could not understand his words, to her astonishment the apprentice saw the animals begin to back down.
After a few minutes, the bears turned and fled. "My master," the young apprentice said, "How did you do it? Those bears should have been our deaths!" The bard turned to the young woman and said in a kindly voice, "The bears might not have understood my story, but they could hear my voice. All things, in nature and in the world of men, know the power of the Will and the Word."
Category:Story