935: One morning when Runof was just a child, he had been playing down by a river close to Grom's cottage on a warm summer day. Little did he suspect that he was being stalked along the opposite riverbank by a menacing dog the size of a lion, a red eyed hound that enjoyed the taste of human flesh. It was the Dobhar-Chu, poised to have the oblivious child for a snack. The monster charged across the shallow river, to a human who had nothing but sticks and speed to protect himself. Runof managed to reach the relative safety of a tree as the beast snarled and growled while attempting to catch him.
The commotion alerted Grom to imminent danger of seeing his son stuck in a rut, but the young Runof told his father to dig a large pit into the ground and to grab two spears. Grom complied and levelled a chunk of the Earth with his bare hands to form a hole big enough to hold the Dobhar-Chu before taking two tall metal spears from the cottage with Runof continuing to distract the monster. When the time was right, Runof lunged out of the tree and gave chase, leaping over the large pit in one fowl swoop as the dog fell in. Grom could see the vicious creature was beyond any help he could provide and joined his son in spearing the Dobhar-Chu to death. Grom saw how his son had used his intellect and ingenuity to outsmart the monster, or which he gave Runof a small round spirit amulet, one large emerald beset on a golden ring as a reward for his bravery.
When Runof leaned over the pit at the body of the Dobhar-Chu, the creature's body was dragged into the amulet as a pulse of energy seared through his own body. Runof was astonished when Grom explained the full capabilities of his reward, an amulet that could capture the souls of the dead and increase the wearer's own power in the process.
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The potion brewers
Short StoryExplore the lives of the five potion makers, a group of magical druids who persist as a light in the dark ages to deliver a magic potion to the people of Ireland.
