Caitlin, the Dagger Girl

I sat on my rock, looking at the daggers on my knees. For some reason, I knew that they were mine, and my father had forged them for me, but I didn’t know who my father was, who I was, and why he had forged the four, polished knives for me. Taking one up in a hand, I tossed it from one hand to another. Nice balance. I picked up another, and tried tossing them both between my two small hands. A grin on my face, I added a third and the fourth. Maybe this is why? It seems so… easy, yet hard. I tried throwing one at a knot in a nearby tree. It hit the centre.

Revelling in my newfound skill, I put them down on the ground as I searched through the pockets in my jacket. String… Matchbox… A letter… a worm? I laughed and opened the matchbox, found it was empty, and put the worm in it, naming the small creature Jack. I liked that name. It seemed familiar. After achieving this, I opened the letter.

Dear Caitlin,

I hope that you still know who you are. I sure do. If you don’t, I shall remind you. You are Caitlin, an orphan who turned up on my doorstep one day, holding a crude wooden dagger in your hands and peering at it. I took you in. In the following years, I learnt that you were fluent at all things involving daggers. I even found you cutting open a worm one night, and you explained this as, “It’s got a stomach-ache, daddy.” It, marvellously, healed, and went on to being your pet. Remember yet? And, also, I made those daggers. All for you. I especially learnt how to for those sharp implements you so often play with.

Anyway, you want to know why you’re where you are, don’t you? Well, I don’t exactly know, but something weird happened last week. I took you to the temple. They said the best way was to leave you with them. I refused, and went to our next-door neighbour, who had told me the week before he could help if you did anything weird. I think he was expecting it. He asked for the description. I told him that I had gone out to get groceries, and when I came home, the place was wrecked, and you sitting in the corner, staring at nothing, the daggers sitting in front of you. He nodded, as if he knew what had happened, and smiled grimly. He told me to send you out into the woods, as your memory was probably gone. You were asleep when I got home after that, and I dressed you, putting your favourite things in their normal places. I took you out to your favourite clearing, and leaned you against a tree.

Please find me and tell me you are okay, if you are okay. I don’t want to lose you forever.

Your adopted, yet loving father, Doug.

Hmph. Well, I remembered my name now. Caitlin. But it really was a wimpy name. I sighed. I would have to find a new name. It never crossed my mind to go and find my adopted father. I need something to do. I can’t just sit here forever. I looked down at the stump, and saw initials scratched into it. I smiled, and tried etching “Caitlin”, but it didn’t look right. I sighed, and wandered off, into the surrounding forests.

Several hours later, I heard some chatter and a laugh. I wandered towards the sound, utterly confused, and came upon a couple of people lounging in a clearing. “Uh, hullo?” I said hesitantly, after waiting for a minute. They looked up, and I realised for the first time that they wore proper weapons and armour. I smiled nervously, staring at the weapons.

“Hello there,” said the one who was probably the laugher. She turned back to her partner, and continued chatting.

I stood there awkwardly for a while, and then wandered around them, into the forest. I trudged on in a straight line for a couple of hours, replaying what had just happened in my head, when suddenly a [insert level 1 monster here] jumped out at me with a [insert its weapon], and lunged at me. I stepped to the side of the attack before I thought about it, and stabbed down at its back. It fell over. I had the presence of mind to rifle through its pockets, finding a bit of gold.

Realising what I had just done, I sat down on a handy nearby tree’s roots. Did I really just do that? What if I hadn’t sidestepped? I swore quietly, and looked around. The forest definitely seemed more dangerous now. I wiped the blood off on the grass, and stared at it. That letter hadn’t said when he had made the daggers. But still, something made by one who loved the one the something was for shouldn’t be able to guide the owner’s hand to kill something – someone like that. But it had seemed so… right. As if that was my place in the world. Caitlin, the girl of daggers. I grinned. That was what I was going to do. I didn’t even think about food, I just decided to keep on doing it until I couldn’t go on.

I did so. But then I was so tired after sundown, I climbed up into the tree for extra protection, and went to sleep. When I woke up, I realised that I had been hurt in yesterday’s battles, and went off in search of someplace to heal. I walked for a few hours, meeting and killing about 5 creatures along the way, when I stumbled upon the field in which I had seen to two people yesterday, but it was empty, and I sat down in the middle, utterly confused. They looked like they were from a town. I wonder if it’s near here? I looked around for any answer to this question, when I saw another person standing in the shadows awkwardly. I waved, uncertain as to whether this was friend or foe. “Hullo there.”

The person stepped into the clearing, and broke into a smile. “Hello to you, too,” she said cheerfully.

“Uh, do you know if any towns are nearby? I need a place to rest.”

The person, now identifiable as a he, said, “ Sure. Shall I show you? I have nothing else to do for a while. My adventures for the day are used up.”

So I followed him, chatting, and when I could hear the noise of a plaza, I stopped. I don’t even know this guy, and he’s leading me to a village. I shook my head, and climbed up into a tree, hoping he wouldn’t notice, and looked up into the sky. The man’s voice floated out to me, “I found this girl out in the forest.” Laughter. “Er… she was talking to me a moment ago. Where did she go?”

I smiled at the moon in the sky, then realised it was getting dark. I’m going to need somewhere to sleep… I realised, before I spotted him wandering near me. I sighed again, and climbed down, walking over to him, “I got lost. Where did you go?”

He looked at me, bemused. “Just this way,” he pointed towards where I had heard him speaking. “It’s called Sanctuary, if you want to know.”

So, that’s how I came to be in Sanctuary. How I got the name Frodo is a different story, and I’m saving that for later.