Thursday, September 17, 2026

Children of the Rune: Winterer 51 to 65ish? pt2

As part of Boris's formal acceptance into the island's religious system, he eventually receives his Moon Island name:

Daphnen.

Daphnen is associated with the meaning laurel tree / peace, rather than "World Tree."

During the name-giving ceremony, another priest becomes interested in the sword Boris carries.

The priest recognizes that the sword is unusual and wants to examine Winterer.

Boris immediately refuses to surrender it.

He is unwilling even to simply lend Winterer to someone else.

The priest therefore makes a compromise: rather than taking the sword away from Boris, he proposes that Winterer be examined while Boris remains present.

Boris accepts this arrangement.

This is another indication of how protective Boris has become of Winterer. He may be living under Moon Island's customs, but the sword is still his responsibility, and he will not casually allow anyone to take possession of it.

After receiving his new name and settling into his new status, Boris begins the educational part of his pilgrimage.

Nauplion takes him to Scholi, the island's school.

Pilgrims and islanders are expected to study there and learn the disciplines connected to Moon Island's religious traditions.

Boris is not particularly welcome.

He is still an outsider, and the earlier incident with the children and his sword has already made some of the islanders suspicious of him.

Even the people responsible for the school are not especially friendly toward him.

Boris, for his part, doesn't seem particularly interested in winning their approval.

As part of testing him, Boris is matched against Hector, one of the strongest fighters in Scholi.

Hector is one of the school's best young swordsmen.

The test does not go as expected.

Boris completely outclasses him.

The fight escalates to the point where Hector is in genuine danger. Boris's combat ability is far beyond what the people at Scholi expected from an outsider.

Nauplion eventually stops the fight.

He is furious that the instructors allowed the match to continue when it was obvious that Hector was already outmatched and in danger.

Nauplion takes Boris away from Scholi.

The incident demonstrates something important about Boris:

His strength is not simply the result of possessing Winterer.

Even among the island's trained young fighters, Boris is already an exceptionally dangerous swordsman.

Boris does not want to return to Scholi.

The school has no meaning for him if everyone there treats him as an unwanted outsider.

Nauplion therefore suggests another path.

For Boris to continue the pilgrimage, he needs to learn another discipline.

Nauplion suggests the Priest of Songs.

He takes Boris away from the school and up into the mountains.

There, Boris encounters the mysterious girl connected with Nauplion's sword and dagger.

Her name is Isolet, more fully Isolestie.

She is the Priest of Songs.

This is the beginning of Boris's second major discipline on Moon Island.

Nauplion, the Priest of the Sword, has already accepted Boris as his unprecedented outsider apprentice.

Now Boris is being brought to Isolet to learn from the Priest of Songs.

His pilgrimage is therefore moving beyond simple swordsmanship and into the deeper traditions of Moon Island.

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Children of the Rune: Winterer 51 to 65ish? pt2

As part of Boris's formal acceptance into the island's religious system, he eventually receives his Moon Island name: Daphnen. Daphn...