Ryll, a brief summary

It begins in a fog... vague images of brush, twigs and mulch ground between little toes, and slender, grubby fingers searching in the growth for sustenance. The memories become more clear with the fleeting animals, the fresh tracks in the wet soil, the branches arching into a roof and the leaves gathered as bedding. A simple bough, bent with a taut vine and stretched to let fly a short stick sharpened with stone-- and squirrels become food. This was life, for Ryll, until the thickly bearded face with cheerful red cheeks appeared out of the trees and gently coaxed her to a home on a farm at the edge of the woods.

The days were simple, and flowed together monotonously. The young Ryll adopted the speech and society of her foster parents, and found life as a farm worker natural and rewarding. Time passed unnoticeably for years, and she saw her foster siblings grow up, get married and breed. It wasn't until her human parents passed away peacefully in their old age that she realized she had outgrown her pastural life and needed to mature.

And so, kissing her adoptive family goodbye, she left towards the nearby city of Twist, with only her pet badger and some old weapons found in the barn. In the process of looking for work she stumbled upon an adventure that would ultimately not only kill her but SAVE THE WORLD.

One year later...

Until Ryll had learned of Vell, she'd rarely questioned her heritage. She acknowledged the difference between her and her adoptive family, but life had been so comfortable that it was rarely a problem. However the way she was received by the citizens of Vell shocked her; she had never before been so easily accepted by people that did not already know her. Intrigued, she located her birth mother. Fear, curiosity, sadness, excitement and other conflicting feelings welled up within her. Ryll never before sought answers, but now, here they were, waiting to be addressed.

Having already died once, life became very different for Ryll. She doesn't know for sure if she was really dead, or even exactly HOW dead; all she knows is that something monumental and tremendous occurred and she somehow survived. She realized she was suddenly more comfortable with taking risks, with pushing her own limits of comfort. A year ago, flight was an unachievable dream, but today, she is soaring over the dense wilderness of the woods of her birth on a great owl. The owl is Mehve, and what she lacks in size she makes up for with feistiness.