Swordwoman’s Tale by Inkroost
Swordwoman’s Tale
Hollowmere · Ch.2
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Mara walks along a rocky mountain path at dawn, studies a star-shaped mark, looks at her reflection in a puddle, and then faces a walled town below.
Mara, a dark-haired traveler in blue with a long red scarf and a sword, walks through a busy market square with Tam, a blond boy, while a woman in an apron calls to him from a doorway.
Mara stands at a wooden counter in a book-filled office as Osric Pell writes, then she shows him a round token and he stares at it through his spectacles.
Mara, wearing a blue tunic and red scarf, faces the bespectacled Osric Pell in a book-lined room as he reaches toward a coin and later points her toward the door; a small blue star-shaped mark is visible on her brow.
At night, a stone-well square lined with timber buildings leads to an inn where a dark-haired woman in a red scarf eats stew with a blond child, while an apron-wearing woman works behind the counter and a red-haired man enters with several hooded figures.
In a candlelit wooden tavern, Kesh leans toward Mara at a table, then draws a curved blade as Bryn steps forward with a ladle and other patrons watch.
Mara fights hooded attackers inside a room and then outside in a street, while a woman in an apron swings at another attacker and a red-haired man calls out from the room.
Kesh holds a frightened blond boy close and presses a knife near him while Bryn reaches toward them, and Mara grips a bright, glowing sword.
Mara drives her sword into the cobbled square, sending blue streaks and rubble outward as Kesh and other men are thrown back; she then holds Tam close, while Kesh runs off and Mara stands among the scattered stones as townspeople watch from windows.
A dark-haired woman in a purple dress holds a blond boy while an older man approaches a red-scarfed courier in a lantern-lit cobblestone street, who holds up a round token.
An elderly man with spectacles sits beside a dark-haired woman in a red scarf near a lantern, and later she looks down a town street toward a stone gate.
Mara walks out through a stone gate with her red scarf streaming behind her, a blond child waves from a window, an armored figure watches from a rooftop, and Mara continues along a winding road beneath a star.
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Mara walks along a rocky mountain path at dawn, studies a star-shaped mark, looks at her reflection in a puddle, and then faces a walled town below.
Mara, a dark-haired traveler in blue with a long red scarf and a sword, walks through a busy market square with Tam, a blond boy, while a woman in an apron calls to him from a doorway.
Mara stands at a wooden counter in a book-filled office as Osric Pell writes, then she shows him a round token and he stares at it through his spectacles.
Mara, wearing a blue tunic and red scarf, faces the bespectacled Osric Pell in a book-lined room as he reaches toward a coin and later points her toward the door; a small blue star-shaped mark is visible on her brow.
At night, a stone-well square lined with timber buildings leads to an inn where a dark-haired woman in a red scarf eats stew with a blond child, while an apron-wearing woman works behind the counter and a red-haired man enters with several hooded figures.
In a candlelit wooden tavern, Kesh leans toward Mara at a table, then draws a curved blade as Bryn steps forward with a ladle and other patrons watch.
Mara fights hooded attackers inside a room and then outside in a street, while a woman in an apron swings at another attacker and a red-haired man calls out from the room.
Kesh holds a frightened blond boy close and presses a knife near him while Bryn reaches toward them, and Mara grips a bright, glowing sword.
Mara drives her sword into the cobbled square, sending blue streaks and rubble outward as Kesh and other men are thrown back; she then holds Tam close, while Kesh runs off and Mara stands among the scattered stones as townspeople watch from windows.
A dark-haired woman in a purple dress holds a blond boy while an older man approaches a red-scarfed courier in a lantern-lit cobblestone street, who holds up a round token.
An elderly man with spectacles sits beside a dark-haired woman in a red scarf near a lantern, and later she looks down a town street toward a stone gate.
Mara walks out through a stone gate with her red scarf streaming behind her, a blond child waves from a window, an armored figure watches from a rooftop, and Mara continues along a winding road beneath a star.

Chapter complete

You finished Hollowmere (Ch.2) of Swordwoman’s Tale. Nice roost to rest at.

The Road North · Ch.3 → All chapters

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← The Sword in the Storm · Ch.1
Text Version A written companion to this chapter — for accessibility, screen readers, and search.

The morning after the storm, Mara carries her last packet to the market town of Hollowmere, where an old courier clerk recognises her father's token and a crew of relic thieves comes for Starfall. When the thieves seize the innkeeper's son, Mara stops holding back and the sword's power breaks loose again. The clerk reveals her father was a Star Warden, and Mara sets out north while Voss watches from the rooftops.

Page 1

A stone bridge crosses a ravine beneath a cloudy orange dawn sky as Mara walks along a rocky path. A caption reads, “Dawn. The morning after the storm.” Mara looks down at a small mark in her hand. Mara: “Father's mark. A star I'd never seen. And a knight who knew both.” Her reflection appears in a puddle. Mara: “And now this. Wonderful.” Mara looks toward a walled town below. A caption reads, “Hollowmere. Last stop on the courier road.” A speech balloon reads, “Deliver the packet. Get paid. Ask no questions.”

Page 2

Caption: Mid-morning. Tam: Is that a real sword? Have you ever cut anybody? Mara: Only people who ask too many questions. Tam: Ma says that too! We've got rooms at the Lantern and Hook. Best stew in Hollowmere! Woman in the doorway: Tam! Leave the travellers be and fetch the water! Mara: Maybe later, kid.

Page 3

Osric Pell: Two days late. The pass road doesn’t wash out for everyone, you know. Mara: It does when there’s a storm and a falling star on it. Last packet from the southern route, Master Pell. Osric Pell: Falling stars. Next you’ll tell me the moon came down for a drink. Mara: Found this on Cinder Pass Bridge. It’s my father’s mark.

Page 4

Osric holds out a coin. Osric: “Put that away. Now.” Mara leans across the desk toward Osric. Mara: “You knew him. Everyone here knew him as a courier. What else was he?” A close view shows a blue star-shaped mark on Mara’s brow. Osric: “Gods. It’s already on you.” Osric reaches toward the door while Mara faces him. Osric: “Not here. Not in daylight. Take a room across the square. I’ll come after dark.” Mara stands in the doorway. Mara: “You’re scaring me, Pell.” Osric sits behind the desk. Osric: “Good. Stay scared until tonight.”

Page 5

A quiet town square at night, with a stone well and a castle gate behind the buildings. Inside a wooden inn, a dark-haired woman in a red scarf sits at a table as a blond child serves her a bowl of stew; an apron-wearing woman works behind the counter. The doorway opens, revealing a red-haired man and several hooded figures. Narration: “That night. The Lantern and Hook.” Dark-haired woman: “You did. Several times.” Blond child: “Best stew in Hollowmere. Told you.” Dark-haired woman: “Eat up, courier. He won’t stop talking until you do.” Red-haired man: “Evening, friends. Don’t get up.”

Page 6

In a candlelit tavern, Kesh, in a green hooded coat, leans over a table toward Mara, who sits in a blue tunic and red scarf. Other patrons stand or sit nearby, including a blond child at the bar. Kesh: “A star fell on Cinder Pass last night. And here you are, fresh off the pass, with a very old sword.” Mara: “Lots of people own swords.” Kesh: “Not ones that hum. I can hear it from here, love.” Mara, thinking: “Four behind me. One in front. One kid by the bar.” Kesh: “Sword on the table, and nobody's supper gets spoiled.” Bryn: “Not in my inn, you won't!”

Page 7

A black-haired woman in blue with a red scarf kicks through a wooden table as debris flies between two hooded figures. Sound effect: “KRASH!” She says, “I’m trying very hard not to cut anyone!” A woman in a purple dress and white apron swings a long-handled utensil at an armored figure and says, “Try harder, then!” A red-haired man in a green coat calls, “Outside! Drive her out!” In the street, the woman in blue crouches beside a fallen hooded figure. Facing three cloaked figures, she says, “Keep it small. Keep it quiet.”

Page 8

Kesh: “Let’s simplify things. The sword, or the boy.” Boy: “Ma!” Bryn: “Let him go! He’s ten!” Caption: “And for the second time, Starfall answered.” Mara: “That was a mistake.”

Page 9

Mara slams her sword into the ground as men are flung backward amid flying stones and blue streaks. Sound effect: “VRAAAKOOM!” Kesh: “Gah!” Mara, holding Tam: “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.” Kesh, running away: “Keep it, then! But a star like that? Half the realm’s coming for it, love!” Mara: “I didn’t... I wasn’t trying to do that.”

Page 10

The boy says, “That was the best thing I’ve ever seen.” The woman says, “Hush, Tam.” The woman says, “You saved him. Thank you. But you can’t stay here, courier.” The older man says, “She’s right. And I’m late. That’s twice in one day for this town.” The courier says, “Pell. You said after dark. It’s dark. Talk.”

Page 11

A white-haired elderly man with round spectacles and a dark-haired woman wearing a red scarf sit on a stone bench beside a lantern in a night-time town street. Elderly man: “Your father carried letters for me for twenty years. Before that, he carried a sword. That one.” Text box: “The Star Wardens. Sworn to guard what falls from the sky.” The woman appears with armored figures behind her, beneath a star symbol. Woman: “The knight on the bridge. Voss. He’s one of them.” Elderly man: “Then he came to bring the sword home. Or to bury it. The Wardens keep lies north, past the Greywater. Go there, and you’ll get your answers.” The woman stands in the street facing a distant stone gate. Woman: “North, then. I was hoping for one night indoors.”

Page 12

Caption: “Before first light.” A blond child leaning from a window waves and says, “Come back and show me again!” The armored figure on the rooftop says, “So it chose you after all, Venn’s daughter.” Caption: “The road north was long. And she was no longer walking it alone.”