The Chronicles of Gan: The Thorn by Daron Fraley Page B

from
Hasor. She should have been back by that time.”
    Jonathan saw deep emotion like a kindled
fire burning in Eli’s eyes. “If she did not make it out of Saron,
where do you think she is?”
    “She may be at Ain. Our scouts confirmed
there was a significant movement of people from Saron towards Ain
the day before yesterday. They reported to have seen several
columns of prisoner escorts. But then again, she may have been . .
. the Gideonites . . .” Eli shuddered.
    At Eli’s unspoken suggestion, Jonathan
remembered the dishonorable things some Gideonite captains had done
with female prisoners in the past. He could not bring himself even
to complete the thought. Jonathan fought the images away and
mustered his courage.
    “Eli, don’t fear the worst. Let us have
faith she has been protected.”
    Eli grumbled. “I suppose you’re right. But
you know as well as I do, the Gideonites do not always treat women
with honor or respect. Some of them have forgotten the ways taught
by Father Noah and treat women as if they were mere property.”
    Jonathan bristled at the thought. His father
Samuel had taught him to honor women as God’s finest creation, and
that attitude prevailed amongst his own people. Jonathan loved
Rachel dearly, and the thought of Gideonite soldiers harming her
made his blood boil. Rachel had been promised to him, and even
though she was not yet his lawful wife, Jonathan felt protective of
her.
    “Well,” Jonathan spat out, “at least we’re
traveling in the right direction. I think we can easily reach Ain
within two days. It’s my intention to find out what’s going on in
that fair city.”
    Eli patted Jonathan on the arm. “I feel the
same way, my brother. If she’s there, we will find her.”
    The two friends made their way back to the
campfire and found Pekah sharpening the dagger he had taken from
the Gideonite captain. He glanced up as they approached, but then
returned to his work. As Jonathan and Eli removed their weapons and
found themselves seats near the fire, Pekah stopped his sharpening
and sheathed the dagger.
    “Nate, can you tell me about the sword you
carry? I have never seen anything like it.”
    It seemed to be a harmless question.
Jonathan took up the sword that lay next to him on the ground,
pulled it from the sheath, and turned it in his hands, causing
reflections from the campfire to bounce above them in the trees.
Pekah gaped in wonder at the lights and leaned forward to see the
narrow, thin, faceted blade.
    “It is merely a glow-stone, albeit a special
one,” Jonathan said. “This nearly perfect crystal was found by my
grandfather in the mines near Hasor, crafted into a sword, and
presented as a gift to my father.”
    Jonathan stopped short of telling the whole
story. To do so would reveal his identity. The Sword of Daniel had
actually been given to his father as a coronation gift on the same
day Samuel married. He chose to keep those facts to himself.
    “How was it made?” Pekah said.
    “The crystal is the longest one ever found
in the Hasor mines. I don’t think there has ever been another like
it. My father told me the raw stone was without flaw except at the
ends. The swordsmith who made the weapon could only cut or groove
it near the blemishes in the stone, and so he removed one flaw by
striking it from the end of the crystal, thus producing the faceted
tip. He grooved out the flaw at the opposite end with special tools
made from other stones. After he added the brass cross-guard, he
used some type of silver alloy to form the hilt and pommel, all of
which he anchored to the grooved area of the crystal. I added the
leather strapping around the hilt to make the sword easier to
control.
    “The sword-smith also left the pommel hollow
to accommodate a small glow-stone for lighting purposes,” Jonathan
added as he took the stone from his belt pouch and rubbed it
vigorously to charge it. He snapped it into place, and they all
watched as the entire sword took on a