Keeping the Truth pendant ready to be carried forward

ready to be carried forward into the dark

into whatever sleeps beneath it

bears the unmistakable mark of endurance

heavier than it looks once it rests in her hand

something with edges that don’t quite match the rest of the forest floor

Keeping the Truth pendant ready to be carried forwardThey do not call it mourning in those circles. They call it 'keeping the truth'. When Alistair leaves the chapel for the last time, he does not take anything with him no book, no blessing, no name he was given there. Only this. Metal drawn into sharp points, each one deliberate. It is not hidden beneath his collar. It sits where it can be seen. In the Heretics Prayer, there is no forgiveness for turning back. The spikes mark it. Not for others, but