In a small village at the edge of the kingdom, a weak child sat in a classroom and read about herself.
The child's name was Mara. She was nine years old. She had been born sick. Her body did not work like other bodies. The other children excluded her. The adults said she would never be strong enough to do anything important.
But Mara was reading the story of Kael Vorthan. She was reading about a boy who had been weak. Who had been rejected by his clan. Who had been sent away because he was not fit to be a warrior.
And she was understanding something that changed her life.
She did not have to accept what people said about her. She did not have to believe she was nothing. She could choose to believe that she could be something. She could choose to become strong.
The teacher who had give
