A Song for Winter: Witch Knife Talisman

    The witches of the Wintersong clan all made ritual focuses for their magic casting when they started learning to control their magical abilities. William, while only being half Wintersong was no different, however, he was also half Drackonas. This meant that while the other witches were crafting necklaces, wands, or rings; William made a dagger. Iron ore for the blade was mined from the ground by William himself. Digging with a shovel and a pick for hours till he found the perfect piece of ore. In the forge William mixed in bones of various animals with the iron to infuse their spirits into the metal thus strengthening it. Hammering and shaping the metal by hand was a tiring, exhausting process in the hot forge but William had the Drackonas warrior spirit and the willpower of the Wintersong.
    
After the blade was shaped and sharpened next came the hilt. Wood for the hilt was harvested from an ash tree. William searched for days till he found a tree that was just the right age and strength. He felled the tree with an ax whilst reciting a prayer of apology for having to take the life of the tree. The hilt was carved carefully from the ash wood to fit comfortably in the hand before being fire-hardened for durability.
    
Two years before William had hunted down his first elk with his father, Odin Drackonas. The two of them followed the beast through the snow and trees for days.  Fresh snow made tracking the elk easy. Soon trees gave way to a snow-covered clearing where the cervine stood still. Kneeling down Odin helped William string his bow and line up the shot. Drawing in a breath, William drew back the arrow carefully and fired. The arrow struck the beast in the front flank causing the elk to panic. Acting quickly William adjusted his aim quickly and fired another arrow. This time the arrow pierced the animal's heart slaying it. William and his father harvested the animal together before returning home to celebrate with the clans. It was from this elk's antler that the dagger's crossguard was made.
    
Clan Wintersong has a legend passed down through oral tradition about a time when the world was ablaze in flame. Fire burned the lands, reducing all that was in its way to ash. When all life was about to be extinguished a young female fox stepped into the flames whistling a sorrowful mournful song. All who saw her walk into the blaze fear she was lost to the flames but then it started to snow. Cold winds blew as ice fell from the skies for days extinguishing the conflagration for good. After fifteen days and nights the ice and snow ceased falling and the fox maiden returned. She led her people to the north and became the first matriarch of Clan Wintersong. From that original snowfall remains one chunk of magical ice. It is from that ice that every Wintersong witch carves a piece to attach to their ritual focus. William following tradition carved a piece from the magical ice and used it as the pommel stone on his dagger.
    
With all the pieces of the dagger fitted together, the magical focus came to life. Runes etched themselves across the surface of the blade in brilliant blue light. Now by brandishing the dagger and whistling two frozen mournful notes, William can control the sheer power of raw magic itself. Dagger thrust securely in his belt he adventures on into this world of portals unsure as to what awaits him out there but knowing he must continue on in order to avenge his fallen clan mates.