Sider Ament

Sider Ament was a Knight of the Word.

Tall, lean and rangy. Broad-shouldered and hard. Wore tattered robes.¹Bearers of the Black Staff – p 2

Beard, long black hair, wind-burned sun-browned skin. Carried himself in relaxed easy fashion and seem at ease.

Quick when he needed to be, slow when quickness would get you killed. Dangerous all the time. There were stories about him everywhere, some were partly true but none told his tale.²Bearers of the Black Staff – pp 2-3 As a child he lived with his parents and younger brother in the high country on a small farm. His parents preferred to live apart from the communities. He was as reliable and self-sufficient as they were. Occasionally was sent to Glensk Wood and Calling Wells for supplies the family could not make or grow. He was good at bartering and cautious with his dealings.

Through these trips he discovered, that while he liked living alone, he liked people too. He got to know some of the people and even made a few friends. Just before his fifteenth birthday, on a trip to Glensk Wood, he met Aislinne Kray, and was instantly attracted to her.

Left the farm when he was sixteen, and never had a real home after that.

A warrior, a fighter of great strength and skill. Protected the villages by patrolling the valley rim and keeping watch against the things that might come from the outside world.

Bearers of the Black Staff

While on patrol he found evidence that something or someone had broken through the mists. He determined there were two creatures: a hunting pair in search of food, huge, dangerous creatures based on the size and depth of the claw marks on the rocks and the apparent ease with which they had destroyed Sider’s wards.³Bearers of the Black Staff – p 4

He also discovered that two humans were tracking these intruders so he went after them, knowing they would not be able to cope with whatever had come through. He caught up to Panterra Qu and Prue Liss just in time to save them from a trap laid by the two Agenahls that had broken through. He killed one of them, but the other escaped. Knowing he had to stop the second one from leaving the valley again, he sent Pan and Prue back to Glensk Wood to alert the village of what had happened, whilst he continued on tracking the second one.

In the process of this he discovered he could now go the whole way through the mists, rather than being turned back. He then became the first person to leave the Valley in five centuries. He continued tracking the second Agenahl but was taken by surprise by it. He lost consciousness in the attack only to be rescued by Deladion Inch.

He and Deladion made an agreement Deladion would stay and look after Sider until he was able to travel, and that he would provide information about his world, while Sider would tell Deladion about his staff, which Deladion had expressed an interest in.

The Measure of the Magic

Sider was buried by Panterra Qu near where he was killed.⁴The Measure of the Magic – pp 35-36

Sider had received the Word’s magic, and Black Staff, by his predecessor. He had never been visited by the Lady of the Word like the other Knights.⁵Bearers of the Black Staff – p 3

As a Knight of the Word he was as the protector of the group of people who escaped the Great Wars. He kept them safe by patrolling the borders of The Valley in search of openings, in or out, and repaired any such breaches with his magic.

He was the only remaining Knight, and unless he found the next bearer, he would also be the last. His duties did not allow the time to seek out and a train a successor.⁶Bearers of the Black Staff – p 3

His dreams had told him that change would come to the mists that surrounded The Valley during his lifetime.⁷Bearers of the Black Staff – p 2