Much has been said about this series and its importance in the genre. That first volume, edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley, came out in 1984, a tidal surge of women's voices in science fiction and fantasy. Sword and Sorceress extended that inclusion to the romantic, action-adventure style of "sword and sorcery." Bradley wanted strong, resourceful women characters who were more than cardboard copies of the male heroes ("Conan in drag"). To this end, she sought out writers like C. J. Cherryh, Mercedes Lackey, Elizabeth Moon, Pat Murphy, Rachel Pollack, Laurell K. Hamilton, Charles de Lint, Diana L. Paxson, Emma Bull, and Jennifer Roberson.
As I contemplated what I might submit to this final volume, I returned to an image that had come to me after watching a well-known movie with animated dinosaurs: a swordswoman wielding a katana, facing down a velociraptor.* As with most inspirations, that scene didn't exactly feature in the story...but close.
*Yes, I know the critters in the movies are paleontologically inaccurate...
Here's a snippet from the story:
The inner door swung open and a young woman entered. Karan’s first impression was of a lioness suddenly finding herself in the midst of a fancy dress ball. The gown was of silk, the hair set with pearls and tiny winking gems. But the skin was sun-browned, the cheeks innocent of rouge powder, and the expression one of determination.
“Leave us,” the young woman said to her attendant. Once they were alone, she approached Karan. “Please, let us sit together.”
Karan lowered herself into a chair, choosing one that put her back to the nearest wall.
“I’m Estelle Rockland, and my father is Sir Henry Rockland.”
When Karan looked blank, Estelle explained that he was a founding member of the Royal Society of Naturalist Adventurers.
“Never heard of it,” Karan said.
“There’s no reason you should. I’m not sure anyone cares who they are or what they do, beyond their own membership and the Lord of the Keys, who supervises the royal charters. For the past twenty-five years, my father has been on a single-minded quest, and now he’s gone missing. I want you to find him.”
“Tracking down errant lord-naturalists is not the sort of work I usually do. Doesn’t sound like there’s much need for a sword. You’d fare better with someone accustomed to finding missing people.”
“That’s the point exactly,” Estelle said. “This is no ordinary search. I cannot undertake it by myself. I must have protection, and I am assured you are the best. I promise you, your wits as well as your sword will be required.”
“And the payment?” Karan asked, half-hoping it would be paltry enough so that she might walk away with an unsullied conscience.
Estelle named a sum so generous that Karan would not have to work for several years. Besides, she liked the look of her prospective employer, the sun-browned skin coupled with the level gaze and straightforward speech. She’d wager Estelle had not spent all her years in a bower, embroidering pillows. And she knew a thing or two about wayward parents.
“And where might we look for your father? What was his destination?” she asked.
Estelle shook her head. “I will not divulge that until we have a contract. You agree that even if you do not accept this commission, you will not divulge what I’m about to tell you?”
“I have a feeling nobody would believe me if I did.”
“My father still has a bit of his former reputation to protect, and I would not have that taken from him by idle chatter. You see, you are quite correct. No one would believe you. Just about everyone will conclude that you — and he — are quite mad. So hear me out before you walk away.”
“I’m listening.”
“My father’s destination was Jökull.”
“Jökull? The land beneath the northern volcanoes? Home of the ice giants? Please. That’s a child’s tale. It’s no more real than Hy-Brasil or Lemuria. It doesn’t exist.”
“My father believes it does exist, that there is an island of ice volcanoes far to the north of the Frozen Sea. He mounted an expedition based on references he’s accumulated over the decades, some of them very obscure. I know because I helped him translate them.” She sighed. “Now I fear the worst.”
That seemed the likely conclusion for anyone haring off to such a dangerous region as the Frozen Sea. “What inquiries have you made?”
“None of his contacts in the arctic archipelago have heard from him. I know what you’re thinking — an elderly man, a scholar, embarking upon such a hazardous quest. But this would not be his first venture where few others dared. He’s explored Afrique as far south as the Black River. He’s documented the Painted Caves high in the Gopal Range. He knows how to prepare, and he hired the best bodyguard he could find.”
“It’s a fool’s errand.” Estelle’s chin lifted and her mouth set in a stubborn line. “Nevertheless, I will go after him. Are you too cowardly to accompany me?”
Karan stirred in her seat. “Cowardice has nothing to do with it. Good sense and a desire to keep living, with all my limbs reasonably intact, does.”
“Is the fee not adequate? Your boots have seen better days, and from what I have heard around the district, it’s been a long time since you’ve had steady work. You need this job.”
“And words like those will not induce me to take it.” Still, Estelle’s determination renewed her curiosity.
"There is another reason you must agree."
“And what is that?”
“My father is not the only member of that expedition in need of rescue. My father’s bodyguard was none other than One-Eyed Wanda.”
The name hung in the air. Karan’s mouth dropped open. How many One-Eyed Wandas could there be in the world, especially ones who hired on as bodyguards?
Mother mine, what have you gotten yourself into?
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