Sister Gertrude

Howyadoin’.

When it comes to the first entry for this blog series, I could think of none other than the indomitable Sister Gertrude. She was mentioned in passing when Aramis disguised himself, but she used to have a scene where she discussed matters with Sister Rhyllae. I felt terrible for cutting the scene out because she was amazing and a major fixture in Amaveriel and the Abbey of the Rising Dawn. So, without further ado, here is Sister Gertrude.

Gertrude was a woman of mixed heritage between a human mother, Helena, and a dwarven father, Milfred. Dwarves, in this book universe, are elemental beings from the mountains that manifested to seek out knowledge. Her father was no exception. Milfred was a sage of religious history and had seminars on the Morning Lord’s influence on the world. That was how Gertrude came to know the Morning Lord and became fascinated by the religion. Eventually, with her parent’s blessing, joined the local shrine and underwent tutelage to become a priestess. Quickly, it became apparent she was quite skilled in theology and rhetoric and the Mothers dote on her.

Sadly, Sister Gertrude always felt like an outcast due to her physical appearance. She was built like a brick wall. Her body is bound with a sizable frame with equally sizable muscles that make her physically formidable. She also inherited her father’s genetics to have facial hairs, making growing a beard or a mustache rather easy to achieve. Many who are jealous and insecure talk about her behind her back and some who are easily intimidated avoid her entirely. It was because of those insecurities, that Sister Gertrude felt she had to put a basket over her light, so to speak. She would shave her beard, and work behind the scenes to further distance herself from her peers.

The gloom that befell upon the sister wasn’t lost on the Mothers and they all agreed to relocate her to a community that would be supportive of her (while cleaning up the attitude of the sisters here). The Superior communicated with Superior Mother Frainul and they found the Abbey of the Rising Dawn would be the best place for the sister to grow. At first, Sister Gertrude thought she was being cast out to such an isolated cloister. But the mothers wrote a letter for her to open once she ‘crossed over’. The letter describes that the Abbey resides in a secret city, Amaveriel, and the façade of being an isolated, desolated, community was for the citizen’s protection. They instructed her to let herself shine.

It took a while for Sister Gertrude to fully embrace herself, but the priestesses there were the biggest reason why. Most of them were outcasts of one form or another and found fellowship with each other. They encouraged her to grow her beard out and exercise. Play athletic games whenever the Abbey hosts competitions and be a major participant in most theological discussions. Sister Gertrude was able to connect with the dwarven community and managed to spread the word of the Morning Lord through them. When asked about Gertrude, Sister Rhyllae would describe her as the cornerstone they didn’t know they were missing in their cloister. So, it comes as no surprise that when Aramis Feres disguised himself, they allowed him undeterred through the entire building. Something that the real Sister would never forgive or forget the Silver Fox for abusing their trust.

Sister Gertrude will make an official appearance in the next book, the Mannequin Queen. I hope you love her as much as I do.

-Shine On,

K.N. Fitzwater