Women of the Mist

Women of the Mist
Organizational information
Locations	Avalon, England
Religion	Celtic Paganism

The Women of the Mist were a secretive group of Celtic witch-warriors that stemmed from the isle of Avalon and came into possession and guardianship of the mystic Sword of Eden called Excalibur, which is a sacred object to their people, their group, and their culture.

History

Before the 5th century, the Women of the Mist obtained and found the ancient Sword of Eden called Excalibur. The witch-warriors used the sword as a way to determine their clan's next leader who took the title of "the Lady". In the 5th century, King Arthur came across Avalon as well as the clan. After Arthur successfully retrieved Excalibur from the stone, the Women of the Mist saw him as a good soldier for Avalon and remained in good faith with him. However, with his ties and eventual leadership within the Order of the Ancients, Arthur later grew distant from the witch-warriors. It was during this time that one of Avalon's sons, Mordred, came into power as one of Arthur's advisors and tried in vain to take Excalibur for himself but was stymied by the Women of the Mist. This incursion led to the founding of the Women of the Mist's greatest foes, the Descendants of the Round Table, who tried to take Excalibur to rule all of England.

After Arthur's death, the Women of the Mist heard he hid Excalibur within a vault beneath the Stonehenge away from his Order. Thus, the clan sent witch-warriors to guard and kill any possible invaders from gaining the sword. However, in the late 9th century, they could not stop the Norse Viking Eivor Varinsdottir from garnering the sword for herself. Meanwhile, the Women of the Mist kept training their women to withstand attacks from any invaders, which ranged from the Descendants to the recent arrivals of the Viking raiders.

Circa 878, the Women of the Mist's newest Lady sent notice to their fellow priestess Niamh of Argyll to infiltrate and gain some perspective on the Hidden Ones. Soon, the Women of the Mist noticed Niamh arrive back to Avalon as she conferred with The Lady about her recent transactions as well as mentions of Excalibur. Atop Glastonbury Tor, Niamh was soon tasked by the Lady to retrieve the sword back for their clan. During Niamh's mission, the Women of the Mist maintained to surveil both Niamh and the events transpiring in England. However, the Order's slaver Cyrus captured and interrogated one of their messengers about Excalibur at an Order "nunnery." Niamh tried to free her fellow clanswoman as well as the other prisoners, but was caught and had to flee with some of them.

As time passed, the Women of the Mist took notice of Niamh's recent theft of Excalibur and caught sight of a "chase" between Niamh and the Hidden One Hytham and the seeress Valka of the Raven Clan. Within the audience, the Woman of the Mist saw how it appeared that Niamh lost the sword to Valka and Hytham as they rode for the White Horse to burn it as a means of a sacrifice. At Excalibur's site of its apparent destruction, all of the audience, including some witch-warriors, saw the sword completely destroyed. However, the clan soon gained notice that Niamh had the real Excalibur and successfully returned the artifact back to them. Weeks after Niamh's mission, the Women of the Mist found themselves welcoming Hytham and Valka to their island, instating Niamh as the next Lady of Avalon, and starting a new alliance with the Hidden Ones.

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Sword of the White Horse (first appearance)