It’s finally done! I’ve wanted to get this out here for a while. I finally caught some time and hammered it out last night. I hope you enjoy it! Elias’ past is finally revealed.

“This is the Opal Gate. Beyond here, the real journey begins. Are you ready?” Asked Elias.

Euthalia took a deep breath. She looked back at Quartz then turned and rode through the gate. It truly was the start of the real journey for the Mage Hero.

Euthalia and Elias traveled through the day until shortly before sunset and stopped to set up a camp for the night. Euthalia took off the armor she had bought. It was a set of lightweight armor that was recommended to her by Elias. It was pricier than her frugal sensibilities liked, but it has a high magical resistance and was light enough for practical purposes. Elias was able to convince her to spend the gold for it. She had been wearing it through the day to get used to it. It was somewhat odd because it had been made from steel fibers. According to Elias, Earth magic had been cast on the base steel to allow it to be turned into fiber then woven like any other cotton garment. After it had been woven, more spells had been cast on the armor to increase its magical resistance. It still only had about the physical defenses as ordinary chain mail, but that was Elias’ job–to defend her from physical attacks and allow her time to cast magic (according to him at least).

Speaking of Elias, he had gone off to hunt for meat for supper. After taking off her armor, Euthalia gathered pine branches and made two improvised beds. She then gathered firewood and made a fire. She didn’t use her magic because she didn’t want to start a forest fire (which was a distinct possibility until she got her magic under control). She had no trouble since she had adapted to doing these sorts of things without the aid of magic. By the time Elias returned with two hares, a good size fire was burning and a flat stone had been placed over the fire. Elias cleaned the hares then set them to cook while Euthalia began cooking small cakes of flour and water with a little salt and some wild herbs she had found. The cakes were done first and they ate them while waiting for the hares to cook.

“You really are good at this sort of thing huh?” Said Elias.

“I was raised on a ranch in a rural area; almost everyone from the Teal area knows how to do this sort of thing.”

“Not many women in Quartz do though. I admire that about you Ms. Santhos.

Euthalia paused for a minute.

“Elias, what is it going to take to get you to call me by my first name?”

Elias thought for a second then responded.

“To call the Mage Hero by her first name would be disrespectful given my station.”

“Elias, I’m a ranch girl. Station and such don’t mean anything to me. Even if I am the Mage Hero.”

Elias didn’t say anything. After another moment, Euthalia came up with an idea.

“Say, Elias, what is your station now?”

“Knight of the Kingdom of Silica.”

“But you are assigned to me correct?”

“Yes.”

“So, that would mean you are under my command? At least, until you assignment is over.”

“Correct.”

Euthalia smiled. It was as she thought. “Then I hearby elevate your status and station from Knight to a Companion of the Mage Hero. Not calling me by my first name would now be disrespectful given your station.

Elias opened his mouth as if to protest, but then shut it. After checking the hares and pulling them off the fire, he handed one to her. “Very well, you win Euthalia.” He had a small smile, but his mouth was twisted, like he was trying to suppress it.

Euthalia took the stick on which the hare meat had been skewered with a victorious grin.

“Glad to hear it.”

Then they set about eating.

While they were eating, Euthalia continued the conversation.

“All joking aside Elias, I have a feeling this isn’t going to be a short trip. I think we need to establish a bond of trust and friendship if we are going to be an effective team. Can I trust you Elias?”

“Yes.”

“Well, I want to ask you something personal, but first I’m going to tell you something personal about myself. No one but my immediate family knows. Please keep it secret.”

“I swear it on my life.”

Euthalia took a deep breath, mentally preparing to divulge the information. She wanted to gain his trust with this secret, but it did make it easy to tell him.

“..I’ve had trouble with wetting the bed since I was a child until the last year or so. There were many nights where I woke up with wet sheets. I was so embarrassed, especially when my younger brother eventually found out and started teasing me. It would always make me feel like a baby, especially when I had to start wearing an absorbent garment under my pajamas when I was six to save doing more laundry. No older child or adolescent had the problem I did. Luckily I grew out of it, but my brother still teases me about it. Actually, the night I woke up with magic, I actually thought the bedwetting problem had come back after a year of absence, but it was really just water.”

Elias took a few bits of his hare as he processed the information.

“That is rough. Don’t worry Euthalia, I won’t tell anyone and I don’t think less of you because of it. Personally, I think you are a rather mature person.”

He smiled and Euthalia smiled back at him.

“I guess I’ll have to share a secret of equal magnitude. Most of the soldiers in the army know parts of it, though very few know the whole story, but I consider them my extended family in a way. Still, it’s not something I like to be spread around.”

“I won’t tell anyone either, Elias.”

“I know you won’t Euthalia.”

Elias took a breath, as if to prepare himself then started his tale.

“You must wonder why a demi-human is in the Silican Army right?”

“Well… the thought had crossed my mind.” Euthalia admitted, didn’t want to seem rude, but she wouldn’t lie to him.

“Most people do, they just don’t ask. Ten years ago, there were skirmishes at the border between Silica and Teumassia. Teumassia, as you know, is the country of the demi-humans. The country itself is more of a loose confederation of independent tribes who have a common interest. The fox tribe had their camp near the border. That was where I lived. One day, a battle broke out. The Silican knights pushed the battle line until it reached the village. In the Teumassia tribes, everyone who is able fights. Training begins at the age of five, but children aren’t allowed on the battlefield. Eventually, the tribe was overwhelmed and retreated. My parents were killed in the battle so I never received word that the tribe had fled. When the knights were searching the houses for resources, they found me. When they tried to go into my abode, I fought them. The first person to enter was taken by surprise and I was able to cut his arm. He recovered from the surprise and disarmed and captured me easily. The army wasn’t sure what to do with me. They didn’t want to let me go, but they didn’t want to kill me in cold-blood. So they took me back into Silica with them. The man I attacked—his name was Conall—was kind to me and talked to me a fair amount on the journey to the capital. When we got back, he volunteered a solution. I had received military training already and was skilled for my age in comparison to most humans, so he offered a deal. The army would take me in and give me a certain amount of freedom if I swore loyalty to the Kingdom of Silica. So I did. I was raised in the army for six years and received training from them. I wasn’t satisfied though. I was a demi-human and I had been taken from my homeland, so on my thirteenth birthday–after careful planning–I ran away. I found out though how good the army had been to me. When I entered the city itself, the people there were quite racist toward me. They wouldn’t sell to a damn demi-human, not even food. I got out of the town and made my way across Silica on foot, catching or gathering whatever food I needed, evading pursuit. Eventually, I made it to a town near the border. That was as far as I got though. After the border disputes had been settled, limited trading occurred between the countries. Not many goods came from Teumassia. They look down on Silican customs and culture as unnatural and artificial. At the border town, I ran into three traders, two from the wolf tribe and one from the fox tribe. Again, some information you might not know is needed. Most tribes wear limited amounts of clothing. The wolves go shirtless, and the foxes don’t wear much more. I had been raised in Silica, where such customs were not acceptable. When they saw me wearing Silican clothes and observed me, they declared they wanted nothing to do with me. I told them my story about being captured, but they didn’t want a boy who had been tainted with the culture of Silica, even if I had been a former tribesman. With the demi-humans rejecting me, I found some scouts of the Silican Army and turned myself in. I found myself caught between two sides that didn’t want me. Only the army accepted me and so I decided it was where I belonged. I was imprisoned for a month as punishment and it took a year of dedicated service before all restrictions were lifted, but I was eventually fully accepted again. Conall acted as a sort of father figure to me before I ran away. I found out later that his wife and daughter had died of illness before he found me. He adopted me as a son and my name became Elias Conallson–son of Conall. From there, I gained prestige and rank until eventually I was assigned as your knight Euthalia.”

Elias stopped talking and silence lingered for a few moments. Finally, Euthalia spoke up.

“…Wow. I didn’t mean to make you reveal something so personal.”

“It’s alright. I’ve accepted what I am. I have a home and a family of a sort now. You said we needed to build a bond of friendship and trust. I didn’t want the question of my origins to linger in your mind.”

“Can I ask one thing?”

“Shoot.”

“The townspeople didn’t act racist to you when I was there, at least that I could tell. Are they still?”

“Well, most are accustomed to me, since I don’t act entirely like a demi-human, though there are still a few that hate me.”

“Ok. Thank you for trusting me with your secret Elias.”

Elias nodded.

“I think it’s time for bed though.” Euthalia yawned. “It’s starting to get late.”

“It is.”

Elias got up and tossed his roasting stick in the fire.

We don’t need to worry about setting a watch tonight Euthalia. We don’t need to worry about B-K yet. My body will sense any disturbances before they arrive.”

“Alright then.” Euthalia lay down on her bed and pulled a blanket over herself.

“Good night Elias.”

She heard the reply from above her.

“Good night Euthalia.