I used to be part of the elite guard in the Kingdom from which I hail. I was trained by some of the best generals in the land, as well as one of the highest ranking of them all; my father. He was always all training and no fun, everything he ever did with me was either sparring or forcing me to follow along his footsteps. Honestly, I didn't mind the sparring or intense training, it was my heritage I revered. One day I was walking between training sessions, and noticed a Giant guard standing in front of a large building on the top of a cliff. The building has been there since I could remember, but always off limits to anyone, the Giant however was new. It was isolated from the rest of the buildings in the area, so it had to be something secretive. Curiosity finally got to me with the added security, so I decided to investigate.
"I wonder why this place is so secluded and secure?" I thought.
I walked across the large courtyard to reach the way up to the building, walking outside onto a balcony, only to be stopped by the Giant guard that blocked the path. As I arrived at the guard, he slammed the bottom of his halberd on the ground.
"None pass," his deep voice boomed.
"I am Sir Orion of the elite guard! I demand entry!" I called.
"None pass..."
I knew he wasn't going to let me in, and there was no way he would let me run past him. I had to devise a plan to get past him, or I would never gain entry. For now, I had a lesson to get to on the other side of the central castle. I left the Giant and ran to the cleric's hall for my last lesson of the day; the art of lightning magic.
"You are late... Again," the Paladin said.
"Apologies Sire, I will try to be more punctual," I said.
"If you keep this up, I will have to inform the General."
"I understand."
"Get on your studies."
"Aye Sire."
I walked to the nearest table and opened up the beginner tome to the level one page. In all the years I have been studying these arts, I was never able to make out anything other than the most trivial of pages. I would usually attempt multiple times with no progress, and even come up with small workarounds for some pages. The Paladin who taught me knew I was cheating, but took pity in my inability to live up to expectations. He would also talk of this "rising prodigy" he trained that was transferred to a prestigious monetary, or his "quick learning student" that juggled multiple classes of magic. Honestly all the down talk made me sick... I started giving less effort in my studies, due to me having gotten nowhere in the past few weeks. I was instead devising a plan to get past that Giant. I was even caught sketching a plan in my notes instead of copying spells. Finally the Paladin got frustrated with my lack of care.
"Go home," the Paladin said suddenly.
"Pardon?" I asked.
"Go home. I know you aren't trying, and I know you have been cheating. This time your father will be finding out."
My heart skipped a beat, the very fact I was skipping lessons my father takes so much pride in. What would he do to me?
"Please, don't tell my father, he would kill me!" I called.
"Or I can make you a deal."
I shook off my shock, and looked up at the Paladin.
"I know you want to bypass the Giant sentry outside the archives, with the sketches you have been doing in place of your studies. I have heard only rumors on what lies inside those walls, nothing good I assure."
"Oh..."
"However, I will assist you in getting past the Giant on one condition."
"Name it," I said desperately, my mood lifting to excitement.
"You show me some kind of real progress in the magical arts, no matter how small. I want to see you actually care about the arts."
"Deal."
The Paladin walked across the room to a small cupboard on one of the walls. From the cupboard he withdrew a strange looking skull.
"I use these for teaching about souls and their uses," the Paladin explained.
I took the skull, and looked it over. The eyes had a strange blue glow to them, and it almost seemed to hum.
"What does it do?" I asked.
"It shatters, scattering souls everywhere. Most non-human creatures are drawn to the souls, or the sound will take their attention."
"Interesting, how do I use it exactly?"
"You simply throw it to the location you want something to go."
"So how does this help me get past the guard?"
"You simply hide and throw it away from the area you need to go."
"I see."
I thought the situation over, inadvertently causing an awkward silence to fill the room.
"May I make a journey up there now, or do I have to wait until tomorrow's lesson?" I finally asked.
"You may go right now. Honestly, I thought you would have darted..." the Paladin's voice trailed off as I ran out of the room.
I ran almost full sprint back to the isolated building. Within a few minutes I arrived at the courtyard leading up to the building. I hid around a corner and tossed the skull to the opposite side of the balcony. It shattered like a glass window, echoing the sound through the local area, and left a faint white glow on the ground. Sure enough, the Giant wandered over to investigate the odd disturbance. I quietly snuck around him, noticing a set of stairs that were hiding where he stood. I dashed up the stairs and suddenly ended up in a forest area. I ran behind a nearby tree for cover. I checked the opposite direction only to find a long corridor leading into the building. Since there were no other guards, I dashed for the corridor. Once inside, I slowed my pace to a steady walk, and admired the architecture.
"This place is incredible. I wonder why the ceiling is so high up though. Much taller than any Giant around here..." I wondered as I walked.
The hallway was extremely long, as it took me a few minutes just to reach the end. I eagerly turned left, but came to only another long hall. After reaching the end of that one, a right turn led me to a shorter hall that exited into a room.
"Finally..." I sighed.
In the room were a few bookshelves and tables scattered with scrolls and books, and a short staircase leading up to an elevator at the end.
"I wonder what is up there..."
I walked to the elevator, only to find it was missing the activation plate and lever.
"Someone doesn't want anyone going up there... Curious."
I had to settle with the few bookshelves and tables scattered around the room. I started at the beginning of the room where a large tome sat on a pedestal. I removed my helmet and gauntlets, and placed them on a nearby table. I opened the tome titled "Introduction to Sorcery" to the first page.
"Sorceries are an extension of the soul itself. Able to be projected and cast in various forms," I read.
It continued with the history and story behind sorcery, followed by steps to channeling energy supple enough to produce a spell. Next came the general requirements for Sorcerers.
"A catalyst is needed to channel the energy through in order to provide a physical form of the spell being cast."
Below was a simple sketch of what a basic catalyst looked like.
"I wonder if I can find one around here somewhere. A place with spell books and scrolls has to have something to utilize them with..." I said.
I noticed a large wooden cabinet on the ground, which seemed to be the only storage area in the whole room. I made my way across the room to the cabinet, and naturally it is locked. I withdrew my dagger and tried to both unlock it and break the lock. With no luck on either method, I decided to break a nearby candle stand and use the pole to pry the lock off. I broke the candle holder off the top, and the stand off the bottom, leaving me with the support pole in between. I jammed one end under the latch, and gave the other a swift kick. The lock shattered, along with the latch, and the pole fell to the ground with a vibrating clang. The inside of the cabinet was organized clothing. A strange style of black robes and hats sat inside, with a few small daggers beside. On the far end sat two catalysts. I grabbed one from its hiding place, and closed the cabinet back up.
"This is it? It's just a fancy stick..." I said as I examined it.
I went back over to the tome, and resumed my reading. The next few chapters covered basic casting stance and energy efficiency. I practiced for a bit before continuing, utilizing the basic body and arm movements to cast general sorceries. During which I could swear I heard the catalyst humming so slightly. Finally, the tome got to the actual spells.
"All will become clear once the caster has ample knowledge of sorcery."
I turned the page, and it was nothing but strange runes. I stared at the page, and the symbols began to change to actual letters.
"Soul arrow? What is a soul arrow?" I wondered.
A very short incantation was to follow. I said the incantation, and my catalyst began to glow. I swung my catalyst and a pale blue bolt flew from the end and hit a spherical statue, shattering it on impact.
"Oh... So that is what it does..."
It took the next five casts for me to figure out one simple thing...
"I can actually use magic! All these years of studying without even managing a simple healing!" I rejoiced.
Then the horrible truth hit me like a dragon's tail.
"What is Father going to think... That I can't learn our family's magic class... I'm going to be a bigger disappointment than I already am."
I held the catalyst in both hands, pondering what I should do with my newfound specialty.
"You know, he hasn't been much of a father to me anyway. Damn him, I'm giving up lightning magic," I decided.
I withdrew a small leather bound journal from its small satchel, and began copying down the translatable spells from the tome. I managed to translate multiple sorceries, and began practicing them. One would be useful for getting past the Giant, as it silenced all of my movements. Hours seemed to go by in a flash, and I began to feel my energy fading.
"Sorceries seem to take a lot out of you," I said, sitting at a nearby table. "Maybe I will just close my eyes for a bit..."
I awoke some time later, suddenly aware I had no way to tell time. I quickly gathered my helmet and gauntlets, hid my catalyst under my coat, and dashed out of the room. I put my gauntlets and helmet on as I ran down the series of hallways. As I got outside, I realized it was almost the same time of day as when I entered.
"Shit! I was in there for a full day!"
I ran to the base of the stairs, but came to a halt when I remembered the Giant. I withdrew my journal, and found the spell to quiet my footsteps. I reached under my coat, grabbed my catalyst, and cast the spell. Two orbs of light covered my feet, and silenced my footsteps. I picked up and threw a stone to the Giant, which distracted him just long enough to sneak behind him. After I was clear of the Giant, I ran full sprint to my magic class.
"I missed all of today's classes, Father is not going to be happy," I thought.
"He's what?!" came a yell from down the hall.
As I approached the class, another person came flying out of the room, sprinting in the opposite direction. In a blur, we almost collided, but he seemed do avoid me at the last second.
"What was his rush?"
Finally I reached the door to the classroom, nearly breaking it off the hinges as I threw it open.
"Late again..." the Paladin said.
"I have a reason! I did what you said with the skull and..." I started, but the Paladin raised a hand.
"Thank you for delivering it for me, but how could you have gotten lost in the kingdom you live in? And to miss your morning classes to boot?"
The Paladin barely tilted his head downward, which seemed strange.
"Now take this dagger, and show me your progress with weapon enchanting. No cheating."
The Paladin handed me a dagger with two hands, which I accepted in the same manor. I noticed a very faint, but all too familiar, glistening on the blade.
"Why is there a trace of gold resin on here?" I wondered.
I noticed a strange reflection on his helmet. It was Father standing with his arms crossed and spear on his back at the opposite end of the room.
"Shit..."
I took a deep breath, focused, and slid my hand down the blade and scooped up the resin along the way.
"Again," the Paladin said.
This time I applied the resin to the blade by pressing down on it enough to cause the resin to react with the friction, and cause it to spark. A few sparks shot off from the blade, it hummed for a few seconds, and went back to normal.
"At least you produced sparks this time. Getting better each time you try," the Paladin said.
I heard a rustle of armor, followed by footsteps behind me. Father walked past me, giving my shoulder plate a good pat and a nod on his way out the door. I acted surprised as if I didn't know he was even in the room. There were few moments of silence as his footsteps faded down the hall.
"Thank you Sire," I said to the Paladin with a bow.
"No worries, now, what did you find?" the Paladin asked.
"I found this," I said as I withdrew the catalyst.
The Paladin examined the stick, and laughed.
"This is a Sorcerer's catalyst. If you can't even muster a simple heal, how could you..."
A simple direct hit soul arrow to one of the training dummies cut him off. He sat there, in stunned silence, staring at the smoking dummy.
"I was trying to learn the wrong school of magic," I said.
I glanced down at a scroll on the edge of the table, noticing it looked like the pages in the time I was reading.
"What is this?" I asked.
"Artorias' boy left it when he took off. It's apparently some kind of spell passed down through his family," the Paladin replied.
"May I?"
"He hasn't been able to decipher the runes, so nobody knows what it will do."
I read over the runes, able to decipher the entire scroll. I then jotted down the new spell in my journal.
"It seems to be a mid level support sorcery called 'hidden body.' However, this rune references something by the name of 'Oolacile,' do you know of it?"
"I do not. So what does it do?"
I took the passive sorcery stance, and waved my catalyst over my head. I felt no different, nor noticed any physical affects.
"Orion... Where did you go?" the Paladin asked.
"What do you mean? I'm right here," I said as I waved an arm.
"You are almost completely transparent. I can only really see you when you move."
I walked over to a nearby mirror, and he was right. I knew where I was, but could barely see myself, only when I moved quickly did the spell's effects lessen.
"Amazing. This will guarantee I get past the Giant from now on!"
The spell's effects wore off, and my body slowly became a solid object once more.
"I can't wait to keep reading the books in that library."
"I think I heard it called the Archive once, or something like it. I don't know much else though," the Paladin said.
"There seems to be more, but I can't go anywhere with a broken elevator. What is there will have to suffice I guess."
I thanked the Paladin before heading back to the barracks to get some sleep.
The following week worth of days were filled with me running "errands" for the Paladin, and my normal routine. I often overheard Father down talk of a traitor rising amongst the knights by the name of Artorias. I began to question it and received a large amount of venting on his part about the situation. Disobeying the King, abandoning his post, going against the laws that governed out kingdom, and more negativity. I began to agree with him after multiple lessons and graver news regarding the events by the day.
I kept the magic sessions short due to my energy and unwanted repeat of the first day. Father continued to drop in now and then to watch my progress, each time I had a larger weapon with a slight amount more resin. I had finally finished the tome and most of the other books in the first Archive room, some weren't even spell books, but short tales of legendary Sorcerers. One day, I noticed a strange mark on my shoulder as I practiced the extent of the hidden body spell on bare skin. I cut the session short, put my upper armor back on, and headed to see the Paladin. I arrived just as the Paladin was getting ready to leave.
"Orion, you look worried, is something wrong?" he asked.
"Yes Sire, I noticed something strange on my shoulder," I replied.
I proceeded to slide my right sleeve up, along with the mail, revealing a black vortex-looking mark. The Paladin dropped the books he was holding, and knocked a glass flask to the ground with them.
"Orion... You..." he started, but stopped when he looked up to the door I had accidentally left open.
A patrol of the King's large royal Knights appeared in the doorway, and took immediate notice of my mark.
"You there! Don't move you branded cur!" one shouted.
"What does he mean? Sire Paladin, what is it?!" I called.
"He is the General's boy, won't you show him mercy? He just found it today!" the Paladin replied.a
"You know the laws, all branded undead will be sent to the Asylum to rot like the scum they are!" the second knight said.
Both knights were now standing a few feet from the duo.
"Orion, run! Run and never come back!"
One knight bashed the Paladin with his shield, knocking him out cold. The other tried to grab me, but I dropped my sleeve and dove under him.
"Get him! Alive or dead, he cannot run the streets of this land!" one knight called to the other, and both sprinted after me.
I dashed through the streets of the kingdom, trying to evade the knights after me. Suddenly the alarm bell began to chime in sets of three. I only remember that chime happening once before, and the King was presented with a butchered body in shackles. In my absent mindedness I accidentally ran into a dead end alley.
"Nowhere left to run," one knight said.
"Do we have to take him alive? I want to see if these Undead really are what people say they are," the other said.
Both Knights looked at each other, and pushed forward, blades raised.
"What do I do? I have no weapons..." I thought. "Wait, yes I do!"
I withdrew the catalyst from inside my coat, and took the offensive stance.
"That stick can't help you..."
The forward knight swung his large sword, which I dodged. He continued the assault, and all I could do was dodge the attacks.
"I wish I had a shield..."
The knight began to get angry and hasten his attacks, making his swings sloppy. I managed to dodge one and rotate around him, forcing him into the corner. I fired a soul arrow and hit him square in the chest. It knocked him backwards a few steps before recovering.
"What are you standing there for? Get him!" the knight called to the other.
I had forgotten about the second, and was now between both. Before I knew it, I was dodging blows from both sides. Luckily my armor could deflect most of it, but the parts covered in mail simply diffused the lethality. I dodged a heavy swing from one knight, but as I spun to my right, an oncoming shield met my head. My helmet was sent down the alley, and I onto my back. I tried to get up quickly, only to take the tip of a blade across the right side of my face.
"You barely scratched him, I thought you said to kill him," the second knight said.
"I wanted to see if he would bleed first," the other knight replied.
I held the side of my face, the blood running down my arm and into my eye. The knights foolishly thought I couldn't fight back, and lowered their guard as they discussed how to execute me. I clutched my catalyst, and charged one of the last spells in the tome I was reading.
"Hey, who said you could..."
I fired the great heavy soul arrow at the nearest knight. It hit him in the chest and shattered the front of his chest plate, and the shockwave knocked the second knight over. I jumped up, scooped up one of their swords, drove it through the first knight's open armor and into his chest, and pinned him to the rear wall. I grabbed the second large sword, and held it to the remaining knight's neck.
"Nobody is executing me," I said.
"We were just following orders!" he called.
"No, you were following your own interests. You are a disgrace to noble knights."
I swing the blade, beheading the knight. I held onto the blade, knowing more knights would be after me. I picked up my helmet and put it on, cast the hidden body spell, and carried on.
By the time I knew it, I had traveled to the lower parts of the Kingdom, a place I had never been. I was beginning to feel faint and dizzy, having lost a large amount of blood and from the constant spell use. Finally, I could go on no longer. I dropped the blade and my catalyst, and fell to my knees.
"I'm going to die here..." I thought.
The last thing I saw through my fading vision was a figure in all red robes, wearing a mask, walk up to me.
"Tsk, this is not your time," he said.
I awoke some time later in a new place, lying on what felt like a stone table. I sat up, and nearly fell back from the sheer pain that suddenly shot through my body. I noticed my armor and mail sitting on a chair at the end of the room, and I was dressed in ragged clothing. A woman in crimson red robes entered through the doorway.
"Ingward, he's awake!" she called.
Two more robed figures came into the room.
"How are you feeling?" one, I take it Ingward, asked.
"Like I was hit by a Giant..." I said.
"You need to relax, your treatment is almost done."
"What treatment?"
"Your head wound was worse than it looked. We do not know very much in the ways of healing, but we have our own ways of mending the body. As for yours, all will heal with a few more treatments and time," the woman said.
"Does anyone know where I am?"
"No, nor will we tell anyone, including your father."
"How do they know who I am...? And who are they?" I thought.
I laid back down, thinking the situation over.
"Then continue... And thank you for saving my life. Some day I will repay this debt."
Days passed, with each one dragging on longer than the previous. I did, however, begin to feel better. One day I managed to get off the table and make my way through the house. I came to a cracked open door where two of the robed saviors were talking.
"Yeah, if you go there, you can cure all those people," a masculine voice said.
"Really? Do you think I can? But that place is so dangerous..." the feminine voice replied.
"Yeah, but you are a great sorceress when it comes to supporting others."
"Enough of that! How many times have I told you to stop trying to send her to her death!" a third voice yelled.
"Ingward, let her decide what she wants to do her self. You can't baby her forever."
"Both of you stop... I hate being in the middle of your arguments."
I snuck back to the table, and moved a nearby chair fairly loudly, as if I just got up. The three came out of the door to see what the noise was.
"Ah, I see you are feeling well enough to walk. I think it's time for introductions. I am Ingward," the leading robed figure said.
"I am Yulva," the woman said.
"And I prefer not to disclose my name to strangers," the third said.
Ingward let out a sigh.
"We are the King's court wizards of sorts, the Sealers," Ingward explained.
"Wizards, as in sorcery?" I asked.
"Yes, why?" Yaria asked.
"Can you teach me?"
The three Sealers looked at each other with a mix of shock and curiosity.
"Why would you like to learn sorcery? Isn't your precious heritage lightning magic?" the third Sealer said sarcastically.
"Because some of you seem to care more for me than my own father does. To hell with heritage, I can't even use lightning."
"Ha, then what makes you think you can use sorcery?"
I grabbed my catalyst from the chair, my journal from my pouch, and cast hidden body.
"That's Oolacilian magic. Where did you learn this?" Ingward asked.
"The Archive on the hill by the main castle," I lied.
"You have been there?! Lies!" the third Sealer yelled.
"That long lost spell is proof enough. What else did you find?" Ingward asked.
I told them my entire story up to this point and keeping some things, like the Paladin's help, a secret.
"So you wish to expand what you already know?" Ingward asked.
"Aye."
Ingward looked at Yulva, and nodded.
"On one condition. If something should happen to us, no matter what, you do not follow in our footsteps. Do not come after us, and do not follow the dark path."
"Okay..." I replied, confused.
"Then your apprenticeship starts tomorrow."
The following weeks were tough practice with using various techniques to strengthen spells and range. I wrote everything I learned in my journal, being careful to write down even the smallest details. One day, disaster came through the front door.
"Ingward, the King wishes to see you," a familiar voice said.
I quietly dove behind a nearby door, noticing that voice belonged to my father.
"Aye Sire, we will be there shortly," Ingward replied.
"I will await outside to escort you."
Ingward came back into the room we were practicing in.
"What is going on?" I asked.
"Remember our deal young sorcerer. No matter what happens."
"I still have so many questions, you still haven't told me about that mark."
"In due time, now where is…"
Ingward stopped, looking for the third Sealer, only to see him walk in from behind the General.
"Time to leave, don't want to keep his Highness waiting now," he said smugly.
"He didn't do what I think he did…" I thought.
Ingward and Yulva went to the front door, and without looking back, left through the door.
I was left alone in the small home, with the only thing close to a real family having left and probably never coming back.
"They aren't coming back... That cur of a Sealer reported my whereabouts to my father, now who knows when he will be back for me..." I said.
I continued to practice alone for almost a week, preparing for the long journey to escape the kingdom. When I had begun to run out of supplies in the house, I figured it was time to leave. I packed what remained into a spare robe, tied it off, and set it aside. I changed into all of my armor from the robes the Sealers let me wear, and picked up the large silver sword I arrived with. I was just about to pick up the robe of supplies when the front door burst open. Two large knights came in, followed by two more.
"Finally found me huh?" I taunted.
I kept the sword on my back, held my journal in my left hand, and my catalyst in my right. The first knight charged, and took a swift great soul arrow to the chest. Three more threw him into the opposite wall. Another knight charged forward, smart enough to use his shield. I flipped through my journal, channeled and fired a great heavy soul arrow to the ground below him. The shock threw off his guard, enough to exploit the opening with another to his helmet. The last two knights charged, and I had no choice but to retreat into the practice room. I quickly placed my journal in its pouch, put my catalyst into my belt, and drew the large sword in both hands.
"I never realized how large this thing is, it's like a heavy spear..." I thought.
I took a stance holding the blade with the pommel at my right shoulder, and the tip parallel to the floor. As soon as the first knight came through the door, I thrusted the blade forward after taking a few steps, running it through his armor and chest. I quickly planted a foot on his chest, and ripped the blade out. The last knight, who was carrying a spear, walked into the room.
"Remember all those sparring matches, diagonal blocks and swings..." I thought.
He took a few quick jabs, which I avoided with ease.
"He is at a disadvantage. He can't swing that thing in arcs, making it easy to avoid. However, I am running out of room to dodge it..."
I changed stances to a more defensive stance. When I dodged the next attack, I brought my blade straight down on the handle of the spear, shattering the pole into two parts. I followed it up with an upward diagonal cut, slashing him across the chest. He dropped the parts of his spear, and collapsed on the ground. I stood over the final knight, blade tip at his chest.
"You think you are going to take me that easily?" I said.
"We were just the guards, it wasn't us that we're taking you away," the knight said.
I turned towards the front door to see my father standing in the door.
"I'm the one that's going to be taking you in," he said.
I used my left hand to grab my catalyst and ready it.
"I figured as much. Skipping classes, being seen going to the Archive and vanishing, staying with the Sealers. You have forsaken your heritage for some faithless sorcery. And to make me think you had talent..."
"It's not my fault I can't read it! Sorcery came to me naturally after I found the first spell."
"And now you use a sword and have the cursed mark. You are no son of mine. You are an ingrate!"
"You weren't even a father to me to begin with!"
I rushed my father with my blade, and in my anger I forgot my training. The first swing completely missed, and the follow up spell did as well.
"Rage only fuels failure. You didn't learn anything did you?!"
I withdrew my journal to use another spell, but my father knocked it out of my hand. He spearheaded it with his spear, holding it at the end.
"This has all your studies in it? Not anymore."
He sent a lightning charge through the spear and turned the book to ash.
"No!" I called.
Before I could react, he bashed my helmet with a cross on his spear, knocking me to the ground.
"Disappointing..."
One more blow to my helmet, and I blacked out.
The next thing I knew was waking up as I was being dragged down a dark stone hallway. Multiple strange moans and yells echoed through the halls. My weapons were gone, my pouches cleaned, but my armor was still on. I looked up to see a prison cell with an open door. Two very strange looking guards threw me inside, they almost looked like walking corpses. The cell door slammed closed and was locked. When the guards were gone, I reached into the inside of my coat. I withdrew a small torn piece of parchment, the only page I managed to tear from my journal before my father destroyed it. All that was on it was a basic soul arrow.
"I will study this until I know it by heart, and when I get out of here... I will kill my traitorous father..." I said.
Orion ended his story with a sigh.
"You know the rest from there…" he said.
Silence filled the local area, as nobody knew what to say.
"I knew it! So that's the reason behind his hatred towards me is so great. He's the son of Dragonslayer Ornstein!" Azuron thought.
A/N: MAN that was a long chapter! Hope it was worth the wait, thanks for being so patient. Work has started to get busy with summer, but during the down times I am hard at work getting progress on the story. This one took longer mostly due to the length and me not wanting to miss anything important. I REALLY hope to make everyone's backstory chapter the same length if not longer, but the next one is a ways off. If you hadn't seen the Orion/Ornstein connection yet, well now you have :p No major names (aside Artorias') were given to add a bit of mystery surrounding future secrets (ooooh secrets!)
Anyway, leaving on a trip tomorrow with a friend, so probably won't get much progress done on the next chapter, but I will be planning the storyboard for a while to come. Hopefully that will help get chapters out faster with a pre-done layout, much like I had when the story started.
Thanks for reading and your support/patience, see y'all next time!