"Have you ever thought about the way things are back in the past? Back
when people had to endure the dark times of the Great Wars?"
Tier looked over at Myria. Combing her hair, she was leaning against the old oak trees and watching Tier as he watched his sword in the river.
"I never thought about such useless things. The past is the past, let it go."
Myria stubbornly shook her head. That was wrong. The past was not the past. Watching the man was something that became of habit to her. Everyday, it seemed that Tier taught her something new. Either how to control her magic, the way to fight an enemy without hurting oneself or something else about himself, she was as interested as a bear is towards honey.
"The past is not the past. We can learn from the past. You yourself is haunted by the past." Realizing that she had said something that should not have been said, Myria covered her mouth.
Glaring at the girl, Tier could not hide the surprise and frustration in his face. Roughly setting his sword back into its sheath, Tier headed towards the girl. Myria began shrinking back trying to get as close to the tree and as far away from Tier as possible.
"I don't need you telling me what to think. I am not haunted by anything and you don't need to know about it even if I am."
Hauling Myria up to her feet, he took their belongings and flung her knapsack towards her. "Come on. We have an hour's walk west to Geffen. Starting at a brisk pace, Tier did not look back nor wait for Myria to come. They walked in silence, battling the monsters only when necessary and Myria followed his instructions obediently. She practiced her basic skills, using her knife and constantly went over the rules of the magician's guild. Myria knew that she had touched upon something that had hurt Tier deeply and even though he was rather angry at her, Myria felt sorry for him. She wanted to ease his pain by helping him, but knew that Tier would never allow her to get close to him. Sighing constantly, she started to walk a little faster to catch up.
Meanwhile, Aeron and Soyee finally had reached Prontera. They walked around the huge city looking for the mother of the child. Soyee decided to look in the Prontera Inn while Aeron went to the items shop to see if anyone there knew about the kid's mother. Holding to the hand of the child, Soyee desperately tried to ask the Inn keeper about the boy's mother, but many people came in and out and the inn keeper was unusually busy.
"Please! I have business to do. If you're not here to stay, please leave."
It was not use. The inn keeper was too busy to entertain the time for Soyee to ask questions. The boy's mother had probably gone from the Inn anyways. Feeling defeated, she towed the boy away from the counter. Suddenly, she had an idea. Soyee could go to the church and see if the boy's mother was there!
Leaving the interior of the inn, she started walking rapidly with the boy towing behind her. They entered the church within a few minutes and looked around. A few people strolled around the corridors and a few priests were busy praying. The boy curiously looked around and then suddenly gave out a shout.
"Momma!"
Soyee looked up and saw a middle aged woman running towards the boy. Crying, the two reunited and held each other closely. The boy was excitedly chatting about his adventures while the woman inspected the boy for injuries. Finally the entire scene was starting to create a large crowd around the two and they were brought into a nearby room where they could talk at ease. Soyee decided to leave before she was targeted as the person who brought the boy back. Before she left the church though, she prayed quickly and asked for the blessing of the gods.
Back in the items shop, Aeron had not found any clues as to where the boy's mother was but he heard a few gossips about his sister. It seemed that Tier was a high ranked lightning-fire mage. He was renowned for his power, but most of all, his cold temper. Worried that Myria would tick the man off, Aeron wondered where the two was and what they were doing.
Her eyes, burning from the last fire attack, Myria sat down and rested. Tier sat beside her and started counting the goods. They had been attacking Porings and Fabres for an hour now. The Porings had apples stolen from the other travelers or had taken from the ground, while the Fabres had herbs which were able to heal many wounds. Their sudden attack on the monsters left the monsters surprised and they had left behind quite a large amount of items.
"Aren't we almost at Geffen yet?" asked Myria. Examining her map, she was sure that Geffen should be nearby.
Sighing, Tier looked up from the items in his lap. Pointing slightly south, he gestured towards a tree. Confused, Myria stood up and walked towards the tree. Walking past the bushes, she suddenly came face to face with a large Rocker. Screaming, Myria fell back and a fireball flew past her and scorched the Rocker. The monster's screams were high pitched and hard on the ears as it burned and fell to the ground. Holding Myria by the arms, Tier pulled her away from the mess. Crying, Myria held onto Tier and cried on his shoulders.
After Myria's momentary breakdown, she felt rather embarrassed at being so scared of the Rockers but seeing the Rocker again had made her remember yesterday where she had been stuck with the group of them. Tier sighed and got up. He motioned for Myria to follow him and started following the path that led them to Geffen. The large spire of the Geffen Tower was just barely visible over the tree tops.
Myria had never seen so many mages situated in one place. Many of the mages were sitting down in a sunlight area talking about potions and spells. Another group of mages were trading magical items while yet another was talking about their skills and what level their magic was at. Myria was fascinated with the magic-filled city. Everywhere, she looked; she saw man and woman with staffs and ornate garments.
Before she could absorb everything in, Tier started walking through the crowds. Many of the magicians stopped and looked at Tier. Some started whispering while others bowed their head slightly. Curious, Myria walked faster until she was walking side by side with the man.
"What are they whispering about?" she asked.
Tier looked at her askance and then started walking slower. "If your young ears did not catch what they are saying, then mine will certainly not hear it either."
Without another look back at Myria, he hurried through the crowds. Myria concentrated on following Tier but in the midst of walking, she caught snippets of other people's conversations.
"Did you see? That was Tier ... greatest mage... Great Wars..."
"Really? Tier ... was the...enormous power... great."
Internalizing this new information, Myria thought about the possibilities to the sentences. Perhaps Tier was a great mage that fought in the Great War? But that would be impossible. To fight in the Great War, Tier must have been only eight at the time. How could a small boy fight against the enemy at the age of eight? Contemplating over this, Myria almost missed the Mage's guild and was prodded by Tier from behind.
Snatching his staff playfully, Myria laughed and followed Tier into the building. Inside the simply decorated building, Tier turned towards Myria. Taking his staff out of her hands, he gently pushed her forwards towards a female guild member.
"Myria. I have to go now, to do some other business. You'll probably have to go on your quest without me. Do you think that is possible?"
Myria was scared fro a moment, Tier was leaving? Swallowing the lump that was in her throat, Myria bravely nodded her reply. Then surprised at herself, she suddenly threw her arms around Tier. "Thanks Tier. For everything. You've been a great teacher along the way here. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have made it this far. I hope we meet again, but before you go, could I ask you a question?"
Surprised by her sudden show of affection, Tier was momentarily stunned. After a moment of silence, he slowly asked, "What is your question."
Looking up at the white haired man, Myria smiled sadly, "Who are you?"
Confused, Tier thought about the question. Smiling, he put his hand on Myria's head and slowly said, "I'll tell you the next time we meet."
Sadly, Myria watched as the man walked out of the building without another backwards glance. Finally out of sight, Myria turned about and faced the guilds woman. It was time to apply for the job of her life. Time to get on the road to becoming a magician!
Tier looked over at Myria. Combing her hair, she was leaning against the old oak trees and watching Tier as he watched his sword in the river.
"I never thought about such useless things. The past is the past, let it go."
Myria stubbornly shook her head. That was wrong. The past was not the past. Watching the man was something that became of habit to her. Everyday, it seemed that Tier taught her something new. Either how to control her magic, the way to fight an enemy without hurting oneself or something else about himself, she was as interested as a bear is towards honey.
"The past is not the past. We can learn from the past. You yourself is haunted by the past." Realizing that she had said something that should not have been said, Myria covered her mouth.
Glaring at the girl, Tier could not hide the surprise and frustration in his face. Roughly setting his sword back into its sheath, Tier headed towards the girl. Myria began shrinking back trying to get as close to the tree and as far away from Tier as possible.
"I don't need you telling me what to think. I am not haunted by anything and you don't need to know about it even if I am."
Hauling Myria up to her feet, he took their belongings and flung her knapsack towards her. "Come on. We have an hour's walk west to Geffen. Starting at a brisk pace, Tier did not look back nor wait for Myria to come. They walked in silence, battling the monsters only when necessary and Myria followed his instructions obediently. She practiced her basic skills, using her knife and constantly went over the rules of the magician's guild. Myria knew that she had touched upon something that had hurt Tier deeply and even though he was rather angry at her, Myria felt sorry for him. She wanted to ease his pain by helping him, but knew that Tier would never allow her to get close to him. Sighing constantly, she started to walk a little faster to catch up.
Meanwhile, Aeron and Soyee finally had reached Prontera. They walked around the huge city looking for the mother of the child. Soyee decided to look in the Prontera Inn while Aeron went to the items shop to see if anyone there knew about the kid's mother. Holding to the hand of the child, Soyee desperately tried to ask the Inn keeper about the boy's mother, but many people came in and out and the inn keeper was unusually busy.
"Please! I have business to do. If you're not here to stay, please leave."
It was not use. The inn keeper was too busy to entertain the time for Soyee to ask questions. The boy's mother had probably gone from the Inn anyways. Feeling defeated, she towed the boy away from the counter. Suddenly, she had an idea. Soyee could go to the church and see if the boy's mother was there!
Leaving the interior of the inn, she started walking rapidly with the boy towing behind her. They entered the church within a few minutes and looked around. A few people strolled around the corridors and a few priests were busy praying. The boy curiously looked around and then suddenly gave out a shout.
"Momma!"
Soyee looked up and saw a middle aged woman running towards the boy. Crying, the two reunited and held each other closely. The boy was excitedly chatting about his adventures while the woman inspected the boy for injuries. Finally the entire scene was starting to create a large crowd around the two and they were brought into a nearby room where they could talk at ease. Soyee decided to leave before she was targeted as the person who brought the boy back. Before she left the church though, she prayed quickly and asked for the blessing of the gods.
Back in the items shop, Aeron had not found any clues as to where the boy's mother was but he heard a few gossips about his sister. It seemed that Tier was a high ranked lightning-fire mage. He was renowned for his power, but most of all, his cold temper. Worried that Myria would tick the man off, Aeron wondered where the two was and what they were doing.
Her eyes, burning from the last fire attack, Myria sat down and rested. Tier sat beside her and started counting the goods. They had been attacking Porings and Fabres for an hour now. The Porings had apples stolen from the other travelers or had taken from the ground, while the Fabres had herbs which were able to heal many wounds. Their sudden attack on the monsters left the monsters surprised and they had left behind quite a large amount of items.
"Aren't we almost at Geffen yet?" asked Myria. Examining her map, she was sure that Geffen should be nearby.
Sighing, Tier looked up from the items in his lap. Pointing slightly south, he gestured towards a tree. Confused, Myria stood up and walked towards the tree. Walking past the bushes, she suddenly came face to face with a large Rocker. Screaming, Myria fell back and a fireball flew past her and scorched the Rocker. The monster's screams were high pitched and hard on the ears as it burned and fell to the ground. Holding Myria by the arms, Tier pulled her away from the mess. Crying, Myria held onto Tier and cried on his shoulders.
After Myria's momentary breakdown, she felt rather embarrassed at being so scared of the Rockers but seeing the Rocker again had made her remember yesterday where she had been stuck with the group of them. Tier sighed and got up. He motioned for Myria to follow him and started following the path that led them to Geffen. The large spire of the Geffen Tower was just barely visible over the tree tops.
Myria had never seen so many mages situated in one place. Many of the mages were sitting down in a sunlight area talking about potions and spells. Another group of mages were trading magical items while yet another was talking about their skills and what level their magic was at. Myria was fascinated with the magic-filled city. Everywhere, she looked; she saw man and woman with staffs and ornate garments.
Before she could absorb everything in, Tier started walking through the crowds. Many of the magicians stopped and looked at Tier. Some started whispering while others bowed their head slightly. Curious, Myria walked faster until she was walking side by side with the man.
"What are they whispering about?" she asked.
Tier looked at her askance and then started walking slower. "If your young ears did not catch what they are saying, then mine will certainly not hear it either."
Without another look back at Myria, he hurried through the crowds. Myria concentrated on following Tier but in the midst of walking, she caught snippets of other people's conversations.
"Did you see? That was Tier ... greatest mage... Great Wars..."
"Really? Tier ... was the...enormous power... great."
Internalizing this new information, Myria thought about the possibilities to the sentences. Perhaps Tier was a great mage that fought in the Great War? But that would be impossible. To fight in the Great War, Tier must have been only eight at the time. How could a small boy fight against the enemy at the age of eight? Contemplating over this, Myria almost missed the Mage's guild and was prodded by Tier from behind.
Snatching his staff playfully, Myria laughed and followed Tier into the building. Inside the simply decorated building, Tier turned towards Myria. Taking his staff out of her hands, he gently pushed her forwards towards a female guild member.
"Myria. I have to go now, to do some other business. You'll probably have to go on your quest without me. Do you think that is possible?"
Myria was scared fro a moment, Tier was leaving? Swallowing the lump that was in her throat, Myria bravely nodded her reply. Then surprised at herself, she suddenly threw her arms around Tier. "Thanks Tier. For everything. You've been a great teacher along the way here. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have made it this far. I hope we meet again, but before you go, could I ask you a question?"
Surprised by her sudden show of affection, Tier was momentarily stunned. After a moment of silence, he slowly asked, "What is your question."
Looking up at the white haired man, Myria smiled sadly, "Who are you?"
Confused, Tier thought about the question. Smiling, he put his hand on Myria's head and slowly said, "I'll tell you the next time we meet."
Sadly, Myria watched as the man walked out of the building without another backwards glance. Finally out of sight, Myria turned about and faced the guilds woman. It was time to apply for the job of her life. Time to get on the road to becoming a magician!