Present Day. . .
"What are you doing here?" Gallagher asks.
"..." Elizabeth was silent as she unsheathed her twin blades. Nyle had ordered her to kill Gallagher for his incompetence to complete the final part of her trial in becoming a Dark Knight.
"Did you really follow me to kill me?" Gallagher asks, shocked.
"I'm sorry..." Elizabeth said as she raised her blades.
Gallagher fell to his knees. "Please... Please don't kill me." He begged. "I apologize for everything I did. I've always looked up to you."
"Spare me the lies..." Elizabeth said, trying to hide her pain.
"I mean it! I won't call you a rookie anymore. Please don't kill me! I don't want to die!" He cried out.
Elizabeth's hand shook as she found it harder and harder to bring down her blade to end this man. The man who gave her such a hard time ever since she joined the Crimson Blades. Constantly boasting his superiority over her because she was a woman. And that word "rookie" that she began to hate ever since Gallagher kept using it as an insult to her.
"Damn it!" She growled as she tossed her swords aside, making loud clanking noises as they landed on the hard wood floor.
"What?" Gallagher looked up from his fetal position. "You're... you're not going to kill me?" He asked.
"I can't... no matter how much I don't like you I just can't." Elizabeth sighed, sitting down on the nearby bench.
"Really?" He asked.
"My god, are you that dumb?" Elizabeth groaned. "Yes, I'm not going to kill you."
"In that case..." he stood up and laughed. "What the hell are you doing here then?"
"... Wait, what?" Elizabeth was confused.
"Why are you just sitting there? Get out of here!" He said. "Stupid rookie..."
She stared wide-eyed at Gallagher, shocked at what she was hearing.
"Yeah, I said it! Forget all that crap I said before. I never looked up to you, and I don't even like you!"
Elizabeth was frozen in her seat, her jaw dropped in shock.
"You still have a lot to learn, eh rookie? Hehe. Oh man, how could a mercenary be so weak?!" He laughed.
Elizabeth got up and planted a hard kick on the laughing man's chest, sending him flying across the room and smacking into the opposite wall. "You jerk..." She said, picking up her swords. She resisted the temptation to go and kill him right then and there and sheathed her blades. She left the Mercenary Outpost only to be immediately greeted by Theo, Tieve's dog.
"Hey, Theo!" She knelt and playfully petted the big white dog and scratched behind his ears. Theo panted in happiness as Elizabeth petted him. There were two people that Theo liked more than anyone else and they were Tieve and Elizabeth.
"Were you a good dog while I was gone?" She babied him as she cupped his head and rubbed her nose against Theo's. He barked happily and nuzzled up against Elizabeth, licking her.
She laughed and continued to pet the dog as she sat down on the grass.
"You always have a way with dogs don't you?" Elizabeth looked up to see Lann.
Lann and Elizabeth were friendly rivals as they battled side-by-side. Like her, he too came from a dark past. Lann's mother was a courtesan who was murdered when he was only five years old. During his early years, he was a slave working in the farms of a tyrannical slave owner. When he was just seventeen, he ran away and took refuge in Colhen. For five years he was inspired by Captain Aodhan and worked everyday perfecting his dual sword technique until he joined the same time Elizabeth did. By then she was barely nineteen and they've been partners for two years. He treated her as an equal, something Elizabeth was grateful for.
Unlike Lann, Elizabeth preferred having her dominant hand hold a sword in reverse and the other sword held the traditional way. When Lann asked why she fought like that, she demonstrated her technique. She was able to leave no openings in her form and was a formidable force on the battlefield, cutting down enemies in her path.
"Hey, partner." Elizabeth winked.
"How did your mission go?" He asked. Elizabeth had told Lann that she had to go on an mission alone as an excuse to hide the fact she was being put on trials to become a Dark Knight.
"It was... unexpected, but I got the job done and collected the reward." She said.
"Good to hear, glad you're safe." Lann said.
"Since when did you care about my safety?" She scoffed.
"Well you have to be alive to see how much better I am with a sword than you." He winked.
She giggled, "the only way that will happen is if I'm dead."
They laughed and played with Theo for a bit. Elizabeth watched Lann run around with Theo in the village center.
"I see you finally got the armor you commissioned from Ferghus." Elizabeth commented. Lann was wearing the Dark Crest set without the helmet.
"Yeah, it was expensive as hell to have Ferghus forge it. Even more expensive because he kept breaking some of the equipment as he kept trying to make it." He sighed as he threw a red ball into the distance and Theo ran after it.
She giggled, "I told you that you should've gone to Rocheste to find a more experienced Blacksmith."
"Yeah, yeah, rub it in." He said, sitting next to her. "Although I doubt Ferghus would appreciate you criticizing his handiwork. I think the Dark Crest set came out nicely."
"I won't argue with that part, but I'm just saying that he breaks things too much," she pointed out.
"True." He looked at her.
"What?" She asked.
"Don't you think the Lightwind set is a bit too revealing?" Lann asked, blushing.
"Well of course! That's the point." Elizabeth smirked. "It makes enemies underestimate my fighting capabilities and makes my fights a lot easier."
"Huh, never really thought about that. But for Morrighan's sake, we're in town. The least you could do is change into proper clothing. We're not going to go on missions for a while." Lann chastised.
"You're one to talk Knight-In-Shining-Armor." She scoffed before getting up. "I'll see you later, I have to go see Brynn."
"Okay, I'll meet you in the Inn's tavern." Lann said, waving. Elizabeth giggled as Theo tackled him.
"Do you regret your choice?" Nyle asked Elizabeth in the laboratory basement.
"Absolutely." Elizabeth groaned, "after all that, he had the nerve to insult me."
He chuckled, "it's too late now. But don't be disappointed."
"But why? I didn't do as you asked. I can't become a Dark Knight." She said, resting her face on her hand.
"You acted according to your own convictions. I'm sure there is a different path for you." Nyle assured.
"You're kidding me right? I should be a Dark Knight after what happened to me." She sighed with disappointment. Elizabeth had told Nyle about her past a while ago during the whole Blood Prince crisis. Only he, Brynn and Lann knew about her past.
"Besides, what other path could I possibly take. It would be a more treacherous and long journey if I did try it." Elizabeth said.
"It could be closer than you think." Nyle said, sipping a cup of Brynn's perfect tea.
"How?"
"Perhaps... it is in that book there." He pointed to the diary she found from the Goliath frog. She hadn't opened it since she acquired it, partially because it was still covered in frog juice.
She grabbed the diary and opened it. A burst of light shot out from the book causing Elizabeth to recoil and fall backwards in her seat.
Nyle chuckled as he took another sip from the tea cup.
She groaned as she put the chair back upright and sat down and read out loud the only passage that was in the diary.
I have decided not to become a Dark Knight, but to forge my own path.
It is my mission to protect the Oracle.
But Morrighan... I cannot wait for you to come.
I have decided to give my life for all those who would die before you come.
Even if this means we must wait longer... I swear to follow my convictions.
I swear by my name...
Elizabeth's name appeared in the missing part of the text.
I swear by my name, Elizabeth Courtland.
Suddenly another burst of light emanated from the book and enveloped Elizabeth. "What's happening?!" She said, confused.
"Don't fight it, Elizabeth. Just let it enter you and fill you with its warmth." Nyle said.
"It's kind of hard to-"
"Just relax." Nyle assured.
She sighed and stood still. She closed her eyes and tried her best to relax. Then she suddenly felt a jolt of warmth throughout her body. When she opened her eyes, the light was gone.
"What just happened?" She asked.
Nyle smirked as he placed his tea cup on the table. "You're now a Paladin, Lady Courtland."