The path seemed to run forever as Marin and Gus made their way to the outskirts of White Forest. The mountain air from their northern origin was completely absent now, as they made their way south towards Tarenfall.
Gus took notice of it, but of course Marin was oblivious to the fact.
It had been a fairly pleasant walk for the two of them, considering the shade they were provided from the sun in the forest. Along with the occasional traveler or cart that past them walking the opposite direction, Marin enjoyed the wildlife that hopped around from the side of the road.
In the distance, either left or right of the forest path, furred animals such as deer or rabbits could be seen from time to time. Gus pointed out that predators like bears and wolves lived deeper in the forest, where they were a considerable distance from society.
"If a bear attacked us, you'd freeze it solid, right?" Gus asked.
It was an odd question, but given a bit of thought, it would seem like the best course of action.
"I suppose," Marin responded. What kind of question was that?
"Good, because I mean, I can use this sword, but I wouldn't want to take my chances with a bear," he explained.
"Is that something I should be prepared for?" Marin asked, wondering why this conversation began.
"No, that would definitely be a rare thing to happen," Gus said back. "I guess I was just curious about what you would do."
"Well if I had to elaborate on it more, I'd feel ill doing that to a bear, or any animal in that case, but if it was barreling towards us I wouldn't have much of a choice."
Hearing Marin's response made Gus realize how left-field his question was. Truth is, he was fascinated by elemental power. He had never seen it before, only heard of it. When Marin materialized a chair made of ice yesterday, it left him bewildered about what other skills his King had.
"Sorry if that was a weird question. You know, when you fought that fire elemental at Heroca, that was the first time I had seen elemental skills in action. And the fact that Loid hid that shadow element all this time... It just threw me for a loop," Gus explained.
"What did you think?" Marin responded.
"It... It was incredible."
The two continued to walk as they finally cleared White Forest. Gus showed much interest in Marin's ice element. His curiosity dominated the conversations the two had as they journeyed. Gus asked about how the King learned his craft, and why he pursued ice in the first place.
Unfortunately, Marin did not have many answers. His botched memory left many holes in his reasoning for what he did, but he did his best to string together some theories on why he chose his path.
"I studied at Arkana, Gus. I moved there when I was a little less than your age, if I recall correctly. I wanted nothing more than to be a strong elemental. Though I fear it was for selfish reasons at first. As to why I adopted ice as my element... I can't remember. It was a long time ago."
Marin's tone showed little interest in talking about the past, but every small piece of information he gave up to him only made Gus realize how little he knew about his King. Even his appearance was completely concealed. Not a sliver of skin was ever shown to him. For all he knew, there could be ghost under all that clothing.
The answer Marin gave caused an eruption of questions to enter Gus's mind. He wanted to know his age, the reason for the mask, the fully concealed clothing, where he had come from, all of it.
YOU ARE READING
The Dead King
FantasíaA powerful ice wizard awakens in his abandoned castle after being dead for a few hundred years. His kingdom and everyone who was a part of it has vanished. Having almost all his memory wiped, he tries to repair the castle, return to normal life, and...
