"Well, after I'd gotten away from the armed guards, I didn't know where I was going. I spent the better part of two years wandering around the Continent, trying to both hide my identity and survive. Instinct is a weird concept to grasp, but I quickly learned to trust it when it came to the outside world. One day, however, I was grabbing an apple from a merchant's stall in hopes of having something to eat that day, when I was suddenly stopped by an odd-looking tendril," Athar said.
"A tendril? You mean one of mana?" Irun asked. "I didn't know it at the time, but yes. The tendril grabbed me and pulled me aside just in time for a guard not to see me taking the apple. Once the guard left, the tendril moved like it wanted me to follow it. I didn't know why, but I felt I could trust it to lead me to safety. Eventually, I found him, standing there with his dark cloak and mask, towering over me. I felt scared, of course, but because he was the one who had saved me from the guard, my instincts told me I could trust him. Over the years he's treated me like a slave, but I suppose it's better than being killed by an armed guard," Athar explained.
"And I thought my story was rough," Irun said pensively. "Oh? What's yours?" Athar asked. "Dad was a synner, mom was a trader. I, uh… I don't really want to talk about that right now," Irun said distantly as memories of his childhood flashed in his mind's eye.
"That's okay, I won't pry right now, but I will expect a decent story sometime. After all, we're kind of stuck here together now," Athar said, shrugging his shoulders.
Was his attitude always like this? Even with the Masked One? Or is this who he truly is, and not whatever that weird servant-master deal is they've got going on? Irun thought.
"Why the synners, though? Why not go for a guardsmen position or something along those lines?" Athar asked. "That's a bit… morbid to answer right now, but in short, it wasn't really my choice," Athar said, scratching the back of his head.
"Alright, alright. I said I won't pry, but I didn't realize the two things were that closely related. I'm sorry. I'll wait until you're ready to tell me," Athar said. "Thank you for understanding," Irun said, his tone much softer than intended. "Oh, you don't have to thank me," Athar shrugged.
"We all have different experiences in life, and I can't compare my trauma to yours. What yours did to you might feel like the equivalent of what mine did to me. I have to accept the fact that what happened to us is different, and that we have each responded to those things differently," he continued, putting a hand on Irun's shoulder which was now much higher than his.
"That was surprisingly insightful for someone so isolated from society," Irun noted. "Heh, you remind me of someone's brother I once knew," he said, thinking of Bernar. Athar looked at him, almost as if he could see the gears turning in Irun's head.
"I'm not sure what ultimately led you to betraying them, but I think I agree with the Masked One that you still have lingering feelings about that place," Athar noted. "Shut up," Irun snapped. "Sorry. I guess it makes sense, knowing that you spent most of your life with those people," Athar concluded. "It's fine, I just…" Irun stopped himself.
Just as I thought, there's no way he was completely sure of his decision, Athar thought. Luckily for him, Ardrin was either far enough away to not hear his thoughts, or simply didn't care.
"Speaking of family, you don't have any brothers, do you? Blood brothers, I mean, not your old brothers-in-arms," Athar asked. Irun took a second to think about the question posed. "I'd be lying if I said I knew for sure whether I have a sibling. It's been years since I've been able to speak to my mother," Irun replied, scratching his head. "I see…" Athar said, trying to piece together what information he could.
"Well, now that we've gotten to know each other a little, how about it?" Athar asked sheepishly. "How about what?" Irun asked, lifting an eyebrow. Athar gave him a wry smile in response. "You want to learn sword-casting at your age?" Irun asked, looking the man up and down. Athar was taken aback at the comment, putting a hand to his chest. "At my age? Rude. I'm a lot more fit than I look with these clothes, I'd have you know," he said, exhaling sharply.
Irun watched his unlikely companion hold the pose like he had been stabbed through the heart and sighed. "Fine. I'll teach you some of what I can," he caved. Athar, now giddy with excitement, pumped his fist again.
"Mission successful!" he hissed through a grin.