Once she finally put on her mother’s dress and the rest of the armor, she grabbed her pack she had made last night and headed downstairs. She could tell that she was the last to wake up as she could hear everyone else munching on breakfast in the kitchen.
Walking into the room, she greeted everyone before taking a plate from the cupboard and serving herself some toast and eggs. She took a seat with the rest of her family. Eldin was the first to speak, “Seeing as how Lumina was too drunk last night to add her input, I took the liberty to decide where we would travel first.”
Lumina wanted to remark, but her head was still hurting and all she wanted was to eat breakfast in peace. Not that she didn’t mind Eldin taking the lead on traveling. He had at least left Woodvale a few times over the years to travel with his dad. The farthest she had gone was her training with Milli. And that was only to the Iron Mountain range.
“I was thinking that we should head to Gildale first and look at the guilds there. Afterall, you can’t really travel without supplies and money.” Eldin stated as his father added in, “In addition to having some income, making connections with various people is also just as important.”
Lumina appreciated that Eldin was taking it on him to plan their travel, she wished her head didn’t hurt so much. “Gildale. That’s the really big port city northwest of here.” She commented.
“Finally going out on your own.” Milli exclaimed with pride as she slapped Eldin on the back for good luck.
Lumina winced as her ears dropped briefly at the sound of the impact. Eldin groaned as he sat in his chair unable to move. The air in his lungs were forcefully exhaled as he gasped for breath. “Whoops. Sorry kiddo. I didn’t mean to hit you that hard.” Milli apologized as Elrin shook his head and shuddered. He too had experienced the ‘fatal back clap’ one too many times from the woman.
Lumina finished her plate of food before speaking again, “Are we ready to go Eldin?” She finished her glass of water and stood up.
Now that he was able to breathe normally, Eldin also got up from his chair and grabbed his pack that had been sitting against the kitchen wall. “You sure you can keep up with that hangover?” He jested as he made his way to the back door. “Very funny.” Lumina retorted sarcastically as she grabbed her own pack and joined him.
Elrin looked at the both of them and smiled, “Make sure to stick together.”
“And take this.” Milli said as she walked back into the kitchen and handed Lumina a cloak. “This can help hide those ears and tail of yours. It won’t get you past the town guards, but most people in town won’t give you a second look if you manage to keep your ears down.”
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Elrin pointed to his son’s mantle and his newly acquired badge, “Be proud of what you’ve accomplished. Don’t let anyone say otherwise. You earned that title.”
Eldin wasn’t sure why his father said what he said, but he was sure that the answer would arrive in time.
Stepping closer, Elrin brought both of them into a hug, “We are so proud of you two.” Milli patted both of them on the head as Elrin finally let them go. “We sent a message down to Gildale already informing a close friend of ours so you can actually enter the city. You can trust him.”
Eldin looked back to his dad after being freed from the hug, “It’s really that bad outside of Woodvale?”
“It is.” Milli confirmed as she opened the back door. The bright morning light and a brief gust of fresh air rushed in. “A beautiful day to start an adventure.” Elrin commented before relaying one last bit of information, “Also, after much thought, your mother and I are almost certain that Lumina can indeed use magic. Though it is quite unique and not controllable through typical methods.”
“What type of magic did she use then?” Eldin asked. “We believe she used energy.” Elrin responded. “Well of course she used energy. All magic requires some input of energy from the controller.” Eldin commented.
Elrin shook his head, “Pure energy. Like her father.” Both Eldin and Lumina looked at each other, then back to Elrin. Both replied at the same time, “What?”
Elrin chuckled as he brought both hands up to calm them, “Lumina’s father, Hero. Was able to control energy itself.” He pointed at Eldin, “And before you interject, yes. The same energy that is used in controlling magic. The same energy that all living things have and use.”
“If that’s true, then Lumina could essentially control life itself!”
Elrin rested a hand on his son’s head trying to keep the boy’s excitement at bay, “Indeed. Lucina often told us of how powerful Hero was.” Lumina listened intently, she had heard and learned more about her parents these past 2 days then she had known her entire life. They had always been so secretive about them.
“The issue is that no one knows how to control energy. So much so that it is deemed impossible to wield. As such, it’s up to the both of you to figure out how to control a force that no one has ever been able to do.” Elrin said in a partially joking manner.
Eldin balked at the sheer amount of faith his father had in them. Granted he was sure there was a hint of sarcasm in his father’s last sentence, but the man truly believed that they could figure it out.
With one last gentle pat on the back from Milli, both of them found themselves walking outside. Eldin and Lumina felt a rush of excitement and trepidation. Finally, both of them would be leaving Woodvale, though they both had no idea what would be waiting for them. What kinds of people would they meet? And how in the world were they going to figure out how to control an element that no one else could?
Despite being out of town for two years training with Milli. Lumina had not gone far enough to see another city. Almost all of her training taking place in the Iron Mountains. A small range of mountains that nearly split the peninsula horizontally.
It is thought that the rich iron deposits from the mountain are what gave the surrounding forests their iron-like qualities.
“Gildale is northwest of Woodvale, it’ll take a while to walk there.” Eldin commented as the two began to walk away from their home. Turning around one last time to wave goodbye to her foster parents Lumina replied, “Hope you can keep up. You probably aren’t used to wearing a chest plate with your typical clothes.”
Looking down to the shiny new piece of armor that rested comfortable over his upper torso, Eldin hadn’t really noticed its weight. “You know that won’t be an issue. I didn’t stop training after you left.”
“I don’t know. You’re looking kind of pudgy around the waist.” Lumina said as she started running ahead.
“I am not!” Eldin retorted as he started chasing after Lumina.