Chapter 79: You Bow To Your Teachers

As Elias kept his head down, his mind went back to the last ten years of his life and how these people had all been an indispensable part of it. Forget his intellect, he knew the only reason he was not long dead in a ditch or consumed by his appetites was everyone here on this table.

Brother Valerius for Elias had been the leader of the Order because Commander Yseult had not spoken to him once until the day he became an Ascendant Candidate. He had taught him strategy, history, and the weight of legacy, although he rarely taught Elias, barely speaking with him a dozen times in a year, there were many lessons he had learned from him.

His second was Sister Lanthe, and she was the one whom Elias had spent most of his time learning from; she was a herbalist as well as a lore-mistress, but Elias had not fully understood the meaning of the second role.

She had been the one to give him a proper formal education in reading, writing, botany, and history. Elias did not know his mother, but he imagined that she could be seen as the closest thing to one that he knew.

Then there was Kaelen, someone that Elias could call a friend, maybe even his closest friend. He was an Armsmaster and a Chief Carpenter, and most of his practical skill in woodcraft and basic self-defense came from his teaching. Every time he maintained his tools and weapons, there was the silent voice of Kaelen guiding his hand, and this one-legged man had taught him much about discipline and strength.

Elias had not been told to rise from his bow, as silence still remained across the table. Was his appearance so shocking, or perhaps he had not truly understood what it meant to be an Ascendant Candidate?

With his head down, Elias thought about more of his teachers, and the next that naturally came to mind was Gideon, who was an old dwarf and was the first non-human that Elias had seen before he began to explore Stormfall.

Gideon was a master mason, and Elias had not spent much time with him partly because the tools he used were so heavy, and he was usually silent, and could only be found deep inside the Asylum in most days where Elias was sure he was carving new rooms inside the mountain, because in quiet days, Elias could hear the rhythmic tapping of hammers.

Still, even though he had not been formally taught by Gideon, just the act of watching this dwarf work had given him the confidence to work under the Palace Walls and build the statues of Asulon, and with his new strength, Elias hoped that he would be able to learn much from Gideon and also assist him in any way possible.

Then there was Orwin, the Steward and Cook, but Elias had not seen much stewardship from this jovial, round-faced man who assigned all those tasks to him with twinkles in his eyes, he knew that the meals that was heaped upon this table was his work, and Elias could still hear his voice in his head “a full belly solves many woes.” Maybe that was why, as a Siphon, he was so fat, or perhaps it must be due to his talents; there was so much that Elias knew he was not yet privy to.

Even with his head bowed, he had a clear picture of the table, and sitting beside Orwin was Pyrra, the Fire-Keeper; she also had the power to control flames like Brother Valerius, but her flames were blue, and they were almost too enchanting, but Elias knew how hot they could burn.

She had not taught him much, but he knew that her task was to ensure the Great Hearth and all the braziers never went out, and although he knew that she surely did many other things, he could not enter the Asylum to see them.

Beside her was Bram, and supposedly, this man was to be the Groundskeeper, but Elias hardly saw him. Kaelen had told him that Bram reared Rune Beasts, and that had fascinated Elias until he understood the power of these creatures, and so he was extremely careful around this man who looked as gentle as a shopkeeper.

Sitting beside Bram were Cora and Fenwick, and Elias was not surprised that they sat together. They were the Gate-Wardens of the Asylum, and he saw them manning the great gatehouse whenever there were important guests, and most of the time, you could always find them together, and Elias had always wondered if they were married or had other arrangements.

Then there were Rhys and Anya, the pair who had first seen him reach the summit of the cliff, and there was not much he could say about Rhys; the man seemed to recognize the monster inside Elias, and he seemed to be fascinated by it. Anya, on the other hand, was steady and dependable, and despite her delicate appearance, several broken ribs anytime they practiced gave Elias a healthy respect for this woman.

Sitting very close together were Silas, Theron, and Lyssa. Silas was the Archivist and Librarian, and Elias’s pool of knowledge he had gained came from his hands, as he was ever ready to give Elias new books to read and answer his questions.

Theron, who Elias fondly referred to as Master Theron because it seemed that he took it upon himself to teach Elias as many advanced subjects as he could, mathematics, astronomy, rhetoric, and at one time, even the lineages of the noble houses, but he had been promptly shut down by Brother Valerisu who said those information would be more harmful to Elias than helpful.

Lyssa was the Seamstress who taught Elias about fabrics and how to sew. He knew how important having a steady hand in crafting was, and she had shown him several exercises that steadied his hands.

And then was the final member of the Order of Unbroken Shield, the man that Elias had seen as rarely as Commander Yseult, and that was Alaric. He knew that while the other members of the Order may seem open and jovial, they were all soldiers and could hide the steel in their spines. Alaric seemed to wear his past like armor around him.

Elias was not ashamed to admit that, although every member of the Order gave him a reason to fear them when they sometimes displayed the extent of their strength and experience, something about Alaric scared Elias, and he could not put a finger on the reason for that fear.

Rhys, it seems, was the first to recover as the white-haired man finally stopped coughing and exclaimed aloud,

“…Bloody hells,” he managed. “You’re taller than Kaelen now. Is that what becoming an Ascendant does to a body? Damn, I missed out!”

Elias, hearing Rhys’s voice, knew this was the right time for him to rise, and he came up from his bow smoothly, seeing the quiet look of happiness and appreciation in all his teachers’ eyes. It was a small action on his part, but Elias knew that it went a long way in solidifying their relationship.

Kaelen slowly, deliberately, stood up to his full height, not even bothering to use his crutches, and he looked Elias up and down once, twice. In his eyes, Elias could see plenty of questions, and he winked at him, and he laughed aloud

“By Kastor’s broken shield,” he rumbled, “the runt finally grew a spine and a wardrobe.”

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