-The Explanation [2]

Lia sat waiting by a boulder, positioned in the oddest of places. Near the road. Easy for any bandits or thieves to jump out and rob you.

But there were no thieves, and there were no travelers. All that laid there on the ground was the shivering body of a girl, a child if one didn't take too close of a look.

Around her lay the broken pieces of wood and metal that used to be her carriage. The mangled armor pieces dented and broken, were once her escorts.

Now neither of them were intact anymore.

No bodies lay on the ground, and no large pieces of wood gave away the idea that this was once a carriage. Anyone who saw this would only see the shattered remnants of some wooden object.

That was if no one paid to close attention, they wouldn't see the blood splattered on the ground.

But Lia didn't pay any mind to that, she was far too busy turning and twisting just staring at her hand.

A rune circle.

The direct link between a summoner and a summons. The very proof one needed to show they were a distended summoner.

But something wasn't right. Normally Lia would be thrilled, so thrilled she might have even passed out from shock. Nearly twenty years of waiting, and she had finally gotten what she had longed for, for so long.

However, the only time a rune circle appeared was on the fated 'Day of the Awakening.' A day that had long passed by, months ago.

So why was she getting a rune circle, months after the fateful day? And for that matter, why was it so faded?

Already Lia's mind was running through all the books and lessons she had gone through with Al Shir.

Normally, rune circles worked like a miniature one way portal. A portal that brought your summons back into the Ancestral World (her world) from the Eternal one.

But even then, the runes circle may have given them access to her world, but they also acted as a chain or leash. A bond that was forcefully witten by fate, declaring that their summons would only be granted access to this world, if the summoner allowed it. And even then, the summons was only dictated to an area nearby, not some thousands of miles away.

Now, a rune circle also acted in one other way. Other Than acting as a portal and a leash, the rune circle acted in a way that drew power from the summons to the summoner. Giving them the temporary power to wield mana. Something they could never have otherwise done.

But it did have its limitations. With a rune circle, the summons had to be in the Eternal world for it to work, otherwise, the summons would have to fight, and supply the summoner with magical energy.

And as Al Shir had said, it was drastically unfair in any terms of combat.

But something that should never have happened, was the faded look her rune circle had.

She had never seen anything like this in the books her master had given her before, and she had never read about it happening.

So, to put it lightly, Lia was, at the moment, more afraid, curious, conflicted, excited, and just overall anticipated then she had ever been in her life.

She had watched as Cain left her just as quickly as he appeared, and he had somehow known about the rune circle, before she had even discovered it.

'Did he have something to do with it?'

Above all her thoughts and conflictions, this one spoke out the most.

For one, Cain was her hero, who had directly saved her from trouble and danger when her life was at stake. Furthermore, he had used mana to heal her, giving her the impression that he must have been the summoner of the samurai and not her.

This revelation did upset her but she quickly let it go. A rune circle meant that she had the potential to summon a creature to fight by her side.

She didn't care if it was a weak beast like a field rat, or a strong one like the samurai. All she cared about was that her wish had finally been granted after waiting for so long.

But, on the other hand, she was faced with the fear of just being near him. His eyes showed some dark, ancient evil laid in waiting behind them. His smile, sinister as it may be, hid behind it an even darker imagination.

She didn't know whether to fear him, or to thank him.

-Swosh

Before she could continue pondering over this, she felt the breeze shift from behind her, causing her to sigh, knowing full well that Cain had returned.

"Don't act so appreciative."

Cains;s sarcasm did little to help Lia, who continued to sit down, ignoring Cain's presence.

Seeing this, Cain's eyebrows furrowed, before he sat down next to her.

"Questions?"

"A lot of them."

Cain scoffed. "Alright, ask away."

Lia didn't answer immediately. Instead she sat in silence, occasionally glancing at her hand, where the rune circle laid.

Finally, after what felt like several minutes, Lia spoke, refusing to meet Cain's eyes.

"Who are you?"

To Cain this was a simple question. A question that he could easily answer on a whim. But to Lia, this is the answer to everything she could have suspected.

"The way of the words. Color me impressed."

As Cain stood up, Lia whirled round to face him, preparing to question how he knew Al Shir's teachings, but was stopped by the sound of Cain's voice.

"I've been watching you Lia, I've told you this before."

Lia once again felt a chill down her spine as she held back any questions she might have asked.

"Explain."

One word was all she needed, and she put as much dignity and power behind that word as possible. All that she had left of her nole princess title, was seen shrouding those words.

And Cain could feel the threat behind them, though subtle, was just as thin as a knife's blade.

'She was trained well.'

"Fine, then it's best you prepare yourself for what I'm about to tell you."

Lia steadied herself, readied for the worst. A blackmail scheme? A chance to be a hero? Lia did not know.

But her request was just met with more questions as Cain began reciting a verse she knew all too well.

====================

A/N:

This is a bit of a short chapter, but I got so caught up in writing, I made it a little to long. So the next one is the main chapter, this one is just to shorten the 13 pages worth of the eleventh.

"'Mana is the power of creation. The first essence that existed within the universe. And those that can control such power are beings of pure power themselves.'"

"'The Laws of Mana.'"

"Correct. Now, you call these beings summons, and a summons is bonded to a master. A summoner."

Cain then pointed to her hand where the rune circle was.

Shockingly, as if aware of the attention, the circles began to turn, creating a moving tattoo.

"That is your rune circle, the proof of subordination a summons is forced to undertake. Now, what if I told you that there was such a summons in the world, that wasn't bonded to only one person."

This instantly drew Lia's attention, as she had heard something that would have contradicted everything she had been taught.

"Yes Lia, what if? What if something like that existed? Imagine the power one would have possessing the summons of dozens of people. Power, experience, knowledge, and above all battle prowess. They would have it all."

Cain reached out his hand to Lia, who looked between it and Cain's red eyes, looking for subtle hints that he was lying or some form of deception.

"Are you telling me, that this rune circle on my hand, means that I've summoned that 'theoretical' summoned creature?"

Cain only smiled.

"You said it, not me."

"But that's impossible."

Cain scoffed before taking a few steps back, gesturing to the sky that had begun darkening.

"Lia, if you only look at the result of all problems, you may never know the solution made to solve them. And if you only see the result, you may never see the possibilities one could have to deny the impossible."

"But it is. The idea of a summoned creature passing between people is only that. Theoretical. There is no proof and there is no solution. Only the problem."

"Oh but my dear, you have proof."

"What?"

Cain grew silent, as a smile crept on his face. His eyes began to illuminate in the growing darkness, creating a hue of red mist that flew out from his eyes when he moved.

"You have me."