During the next five days, Wraith and I rode through the desert surrounding Ysle. Despite its name, however, the Crystalsand isn’t a sea of dunes; most of it is rocky, dusty badlands. It was named so by travelers coming from the lush southern realms, as the first thing they see when entering the desert from Norden are the vast white dunes that cover the southernmost region of my homeland.

The road from Ysle to The Vigil runs nearly parallel to the Underground River’s course. There were caverns sculpted by the water and wind on the sandstone outcrops dotting the landscape, which served as watering stops for travelers. Thanks to this, water wasn't an issue for us; we also had plenty of food for us and our mounts, enough to keep us going for at least a week.

While we were on the lookout for Asli’s men, we never saw another soul wandering the road. We reasoned that she must have concentrated her search efforts on the road to the Midway Oasis, as she assumed we'd go South with our allies. Even so, we never took our safety for granted.

Were it not for Wraith’s complaining, it would have been an uneventful, even enjoyable journey!

I must admit that leaving Ysle, even if under the conditions we did, and experiencing the wider world for the first time was very exciting. It almost made me forget that Mother Zafira paid a steep price for our escape, and during those days I prayed silently for her eternal rest. After my mother died she became a second mother to me, educating and guiding me during my formative years as a Priestess.

“Are we there yet?” My Champion groaned again, interrupting my silent prayer. “It’s almost noon, we gotta find a shade to rest!”

“We should be arriving at The Vigil in one more day, at this pace,” I sighed, glaring at him. “Asking that question every hour or so won’t make us get there any faster.”

“Aren’t you melting down with those clothes you’re wearing?” Wraith moaned as he stretched his leather jerkin’s collar to let some of his sweat evaporate. “I’m feeling like a damned boiled egg!”

“Master Brand was right about this robe,” I smiled. “It feels very fresh even under this heat. Wearing black leather on these conditions might not be the best idea, though!” I chuckled.

“Well, I have to stay geared up in case we are attacked!” He rolled his eyes. “Good you find my discomfort funny, though! You’re very welcome!”

I giggled and he snorted in response. I swear, sometimes Wraith behaves like a spoiled child!

I checked my map and told him there should be another watering cave nearby, where we could stop and rest until the sun got to its mid-afternoon point. Then we could carry on until a few hours after sunset and stop for the night. Wraith spurred his mount, eager to get out of the scorching sun and quench his thirst.

Truth be told, so was I; my robes could only do so much to stave the desert heat off!

We rode for another half hour when we spotted the cave’s entrance. We dismounted and led our horses inside, happy of being granted a reprieve from the inclemency of noon. We gave the poor beasts some food to munch on before Wraith and I ventured further into the cave.

We soon found ourselves in a large, roughly circular chamber. A small hole in the cave ceiling let some light in, illuminating a large basin carved directly on the floor. This, and the contraption used to bring water from the river flowing below, were the only man-made constructs in the otherwise natural cavern. Similar facilities had been built in the other watering caves we've visited so far.

Wraith wasted no time getting hold of the lever next to the basin. He pulled it, and a few seconds later water started to pour down a brass tap next to the basin’s edge. He used his hands to cup some of the water and take a sip.

“Ah, that’s more like it!” My Champion exclaimed while eagerly filling his waterskin.

“Indeed,” I said after taking a bit of the water between my palms and drinking it. It was cool and very refreshing.

“You know what? I’m gonna fill the basin and dive in! I want to take this fucking dust and sweat off me!”

Wraith waited until the basin had enough water to close the tap. Then he got off his leather jerkin and pants, as well as his linen undershirt. He only kept his undergarments on. I immediately turned my gaze away from him.

“There’s a lady here, you know!” I protested, my cheeks flushing with a mixture of slight anger and a lot of embarrassment.

“Sorry, not sorry!” Wraith smirked as he entered the water. He shuddered as the cool liquid touched his exposed skin. “It’s a bit too cold for my tastes, but I need to freshen up! Why don’t you join me here?”

“N-no way!” I shook my head, my cheeks feeling hotter suddenly. “Have you no shame!?”

“Your loss… this is so good! Besides,” he chuckled, “it’s about time we start to get to know each other better.”

“I… I’m not interested in getting to know better an... uneducated, impudent brute such as you!” I blurted out.

He grunted in frustration. “You know, had I not participated in that contest, I wouldn’t be here with you, taking a bath inside a cave in the middle of nowhere.”

“Well, no one forced you to participate, you know!”

“True that, Princess,” His sigh reverberated on the cave’s walls. “What kind of moron would think that by becoming your bodyguard you’d magically fall head over heels for him, anyway?”

“I know of one such,” I turned to face Wraith and stick my tongue out. “Love doesn’t work like that at all.”

My Champion croaked. “What does a celibate Priestess knows about love?”

“My mother once told me that when my father became her Champion, she disliked him at first.”

“Really? I thought it was love at first sight for them,” he chuckled.

“Not at all.” I smiled as I sat on the edge, a few feet from Wraith. “She once told me she thought he was a bit too brazen and proud for her tastes. They didn’t get along very well at first. But as they got to know each other better, mother discovered that beneath all that arrogant boldness hid a sensitive, caring person. And before she even realized it, she was smitten with him!”

“You speak of them both with such admiration,” Wraith mused. “Good for you, I guess…”

“They were the best parents one could ask for… both taken from me too soon. I miss them dearly…”

I shook my head. “But what about your parents, Wraith? How are, or were, they like?”

My Champion’s eyes looked down to the water, and a frown soured his countenance.

“I never knew them,” He replied with a soft, somewhat bitter voice. “I was left to the care of an orphanage in a shitty Yeonbrookean hamlet when I was a baby. I don’t even know my true name. Wraith Dasher is the name I gave myself.”

“Do you know if they are still alive?”

“I don’t know... and I don’t care to know either. They abandoned me, end of the story,” He concluded, his voice and eyes now simmering with slight resentment.

“If they didn’t care about you they would’ve just abandoned you anywhere. But they chose to leave you with someone who could take care of you,” I inferred. “They had their reasons to do what they did, but lack of love wasn't one of them.”

“Might as well dropped me in the mud!” He scoffed.

Wraith elaborated on his life's story, telling me how he disliked the orphanage he was left at, and all the others he was sent to afterward, finally escaping and living on the streets when he was around six years old. He joined a group of mercenaries at twelve, accompanying them on their missions across all of Central and Eastern Alnor, but left them when they took a job in Ysle two years before.

"I liked the city, even in its sorry state after the Anchlesians made a mess out of it. Became a pit fighter to make a living, but when I made no gold out of my blade I stole what I needed to survive.”

He glared at me with angry eyes.

“So there you have it, Princess. Wraith Dasher, your Gods-chosen Champion, is little more than a sell-sword and a petty thief, with no parents and no name. If I were you I’d be doubting the wisdom of your deities by now.”

“If They chose you to be my Champion, it’s because They deemed you worthy, Wraith Dasher, self-appointed sell-sword and petty thief with no parentage or name.” I declared. “Something that no one, not even you, is aware of. Maybe-”

A glint on Wraith’s chest caught my attention. It was a small metallic object hanging from a thin leather strip tied around his neck, reflecting the sunlight coming from above.

“What?” He gruffly asked when I leaned in to take a better look at the pendant.

“I’ve never seen you wearing that before," I whispered. "What is it?”

“You mean this?” He asked while holding the shiny object in his hand. “A memento from my 'loving' parents. Supposedly was around my neck when I was found. I always carry it with me, hidden under my clothes.”

“It’s pretty…” I said as I got closer to the water basin’s edge and knelt next to Wraith. “May I see it?”

“Sure,” He said dismissively. “Be my guest.”

I leaned forward and took hold of the pendant. It had a triangular shape, all of its edges of equal length with its vertices rounded off, slightly larger than a fingernail. It was made of a gold-like metal. its edges were quite sharp, with a wave-like pattern on both sides.

The obverse had three tiny circular crystals on each of its rounded-down vertices. In the middle was a carving of a stylized female figure. She wore a long flowing robe and had wings on her back, her arms and legs outstretched as if she was soaring through the sky, with rays of light emanating from her head.

The reverse had a triangular crystal right in the center, exactly opposite the figure on the obverse, made of the same substance as the three circular ones on the opposite side. There were three circles engraved on each vertex, exactly opposite each of the crystals on the obverse.

Straight lines engraved on the metal connected the vertices of the triangular crystal to the circles, each circle connected to the other two by another set of lines, the crystal nested in the center of the resulting triangle. A third set of lines connected the edges of both triangles right at their middle points.

“It’s quite pretty,” I said. “And intriguing too.”

“It’s just a worthless trinket,” Wraith shrugged off my comments.

“The reverse is interesting, and kinda reminds me of the Prism.” I continued.

He dismissed my observations with a wave of his hand. “A coincidence.”

“The crystals on both sides look similar to the Prism too,” I pressed on. “Could they be Arcana Crystals?”

“What are you getting at, exactly?” Wraith grumbled.

“Maybe it’s an A’dari artifact,” I concluded. “Now why would your parents have something like this?”

“I told you, it’s just a piece of worthless junk!” Wraith repeated stubbornly, yanking the medal away from my hands.

My brutish Champion, however, pulled a bit too hard and made me lose my balance. I yelped as my body lurched forward and went head-first into the water, the top of my head crashing against Wraith’s chest and bringing him down with me.

“Look at what you’ve done!” I yelled angrily at Wraith as I rose from the water. “If you wanted me to let go of your stupid medal, you could’ve just told me so!”

“If you hadn’t insisted on your silly theories, maybe I wouldn’t get so angry in the first place!” He retorted.

“And instead of apologizing or asking if I’m all right, you make excuses!” I roared. “You are the worst!”

I climbed out of the water basin and headed straight to the cave entrance to get some dry clothes to wear. My robe was completely soaked, so I had to put it outside over some rocks to let the early afternoon sun dry it off. I was really mad at Wraith for being so rough and unapologetic. I decided to cool down by petting the horses, totally oblivious to what happened around them.

While I was at that, I heard Wraith coming out of the water, emerging from the other chamber shortly after. He carried his leather garments on his arms, only wearing his soaked undergarments.

“I need to get to my horse to grab a dry one,” He said while signaling the wet clothing he was wearing. “So… unless you wanna see me stark naked, I suggest moving back to the other chamber for a while.”

“No need to tell me that twice!” I replied, still angry at his previous behavior.

I walked past him in a rush, turning my head a bit sideways to avoid looking at him. But when he took hold of my wrist I froze in place.

“Wait,” he said.

“What now?” I asked dryly.

“Shjasta…” Wraith cleared his throat before continuing with a softer tone: “About what happened earlier… I am sorry, all right? I overreacted. I hope you weren't hurt too bad when you fell...”

I kept my head turned away from him, but I felt my anger easing off.

“I’m fine, Wraith. Thank you for your concern.”

He seemed unsure of what to say next. “If you want to take a dip in the pool… I’ll stay here until you call for me…”

“Not necessary,” I replied dryly. “Already took one.”

“Yeah... that you did,” he mused awkwardly.

After a brief silence, we both burst into laughter. Wraith released my wrist so I could go to the other chamber. I just sat next to the water until he called me back. We had lunch and then we waited inside the cave until the sun was low enough to continue our journey.

As we rode our horses and spurred them into a trot and the cave receded into the distance, my thoughts drifted back to Wraith’s pendant. He insisted it was of no consequence, a worthless reminder of parents he never met. But my heart was telling me otherwise. That this was something very important. The final part of my Revelation rushed back to my mind.

You will find answers to questions you have yet to ask.

Could this be one of these questions?

Then the memories of our earlier impasse in the cave surfaced.

Wraith was a rude, often insolent man, his brashness a frequent cause of shame for me, the Priestesses, and my guests. But this was just the second time he ever apologized to me.

He won't become a chivalrous, well-spoken knight overnight, naturally. But if he turns into a better version of himself at least, I could settle for that...

Am I blushing? After thinking about a better version of Wraith?

Am I starting to find that possible version of him… appealing?

I was happy that Alinah and Amirah weren't around for one! I could already hear their silly gossiping in my head!

“Hey… you okay?” Wraith asked me, taking me out of my contemplation and causing my cheeks to feel even hotter still. “You look distracted.”

“I’m all right, Wraith.” I smiled somewhat nervously.

He eyed me with suspicion, while the beginnings of that annoying smirk of his began to form on the corner of his lips.

“You looked like you were thinking of someone you like,” he mocked me. “Which means it’s not me… right?”

“That’s none of your business!” I yelled at him as he laughed.

Wraith kept teasing me until we stopped after sunset.

I suppose some things will never change…