Ozein never knew either of his parents very well. Being born to an unexpected union of Lightning Knight and Thunder Priestess, it came with the territory that they would be in harms way.
All that survived of their place in his life were the stories told by his Uncle Erond. Stories of battle and wits, of lightning and blade clashing against claw, fang, magic and evil. Stories he looked up to, and even wished to be part of.
As a result, Ozein idolized his parents, even though he never knew them.
His Uncle Erond was an Ex-Cavalry Knight. He’d survived countless raids and campaigns, and had plenty stories of his own to share.
When he was just six years old, he asked his Uncle to train him, to teach him to be a warrior so that he could join the Knights someday.
It was a decision that he would have to endure for 3 hellish years.
His Uncle trained his body, pushing his physical power and endurance to its limit.
He trained him in how to survive the wilderness, How to hunt and how to train his physical strength.
Day after day, he was taught to endure gruelling training as his physical toughness and basic techniques for the use of his muscles were beaten into him.
'Breathe as you move! Don't stop breathing. Don't hold your breath' would echo in his mind, even in his sleep.
However, Erond never taught him how to use a sword, as ‘his basics were still weak’. At Ozein’s request, however, Erond taught him how to brawl, in order to defend himself from the odd bully or street mugger.
Most importantly, he taught him the principles of being a true warrior. It, in Erond’s words, ‘Ignited the soul of the warrior he inherited by blood’.
Erond was retired, but still continued to train and fight, brawling at The Pit or participating in the odd tournament at the Lightning dome.
Such a life, fighting in and out of the arena, could not go on for long, and he eventually was killed in a tournament.
Ozein was not sad or angry. He felt a pang of loss, but did not allow it to move him.
Because in his final moments, Erond was more than happy to die. Erond had always expressed his desire to die on the battlefield, not in a bed, gasping for his final breath as old age finally took him.
Erond was a warrior in death as he was in life. This steeled Ozein's resolve.
When Erond's will was announced and his property was divided, Ozein found, among other things, a sword called Soulsliver.
It had been a gift Erond was planning to give, to signify that he was prepared to learn how to fight with a sword.
More than swords though, Ozein continued to brawl. He turned to his fists as a means of life, as his Uncle had done to support the two of them.
It was a testament to the will and courage of the late warrior, one whom he would not easily forget.
