Nature's Memory

History
Born through the Earth
Nation of Stella, it's plains mostly made out of hard rocks with little vegetation. Leila was born in this nation in the most unusual of ways. A single tree appeared among the rocks, it's bark of gray color, coated with black sigils that no one could decipher. A sight most uncommon for sure, indicating that this was work of powers above nature itself. The fact that this tree was saturated with magical energy only supported this theory and made it possible to think that perhaps a mage summoned this spectacle. Was it an attempt to create some greenery in this nation? Or was it an experiment of different nature? No one knew the answer, and even less knew about the tree itself. After all, it was in rather desolate place, hard to get to. Eventually, rumors about the entire area being cursed spread and common folk had no longer any desire to see the magical tree. There was only one more being who thought little of this fabricated curse and wished to see that sorcery on his own. A traveler that came from different land with plenty of experience. Someone that was not quite... human. A Machias, sentient machine that was created for unknown purpose by unknown people. This one in particular was a golem with no name. Claiming that he simply wanted to see the entirety of the Earthland, people did not get in his way. It was goal very ambitious, but maybe this machine could achieve it. However, he had no idea that his life would change drastically after visiting the tree. For when he approached it, he noticed a small child lying under it. A newborn girl that was crying on the cold ground with no father or mother, her body bearing marks that were of the same properties as the tree itself. It was not hard to make the link. And even Machias were capable of emotions, some perhaps even more than humans. The golem could not leave this girl here to die. There was no other option than to take her with him, for if he left it in a nearby village, she would surely perish as well. That, or her life would be a living hell. After all, the rumors about a curse were strong and a child with strange marks on their body would not be treated well. Not to mention that Stella was nation heavily oriented on harsh training. It would be but a question of time before someone would take her away and have her train herself to death. Knowing all that, the golem made the hard decision of taking care of this little girl, giving her a name. Leila Vergious.

Old machine and a woodland spirit
At first, it was rather difficult to take care of a baby. But years slowly moved by, and Leila was soon capable of moving on her own. The golem had vast amount of knowledge from his past travels and was capable of teaching her many things, making sure she would fit into the modern society without any issues. And with vast array of skills, he was always able to earn enough money to fill the girl's belly and get her warm cloths for the road. He had no home and was always on the path, carrying his newly found daughter in his metal arms. His plan was to find a family that would accept Leila and take care of her, not judging the girl by her unusual body. But he never truly realized that plan. The words 'daddy' captured his mechanical heard every single time. And even when he tried talking to owners of orphanages or families that wanted children, she always stated that she didn't want to leave him. After all, he was all she had for the most of her short life. It was only natural that she would get so attached to him. And he got attached to her, too. Watching the girl grow up, get filled with energy and happiness with each step they took... it was too precious for him to let go. And so, the plan eventually faded away completely. Instead of getting rid of Leila, she became his companion on all of their travels. Strong and sharp, she was never in his way, no matter where they were. And just like that, they were capable of exploring rather large portion of the continent. Of course they weren't welcome everywhere. A mechanical being accompanied by a young girl that had magical markings on her body, it was a sign that most people interpreted as bad. Still, they managed just fine. With experience and correct knowledge, they were able to avoid most trouble and get everywhere they needed to. And with time, Leila too grew interested in gathering information from across the world. She was no historian that would record the movement of all the civilisations, but it was fun to know things others did not. Not to mention that something like that would surely be helpful in her future, no matter what path she would walk down. Though she did have a certain vision. She was always fascinated by mages of all kinds. Having seen many lands and their cultures, she also saw a great deal of magical tricks. People that were capable of controlling fire or water, those that had the ability to turn invisible or fly. All those people were adored by Leila. And slowly, a wish started building inside of her. A small desire to be capable of using magic as well. As far as she knew, magic was manifestation of one's emotions and feelings. Did that mean anyone was capable of it? The answer was hidden behind complex theories and calculations. After all, there were forbidden and forgotten magics as well. Some were unique, others very common. How did magic truly work, it seemed that no one knew the precise answer she was looking for. But it did not matter, as long as she had the wish, she would hope to achieve it one day.

Mage of Eden
Many years passed since the nameless golem found Leila below the strange tree. He never really discovered how it was possible that a child appeared there, even after all the long search he did. But at this point, it didn't truly matter. What really mattered was the fact that the two of them were happy together. Though, that only made golem's secret that much sadder. Machias were different form humans in many ways, age being one of them. Perhaps not all of his kind were like this, but he as a golem was created in a specific way. Once his age would reach a certain number, he would simply die. It was that straightforward. And he was slowly nearing that day... and yet, he kept it secret from his daughter, not wanting to make her sad. And now that she was just over 18 years old, her wish started becoming true. Her body, now completely matured started accepting large amounts of ethernano particles, just like mage's body would. It was sign that she indeed was capable of controlling magic. Why did that suddenly become an option for her, the golem did not know. What he did know, however... was that her magic was nothing ordinary. Far from it actually. After she tested few very simple spells, he knew that she was capable of summoning powers from another dimension. A place that people usually called 'The Gardens of Eden'. A holy place that was home to many spirits and gods until humans tried to control it and corrupted it. Knowing a lot about history of Earthland, he also knew that there never truly was a being that could control powers from that dimension. Though it did answer few questions about Leila's birth to him, it was all still rather puzzling. At least he now knew that his daughter was not left under that tree by another, she was actually born from it. The child of the gardens, created from magic itself. It meant that she was not human at all. But how it would affect her future and ultimate fate, it was hard to tell. For now, he agreed to help her with training. And so he did, learning Leila few tricks and methods of controlling those powers of hers. He wasn't all too thrilled about it all, but in the end, it gave him a chance at doing something he wasn't sure he would be able to. Slowly nudging his daughter towards the land of great magic, he would soon give her the idea of travelling to Fiore. And so she did, leaving the golem behind as they agreed. Of course, Leila was sure that she would eventually return to him and they would travel together once more. And so, just like that, she finally got to Fiore with a group of slightly shady travelers. She bid them farewell, giving them the last of her jewels and set out for Magnolia where her new carrier began. She was now officially a mage. A chance to put her skulls to an actual test of completing contracts on her own. That is how the tale of traveling mage named Leila Vergious started.

Story on the forum
The guildless mage and broken machine
Every start is hard. And Leila's was no different at all. She started small as all others did, going on jobs that did not require any experience in combat. No one really trusted someone without a proper rank in an actual combat, but she wasn't all too confident in her abilities herself. Because of that, she would get her reputation through other means, such as being a model for a popular magazine for wizards or just helping owner of a popular restaurant. Simple jobs that anyone could do, not just wizards. For the longest time, she was a loner who barely interacted with other people and would do so only if it was absolutely necessary and there was no way around it. But these jobs slowly showed her the appeal of being recognized and motivated her to take on bigger request. Of course, they were still petty jobs like pretending to be someone's girlfriend, finding lost puppies, working in a cosplay café and helping with shipments from other nations. Nothing you could call amazing or that would truly contribute to the world around her. But it would be a lie if she said that she didn't enjoy doing those jobs. While it was a bit tiresome at time, she had plenty of fun with her contracts and she could never truly deny that. And all of that earned her enough reputation to receive an invitation to a fancy party. Though it was entirely possible that it was only due to her playing a model with rather revealing clothes. Still, It was the first time someone had recognized the young mage, and with that, she would strive to have a greater impact on the society and world as a whole. Her life was filled with joy. So of course, it didn't last too long. While she was pursuing her career in Fiore, the golem was traveling across the world and gathering information. Unfortunately, his time ran out before he was able to do everything he wanted to. The last thing he was capable of doing was sending a letter to his daughter where he conveyed all of his feelings. Shaken by this, Leila traveled to the borders of Joya where she found the golem's body in the mountains. After burying him with plenty of tears shed, she found what exactly he was doing. The info he was looking for was all related to her own past. And what he managed to find was a name of a certain mage that was most likely responsible for summoning the Eden's tree and consequently giving birth to Leila. In anger, negative feelings rooted in her heart, labeling that mage as someone she would never forgive, as it was his fault that her father spent his last moments looking for him instead of spending time with her. In the end, she was able to move on, stronger than ever and determined to gain more strength. Though she still needed some rest first, and while she was doing just that, a curious encounter happened and left her with a new acquaintance. In was for the very fist time she spoke to someone with relaxed voice, a good start for her social status. Finally returning to her job as a mage, she was ready to finally utilize her magic in combat and other situations, starting by removing a blockade and allowing the trains to move again. However, the true adventure came along with a search for unusual treasure. A job unique in many ways, but mainly because it was her first time working with other people. Meeting two swordsman and a dragon slayer, Leila realized just how important it was to truly interact and work with other people. But it would be some time before she had the pleasure again. A curse made life rather hard for people in a certain village when a dark mage turned all veggies into demons. Rather odd, but still terrifying. After defeating him, the entire village would remember heroism of the young mage. And the spark which was lit by finding treasures was still there too, making her venture into deep caves and uncovering the grave of a famous pirate. Another night, she would finally find herself working along with a demonic mage in order to stop demonic invasion that nearly burned rose garden to the ground. It was something that only the two mages knew about, but they did not need other people to call them heroes, for they knew that they did a good job. She also became a favorite diver of a certain group of researches after she located another artifact for them. Remaining around the island, she also had the pleasure of meeting a phoenix who looked very human. And upon witnessing the treasures of his guild, she agreed to join. A big step in hopefully the right decision, she was no longer a guildless mage, but a legal one.

Road to the unknown[/color]
Unfortunately, there was little time for her to celebrate the fact that she became member of a guild. News about slavers spread across Hargeon and along with the already known swordsman, she did her best to liberate them. Her journey across the C-rank was then ended with another job in Hargeon, this time returning what was stolen. In order to move another rank higher, Elyx, her guild master gave her a task. Retrieve a magical mirror and bring it back to the guild. What seemed like a useless chore at first almost became Leila's grave when she found herself facing a doppelganger that stole her summoned angel. Barely pulling through, she earned her new rank without a doubt. With her magic steadily growing stronger, she set off to completely more contracts. Things like capturing a murderous fiend and make a new friends in the process became norm now. And with that newly made friend, she stopped another treasure hunter from using an artifact to blow up the world. As both of these tasks came directly from the magic council, her standing with them greatly improved on those days. Bearing that in mind, a new title was added to her name. Rising Star 7 to be exact. While she didn't care too much for it, it certainly felt good to be suddenly famous and recognized across the land. It would certainly become a stepping stone for even greater achievements.