Once upon a time, Athelae had been a happy, carefree peasant lass. She worked out in the open, sunny fields of her family's humble tenant farm, with no cares but praying for a good crop and that one of the handsome village boys would take a fancy to her. Then, her kingdom had gone to war with one of its neighbors. The villagers had had no hand in whatever royal quarrel that had brought this about, they hadn't even known about the war until the warriors had come. It hadn't mattered to the invaders though. By the order of their king, these people were enemies at war and it was their duty to attack them.

Just like that, Athelae's peaceful life was over. She was placed in chains and taken far from her home. With many others, she was sold to a cruel owner who sent them underground to the mines. Now she toils in the dark, each day, pushing the mine carts full of ore up the long, narrow tunnels and the empty ones back down to fetch another endless load. Above ground, the war that had caused her enslavement ended over a year ago with a truce signed by the two kings. It made no difference for Athelae. The fates of those peasants, on both sides, cast into bondage by the tides of war was beneath the notice of kings. So she continues to toil, hoping one day she might escape the mines and see the sun and open sky above her once more...