FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

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CHAPTER 2

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I was laying on a bed roll made of the fur of a Fraggle. A creature native to Aaru. It was a large, docile beast, with beautiful soft red fur, that fed on berries and other plants. Apparently they were easy to domesticate and made excellent beasts of burden; according to Callen anyway. I stared up at the sky, there were no stars, simply a dark greyness. A few feet away a small fire crackled. As time past I allowed my eyes to shut.

"You seem to be enjoying yourself."

I opened my eyes and turned my head towards the source of the voice. I already knew who it was. Sitting on the other side of the fire, poking it with a stick was my doppelgänger. He looked exactly like me, a fact which was disturbing but due to the continuous visits except for the fact that his eyes were red instead of green. I sat up and looked at him.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"What? You think you can keep me out of your head?"

I was meditating right now. This was my safe place, a place where he could not harm me. He was no threat to me here.

"Not yet." I huffed. "But eventually I will be."

"Heh! You keep thinking that." He scoffed. I hated when he smiled like that. He looked so smug. What made it worse was that it was me, my muzzle, he was looking smug with. "You may be safe for now but that door will only hold me back for so long."

He motioned to the heavy set of steel doors that sat out of place at the edge of the camp site. Battered and scratched but still standing strong. On the other side was his domain. The place within me that he had taken root, seized control. On the other side of that door was my death. In my current state I wouldn't last a minute against him.

"Then I will just make a better, stronger door to hold you." I countered.

"You can't hold me back forever." He countered once more in that smug, irritating tone. "You have no idea of who or what I am."

"Then why don't you tell me? It's just the two of us here."

He seemed to ponder the idea. As if he was serious considering telling me.

"Perhaps I could. But if you were stupid enough to tell your beloved Callen, then even he would have no choice but to kill you to prevent my inevitable escape."

"You've said that before."

"Because it is true." He stood up and began to pace around the camp-site. "A mere mortal like you has no chance of holding me forever. Eventually I will break down this door, he slammed his fist against the doors, and I will take my freedom! I will take control of your body and make you watch as I drain the life out of everyone you care about! I will seal your mind away in a prison of never ending torment and pain!

"Yeah, yeah." I waved him off. He had made this speak many times before.

"I'll make sure I take my time with those two." He grinned menacingly. "Laguna and Kassandra... I can see why you like them. Both very attractive. So fuckable! I can't wait to taste their blood and watch the life fade from their eyes!"

"I like them for more reasons than just sex."

"I don't understand why."

"Because unlike you I don't let my base desires rule over my actions."

"HAH!" He snorted. "All you mortals are the same. Thinking you're better than all the feral beasts out there! Lying to yourselves. Everything you do is to feed you most base of desires! Wealth, power... the need to procreate!"

"I'm not having this argument with you again!" I growled.

"So scary!" He mocked. I had had enough of him now. "Before I go let me just say one more thing."

"And what would that be?" I huffed impatiently.

"I'm always watching. Always waiting. And eventually you will let your guard down. And when that time comes you will be helpless to prevent me..."

I cut him off, not allowing his usual drivel pollute my ears. I summoned a ball of white light in my paw and thrust it towards him. As it left my paw it expanded, growing larger and larger with each passing second. He made no attempt to avoid it and allowed it to wash over him. The moment the light touched him he faded out of existence. I hadn't killed him, not even hurt him. I had simply cast him back into the other side of the heavy metal doors. This was my place. This was where I had the power. But he was right about one thing. That door wouldn't hold. Eventually I would need to fight him. Fight him for outright domination of my mind and body.

I would have to defeat him. I would either have to destroy him outright or force him to submit to my will. If I could make him submit then his power would become my own. I could already tap into his power, I had been doing it before I even knew of his existence. But doing that was risky and weakened the seals of the doors holding him back. But if I lost that battle he would have complete control over my body and he would make his threats to me reality.

I tried not the think about it. There was nothing I could do about it for the moment. I lay back down and closed my eyes to get some rest.

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I was roused from my meditation as I felt someone climb off the bed. I opened my eyes to see Kassandra squatting down to use the chamber pot. The room was dark now, the fire having long died out, but I could make out her outline in the darkness. Zangarians had excellent night vision. She probably didn't know how much we could actually make out since she was not Zangarian. I didn't let her know I was watching her as she relieved herself, or when she climbed back into bed next to me. Her flesh was cool to the touch after her time out from under the covers.

She quickly fell back to sleep but I just lay there and thought about what was going to happen in the next few days. The day after tomorrow we were scheduled to leave for Rengilar. Kaldor had insisted on accompanying me there, along with a large number of warriors. This was not a war party. But the wolves wouldn't know that until we raised the flag of diplomacy.

I still didn't trust the wolves not to attack us despite that. Even though wolves claimed to follow the teachings of war, handed down by the Deity of War herself. The teachings spoke of honourable conduct in relation to war. The teaching prevented the tainting of souls during an otherwise bloody and dishonourable occasion. Tainting which could lead to your soul being cast down into the Underworld. My time with the wolves had led me to be distrustful and jaded in regards to my opinion of them. I knew that much, but it was going to take a lot in order to change my predisposition towards them.

If everything went well and I found the demonlords servant in Rengilar, the question still remained as to what damage would they have already caused? The wolves at the camp in the mountains had all been tainted with demonic energy. Demonic servants received abilities from their masters as rewards for their service.

The nature of their abilities ranged widely, just as the abilities of k'tan did. I was not sure what the purpose of inflicting taint onto other furs was for. Perhaps it was a side effect of their ability or perhaps it was the intended purpose.

What ever the reason was, they would be dangerous and I would need to be ready for anything. If the wolves agreed to assist in finding them they would have forewarning of the danger they were in. But ultimately it was the most efficient method in locating them. There was hundreds of furs in Rengilar. Trying to sneak around in order to find the servant would be difficult.

But what if they weren't there? I'd just have to cross that bridge when we came to it. Davina, a deity with the power of foresight - who was loyal to Asurmen and determined in preventing demons from over running rampant in the mortal realm - had prophesied that I would discover their identity in one of the settlements in the region. Rengilar was the last one for me to search. They would be there. They had to be.

A gentle knock at the door pulled me from my thoughts. Neither Laguna or Kassandra stirred from the noise. I looked across the room, through the darkness of the room, at the door. I could sense a single presence on the other side of the door. Most likely it was Jovani.

"Yes?" I called out softly, trying not to wake the others.

The door opened slightly and a gentle candle light flowed into the room. Jovani's head appeared from behind the door.

"I am here to let you know that it mid morning Young Master. I was wondering if you intended on getting up, or if you would like me to bring food and drink for you and your guests?"

"We'll get up." I answered.

"Very good Young Master." He bowed his head. "I will have Harold prepare lunch for you. If I may suggest that you bathe before coming through?"

I had no doubt that the entire room stank of sex. We would as well. Even now I felt sticky with sweat and other fluids. I nodded, unsure if Jovani could actually see me do so across the room with only the faint candle light. But he nodded himself and then retreated back out of the room. The room once again falling into darkness.

I gently roused the others and got out of bed to light the candle at the side of the bed. Blinking they looked up at me. I explained that we were going to go wash up. Laguna burst into life. Obviously eager to wash, or perhaps to help me wash. Even Cody would struggle to keep up with his enthusiasm I thought.

That thought made me think of my friends. If I could still call them that. I had kept my distance from them for the same reason I was keeping my distance from everyone else. To make it easier for them, or honestly, to make it easier for me to leave when the time came. It was a difficult and painful decision to make. I had spent many moons isolating my feelings for my friends, sealing them away deep inside me, so that the spirit could not use those memories and emotions against me. Once I let those emotions out again it would be difficult to contain them once more.

But I was stronger now. I could handle anything the spirit within me could throw my way. Or at least I was confident I could. Callen had trained me to defend myself. I was no longer defenceless in the face of the spirits assaults on my mind. But I was not yet strong enough to defeat him entirely. Right now all I could manage was to contain him. Prevent him from tightening the grip he already held on me.

The tear stained look of Cody back in the dojo flashed into my mind. He had just witnessed me fight and defeat Aceh. Aceh had been badly hurt, but he would recover. Once Kaldor had learned of my survival, there had been little point in hiding my presence, so I had decided to test myself by challenging all of my former teachers to see how much I had grown under the tutelage of the Guardian Deities. My superior nen and fighting abilities had allowed me to overcome the Master benders incredible talents. I overwhelmed with my raw power, even using the spirits power to assist in that regard. I would call myself equal to them in terms of skill. Against Aceh however, in terms of skill he was still far above me. But using my superior nen I had managed to defeat him. Cody would never be able to understand why we had fought. He was not a warrior. He did not, could not understand the pride of a warrior. He was a lover at heart.

I had been surprised when they appeared at the Council of Warlords to hear the tale of my disappearance. Of course they would have come. I had been more surprised that they had been allowed to come. Another one of my fathers decisions. He was trying to give me reasons to remain in Zangar. He was making this more difficult than it needed to be. However after my explanation of why I had been taken to Aaru and why I needed to return I think he was more understanding and since then hadn't tried to convince me to stay. Although I know he wanted me to.

Laguna, Kassandra and I bathed in the chamber which had a small hot spring in it. Memories of the time Jason, Michael, Cody and Aceh had bathed in here with me after a drunken night of passion, came flooding back to me. I had forgotten about that night until now. We had all drank too much, me especially, and ended up in my bedroom fucking each other senseless until we all passed out.

I scrubbed Kassandra's back while she washed her hair. Laguna meanwhile scrubbed my back and in return I repaid the favour. We all managed to control ourselves as we bathed. When we returned to my room and found that the bed had already been stripped and new linens been put on it, candles lit to bathe the room in their warm light and the fire place had been cleaned and restocked with wood. There were also two sets of clothes put out for Kassandra and Laguna.

Jovani...

One we were all dressed. I chose a loincloth from my trunk, a red cloth with black trim around the edges and wore my shoulder guards over my bare torso. The leather straps sat comfortably against my scales. The clothes put out for Kassandra and Laguna were slightly more formal than the clothes I had chosen for myself.

Laguna had a dark blue tunic and matching pants, both of which seemed to fit him perfectly. Kassandra had a dress, white and soft to the touch. It was slender and elegant. It too was a seemingly perfect fit, as if it was made for her; discarding the fact it was made for someone with wings. Both seemed pleased with the clothes provided. We headed to the kitchen to eat. Jovani met us at the entrance of the kitchen and greeted us with a smile and bow of his head.

"Good day to you. I trust the clothes are suitable?"

"They're great!" Laguna smiled.

"Yes thank you." Kassandra replied in a courteous tone, one I had never heard her use. She sounded regal. Elegant and sophisticated. It suited her. Perhaps the dress was drawing out her gentler, feminine side. Now that I looked at her more closely there was a certain sparkle in her eyes. The way she held herself was different. No less confident than usual, but there wasn't a hint of aggression or tension in the way she stood, she was very feminine.

"Very good." Jovani smiled. "Lunch shall be served in the dining room shortly. Master Kaldor and Lord Valelor are already there."

"Callidus is joining us?" I asked.

Both Kassandra and Laguna exchanged nervous glances. They were still very reserved and formal in my fathers presence, despite his insistence otherwise. Callidus valued formality far more and was only going to make them nervous given that they had very limited interactions with him. We entered the dining room where Callidus and my father were already sitting. There were numerous parchments littering the table. They stopped talking and rose to greet us.

"Greetings Master Anaris." Callidus grinned at me, making a point of using my new title. "And greetings to your companions as well. I trust you are well rested?"

Knowing Callidus that was a subtle dig at how late we had stayed in bed. Laguna chuckled nervously and Kassandra scowled ever so slightly, telling me that neither had missed the joke.

"Very well rested." I replied.

"Good!" Kaldor grinned. "Now everyone please sit and do forgive the mess." He said motioning to the bits of parchment on the table top. "We were just going over some of the arrangements for our expedition to Rengilar."

"Don't let me stop you." I assured him.

Laguna and Kassandra didn't say anything. They quietly took their seats to my left as I took my seat next to my father at the head of the table. Callidus sat across from me. They continued to talk about various things in regards to the expedition while Laguna and Kassandra whispered amongst themselves. Thankfully Jovani appeared a few minutes later with two other servants who brought the food in for us.

We ate well. I was hungrier than I had thought, but the smell of all the delicious food made me suddenly feel ravenous. Kassandra and Laguna were also hungry. None of us spoke unless asked a question as we were so focused on eating. I was aware of the knowing smile that Callidus wore all through breakfast.

"So what are you planning on doing today Master Anaris?" Callidus asked.

"I hadn't planned on doing much." I admitted.

"Not going to go and visit your friends before you depart tomorrow morning?"

He was of course referring to Aceh, Cody and the others. I had decided not to visit, it would be easier that way. Although I had said that about Laguna and Kassandra as well. Was I being selfish not going to see them? Or was I being kind? Perhaps after everything that happened at the dojo the other day they didn't want to see me at all.

"No I wasn't." I responded coldly, wanting this particular subject of conversation to be dropped.

"Well then may I suggest you go by the arena and perhaps teach some of the adepts some of your impressive bending techniques?"

"Not a bad idea." Kaldor agreed with him. "I know that many of the warriors are interested in meeting you. It would be good for you to rebuild relationships with them."

"Quite. Seeing as many of them will be risking their lives when they go with you to Rengilar." Callidus added.

"Very well." I agreed. It would do me some good to get out and get some exercise.

"Excellent. My compliments to Harold for the delicious meal." Callidus said to my father as he rose from his seat.

"I will make sure to pass on your compliments." My father replied with a smile.

With that Callidus gathered up the parchments, that he and my father had been pouring over when we arrived, and then left. Jovani escorted him out.

"If you would excuse me, I must be on my way as well." Kaldor said as he rose from his seat. "I must go and meet with the General."

"Goodbye Lo... Kaldor." Laguna said, correcting himself by using my fathers name rather than his title.

"Thank you Laguna. Have a good day all of you. If you are staying the night again, I shall see you at dinner later."

We all left with him and headed back to my room so the others could change back into their armour. Once we were ready we headed out. As we made our way into the market place I was very aware of everyone staring at me. I stopped in my tracks, Laguna and Kassandra turned and looked at me questioningly.

"Lets head to the old mines."

"Not the arena?" Laguna questioned. "You want to go join the regular warriors?"

"Sure. Why not?"

"Well... no reason I guess."

It's true that as a master ranked bender I was tasked with teaching the adepts to hone their bending skills. However as a Warlord I was also tasked with honing the skills of the regular warriors as well. Since I was primarily a wind bender my talents would not be able to benefit anyone specifically. And my only real defining ability as a fire bender was my ability to use the blue flames, and that was not something I would be able to share. So we headed to the old mines where the regular warriors trained. As we stepped in the entrance I was aware of dozens of eyes on me. All of them whispering amongst themselves. My presence was causing a stir.

"Master Anaris!"

"Warlord Zabac." I replied as he approached.

"I was not expecting to see you here."

"I figured I would come down and see if I could be of any assistance." I said.

"That is most kind of you." Zabac nodded. "It is not often we see any of the Master benders down here. They usually have their paws full training the adepts in addition to all their other duties."

He had not needed to come over to speak to me, but he seemed genuinely appreciative of the assistance. It looked like he was the only other warlord here, the others were likely busy preparing for tomorrows departure. He left to return to his duties and Laguna and Kassandra moved away from me and began sparring with one another. Most of the other warriors continued with their training. Some of the more seasoned warriors ignored me completely, nodding respectfully if our eyes met, but otherwise kept to themselves. Many of the other warriors couldn't help but glance my way when I passed by, others stood and openly stared at me.

As I passed a group of warriors running drills with spears I stopped and watched them. I watched them for a few moments before approaching the youngest at the end of the line. I placed my paw on his shoulder. He turned to look at me, nearly jumping out of his scales when he realised who I was. He quickly stood to attention and bowed his head.

"Warlord Anaris!" He spluttered.

"Show me what you were just doing." I said.

"Ye-yes sir!"

He quickly resumed his stance with the spear and ran through the series of motions he had been practising. This drill allowed the wielder of the spear to practice the basic motions of parrying the attacks of an opponent before ending in a powerful thrust. It was his thrust that had caught my attention, but after closer inspection the weapon seemed clumsy in his paws.

"Have you used a spear before?" I asked.

"Not really... sir." He added the honorific as an afterthought, his nervousness returning.

"Who did you train with?"

"My father trained me sir." He bowed his head. A nervous habit of his.

"So you didn't receive any formal training at all?"

It was not uncommon for fathers to train their sons, or even to be trained by their older siblings. But that was usually in conjunction with formal training under the guidance of a warlord or warrior of reputable skill. This was unusual but not unheard of. But to be a ranked warrior at his age his skill must have been judged worthy by a warlord.

Spearmanship was the most basic of skills. The spear was an effective weapon. Its long range could allow a novice to fight a more seasoned opponent. In practised paws the spear was a fearsome weapon. My preferred weapon of choice as it so happened.

"What is your name?"

"Hakril, sir! Hakril Yaxomien."

Yaxomien. The name of one of the noble houses. He didn't have the air of a noble and lacked the confidence I would expect of someone from such a line. My guess was that his father, or perhaps grandfather was the brother of the head of the noble house, and had branched off once they were not named as the successor of the family line.

"So I'm going to guess your father did not teach you how to use a spear?"

"No Sir!" He bowed his head once again, but this time it remained bowed. Almost as if he was ashamed of the fact. "My father taught me how to use a sword and a bow sir!"

I had assumed he was around sixteen winters old, but now that I looked at him more closely his body still had a spindliness to it. As if his muscles had not yet grown to match the height of his body. Perhaps he was younger than I thought. If he was much younger than that then to have his skill with a sword and bow acknowledged to be of a level he could attain the rank of warrior was impressive.

"Then allow me to instruct you."

He looked up at me with wide eyes. Eyes filled with surprise and astonishment.

"T-thank you Sir!"

"Hand me your spear."

He handed me the spear and I tested its weight, tossed it from one paw to the other and spun it with my right paw. It was made of simple steel, heavy but well balanced. I took up a stance, the spear pointing toward one of the training dummies nearby. The other warriors who had been running drills had now stopped and were watching as well.

"The biggest advantage of using a spear is the range it provides. You have a longer reach than that of a sword." I move through the same drill that he had been practising before, ending it with a powerful thrust into the chest of the training dummy that ended with a powerful thud as I sank the spear tip into the padded chest area and into the wood beneath. I pulled the spear free of the dummy and turned to face the warriors.

"You must become one with the spear, allow it to become an extension of your body." I spun the spear round in my paws slowly, allowing my paws to glide along its length, finding the point of balance before suddenly erupting with a one pawed thrust towards the group. The tip of the spear never came closer than four feet towards them, but all of them flinched. The ferocity of the move forced them to react. I tossed the spear back to Hakril who caught it awkwardly.

"All of you line up and stand ready." They all lined up before and stood ready with their spears. "Feel the weight of the spear, find the points where it is perfectly balanced." I watched as they all did so. This was strange to them, I could tell from the slight hesitation and glances they exchanged. "Now attack!"

"HRUH!" They grunted as they all thrust their spears forwards into the open air before pulling back.

"Again!"

"HRUH !"

I approached Hakril and stepped behind him and placed my paws on his. I could feel his entire body tense I did so. I moved his paws along the shaft of the spear to find better placement.

"Again!"

"HRUH !" They roared as they executed the attack once more.

I saw a glimmer of understanding cross Hakril's eyes after that. He felt the difference in how the spear reacted to where he held it. He had some considerable natural talent if he could sense the difference with just that one thrust. I ran them through some basic drills, correcting their footing or paw placement as we went.

At this point most of them would never understand the difference these slight adjustments would make to their proficiency with a spear. I remember my time training under Aceh. He would constantly correct my positioning, my posture... anything that wasn't perfect. I didn't see why it was so important, just like these warriors. But due to the constant correction it became second nature to me.

With the experience I had gained I could now see the openings and now I could help teach these drakes how to prevent them. Even if they didn't understand how these adjustments made much of a difference. A slight adjustment to their footing would help them react quicker if their attack was to miss the mark. Ensuring the spear was perfectly balanced in their paws would make it difficult to knock the spear from their grasp, or knock them off balance.

Hakril however impressed me with how quickly he grasped the lessons I taught him. Over the next few hours he became quite skilful with a spear. Still a long way from mastering the weapon, but gone was the clumsiness I had witnessed earlier. He seemed to absorb what I taught him like a sponge. Once I corrected an error he rarely repeated it. His improvement became obvious when I got them to spar. He was knocked down several times at first, but he would improve with each fight. In the end he was sweating and exhausted but I wanted to see just how much he had improved.

"Hakril, once more." I ordered.

"Yes sir." He huffed stepping forward. "Who am I fighting Sir?"

"Me." I said as I took the spear from the warrior standing next to me.

His eyes went wide. So wide for a moment I thought they might pop out of his head. He back stepped as I approached.

"S-Sir?!"

"Come now." I smiled as I readied my spear. "Show me what you've learned."

"Yes Sir!" He responded with determination.

He readied himself. Once he was ready I went on the attack. I began with a series of simple thrusts, all of which he parried perfectly before attempting a counter strike. I knocked his attack aside and struck him in the arm with the butt of my spear.

He winced in pain and rubbed his arm where I had struck him. He looked at me with a bewildered look. His counter had been perfect, but I had expected it. He was still a novice, well perhaps better than that, but his inexperience led him to be reliant on the drills he had learned so far which made his moves predictable. He had not yet learned how to adapt in battle.

"The spear tip is not the only part of a spear that can be used as a weapon." I said.

I had struck him in the arm deliberately. I could just as easily struck him in the head with that last attack. With a heavy steel spear like this one I could have easily knocked him out with such an attack. Instead he would have a bruise to remind him of the lesson on his arm for the next few days rather than a concussion.

He readied himself once more and this time he took the offensive. Like before his attacks were direct and predictable, but they were crisp and precise. Once again I parried his attack and swung the butt of my spear at him again. He ducked and rolled away. He was learning. Good.

His avoidance of my attack earned him a few approving noises from the crowd. I smirked at his and spun my spear in my right paw. He smirked back at me and once again went on the attack. He trust his spear at my chest. I knocked it aside and spun on my heel, bringing my right leg up and wrapped it over his spear and wedged it behind my knee.

He tugged on the spear but I held it firmly. He stared at me with shocked amazement and released the spear as I pointed mine at him. He raised his paws to show his submission and backed away. I tossed him my spear. He grabbed it and stared at me confused as I flicked his spear up into the air with my leg and caught it in my paw. I was showing off I admit. I could have just as easily returned his spear to him by letting go.

I readied myself and waited for him to do the same. He was hesitant. The gap in our skill level was obvious. But he was a determined young drake and I saw his expression stiffen before he once again readied himself and assumed a basic stance.

I struck first this time. I attacked with a series of strikes that kept him on the defensive. I was not going to allow him anytime to breath. I was intentionally going easy on him, deliberately not attacking where I could break through. If he left himself open then I would punish him and strike him down, but otherwise I wanted to see what he was capable of when pressured.

Normally in battle time is hard to measure, but I had learned to measure it in heartbeats. This was only achievable once you could remain calm in the heat of battle. It took a lot of physical and mental training to achieve this. For me in the heat of battle my heart would beat two times every second.

It was on the one hundred and eighty seventh heartbeat, ninety three seconds later, into my assault that Hakril finally broke through my attack. He stepped forwards as he parried, knocking my spear to the left and created an opening. I could see the determined glint in his eyes. He was completely focused on the task at paw, that there was no hesitation, no fear. As he thrust his spear towards my chest he had every intention of killing me. Not out of rage or anger. But out of the pure intention of defeating his opponent; me.

He was one heartbeat too slow however. I spun off to the right, spun my spear around my body and caught him in the back of the leg with it. I swept his leg out from under him, he cried out as his paws left the ground, a cry that was silenced as the air was knocked from his lungs as he landed on the flat of his back.

He coughed and gasped for a few seconds before regaining his wits. He stared up at me and I offered him a paw. He took it and I pulled him back up to his foot-paws. By this point the other warriors were clapping. Whether it was at me or Hakril, or both of us, it did not matter.

"Well done." I said to Hakril who now had managed to catch his breath.

"I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"I tried to... I tried to..." He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Don't worry about it." I assured him. "If you hadn't you would never have broken through my defence."

He stared at me incredulously. He had expected me to punish him for trying to kill me? Perhaps any other warlord would have. It was how I was trained in Aaru. The Deity of War was not known to pull her punches. Every lesson had been a fight for survival. Every opponent had strived to strike me down. It was only through perseverance and determination that I had managed to survive the brutal training I had received during my time there.

"A most impressive display Warlord Anaris." Zabac said as he approached. "You as well Hakril."

"Thank you Sir. Sirs." Hakril bowed his head.

"If I may, I would like to speak to you." Zabac said to me.

I nodded and with a quick goodbye left the warriors to go about their business. I followed Warlord Zabac as he led us away from the other warriors so we could speak in private.

"You are as impressive as always." He said.

"Thank you."

"Tell me. What do you think of Hakril?"

"He is talented." I admitted. "When I first saw he he didn't even know how to hold a spear correctly."

"He is that." He nodded in agreement, looking back toward Hakril who was sitting on a rock talking to some of the other warriors. "He became a warrior just a few days ago."

"I am to assume you sponsored his ascension?"

"Most astute of you." He grinned. "Yes. His father asked me to do so, and after witnessing his skill with a sword and a bow I had no reason to decline the request despite his young age. He is quite proficient with a bow, and is among the best with a sword."

"He said his father taught him."

"Yes. Unfortunately his father suffered an injury that forced him to retire as a warrior. He had studied the art of swordsmanship under Warlord Kendril Jarra when he was younger. Warlord Jarra was a master swordsman, but unfortunately after the fall he moved South with his family."

"Interesting, but I assume you didn't want to talk to me about the past."

"Quite." He chuckled. "I wanted to ask you a favour."

"Name it."

"You are quite talented with a spear, but I notice you carry a sword..."

"I wish I could say I was as good with a sword as I am with a spear." I admitted. "I am capable with a sword, not much more."

"Pity. I was hoping you may be able to teach young Hakril."

"Even if I was capable of that, I don't have the time to so."

"True." He sighed. He was more than aware of my need to return to Aaru. "Unfortunately Zangar has lost all of our finest swordsmen over the years. There is no one left to help that boy to achieve his full potential."

"Perhaps Aceh could help."

"The tiger?" He placed a finger on the end of his muzzle as he considered the idea. "Well he certainly is a capable fighter. I heard about your fight with him. You won if memory serves me right."

"In terms of skill he is better than me." I admitted. "With that win I now consider myself his equal. If I were to fight him again... I would not guarantee myself to win. I'd probably win two out five fights if I'm being honest."

"High praise from the drake who so easily defeated four master benders."

"I'm sure if I were to fight them again it would be a tougher fight."

"You're surprisingly humble." He smiled. "It's rather refreshing."

"I'm just being honest. I think I would beat them more times than I would lose. However I had an advantage of surprise going into that fight. Now that they have seen what I'm capable of I'm sure they would come up with a strategy to beat me."

"Even so it was a decisive win. You earned your rank and title twice over with that single win. Not many can claim such a victory." He stared off into the distance for a moment. "I shall consider approaching the tiger about Hakril's training as you suggest."

"You would be wise to do so. And even if he is not able to help Hakril achieve his potential as a swordsman he will certainly help him grow in other ways."

"Thank you Master Anaris. Your advice has been... insightful."

I bowed my head and he departed. I watched his back as he walked away. That tiger. It would seem that up until now Aceh has still remained an outsider to many. Not overly surprising in communities where one species makes up the majority of the population. It was difficult to tell being stuck underground as we were, I had grown used to seeing the sun, but I judged it to be sometime late in the afternoon.

Tomorrow we would depart for Rengilar. So much could go wrong. Many drakes could lose their lives. But I would accomplish my mission by any means necessary. Even if that meant giving my life for it. Even if I survived my mission there was no guarantee that I would ever be able to return back home to Zangar. Perhaps I should go and visit my friends - if I can still even call them that - before I leave tomorrow. Speaking about Aceh had made me think about how much I'd missed them during my time away.

"Hey Malakye." Laguna waved as he approached me, Kassandra a few steps behind him.

"I will see you at home later." I said as I walked past him.

"Wait up! We'll come with you."

"No!" I snapped. I hadn't meant to, but I needed to do this alone.

"What is it?" He asked. Kassandra placed a paw on his shoulder and shook her head at him. "Fine. We will see you later then?"

I bowed my head in both confirmation as well as thanks for their understanding. I made my way out of the mines and towards the marketplace. Kaldor had told me that they still lived in the same place as they had before my disappearance. I had ignored him at the time. At the time I had had no intention of going to visit them, but now I felt that I should.

I dreaded our impending meeting. Especially with Cody. He had been distraught. The expression on his muzzle when he had looked at me after my fight with Aceh... it had hurt me to see him like that. I had simply left, judging it to be the best course of action at the time.

I stood across from the entrance to their home. Once I had viewed it as a second home, but now I felt like a stranger there. I closed my eyes and extended my senses. There was someone in there, three of them, but I was unable to tell who they were.

I could still just walk away. My resolve to meet them wavering. No. I would do this. They deserved this. I wanted to do this. And if they wished to shun me then I deserved that. I took a deep breath and steeled my resolve. I strode towards the curtained doorway. I hesitated at the entrance before pulling aside the curtain and stepping inside.

Their scents were what hit me first. That familiarity of a memory long forgotten. Michael and Jason were sat at the table near the fire pit, distracted with a game of dice. Eric sat in a rocking chair across the room from them, puffing happily on his pipe. No sign of Aceh or Cody. I stepped forward slowly. Eric was the first to notice my presence.

"Malakye!" His tone was one of wonder and astonishment.

He climbed out of his chair and moved to embrace me. His movements were slow and awkward. He had grown old during my time away. He was always old, but his body was now showing its age in his movements. His feathers were heavily greyed and his movements more sluggish. His eyes still had that spark of youth to them however. I returned his embrace, eternally grateful for his warm welcome.

I looked up at the others to see them staring at me. A few seconds later they rose, their muzzles plastered with smiles as they too came to hug me. I grunted as the two heavy bulks pressed against me, but I couldn't help but smile. I had to fight back the tears of relief.

Once they had finally let me go we all sat round the fire and talked. They told me about all of the things that had happened to them during my time away. About joining the trade caravan. About the newest addition to the group. A young drake named Reece. I recognised him when I had challenged Aceh. He had recently joined the dojo before the wolves had attacked Zangar before I had been taken to Aaru.

I knew that they wanted to ask me about my time in Aaru. That was all anyone seemed to want to ask about. But then I suppose it's not often you get to speak to someone who had been there, let alone having spoken to the Guardian Deities themselves. Eventually Jason was the first to ask about my time there.

"So what was it like?!" He asked.

"Hard." I smirked. "I faced a lot of challenges there. All of them dangerous. Everyday was a fight for survival." I looked across their eager expressions. All of them were eager to hear more.

************

Days flew by. I couldn't even be sure about how long I'd been here in Aaru. I couldn't even use the moon to tell the passage of time as it was always full here. Each and every night the moon would be at its brightest. Callen explained that it was because this was where Luna, Callen's sister and the Guardian deity of the moon, was at her most powerful. She used the moon to cast a protective light to drive away the darkness and protect all those under it from the darkness, and the creatures who reside in it.

Aaru was a world of light, just as the Underworld was a world of darkness. All living beings, mortal and immortal alike, deity or demon, were made of both light and darkness. Callen spent a lot of time explaining the finer points to me. How he and the other guardian deities sought to maintain the balance of the mortal realm and protect us from the demons of the Underworld. So long as the balance was maintained the borders to the Underworld would remain sealed.

I missed my home and yet I didn't want to leave. I spent my days with Callen. When we weren't hunting he would teach me ways to protect myself from the spirit within me. How to enter my mind-scape at will. It took a long time for me to learn how to clear my mind properly and enter my mind-scape without the aid of drugs.

When we practised this Jan'Zar was always there. She had been absent more and more. On the days Callen would train me in the art of survival and hunting I only ever saw her when we sat down to eat supper each night, and she would be gone by the time I woke up the next morning. It was only when she was still there in the morning that I knew we would be practising my meditation skills.

Once in the mind-scape they taught me how to navigate it and began to teach me techniques that could be used here in the mind-scape Techniques that I would ultimately be able to use to combat the spirit which threatened to possess me.

The techniques he taught me were relatively simple, yet I still struggled with them. The energy required to use those techniques required an energy that wasn't physical or spiritual but something entirely different; an energy he called hal'yan. Callen explained it as more of a metaphysical manifestation of sheer will. Whatever that meant.

"Clear your mind and focus purely on the manifestation of your will." Callen said gently as I sat cross legged on the ground in the middle of the camp ground in my mind-scape "Picture it is a bright gleaming light which can banish the darkest of shadows. Let it fill you up, and flow freely from you."

I imagined what he told me. It was there in my chest, expanding outwards through my chest and filtering out through the rest of my body. Once the light had filled ever fibre of my being I focused it into a single point in the air in front of me. A large amount of the light flowed from my body into that point and then formed a small ball of light, no larger than a marble.

"Excellent work!" Callen exclaimed.

I smiled proudly, happy to finally be making progress. But was I well aware that it took far too long to manifest the energy to be used in an actual fight. Not to mention that it was barely enough energy to execute the simplest of techniques.

I focused and imagined the energy forming into a barrier around me. The light expanded and formed a small shield of shimmering light in front of me, no more than a foot across. I held the shield for a few moments before it faded away. Annoyed at how difficult it was. If this had simply required the use of nen I would be able to create a blinding sun here in the mind-scape But all I was able to create was a small firefly sized ball of light!

"You are making excellent progress!"

"Am I?" I snapped in frustration.

"Of course you are." He assured me, a little taken aback. "I know it doesn't seem like it. But this takes time. I have every confidence that you will be able to master the skills you need."

"But how long?" I sighed.

"That I can't tell you."

I think back to the time when Callen told me he had had students who had learned the skills required in just a few short seasons. Others had taken decades. It all depended on their own natural talents as well as the spirit within them. Even Callen and Jan'Zar had admitted that the one residing within me was powerful. I would be spending more than a few seasons here before I would be able to return home.

It was a good thing that I liked it here. I really enjoyed Callen's company, but this was not home. I wanted to see my friends and family again. I wanted to taste Harold's delicious cooking. Listen to Eric's stories. See Kassandra... I was surprisingly eager to see her again. Her scornful scowl that made her snout scrunch up in that cute way that it did. I missed my friends.

"I know!" I snap as I get up and begin to pace around the camp site. "It just feels like I'm not making any progress at all. That's all."

"Come on lets go back. It's getting late."

I closed my eyes and focused on waking up. I had no idea how he could tell how late or early it was in this place. Time didn't flow like it did in the real world. What could seem like days could be mere minutes, while what seemed like minutes could be hours.

As my eyes flickered open I looked up into the sky. The late afternoon sky greeted me, the sun getting close to the horizon. There was still a couple of hours before it would set. Callen sat a couple of feet away cross legged, facing me. I had learned now how to enter the meditative state without the use of drugs. It made it easier to leave the mind-scape when ever I chose to rather than having to wait for the drugs to wear off.

A bitter scent, one I had become familiar with during my time here, tingled in my snout. It wasn't a pleasant scent, but it didn't make me screw up my nose in disgust. It was just very distinctive as the scent of warpaint lingered in the area.

"Hello Jan." Callen greeted his sister.

I turned to look at the Deity of War as she lounged against a large rock chewing on a piece of dried grass as she waited for us.

"About time!" She said impatiently. "I caught dinner. Go make it!" She snarled at me.

I sighed but nodded and headed over to butcher and cook what ever it was she had caught today. After making a stew out of the small animals she had caught while she and Callen talked quietly near the edge of camp. I had learned that when they did that there were generally talking about me, or at least about something they didn't want me to hear.

They came to sit around the camp fire shortly before dinner was ready. We all sat in silence, no one saying anything until I was in the middle of serving dinner. As I reached over to give Callen his bowl of stew he began to speak.

"As of tomorrow Jan will be taking over your training."

"Huh?!" I was caught by surprise, nearly dropping the bowl I had been handing over to him.

"Something wrong?" Jan'Zar asked. Almost daring me to object to the change.

"No. Just a little surprised is all." Jan'Zar had had very little to do with my training up to this point, so I can't really be blamed to be a little surprised at the sudden change.

"I will still be training you, but your time will be split up between myself and Jan." Callen explained.

"Okay."

"So for the next few weeks your mine!" She cackled.

Any feelings of worry I felt came to fast realisation. She was fine to be around when Callen was here to keep her in check. But if he was going to be absent like she has while he trained me... I was in some serious trouble!