Valens eyes slowly open to the sight of his tent, feeling annoyed at the finger that has been poking him in the cheek for a few minutes already. At first, he thought it was an accident, Lin flailing around in her sleep. But it just kept poking and poking.

“Ughhhhhhh Valen grunts, stretching in bed as his head turns towards the aforementioned poker.”Lin, I really would have loved to sleep a little more, you can’t just ke-,” Valen stops, noticing a little elven girl looking at him, her dark skin quite noticeable from the little light passing through the tent.

“Lin said I should ask you for food…..can I have some food please…..I’m really hungry.” Aisha asks, rubbing her tummy, eyes wide open as she attempts to pout cutely.

“No Aisha,” Lin’s voice calls out from Valen’s other side.”You have to give him the puppy dog look,” Lin explains quickly.

Turing back his head to look at Lin, he finds her next to him, her face transforming as she talks to Aisha.

“You have to open your eyes wider, and pout like this,” Lin explains to the dark elf girl.

“Like this?” Aisha ask, attempts to mimic Lins face.

“More pouty,” Lin says.

Valen first starts to chuckle…...then a full blown laugh graces his lips as the absurdity of the situation descends on his groggy mental state. Lin made a friend…..with a small elven girl…..in the middle of the forest...while he slept for maybe 6 hours.

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

Gang awakens in his tent, smiling at the new day before him. His mind resurfaces to yesterday night, remembering Valen’s moment of weakness, a rather random thing….to ask for guidance from someone he only met relatively recently. But Gang is happy that Valen chose him to express his feelings.

Getting out of bed, Gang remarks with a smile at the immense craftsmanship of Valen’s tents; the size, structure, and portability are far better than any he had ever seen.

With a small stretch, Gang then sends his mana towards his left arm, feeding the mithril armband on his bicep, the same one his father gave him. With but a thought, his trusty weapon forms on the ground before him, then his large robe comes into being next to it.

With a grunt,he grabs the colorful robe, its weight far heavier than its looks, considering the mithril steel alloy built in. Grabbing his enchanted polearm, the most common weapon of his people, he quickly checks his neck, making sure the enchanted necklace is firmly in place. With a practised flourish, his long braided hair wraps around his neck before he exits the tent.

Exiting the tent, he finds a rather interesting sight before him, his companions apparently already awake….for quite some time.

First he notices Diva, her body quickly moving in practice, the katana….as Valen calls it, flows gracefully through the air, getting mere centimeters from striking her body, but always missing as her perfect footwork allows her to move in serenity.

A dance of death….is a proper description when a Amazon practices her art.

With a strength of will, Gang moves his eyes away from the amazing display towards a table and chairs…….Lin and a…...dark elf sitting and eating from a bowl. Confused, both from the tables and the new member, Gang looks for Valen, quickly finding him a little further away….training on the ground.

Valen grunts slowly, his body moving up and down at the extension of his arms, sweat rolling down his face.”87...88...89,” he calls out every pushup.

Gang stares entranced….watching Valens sweat covered muscles twitch from the strain of his body…..their sheer size and…..sweat gleaming chest……..making it hard for Gang to breath…..or even turn his roaming eyes away.

“100,” Valen says, finishing his pushups. Getting up from the ground, a towel forms in his hand. With slow movements, Valen wipes the sweat off his body, ignorant of Gangs roaming eyes. With another thought, a t-shirt forms across his body, allowing Gang to regain control of his eyes.

With better control, he walks towards Valen, doing his best not to blush.”Valen……..when did we get a new member for our party…...if I recall…….we went to bed yesterday night.”

Turning towards Gang, Valen notices a slightly red face, but give it no mind,” Apparently Lin had to poop, so she goes into the forest…...and somehow found a friend. I haven't asked many questions yet,” Valen turns to the table, noticing the girls finishing up their meal, “though we should probably ask right now.”

With a quick nod from Gang, they both walk towards the table, the two girls chatting amicably…..Diva doing her own thing.

“Valy!” Lin yells, jumping out of her seat and running towards him.” Can I get a pokeball?” she quickly asks, ignoring Gang.

Lifting his eyebrow, Valen folds his arms…..not sure if this is the correct stance a father would take.” Lin, Gang just woke up, what are you supposed to say?”

Pouting…..Lin turns to the Radonian” Gooooood morning!” she yells with a smile, Gang merely smiling at the overeager introduction.

“Good morning Lin,” Gang answers back.

Having done her introduction, she excitedly turns to Valen” So….can I get a pokeball now?”

Lifting his eye, ”Why do you want a pokeball Lin?” he asks curiously, not at all bothered whether he had any such toys. Apparently, the malls and stores that he bought the entire inventory of were stocked in practically everything.

“So I can catch pokemon.” she exclaims like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

“Lin, you can't catch pokemon. That was a animated show. Pokemon aren't re-,” Valen stops, looking at Lin’s confused face…..finding something wrong.

Bending on one knee, Valen looks to Lin, his head leveled with hers.” Why do you want to catch pokemon Lin…...why do you want to be a trainer?” Valen asks the tiger-kin.

Lin takes a rigid expression, her little arms turning into fists, tail waving angrily in the air.”I want to get powerful pokemon to….to help people. I want to stop people from hurting others. I want to make sure people don't lose their parents…..I want to protect you….” Lin answers back, her ears drooping low, her confident stance all but gone as she remembers Valen, bloody and laying in bed.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Valen quickly picks up Lin, hugging her to his chest. Lin hugs back, her arms wrapped around Valen neck, enjoying the safety he gives……...the feeling of someone who cares for her.

Gang merely watches the scene…..slightly jealous of Lin…..getting comfortably hugged by Valens massive chiseled chest.

After a bit of time, Valen pushes Lin away, brushing a few tears from her eyes.” With a flourish of his arm, a pokeball forms in his hand, quickly handing it to Lin.

Gang’s mind doesn't even think about Valen giving Lin some weird ball…..no, his mind and eye are focused on the hand that summoned it. A hand lacking the mithril ring.

Before Gang can ask, Valen interrupts the group.” Alright Lin, mind introducing us to your new friend?” he asks, pointing behind Lin, where Aisha watches the group with trepidation.

Nodding quickly, Lin runs to the elf, grabbing her hand, the other holding the red and white ball.”This is Aisha, I found her lost in the woods.” Lin says to the approaching Gang and Valen.

“I see,” Valen starts, taking a better look at the young girl; dark skin, relatively short ears for an elf, wearing sandals and a gray dress….torn up in a few places...I will have to fix that. “So Aisha…..what were you doing in the forest alone…...it is quite dangerous.”

Aisha remains quiet, the attention of strangers making it hard for her to speak up.

Lin quickly nudges the elf, smiling back at her….giving Aisha the courage to speak.” I was with my dad…...we ran away from our village…...he told me to run away…..and that he will find me later.”

Valen looks towards the elf child….not sure how to answer. “You said he will find you later. Did he say how?” Gang quickly asks from Valen’s side.

Nodding, Aisha puts her hand on her neck, pulling out a hidden necklace, a small jewel attached to a peace of wood and string. “Mommy and daddy said if I am ever lost, they can always find me as long as I have this necklace with me,” she answers, the jewel glinting slightly.

“Ahhhhh, so that's it,” Gang exclaims knowingly, looking towards the confused Valen.” That necklace uses an Alteration enchant that allows the users senses to feel a connection to any other items similarly made. It’s a complicated piece of magic which requires that all items be made at the same time, by the same individual.”

“Huh…...so how does it work exactly?” Valen asks, looking at Aisha’s necklace.

“Simple, mana is sent into the crystal, then it is released in a wave. The wave travels a distance based on mana sent….until it strikes another similar mana signature. At which point the crystals slightly vibrates towards the direction of the other signature. Strength of vibration determines distance.” Gang explains to Valen, proudly

“Interesting…...so it is a magical radar. That's pretty impressive.” Valen says thoughtfully, the idea that mana can work similar to modern day instruments opens up a whole lot of potential uses.

Before Gang can ask what a radar is, Aisha’s quickly speaks up.”Can we find my dad with this?” she asks, holding up her necklace.

“Yes,” Gang answers, holding out his hand towards the young girl.

Pausing for a moment, not sure if she should hand over the necklace…...but quickly laments, figuring that her father might need help.

Taking the necklace into his hands, Gang starts to summon his mana. Willing it, the mana coagulates towards his neck, extending towards his gills and finally being released into the atmosphere. Without losing control of the external energy, he directs it towards the necklace, striking the crystal, enchanted wood slowly starting to glow with power.

More and more of his mana flows into the crystal, glowing brighter and brighter. Once the crystal is full with power, having been charged far beyond its capacity; Gang taps the wood, activating the enchantment.

A burst of invisible energy explodes from the necklace, blasting in every direction, even allowing Valen’s untrained senses to feel the wave as it travels through him.

Within a second, the necklace starts to vibrate strongly, back towards the forest.

“Hmmmm...it seems that Aisha’s father is much closer than I thought.” Gang exclaims, handing the necklace back to Aisha.

Smiling, Valen turns to Diva, ”Diva, we are going to take a quick trip into the forest. You coming?” Valen asks the Amazonian.

Diva merely nods, sheathing her sword, wiping what little sweat she worked up on her sleeve.

_________________________________________________________________________

Arjun winces from the pain in his side, the blood having soaked thoroughly into his shirt and pants…...making it extremely hard to escape the predator chasing him.

“Grrrrooooowwwwlllll.”

The beast roars, enjoying its hunt against a weakened enemy, knowing that it is only about time before its prey finally gives in.

Tisking, Arjun stands back up, moving away from the tree he was resting at….away from the sound of the beasts roar.

With a will of mana, he strengthens his body, muscles spasming painfully…..a bit of blood spilling from the wound on his side.

He sets off again, hoping to find help. Each step he takes causes a discrete piercing pain on his side…..where an arrow he had removed earlier had been.

Yes….an arrow….fired by a group of light elves which had invaded his home…..burning the village and taking as many people hostage as possible.

Arjun remembers…..the screaming…..flaming arrows and fire magic, striking the village walls, burning it down. So much yelling and screaming. He and his daughter were able to get away, only because his wife sent them outside to pick ingredients for her potions.

A tear streams down the side of his face, remembering his daughter Aisha…..hoping that she got away.

His daughter…..was with him at the time of the attack. When it happened, he ran into the forest with her…..soldiers following behind him. Taking the decision to protect her, he tells her to run away, promising to find her later.

“Ughhh,” Arjun groans, his vision starting to get slightly hazy….that arrow wound did a great number on him….

When his daughter ran, he had turned around, summoned his mana and blasted the chasing soldiers. They did not expect the ball of flame, killing a few of them outright. Unfortunately there were too many of them, forcing him to quickly flee; in a direction hopefully away from Aisha.

Unfortunately, one of the soldiers got lucky, striking him in the side, the arrow slamming through his leather vest, stabbing deeply into his side. Luckily it did not slow him down...

Within an hour he had lost his pursuers, the forest thick with vegetation requiring experience to traverse at any reasonable speed. When he had finally found a safe place, he had ripped out the arrowhead, quickly covering his wound using some stored cloth he had.

Unfortunately the blood was enough to attract a very dangerous predator.

“Groowwwwwllllll,”

Arjun listens, the predator slowly gaining on him, only the fear of his own magick keeping the predator from engaging the wounded elf…..a smart hunter….knowing its prey will die on its own.

“If only he knew I can barely keep my eyes open,” Arjun whispers, his glowing eyes barely even shining….muscles ready to give in at any moment.

With much less skill than before, Arjun continues through the forest, a bit of blood falling with every jump. Slowly the path before him becomes blurrier and blurrier, the breath of the hunters gait following behind.

Within a moment, Arjun loses ground, exiting the forest, quickly falling into a large rocky canyon. Tucking in his arms and legs, he rolls down the steep slope.

Groaning in sheer pain, Arjun crawls towards a rock at the bottom, placing his back to it…..his mana all but gone now.

Looking up, he finally notices his hunter, its piercing eyes staring down at him with intelligence.

“A Barghese,” he whispers, finally noticing one of the deadliest beast in the forest.

With a mighty leap, the Barghese jumps down, landing on its pipedal clawed legs, its long tail swishing dangerously on the ground.

“Grrrrrrr.” the beast growls, showing off its razor sharp teeth, knowing that the prey before it is as good as dead.

Arjun watches as the Barghese slowly walks forward, its steps confident but wary…..knowing many animals will fight hardest when closest to death.

Smiling sadly, Arjun watches the approaching predator, knowing that he will not be able to keep his daughters promise…..to find her again.

“Clack.”

Arjun notices a sound. Blinking away his hazy sight, he looks at the predator, who is confused…..staring at the ground.

Arjun follows the predators eyes…..finding a slowly rolling red and white ball….