Eldalia took one last look at the mountains behind her before taking a deep breath and stepping under the trees that made up the forest about a mile from the base. As the shade of the thick forest enveloped her she felt herself relax just a little. She had been traveling for about a day out in the open and it had begun to make her nervous. She had been told King Alaman haf soldiers all over the place looking for people like her. So far she hadnt spotted any but that didnt mean anything.
She stopped once she was about a hundred feet in and tilted her head to the side, causing her long black hair to fall out of the bun she had been using a small stick to hold up, and waited. She didnt have to wait long before her guardian, a huge black panther stepped oit from the shadows. Eldalia smiled softly and moved so she was face to face with the panther. She knew infinity had been close but she hadnt seen her all day because she had been hiding to keep from drawing attention.
"Boy am I happy to see you." She walked around to Infinity's side and jumped onto her back, "Let's find a place to camp. I can wait until tomorrow to go into the next village."

On the edge of the forest, a boy and his guardian were getting chewed out by a young woman and her lioness. "Oh, you lost track of him?" Corrine's voice accused as she placed her pale hands on her hips. "Even though your guardian is a dog, you--"

"A wolf, miss. Fang is a wolf," the young man corrected, his gaze hard and unwavering. He clearly didn't like being talked down to.

Corrine paused and looked between the guardian and the solider, blinking a few times. Then she looked to Serafina who was gazing at the "wolf" like a house cat would a mouse. The guardian wasn't as cocky as his companion and avoided the large cat's gaze to avoid a challenge. The young woman licked her lips and drew in a long breath. "You have ten seconds to turn your tail and get looking. We have to find them," she said evenly before smiling coolly at the boy.

Just as the voice in her head was about to hit nine, the solider turned away with a huff, his guardian at his heels. "We could really use some competent men," Corrine sighed, leaning against Serafina.

The white lioness purred coyly. You can't send a dog to do a lioness' work, she responded teasingly.

"Right," Corrine agreed. "Let's get back to work. We don't want the strays stirring up trouble."

Well, on the contrary, Cori, that sounds far more fun, the lioness mocked as they turned to continue scouting, walking side by side.

Clyde let out a big yawn and stretched out his tail body. He sipped on a cup of water. The cup was made out a rare stone which causes a lot of money." Oh.. I should had sold this at the market. Well. I least I have a bag full." He said with a shrug." Well, I think I rested long enough. Time to go." The tall slender boy rose to his feet and slung his bag over his shoulder. The group of men started to get annoyed." You stupid brat! Hand over that bag!" One of them shouted. " little rat! We'll skin you alive. Fire men!"

A flurry of arrows where shot at Clyde. He drew his sword and deflected them without looking." Ahh... I don't want fight. Also, I'm from the village of rouges..geez, what do expect?" He then whistled loudly . As moments passed, his gaint friend flew towards Clyde. He did stop and Clyde grabbed ahold of his leg." So long!"

The men gasped," he haves a guardian ! After him! Turn him in to the king!"

Waking up to a face full of fur was a normal occurrence in the Cava'Dom, or cave home. With a groan and a push, Darrow lifted Math'Ura's arm off of him and stood up, popping several joints in the process. With a lazy gait, Darrow walked through the twisting tunnels of the Cava'Dom, making lefts and rights in a pattern that only made sense to him. After several minutes of this he made his way to the hot spring located and the bottom of the maze of tunnels and began to strip down.

After the bath Darrow went into the "kitchen" which was mostly filled with salted meats and whatever other food that he could scavenge off of the soldiers. Settling with some seal meat and a couple biscuits, Darrow started get dressed to go outside and "acquire" some more supplies. Donning his armor and arming himself with his ancestral bone axes, Darrow left Math'Ura with a note written on the wall. Stepping outside of the Cava'Dom, Darrow took a deep breath through his nose and detected a foul stench towards the west. It was like a perfume or cologne, mixed with metal and a false sense of superiority. It was the smell of the soldiers of Alaman. As he had heard from other soldiers he had hunted before, The Rattler was on the prowl, and he wont leave without a body.

After awhile Eldalia heard the sound of a river. Knowing that any sign of her and Infinity would be obvious, as panthers definetly did not come from this type of forest, she decided to walk upriver a bit to at least cover their scent and come out somewhere were they could cover their tracks. She had to be extra careful the closer she got to the center of the kingdom.
"Head towards the river Infinity and get in it" she said softly, nudging Infinity's side.
With a soft sound Infinity followed her instructions. Soon they were in river and Eldalia was grateful that it was summer so the river wasn't as cold as it could. She jsut hoped her clothes would dry by nightfall, she couldn't risk a fire. Eventually they reached a rocky shore and she insructed Infinity to get out and head deeper into the forest. They moved carefully, leaving no trace of their passage.

Alex and Nero was kneeling in front of a man in a uniform who had a snake on his shoulder. The snake said "you two understand your mission" Alex said "yes we are to find those who have guardians and either turn or capture them" The snake smiled and said "good, and if they resist?" Alex paused and then said "to kill them"
The man then cut the snake off from continuing and said "remember the first two first."
Alex said "yes sir" then Alex and Nero both left the room of the general. The General shook his head and looked at the snake "you really like making him sweat" The snake responded "That boy is one of the best we got, but his honor may get in the way of his mission." The snake smiled and said "I wanted to make sure he knew what he was doing"
Alex and Nero arrived at the edge of the woods where a soldier was standing there with his Guardain which was a owl on his shoulder. The soldier saluted and said "Corrine and her team are checking this sight now."
Alex said "I'll go south then."
The soldier looked at Alex confused "south sir?, that puts a sector between you and Corrine's team."
Alex said "yes but I'll be up wind of the strays which will push them to move towards Corrines team."
The soldier said "Ok sir, I'll just stay here and keep watch."
Alex nodded and then walked south and began scouting in the south section of the woods.

Renan had been taking a stroll through the capital city, looking for any signs of the man he had been looking for. Thinking back, he remembered all of the good times that he had experienced under this man's guidance. This man had taught him to fence, to hunt, to do all of the things that Renan used to stay alive. Finally, he found where the old man was resting. This man, the father of the boy that Renan had saved just a year ago, was lying here, six feet under the earth. Renan left a flower petal, as he did every month. With a brief glimpse into the past, Renan was reminded of the day that this man died, sick and without proper care. But he got up, and set out on his way. The black bird that had been on the tombstone flapped up to Renan, resting on his shoulder. Passing a group of city guards, Renan found his path blocked. At least, until he pointed out the brooch on the pommel of his foil.

Ah, back when I was with them. How simple it was. Just do your job, Renan. No more. *Sigh,* at least they gave me some decent stuff though.

As he passed, Renan made a sound not unlike a chuckle, though without tone.

Idiots. Thinking I'm with them. Psh.

Renan came upon a forest by a river, and, lost in his thoughts, waded through and continued into the wood. Thoughts raced through his mind, recalling his life in the military, that family that he had massacred... That mother, crying as Renan himself carried her child off. This continued for a while, until, Renan felt the oh-so-familiar talons sinking into his shoulder. He looked up, and in the distance noted a pale girl with brown hair disappearing against the horizon. He stopped, for a moment, and thought. What the hell is she doing just out in the woods? That is until the crow, now flying in wide arcs around Renan, began cawing incessantly. "Is it just me, or do big cats not live in temperate forests?" it said. Renan looked carefully, and just barely made out the form that the crow was indicating. He began a run as the crow landed awkwardly back on his shoulder. " What are you doing? You're faster than me, go catch up!" Renan thought to the bird, as was his only means of communication.

The bird cocked it's head and widened its eyes, crying in a sassy bird voice, "I ain't dealin' with that. That thing must be a God Damn puma or somethin'." Renan was unamused. He looked at the bird and thought malevolently, "Screw you Steve," and began a full sprint, the bird now gliding behind him, cawing to the girl in an attempt to gain her attention.

Serafina hesitated in her prowling, gazing deeper into the forest. Corrine took a moment to notice that her guardian had stopped, but followed suit once she did. "What is it?" she asked, pulling her bow off her shoulder. She didn't reach for an arrow quite yet, though.

I smell dog, the white lioness responded, tail flicking from side to side. And the cold sweat of a scared human. With that, her eyes flickered with interest of what lied deeper into the woods. So, shall we? Serafina purred, looking back to the soldier.

Corrine was silent for a moment, thinking on their next move. Unlike her guardian, Corrine wasn't too keen on beginning a confrontation with violence. "I'll talk to them first," she said, noting that the cat almost seemed to roll her eyes before continuing, "you follow above as not to scare them." She tilted her head up at the trees above them. "And, should anything happen, I've my bow and sword and you have...well, you're you, Sera."

Serafina responded with a noise that must've been a laugh. Very well, she agreed. Be careful, Cori. With that, the lioness loped up the nearest tree and disappeared into the canopy. However, with fur as pale as the moon, Corrine would occasionally catch a glimpse of white in the direction Serafina was leading her. Corrine knew the dog guardian would smell her coming before its master saw her, so she readied an arrow as she drew closer. Overhead, Serafina had spotted the duo: she had been correct--the guardian was a dog. Black and brown in coloring. How ugly, she noted. The girl he was with was blonde, and quite overwhelmed by the looks of it.

Eldalia was deep in thought when Infinity suddenly froze and whipped around. Coming towards them was a giant crow.

"Infinity, down!" In one smooth motion the panther crouched and Edalia drew her bow and notched an arrow, the two moving in perfect harmony. Within seconds Infinity was crouched low to the ground, her sharp teeth showing and her claws extended, ready to pounce at any moment.

Eldalia knew just by looking at the crow that it was a guardian, no normal crow could ever be that big. The man running with it just further confirmed it. From here she had no way of telling if they were friend or foe so she carefully took aim at the human. She would never harm a guardian, but she had no such issues with a human if they meant her harm. She had been raised to heal, but she had also been raised to defend herself at any cost. She glared at the two moving towards them and Infinity growled deep in her chest, her emerald eyes flashing.

She could feel Infinity's whole body vibrating underneath her but her hands and her aim remained steady.
"I would stop if I were you!" She yelled once the two were close enough to hear her, "I will shoot and I have no control over what my friend does."

Alex and Nero were walking when Nero stopped. Alex said "what is it?" Nero said "I smell a human and a guardian" Alex said "what's the guardian" Nero said "a crow" Alex said "let's follow them and keep or distance" Alex and Nero then began to follow Renan but kept their distance.

It had been an hour since Darrow had awoken, since he smelled the soldiers on the wind he had been stalking them. There were two of them, just a simple patrol, the only thing out of the ordinary was that these had animals with them. A large boar and an animal he hadn't seen before. It was slender and covered with black spots, either way it was dangerous, the thing had both speed and grace.

"Young one, do you see these men?" questioned Math'Ura in her thought speak.

"Yes, they seem to be like us. Yet they carry the colors of the soldiers...Should I give them the hunters mercy?" Asked Darrow, grip tightening on a spear he had readied.

"Not yet young one, they are near one of your traps." stated Math'Ura in a matter of fact tone.

Ah, Darrow remembered now. This was one of his more...creative traps. While simple in design, it was proving very efficient. With so many soldiers dying by his hand, he did not know what to do with all of this sharp, metal sticks that they liked to carry. Some of the elaboratly dressed ones even had gems and a yellow metal for the handle. Yet these were useless by themselves and so he dug a hole, and put all the pointy metal sticks at the bottom, covering the top with snow.

Sending a thought speak Darrow asked "Mother Bear, can you cause a distraction. I would like to question one...See what he knows about the recent growth of the base."

While getting on her hind legs, Math'Ura stated jollily "Why yes, that I can do." and proceeded to emit an earth shattering roar.

The men started to panic at the sight of the large bear and, with shaky orders, the one with the fast beast told it to attack. While impressive in its speed, it did not notice the snow breaking under its feet until it was too late and plummeted into the trap. With that done, Darrow let his own war cry pierce the sky and let loose his spear, not quite hitting his mark but the spear had landed well... right into the fast beast owners leg.

With the girl drawing her bow, Renan realized that this encounter might not have been initiated in the best way. And of course, it's not like he could call out to her. But she didn't know that. Well shit, he thought. The silver arrow was pointed unwaveringly at Renan, but then he noticed something odd. Why was it pointed at him and not the more obvious threat; the giant crow? Taking a gamble, Renan looked up at the leaves of the trees, then back at the bird, and then nodded. The crow began flying above him as Renan swung up from a branch and sent his forearms into the talons of the bird, which promptly flew up into the brush of leaves, disappearing from sight.

The rustling of the leaves continued to approach the girl until there was a pause, and Renan fell from the trees, contorting his body in mid-air until managing to catch himself on all fours. The crow drifted down casually. Renan looked at the crow angrily, and made hand gestures akin to those made by someone saying, "What the hell is wrong with you?" The bird cackled - almost laughed - and flew up to Renan's shoulder. Unfortunately for him, the first thing that Renan saw upon standing up was the rather disgruntled face of a young archer and a panther, poised for attack, each several meters away. Renan dropped his crossbow and his sword and began to approach her. When he was but several feet away, he realized that he was branded with the sign of a bear on his chest. He immediately pointed at it and made gesticulations to infer that he was not associated with it.

Eldalia watched as he put his weopons down, her eyes tracking his every moment. Infinity cautiously stood to her full height and retracted her claws, though Eldalia kept her bow still aimed at the man. Lucky for him in her village there had been deaf so she knew enough sign languge to understand him for the most part but she didn't trust him enough to lower her weapon.

"How am I suppposed to know you're telling the truth? I may not know much about the King and his soldiers but I know enough not to trust someone who carries the bear on their chest." She pointed at the symbol with her arrow.

She felt Infinity shift underneath her to focus her attention at the crow and moved with her to keep her aim. Don't do anything you'll regret Infinity. We won't hurt anyone unless we have to. And she really hoped they wouldn't have to. The panther only growled softly to show she had heard her human. She trusted those with the bear even less than her humna. Her human could die, she could not, unless her human died first.

Alex and Nero arrived near the spot where Eldalia and Renan were. Alex peeked around the tree. "we have two humans with two guardians, one is wearing our colors." Nero sniffed the air and growled saying "he doesn't smell like one of us." Alex said "so we have a stray and a traitor, this could make things interesting." Alex and Nero kept watching to see what happens.

As Renan was thinking of a way to explain his story, the crow on his shoulder cawed quietly into his ear. With this, Renan's eyes widened as he signed, "I need you to cover me while I'm taking off. Afterwards I need you to head north as fast as you can, and try not to get caught. I still have questions. You'll get it." Soon after Renan turned around as the crow flared up into a mass of writhing feathers, crying out madly. The ex-soldier picked up his foil and crossbow, and loosed a bolt - but in his haste just barely clipped the hind leg of a wolf that had been a few meters off. Beginning a run towards the north, Renan sprinted until the bird was gliding directly over him.

"A little lower please? Come on, both of our lives are at stake!" Renan communicated to the bird. A few seconds later, Renan leaped into the grasp of the bird and slowly lifted off of the ground, gaining speed. After reaching a safe height and beginning to disappear into the canopy, Renan began to make obscene gestures towards the boy and his wolf, fading into the leaves.

Several minutes later, the crow claimed that it was safe. Maybe it was just tired of flying with extra weight. In any case, Renan was dropped off into a tree, "so that you can scout from above," as the bird said whilst it flew off cackling. However, the bird may have merely put the young soldier in an even worse situation as with the crashing of several branches, he merely managed to fall onto a branch where upon opening his eyes he was greeted by the wonderful, welcoming visage of a pale lioness who looked about ready to eat his face.

Fantastic. This has easily been the best day of my life.

Not able to think of anything else to do, Renan pointed at his chest and smiled awkwardly, hoping that this beast was one of the government.

Nero winced at the arrow. Alex said "let him leave" Alex then went out into the open walking toward the girl with the panther. Alex said "by the order of King Alaman, I am to take you into custody and take you to the city where you will be tested to see if you can be a soldier, If you resist I have been ordered to use deadly force." Nero was at Alex's side, the arrow wound not slowing him down.

(I'd like to note that most soldiers don't make that speech to strays, most will just attack them the minute they see them, just so you know)

Eldalia raised an eyebrow and grinned mischieviously, "Yeah. No." She released the arrow she still had ready, purposely just skimming his ear.

Infinity roared and spun around, leaping away. Eldalia held tightly to her bow and crouched down low over her panther's back as they practically flew across the ground and around the trees. This was the kind of environment they were used to and they moved through it effortlessly, Infinity's giant strides eating up the ground.

Eldalia couldnt hold back a laugh as they ran even though they were running for their lives. It was times like this that she felt like she was one with her guardian.

With the speed beast and its owner downed, Darrow advanced on the boar owner while Math'Ura did the same to the boar. The battle was swift, these must have been new recruits. A pang of guilt went through Darrow, the others had been hardened soldiers, warriors who life was worth taking. These were just children, like him. The boar owner even started crying, yelling about how [i]"The Rattler is going to take my bones."

These children were not worth killing, so he didn't. With a swift punch, Darrow knocked out the boar owner as Math'Ura cowed the boar into submission with a roar. Walking up to the speed beast owner, Darrow was assaulted by curses that he didn't understand the meanings to. As he crouched down, he pulled the spear out and the speed beast owner screamed and began to cry like the boar owner had.

However, Darrow just pulled a leather strip out of his pocket and made a tourniquet for the boy and asked a simple question. "Were...come...from?"

The boy had a look mixed with pain and confusion, which after awhile caused Darrow to ask again.

"W...we came f..f..from the south." He said, pain, cold and fear making his voice stutter.

"Why...come?" Darrow inquired.

"T..t...to capture you, the king wants you and your bear in his army." the boy said, losing consciousness.

With scratched and growling coming from the pit, Darrow knew that the speed beast was rising but it wouldn't be to much trouble. With his questions answered and the threat of these two taken care of, Darrow dragged the boar owner to his boar and let the speed beast take care of its owner. It was going to be a long trip to the south, and Darrow had some things to pack.