In this rather perfect afternoon, there was absolutely no thought within Chaz that made him worry as he raised his sword towards the sky. A stalwart, matured Lucario, he had laid eyes on his somewhat blurry Uncle Boel with a hunger in his ruby red eyes that came from the zeal of combat training. The sword he wielded in his right paw, held high, was weightless; Chaz could feel the thudding in his chest as Boel jovially ruffled his hair.

His uncle, a slender and intimidating fellow Lucario, was a courageous and renowned adventurer. He had explained to Chaz many times over the course of their sessions that he would give him the full details of his quests, but they seldom came. Chaz found that Uncle Boel only felt compelled to teach him everything he had learned as a skilled swordsman. Chaz found it odd how his Uncle needed not to say a word, and Chaz had followed the directions that he had not even been told. This was undoubtedly a perfect training session.

As suddenly as his Uncle even thought about speaking, there was a strange sound, and the sky had instantly turned a disgustingly vivid evening hue. Chaz couldn't move for fear. Boel had gone rigid, and his eyes seemed to be rolling back in his skull; a crimson circle was forming around his midsection, growing ever larger. Chaz called out, but he found that there was no voice to come from his lips as he felt himself beginning to realize, yet again with horror and confusion, that this was his ongoing, lucid dream. There was some kind of odd noise in Chaz's head. It was as if wood were being knocked on increasing in volume. Boel slowly fell to the ground and a shadow of an assailant stood not too far. Chaz rushed after him, finally ready to destroy his Uncle's murderer once and for all. The moment Chaz stepped forward, the ground gave way in half of a second.

He was falling... The ground was very close now, and he felt the wind rushing by his ears...

Chaz's eyes shot open, again hearing the knocking; it was more profound than it was inside of his head. Chaz groggily rubbed his forehead with an intense desire to sourly scold his visitor, who had began calling his name, urging him to awaken, as he stared into the reliable, dark, wooden ceiling with weary eyes.

"Chaz? Get up! We've gotta go!"

The sleepy Lucario had lost his anger at once, replacing it instead with a kind of sad relief. The thought came due to the fact that he was out of his nightmares, and also the relaxation that one of his best friends had come for him: Liam, the Lucario mage in training. Chaz threw his legs over the bed and made a distinct noise without even opening his mouth.

"Are you up, Chaz?" Liam questioned loudly from behind the strong door. Chaz wobbled to the door and without much time to think, his friend had stridden in, narrowly avoiding hitting Chaz, who hopped back in surprise.

"S-Sorry!" exclaimed Liam somewhat impatiently.

He had not changed at all since the other day, Chaz stupidly thought as Liam stood there, waiting for him to speak.

"It's all right," Chaz grunted as he saw some citizens of Elbery peering into his house. He cleared his throat loudly. "Can you close the door?"

Liam looked slightly inquisitive, shutting it hastily.

"You didn't have one of those dreams again, did you?" he asked without turning around, perhaps too embarrassed to even look at Chaz at that moment. Chaz thought for a moment, narrowing his eyes, taking a sigh.

"No," he lied. "I had a wonderful dream about..."

Chaz stopped. What could he lie about to make Liam feel less pressured? He peered at Liam's favorite cloak, but his friend had since turned around, and had been staring at him.

"...About what, Chaz?"

"Never mind."

Liam seemed to know perfectly well that Chaz had not been entirely honest. Though he didn't question it, he apparently had a very important matter on his mind, and was obviously bursting to say it ever since he had arrived.

"Anyway, we're late to see Mr. Dragos. We've gotta go." Liam suddenly stated loudly. Chaz had felt like an idiot for not even realizing it.

Hildebrandt Dragos was a brilliant-minded, somewhat comical human teacher, admired by many in the town of Elbery. He was quite old aged, but seemed to be young and playful at heart.

"Where's Jason?" questioned Chaz worriedly, taking note of his absence.

"I don't know. But we're running horrifyingly late, come on."

Chaz had begun to walk out, and was interrupted as Liam held up a paw.

"Aren't you going to bring your sword?" he asked.

Feeling for the thousandth time as if he were stupid, Chaz rushed back into the house quickly, gripping the handle of his Uncle's secondhand, famously expensive sword. He strapped it around his back and rushed out to Liam as they began to sprint through the town. He felt the air blasting his face as he ran nimbly past building after building his with friend, almost colliding with a female, jester-like character. As the jester had yelled insults at him, Chaz simply chuckled to himself and continued to follow Liam as his friend sharply took a detour through an alley next to a bakery. They were nearly to Dragos'
study.

"Come on, Cha-" Liam turned around to shout, but almost the instant he turned back around...

WHAM! Liam had smacked into a human man who had appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Chaz skidded to a halt as Liam hit the ground, the man laughing cruelly; it was the leader of the small, Elbery town gang known as the Scarlet Tears.

The Scarlet Tears were a group of troublemakers. They were mostly a few young men seeking to simply do bad, and others got involved for protection. The leader of the bunch was a true ne'er-do-well who's name was Manny Gross. Blonde, oily hair hung halfway down his face as he scooped the bangs from his eyes, looking down at Liam. His black coat was in tatters, and his pants even worse.

"Hah hah hah! Well, look who can't see where they're going!" Manny called out to nobody in particular.

Chaz growled loudly, clenching his paws. "Don't you dare mess with him! Or you'll answer to me, Manny!"

Liam stood up and backed away towards Chaz. He knew more than anyone that, together, they were even stronger. Manny just took a sigh, putting his hands in his pockets.

"We have somewhere to be-" Liam started, but Manny interrupted him.

"Do I look like I care? You guys are fun to mess with. I ought'ta give you a slice of humble pie and send you on your way...
Starting with him..." jeered Manny, referring to Liam.

Before Chaz even knew it, he had drawn his Uncle's sword out in rage.

"You feeling strong?" Chaz shouted. The blood was rising to his temple in anger.

Manny merely inclined his head and held up a finger, pointing behind Chaz, and before he had time to react, one of Manny's stronger, red-headed flunkies had somehow managed to grab the sword from his paw, as the gang member was wearing thick, strong gloves. Chaz reared around, trying to grab it, but the man was just too tall. Manny started laughing.

The other goon had grabbed Liam's wand without remorse, to the shouts of the wand's owner, the man bending his knee and trying to snap it in two. This was a big mistake, as the wand had shot a bright red beam out that struck Manny, freezing him in place.

Chaz, and even the others, stared on. Manny had fallen over, completely immobilized, his face in the expression of a smile,
eyes wide open, as if he had been turned into a statue. His arms were still stuck out.

In a confused bustle, Liam used that moment to try and grab his wand back, and the thug simply hopped back and pointed the wand at Liam, having unfavorable results. Having no magical knowledge at all, a thick, stinky, gray cloud of smoke procured out of the wand with a bang, engulfing everyone, making them gag. Liam grabbed his wand back after a struggle,
pointing it at both of the two men as a warning.

Chaz had tried stepping back as the other thug still had the sword pointed at him, and the man moved closer, almost jabbing him in the throat. Chaz gritted his teeth.

Liam pointed his wand at the sword-carrier's shoes, and a green ember shot out, catching the gangster's foot on fire.

"ED! You're on fire!" the other thug cried gruffly, but still shocked.

Ed danced around on the spot as the green flames went up his leg in an inferno, dropping the sword in fear, which Chaz equipped in his paw almost instantly before it hit the ground. He backed away, holding the other at bladepoint as Ed dashed off to kill the fire. The other thug looked at Manny, still immobilized on the ground with his hands up and a smile on his face,
and back to the two Lucarios, who had focused on him, holding their weapons up.

The remaining thug gave a shriek and rushed off quickly, leaving the two Lucario friends to smile at each other. Chaz sheathed his sword and glanced down at Manny.

"What do we do with him?"

Liam looked confused. "I don't - know how to counter this curse... Whatever it is."

Chaz shook his head, having a million thoughts at once at how much he'd like to leave Manny laying somewhere or what he'd do to him.

"I'm all for letting the rascal off with a warning," came a light, cheerful voice.

Chaz and Liam simultaneously spun around, there before them was old Mr. Dragos, who had the distinction of making people respect him with possibly anything he said. Dragos' face was time worn, but still had cheer to it. His snow white, sleek hair rested atop the head of his wrinkled, yet charming face. His eyes were blazing sapphires, complete with a white chin strip of beard that reminded Chaz strangely of a sickle. Dragos stared down, deep in thought, apparently.

"Mr. Dragos!" the two Lucarios chorused, surprised.

Dragos looked up from examining Manny, every wrinkle on his face visible. "Hm? What is it?"

"A-Aren't you mad at us for being late?" interrogated Chaz timidly.

"Ah, but I see it as being early for tomorrow! Just as long as I know you're around!" said Dragos kindly, giving a smile. Chaz returned it without thought, having nothing but respect for him.

Dragos procured his own wand; a worn, brightly tan, douglas fir made wand. He said an incantation and tapped Manny, who sprung to life at once, looking extremely dazed.

"Not causing trouble are we, Manfred?" Dragos asked politely.

Manny stared around, leaning up and scooting backwards on his bottom to get a look at the scene. He may have been a no-
good bully, but at least Manny respected his elders.

"No, sir. No."

Dragos smiled. "Your father is at home, very ill. You should be taking care of him instead of running the streets."

"Yes... Sir." Manny sneered. He then backed out of the alleyway, and with a last snort, he bolted.

Chaz and Liam both looked to Dragos for further instruction. Chaz had thought his admiration for Hildebrandt Dragos couldn't get any higher. It seemed as if he were always the one to solve problems people had, as he was very well-read, patient, wise,
and old. There was an endless amount of knowledge that could be gained by simply speaking to him.

Dragos suddenly had something on his mind, for his face had contorted slightly. "Have you two seen Jameson?"

Chaz and Liam looked at each other, trying not to laugh. Jason, their friend and another fellow Lucario, had the trait of being the size of a man, gray in color, with sky blue eyes that you could get lost in. His black, medium length hair was frizzy and laid on his head like draping silk. He had indeed been too polite not to correct Dragos for mishearing him on his first day,
becoming an inside joke that broke the seriousness often. Dragos once again didn't catch the meaning of the comedic quality of his "Jameson" belief as the two Lucarios looked back.

"I don't quite understand why you think his name ensues hilarity every time I speak it, but to each their own." Dragos stated.
Liam stopped laughing at once, looking ashamed. Chaz merely shrugged, thinking Dragos had every right to be confused. In a short moment of silence, Dragos suddenly took a sigh.

"Well! I think we'd better get down to business then, shall we? If you'd come right this way..."

Dragos stalked off with Liam and Chaz at his heel. Chaz had begun to stare around, honestly hoping to see Jason running up to them, but there were no signs of him. Chaz instead took note of a pair of fencers, male and female, practicing near the fountain in the town square. Dragos had possibly noticed too, for he had spoken up as he walked along.

"By the stars, those Voronstov siblings are at it again." he muttered.

"Voronstov?" Liam asked, puzzled.

"Drake and Duprina Voronstov." Mr. Dragos said, amused. "Brother and sister. They have an - interesting belief that they're going to be famous heroes and go on quests and the like. Elementary things, if you ask me."

They had walked for just a few minutes until they reached an elegant building made of white brick. Dragos reached into his pocket and removed a small brass key from it, stepping up the small set of stairs with his Lucario companions close behind.
He mumbled something to himself that sounded like "Curses!", and Chaz soon found out why.

Apparently, Dragos had forgotten to lock the door, which was open slightly. He walked slowly towards the door, pushing it open softly and inclining the two to follow him, but silently. There was a beauty of the large room, while dark and somewhat eerie,
still looked old and wonderful. Rows and rows of books lined the shelves, and there were masterfully crafted desks spread out in front of a larger desk that sat at the edge of the room. Chaz thought he heard a noise coming from behind the shelves.

"Someone's in here," Dragos said in the faintest voice he could possibly muster. "And I think I know who."

Chaz and Liam walked with their lightest steps, along with Dragos, who started tiptoeing. Chaz wondered wildly whether a bandit had gotten into the hall. Or perhaps a homeless squatter - or even a mad axe murderer, waiting silently to attack. Chaz held his breath, listening with all of his might as he stared around. The noise emitting was some kind of soft scratching.

Dragos held up a hand and stopped between the two shelves, moments from peering around. "Leave 'em to me," he silently worded to Chaz and Liam. Dragos himself started easing around the corner, drawing his wand slowly.

"AHA!" Dragos screamed so suddenly that Chaz was sure his heart had stopped for a few seconds. Liam yelled out in shock.
There was a hissing and a shriek of some kind as a brightly lit purple glow came from behind the shelves. "I've caught you now...!" Dragos said. Chaz looked to the end of the shelves, at the other side of the room. A black cat rushed out of the doors quickly.

"My lord! What an intrusive little fellow!" came Dragos' voice. "Fourth time I do believe. Perhaps he really likes it here."

Chaz let the air out of his chest, feeling as if a balloon had been popped inside of him. No danger, just some little kitty, he thought.

Liam was leaning against a shelf. "That cat's been here before?" he asked loudly, suddenly leaning off and walking back to where Dragos was. Chaz followed him, intrigued.

"My, my! He has!" Dragos said, exasperated. "Take a look at this; this is the same book that had been off the shelves in the cat's previous visits."

Dragos finished off with a tone that there were no suspicions at all from this whole ordeal. Chaz saw Dragos lift up the book from the ground, entitled 'Separated in Secrets', and as Dragos held it out, Chaz read a little due to the book being open to a page describing a door in a sacred complex, that would only open to the power of magical relics of the past. Chaz thought it odd that it happened to land on that particular page.

"Can I borrow that?" Chaz asked. Dragos handed it over without question.

Liam had come up behind him, and together they silently read an excerpt:

"The Jaspanium Complex is a long forgotten structure located approximately 5567 kilometers (or three miles) from the settlement of Lan Briar, shrouded in mystery and feared by certain individuals. Back in near-ancient times, the relics were stolen from the complex. They had all belonged to King Jaspanium, who had passed away, given to him for the afterlife, and were all one-of-a-kind, pieces of art. Today it is believed that they are all still out there, perhaps not in the best shape, but still possessing the same powers as if they were still new. It is stated in the archaic writing on the walls of the complex that those who return the 9 relics to their indicated spots shall-"

The rest of the page had been ripped out. Chaz sighed.

"Mr. Dragos," Liam said uneasily. "This is a very interesting read-"

"The cat was reading this." Chaz half shouted, coming to a realization. Dragos and Liam looked at him funnily.

Was the cat reading this book? Did the cat try to take the page out, only to rush off quickly? Chaz nervously wondered what the rest of the page had said.

"Now then, don't be so hasty and go blaming feline housepets, Chaz." said Dragos in an attempt to reassure him. "Perhaps it was a simple coincidence that the cat may have knocked this book off... er... Several times."

Chaz looked at Liam. "What do YOU think?"

"It definitely was freshly ripped... And has a little moisture around the edges of the page. I can see it." Liam said with a patient voice.

"Ah, but perhaps the book was ripped like that when it was shipped to me. You see, I haven't exactly read all of these. My life has withered before my eyes enough. As for the moisture issue, I might have accidentally spit on it; my mouth is rather wet right now!" rambled Dragos, smiling.

"Mr. Dragos, please." whined Chaz, wanting to wipe the smile off Dragos' face for the first time in his life. "I think that cat was trying to read this book!" he slammed it shut.

Dragos began to stroke his chin, running his fingers through his white sickle of a beard. "There seems to just be one simple hole in this story. Cats, mind you, don't read, do they?"

Liam nervously looked to the ceiling for a long time, while Dragos, still staring Chaz down, hadn't smiled again yet. He indicated for Chaz to return it to his hand, and when Chaz didn't, he calmly replied "Alas, I do suppose I can loan it out."

His heart beating excitedly, like it was a tale he wanted to finish, Chaz walked out from behind the shelves and took his usual seat near the front of the room as he heard Dragos speak again from somewhere behind him, randomly.

"Rather dark in here, isn't it, Liam?"

The entire room was illuminated seconds later. Chaz blinked a few times, examining the book's pages. He was trying to take it in so fast that he could hardly read properly, hearing the shuffling of four legs grow nearer and nearer as Liam and Dragos made themselves present in his view as he glanced up. Dragos looked right back into Chaz's eyes again.

"If it shall make one of my shining pupils sleep easy, shall we do a lesson on this, er..." he began, trying to find a word for the book.

"I'd like that," called Liam suddenly.

With a sigh, Chaz closed the book. He was about to stand up, but Dragos merely gestured him to remain seated as the old man raised a cyan colored, glowing hand. The book rose a little into the air and suddenly flew forward towards him at a quick speed. Giving a hearty smile, he caught the book in his withered hand, which immediately lost its aura. Liam began to applaud slowly as Dragos lowered it down to his side, clearing his throat.

"Dragos, when can you teach me to do stuff like that?"

"In time, Liam, in time..." Dragos replied, as if he had just done nothing more interesting than taking a drink of water.

Chaz, too, was impressed once more by Dragos' magic skills. He had had many a daydream about being Liam's counterpart,
but Chaz knew where his strength lied: the sword that he had been destined to receive since he was very young. Chaz,
indeed, was very good with it; he practiced daily and enjoyed the sound of the whistling steel cutting the air. His thoughts were brought back by Dragos' speaking once more. Liam, at that moment, took his seat next to Chaz.

"Now, if Jameson isn't about to come bursting in," started Dragos, looking at the door intently. Chaz softly giggled and looked to his immediate left where the empty chair sat.

Dragos waited, funnily looking around with his enlarged eyes like they were big, fat blueberries. He then inclined his head briefly, bringing it back up as if Jason were to appear in front of him. When, of course, Jason hadn't teleported into the room,
he flipped through the book and politely asked "What page were you reading, dear Chaz?"

"156."

Shortly, they had begun their lesson. Even as Dragos droned on, Chaz had taken in every word of it, even though he could tell Dragos seemed to find it a hoax, but at the same time, interesting.

"...King Jaspanium had many, many friends in his lifetime. The few who had the privilege to be seated at his dinner table were all considered his greatest friends and allies. During the time of Jaspanium's death, those who remained, and the families of the passed, payed the biggest respects they could by donating one item to Jaspanium's resting place; an item that they knew the king would appreciate. These extremely rare relics are still studied today and are commonly believed to still exist out there..."

Chaz had many thoughts buzzing in his mind. Jaspanium sure sounded like he had many connections, and perhaps, his good attitude and kind demeanor may have taken a big part in it. He quickly resumed listening to Dragos.

"...The relics were as follows, in no particular order of importance: the Yaild Goblet, a truly legendary piece of art hailing from a wealthy woman from the city of Aranor; the goblet is said to bring drinkers good fortune. Platinum in color, set with many gems, and having an all around comfort as it was being held; the Dagger of the Artist, once owned by the legendary sculptor,
Briff Nelios, who was on fantastic terms with King Jaspernium, who had it enchanted everlong as a gift to his friend. The dagger is made of pure gold that is said never to have tarnished, with a handle of deepest blue. The wielder feels the warmth in their very bones..."

Dragos paused for a moment, looking up to read the expressions of the two Lucarios. Chaz had been sitting there with his mouth open, he quickly realized, and as he shut it, Dragos gave another smile. Liam was whispering to himself, clearly amazed and completely enthralled. Dragos looked down before long, and coughed. He took a sigh and continued on.

"...Otto's Medallion, that has the ability to give strength and courage to its wearer. Otto, the greatest warrior who had ever lived, had worn this in his most famed battles, most notably his slaying of the terrible griffon, Phaethon. He had passed on before Jaspanium died, however, his wife at the time had given it to him with all due respect. The beautifully hand-crafted medallion is truly a master's work and features a beautiful amethyst set into the magically silver indention; the Bracelet of Slaughter, a terribly sinister piece that was made from the purest of obsidian, told in more tales of murder than possibly any other piece of jewelry. Though the owner had been committed to an asylum for slaughtering another human being, his grandmother had paid respects to the king by giving the bracelet away..."

A sudden noise had made all of them, including Dragos, give a start. The door had been shut closed loudly and Jason had walked up, calmly, to the front of the room. Chaz and Liam instantly shot wild questions as to his whereabouts.

"Where were you?"

"What were you doing?"

"Really, where WERE you?"

"Jason, are you listening to me?"

"Hello..." Jason said, somewhat bored. "...Dragos. And you guys, as well." he added, looking down at the two of them, giving a smile.

Mr. Dragos inclined his head as he had earlier, indicating that Jason should take his seat next to Chaz. "Nothing too much,
Jameson. 'Tis a shame I couldn't find you, we have been discussing a little legend."

Jason sat down without so much as another smile; Chaz and Liam found it odd how Jason hadn't laughed at this little inside joke like usual.

"I shall go over what we have discussed thus far later to you, Jameson. As of right now, I must continue my lecture..." Dragos said seriously. Chaz leaned over to Jason to his left.

"You missed out on a few really fascinating things!"

"Oh, did I?" inquired Jason, revolving his head towards Chaz, a trace of sarcasm in his voice.

"Definitely." Liam answered, not catching it, turning to his left, looking past Chaz with a grin. "You've gotta lend an ear to Mr. Dragos-"

"Why don't we start with right now?" chortled Dragos in front of the trio. Chaz, Liam, and Jason went silent at once and looked at their teacher, who had the floor not too far in front of them. Dragos cleared his throat again, popped his lips a couple of times, and looked back down at the book.

"Let's see... Where was I... Ah!"

He found his place at once. "The next relic is simply called the Barnaby Ring, once owned by a powerful mage, Ike Barnaby. It is a small, orange colored ring that can conjure fire. Ironically, it was stolen from the tomb early on by a servant of a rival king and given to his tomb instead; the ring had been given to a temple made high in the mountains of Caelfall. The ones who ventured in to find this ring, I daresay... Never made it back out."

Chaz saw Liam have an uneasy look on his face, squinting slightly. The thought of the ones who had went into a tomb and never saw the light again made Chaz shiver. As Chaz glanced to his left, Jason sat there, completely uninterested, it seemed.
Chaz frowned, wondering why Jason seemed to be hiding something. Dragos continued on as if he were just reading the text in the book.

"The Mask of Finesse is a delectable piece of golden jewelry that was in the possession of a princess named Neola Casta,
who favored plays, before being handed down to Jaspanium's tomb, being that she found a mask that took her fancy even more so. It is indeed said that this is a relic that is in high demand, being that the wearer will feel faster and more agile than ever..."

They had continued on for what seemed like another half an hour. Chaz, along with the others, soaked into his mind the last relics, which included a small pendant named the "Pendant of Infinity" that had been used to seal away a demon, a gem itself called the "Turquoise Loraitoite", which was believed to have fallen from the sky and space itself, and, lastly but not least-ly, the silver statuette of a lynx, who had been deemed a cursed and dangerous relic to all who had owned it. As Dragos finished, he closed to book lightly to the outrage of Chaz.

"Wait, that's it? There's no more?!"

Liam and Jason both stared at him. Dragos shook his head.

"Absolutely not. You see, nine relics existed; approximately ten friends had dined personally with the king. The relics were all stolen completely from his grave, however. Ancient writing reveals that the visitors to the tomb had the option of seeking them out to be rewarded... or something along those lines! Seems like a bit of a tall tale to me."

"I've heard of this story before, sir." Jason muttered loudly, no emotion on his face. It was Chaz's turn to peer at him.

"Have you, then? Excellent. Wonderful." shrilled Dragos. "Now, let us continue on..."

Dragos seemed to enjoy being on the topic of the relics and the king as he gave a short speech, when soon after, Chaz raised a paw in the air.

"Sir!"

"Yes, what is it, Chaz?"

"Could we - perhaps - travel to the tomb?" he said, much too fast.

Dragos cocked his head to the side, a funny expression on his face. "What makes you ask that, my student?"

"If the legends are true, this could be the find of a lifetime, Mr. Dragos!" Liam added on.

"I, for one, am all for it." Jason said with a sneer on his face, eyebrows downward, that he covered up in under a second as he saw his friends looking at him.

"My students, are you quite sure? I understand that you are fully matured, however-" Dragos started, but Chaz interjected.

"Mr. Dragos, I think we'd love to make you proud. There's a fine chance that we could happily show you all you've taught us over the years, and this would be an excellent learning experience!"

Dragos stood there with an expression of greatest concern. Chaz could tell that he was thinking it over, staring down at his desk, pacing for a short time, mumbling. Finally, Dragos looked back at Chaz, swallowing.

"I will allow you to go. BUT!" Dragos ended, for Chaz had already started to get out of his chair. "You must promise me three things. Would you like to heed them?"

Chaz nodded, and so did Liam. Jason merely sat there, ears at the ready.

"...Firstly, and most importantly, if there's someone out there who is reeking of wrongdoing, you must not give in to them. I have already had many a student become an... evil-doer." Dragos whispered at the end, seeming as if those words hit him hard. "Secondly, I must ask of you to always be prepared. Take as many things as you think you'll need to survive. It is quite obvious, but it is my sworn responsibility to ensure that you understand..."

Jason crossed his arms, nodding slowly. Chaz, on the other hand, felt a boldly rising emotion in his chest; he wanted to be an adventurer like his Uncle Boel... and always has.

"The third, and final thing," stated Dragos, nearing his conclusion. "Is that you must always watch your back. Trust few... It is a terrible and greedy world. Filled with... some truly horrifying people."

Chaz heard Liam swallow hard next to him. Jason merely sat there, still crossing his arms. "Mr. Dragos, sir."

Dragos looked at Jason sincerely. "Yes?"

"I would like to ask if you would be joining us."

"Absolutely not," Dragos vowed seriously. "I must remain here. Much too old and feeble to be adventuring."

"Hm," Jason muttered. "That is okay with me, sir."

Chaz and Liam looked at each other.

"Jason," babbled Liam. "Are you... okay?"

"Of course I am. Why?"

Liam put on a thinking face for a moment. "You seem kind of different today. Is something wrong?" he asked as Chaz watched Dragos, who was also watching them.

"I'm okay - Liam." Jason assured him. "I'm just feeling a bit tired."

"I'll make sure you rest up later." said Liam kindly.

Chaz couldn't take his eyes off of Dragos, who seemed to be staring into Jason's soul. Jason had taken notice, as he had said, sounding accusatory, "Yes?"

"Jameson, you have blue eyes, don't you? My mother had ones quite like that..." said Dragos kind of lamely.

Chaz, who had thought Dragos staring had been for a more serious purpose, had began to laugh, along with the other two,
although Jason's laugh was sounding forced. Maybe he just wasn't in a good mood today, Chaz assured himself.

Mr. Dragos stood at the doorway of his library-like building, giving a wide smile at the top of the steps. It was a breezy afternoon; the air was nice and warm, and the sun was shining brightly through the clouds. The three Lucarios were off to their first destination through Lan Briar, a town that they had known was not too far away. They had been instructed to retrieve a sort of key that would grant them access to Jaspanium's tomb.

"I say, you should keep this with you..." Dragos implied, handing the book to Chaz. He had suddenly conjured another book without warning, not explaining how or why.

"This, my boy, is a guide book," he said speedily. "It shall help you identify some of the more, er, prominent areas."

Chaz thanked Dragos for everything and after they had said their farewells; they were about to be on their way when Dragos stopped them for one last bit of advice.

"Lan Briar is a... ninety-nine percent ghost town," murmured Dragos, half nervous. "Nobody even travels through it any more... They say the bridge was taken out to it. Years ago, a plague struck the town and the sole survivor never contacted the disease... But he was said to be completely immune to it as he watched the entire town die off, eventually going insane and remaining in the town. This hulking person is a maniacal, beast of a man who has lost all sense of reason. You must get that key by any means necessary."

Dragos waved in farewell as he hobbled up the stairs, not noticing the worried look on Chaz's face. Liam seemed even more afraid, if anything.

"I hope we don't run into the crazy guy... He sounds scary!" he commented with a quiver as they walked into the town square of Elbery on their departure out of town.

"Don't worry." said Jason, sounding annoyed. "What's he going to do?"

They had continued on, eventually reaching the outskirts of the town, marching along the dirt road they had been instructed to follow down leading to the broken bridge of Lan Briar. The scenery was becoming more of that of a nature walk; the hills rolled far in the distance, and beyond them, the beautiful Mount Speros, which was undoubtedly the tallest mountain in the land. Chaz took a drink of water as he continued to amble down the road. Jason, too, took a drink of something. It was in a small bottle he procured out of nowhere, the liquid looking rather colorful.

"What're you drinking, Jase?" Chaz asked, interested.

"Oh, just some whiskey. Haven't drank any in a long time." answered Jason curtly, following Chaz at a brisk pace.

Liam was possibly thinking the same thing Chaz was by that moment. Has Jason ever drank alcohol around them, or, more importantly, at all?

Before long, they came to a fork in the road. Two paths were separated by a sign that pointed down either road. One sign read "Dalry", indicating the nicer, cleaner road. The other path was almost grown over by grass, and it even seemed that someone had tried to mark out "Lan Briar", leaving "an ria" remaining.

"That must be the way to the town, guys..." Chaz grunted, stating the obvious. Jason had already started walking down the road by that time.

"Hey, wait, Jason!" cried Liam, chasing after him. Chaz followed, but as soon as he started walking, he heard a soft rustling somewhere behind him.

"What the..."

Chaz stopped, and turned around for a few seconds. There wasn't a soul in sight. Liam's voice then came once more, calling out to him.

"Chaz! What's the matter?"

"Nothing! Just some little bunny rabbit, I guess!"

As they had traveled on, the bridge was looming into view. As promised, it had indeed been tore down almost completely. The small, narrow river that ran through the deep gorge below their feet rushed quickly with clean, sparkling water.

"That bridge is definitely broken," observed Liam. "Where do we go, now?"

He had looked around, noticing that Jason was again gone from their sight. The mountain still loomed in the distance, rather beautifully, making Chaz's heart thud. He was quite afraid of giant things, as they made him kind of dizzy.

"Jason!" called Liam, looking all around.

"Where is he?!" Chaz yelled, taking his eyes off the mountain.

When no answer came, Liam had ushered Chaz to follow him to the left, down the bank and into a small thicket of trees, where they indeed found Jason, standing near the thick trunk of a tree that had been knocked down, providing some kind of a crude way of crossing.

"Found this," said Jason after a moment. "We can use it to cross this little river, eh?"

Chaz looked at Liam, and back to Jason, meeting his sky-blue eyes. "Found it quick, didn't you?"

"You guys go first, alright?" said Jason imperatively, somewhat ignoring Chaz's question. "I'll come after you."

He backed away. Liam stood there, a face of bewilderment. Chaz said nothing, looking awkwardly away from him.

"I'm telling you. Go first..." he said with a grin that didn't really fit the mood. "Trust your friend, Chaz. Liam."

"What is wrong with you today!?" Chaz snarled without meaning to. Jason had been strange all day long and he was sick of it. Something was up with him.

"I've been upset about something!" said Jason quickly, though his face didn't show sincerity in it.

"Oh yeah? Well you have a funny way of showing it!"

"Come on, we're almost there!" Jason suddenly shouted, hopping up and running across the broken, thick tree flawlessly. He stared back at the other two, waiting.

"Well, are you coming, or am I going to have to face off the 'Lan Briar loony' by myself?!"

Chaz stepped up on the tree trunk with determination, not looking down for fear of falling into the deep ravine. He felt Liam's presence behind him and as he started lightly moving. But there had come a shock to Chaz, for at that moment, he had glanced down as a cracking noise was heard. Chaz, being taken completely by surprise, whipped around quickly and thought he saw a figure in the thick foliage in the distance as he stumbled slightly, very aghast.

"L-Liam!" Chaz howled, as the other had caught his paw and held on tightly. Now they had both stumbled, Chaz slipping over the edge and catching himself, dangling over, hanging on for dear life.

"Help me up!" yelled Chaz, looking into Liam's eyes, looming above him. "Jason, help him, please!"

Jason, however, from what Chaz could see, wasn't budging at all. He still carried the worried look as he stood tall on the safe grass, but for some odd reason was doing little to nothing in assisting his best friends. What was going on?

Chaz looked back at Liam, face alone begging to be rescued. Liam swooped downward trying to assist Chaz, who's paws were becoming sore and tired; Liam had bent over just a little too far, tumbling down to where he had caught on to Chaz's left leg, dangerously hanging, likely to drop any moment.

"JASON! JASON, HELP US!"

No reply. Chaz stared back to where Jason had been moments before. He had come closer, onto the branch once more, extending his arm as slowly as possible.

"Jason! Come on!" groaned Chaz worriedly.

Jason gripped Chaz's paw tightly, pulling upward. Liam gave a scared whimper.

"Liam, hold on... He's trying... We're going to be okay, I promise..." he gasped, a few seconds later. Chaz felt Liam's grip sliding.

"Please don't let go... Please don't let go!"

Chaz repeated this over and over, becoming more and more terrified as Liam had held on with the last of his arm strength.

"I can't - hold on - Chaz!"

Liam suddenly gave an almighty wail as his paws slid from Chaz's leg, plummeting.

"NOO!" bellowed Chaz, horrified. He didn't care if it would be his last day alive, at all; Chaz had willingly let himself go of Jason's paw, hearing a splash somewhere beneath him as he fell for what seemed like only a brief second before splashing into the small river, his ears hearing nothing but the absolute silence and pressure of the water...