Kai lead the others inside. They saw the old man sipping tea as the young boy stood nearby.
"How have you been since we last talked, your majesty?" the man asked.
Kai sighed heavily.
"All of you, take a seat," the man said. "We must discuss everything that's happened."
They all took a seat.
"So, I see a peasant, a guard, and a servant here with the prince," the man said. "You may call me Wu."
"How can we know that you are trustworthy?" Cole asked.
"Oh, Cole," Wu shook his head. "You would be the defensive one in this situation."
"How do you know my name?" Cole frowned.
"He's been to the castle before," Kai told Cole. "He knows all of us from when he was healing me."
"Except you, young peasant," Wu turned to Jay. "How do you tie into all this?"
"I was friends with the Princess," Jay said. "I came across Kai and Lloyd in the village, invited them to my place and then the snakes attacked us."
"So you're responsible for his disappearance at the castle," Cole glared at Lloyd.
"I'm responsible for saving his life," Lloyd retorted. "I didn't see you doing anything when the rest of the royal family was killed."
"Neither were you, kiddo, so look who's talking," Cole snapped.
"Whoa, calm your horses, you two," Jay said. "We don't need fighting right now."
Lloyd and Cole glared at each other.
"Is this normal?" Jay asked Kai.
"With these two, yeah," Kai sighed. "I wish it wasn't, though."
"Enough talk," Wu said, standing up. "I think some training is in order here."
"Training?" they all questioned.
"Yes, training," Wu nodded. "If you are all to save the Kingdom and get the throne back for Kai, you have a lot of work ahead of you."
"What is he talking about?" Cole asked.
"I have no clue," Jay shrugged.
"Whoa, what are you doing?" Kai questioned, seeing the other boy behind him.
"Oh, you four haven't met my other student yet," Wu said. "This is Zane."
"So, um, mind explaining what's going on?" Kai looked at Wu, confused.
Zane put Kai's hands in front of him, then started tying them together with some rope.
"I just want to see what you three can do," Wu said. "Starting with this."
Wu gave Zane a short, sharp nod. Zane pulled Kai from his chair, throwing him over his shoulder and darting out the door.
"Put me down!" Kai shouted.
"Hey! Get back here!" Cole shouted.
Cole sprang up from the table, about to run off.
"Hold on, Cole," Wu said, stepping in his way.
"Get out of the way, old man," Cole snapped. "Your little friend just took Prince Kai and ran off."
"I'm well aware," Wu said calmly. "I assure you, he'll be just fine. This is your first test after all."
"Test?" Jay cried out. "You just had Zane kidnap Prince Kai and run off and you're telling us it's all a test!"
"Yes," Wu said, surprising calm. "You three must work together to find him and bring them back. I expect you back by sunrise tomorrow."
They all exchanged confused looks, then looked at the old man as if he were crazy.
"He's waiting," Wu grinned. "Better get going."
The three scrambled out the door, stopping just outside them.
"Which way did they go?" Jay asked.
"How am I supposed to know?" Cole asked. "The old man stopped us before I could see where they went off to."
"Maybe he gave us a hint when he was talking to us?" Jay suggested.
"Like what?" Cole asked, irritated.
"That way!" Lloyd said, pointing to the east.
"How can you be so sure?" Cole asked.
"Wu said he wants us back by sunrise," Lloyd said. "The sun rises from the east and sets to the west."
"I think the kid's right," Jay said. "Look!"
Jay ran ahead, leading the others to the edge of the clearing. The bushes were trample and showed signs of someone pushing their way through in a hurry.
"Let's go, guys," Cole said. "We need to get Kai back before anyone else finds them."
Cole lead Jay and Lloyd into the forest, following what they hoped would be a path to their lost prince.
Kai struggled, twisting and turning as Zane ran with him.
"Why are you doing this?" Kai asked.
Zane stopped, setting the Prince down.
"I apologize if I upset you," Zane said. "I was only obeying Wu's orders."
"Which were to kidnap me?" Kai cried out.
Zane grabbed the rope around Kai's wrists, pulling him forwards, deeper into the forest.
"How do I know you aren't secretly going to kill me?" Kai asked.
"I promise, I intend to do nothing of the sort," Zane said. "I was asked to bring you here and begin training you until your friends find us."
"How long will that be?" Kai asked.
"A couple hours possibly," Zane shrugged. "You will be safe with me."
"You better be right," Kai huffed.
Kai looked down, pulling on the rope around his wrists.
"Can you at least untie me?" Kai asked hopefully.
"That's what you must do on your own," Zane said. "Then you can help your friends and battle me for you freedom."
"I don't know how to fight!" Kai cried.
"Well, you better start working on those ropes at least," Zane smirked. "Might take a while."
Kai grumbled, watching Zane turn away from him. He realized he could just run away from Zane, not caring which way he went. Kai turned and ran as fast as he could. He could hear Zane quickly catching up to him right before he was tackled to the ground.
"Uncool," Kai grumbled.
Zane scrambled, pulling Kai into the bushes.
"Stay quiet," Zane whispered.
"What?" Kai questioned.
Zane hushed him, placing a hand over his mouth. Kai was about to pull it off and yell at Zane when someone else walked into his view.
"Are you sure you saw someone out here?" a voice asked.
"Positive," a second replied. "If there is someone out here, we have to find them."
They continued past Kai and Zane, leaving them unnoticed.
"Who was that?" Kai asked in a whisper.
"Bandits," Zane replied. "I guess Wu forgot to mention that this is their territory too."
"Yeah, what if the others run into trouble, or get spotted and captured?" Kai asked.
"I'm sure Wu has my falcon friend watching them," Zane said.
"Falcon?" Kai questioned.
"My friend is a falcon," Zane explained. "He follows orders and helps us a lot."
Kai looked shocked, unsure if Zane was telling the truth.
"Look, I promised Wu that I would keep you safe until the exercise was over," Zane told Kai. "I'll do whatever it will take to keep that promise."
Kai took a shaky breath, looking at Zane.
"Now, how about I start teaching you some self defense," Zane said.
"Alright, we can start there," Kai sighed.
Zane stood up, pulling the prince to his feet. Kai looked at Zane as he stepped away from him.
"How am I supposed to get these ropes off?" Kai asked.
"You see the string hanging loose?" Zane asked. "Pull it."
Kai looked at Zane confused, then down at his hands. He saw the loose rope and managed to grab it and pulled. The ropes fell loose and he pulled his hands free from them.
"It was that simple?" Kai cried.
"I wasn't trying to make it hard," Zane grinned. "Now that you've freed yourself, you need to learn basic defense incase you get caught so you can defend yourself. At least, until help arrives."
"What first?" Kai asked.
"Dodging," Zane said.
Zane threw a punch towards the unsuspecting Kai. He managed to duck under it, only for Zane to knock his feet out from under him.
"Hey," Kai frowned.
"You should have jumped," Zane grinned.
Kai growled, pushing himself up off the ground.
"Let's try again," Kai said.
"Confidence is good, but don't get cocky," Zane warned him.
Zane swung his leg out, attempting to trip Kai again. Kai jumped backwards, then ducked under a fist Zane swung at him. Kai watched Zane's movements, avoiding several attacks. Zane punched with his left hand, Kai dodging to the right, unaware that Zane expected that and hit him in the gut with his other hand. Kai let out a groan, falling over.
"Watch both hands," Zane grinned.
"Can we take a break?" Kai asked, clutching his stomach.
"Evil never rest, and good never sleeps," Zane told him. "To your feet."
Kai moaned, getting up. He took deep breaths, watching Zane. Zane ran at him, and Kai moved to the side. Zane turned, throwing a punch that Kai avoided. Zane threw another punch, the a side kick. Kai dodged the punch and ducked under the kick. Kai then saw an opportunity to get payback. Zane's feet landed together while he faced the other direction and Kai dropped, kicking a foot out. Zane went to step back to Kai, only to trip over Kai and land on the ground.
"Alright, break time it is," Zane moaned.
Kai laughed in victory, looking at Zane on the ground.
"Where'd you learn that move?" Zane asked, jumping up onto his feet.
"I've seen Cole do it in training before," Kai admitted. "I'm not supposed to watch the guards in training, but I can't help myself sometimes."
Zane nodded, looking at Kai.
"So, what do you know?" Zane asked.
"Nothing really," Kai sighed. "That was about it."
Zane thought in silence, looking around.
"What about swords?" Zane asked.
"Swords?" Kai replied, almost shocked.
"Yes," Zane answered.
"I have never touched one in my life," Kai cried. "How am I supposed to know how to use one?"
Zane grinned, snapping two long sticks off of a dead branch. He tossed one to Kai, who caught it and looked confused.
"Just try me," Zane said. "Let's see what you can do."
Kai sighed, looking at Zane. He looked at the stance Zane was in, looking for any flaws or weaknesses. He saw a the stick in his hands blocking his abdomen, his legs spaced shoulder width apart and his eyes glued to Kai. Zane's position changed as he tensed, looking to his right. Kai turned, following his gaze.
"Run," Zane said.
"What?" Kai questioned.
"Run!" Zane shouted.
Zane dropped the stick, grabbing Kai's wrist. Kai dropped his stick in surprise, Zane dragging him as they ran.