Mata's house in Kidneypool was not quite as big as Tahu, Lewa, Pohatu, nor Kopaka had imagined. They all agreed it was quite small for someone who had previously managed an internationally syndicated performer. His basement was barely capable of housing the group's instruments and to make matters worse, there was only one guest bedroom in which all four of them would have to sleep.

Everyone had been angry by the time they had arrived. Tahu was mad because Lewa consistently blasted The Grateful Dead through the stereo; the fact the van reeked of Morbuzakh and vomit didn't ease his anger at all. Kopaka was mad because Tahu was yelling at Lewa which in turn caused Lewa to turn the radio volume up and there was never a quiet moment. Pohatu was mad because he was forced to ride in the backseat where there was little to no legroom; and Lewa was mad because everyone was mad at him.

Mata had greeted them after they parked the van in the driveway and then had shown them to their room before allowing them to unload their gear into the basement and then calling his niece.

Nobody wanted to do any practicing that day so they decided to unwind by going to a local bar called Jaller's. Mata wouldn't let them leave the house until his niece arrived though so they proceeded to try and relax in what ways they could. Lewa smoked more Morbuzakh than anyone thought was possible in such a short time, Kopaka was trying out new riffs and quietly jamming on his acoustic guitar in the basement, Pohatu was perusing Nuparu's-List on his laptop, and Tahu was helping himself to Mata's whiskey collection.

It seemed as though they had been at Mata's house for a day when in reality, it had only been two hours, before his niece arrived. When she knocked, Mata opened the door and hugged her before allowing her to come in and put her things in her reserved room. Mata always kept her room clean and free of guests so that whenever his niece came over, she was guaranteed a place to sleep. While she was getting settled in, Mata brought the others into the sitting room so that they could meet his niece.

After ten minutes of unpacking, she came into the sitting room where everyone excepting Mata was dumbstruck. She was wearing faded jeans, a t-shirt with the Union Jack printed on it, cut off near the waist and a denim jacket; her dark hair falling down to her shoulders. One thought was going through everyone's minds:

She's beautiful.

Lewa was the first to recover from her stunning appearance and rising from the couch, he took her hand and bowed, kissing it.

"Hello, fair maiden," he said. "I am Lewa; smoker, joker and guitar player."

"Lovely to meet you," she returned, smiling slightly. "I am Gali."

Pohatu was next to rise and greet Gali.

"Pohatu," he said with a bow and upon rising added: "At your service."

Gali smiled and nodded in Pohatu's direction. Tahu was waiting for Kopaka to rise and greet the newcomer however Kopaka had no intentions of doing so, not because of his usual cold nature, but because he was nervous.

Nervous? He thought to himself, Kopaka is never nervous. She's only a girl, you are a rockstar!

As he continued his mental debate with himself, Tahu stood to talk with Gali.

"Welcome," he said. "I hear you play piano?" he added before she could reply to his salutation.

"Yes," she said, "and I also sing."

"Really?" Tahu asked, smirking. "We'll just have to see about that."

Before Gali could say anything Pohatu cut into the conversation: "Can we go to that bar now?" he asked.

Tahu rolled his eyes as Lewa picked up his keys.

"Follow me, fair damsel," he said, taking Gali by the hand and walking out to his van. Lewa wouldn't let anyone except Gali ride in the front seat, forcing everyone else into the back seats. He also refused to smoke or play any music which she did not first approve of at volumes which she approved of in her presence, which Tahu was grateful for.

Jaller's was a ten minute drive from Mata's house and Tahu was the first out of the van when they arrived. Lewa was adamant that he be the one to open the doors for Gali, pull up her chair, and even order her drink for her. She felt kind of helpless but she couldn't help giggling at the guitarist's nonchalant manner.

Kopaka was reluctant to come to the bar but when he finally decided to come, he refused to sit with the rest of the group, instead sitting in a dark corner with a small mug. Every night, there were musicians playing at Jaller's; many times the same band would play two or three nights a week. On this night a band which all the regular patrons loved was scheduled to play; they were called The Rahkshi Rockers.

The term Rahkshi came from an old tale mostly carried on by musicians. Rahkshi were a mythical race of serpentine creatures who were believed to attack people in forests. The only thing that could stop them was music. The reference in the band's name, however, was lost on most people who just enjoyed the songs they played.

The band's leader was a guitarist. Kopaka could tell from the way he walked that this guitarist was probably not very good at playing guitar. His real specialty was singing in fact. Two female backing vocalists came onto the stage, along with a drummer and a bass player. The bass player wore a suit and had a black mask, dreadlocks flowing from the top of his head. His bass guitar, which Kopaka and Lewa noticed immediately, was heavily modified. It was nearly double the size of a normal bass to accommodate the player's unusually large hands, and it had the addition of a whammy bar. This greatly interested Kopaka and he kept his gaze intently on the bassist, excepting the few times when his glance strayed to admire Gali.

"Evening gov'ners!" the guitarist began. "Are you ready to hear some sounds from the olden days?"

The crowd cheered as the female vocalists began to hum into the microphones. The bass player had his own microphone in which he began to hum deeply. Then he started playing a simple riff while the guitarist played a few simple chords the drummer tapped the hi-hat rhythmically. Then the guitarist started to wail into the microphone. He would wail for a few seconds and then he would stop and play his chord progression for a few more seconds before wailing again.

Confused expressions could be seen about the entire bar before the guitar player lost his focus and began laughing while the rest of the group brought their parts to a halt.

"We're just messing with you!" he shouted to the audience, a few of them chuckled. "For real now," he began, "it's time for real music."

The drummer started on a fill before the entire band started in sync to play Purple Haze by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. The bass player held down the rhythm section while the guitarist and drummer played loosely over it. It was quite a unique sound to all who were listening as the majority of the song was improvised at least slightly. Both Tahu and Kopaka were impressed with the bassist's skill; he was obviously keeping the other players in sync. After the song was finished, the band took a bow and started on their second song: A Hard Day's Night by The Beatles. Once again the bass player held the rhythm of the song while the guitarist and drummer played over the bassline loosely. When the time came for the guitar solo, however, the bassist took over and played it on the high strings which all the patrons of the bar thought was a pleasant change.

With that song the band had played their last and promptly exited the stage to pack their instruments and equipment. Tahu excused himself from the table at which the rest of his band was sitting to go speak with the bass player. Little did he realize that Kopaka had similar plans.

Lewa whispered into Pohatu's ear, asking him to keep Gali inside the bar while he went outside to smoke. Pohatu rolled his eyes and Lewa promptly left.

In the back of the bar, Kopaka was already speaking with the bass player named Onua. Tahu arrived backstage and broke into the conversation saying: "Hi, I'm Tahu. I'm trying to get a band together and I'm in need of a bass player."

"That's what your friend was just saying."

"Oh," Tahu said, before looking at Kopaka. "By all means, continue!"

Kopaka stepped back and coldly said: "You are more than welcome to convince as you see fit," and then promptly left the backstage area.

"Well then," Tahu said. "How would you like to join my band?"

"Seems like a decent opportunity," Onua said, "And I've been getting kind of tired of the Rahkshi Rockers. They're a great group and they let me do a lot more than any of my previous groups would but I won't reach my full potential this way."

"Well," Tahu began, "I have already gathered the greatest drummer and the greatest two guitar players I have ever witnessed. With your bass playing skills, our band would be complete."

"Well, I suppose it's an opportunity I can't pass up." Onua said. "I'll let the others know and then I'll meet you at your vehicle."

"Great," Tahu said before shaking Onua's hand and returning to the table to rejoin the rest of his band. Kopaka was still sulking in the corner.

"Well gentlemen, and lady," Tahu began, "we now have a bassist."