Kalas started down the village path, grumbling to himself. "Losers! If they don't want to have any fun, let them be boring!" It didn't take him long to find a pasture full of Pows. He glanced around, checking to make sure nobody was watching. When he was certain he wouldn't be seen, he took a moment to size up his "prey." The pasture was home to a dozen or so fat Pows, all swishing their tails and chewing contentedly mouthfuls of grass. None of them looked up when Kalas climbed over the fence into the pasture. "Now which one looks most vulnerable?" he muttered aloud. He selected a Pow that was (at least in his opinion) particularly stupid-looking and began to slowly advance toward it. When he got close enough, he made his move and shoved with all his might.
Unfortunately, Kalas forgot something important-most people go Pow-tipping at night when the Pows are asleep in order to catch them off-guard. The Pow, which was wide awake, let out a startled "MOOOOO!" and instinctively did what any frightened Pow would do, which was to kick Kalas as hard as it possibly could. The Pow's hoof connected with Kalas's shin, and he feel to the ground, howling in pain.
All the noise Kalas was making inevitably attracted attention. A rather chubby old man in overalls came running to the pasture, shouting and waving a pitchfork. "Boy, what do you think you're doing? You trying to knock over my Pows?" Kalas knew he was in trouble, so he vaulted back over the fence and started running as fast as he could. The farmer gave chase, still hollering and swinging the pitchfork. "Get back here, boy! I'm gonna teach you not to mess with my Pows!"
As the farmer chased Kalas through the village streets, people stopped what they were doing to watch the strange show. Laughing children trotted after the farmer, enjoying the chase, while curious adults followed to see if a fight would result. Though the farmer continued his pursuit, Kalas was faster than the fat old man and arrived back at Larikush's house before the crowd could catch him. He practically dived through the front door and bolted it behind him, gasping for breath.
"What happened, Kalas? Did the farmers get angry and chase after you like I said they would?" Gibari smirked. "I told you it wasn't a good idea."
"Shut up, Gibari," Kalas panted. "Just shut up." He flopped into a chair and began trying to catch his breath. His friends didn't seem to be doing anything, but doing nothing suddenly seemed like a good idea after his close encounter with the farmer. After a few moments, Kalas realized that the old farmer hadn't come banging on the door and demanding he come out and fight. He relaxed a bit. Maybe the farmer had decided he wasn't worth pursuing. He grabbed a muffin from a plate on the table and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Careful, Kalas," Xelha giggled. "Save some muffins for Lyude. You saw how he acts when he doesn't get any muffins."
"Doesn't matter," Kalas said through his full mouth. "Looks like Carrot Top over there is asleep." Lyude was leaning against a wall with Meemai on his lap. Both of them were asleep. "Looks like those two put aside their differences awfully quickly."
"Awww," Xelha cooed. "Isn't he cute?"
"Who? Meemai or Lyude?" Kalas asked.
"I was talking about Meemai, but Lyude's pretty adorable, too."
"Oooh, Xelha likes Lyude!" Mizuti cried excitedly.
"No I don't!" Xelha insisted. "I mean, only as a friend. I 'like' like somebody else."
"Who?"
Xelha blushed. "I'm not saying."
"Tell us!" Mizuti urged.
"Leave her alone," Savyna said quietly. "If she doesn't want to say, it's none of our business."
Their conversation was interrupted by a loud pounding at the door. "Larikush, open up now!" an angry voice demanded from outside.
"Larikush! Don't open it!" Kalas begged.
"I'm sorry, Kalas," said the doctor, "but it sounds like someone could be in trouble."
"If you open that door, I'm the one who's going to be in trouble," Kalas insisted. Larikush ignored him, though, and opened the door.
"Where's that blue-haired punk?" yelled a familiar voice. "I caught him trying to tip my Pows."
"We don't like Pow tippers in Cebalrai! You'd better not be sheltering a Pow-tipper," added another. Kalas peeked out the door. He only remembered being chased by one farmer, but it looked like all the farmers in the village had assembled outside Larikush's house carrying pitchforks, sickles, and other sharp and dangerous farming tools.
One of the villagers spotted Kalas and addressed him threateningly. "We don't mind travelers here, as long as they don't cause trouble."
"However," another chimed in, "by harassing the livestock, you've just worn out your welcome. Leave the village now!"
"And what if I don't?" Kalas demanded, hands on his hips.
"Then," sneered the owner of the Pows, "we'll have to make you." The crowd brandished their weapons menacingly.
"Kalas, I'm afraid you'd better do what they say if you want to avoid any trouble," Larikush advised. "These people take their animals very seriously."
"Come on, guys, you're not really letting these morons intimidate you, are you?" Kalas looked at his companions expectantly.
"We should leave,"Gibari stated. "These people obviously want a fight, but we can't afford that now."
"The odds of winning against this many people are too slim to risk. Let's move," Savyna agreed.
"The Great Mizuti not like this at all."
"Fine, fine," Kalas grumbled. "Let's go. But first, somebody should wake up Lyude, unless you want to leave him here."
Xelha looked shocked at the suggestion. "With this angry mob? Kalas, you can't be serious!" She picked Meemai up off Lyude's lap, then shook Lyude gently. "Wake up. We have to leave right now!"
"Huh? What?" Lyude looked confused.
"We'll explain on the way. For now, we have to get moving." Gibari yanked Lyude to his feet.
When the Kalas and his friends left the house as the farmers asked, that should have been the end of things, but the mob mentality had begun to take effect, and the angry villagers began to chase them. "Come back here so we can whoop yer asses!" somebody yelled. "We'll teach you to tip Pows in Cebalrai!"
The group didn't stop running until they reached the place where they had left the White Dragon. All six scrambled onto her back as fast as they could. "We have to get out of here," Xelha whispered to the dragon urgently. "It doesn't matter where we go, just take us somewhere!" The dragon beat her massive wings and lifted herself off the ground just as the mob caught up to them. As they rose into the air, everyone could hear the angry shouts growing fainter and fainter beneath them.
"Nice going, kid," Gibari snapped. "I warned you about Pow tipping, but you didn't listen, and now you got us chased out of town by an angry mob. I hope you're happy."
"You think I wanted this to happen?" Kalas shouted back.
Savyna wore a smug expression. "Maybe next time you'll listen to good advice."
Lyude smacked his forehead in disgust. "Can you please stop your bickering?" In an attempt to distract them from the developing argument, he inquired, "Where are we going, anyway?"
Mizuti pulled a compass out of her pocket. "We be heading north by northwest. The Great Mizuti estimates we be on a straight course for Mintaka."
Kalas groaned. "Oh great. It seems like every time we go there, something bad happens."
A little voice inside Kalas's head reminded him, "That might be because you can't keep yourself out of trouble."
"Oh, shut up!" Kalas said out loud. This Guardian Spirit could really be annoying sometimes.
