"Lord Felix? Are you quite done schooling Isaac in the arts of dueling?" Dargon asked, walking alongside the barracks in the castle. Felix again had his sword point at Isaac's throat, but he withdrew after hearing his friend's voice.

"Yes, we just finished. Are you and Ivan ready to move out on the trail?" Felix turned. He quickly sheathed his sword and turned to his apprentice. "I assume you didn't pack?" Isaac jumped. He hadn't packed for the trip; as soon as he got done at dinner he fell flat asleep in his bed. Great; Felix was bound to be upset by his inadequate preparation. Isaac sighed, and shook his head no. "I figured as much. Luckily I packed for you; come with me. Dargon, wait here." Felix motioned for Isaac to follow him back into the barracks, and he quickly complied. Dargon now stood alone outside the barracks hall, waiting for everyone to show.

"Hello, Dargon." The voice of Ivan sounded behind him.

"Ah, good to see you, Ivan. You were almost too late; the rest of us are ready to go."

"You don't know much about mages, do you, Dargon? We know exactly what we are doing at any given time." Ivan stated, folding his thin arms. The stern look he was giving was obviously falsified.

"Yeah, well. . . just because you're a Jupiter Adept doesn't mean that you're all high and mighty." Dargon smiled. "Well, it's good to see we have some strong support. Lord Picard says you're the strongest mage in the land; and you're so young. I don't believe it."

"Age has nothing to do with ability, Lord Dargon. If you judge only by my age, you'll be making a grave mistake." Ivan said. "Whoever you choose to believe, me or yourself is your choice; but you know I'm right."

The knight sighed before replying. "Indeed I do. I think we have company." Dargon turned to the wooden door opening nearby, and an oafish Mars Adept charging up the path. Felix and Isaac walked out of the barracks, each with a small bag on their belts. Garet stood huffing and puffing from trying to catch up. "You two finally ready to go?"

"Yes. We'll head out now. Oh, hi, Ivan." Felix replied.

"Good day, Lord Felix. How are you and Isaac doing today?"

"I'm fine. Isaac's prepared to go on this journey as well." "Are you ready to learn a thing or two, kid?" Dargon asked, looking at Isaac and smiling.

"The question is are you prepared to see what I've learned?" Isaac returned, giving a similar smile. "Felix has taught me much over the past months; I don't intend to let the training go to waste. Now, let's go." Isaac stated, pacing for the castle gates. Ivan and Garet followed him closely, but Felix gave Dargon a shrug and followed his apprentice. Dargon sighed, and he followed them closely.

Dargon, who was perhaps the most famous Knight of Luna in the kingdom, was certainly well known for his good looks, quick wit, and excellent manners. The man of twenty certainly knew the way around a good joke and still held an incredible amount of tact. Now, the man who could be a riot at a normal party and the most well-groomed attendant to a royal one, was decked out in his full plate armor. The armor was primarily silver, but it had parts of gold in the joints. On the chest of the armor was the Crest of Angara in a shield shape in the background, with a large silver crescent moon engraved in the foreground. Dargon's helmet was silver like his armor, something that caused his helmet to stand out was the presence of two large metal wings protruding from the back of the helm. The helm was to show his rank; it meant he was a captain, but not just any captain. Everyone instantly knew who he was when he wore that helm, and no one wanted to be on his bad side then. Dargon's armor, although full plate mail, was astonishingly light, so he could keep near perfect movement in even the heat of battle. Right now, he strove to catch up with the other members of his party.

As Isaac and the others cleared the gates of the castle Vale, Picard stood standing in his castle tower, watching them closely.

"I hope these four can figure out what's going on out there." Picard sighed.

"I'm sure they can." Another voice replied. Picard glanced from the corner of his eye to see his advisor, Iodem. "Those five are the best we have to offer. I don't think they'll fail."

"Good point, Iodem. So, what else do we have to do today?"

*********************************

The troupe of travelers passed through the town of Vale, and many of the townsfolk took notice. It wasn't everyday that one could see the head of the Knights of Luna and the head of the Paladins of Sol in the same place at the same time. Adding to the mystique was the fact that Garet, Dargon's former squire, and Isaac, the squire said to have the most potential in the kingdom were travelling with them. Ivan's presence remained largely unnoticed, and he preferred it that way. He had always tried to keep a low profile, not wishing to show his true power unless he had no other option. Several dozen people fell in to watch the five simply march through the town; among which were nobles, peasants, and merchants alike.

Eventually, they passed through the bustling town square, where Isaac could help but look into the center to find his fountain. He glanced left and right several times. No fountain. Was he crazy? In his dreams he remembered it very clearly, but there was no sign of it in the real world. He continued to glare around.

"Something wrong, Isaac?" Felix asked, turning to his squire.

"No. Nothing's wrong." Isaac shook his head during his reply. Felix shrugged and turned back forward, and Isaac soon turned his head back to his front. Why was he so adamant about finding out about the statue? It was only a dream! Isaac sighed as he focused his attention to his marching and stayed in line with the other travelers. The group of five continued to march through the gawking masses until they reached the gates of the town walls. The guard saluted and promptly opened the massive metal portcullis and allowed them to pass through the east gate. Now they were to make a pilgrimage to Vault, where their new foes awaited them.

*********************************

Thirty-six hours had passed after the group had left the city of Vale behind them. The five warriors now sat around a blazing campfire, resting their tired feet and getting some well-deserved relaxation. Vault was still at least another day's journey away, and that's only if the group took a shortcut through Vale Forest, a highly dangerous wooded area. Vale Forest had been infested with monsters for months, and the infestation only seemed to be growing worse with time. Nevertheless, this remained a hotly debated topic among the lot of them.

"I say we just walk straight through the stupid forest! How bad could it be?!" Garet exclaimed.

"I can think of about ten thousand bad things, Garet." Isaac stated.

"That's exactly why we should head on the path around the forest. It'll be less dangerous." Ivan said. "Discretion is the better part of valor, is it not, Felix?"

"Sometimes." Felix simply replied. "Sometimes not."

"I'm with Garet. We can take on anything that forest throws at us." Dargon said. "I'm not going to let a few Rat Warriors scare me off."

"Rat Warriors aren't what concern me, Dargon." Ivan stated. "Suppose whatever we were sent to investigate decided to spend the night in the woods? We could get jumped by something absurdly strong." Ivan replied.

"Ivan's right. Being careful is a better bet; besides, not everything can be solved with a swing of a sword, guys." Isaac wisely stated. "Caution is the watchword here. We have no idea what we're dealing with."

"For someone so strong, you certainly have a lot of hesitation, Isaac. I would've thought you would thirst for the adventure and live for the moment." Dargon replied. "Then again, look who taught you: The King of Discretion himself."

"Is that an insult or a compliment, Dargon?" Felix asked, smiling. "'Cause if it's an insult, remember I can always kick your ass in a duel."

"Says you." Dargon laughed. "You got lucky, that's all."

"Luck nothing, Dargon. He beat your butt fair and square and you know it." Ivan stated. "I was at that tournament, you know; it was quite funny. He could've carved a letter right into your chest if he was feeling up to it." Dargon instantly quieted, leaving only Garet for argument.

"Well, don't forget, Lord Picard said we should complete this mission as soon as possible, and the fastest way to accomplish that is to head through the Vale Forest. Besides, what are the odds that we'll run into this creature anyway?"

"Never gamble, Garet. Even if you win a couple of times, the house always wins in the end." Isaac stated.

"What does poker have to do with the task at hand, Isaac?!"

"The gamble is going through the forest instead of around it. Besides, only YOU would think of playing poker at a time like this!"

"What are you insinuating?!"

"Enough. The matter's settled." Felix stated. "We're going through the forest."

"Felix, have you gone mad?" Ivan asked, his expression agape.

"Picard told us to complete this mission as fast as possible. Garet brought up an excellent point when he remembered that. The fastest way to do what Picard wants us to do is to go through the forest and do what needs to be done. I respect your thoughts, Ivan, but respect mine. I know what I am doing."

"Isaac, what do you think?" Ivan asked, turning to the squire.

"My opinion doesn't matter."

"Isaac, come on! What do you have to say?"

"I have nothing to say, Ivan. Felix has made his will clear and I will obey his orders. As his squire I must do no less than to follow his instructions to the letter."

"I guess that's it then. I have no objections; let us travel into the forest tomorrow." Ivan sighed. "But for the record, I have a bad feeling about it."

"Drop it, Ivan." Dargon stated. "The matter is settled, so let's not beat a dead horse."

"Why would you want to do that?" Garet asked, puzzled.

"Do what?"

"Beat a dead horse. . . it seems so. . . pointless. Besides, why would you do such a thing to a dead creature? I don't think it did anything wrong!" Garet exclaimed. The others sat staring at him. No one could discern whether or not Garet was kidding or was just plain stupid. After a moment, the Mars Adept adorned an ear-to-ear grin. "Gotcha." The group then burst out into loud laughter, realizing the 'stupid' one in the lot of them had actually pulled the wool over their eyes.

"Garet, you have now scared me." Isaac said.

"Why's that, Isaac?"

"It looks like you actually grew a brain!" The Venus Adept replied, barely able to stifle his own laughter. Everyone else immediately burst back out in laughter, except for Garet, who was ready to grind his fist into his best friend's skull.

"No Isaac, he's always had a brain, he just never knew where he put it. Last time he checked it was in his colon!" Ivan sputtered out.

"Hey, this really isn't all that funny." Garet complained in a fake whine. "Besides, we all know Ivan's just a midget, so why do we have to take HIM seriously?"

"And he's blonde. You know what they say about blondes." Dargon joked.

"So much for your vaunted tact, Dargon!" Ivan snapped back.

"Yeah, well I say you're all losers!" Garet shouted.

"I'll take you down, little man!" Isaac replied.

"Little?! I'm like twice the size of you, Isaac!" Garet retorted.

"Twice the size, half the brains."

"Why you little. . .!" Garet joked, not being able to think of a good comeback. The two warriors went back and forth exchanging insults for awhile before Felix finally stepped in.

"Hey, hey, hey. Calm down, both of you. Jeez, I knew I'd end up playing babysitter to you crazy lunatics." Isaac and Garet hung their heads in shame, but Felix just smiled. "Besides, both of you know that I'm smarter and stronger than both of you put together." Felix laughed.

"I'll take that bet." Dargon rose his hand. "It goes double for me."

"Yeah, well. . . I may be blonde, but I'm smarter than all of you put together twice over." Ivan chuckled.

"All right, that's enough. We don't want to get rough here; we need our rest. All those in favor of turning in for the night, say 'aye'." Felix remarked.

"Aye." Ivan, Isaac and Dargon said, raising their hands.

"Umm, me too." Garet said, hesitating.

"Good. Get into your sleeping bags and rest. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

**************************************

The sound of dead, crunching leaves was the only sound that could be heard in all of Vale Forest as the travelers marched through it. Vale Forest's paths had been overrun by underbrush and fallen leaves from the previous autumn. So far, there was no sign of any monsters or threats of any sort. The group had been silent, trying to pick up any sign of a monster. The threat could have come from anywhere at any time. . . but nothing had shown up.

"Well, I guess we've had it pretty easy so far. . ." Garet mumbled to the others.

"Shh! I heard something!" Ivan snapped, turning to hear the sound of cracking branches nearby. Isaac, Felix, Garet, and Dargon all had their swords drawn before a blink of an eye. Ivan whipped out his Angelic Ankh an instant later and all four swordsmen swung over to face their new threat. Their watchful waiting paid off as two Rat Warriors and a Mauler leapt from the bushes.

"Watch yourselves, two Warrior Bees from behind!" Ivan shouted. "We're surrounded, guys!"

"I'm not afraid of a couple of rats, insects, and an oversized cuddly toy!" Dargon shouted. "Attack!" Dargon leapt at the Mauler and tried to horizontally slash the bear across the chest. The bear simply caught the blade with his claws and deflected the attack with relative ease. "Damn, it's stronger than it looks!"

Isaac and Felix decided to take on one of the Rat Warriors together. Isaac dashed to the left while his master charged from the creature's right. They converged on the target at the exact same time and sliced the creature into quarters before it could figure out which way to block. Garet decided to go after the remaining Rat Warrior, charging toward it. The creature quickly raised its small iron shield. The creature reeled backward several feet after catching the brunt of Garet's strike with the now dented shield. It staggered back to normal attack position and dashed back toward the Mars Adept. He smiled, realizing the creature had made a critical mistake. Garet raised his arm, and several orbs of fire appeared around him from nowhere. The orbs simultaneously homed in on the creature and exploded violently on impact. The creature was promptly turned into rat fricassee, smoke curling from its lifeless body.

Ivan stood studying both of his Warrior Bee opponents. The two insect fighters buzzed around him in a semi-circle, cutting off any avenue of escape. The young mage closed is violet eyes and raised his staff to his chest. He listened intently to the buzzing of the creature's wings; one of the creatures was definitely flying faster than the other. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open and shot his arm forward at the point where the two bees passed each other. All of a sudden, a blast of Shine Plasma plastered both creatures and flash-fried them on the spot.

Dargon still had his hands full with the Mauler he was staring down. He dodged its attempted maulings and tried to leap in for an attack. His only option was to tap into his Psynergy; something he didn't like to do. Leaping back, he swung his sword laterally through the air, sending a wave of pure fire into the woodland creature gone mad. The bear staggered back and roared in pain. Dargon seized the opportunity and lunged into the bear with his sword point. He quickly pulled his weapon free of the beast's now bloodied hide and pushed its body to the ground with a loud thump.

"That was fun." Dargon panted, sarcastically.

"Yeah, it was." Garet smiled.

"The smart thing would've been to avoid the fight." Isaac sighed, sheathing his long sword. "There really wasn't a point to that fight."

"They attacked us at random, so we had to defend ourselves. It's point enough, Isaac." Ivan corrected.

"But still. . ." Isaac replied. "Somehow I get the feeling that something bigger is going on here than just natural aggression."

"I don't disagree, Isaac, but Ivan is correct. The Sol Code has no qualms about fighting in defense. As long as you don't throw the first punch, the code pretty much gives you the okay to fight." Felix stated. Felix quickly spun on his heels as he heard more branches snap. "Something's coming."

"Like what?" Garet asked. A moment later he was tackled to the ground by a rabid and hungry Fenrir. The two-headed demon dog tried to bite off Garet's face, but a quick Earthquake from Felix shook the creature right off of him. The dog howled, and pounding and rapid footsteps could be heard in the wood. It was the rest of the pack.

"Damn it! It's a trap!" Ivan shouted, re-preparing for battle. "It's the whole group coming now! We gotta run, we don't stand a chance against a wolfpack of Fenrirs!"

"If we run, they'll chase us right down and tear us to shreds anyway!" Dargon shouted back, catching an approaching hound in the mouth with his long sword. Its lip began to bleed profusely as the other head growled and snapped as usual. Dargon kicked the Fenrir's frothing face away from him and quickly took off its head with his sword.

Ivan quickly blasted two more of the creatures with Spark Plasma, slowing them down considerably. He studied the pack's tactics. . . there were six more of the creatures coming besides the one killed by Dargon and the two he just electrocuted. Three of them went directly toward Isaac, two at Garet, and two at Felix.

This was where his training would pay off. Three fearsome Fenrirs were about to attack him, and Felix had his hands full; this was the first time he'd be on his own in combat against monsters. He raised his long sword and prepared his defense. The first of three hounds charged at him and attempted a headbutting attack. Isaac dodged sideways and sliced the dog in its side. Both heads let out a yelp of pain, and the creature fell to the ground whining from a deathly wound. The two other slobberers were more hesitant to attack, but they fanned out and tried to attack at the same time. Isaac quickly dodged away, causing the two hounds to be off balance for a moment. The Venus Adept sliced into the first of the two Fenrirs, splitting its hide wide open with his trusty blade. The final hound leapt in and bit Isaac on the wrist, causing him to drop his sword. Instinctively, Isaac kicked the Fenrir in one of its faces and it released him from its grip. Isaac cupped his wounded wrist and winced in pain. He couldn't figure out where his sword was, and the hound was about ready to attack again. He had only one option left: his trump card. Raising his unwounded arm into the sky, he appeared as though he was grabbing a sword from the air. The hound growled in confusion, before being struck with a massive sword made of pure Psynergy. The dog flew through the air, its body bending and contorting in an unfeasible manner until it hit the ground with a sickening thump.

Garet smirked as he faced his two opponents. He wasn't going to get caught off guard again. Instead of mucking around with his blade, he decided to simply put an end to the creatures. An end that would leave them, as he liked to call it, extra crispy. A blast of Eruption seared through the ground beneath the Fenrirs and they were both turned effectively into charcoal.

Felix stood, his face calm and objective; it was the complete opposite of the demonic beings he was facing. The four heads of the two Fenrirs each was slobbering, growling and gnashing their teeth in anticipation. Felix closed his eyes and sighed. He didn't want to do what he was about to do, but he knew it had to be done. He shot his arm out forward and a major quake shook and tore the earth in front of him, sending the dogs flying. Quickly, he dashed forward and shish-kabobed both of the hounds with his sword. The attack sounded viscous, but an observer could tell the Paladin was holding back the brunt of his force. Felix sighed again, sheathing his weapon in silence. Dargon and Garet were whooping it up in cheers, while Ivan stood, watching the whole ordeal. That left Isaac, who was further away, his palm glowing over his other wrist. The Venus Adept approached his apprentice and gave him a quick look over.

"You okay, Isaac?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. One of the Fenrirs bit me, that's all. The thing knocked my sword away from me; I just found it a moment ago."

"Well, it doesn't look too bad, and plus you know how to use Cure. You'll be okay."

"Thanks, Felix."

"For what?"

"For training me well enough to live through that."

"That was your skill, Isaac. I had nothing to do with it. Like I said, you are ready to become a Paladin in your own right. Let's go." Felix stated, walking toward the celebrating Garet and Dargon. "Is your ranting really necessary?"

"We survived an attack of Fenrirs! Not many can stand up to that kind of force and live to tell about it!" Garet exclaimed. "I think we have right to celebrate!"

"We don't until we figure out what's up in Vault." Ivan stated, already following on the path. "Time is of the essence." Isaac was following the young mage, and the other three swordsman were quick to join in. Garet caught up to the young Venus Adept and noticed him using Cure on his wrist.

"One of the bastards bite you, Isaac?"

"Yes." He replied, finishing his treatment. "Come on, we'll be in Vault by sundown."