Chapter 3 is here! Yayz! :D I hoped you liked chapter 2, now, I'll tell you something. When I was typing this, I couldn't stop myself from laughing half the time, because of Blue Fox. You all may already know what his personality is, by looking at my profile, or by seeing it first hand in the story, so that should at least put some of you in a good mood... I hope...
Anyway, back to the... Matter... At hand... What am I saying? *shakes head*
Alright, anyway... Why don't we get back to the story? :3
Kluke closed one eye in pain, beads of sweat rolling down the side of her face. Dark and Black Fox have almost broken through the barrier and everyone's fighting the other three. Kluke glanced over to her left, spotting Volt and Zola, powering their shadows, while the two were grappling each other as they tried to push the other to the ground. She was slightly surprised that Volt and his team were trying to attack her and her friends, but she pushed that to the back of her mind, seeing as she's in a battle. Kluke looked back at Black Fox, who's left claw was a few inches longer and it was glowing a very dark black, almost as if she was staring at the night sky, one with now stars or the moon.
She shivered at that thought, this guy's shadow is all about being in the dark, which makes him much more of a threat at night, we you have no idea where he might be.
"Kluke, do you have a plan?" Kluke looked over her shoulder, seeing Bouquet and Hippo, the two hugging each other and shaking with fright. Kluke closed her eye and then opened both of them, giving Bouquet and her shadow a kind, yet sad, smile.
"Sorry, I haven't come up with one, but as soon as I do, you'll see it." Bouquet gave her a determined frown, and Kluke turned her attention to Black Fox, eyes widening in shock.
They were almost close to breaking the barrier! Kluke looked over her shoulder at Bouquet and then back at Dark and Black Fox. She smiled. She came up with a plan! Turning to Bouquet, she said, "I need you to deceive them after the barrier's gone, alright."
Bouquet, slightly confused, nodded her head to Kluke. Hippo looked at his shadow wielder and raised a hand up, covering the side of his snout.
"Bouquet, do you have any idea what she means by that," he asked, his voice sounding slightly scared. Bouquet looked at Hippo and did the same thing he was doing.
"I'm not sure, but I think she wants us to transform into someone," Bouquet replied in a hushed tone. Hippo narrowed his eyes worriedly, but nodded his head.
"If that's the case then do you know who we should transform into?" Bouquet blinked her eyes and then a happy smile was on her face.
"I have an idea about that!"
Meanwhile, Kluke and Phoenix were still holding up with the attack Black Fox was giving. Black Fox turned his gaze toward his wielder and flicked his ear.
"Dark, this isn't enough to get through," he said, clawing at the barrier again. "We've only made a few cracks, and every time we do, they always seem to find a way to keep it up." Dark nodded his head, a plan already forming in his mind.
"It looks like we've got to try using all of our power for this one." Dark said, powering up Black Fox even more. Black Fox had his claw back and he sighed.
"Looks like you're plans always tend to be the hard way?" Dark smirked.
"Don't start with that again, you know full well that brute force is sometimes the answer." Black Fox smirked back at his shadow wielder and nodded his head.
"But after the barrier's gone, we should at least be gentle with the girls, as well as the hippo." Dark rolled his eyes. Just like a parent. He's never been able to understand his shadow... Scratch that, he's never been able to understand, Fang's shadow. Shaking his head, Dark pulled his left fist back and then pushed it forward.
"Let's get this over with!" Black Fox followed the same move as his user and punched the barrier, much to Phoenix's and Kluke's surprise. Thanks to the extra boost of power, the barrier shattered into white shards.
"Th-they broke through!" Kluke exclaimed.
"It looks as though they've been saving that much power just to attack the barrier in places that were cracked." Phoenix said, her voice sounding shock, yet calm. Black Fox moved his fist back a little and Dark nodded his head.
"That seems to be your assumption. But to tell you the truth, that wasn't our plan." Dark saw Kluke blinking in confusion and then her eyes widen in understanding.
"You had to improvise your next attack, right?" She asked and Dark flicked his ear. Maybe he was a little wrong for thinking this girl was not smart.
"You can say that yes."
"Let's go, Blue Dragon!" Black Fox, caught off guard, was punched in the cheek, his head turning to the left from the impact, while Blue Dragon glared at him. Kluke blinked her eyes and then her face meet her hand and she shook her head, grumbling to herself.
Dark was blinking and scratching his cheek with a claw and he looked over at Shu, who was smiling nervously and a few beads of sweat forming on the side of his face. Dark flicked one of his pointed ears and raised a brow at the boy.
"You seem a whole lot weaker..." That's when realization hit him and he turned his head towards Kluke, seeing that Bouquet and Hippo were gone. Chuckling, Dark turned his attention to "Shu" and smirked.
"I get it, your shadow allows you to transform into anything you want. You transformed into that boy and the dragon, just to get an attack on us and make us injured... Right?" Bouquet flinched, as well as Hippo. Black Fox turned his head to stare at the dragon, before pulling his right fist back and punching Hippo on the cheek, getting the shadow to hit the ground as Bouquet followed her shadow. Black Fox flicked his ear and nodded his head.
"We've got to watch out for that one, then. If she's able to transform into any of her teammates, that means she's able to transform into her enemies as well." Black Fox warned, glancing at his shadow wielder, who nodded his head.
"Don't worry, we'll just have to keep her unconscious for a little while, that's all." Black Fox blinked slowly, then looked up and Phoenix and Kluke, waiting for them to make a move. Bouqet got into a sitting position, while Hippo went behind his shadow wielder, staring nervously at the black shadow fox. Dark took a deep breathe, and then let it out. He placed one paw in his pant's pocket and flicked his tail behind him.
"Let's see how strong you guys really are."
"Maro!" Marumaro landed on the ground on his butt. Rubbing that part, Marumaro steadied himself by putting his other hand on the ground. Shaking his head, he looked back up at the yellow bird—whose name he just found out to be Claws—as he stared down at Marumaro, wings folded behind his back, his leg across the other and a bored expression on his face. Saber Tiger moved down to Marumaro's level and gave his user a worried expression.
"Marumaro, are you okay?" He asked and Marumaro jumped to his feet and nodded his head.
"Of course, maro! There's no way a defender of justice is going to lose, maro!" Claws blinked his eyes and smiled.
"You're a defender of justice as well?" He asked, causing Saber Tiger and Marumaro to look at him. Marumaro awkwardly nodded his head and Claws smiled wider.
"That's great! We are, too!" Claws looked over at Green Bird, who blinked his eyes.
"But if they're defenders of justice, then why are we fighting them?" He asked, raising one talon. Claws tapped under his beak with a feather as he looked at the sky, trying to come up with an answer. He sighed and his shoulders slumped as he couldn't find one.
"I've no idea. It was Volt's idea anyway."
While this was going on, Marumaro and Saber Tiger were talking with each other.
"I don't understand how they're defenders of justice, when they're attacking people, maro?" Marumaro said, going into the same position Claws was in. Saber Tiger shrugged.
"It's probably best if we leave that to Zola, Marumaro," he advised. "Whenever we get the chance to capture them then she'll ask them why they attacked us, but right now, we should use this as to our advantage." Marumaro looked at his shadow with confusion.
"What do you mean, maro?"
"What I'm saying is that we could figure out what their strength and weaknesses are." Marumaro nodded his head slowly.
"I guess that's a great idea, maro." Saber Tiger smiled and nodded his head.
As soon as the two groups stopped talking, they turned their attentions back on the other and smiled.
"Let's get this battle over with!" Marumaro and Claws shouted as they started powering up their shadows. Green Bird and Saber Tiger dashed towards each other and started grappling, pushing each other back with the help of their wielders.
"Give it all ya got, Green Bird!" Claws shouted, excitement clear in his voice. Green Bird glanced at his shadow wielder and then back at Saber Tiger, a smirk on his beak. I've always wanted to try this,the bird thought. Green Bird then slammed his head against Saber Tiger, getting the shadow to rear back, paws on his head, roaring in pain.
Green Bird reared back behind his user and looked at him, giving him a thumbs up. Claws returned it with a wink.
"Awesome! That was a great idea, Green Bird." Green Bird crossed his arms and nodded his head.
"At least I got 'em."
"Maro!" Claws and Green Bird looked back at their opponents and saw Marumaro powering up Saber Tiger, the shadow heading towards them at top speed. Green Bird unfolded his arms quickly—
—but was punched in the gut by Saber Tiger. Claws shook his head.
"Green Bird, punch 'em back!" Green Bird followed his user's order and folded both his hands together, then slammed them on top of Saber Tiger's head. Saber Tiger's face met the ground, while Green Bird and Claws jumped back from the yellow shadow. Marumaro was hunched over, holding his head in his hands. Bringing his head back up, Marumaro shook it, and then glared at Claws, powering up his shadow at the same time.
"Get 'em, maro!" Saber Tiger got up and shook his head. After that, he sped forward, one paw glowing yellow. Green Bird moved to the side, seemingly thinking that he had dodged the attack—
—but then he felt a stinging pain on his shoulder and he cried out, gripping his shoulder with his wing, he shook his head. Saber Tiger had reared back towards Marumaro, the devee smiling. Claws, who was gripping his shoulder, narrowed his eyes at Marumaro. Looks like we are evenly matched, he thought, lowering his wing down and clenching them into fists (if that was possible). How can I beat a guy, who has the same strength as me?
Fang flicked his ears, panting. One arm was held out towards his side, while his paw was gripping said arm. Shu was still in a battle stance, but he had sweat forming on his face and he was breathing heavily, the both of them had battered bodies, but were still standing. Their shadows were the same as their wielders, however, one was glaring at the other shadow, while Blue Fox was staring at the scenery, almost like a kid on his first adventure.
"I never knew the forest was such a fine place to live," Blue Fox commented, spreading his arms and staring at the trees, eyes shining. Shu and Fang sweat dropped, staring at the fox shadow with disbelief written on their faces. Blue Dragon snorted and crossed his arms.
"You've got to be kidding me," he said glaring even harder at Blue Fox, who was ignoring the dragon (seems like the world for that matter), and continued staring at the trees. Blue Dragon continued thought, "All you care about is the stupid forest and not the battle that you're in?" Blue Fox turned his attention on Blue Dragon, confusion on his face.
"We were battling? I thought this was the type of game that involves our fists and such." He replied, making Fang fall towards the ground, while Shu was on one foot, arms waving wildly beside him, both shadow wielders had shocked faces, while Blue Dragon had narrowed his eyes at Blue Fox in disbelief.
"Wh-what!?" Blue Dragon shouted, anger clear in his voice. He uncrossed his arms and pointed on claw at Blue Fox, who looked terrified by the sudden outburst. "You thought this was a game? What is wrong with you?" Blue Dragon gave Blue Fox a cold glare, while the fox hid himself under his arms, not looking at the dragon in the eye. Shu, feeling a little sorry for the guy, looked at his shadow.
"That was a little harsh," he said.
BAM!
"Ow!" Shu held his head, hunched forward, while Blue Dragon had one fist above his user, glaring at him.
"I didn't say anything harsh yet." Folding his arms, Blue Dragon glared over at Blue Fox, but stopped short as he realized that the fox was gone, the only one standing was Fang, who had his arms folded behind his head as his back was turned to him.
Shu, who recovered from the pain in his head, as well as still holding it, saw this and lowering his arm, blinking slowly.
"Hey," he called, "Where's Blue Fox?" Fang turned his head to glanced at over his shoulders and he shrugged.
"He unsummoned himself, feeling guilty, sad, and terrified. He also said, "That dragon's mean!" I won't be able to summon him back after that."
"Why not," Shu asked, confused. Fang sighed.
"Whenever he's frightened like that, he won't do anything... He's basically like a kid." Blue Dragon was unsummoned and Shu walked over to Fang smiling down at the fox.
"Well, I guess we can call that a draw." Fang smiled and nodded his head, unfolding his arms and placing his paws in his jacket pockets.
"Yeah, why don't we stop our friends?"
Shu laughed.
"That's one of the most smartest plans I've heard this whole day!" Fang laughed.
"I'm glad I made your day then." He said, patting Shu on the back.
"Red Beam!"
Red Fox opened his mouth, a fiery beam shot out of it and was headed straight for Killer Bat. Killer Bat raised his sword up and the fire burst deflected off of the blade and moved to a different direction, which was the trees that were behind the fox shadow.
"Minotaur, now!" Minotaur appeared right after the Red Fox's attack hit the trees, pulling his fist back and landing a punch right on Red Fox's cheek, sending him and his user to the ground. Volt got up and rubbed his cheek, Red Fox getting up as well and snarling at the two users and their shadows.
"What are you doing," Red Fox growled, glaring at his wielder. "Stop playing around and start fighting you, idiot!" Volt got into a sitting position, staring at Jiro and Zola, a plan trying to formulate in his brain. I need to try and use that bat's speed against him, Volt finally thought, biting the bottom of his lip. I also have to use Minotaur's strength against him!
Shaking his head, Volt got to his feet and sighed. He stared at Zola, and then at Jiro.
"Okay, Red Fox," he said, flicking his ear. "Let's play it your way." Red Fox smirked, turning his attention to Minotaur and Killer Bat, clenching his fists in anticipation.
"Heh, you're speaking my language." Red Fox said, not holding back the glee in his voice. Volt glowed with power and Red Fox shot forward, heading towards Minotaur.
"Jiro—"
But he cut her off. "On it!"
Jiro moved forward, Minotaur following him. Red Fox watched and halted abruptly, and then he shot towards the sky. Minotaur halted and looked upwards, seeing nothing. Jiro followed his shadow's gaze and blinked. Where did he go?
"Now Red Fox, go for it!"
Jiro's eyes widen. He turned his attention back to Volt, who was glowing again and his shadow moved towards him, the shadow taking form into a larger fox. Oh, no! Jiro moved quickly to the left, hitting the ground as Red Fox moved out of the ground and turned to his direction.
"Eh, you got fast reflexes," Red Fox said, his voice monotone. "Too bad you won't live another day to use 'em." Raising his fist he pushed it forward and Minotaur blocked it just in time. Sighing, Jiro got to his feet and watched as Red Fox tried pushing Minotaur back, while the teal-colored shadow was doing the same to the fox shadow.
"You two are really persistent aren't you?" Jiro asked, glaring at Volt. The fox shrugged his shoulders and his tail flicked.
"That's enough."
Volt opened his eyes, hearing Zola's voice. He looked down at his throat, seeing the blade of Zola's sword near it. Glancing up, Volt saw Red Fox in the same position, although Red Fox's gaze held slight annoyance and huge anger. Volt raised his paws up slightly and he gave a nervous smile.
"Looks like you guys won." He said. Red Fox glared at his wielder, but disappeared in a flash of blue. Looking over at Zola, Volt said, "You seemed to be the leader of this small group, eh?" Zola, blinking her eyes, moved her sword away from Volt's throat, and placed it back in it's sheath.
"You can say that, yes." She replied, Killer Bat disappearing in a flash of blue. Jiro walked over, Minotaur already unsummoned and stood in front of Volt, arms cross.
"You mind telling us why you attacked us?" He asked. Volt waved a claw at the taller boy and closed one eye.
"Let's wait and see how our other friends are doing." Jiro blinked his eyes, seeing a mischievous glint in Volt's fiery ones. Something in his gut was telling him that this wasn't going to end well.
Kluke was sitting on the ground, hunched over in exhaustion, her hands on the ground and holding her up, while Bouquet was sitting on the ground, her hands over her chest as she stared at Dark, who was breathless as well. It basically took all of his power to break down Kluke's Feather Protect, and surprising him was that after the barrier was destroyed, Bouquet acted as decoy to get Dark's attention, while Kluke powered up to use Eternal Breathe, which hit Black Fox right on the back. Dark's ears perked up at the sound of footsteps and he turned his attention towards his left, seeing Volt, Jiro, and Zola dash over.
"What are you—"
He was cut off as Volt tackled him, surprising him and Black Fox.
"Have you gone mad!" Dark exclaimed, kicking the fluffy-tailed fox in the stomach, sending him sprawling on the ground. Kluke got to her feet, but was swaying a little bit from taking on all of Black Fox's attacks. Jiro saw this and grabbed hold of the girl's shoulders, trying to keep her steady. Kluke looked at him and gave him a smile.
"Thanks." She said and Jiro nodded his head, turning his attention back on the two foxes, that were either really trying to kill each other or just wrestling. Black Fox was staring at the scene, not sure what to do. Turning his attention back on the humans—as well as Phoenix and Hippo—he shrugged and unsummoned himself. Taking this as a sign that the battle was over, Phoenix and Hippo unsummoned themselves as well.
Getting to his feet, Dark dust himself off, his tail flicking in annoyance.
"You have the most perfect timing in the whole world." He muttered, but loud enough for everyone to hear. Volt was in a sitting position, scratching one of his ears.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like I care." Volt said, tail flicking. Kluke walked over to Volt, ignoring the surprise faces of Bouquet and Jiro, and crouched down, placing her hand on Volt's head. Volt's ear flicked in nervousness as he mischief gleaming the girl's eyes.
"You have a lot of explaining to do, Volt-chan." She said, humor clear in her voice. Volt flinched and he lowered his head.
"You are not going to let me down on that, are you?" He asked, raising his head a little so one of his fiery eyes could stare at Kluke. Kluke blinked, thinking about it for a moment, then she smiled.
"Nope." Volt sighed in defeat. But in all honesty, he knew that he had that coming. Volt's ears flicked up and he looked up, staring at Dark, who was chuckling, with deadpan eyes.
"You're enjoying every moment of this aren't you?" He asked, his voice monotone. Dark shrugged his shoulders, a humor-filled smile on his snout.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Dark objected, turning around and placing his paws in his jacket pockets, his tail flicking behind him. Volt got to his feet and he shook his head.
"Let's wait for Marumaro and..." Kluke trailed off, not sure what the name of the yellow bird was.
"Claws." Volt said, helping Kluke out with her sentence. Kluke nodded her head and Dark folded his arms, looking over his shoulder at the people behind him.
"Fang and that kid with the dragon shadow is already on it." Volt narrowed his eyes at Dark stupidly.
"You do realize his name is Shu, right?" Dark flicked his ear in annoyance.
"I only have a few things to say: Cry me a river." With that, Dark walked over to the bushes and pushed them aside, heading deeper into the forest. Kluke blinked and looked at Zola.
"Should we follow him?" She asked and Zola looked at Volt, who flicked his tail forward, an indication for them to follow. Jiro, Bouquet, and Zola just stood there, not sure what Volt meant by that, while Kluke started walking forward. Stopping and looking over her shoulder, she said, "You'll understand it soon enough." The three other shadow wielders looked at each other, then back at Kluke, walking right behind her and Volt as Volt led the way.
Claws panted heavily, his shoulders moving up and down with every breathe. From a few yards away, he could see Marumaro in the exact position he (Claws) was in: fist raised, shoulders moving up in down with each breathe, and breathing heavily.
"Claws it looks like we'll have to try something different," Green Bird said, glancing at his shadow wielder. Claws's shoulders slumped and he glanced up at Green Bird.
"We've been trying that for a few hours now," Claws whined, eyes closing as he said the last few words. Green Bird crossed his arms and his wings folded a little behind him as he leaned forward, back looking like it was hunched and the tip of Green Bird's beak nearly touched Claws's, whose head was leaned back.
"I know that, but we have to come up with something that will take them by surprise," Green Bird whispered and Claws opened his eyes, blinking them in thought. A few seconds later and he snapped two of his feathers together.
"I think you could be right, Green Bird!" Turning his attention to Marumaro, who gave a confused stare at the two birds, Claws shouted, "We're going to see how fast you two really are!" Claws then pointed a feather into the sky, one wing placed on his hip, while Green Bird relined backwards, rubbing his beak with a talon.
"Warn me next time," he shouted and Claws looked back at him, eyes gleaming with mischief.
"Sorry." The bird apologized. He jumped up, back flipped, and landed on Green Bird's shoulder, placing one wing on the shadow's neck. Marumaro watched in confusion.
"What're you doing now, maro," Marumaro called out.
Claws smirked.
"It's what I said a few moments ago; we're going to see how fast you two really are!" Saber Tiger lowered his head and whispered, "They smells like a trap, be careful Marumaro." Marumaro nodded his head, but nonetheless, he hopped onto Saber Tiger's shoulder and placed a hand on the tiger's cheek, pointing a finger at Claws and Green Bird.
"We accept you're challenge, maro!"
"Great!" Claws exclaimed. Green Bird's wings unfolded and they spread out. Green Bird shot to the sky, followed by Saber Tiger. As soon as they were airborne, Saber Tiger rushed towards Green Bird, claw outstretched. Green Bird vanished and reappeared behind Saber Tiger, beak opened.
Marumaro saw this and Saber Tiger disappeared, making Green Bird miss as the green flames shot out of his beak. Floating in the air, Green Bird looked around for where the tiger and the devee could be at.
"Maro!"
Whipping around as quickly as he can, Green Bird let out a cry of pain as Saber Tiger punched his stomach. Saber Tiger moved back as Green Bird clutched his gut, Claws in the same position. But the two weren't quick enough to retaliate as Saber Tiger punched Green Bird on the chest, sending the bird to hit a few trees that were behind/beneath them. Claws landed on the ground, swirls in his eyes, while Saber Tiger lowered himself to the ground, arms crossed. Marumaro smiled and pointed a finger at Claws.
"How do you like that, maro?" He asked, placing his fists on his hips. Claws got into a sitting position and shook his head.
"I'm going to get you for that," Claws shouted, getting to his feet and powering up Green Bird, who had pushed himself off of the ground and was now behind his wielder. Green Bird lunged forward.
"Hold it!"
Blue Dragon appeared in front of the bird shadow and grabbed both of the bird's writs, stopping Green Bird from attacking. Claws looked towards his left, seeing Shu whipping his forehead with his arm, while Fang was sighing with relief.
"What's the big idea! I was doing perfectly fine!" Claws shouted, waving one wing in the air wildly. Fang gave the bird a nervous smile.
"Let's call it a draw," he said nervously and Claws froze. Placing his wing down and blinking at Fang, the bird asked, "You're drunk aren't you?" Fang looked over at Claws and sighed.
"No, no, no, and no! We're finished with our little "battle", so should you guys. Volt and Dark maybe finished with theirs." Fang replied, waving his arms frantically up and down. Claws scratched his head with his feathers and a sigh escaped his beak. Green Bird, Blue Dragon, and Saber Tiger disappeared in a flash of blue.
"Looks like you guys are done."
The four turned their heads to see Bouquet, Kluke, Zola, Jiro, Dark, and Volt walk over to them, Volt's paws folded behind his head.
"You mind telling us why you suddenly attacked us, maro?" Marumaro asked, voicing his companions' thoughts.
The four animals were quiet for a few full seconds and then Claws, Fang, and Volt pointed at Dark, who was standing with his arms crossed, wearing a blank expression as his companions shouted out, "It was his idea!"
Sighing, Dark gave Fang and Claws a swift glance, then looked at Volt.
"If I remember correctly, you were the one who suggested that we see how strong these six shadow wielders were," he swiftly moved one paw towards Shu and the others, "As well as saying, and I quote, "I'm sure these guys aren't that strong!"" Fang and Claws burst out laughing while Volt stared at Dark with narrowed eyes.
"I really hate you." Dark shrugged his shoulders and placed his paws in his pockets coolly, looking at the forest, well...the trees that weren't crushed by Green Bird.
"Now that we're properly introduced to you all, I think it's about time to tell us who you work for," Zola said, breaking the silence (Fang and Claws had already stopped laughing and were wiping the tears away from their eyes). Dark glanced over at her direction, but kept his jaws clamped. He's one of those who likes the silence. Volt blinked and unfolded his paws.
"We work for no one," he replied. "We're like you guys: a group of shadow wielders traveling together to stop Grand Kingdom."
"Have you run into any Grand Kingdom's forces," Jiro asked. Volt shook his head.
"We only come across the villages that were destroyed by Grand Kingdom's forces, but no Grand Kingdom soldiers." Claws replied, raising one feather.
"I don't get it," Shu said, rubbing the back of his head. "I thought Nene wanted all the shadow wielders, so why hasn't he come after you four?"
"Maybe unlike you guys, we've kept ourselves hidden, waiting for the time to strike." Dark replied to Shu's question, glaring over at brown-haired boy.
"How long have you guys been hiding?" Bouquet asked, tilting her head to the side with a finger on her chin. The four animals looked at each other then back at the humans.
"Fang and I were the first one in hiding," Claws said, scratching the back of his head.
"Then Dark came in," Fang piped in, glancing at the other fox, who was still staring into the forest.
"And then Volt found you guys and joined up with you?" She asked and the three nodded.
"I've been meaning to ask you something," Dark said, turning around to look at Kluke fully. Kluke nodded her head for the fox to continue. "How is it that you know Volt, and you," he turned his gaze to the fluffy-tailed fox. "How is it that you know her?" Volt scratched the back of his head cheekily.
"That was a long time ago, it seems," he replied, not really answering Dark's question. "I guess you can say it was by not following orders." After the sentence came out of Volt's mouth, this piped everyone's interests.
"Let's find a comfortable place first," Zola said and everyone nodded.
Volt sat down on the flat rock that was Kluke was sitting at. Jiro, Dark, and Zola were seated on a log towards Volt's and Kluke's left, with Claws sitting on the ground in front of them, while Marumaro and Bouquet were seated on another flat rock next to the one the two old friends were sitting at. Fang was seated on the ground.
"So, how was the encounter not following orders.?" Dark asked as soon as everyone was comfortable. Volt and Kluke shared a glance, their eyes gleaming with amusement, and they looked back at their friends, beginning with their story.
Kluke, about three or four years old, was walking along the edge of the forest. It was midnight. Her friend, Shu, told her about the forest and how he explored it with his parents. Her parents overheard the boy and told their daughter not to stray into the forest, knowing that their daughter was one that act out of curiosity. Stopping near one of the trees, Kluke looked out into the forest. Thanks to the moon's light, the forest looked eerie.
Shaking her head, Kluke continued walking forward, not sure which way to go. This was the only time she was able to sneak out of her house without her parents' noticing her. She stopped as she heard the hoots of an owl and shook her head again. C'mon, Kluke, she could hear Shu's voice, full of teasing. Are you that scared to go inside a harmless forest? Gathering up her courage, or what's left of it, she walked further into the forest, looking over her shoulder once in a while to make sure that the village was in sight.
Stopping again, this time not out of fear, she looked over towards her left, seeing a pathway. Her curiosity growing, Kluke followed the dirt path and came to halt as she saw the outlines of some ruined building, standing in a clearing, the clearing itself bathed in moonlight. Gulping, Kluke took a few shaky steps, smacked her cheek, and then took more confident strides towards the building.
Crack!
Kluke froze, eyes wide in terror. Turning her head, the small girl saw the gleam of red eyes in the bushes and then they suddenly vanished. Kluke yelped and turned around, walking backwards towards the safety of the building. But she tripped on a rock and landed on her bottom.
Her head snapped up and she heard the sound of rustling bushes. She saw the same red eyes, but this time she saw who they belonged to. Standing in front of the bushes, on all four paws, was a fox. He was wearing a black vest, dirty blue pants with holes in them, brown shoes, and a spike collar around his neck. The fox's tail was unusually fluffier than normal foxes (Kluke was guessing on this since she has never seen a fox before). The fox's eyes blinked and it took one step forward, Kluke taking one crawl back.
"It's alright," the fox soothed, his voice gentle. "I'm not gonna hurt you." Kluke stared wide-eyed at the fox, not out of fear, but out of shock and mild curiosity.
"Y-you can talk," she asked, stammering. The fox nodded his head and he took a few steps towards Kluke until he was standing in front of the small girl. The fox looked smaller up close, about her height maybe, she couldn't tell.
"What are you doing out here all alone? Usually you humans, when they're your age, stick closer to the adults."
"I sneaked out of my house to see what the forest is like." She replied. The fox nodded his head.
"You sneaked out! Cool! Anyway, the reason why I'm here is because of that!" He pointed his muzzle over at the building behind Kluke. She turned around and then looked back at the fox.
"Why did you come here to see that? It's just an old building."
"Not just any old building," the fox corrected, walking past Kluke and over to the entrance to the building. Kluke stood up and followed after the fox, not wanting to be left behind in the forest all alone again.
"What do you mean by that?" She asked, stopping beside him. The fox looked over at Kluke and flicked his ears.
"What's your name first?"
"Kluke. My name is Kluke. Yours?"
"The name's Volt, pleasure to meet you Kluke. Now, referring to your question, this ruin has history behind it, and I'm determine to figure out what it is! Aren't you? I mean, this is near you're village, you should be curious as well?"
Kluke looked back at the ruin. She was kind of curious on what it was doing out in the middle of the forest, but she shook her head and looked back at Volt.
"No, I'm not that curious about it, but I think my friend Shu is. He was talking nonstop about a building he saw that was in the middle of the forest; he really wanted to explore it, but his parents said that it was dangerous."
"Like how your parents told you not to come here?" Volt teased, his eyes gleaming with playfulness. Kluke puffed out her cheeks.
"You sneaked out of you're house, too!" She retorted and Volt shook his head.
"I live in the forest. I don't have to sneak around here! I do have to sneak around you're village through." Kluke patted Volt's head and Volt looked over at her. "I'm not a dog."
"You seem like one," she giggled out and Volt let out a chuckle. Volt turned around and padded away, Kluke scramble after him.
"Hold up!" Volt stopped and looked over his shoulder at her.
"I'm taking you back to you're village, you need to get some sleep, all kids need it." Kluke blinked her eyes and nodded her head.
"Yeah, my parents will get mad at me if they knew I wasn't at home." Volt nodded his head and padded ahead of her, Kluke following.
Everyone stared at the two, some of them were a little amazed on how Kluke had disobeyed her parents just to see what the forest was. Shu was the one who broke the silence.
"You never told me that," he exclaimed, hurt in his voice, but it was little. Kluke scratched the back of her head.
"I didn't know what to say to you." She replied to Shu, laughing nervously.
"I'm still surprised you were a whole lot helpful when you were little," Dark said, staring at Volt with narrowed eyes. Volt shrugged.
"Hey, I can be helpful when I want to, and at some points, I choose not to be helpful." He replied, leaning back on the flat rock and folding his paws behind his head.
Silence followed after his sentence, but it was a comfortable silence, one that Volt hasn't been in presence of during this whole fiasco with Grand Kingodom... It felt...good. He closed his eyes, knowing that everyone else was also enjoying the silence. For some reason, he didn't know what, Volt knew that joining up with these guys was lighting up the fire that was inside of everyone, one that grows with hope and the fire was burning brightly. Opening his eyes a little, Volt smiled.
It looks like they'll have a chance to battle Nene with full strength.
Whew and done! I really liked how this turned out... Kind of, but, eh. Looks good to me. In the flashback, Volt doesn't obtain his shadow until he leaves Talta, but he knew that something special was inside the ruins that he wanted to see, but he was never energized to go in and see. Well... Hope you guys liked it!
Fang&Shu*Bouquet: We hoped you guys liked this chapter! :D