As they meandered their way back through the labyrinthine forest, Aleia's form curled cozily around Caleb's shoulders, her bushy tail draped over him like a sumptuous scarf made of clouds.

"Feeling drained too, are you?" Caleb questioned, a wry smile coloring his lips as he addressed the red panda encircling him.

"Too?" Aleia's telepathic voice bristled with playful indignation. "Did you somersault through fiery hoops or levitate twenty-pound weights? No, you were merely the one launching projectiles at me. It's rest time, and you, kind sir, are my designated chariot."

"Sure you're not a descendant of a feline?" Caleb teased, his voice tinged with mirth. In answer, Aleia began to purr—a resonant, euphonious sound that seemed incongruous coming from a creature of her magical lineage. "Oh, you're incorrigible. Sleep, then."

Dusky twilight began to blanket the sky, painting it in a gorgeous tapestry of oranges, pinks, and purples. Caleb's calves ached from relentless sprinting without prior stretches. 'Should we revisit this place tomorrow?' he wondered. 'How much training can a nascent AniCode withstand without harm?'

"Stop," Aleia's telepathic voice broke through his internal debate like a cold splash of water. She unfurled her form and floated ahead, her head swiveling this way and that, her senses palpably on edge. "There's a Shadow owl lurking nearby, though my senses can't pinpoint its exact location." For the first time, her velvety mental tone conveyed a note of apprehension.

"Why didn't you pick up on it sooner?" Caleb questioned, his eyes darting nervously as he took stock of the growing shadows cast by the waning light.

"Shadow Elementals are my Achilles' heel; I wouldn't have sensed it at all if it weren't radiating such aggressive intent," Aleia confessed, her aura flickering into a shade of ominous purple. She opened her mouth wide, emitted a complex series of harmonic tones, and snapped it shut.

"What did you just do?" Caleb was itching to understand the full extent of his AniCode's capabilities.

"It was a sonic wave to disorient any hostile AniCodes within a hundred feet. Now move, Caleb!" Her psychic urgency was unmissable.

No sooner had he turned to flee than a large owl materialized before him, its feathers an ominous shade of dark grey. It screeched menacingly and swooped down, talons outstretched to snag him.

"No!" Aleia's psychic shout was both a command and a war cry. She lunged at the Shadow Owl, colliding forcefully with its chest. "My telekinesis doesn't affect it!"

"Can you manifest a telekinetic shield?" Caleb ventured, noting that the owl's talons seemed unable to penetrate an invisible barrier around her.

"I can, but it won't hold for long," Aleia responded, visibly straining with each talon strike she deflected. 'I pushed her too hard earlier,' Caleb lamented, recognizing her fatigue.

His self-recrimination was interrupted when the owl's talon finally punctured Aleia's shield, sending her crashing to the forest floor with a disheartening thud. Blood oozed from the gash across her abdomen, and panic seized Caleb's chest like a vise. As he gasped for air, his vision started to tunnel. 'I couldn't even protect my AniCode for one day,' he berated himself. His vision began to get blurry as his breathing got heavier and heavier.

“Am I having a panic attack?” Caleb said to himself.

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Just then, Aleia's body levitated once again, her purple aura blazing like a torch against the enveloping darkness. Her eyes flashed a luminescent white, and suddenly the owl's form lit up too—first white, then purple—before plummeting lifeless to the ground.

"Download it now!" Aleia's urgent instruction reverberated in Caleb's mind. Fumbling for his AniLink, he began the sequence to capture the fallen Shadow Owl. But before he could see if he'd succeeded, an agonizing pain shot through his head, as if his very synapses were on fire. It coursed through him, centering in his stomach like a blade. His world dimmed, finally surrendering to an enveloping darkness.

*****

Stirred by the sensation of a firm slap on his cheek, Caleb groggily fought his way back to consciousness. His senses greeted him with the embrace of plush bedding and the clinical scent of disinfectant mingled with lavender. He felt a band wrapped around his arm, the cool touch of metal and plastic likely monitoring his vitals. Blinking away the haze from his vision, he found Amanda looming above him, her expression a perplexing blend of relief and irritation.

"You need to wake up. We're heading home," Amanda announced briskly, her tone suggesting she'd already overstayed her welcome. "They're charging me by the minute here."

A mellifluous voice lilted from the shadowy corner of the sterile room. "No worries, really." Drifting into the wash of ambient light, a man sporting a white lab coat and meticulously slicked-back black hair emerged. "Your nephew is something of a special case. His AniLink provides him with complimentary medical care at any GeneSynth establishment. Dr. Veers, at your service."

Amanda's ears perked up at the word "free." "Hold on a minute, does that benefit extend to family members? A Plain horse slammed into me last week, and I've been wincing through back pain ever since."

"Alas, the offer is exclusive to Caleb," Dr. Veers responded, offering a saccharine smile. He then shot Caleb a covert wink, as if in cahoots against Amanda's opportunistic inquiries. Acknowledging the unspoken alliance, Caleb responded with a subtle, appreciative nod.

"As for your health, Caleb," Dr. Veers continued, flipping through his clipboard, "I'd suggest an overnight stay. However, I must inquire: what exactly happened? Your red panda AniCode was on death's doorstep, and the Shadow owl you captured seems to have been lobotomized."

"Is Aleia going to be okay?" Caleb cut in anxiously, his voice tinged with palpable concern.

Dr. Veers squinted at his notes. "Aleia, you said? The red panda?"

"Yes," Caleb affirmed.

"Ah, I see," the doctor muttered, scribbling additional notes. "You should update that information on your AniLink, which I'll show you how to do later. Aleia should recover with overnight rest. As for the owl, shall we keep it here for observation?"

"That's fine," Caleb agreed. "When I was blacking out, Aleia unleashed some sort of telepathic wave."

"Interesting. Paranormal AniCodes often have potent telepathic bonds with their coders. What's her bond level?"

"Bond level? I can check that?" Caleb sat up abruptly, overcome by his newfound enthusiasm, only to be punished with a wave of vertigo. He flopped back down onto the cushioned support.

"Whoa, steady," Dr. Veers cautioned. "Clearly, you haven't been properly introduced to your AniLink. Once you both recover, we offer a beginner's course. And before you ask," he preempted Amanda's opened mouth, "it's on the house."

"Thank you," Caleb mumbled, easing his head back onto the pillow's soft cradle.

"Now, back to what happened," the doctor insisted, settling into a rolling chair and poised to record Caleb's account.

As Caleb relayed the unsettling series of events, he found himself grappling with disorientation. Not only was he struggling to piece together how he had ended up where he was, but he was also clueless about the actual location.

"You're in the GeneSynth hospital in Troy," Dr. Veers clarified, sensing his bewilderment. "Your AniLink sent an emergency signal due to Aleia's critical condition and your non-responsive state. You're fortunate; standard models don't have that feature."

"Can I see Aleia?" Caleb's plea was tinged with desperation.

"Unfortunately, no," Dr. Veers gently denied. "Both she and the owl are in specialized healing chambers for AniCodes. And you, young man, should remain bedridden until further notice. Now rest up."

As Dr. Veers stood up, Amanda quickly launched into a flurry of questions regarding Caleb's unique healthcare benefits as her ward. Rolling his eyes yet secretly applauding her relentless advocacy, Caleb settled into his pillow, cocooned by both medical technology and the knowledge that Aleia would be fine.