Kael hit the ground hard. His head ached and ears rang constantly. Disoriented he stood and looked around for Nar.

Nar laid a few feet away covered in dust. He didn’t look hurt. Kael made his way to him and offered a hand to help him stand.

“Thanks for saving me Nar.” Kael said sincerely.

If he didn’t tackle me I would have been pierced through. He thought looking at the path of destruction the lighting had caused.

The mounds of dirt had been flattened. Several trees shattered by the force but the most destruction was in the center—were the beam had passed. It was like nothing Kael had ever seen. The trees had a huge perfectly round hole as if something took a bite of them. Squinting his eyes Kael noticed sawdust floating.

They were disintegrated and grind to dust…he stared in awe. What could have caused this? His curiosity urged him to go see what it was. No, he needed to know.

"Did you see what it was?" Kael asked.

"I don't know," Nar said. "All I saw in my mind was purple. The itch became so strong it hurt and my body acted on its own and tackled you."

Kael unconsciously started walking down the path of destruction.

“Kael, where are you going? It’s dangerous.”

“I need to know what it was. You can follow or stay behind.”

“Damn it, Kael.” Nar said. “Just wait up.”

Kael turned and glanced at Nar who was searching for something. Quickly, he found the Versilk net—fox still inside—and tied it to his bag.

“Aren’t you getting a fox?”

“Oh right,” Kael responded, looking for one of the foxes and placing it inside Nar’s net. “There, now let’s go.” He then led the way.

##

Kael faced a giant yellow wall. It glowed brightly and seem to reach the heavens. Or at least Kael couldn’t see the end of it. A faint constant humming could be heard. Strange symbols—too advanced for either of them to understand—swirled, expanding and contracting within the wall. They brimmed with energy.

Kael had heard older disciples talk about the grandeur of the different walls—blue, yellow and maroon—that divided the forest, but they had not done it justice. He stood there fascinated. He rushed and place his hands on the wall, feeling the energy. It coursed through his body causing a slight tickle.

Before he could feel anything else, the symbols gathered around his hands and pushed them away.

Fascinating. He thought. How do they do that? How much force do they enact. Is it relative to how much force is used?

He tried pushing harder with his hands and the wall responded equally—confirming one of his many questions.

He needed write them down. Study them. His dad would have surely done that and more. He would have understood the symbols.

Kael rummaged through his robe, took out his notebook—still in pristine condition. His father had set a small formation on the journal that protected it from outside harm. It even prevented the book from burning. The only reason Kael always kept it with him without worrying.

 Opening it to the last pages, he drew. In seconds, he managed to draw all the symbols within his vision. Nar pulled on Kael's robe bringing him out of his trance.

"What?" he asked, dissatisfied. His eyes still lingering on the symbols.

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"There's a purple spot on the wall." Nar said, pointing.

A few meters down the wall, strange purple mist leaked out. Kael ran towards it. Nobody mentioned this, he thought. Could it be related to the strange lightning.

He slowed down to a walk as he approached the mist. Then he stopped. There on the wall there was a hole. A purple rim, about a hand wide, surrounded the hole followed by a horde of symbols rapidly enclosed it—discarding the energy causing it to mist.

 This was impossible. The wall couldn’t be breached. That’s what everyone said. He looked at the hole again. It was big enough to squeeze through. Kael got on his knees and crawled towards it.  He wanted to know what caused the wall to break.

"Kael, we shouldn't go through." Nar said, a tremble in his voice. "That's the yellow side. The beasts there are dangerous."

 His face crossed the wall and the mist faded slightly allowing him a view of the other side; a portal—at least that is what it seemed like—rapidly shrinking and a rabbit popping out of it.

How is that possible? He wondered. That beast must be special. I need to have it and study it.

"Nar, there's a beast on the other side that I want." He said.

"Are you crazy? We already have the foxes. Plus, the beasts on that side could kill you."

Nar was right, but the rabbit wasn't that far and he couldn't see any beasts around. If he hurried he could get to it and be back on this side without danger.

"I'm going to go get it." Kael said. Without waiting for Nar's protest, he crossed the wall.

Cautiously, he looked around making sure there was no beasts and approached the rabbit. Slowly at first then gaining speed as he reached it. It was beautiful. The rabbit was white, but the tips of its fur were blue. The most interesting part, however, was the strange purple scar on its forehead—a perfect circle with a spiral on its center.

"Kael!" Nar shouted. "Come back now. There's a wolf."

Caught off-guard by the sudden scream, Kael searched.

Then he saw it.

A massive gray wolf, off in the distance, walking towards him. Kael’s fascination for the rabbit turned to fear instantly. It ran across his body like blood—paralyzing every muscle. His breath turned shallow until neared a complete stop. He could only focus on the dark yellow eyes glaring at him; the drool dropping from its snarling mouth; the teeth, sharp like a row of daggers, glinting in the sun.

"Kael!"

As if on cue the wolf came to a sprint.

Coming to his senses, Kael grabbed the rabbit, put it inside his robe and rushed back to the hole in the wall. His vision narrowed—the previous lack of oxygen's fault. Weakness infected him making his legs unstable and he tripped. He scraped his head as he tumbled, but at the same time it allowed a view of the wolf. It was much closer now. Far too close.

I can't die here. He told himself. I need to become strong. Just like dad.

He willed himself to stand—blood dripping from the fresh wound on his head—in spite of the fear he felt. Adrenaline surged through his body, giving him an extra push. He didn't dare look back now. He had wasted too much time. The wolf was reaching him. Faster, he urged himself. Just a bit more.

Kael was only ten feet from the hole, yet at that very moment, it seemed miles away. Every step he took felt an eternity. Five feet. Two feet. He jumped into the hole.

Halfway through, pain shook his leg. The wolf had scratched him. It headed for a bite, but Nar pulled him to safety. The wolf growled, its front claw trying to grasp at him. Fortunately, the wolf was unable to get through the hole.

Kael gasped for air, hands and legs sprawled wide. Nar noticed the gash on his leg. Hurriedly he searched his bag for anything to tourniquet the wound. Not finding anything useful, he took a knife to his robe. After, he cut strands of his Versilk net.

"You are crazy, Kael." Nar said, wrapping the torn cloth and tying it.

Kael calmed down. The adrenaline was gone, pain and soreness riddled his body, but he survived.

"Kael, we need to head back. The elder needs to see your wound."

"No. It's alright." Kael muttered.

"It’s not alright!” Nar yelled. “It could get infected."

"I have herbs back at my house. I can take care of it" He said, sitting up. Kael didn't want Dean to know. Heaven save him if he found out that he crossed to the yellow section and the danger he went through.

He turned to Nar with a serious face. "Promise me, you won't speak of what happened."

Nar hesitated. His face showed signs of worry, but in the end, he gave a small nod.

Kael smiled. He could trust Nar to keep his word. He felt inside his robe and pulled out the rabbit. His gaze lingered on him. I almost died for you. He thought. I hope it was worth it.

"You risked your life for that?" Nar asked, finally taking a look at the strange rabbit.

"Hey, I can feel this beast is special." It has to be. He whispered to himself. It came from that portal.

"Is it even alive? It's not moving."

The thought of it being dead had not crossed Kael's mind. Worriedly, he lifted and inspected it, searching for signs of life. Its limbs hung like those of a doll.

No, it can’t be dead. He thought. Kael placed a finger on its nose and sighed in relief.

"I can feel its breath." He said. "It's weak, but its alive."

Kael stood placing the rabbit back into his robe. He placed weight on his wounded leg—testing it. Pain rushed up to his hip and he staggered. Hopefully, Nar was there and caught him.

“You sure you can walk?”

“Yea, the pain just caught me by surprise.”

The pain was bearable if he anticipated it, but hiding the wound would be a bit hard. That worried him. He needed to figure out a way to hide the wound before he reached the exit.

He limped forward and motioned Nar to follow.

"Come on, let's get out of this forest."