“Stop dragging your feet,” said Luna as she pulled Aurin along by the sleeve of his jacket. “You’ll have a good time once you’re there.”

It was a cool morning in early Autumn and the two plus Shamtile were in Hazelton town to meet Luna’s friends, Emily and Hannah. Aurin didn’t mind Emily too much, but Hannah was always cold to him any other time they met.

“They’re going to bore me and I’m going to bore them,” said Aurin while Shamtile ran alongside waving his arms.

“Then talk to them about something other than Minakai,” said Luna. “Ask Emily about animals, not monsters. Ask Hannah about what clothing concepts she’s designing.”

Aurin made a snoring sound and got a dirty look from Luna. “No, you’re not getting out of this by trying to make a mockery of it. You’re my friend and they’re my friends. We should all be able to hang out together.”

“But I’m your best friend, right?” asked Aurin with an annoying grin. Shamtile started tugging on Aurin’s sleeve as though he wanted reassurance that he was Aurin’s best friend.

“Don’t try and make me pick favourites. They’re my oldest friends and we went to school together. Before you showed up here, I hung out with them all the time and they’re always saying how much they miss having me around more.”

“They can come for tower runs.”

“They have no interest in the tower. They only have one Minakai each and I don’t think they’ve ever even battled with them. Besides, how can four of us enter the tower at the same time?”

“It’s easy, you three go in together and I’ll go in alone. Maybe we’ll get lucky and accidentally wind up within the same instance.”

“I’m sure the tower would find a way to separate us. Don’t you think far greater tamers have tried to cheat the rules that way?”

“I hadn’t thought about it, but that is a good point actually…”

The trio arrived in the town square where Emily and Hannah stood waiting. Emily was a girl with red hair like Luna, but it was cut shorter and flicked out at the ends. Hannah on the other hand had long chestnut brown hair. Emily wore a plaid skirt and a thick cream jumper and Hannah wore a black dress with a tan Autumn coat over the top.

“Luna!” called Emily excitedly, bouncing up and down and waving.

Luna released her grip on Aurin’s jacket and ran over, waving her arms in the air like Shamtile as she sped towards her friends. They had seen each other only a few days ago, Aurin didn’t know why they were so excited.

“Now’s our chance to run,” he said to Shamtile, tapping him on the head. Shamtile waved his arms in the air and ran towards the girls, pleased that Luna and Emily were copying his moves. At least, that’s what he thought they were doing. “I guess that’s a no,” sighed Aurin. He strolled over at his own pace to join the four.

“Could you try not looking so miserable?” asked Hannah when she saw Aurin approaching.

“Always a pleasure, Hannah,” said Aurin with a forced grin. “Emily, how are you?”

“I’m good, thanks,” said Emily giddily, still excited to be spending time with Luna. “Are you still trying to reach the top of the tower.”

“The endless struggle continues,” Aurin replied. “I’m almost halfway there.”

“No Minakai talk,” scolded Luna.

“Emily asked me about it!”

“Fine, but that’s the last of it.”

Aurin decided to leave it at that rather than argue further, although he knew he was clearly in the right. Shamtile conjured a pillar of stone from the ground and hopped onto Aurin’s shoulder before sinking the pillar back down and restoring the brickwork with a wave of his hands.

“Tea?” asked Luna.

“Tea,” said Emily and Hannah in unison.

The five walked towards a café that Aurin wasn’t familiar with, mainly because he chose not to be. It was painted pink and always smelled like flowers. Not that he minded the smell of flowers, but this place overdid it so much that the smell permeated into the taste of the food.

Everyone sat down and ordered their drinks. The girls chatted about everything under the sun that Aurin couldn’t fathom being interested in while he and Shamtile entertained themselves by Shamtile levitating the saltshaker through controlling the grains of salt within. Every now and then Luna shot him a look as though it was a good time for him to jump into the conversation, and at last he relented.

“That’s very interesting, Hannah,” said Aurin, not having heard what he was responding to.

“I…what?” replied Hannah in confusion.

Luna’s face was red from embarrassment. “She said that her dog broke its legs last week. He got hit by a car.”

“Well, um…” stammered Aurin, feeling like a fool. “That is interesting and…also very sad, of course. How’s he holding up?”

Stolen story; please report.

“He’ll be fine,” said Hannah.

Just then Shamtile’s waving arms were knocked by a passing customer and he flung the saltshaker across the room, hitting an old lady in the back of the head. Aurin grabbed his Minakai and they rushed over to apologise profusely for the accident.

“I think I’ll take him out of here,” he said to the girls when he had finished. “Sorry for causing a scene.”

Luna sighed and nodded, while Emily and Hannah just stared at him. Aurin wrestled Shamtile’s unfinished milkshake from his hands and tossed some silver on the table to cover the bill for all of them and the pair left as Shamtile screeched, trying to get back to his drink.

“I can’t take you anywhere,” said Aurin as the two left the shop. “And today is a day I’m very glad for that.”

Shamtile looked at Aurin in confusion before doing a backflip of celebration. He didn’t understand why it was a good thing, but he was happy that his tamer was happy. That said, he certainly wasn’t too thrilled about losing out on finishing his milkshake. It crossed the Minakai’s mind that Luna might summon Innogon to finish it, and that did not sit right with him at all.

“Let’s head back to the ranch, shall we?” Aurin asked. “The day is young and we’ve got some training to do. We could even head up into the mountain for it. We haven’t been there since Zodiac tried burning down the ranch.”

Aurin and Shamtile wandered through the streets, cutting through alleyways to speed themselves up. When they were approaching the edge of Hazelton, where things were quieter, they spotted a man standing at the far end of the alley they had cut through. He was wearing a lot of black and the mask upon his face was a sight Aurin dreaded.

“Does saying their name summon them?” muttered Aurin, readying his summoning glove to bring in back up.

“There will be no need for that,” said the man, walking closer. His mask was very feminine for a man of his stature. He was well-built, looking like he could punch a hole through a brick wall if he was angered, however he seemed fairly soft-spoken.

“You’ll forgive me for not believing you,” said Aurin, summoning Dolissile and Desparee to his side.

The man held up his hands, showing that he was not wearing a tamer glove nor was he holding any summoning stones. “I am here to deliver a message to you, nothing more. The last time our members…or rather, former members, picked a fight with you in public, it caused quite the scene and I would not want to repeat that.”

“I’m not sending them away.”

“I am not asking you to. Keep your Minakai by your side should you wish. I will speak regardless of whatever threats you make.”

“What, you don’t think you’re ready for a battle?” asked Aurin. “I met your friend Pisces not too long ago and was already weakened from the tower run. This time, I’m ready to take you on at full strength.”

“You think you can goad me into a fight? No, young man.” scoffed the Zodiac elite.

“Which one are you anyway?” asked Aurin, nodding towards the mask. “I take it you didn’t get to pick your own sign.”

“I am called Virgo,” he said proudly. “Trust that I am more than happy with my role. Now, if you would silence yourself for a moment we can speak and we can both begone from here.”

“I’m listening,” said Aurin, clenching his fists and ready for battle.

“We, the Zodiac Squad, have kept a low profile out of choice lately. It has proven to be a wise decision as we can carry out our tasks in as much silence as reasonably possible. You, however, seem insistent on causing trouble for us. If you continue to interfere then we will have no choice but to take drastic action against you.”

“And burning down Kyle’s ranch last winter was not drastic enough?”

“The work of two rogue members and their own subordinates.”

“Yet you’re still content to threaten me?”

“Do not take this as a threat, take this as a warning,” said Virgo. “We are not murderers, but we will do whatever it takes to ensure that our task is fulfilled.”

“What do you want with the cosmic Minakai?” asked Aurin.

Virgo did not answer right away, clearly thinking how to carefully word his response. “They are the key to everything. The powers of cosmic beings like them are specific and potent. They have the ability to make things as they should be. To restore what was taken from us millennia ago.”

Aurin was confused. “I don’t know what any of that is supposed to mean.”

“Soon, you will know, and soon you will appreciate what it is that we have done for the world. Can I count on you to not interfere further?”

“Does this request come directly from your boss?

“It does.”

“Then I’m going to request you pass along my message to him.”

“Very well.”

“I’m not going to roll over and let your little group get away with whatever you want,” said Aurin. “You say you’re trying to help the world, yet you have stolen and will continue to steal until you get what you want. You can paint it as a greater good, whatever that greater good may be, but you are nefarious and devious. Where I find you, I will defeat you."

Virgo chuckled. "That is the answer I expected, yet it is not the answer I hoped for. I will indeed pass this message along.”

“Good,” said Aurin as Virgo turned to leave.

“Aurin,” said Virgo, looking over his shoulder, “you’re an impressive young man. You could do wonders for the Zodiac cause, should you ever desire to do more than climb those abhorrent monster towers.”

“I will never join you.”

“That was merely an observation,” said Virgo, departing from the alleyway.

Aurin stood in silence surrounded by Shamtile, Dolissile and Desparee. The tamer and his Minakai all relaxed somewhat now that Virgo had vanished, but Aurin played the encounter over in his mind as he did every time he ran into someone from the Zodiac Squad.

“Aurin?” came a voice from behind him, making Aurin jump out of his skin.

“Oh, it’s you, Hannah,” sighed Aurin.

“Did you think it would be someone else?” she asked. “Why are you so jumpy?”

“It’s a long story,” he said. “It’s not the Zodiac Squad again, is it?”

“No, nothing like that,” he said, not wanting to worry her. The citizens of Hazelton had dealt with them enough and Aurin didn’t want to bring up bad memories. “What are you doing here anyway?”

“I came to look for you,” she said.

“How come?”

“I…um, I wanted to…apologise to you,” she said awkwardly. She was usually quite confident in herself; it was strange seeing her struggle to get words out.

“Eh? What for?”

Hannah avoided eye contact with him. “I suppose I didn’t make you feel very welcomed when you first showed up. I thought it was strange that you appeared out of nowhere and suddenly Luna’s clinging to you all of a sudden rather than spending time with us. You’ve been here a year and a half and I still haven’t really given you a fair chance…so, I’m sorry.”

“Oh,” said Aurin, not sure how to respond.

“If you don’t accept, that’s fine, but—”

“No, I accept. I just wasn’t expecting it, that was all.”

Hannah smiled at Aurin for the first time. “That’s good. Luna’s one of my best friends and I don’t want her to think she can’t spend time with her boyfriend and us at the same time.”

“Boyfriend?”

“Don’t kid yourself,” giggled Hannah. “Come on, let’s go back to the café. Just don’t hit any more old ladies on the back of the head.”

Shamtile stared up at her, relieved that his tamer had gotten the blame and hot him. Aurin thanked Dolissile and Desparee for backing him up and then sent them back to the ranch before he and Shamtile followed Hannah.