There was a brief moment when Caertonn realized he was wholly unprepared for this situation.

The bright moon shone on the wolf, who growled while hunching his shoulders up into his neck. His black fur seemed to steal the light around him, the only spots of deviation being his pale eyes, his teeth, and his tongue. Caertonn dared not breathe as he waited for the beast to act.

He remembered after a few moments that he had a sword. Then, he remembered that it was in the tent that he was not in and that it would only take the wolf three seconds to leap on top of him. Slowly, then? He began to move inside when the dark beast intensified his growling. He stopped. They waited, gridlocked.

It took him longer than he wished to admit to hear the other growl. This one was deep, but more of an "eh" sound than a throaty vibration. The wolf lowered himself and pointed towards Caertonn's left. It was then that he turned and saw the looming shadow of a bear standing over him.

He was inches from panicking. Already his mind was jumping between "Wolf!" and "Bear" and then, again, "Wolf!" "Bear!". He knew he needed to do something, but he'd never been in a situation like this before, not even in the years of hunting and trapping with his father. All he had were his instincts, which were telling him that sudden movements were a bad, bad idea and that moving was going to be very tricky.

"Move to your right and get behind that tree when I say 'go'," a man said. Caertonn turned from the bear to a figure standing not far behind the wolf, an arrow knocked in his bow. It was hard to tell detail in the light, but the cut of his clothing suggested it was finely tailored. He wished he could see who he was, but he wore a cloak with a cowl that covered his face.

"Ready?" He lifted his bow and pulled the string back. "Go!"

The arrow loosed and hit the bear in the throat. Caertonn scrambled for the tree, missing the enraged ursine's paw by less space than how close he had been to panic. The bear roared, then charged for the man. The wolf pounced, tearing into the bear's throat with a snarl, ripping with bloody fangs. The two danced and pulled, swiped and growled until the bear collapsed. It took another few minutes of deep panting before it laid down and died.

"Is it safe?" Caertonn finally asked.

"For now. You shouldn't be off the road."

"Where should I camp, then?"

The man walked over to the bear and hunkered down, pulling out a knife and tearing at its flesh. "Did you notice at the crossroads there was a square? The extra corner spaces are for tents. Every so often on the roads there will be cut-outs for the same reason."

"I didn't know."

"There's a lot you don't know. You'll learn." He snapped his knife back and pulled out a drill, boring a hole through the claws at the base with impressive speed. "One thing you should keep in mind, Caertonn, is that you're a good man. Don't let anyone ever make you feel less because you're different."

"Excuse me, do I know you?"

"You will, someday." He pulled out a finely braided leather cord and strung the ten front claws through it. After a minute, he tied it and threw it to him. "Here, you deserve this."

Though he caught it, he disagreed. "No, no. I didn't do anything! You did all the work! You should have it!"

"I have one of my own," he said, lifting his own front his chest. "Put it on."

Caertonn did as he asked. "Thank you," he said.

"You're welcome. Now, pack up. We're going to find you a better place to sleep before you attract something more sinister than a bear, like a manticore or an insurance salesman."

His hands kept slipping as he tried to quickly pack the tent up. The man stood patiently, scratching the wolf behind the ear and feeding her treats. "What's his name?" Caertonn asked.

"Her name," he corrected. "What do you think I should call her?"

"I was just curious what you named her. I didn't mean to offend."

"You didn't. Truth is, pets don't really mind what you call them when you have a strong bond. You could change it, if something else suited them. She won't mind if we call her something else. So, pick."

"Really," he said, smiling as he folded his tent into his bag. "You'd let me name her?"

"Go ahead. You can think of one while we head out."

Caertonn felt clumsy and awkward as he followed the man. While Caertonn stumbled over roots and snapped every twig he stepped on, the man didn't make a sound. "Are you a ranger?"

"I am."

"What's it like?"

"It feels like home," he said. He didn't elaborate, but Caertonn felt like he understood anyway.

"I think I'd like to be one. I've always liked animals and nature."

"Sometimes things that you want don't come easily. Remember, if they're worth it, you'll work for it."

"I'd work hard for it."

"I bet you would. It's not always about perseverance, but the right timing. Be patient."

He nodded, then realized it was dark out and he was behind the man. He thought for a few moments, then said, "Midnight. She's dark, like the night sky, but her eyes are pale like the moon."

"I like it. What do you say, Midnight?" She turned to face the man, then turned back to the trail. "She has no objections."

Caertonn smiled to himself, oddly pleased.

They reached the road, three chimes ringing out in a high-low-high pattern. "You hear that? That's a good noise. Means you're in a safe place where wild animals won't attack you. Step off again." Three chimes rang out in the same tone. "That means you no longer have the protection of the road. There are bricks beneath the dirt that repel attacks, so I've been told."

Not far down the road he pointed out a half-circle with three lots, none taken. "This will be safe for you here."

"Thank you," Caertonn said.

"Here's where we part."

"What's your name? Will I see you again?"

"Thadis. And I guarantee we will meet again."

He watched as they sank back into the woods, disappearing from sight. Even though he had only been with the two for barely fifteen minutes, he felt very sad that they were gone. He wanted to ask him more questions, like how he knew he had been off the road and in that point exactly and had needed saving. Well, maybe those questions would be for the next time they met.

Caertonn didn't set up his tent again, but fell asleep on his pack. He was awoken some time later by the birds chirping at a beautiful dawn of pinks and oranges. He cracked his neck, slung his pack on, and continued walking.

There was no mistaking when the land turned elvish. The trees began to take on odd colors, like purple and white, instead of proper shades of green. Winds dashed among the trees, stirring sparkling insects that dazzled the eye for a moment, until they calmed and coated the branches they were resting upon. The air seemed fresher, without the odd note of manure or sweat he was so used to. Even the sky seemed bluer, the clouds whiter.

He'd never seen an elven house before, so he mistook his first for a giant boulder in a hill. It appeared sheered off in the front, smooth, with wide windows of odd-sized panes. The front yard was well manicured, which he had to admire, and the pond stocked with happy koi that jumped up occasionally for a low-flying insect or pixie.

The farms on the edges grew closer together until they crowded into a charming village center. Tall humans, well, elves actually, walked unhurriedly over the worn grass of the town center, each in exquisitely tailored dresses or suits. The women's skirts fluttered with the wind and as they walked in long, graceful strides.

"And you are?" a man asked, managing to look down his nose at Caertonn even though he was about the same height.

"Um, Caertonn Jimson. I'm looking for Kinenhael Goldenleaf."

The elf sniffed. "Well, at least you're named well. The Goldenleafs live through town, beyond the Golden Arbor. There are open baths just before that. Perhaps you want to visit them?"

Before Caertonn could answer, the elf walked away. Caertonn lifted his arm and smelled his armpit, then shrugged.

Not a half-hour later, the road narrowed and he passed underneath a tunnel of trees whose branches were entwined. Their golden leaves dripped over the road, giving the twinkling light of the sun a buttery hue.

"Cookies," Caertonn said and pulled one from his pack, savoring the confection as he continued walking.

There was a house not too much farther down the road. From a banner hung a yellow maple leaf, the lobes long and finely toothed. He was about to check the book when he heard an explosion. He looked around until he saw a figure open up cellar doors and run outside, haunted by a cloud of dark, sooty smoke. He doubled over and began hacking his lungs out.

"Oh," he said, "that's usually not why I'm coughing."

Caertonn jogged over. "Are you okay? Do you need any help?"

The elf was covered in smudges of oil and ash from his sandals to the tips of his long, pointed ears. It was even hard to tell his hair color, though Caertonn felt fairly sure it was the same as a molasses cookie. He removed his goggles, his skin clean underneath, coughed a few more times. "I think once the smoke clears I'll be fine. I should probably check for fires."

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He patted his leather vest and pulled a small device from one of the pockets. He flicked a switch and twisted a knob, then turned back towards the house. It remained silent.

"What's that?" Caertonn asked.

"A rare elemental finder," he said, hitting it a few times. "It will detect whether there's fire in the basement."

"Is fire rare?"

"No, but it's rarer than sunlight, which is everywhere and a common fire element. I can turn this to 'earth' and have it not spaz out unless there's metals and minerals." He looked up for a moment. "Never mind. It should spaz out." He twisted it again and there was a noise like a cat was purring the letter "v". "I have a lot of stuff in there like gems, you see."

"Like what kind of stuff?"

The elf's eyes widened in excitement. "Oh, you have to come see," he said, and led Caertonn down into the cellar.

The cellar at Caertonn's home had a dirt floor and once stored dozens of crates full of food. This room was much larger and was apparently several things at once: a workroom, a laboratory, a dining room, and a bedroom. There wasn't much order to it and Caertonn was fairly certain one of the plates on the table near the window had sprouted legs and was moving.

"That box right there in the corner is full of stuff of, shall we say, interesting properties. I have various crystals, including every size of mana. Oh, I even have a spirit crystal, should you need a little pick-me-up."

"Uh, okay," Caertonn said, not understand what he said. "I'm looking for Kinenhael Goldenleaf. Do you know where he is?"

"Looking at him," he said, holding out his hand to shake. "And you must be our fearless leader."

"Caertonn Jimson, from Fallamari."

"Caertonn? Like the things you hang in windows?" Kinenhael asked.

"Cay-er-tun," he said, frowning.

"I'm not hearing the difference."

Caertonn sighed bitterly. "Whatever. Just call me Curt, then."

"Okay, okay," Kinenhael said, alarmed. "I genuinely didn't hear anything different. Maybe my hearing's a bit off because of the explosion. Say it slowly, please."

"It's actually between 'Cay-er-tun' and 'Care-tun'. I don't really care if you say it wrong, just don't call me 'curtain'."

"Fair enough." He looked around, rubbing his palms together. "Okay, so we need to set out on our grand quest now. Let me gather a few things, make sure there's nothing happening that will hurt someone...you like fenri potatoes and tai beans?"

"I don't know, I've never had them."

"My mom's making them for lunch. You can eat with us and then we'll head out."

"That sounds good. I haven't had much to eat since I left yesterday."

"Do you mind if I finish up a few things? It won't take me long to pack."

"Not at all."

Kinenhael shoved his goggles down over his eyes and hopped to a workbench in a corner. After a few moments, red glowed from whatever he was welding with his torch.

"I have a book that told me to come here," Caertonn said. "I have to find you to make a group. It said you were a mage, though."

Kinenhael waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah, that wizard, Gilghest, told me to practice my magic and improve myself as a caster. I tried for a few days, but it's boring. This is fun. I like this."

"What are you, then?"

"A bombardier."

"What is a bombardier?"

Kinenhael turned around, took off his goggles, and affected an air of refinement, his tilted green eyes twinkling with mischief. "A bombardier is a gentleman, or a lady, who is knowledgeable in the arts of science and applies them liberally to the battlefield." He slapped his goggles back on and swiveled back to his desk. "Means I blow the fuck outta shit."

"Isn't that more of a pastime pursued by, um, gnomes or dwarves or goblins?"

"Yes, yes, and all of them make stupendous mages and archers, too. Why can't an elf be a bombardier?"

"No reason I can think of," Caertonn said. "I think it's great that you have a wonderful passion."

"What's your passion?"

Caertonn didn't hesitate. "Farming," he said.

"'Farming'? That's hardly a way to fight. You can't exactly throw fruit at a boss and expect to defeat him. Unless, of course, it's a very large watermelon. Note to self: fill a watermelon with bombs, throw it at a boss, observe."

"I didn't really train in anything. I was supposed to learn sword fighting, but I was a bit busy with the farm."

"Yes," Kinenhael said, lighting his torch again, "I was expecting you a while ago. No bother; I was able to work on my engineering some more. Mind if I smoke?"

"No, it's your house."

He pulled out a piece of paper from a drawer, rolled some leaves up, and used the torch to light the end. He inhaled, held his breath, and croaked, "Want some?"

"No, I'm fine."

Kinenhael finally let out a breath, the slightly bluish smoke swirling around his head. Caertonn took the opportunity to examine some of the things in his new partner's room. He picked up a wooden grid with multiple slots. "What's this?"

"Eh?" Kinenhael turned around. "Mmm, that's a spatial spacer. You've never seen one before?"

"In town, but I never knew what it was for."

"You can keep that one. I'm putting the final touches on my own. What you do is press the glass on top of the compartment. Like that, yeah. See, it opens. Then, you hold something over it and the it shrinks it for you. Go ahead and try with that spanner."

Caertonn picked up the wrench and held it above a slot until he felt like some force was holding it for him. He let go and the spanner reduced its size until it fit neatly inside the box.

"Nifty, huh? That a four-square. You can get fives and sixes from diamonded engineers. I'm not quite there, yet."

"So, I can put sixteen things in here, any size?"

He inhaled again. "Yeah, I...no. Fours have weight and size limitations. Can't put a boulder inside or anything like that. And nothing living, not for any spacer. But, its extends preservation, so food goes great in there, and clothes and...like, other stuff. Hey, can I ask you about your armor?"

Caertonn looked down. "Oh, I know its not giving me any bonuses or armor points. I can change once I buy some new pieces."

"Naw, I'm not worried about that. Wear what ya wanna wear. I'm just curious about what class you chose."

"Oh, uh, ranger, though I haven't officially picked it or anything."

"Oh." He turned back to his work.

"Is there something wrong with that?"

"The, uh, Eod tokens might be a problem."

Caertonn furrowed his eyebrows. Eod? "What's that?"

"The Eod...what you get when you've cleared a dungeon?"

"I don't think I've done a tenth of the reading Gilghest wanted me to."

"Oh, you don't know. Okay." He grabbed a slab of slate and a piece of chalk, turning back to face Caertonn. He drew three columns and six rows. "You can journey, um, forgot what they call that, with four other people. You can, like, do quests and help each other and stuff. If you want to go into a dungeon, though, you can only have, uh, six people linked together. Best groups will have one from each class, so, like, one brute, one healer, one ranged, one caster, one melee, and one...uh...other people...like witches, you know? If you clear a dungeon, you get an Eod token. Bu-uh-ut, you only get one token per class." He pointed to the fourth line. "I think this is ranged. These are the guys who use stuff, like, from far away. The holy line are the druids, the base are bombardiers, like myself, and the disciplined are...rangers. See the problem?"

Caertonn took a moment to digest all that information. "If you're a bombardier and I'm a ranger, we'll be from the same class and...we'll be fighting over Eod tokens."

"Exactly," Kinenhael said, putting the slate down. "It's not the end of the world, but we'll have to do twice as many dungeons. We're already going to have to do a bunch, like, if we're lucky, seven every week or so. Probably more. Imagine having to get up, eat breakfast, dungeon, eat lunch, dungeon, eat dinner, dungeon, go to sleep. All day long, dungeons."

Caertonn slumped his shoulders, but asked, "What do you think I should be, then?"

"I don't know. Who else are we getting in our group?"

"Um," Caertonn said, fumbling for his book. He flipped it open to the Main Quest page and read, until he realized that there were three quests at the top. He said nothing about the quest stating he was to retrieve the elven mage, Kinenhael, instead of the bombardier Kinenhael. "Says we need to find Therpis Strondeivian our healer next, then Breithart our brute."

"Okay, so that leaves melee, caster, or the other one...extra-helper-people. You could be a bard. You wanna be a bard?"

"I don't think I could carry a tune in a wheelbarrow."

"Oh, okay then, no bard. Well, you could be a witch or a cleric, then. Or one of the-"

"Lunch!" they heard from somewhere in the house.

Kinenhael tamped out his joint, turned off the gas to his torch, and led Caertonn up the stairs and into the main house. In a sunny room with a large, carved oak table were three plates of food with glasses of water. The elf gestured to a seat and sat across from him at one end of the table.

"Is your mother going to eat with us?" Caertonn asked quietly.

"Uh, maybe? Looks like it. We usually don't eat together."

"No?"

"We don't get along that well, actually. She was expecting our journey to begin earlier."

"Sorry," he said sheepishly. "I should have read the book and sent a letter."

Kinenhael waved away his words. "Nonsense. It gave me plenty of time to work on my engineering. I've almost diamonded in that."

"I'm not sure what that means, but great," Caertonn said and turned as a woman entered the room.

It was as if the sunlight gathered around her in an effervescent aura, shimmering and sparkling as she moved gracefully across the room. Caertonn could almost sense a warm breeze blowing through the room, rustling her hair in sheets of sunshine and laughter and sugar cookies. He held his breath, watching her until she gave him a slight smile and said, "Are you the man who's going to get my fucking lazy son out of my basement?"

"Mom!" he said, slamming his fork down.

She poured herself into her seat in drops. "I have been waiting patiently for you to do something with your life for years."

"Yes, because almost finishing my diamond in engineering means nothing. I'm just a total waste of space and a disappointment."

"Well, I'm so glad we agree."

Caertonn was like a deer startled at a hunter's footstep. "Should I leave?"

"No," his mother said, daintily picking up her fork and taking a small bite of the food. "If there's anything good that can be done for my son, you'll be the one doing it. It's important that you know what you have to work with, however little it is."

Kinenhael rolled his eyes and sighed. Caertonn thought he would have shoved his plate away if he hadn't been scarfing his food down. "I have my accomplishments, Mother. I have worked hard over the last few years to get to where I am. Just because I'm not some fucking druid like Mabriel or a fucking mana potion merchant like Lothadien doesn't mean I'm nothing."

"Accomplishments that have brought no money to this household. You've managed to waste the best years of your life on some fruitless dream that will never amount to anything."

Kinenhael extended his arm to Caertonn. "'Fruitless dream'? He's here, Mother! We'll be leaving as soon as possible so you won't have to bother yourself with your failure of a son."

Caertonn stood up and they both looked at him. "It's...uh..." he looked around for an excuse that wouldn't insult his host. He hooked his collar and said, "It's too sunny in here. I'm going to go outside for a spell."

They continued their argument as soon as he was over the threshold. With nothing else to do, he ventured back to Kinenhael's lair. He tread carefully, just barely moving any object he came across for fear of it exploding. When he finished looking around, he removed everything from his pack and began shrinking his items into the spatial spacer. He was just finishing when Kinenhael came down the stairs. "Let's pack and get going."

"It sounds like a great idea. I'm mostly ready."

"Same. I knew you were coming, so I was mostly done already."

"Out of curiosity, how did you know I was coming?"

Kinenhael sucked his teeth in. "You know those jewels on the front of your book? Well, you can remove them and use them in different items to improve the ease of getting information. I did that with my goggles. I'd show you, but they're quite sweaty and dirty..."

Caertonn held up his hand. "No problem. I believe you. So, you're book is in your goggles?"

"Yes, but, like, out here," he said, holding his hand out about a foot. "I've had a quest waiting in the corner of my vision since last night about you arriving and to join you."

"That's really neat. Are there any other goggles that I could borrow?"

"Eh, that's the thing. Only bombardiers can use them. I think that if you tried, it wouldn't work."

"Is there something else I can use? I get the impression the book is important and I don't want to have to keep pulling it out of my pack every time I need to look at it."

"They're class specific."

"So, I need to pick a class, then?"

"Don't rush it. We'll get your viewer soon enough. Now, uh, stuff..." He scrunched up his face. "You got your spatial spacer? Belt of Reckoning? No, okay, so this is cool," he said, picking up a width of leather. "This baby reduces all the weight of your weapons to, like, one twentieth when attached."

He began pulling out other items. "Sphinx's Claw. I have a few, but just in case, take one. This fills your book with information about a quest should you get stumped. I could give you a FARE-E. They run on mana and are renewable, but I'm going to recommend against them. They're programmed to help you, but they will loudly say the same two or three phrases over and over again."

"I'll take the Sphinx's Claw."

"Good man. Let's see, what else? Auto-lighters are handy, here's one. Here's a mech-trainer for weapon training. You should take an item locator, for dungeons."

"Got anything to get rid of bees? I'm tired of them buzzing by my head."

"You, too? No, they never sting me, so I don't bother with them."

By the time Kinenhael was done, Caertonn had filled his spatial spacer and had to put a few items in his pack. "Are you ready?"

"I am," his new friend said. "Let's go."