The streets are bustling, the air filled with nearby shouts of conversation carrying over snippets of vender's cries that are lost to the crowd. Children are playing together, pretending to be on squads of the Elite Ravens while weaving paths through the body of people. There are three groups of little ones chasing one cluster of "rogues", the unlucky children who drew the short straw at the beginning of the game.

The Ravens are the military of this continent, but are most concentrated in cities such as this one for the protection of the population. All of the young boys and even some of the girls in Edan aspire to be as great as these high ranking protectors, including the quiet one who crouches, balancing himself on the top of a wooden fence as the world rushes by. Only his motivation isn't to impress anyone- it is to prove something.

Reza Leofwin is one young man in this town that no one wants to mess with. He has just graduated from the Academy a week ago at the head of his class and is now ranked as a certified Sparrow, an underling guardian of the town. Though he isn't as privileged as the more experienced men on squads of the Ravens or even the Crows, he is still permitted to handle missions alone or with a team of two others judging by the danger of it. If it is ranked above a C class, it is to be handled by the Ravens or the Crows.

Crows and Sparrows are lower ranked than the Ravens, but are still considered valuable protectors of Edan. A Sparrow is someone fresh out of the Academy who needs to work their way up to a Crow by taking hands-on examinations overseen by officials, typically consisting of a one-on-one fight with another Sparrow. The contestant that remains standing is eligible to graduate to the Crows. For a Crow to graduate to a Raven, there is a long list of requirements you must reach, including a specific strength and level of experience.

Reza is the youngest son of the Leofwin clan, and many already believe that he is stronger than any of his siblings, though they received all of the training and attention from their father growing up. The other three were instructed to ignore their youngest brother and to focus on their training. From the start, Reza was told by his father that he was bound to be a servant to the rest of his siblings, and was otherwise useless as a Leofwin. He was told that he was a waste of space who would never amount to anything, all because he was the last born of their deceased mother. Now that he is older, Reza comprehends that his father blames him for the death of his wife, as she died giving birth to him. He also understands that it was not his fault.

The oldest son of Adelard Leofwin, Tarsis, was the apple of their father's eye, so to speak. Tarsis was being groomed to become the next head of the Leofwin clan, but that was previous to him becoming a rogue after murdering the other two members of his squad. Before he left with no explanation, the eldest son was the youngest known Elite Raven in all of Edan at the age of sixteen, and the only one of the siblings that was kind to Reza. It is because of his brother that Reza learned how powerful he could be and was inspired to join the Academy in his sibling's footsteps, even though it caused his banishment from his own father.

Tarsis was not only a part of the Elite, but he was also the Ghost Captain, the head commander of three separate squads. The other men on the team knew better than to test or question Tarsis, because he didn't cheat his way into the position. He graduated from the Academy a whole year early, and flew through the required stages leading up to the Captain, graduating to Raven status at the age of fifteen. Tarsis matured earlier than the any other teenager in the town because of the pressure Adelard's pride and expectations put on his son's shoulders. When his mother died, Tarsis knew that he had to work hard to gain the highest rank that he could, so that he could help his father support their family with the paychecks that came with high positions.

It was almost two years ago that Tarsis abandoned his family and slaughtered his squad mates, and no one, out of all of the groups and scouts sent to look, has ever found a trace of him. Reza's new motivation is to become as strong as his brother, so that he can track him down and confront him personally. If nothing else, Reza has to know why his brother would do such a thing. He trusted Tarsis so much, and the older boy who taught him everything isn't the same one who would become a rogue. The Tarsis that Reza knew would never have done something so unforgivable, and he believes that there must be something more to the story, a piece of the puzzle that is missing. Something he was never told, or that no one knew about.

Reza has a head band over his forehead, with the outline of a sparrow engraved into the metal plate, symbolizing his ranking as a protector of Edan. He was a top student in the Academy, and now that they have graduated into the field, Reza has proved to be the most skilled and adaptable in a dangerous situation. Unlike most of the new Sparrows, Reza doesn't freeze up or panic when placed into action, instead assessing the problem calmly and devising a strategy of attack, rather than flying in blindly like his squad mates attempted to do.

"Reza," A voice calls, shortly after footsteps pause next to the fence.

The boy had been looking up at a hawk that was flying over head and closes his eyes briefly at his name, breaking his train of thought. He doesn't have to look down to know that it is his teacher, Caledon.

"You're here early. Where are Leigh and Rowan?" The voice calls again.

Reza opens his eyes and looks side long at the middle aged man, face impassive. "I'm not their keeper."

Caledon wears a navy blue headband over his forehead, much like Reza's, only instead of a sparrow there is a crow on the silver plate. The man wears a vest over his black shirt, the typical attire given to the lower ranked Raven's. The Elite wear a different uniform than the other guardians, and are much more skilled and experienced, as well.

Caledon Cager is a basic Crow, famous for his ability to manipulate shadows and for the trademarked scar that rises across the bridge of his nose. The story is that he received it when when he was a Sparrow, while standing between a squad mate and an enemies sword.

They were on a C ranked mission, simply asked to escort someone safely back to their home in a different village. Little did the group of young people know, there was an assassin after the man they were to protect, changing the simple task into a B ranked mission, something the team wasn't prepared to handle. Caledon's whole squad and the man in their charge only got out of that fight alive because of his shadow manipulation, which stopped the enemy from taking his whole head off when he saved his friend's life.

The shadow manipulation is unique to Caledon's family, and it possess the shadow cast by an opponent, paralyzing their bodies movements and mimicking that of the one controlling it. The user's energy changes its shape, taking on the form of the shadows cast by an object or of a person and making itself controllable to the one who possesses the manipulation skill. Caledon managed to force the enemy to run himself through with is own weapon, hence ending the battle and saving everyone.

Caledon's blue eyes look Reza over and he sighs, putting his hands into the pockets of his vest.

This is only the third time the whole squad and their mentor have met to train together, and the older man can already see that Reza is more individualistic than a team player. Aside from seeing him block a few practice blows from Rowan and Leigh, Caledon hasn't seen any true effort from the Leofwin boy. So far, everything including the brief tracking mission they had the day before, was easy for him.

The mentor, along with all of the other Crows and officials, know that Reza is different than the others his age because he is from the head family of the Leofwin clan, making him a promising prospect. They also remember what occurred with Tarsis, and many of them are aware of the fact that the youngest sibling was very close to his brother.

The whole village used to see a young Reza riding on the back of an eight year old Tarsis every day, parading around and laughing together. Since he was four years old, Reza would wait outside of the Academy for his brother to finish school and the two would walk home together. The youngest sibling was only seen smiling when he was with Tarsis and since he left, the light in Reza's eyes was traded for the fire of closed off determination. If Reza was deemed reserved before his sibling's disappearance and treacherous activities, now he is distant and acquired a dangerous attitude along side it.

Many of the officials, including Caledon, who also over saw some of Tarsis' training when he was young, can see the likeness of the siblings, right down to the way they walk. Caledon has been mentoring and training Sparrows for a handful of years now, and has had the opportunity of overseeing three young people, all hailing from the main household of the Leofwin clan. Out of all of the promising prospects, Reza is more skilled at this age than all but Tarsis.

The mentor is curious to see if Tarsis had taught his youngest brother any fighting skills in the time they spent together. It would certainly be interesting if he had, especially because of his restrictions against doing so. Adelard Leofwin was strict with Tarsis' training and forbade him from teaching any of it to the worthless son, Reza. It turns out, though, that even without the father's help, Reza is still coming up to be the most promising of his siblings.

"We'll wait for them a little longer. If they don't show up, then we'll start without them." Caledon says, turning his face to the sky, eyes finding the hawk that has turned Reza's attention away once again. Caledon watches the bird fly a moment before glancing at the young boy, who is balancing with ease on the narrow fence, his pale face turned towards the trees to their left.

Reza certainly acquired the physical features of his clan, with fair skin and hair such a raven black that it has a blue tint in the sun's glare. His eyes are the same as all members in the Leofwin clan- the palest grey imaginable, just a step away from being considered white. The color reminds Caledon of melting snow, and his eyes seem to cut right through everyone he looks at. It is so unsettling, that many avoid casting a glance in his direction even when his attention is elsewhere. Reza doesn't have to rest his eyes upon you to know you are looking at him, though.

Even at the young age of fourteen he has the respect of most people in the village, despite his degrading status as the worthless son of Adelard Leofwin.

A rare few people have even seen Reza in action, but they fear the threat of the fire that burns in his eyes. Every member in the Leofwin clan has a certain ability unlike any other person in Edan, and their individual rarities are always impressive and usually devastating. Almost every Raven and official are holding their breath to see what Reza is capable of.

Caledon casually reaches into the pouch at his side, silently drawing out a shuriken. Without warning, the mentor throws it with a sort of lax expertise directly at Reza's chest.

The young boy hardly spares a glance as he draws his own blade in the blink of an eye and blocks the teacher's weapon with his own. Reza's unique eyes are more than just attention grabbing: they notice the tiniest details that are typically overlooked. Reza had noticed the weapon as soon as it left Caledon's pocket.

The mentor's shuriken ricochets off and harmlessly clatters to the ground below Reza, both blades glaring in the sun. The boy was never in any true danger- not with Leofwin eyes.

Caledon gives a small, approving smile as the boy looks to him, a dark brow raised in question. "Very good." The teacher says, bending to retrieve his shuriken from the dust. The reaction time is exactly what he could have expected from a Leofwin, and he isn't disappointed. This boy is a lot like his oldest brother, more so than any of the others.

Reza doesn't say anything as he slips his weapon back into it's pouch at his hip, looking at the mentor a moment longer with scrutiny. He is aware of the reason why Caledon threw his shuriken at him, and knows that there will be more things like this to come from the teacher. He is as curious about Reza as anyone else. 

A guardian, whether they be a Sparrow or a Raven, always needs to be on his toes and though it is a dangerous way to ensure that Reza stays alert, Caledon knows well that he is quite capable of deflecting just about anything thrown at him. If he will not be able to protect himself against said object, he will undoubtedly leap out of the way and dodge it.

Not even a moment later and there are two figures running through the crowd of people, hurrying towards Caledon and Reza.

One of them, a boy named Rowan, is still fumbling to tie his headband over the spiky hair that lays over his forehead as he sprints. "I'm sorry I'm late," He pants once within ear shot. "I overslept."

The last member of the party is at her squad mate's heels, cheeks lightly flushed from her brisk jog, apology in her emerald eyes. "I'm sorry, sir, my mom needed help waiting tables this morning."

Caledon has his hands in his vest pockets again and rocks back on his heels, spinning to face them lazily as if nothing had happened between he and the other Sparrow. "Ah, Rowan, Leigh. How nice of you to join us."

Rowan is the exact opposite of Reza, with his white-blonde hair and almond shaped eyes that are a dark, coffee brown. The genetic combination is also reserved to his clan, though he doesn't appear to have any special abilities like other members in his family, but he is dead-set on proving his strength regardless. His personality is very different than the Leofwin boy's, as well.

Reza is reserved and moody, whereas Rowan is hyperactive and very extroverted, ready for anything. Though he is not nearly as aware of his surroundings as the other boy, Rowan is very quick on his feet, but not quite fast enough to have hit Reza, yet. He seems to find Reza to be a challenge, and is the only one in his squad who can hold his pale gaze for more than a few seconds. The two boys have already become rivals, whether they both agreed to it or not.

Leigh is the only female on the team, but she doesn't let her gender slow her progress. In the last few days of practice, it has become apparent to Caledon that Leigh isn't going to be the the strongest of her squad physically, but she has a natural leadership that the others do not. She is a quiet sort, but will take charge if no one else steps up to the plate and is level headed. Leigh is tall for a girl, with long hair that is kept in a braid over her shoulder and a give-em'-hell attitude.

At the arrival of his squad mates and the promise of further activity, Reza pushes off of the fence and lands silently next to Caledon, who casts a glance at him warily.

"Well, let's get moving then." The teacher says, turning on his heel and beginning to walk, trusting the others to follow.

Reza stays just to the right of his squad mates as they walk after their teacher with arms folded, his head tilted slightly to the side as he looks at the treetops in the distance. He spends a lot of his time there alone, re-living memories that were made with his brother among the branches.

That forest is where Reza learned how to defend himself, where Tarsis taught him things he was forbidden to show the youngest son.

Tarsis loved Reza in a way that even their own parent hadn't, and wanted him to prove their father wrong. Unlike his other siblings, Tarsis didn't blame his brother for the death of their mother. He wanted to see his youngest brother break free from the fate he was supposed to be bound to, and dreamed of seeing Reza thrive in the way that he trusted the young boy could. The eldest brother saw the look in Reza's eyes, the same one that he always had in his own. The one that their father tried so hard to train out of him, so desperate to tame.

Somehow, Tarsis knew this worthless child was going to be the best them all.

Once the group passes through the village gates, they follow their teacher into the trees immediately to their right. Each time that the group has met to train together, Caledon has led them here and on to a specific place in the woods, so the Sparrows don't hesitate to trail their mentor into the shaded tree line.

"I wonder what we'll be doing today. Hopefully not tracking again." Rowan sighs, hands in the pockets of his pants. Both he and Leigh have nearly no skill as tracers, as they displayed yesterday when the group was assigned a mission to find a lost dog for one of the villagers.

Reza ignores everyone as he keeps his gaze trained ahead, mentally mapping out the trail Caledon will lead them on and memorizing specific trees as they pass them. It is a different route every day so that the squad gets familiar with the forest surrounding their city, as they will likely spend much of their time here when on missions. Reza already knows much of these woods, and knows where Caledon is going to turn or veer off before he does it.

It takes about fifteen minutes to get to their training location this time, longer than the route they took yesterday. The spot is set in a small clearing, marked by the deep crevices in the surrounding trees, scars from having shuriken embedded into their trunks over years of training.

Tarsis trained here when he was Reza's age- he knows because this was one of the many places the brothers would secretly train behind their father's back.

Caledon stops in front of one of the trees and turns to face his students, hands in his pockets. "We are going to be learning something new today, along with some basic jujitsu."

"Jujitsu? Sounds easy!" Rowan says confidently, arms behind his head.

Leigh sighs and punches him in the gut that was left foolishly exposed. "You idiot, jujitsu isn't easy! It's a complex form of martial arts that requires accuracy and skill."

Rowan chokes as he is hit and doubles over, hands clutching his stomach. "Leigh!" He grunts in dismay. Once he regains his breath, he slaps his stomach as if to prove his is alright. "Well, either way I'm sure I can master it."

"That's correct, Leigh, very good," Caledon praises. "Someone paid attention in the Academy. Now, what I'm going to show you is called 'tree hopping'. This skill is essential for saving time on missions, and will help keep you better hidden than typical ground travel. First, stand with your feet a shoulder width apart." The students do as instructed, but Reza's attention is elsewhere, having done this multiple times already.

He looks up to the tree tops as the mentor continues, eyes picking out specific branches that will be the best to use in order to navigate through the woods. By the time Caledon finishes speaking, Reza glances to see the teacher balancing on a high branch.

He focused his energy to his feet to gain an extra push, and leaped to the spot several yards up. "Now come on then. Try it, you three." 

It takes no time for Reza's feet to make contact with a branch at the same level as Caledon and when he lands, his arms are still folded casually over his chest.

"What? Hey, no fair!" Rowan whines, pointing up to his squad mate. "Come on, Caledon, you must have been teaching him privately or something."

Reza doesn't pay attention to any of Rowan's ceaseless chatter, but he runs his pale gaze over the other boy a moment, intimidating him with silence. 

"I haven't spent any more time with Reza than with either of you. Now quit your whining and try it." Caledon is looking at Reza from the corner of his eye, secretly amazed that he was able to do this so easily. When he first learned, it took the mentor several tries to get it right.

Little do any of the others know, Reza started off horribly at this and often fell back to the ground mid-air. But Tarsis was patient with the eight year old, and the younger brother mastered it, with his sibling's help, within a week. Reza always was a fast learner, and had a knack for absorbing and recalling everything shown to him. He was never hard to teach because of it. Tarsis used to call him the Copy Cat for his memorizing quirk.

It only takes two tries for Leigh to get her jump corrected, and she waits with the others on her own branch next to Reza's.

Rowan is on his fifth try and still hasn't gotten it right, and Reza looks at the way his feet are positioned with annoyance.

When he casts a glance at Caledon it appears as though he has no intentions of aiding the struggling student, instead watching with a hint of amusement.

With a vexed sigh, Reza hops down from his branch and lands in a crouch next his squad mate. "You're standing wrong." He says, earning an awe-struck expression from Rowan.

Reza hasn't spoken more than two words since their practice with Caledon began, and he certainly hasn't offered to help any of his team mates with the learning process before.

Caledon watches the two with regard and a little bit of pride. Reza is helping his team mate instead of watching him struggle- that is certainly a step forward. Perhaps he's realized that in order to have a successful squad, you need to use teamwork.

"Quit staring."

At the hardness of Reza's voice, Rowan snaps his mouth shut and looks ahead, swallowing. "How should I stand, then?"

Reza spreads his feet slightly to show him, and the other boy poorly mirrors the stance.

"Like this?"

Reza swiftly kicks Rowan's legs out from beneath him with an easy sort of grace. "No. Your center of balance is off. When you're doing it correctly, I won't be able to knock you down so easily."

Rowan lands in the dirt on his back, too shocked at the speed to properly react or defend himself. "Ow! Why would you do that?" He groans, slowly sitting up once his bearings are collected. How had that happened so quickly?

"You seem to learn better when pain is associated with your mistakes," Reza says, expression blank. "Now get up and try again."

Reza may be a man of few words, but he is a good teacher and Rowan is eager to learn.

Just as Reza had when he was young, Rowan's energy sputters out half way up and he crashes back to the ground the first two times, but the boy doesn't give up, even after the nasty falls. After another few failed attempts, both boys are finally up on the branches successfully.

Rowan lands hazardously near to the edge, and before he can save himself his feet slip on the bark of the tree.

Leigh grabs him by the shirt collar and hauls him back up onto the branch that they share. "It's about time, Rowan. I was starting to get bored." She says, dusting off her hands once he has righted himself. The truth is that Leigh had actually been very interested- she and the mentor were watching Reza, wondering at his unusual act.

Rowan is panting on one knee, exhausted from wasting so much of his energy on failures. He reaches up and tightens his headband, a grin spreading across his face. "Eh, that wasn't so hard," He boasts, forcing himself to his feet and ignoring the sweat that trickles between his shoulder blades. "Come on, Cale, lets move on to the next part already."

Caledon glances at Reza who is already looking ahead, surveying the tree tops from the new vantage point, hardly looking winded. "Well, now that we're all present, we can continue," The mentor scans the small group of Sparrows before continuing. "The main thing to remember for tree hopping is to keep your fears at bay. Trust yourself and your abilities. The moment that you doubt, you are liable to misstep and fall, so keep focused on each branch as you near it."

"Yes, sir." Leigh says, attentively listening to Caledon's words, eager to master tree hopping. She always was a bright girl in the Academy, studying hard and passing every test with flying colors.

"Easy. Lets get going then." Rowan says jauntily, his arms behind his head with a subtle casualty.

With one more glance in Reza's direction, Caledon springs from his tree branch and lands quietly onto the one closest to the previous spot. "Try to focus your energy in the muscles of your legs while keeping some at the pads of your feet.  Remember, don't lose your focus."

Rowan and Leigh take on the same stance that their mentor had before and focus in on the branches closest to them.

"That's it," Caledon says, watching them carefully. "Now gather your energy like I said before. You should be able to feel it coil down your legs and rest at your feet."

Reza wastes no time as he swiftly moves from his place to the branch to his far right, hardly rustling a leaf as the mentor's words die off.

"Geez, he's going to be good at everything, isn't he?" Rowan scoffs, glancing at Reza with jealous resentment.

Leigh gives a frustrated sigh, keeping her eyes closed as she focuses. "Just shut up and do it, will you?" She says, voice laced with annoyance.

"Yeah, yeah, sure. It can't be that hard." Rowan says looking ahead again, eyes locking onto his next point. He holds his abundant amount of energy in his feet and leaps off of his branch, nearly over shooting his target. He has to crouch, putting his hands down to avoid sliding off of the other side of the branch. When he realizes that he's done it, he breaks into a wide grin that is accompanied by a bark of laughter. "See? It's not so hard!"

Leigh lands on the branch closest to Rowan almost in time with him, arms held out to balance herself. Once steadied, she sighs a breath of relief. "There we go, got it." She mumbles to herself, followed by a small, pleased smile.

Caledon had been silently watching the group, leaning his weight against the side of his tree. "Ah, well now that you've gotten the hang of it, we can get down to business. Take your time following me at the quickest pace you can." With the last words spoken, the mentor continues hopping from one tree to another, only pausing when he is a silhouette in the distance.

Caledon looks behind him, squinting to make out slowly moving figures. They look like they're struggling to keep their jumps at a steady pace... but where is the third student? In an instant, a person lands silently next to Caledon, startling the mentor with their swiftness. He hadn't even seen them. Is it possible that they had taken a different path than their squad mates?

Caledon feels as though he shouldn't be shocked when he looks over and sees Reza crouching on the branch next to him. The boy heaves a sigh as he turns to watch the other two slowly making their way towards them,  hardly a bead of sweat dampening his fair skin.

"R-Reza," Caledon musters, unable to hide his surprise. This kid is simply unbelievable! He isn't trying to, but he never ceases to amaze others with the ease of his abilities. Little do they know, that is the very reason that he speaks so scarcely and prefers to be alone in solitude. He dislikes being marveled at.

It's no wonder Adelard kicked his fourteen year old son out of his home after he decided to join the Academy, against his father's will. Reza is more skilled than any of the middle children in his family, which must have been a disgrace to the whole clan, especially since Adelard had given this child no training, swearing that he would always be useless. Now Caledon sees that Adelard was a fool for deeming Reza worthless before he even tested his abilities. None of the other Leofwin's that have come from the Academy were as skilled as their youngest brother at his age, even with the extra training that they received. If only Adelard could see his son now, perhaps he would think twice about loathing him.

"You've already been taught this, haven't you?" Caledon asks as the young man looks at the mentor, a dark brow raised.

"Tarsis taught me many things." Is all that Reza gives as an explanation before commencing with his silence, arms folded against his dark grey shirt. The color accents his eyes, making them seem even lighter in tone than usual. Caledon had to resist a shiver that crawled up his spine when the boy looked to him with his cold eyes.

The short conversation is over before the other two students reach them, their breath coming out in pants from the work out. The mentor looks to them, his expression back to its usual state. "Ah, nice job, Rowan, Leigh."

As usual, Rowan's dark eyes go to Reza, immediately sparking with jealousy. When he speaks, though, his voice is flippant as he ruffles his already spiked hair into pale tuffs. "Eh, that was no big deal, I could do that for a few miles at least."

Caledon smiles. "Of course you could, Rowan," He says, hardly bothering to hide the humor in his voice.  "Any how, lets give the tree hopping a break and work on your jujitsu, shall we? Lets adjourn back to the training spot."

The three students follow their teacher through the branches the way they came at a steady pace. This time, Reza stays in step with the other Sparrows, uninterested in showing off and wasting any more energy than he has to. 

Once they near the spot in which they started their tree hopping, Caledon drops noiselessly to the ground yards below and waits for his students to do the same. Rowan is the first to land, rather ungracefully, followed by a much quieter Leigh and a soundless Reza. Rowan seems very pleased that he was first for once, despite his sloppy  landing, and breaks into a wide grin as he looks over at Reza, who hasn't even noticed his smugness, let alone the reason behind it.

"Right. Reza, I'll use you to help demonstrate, alright? You're the least likely to get hurt." He adds the last part at the protesting expression that Rowan gives.

Without a word, the boy steps forward to stand next to the mentor, hands in his pockets.

"Put your hands on my shoulders."

Reza does as instructed, feigning boredom. He knows just what Caledon is up to now, and is well aware that this demonstration is supposed to end up with Reza on his back. He could easily prevent it, but he feels no need to draw further attention to himself, so he allows the mentor to sling his arm around Reza's body and clamp on to his belt.

"Now, say an opponent is charging you. This is one of many ways to take them out without the use of lethal force." Caledon explains, emphasizing the placement of his hands when he speaks. "It helps if, like Reza, they have a belt on, but you can also grab the waist band of their pants to use as a grip point."

Reza glances up at the trees, watching a bird fly from its perch on a branch with longing. If only he had a pair of wings... The mentor continues to speak, breaking down the steps one by one before following through with an actual attack.

It takes all of Reza's will power to keep his arms from flying up and slugging Caledon in the gut the way he usually would when being attacked, and he clenches his jaw against it, preparing himself for the impact.

Time slows down as Caledon throws his weight into his shoulder, shoving Reza off of the ground with the force given by his legs. The mentor uses his arm to throw him down on the ground, hard enough to make his teeth rattle in his mouth. It isn't that it hurt, really, but the force that was applied was more than necessary for a demonstration.

While on his back, Reza looks Caledon right in the eyes to figure out why he put so much effort into a practice blow. Within a millisecond, he has his answer and decides to let it go. "Are we done then?" Reza asks, standing up from the ground and dusting himself, a look of boredom present on his features.

Caledon adjusts his headband and looks at the Loefwin, shaking off the cold feeling in his arms. That should have at least stunned Reza for a moment, but he got right back up as soon as it happened... That is about as much as he was expecting from him.  "Yes, you're done. Now take turns pairing up and trying it. I'll stand back to correct and give you pointers." The mentor is taking it harder on Reza than the other squad mates as a method of training, a similar one that he used to work with the other Leofwin children in the short time that he had with them.

Rowan immediately turns to Reza. "Alright, let's go."

Reza's pale gaze slides over to Leigh. "I believe ladies are supposed to be first."

Leigh tries to hide her warming cheeks at his addressing her, and clears her throat. "I'm okay, you two can try first."

With a noncommittal shrug Reza turns to face Rowan, who cracks his knuckles with a grin. "Alright. Get ready then, I'll come at you first."

Reza spreads his feet and slightly turns his right foot, taking his hands from his pockets as he easily reads Rowan's movements.

Rowan is fluid when moving on his feet, but his actions are easy to interpret, even without the eyes that Reza possesses. Reza allows Rowan to take him to the ground for the sake of his pride, but absorbs most of the impact with his feet, where he had strategically placed them and gathered his energy there. Instead of taking all of the shock to his body, the ground consumes most of it, saving Reza energy and damage.

"You're throwing too much into the first step, Rowan. Try again." Caledon says from where he stands a few yards away, watching the boys' movements closely.

He recognizes the way that Reza is taking the hits, and notices the way he continues to set his feet each time his is knocked back. Tarsis must have taught his sibling this when they practiced; a way to absorb the brunt of an attack's force with minimum damage done to the one inflicted.

It soon becomes apparent that Rowan is no longer trying to copy Caledon's moves as he begins to throw punches at Reza repeatedly, trying desperately to hit him, to make him feel something. He wants to get a reaction out of him, something other than cool stoniness. 

"H- hey, Rowan, that isn't what Caledon taught us..." Leigh calls lamely from the sidelines, watching with concerned features. She wants to step in and break it up, but she isn't entirely sure if she should. If Rowan has a problem with their squad mate, they are better off working it out sooner rather than later. But Reza isn't even fighting- he just keep defending himself from the ever quickening attacks.

Caledon leans against the tree behind him, hands in the pockets of his olive colored vest. He seems to be doing a lot of unhelpful things, as if leaving an open space for Reza to teach Rowan a lesson. The Leofwin boy glares at the teacher as he blocks another few dozen rapidly thrown punches, refusing to play whatever sort of game this is.

When Caledon doesn't intervene, Reza decides to stop his blocking the blows altogether. Perhaps if he actually lands a blow, he will quit this foolishness and feel better about himself. Reza is growing bored with this. One solid hit  snaps his head sideways, and a thin line of blood comes from a fresh split on the boy's lip. He turns to face to Rowan, a dark eyebrow raised as he ignores the pain that blossoms along his cheek. "Are you finished?" Even now he manages to sound aloof. 

The pale haired boy is panting from his efforts, knuckles raw from delivering so many hits in vain. His brow furrows and the bridge of his nose pinches in a growl. "No fair! You did that on purpose, you let me hit you!" By the tone of his voice, Reza can tell that he had lost a grip on his temper, having snapped a while before.

Reza sighs and wipes his lip with his sleeve. "Whatever helps you sleep at night." He says, being uncharacteristically talkative today.

"You think you're so much better than me, just because you're from the Leofwin clan." Rowan spits, taking an angry lunge at Reza. "Well, coming from a fancy house won't help if you don't try-"

It takes the blink of an eye for Reza to stop Rowan's blow, grabbing the boy's fist with one hand, gripping it tightly. "Stop whining. You're acting like a child," In a second, Reza bends Rowan's arm and twists it behind his back, forcing the boy to his knees. "Since our mentor is so helpful, you should stay at the side lines until you cool off. I would hate to see you hurt Leigh because you cannot keep a grip on your temper."

Caledon finds it a good time to intervene and steps over, hands still in his pockets. "Alright, that's enough, you two. Leigh, why don't you spar with Reza for a while while Rowan takes a break? I can take him from here, Reza."

The Leofwin boy looks to Caledon for a long moment, scrutinizing him with pale grey eyes. He wonders if it is too late to put in a request for a different mentor, but soon decides against it. If Tarsis could handle this guy, there is no way that Reza will back down. He can handle whatever games Caledon throws at him.

 After a few beats, he releases Rowan's wrist and looks to Leigh, his usual bored expression settling back onto his fine features as Caledon all but drags Rowan away.

Leigh looks unsure of what just happened, but nods, hesitantly stepping forward. "Oh... alright," She positions herself across from her squad mate, slightly spreading her feet. "Don't you dare take it easy on me, Reza." She says, face taking on a determined, serious edge. 

Leigh isn't a girl that you would expect to be good at combat of any sort- she seems more like the gardening type than one who throws punches as well as he male team members- but as soon as Reza place his hands on her shoulders, her green eyes flash with something fierce. 

He cannot say that he is surprised at the amount of strength that she uses while preforming the drill, but he is impressed at her ability to get it correct on the first try, applying optimal force to the correct locations. 

"Ah, Leigh. Impressive, you did perfectly. Rowan," he says, nudging the boy who sits at his feet. "You could learn a thing or two from her."

Rowan doesn't respond as he weighs one of the many pine cones that litter the ground in his hand, dark orbs burning.

Reza sits up, not in a hurry to pick himself up off of the ground, and wipes a bit of blood from his mouth where Rowan hit him. He locks eyes with the other boy, unconcerned with the contempt being aimed at him. He wordlessly dusts himself off and stands, further ignoring Rowan.

"Now, Reza, your turn." Caledon says, reaching down to catch Rowan's arm as he cocks it back, pine cone in hand. Caledon gives him a fist to the top of his head after prying the ammunition from his fingers and tossing it aside.

Rowan huffs angrily, folding his arms over his chest as he watches the other team members preform the drills. What makes him so special?

After a few more hours of practicing and perfecting the drills, Rowan had fallen sleep with his head in his hand, snoring lightly. 

Caledon gazes down at him, sighing. This boy is hopeless. Either he will have to  toughen up and make nice with Reza, or he will have be switched to a different squad. The point of being in a team like this is to protect each other, not to stab them in the back.  

Reza and Leigh are sitting below a tree opposite Rowan and Caledon. Both are worn out from their session, and Leigh has her head rolled back against the bark behind her as she dozes off, giving in to her exhaustion. Her long hair is coming loose from it's braid and rogue strands of hair lay slick against her face.

Reza's fair skin is damp with a sheen layer of sweat, but he shows no further signs of fatigue as he looks up at the painted sky between the tree tops. The day is a warm one for the time of year, but it never gets cool enough to snow heavily in the winter in the first place. The sun is sinking lower into the sky, splashing the clouds with reds, pinks and oranges. 

Two sparrows fly from a branch, chasing each other into the sky, wings beating frantically to keep up with one another. Caledon and Reza both watch until the birds dip out of view, their argumentative squawks dying off. 

"Those two are sort of like you and Rowan, aren't they? You know, they say that God has a sense of humor. I guess they're right." The mentor comments softly with a chuckle so not to disturb the other two, wit evident in his voice. 

Reza stands silently,  careful to avoid bumping Leigh in her proximity to him. "If we're done, I'm going." He says, the typical edge back in his voice. Without waiting for an okay, he turns his back and begins to walk away without disturbing a single leaf more than necessary. He pauses beneath a tree several feet away before springing into it's branches, out of sight. 

Caledon had watched him disappear and sighs quietly, looking to the place the Leofwin had just been. Reza is much like a ghost. That boy is a mystery for certain, and he can see why he makes Rowan so unnerved and jealous. The mentor looks down at the boy beside him, who is drooling a bit on his hand in his sleep. Rowan has potential, but if he continues to allow his envy to cloud his judgment his talent could end up being wasted on blind ambition.  Caledon promised his father more than that.

The mentor walks over to Leigh, crouching down to shake her lightly from her sleep. 

Her eyes flutter open and she squints at her teacher. "Did I fall asleep?" She breaks into a yawn and rubs her eyes with the heel of her hand. "I'm sorry, let's continue with the lesson-" 

Caledon smiles, shaking his head and rising to his feet. "No, you're done for the day. You can head home, Reza already left. Do you want someone to walk you back?" 

Leigh slowly stands up, bringing her arms over her head and stretches. "Oh, no, I'll be okay." She says, voice dreamy with sleep. "Oh, it's almost dinner time..." The young woman looks up at the darkening sky a moment before turning to walk back towards town. "Bye, Caledon, see you tomorrow." 

"Goodbye,  Leigh. Don't be late tomorrow, okay?"

She waves at him without turning around. "Yes, sir."

The mentor watches her until she is out of sight, then turns to look down at Rowan again, hands in the pockets of his vest. The scar that rises on the bridge of his nose aches slightly at the boy's demeanor, and he reaches one hand to brush his fingers across the raised, puckered skin.

Rowan's white-blond hair hangs past his eyebrows, messy from neglecting to brushing it this morning. It is in need of a trim, but his mother most likely doesn't push the issue because of the likeness it gives him to his father's appearance. But Kai will never be able to see how alike his son is to him.

Caledon steps forward an nudges Rowan awake with the toe of his boot.

The boy's face scrunches up and he mumbles as a breeze blows his hair across his face. "Go away..."

Caledon rocks back on is heels lazily. "I guess you don't want me to buy you dinner then?"

Rowan pops an eye open to look at his teacher, reminded of the hunger in his belly. "Dinner?"

"Mhm, dinner. Only if you work hard during training, though. You do want to catch up to Reza, don't you?"

Rowan lifts his head and stretches, cracking his back. "Catch up to him? I want to beat him!" He says, no longer feeling tired. He clenches and unclenches his burning knuckles, reminded of the days earlier events.

Caledon chuckles. "Of  course you do, but you have to understand some things about him, first. Reza has had years of training before this, so he is bound to know a thing or two more than you or Leigh. Skill takes time to acquire, so you can't rush it."

Rowan nods, climbing to his feet. "Fine, whatever. Just as long as I get to show him a thing or two-"

"You would be making a huge mistake by assembling Reza as your enemy, Rowan. You need to quit with this childish feud you think you have with him before anything else. That is lesson number one of your training right now, understand? Reza is your team mate, not your enemy or competition." Caledon says, voice low and serious as he looks the boy in the eye.

Rowan furrows his brow and frowns, crossing his arms over his chest. The evening splashes orange into his hair and seems to set his dark eyes on fire, and Caledon's scar aches even more as he looks at the stubborn child. Kai used to do the same exact thing when he didn't like something. He always was hardheaded, and it seems as though his child obtained that same feature.

"Are you quite finished with your pouting? I won't give you extra attention if you're going to act like that. You aren't a child any more, are you?"

"Of course, I'm not!" Rowan exclaims.

"Then knock it off or go home. Your choice." Caledon says with a noncommittal shrug.

Rowan unfolds his arms and lets them ball into fists at his sides, gritting his teeth. "There."

Caledon smiles and reaches forward to ruffle the boy's hair. "There. Now I have a few things that I thought I would teach you, but you have to be willing to stay late after each normal practice and to work harder than the others are required to."

Rowan shrugs his shoulders, face creased with determination. "Alright, lets do this already!"

Caledon looks at the boy a moment before smiling and reaches a hand out to set on his shoulder. "Patience is a virtue every guardian must acquire," The sunset splashes the both of them with red and orange, as if the world itself were being set on fire. "Let's do this, then."

                                                                                                ~

Author's Note

This is just a random idea that I created for Reza's character. Any anime fans may have noticed a thin connection between the show Naruto and this book, though I promise I am trying to make it as original as possible while maintaining the plot I have in mind.

I pretty much am allowing this story to just be ramblings of my idea, and I haven't edited any of this yet or anything, I'm just writing for now. I don't really expect this story to go anywhere on the popularity scale, but I figured that since I wrote it, I may as well post it. Why create something that you don't want others to read? That sort of defeats the purpose of being a writer.

I hope you found this to your liking, and if you did I would be appreciative if you would drop a vote or a comment below. The updates will be slow in coming, but I don't expect there to be many people waiting for new chapters, anyway.

Thanks for reading and may God bless you nuggets.

-A.