"Who was that?" I asked.

"Brutus. He's been here a while; longer than I care to remember."

I snickered.

He smiled. "Some think he's with Deavar."

"Who's Deavar?" I asked.

"The wolf you saw. I'm not sure what he's up to, but from what I heard, he's a spy for the baddies."

The basement was bigger than the floor above. Weapons varying from swords, knives, axes, claw looking things and lots of other things hung on the walls. Oak chests sat next to each wall.

Animals were throwing little orbs of all colors at targets. Some burst into flames, some shot icy shards, some did nothing but send a stink out.

A slim cheetah glided to us. She had icy eyes, soft golden spotted fur, and a green scarf. "How can I help you, Kota?" Her voice was smooth, with an African accent.

Kota tensed up, as if her was nervous around her. "Um, Mika's new. So I was just... showing her around. And sort of training her."

"Hmm," She purred, raising an eyebrow. "Why have I not seen her before?"

"Well, I met her today, and Santa said he wanted her to be a chaser. So, yeah."

I didn't know Kota for very long, but I haven't heard him stutter like that ever. He always talked with purpose. He obviously liked the cheetah. For some unexplainable reason, a pang of jealousy ran up my gut.

"Fine. If he insists." The cheetah said. "Mika, I am Reesha. I conduct training till Christmas eve. Kota will help with your training, but I'll lead most of it."

She turned around. "Follow me,"

She walked to the chest nearest to us; opposite of the targets. She waited till both of us could see, the carefully extracted a white globe with her teeth. She set it down by her paws gingerly. "You will learn the uses for each of these, but we'll start with a snow globe."

It didn't really look like a snow globe to me. More like gray paint in milk.

"Mika, can you pick it up carefully, then throw it at a target?"

The target was probably two dekameters away. Some wolves, dogs and cats had stopped their throwing to watch me, but most of the others continued throwing the colored orbs.

I looked around hesitantly. "Okay..." I said in a quiet voice.

I grabbed the snow globe in my jaws. The glass was cold against my teeth. I walked to where the other animals were, Then spun myself around twice. When I faced the target, I let it fly.

It went up a few meters, then landed with a shattering sound a dekameter from me. Snow bursted out as if it were compressed, leaving a large radius of white powder. As the last flakes fell gently, I turned around sheepishly. I heard snickers from the other animals.

"Not bad for a start," Reesha said. "But you only need one spin."

"Oh." I said.

"Come here. Kota will show you what the rest of them do; I have coaching to do."

Reesha walked back to the group, and I sat next to Kota.

He had started arranging them in a rainbow, with black white and brown at the end.

"This one," he gestures to the red one, "Is a cherry bomb. It is extremely hot, and it spreads by itself."

"Like the one you used on the horses?"

"Yeah. The orange one is a sparkler."

Inside of it, orange sparkles popped and fizzed.

"It releases sparks that create small fires. But the sparks spread far and fast, so be careful.

"The yellow one releases a swarm of bees. If you get stung, be prepared for some crazy hallucinations."

It had little yellow and black bugs buzzing madly in it.

"The green one has Greek fire in it. Not only is it explosive, it will burn very painfully and it can burn everywhere. Even underwater."

Note to self; don't touch the green one. (now that I think of it, don't touch any of them)

"The blue one releases a river. Don't ask how all that water fits in there.

"The purple one is a sleep gas. It's immune to natural animals, but it will put a human or demon right to sleep.

"The pink one lets out fart gas."

"Eww," I said.

"Yep."

"Why not the brown one?" I asked.

"Because that's what I call camo smell. If you break it, it will cover you with whatever smell that's surrounding you. So you can't be found so easily.

"The black one is ash powder. It'll cover an area like Pompeii." He said quietly.

"What's Pompeii?" I asked.

"A long time ago, a volcano in Italy erupted. People thought it wouldn't again, but it did. A city was at the base of it... Ash covered everything."

"So... why would we use it?" I asked.

"We don't like it, but sometimes it's the only way. It won't be as bad as Pompeii; a kilometer radius, at most."

I let that sink in. I don't think I could use most of these without hesitation.

He pulled a clear orb that had nothing in it from the chest. "This won't do anything. Try again."

I grabbed it with my teeth with more confidence.

I twisted around again, but only once. When I let it fly, it went in a straighter line, but it didn't hit anywhere near the target.

"Better," Kota purred, "We'll work on your aim first. Then we can deal with force. Come help grab some clear ones from here."

I helped him, being careful not to hit the loaded ones or crack the clear ones. Kota and I banged heads as we reached for the same spot. "Oww," We said in unison.

"Keep your head back, kitty" Kota snapped.

We finished taking the clear orbs out in a few minutes.

"Let me show you." Kota said.

He grabbed a clear ball, then marched to the line. He swung again, me making sure to watch his paws carefully. He let it go, and it released with a swooping sound. The orb hit the third ring to the middle, but it was better than mine. I felt the air he push come towards me.

He growled. "I just can't get it," he mumbled.

"Now you try." He turned around.

I grabbed another orb, then walked to the line. I set my paws firmly, then repeated what he did, keeping my paws firm but loose. When I had turned 200ish degrees around, I whipped my head fast towards the target and released the orb. I felt the air settling as the orb shot through the air like a bullet. It hit the concrete wall and shattered like ice.

I turned around, grinning madly. "How was that?!"

"Well, you've got force down, but you need to aim better. Try keeping your head down farther, and don't snap it so hard."

"Okay," I griped. I grabbed another one, then spun again. I kept my toes lighter, and didn't go so fast. When I got at 230 degrees, I whipped my head, keeping it down. It didn't hit the target, but it was closer. It didn't shatter, either.

"Better." Kota said. "But stop later."

I tried again. It shattered on the rim of the target.

"Again." Kota said with boredom.

I did. It hit the wall. I growled deeply.

"Again" Kota said.

I did again, growling as I went. It hit the wall, again.

"You were doing fine before," Kota said as he lied down.

I wanted to counter, but I just growled. I tried again, but it just missed the target.

I did it again, over and over. The closest I got was the fourth ring.

Kota had stayed quiet until there were only two orbs left. I lunged madly for the next one, locked in a haze, when Kota spoke up.

"Hey," he said calmly, "Relax. Don't fight or think about it too much."

I took a deep, rattled breath, then grabbed the orb calmly. This time I approached the line with less rush. I closed my eyes, and allowed my mind to re-set. When I opened them again, the room looked more clear, with crisp lines and color.

I went through the motions, and the world seemed to slow as the orb flew.

It hit the second ring to the center.

I couldn't believe it. I didn't get a bulls eye, but it was better than Kota's throw!

Most of the animals in the room stopped and stared in awe at me, but most shot a glance then continued throwing.

I turned around. Kota's Icy eyes were wide, along with his mouth.

"How did you..."

"Beginner's luck." I sat down. "What are we doing next?"