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The Task at Hand

After Yula had time to wake up, they left from their current location and continued on their endless path. Riku was troubled, having been through much in the last to years, it bothered him that Syncros still refused to tell the pup his task. The All-Seeing had made one thing clear, though. He had for gather these rings before anything else. There was only one problem: he didn't know where to start. He knows nothing of these 'guardians' and even less of their location. Syncros said he would help him, but how could he when the whereabouts the ring bearers are unknown? Something quickly caught his attention, something familiar that made his ears perk, and his spine shiver. Yula noticed his sudden reaction to the unknown.

"What is it, Riku?"

"Hide," he commanded.

"What?"

"Hide! Now!" Before either had time to think, a mass of black energy formed in the air, and looked much like a small portal of sorts. A stream of black gunk shot out into the ground, and began to rise and take a solid form as the portal above disappeared. The gunk faded as a new foe was formed.

It stood on two legs. Half the body was encased in a scale like, black growth, covering half of the face, the right shoulder, and most of the chest. This growth seemed to reach the left leg an coil around like a snake. Violet shards sprouted all over the left arm. The right arm, however, was missing, and was replaced by several vines. This made the growth on the shoulder seem like a separate creature. The other half of the face looked like a black skull, with no eye present, only an empty socket. The teeth looked like the vines on the right arm, but much smaller. The rest of the body was thick, black skin, similar to the creature he encountered the other day. A single yellow eye could be seen in in the growth on the shadow's chest. This snake like feature was probably the most intimidating part on this bizarre creature.

Riku grabbed the hilt of his blade, ready to counter. The shadow before him pointed it's barbed arm directly at him. The shards began to shake in a angry manner, then suddenly shot out in a barrage homing in on him. He was forced to let go of his blade and throw a hand in front of him, creating his dark shield. The shards were deflected, but the impact was strong enough to push him back. His feet scraped the ground as he endured the attack. As the shield faded, he saw the shadow directly in front a swing its barbed arm like a club. He was smacked in the face and fell to the ground. He felt of his face and felt a few of the shards embedded in his cheek. They were small, like splinters. He rolled to the side as the arm came at him again with a punch, leaving the attack to hit the ground. With another swing coming, he swung his sword to block and counter. The attacks collided. The arm was surprisingly thick.

Riku was able to push back and knock the arm out of the way, and kicked his foe back, quickly responding with his free arm held back. His arm quickly channeled black energy, and he quickly threw his arm forward as though tossing something in the air. A large, black wave shot in front of him towards the dark at lightning speed, knocking it a short distance off its feet and flipping a few times before landing. It got back to its feet and suddenly threw out the vines in the other arm. They stretched to a great length, fast enough to catch Riku by surprise as his arms, legs, and neck became tangled. He dropped the sword as he was lifted into the air. The grip from the vines gradually grew tighter and began to cut of his circulation. A separate vine came from the darks arm. This one looked different from the others. There was a needle at the end. The vine slowly approached until it was hovering just above him, the needle pointed at his head. He tried to break free, but his struggle was in vain.

A rock suddenly hit the shadow behind the head, hard enough to smash into pieces. Riku was released and fell to the ground, gasping for breath from the strangling. The dark looked in the direction from which the rock was thrown, and saw the wolfess standing a short distance. She was suddenly struck with fear upon looking it in the eye on its chest. A vine was thrown and quickly sweeper her legs. She hit the ground hard, and was grabbed by the ankle before she could react, and just as soon flung into a tree. She was immediately grabbed again by the neck and held down against the same tree. It gave an evil glare as she was suffocated. Before she was drained of her last breath, the black blade that was Riku's sword pierced through the dark's thick skin from behind and through the eye on its chest. It gave a shriek, and its body gave a quick flash, similar to how the creature he encountered before, as this was how the shadows showed death. Yula was released. The shadow collapsed. The body turned to stone and crumbled when a breeze came through.

Riku offered a hand to help her up. She gladly accepted.

"Are you okay? Anything broken?" he asked.

"Just a few cuts and bruises. Nothing really serious."

"That was really dangerous, Yula. You could've gotten yourself killed." She was about to answer, but was cut off. "But, you saved me. Thank you." She smiled, and laid a hand gently on his cheek, inspecting the shards embedded into his skin.

"Do you mind?" she asked. He turned his head so she was facing the wound. Gently, she grabbed hold of one with two fingers and pulled. The shard came out with ease, and was soaked in Riku's blood. One by one, the shards were taken out. Once they were all removed, she reached into her small pack, and pulled out a small vial with a greenish substance, possibly what was left of the ointment she used on him the other day. She opened it a poured just enough to cover her fingertips, and gently rubbed it on his cheek. She made sure it was on his skin and not just smearing his black fur.

Riku decided to rest for a moment. Though he didn't show it, he felt beat after fighting the shadow. Yulanda took this time to look around for ingredients for medicines and such, of which this particular area seemed to be covered with. Riku only watched her as she worked, until he heard a voice in his head. He recognized it as Syncros.

"Your friend is a valuable asset, but she cannot continue to rely on you for protection, for there will be times when you will not be around. She must have a way of defending herself."

"What do you propose I do?"

"You will teach her. But she will need a weapon. There is a village in the desert region up ahead. A dragon blacksmith resides. Seek him out." He felt his telepathic connection fade.

"Riku," he heard Yula call, his attention quickly snapping to her, "is something wrong?" He stood up and stretched before answering.

"It's nothing. Are you done?"

"Yes. I've found more than enough."

~~~~~~

They continued on. Yula could tell something was on Riku's mind, but she didn't want to press him about it. The forest scenery soon faded and became a scorching desert. The village Syncros spoke of came in to view. It seemed a little large to be a village, yet too small for a town. There were many shops, making this place more of a trading post than an actual town. There was a large sum of people about, which made Riku uncomfortable. He needed to be careful not to get too close to anyone, or they might recognize him under his hood. Though it seemed most were more interested in Yula, namely men. It seemed to make her a little uneasy as she was staying close to Riku, if not clinging.

Riku finally found the blacksmith's workshop, indicated by the smokestack.

"Riku," Yula spoke up, "why are we here?" He took a moment to himself to find a way to explain. "Riku?"

"You must understand that I won't always be around to protect you. You may end up having to defend yourself."

"But..,"

"Don't worry," he interrupted, "I'll teach you everything I know." He lifted the curtain hanging from the door frame, allowing her to go in first. There was an immediate change to the atmosphere. It was much hotter, and the air was stale. At the other side stood a fireplace, an anvil, and several tools for smithing, next to them a dark figure outlined by the light of the fire. Though it was dark, one could tell this was a dragon, with very dark red scales and brown eyes. He only wore a pair of torn shorts, given the heat in the room. He was hammering away at his current project, but stopped at the sight of his company.

"Welcome," he greeted, first noticing Riku's attire, "Aren't you dressed a little warmly for this climate? You're not hiding anything, are you?" Riku became nervous, until the dragon chuckled heartily. "I'm kidding. You must have come from up north, correct?" Riku took a moment, but almost didn't hesitate to answer.

"Yeah," he lied, "that's right." The dragon stood and approached them.

"I am Velstath. What can I do for you?" Riku found himself looking up. The dragon was taller than him, about the same height of a grown jackal.

"I..just need a weapon." He was a bit hesitated for a moment. "For my friend." Velstath glimpsed at the pup's wolf companion. A scent caught the Smith's attention.

"You're a healer, aren't you?" he bluntly stated. He quickly answered before she had a chance to ask, "You smell of herbs and flowers, a smell generally carried by a healer." The dragon, Velstath gave her a curious look. "A little strange that you would want a tool for combat rather than for medicines. But whatever the reason, its no business of mine. I have just what you need." He went back to his station, went into a different room marked by a purple curtain door, and after a few seconds came out with a weapon in hand. A wooden stave taller than Yula, with a black leather grip to center, to avoid splinters for the user. It was a simple weapon, but also very light and sturdy. "It's not very strong, but its a good choice for defense. A perfect weapon for someone that dislikes fighting." He held it out for her. She finally accepted after staring at the staff for moment. The pole itself felt very smooth, and its light weight made it easy for her to carry one handed. Riku reached into the pouch at his waist and pulled out three gold coins and handed them to Velstath. The dragon bid the farewell as they continued on.