Hanji
Legacy Name: Hanji

Story

It was a mixture of a sunny and gloomy, rainy day in the valleys between Riverside and Veta Lake. The sun would shine, then half an hour later, a gentle rain band would pass through, before the sun would return to peek its head out from behind the clouds.

The constant switch of rain and sun did not faze Elfric though, as he lay against a hillside. He stared up at the turbulent sky that could not make up its mind today. There was no threat of the Tempest, so his face did not hurt. But his feelings were hurting all the same. He thought back to the fight his mom and him had had, just a couple hours ago.

"I do not like the thought of you and Haluk traveling all over Subeta and living in the middle of nowhere. Why can't you both stay here, at home, where it's safe?" his human mother had asked.

"Because...I don't know, mom. I just feel this pull to be on my own now. It's been bothering me since New Year's," Elfric tried to put his thoughts together into words. His mother clicked her teeth.

"I found you as a little orphaned 21 day old pup in an alleyway in Centropolis and promised I would never let anything bad happen to you. And now I wonder if I was wrong to let you battle at all. After everything you've gone through with the Tempest too..."

Elfric did not want to hear anymore. He snarled in disagreement, grabbed his bag of weapons off the couch and stormed out of the house, making sure to slam the front door for emphasis. He stalked off in a random direction, with no intent of where he was going. He just wanted to get away from his family.

He wasn't alone though. Haluk had been outside of the house, grazing, and noticed the commotion unfolding. Sensing his brother being upset, he loyally followed after him. Elfric had caught him following and told him to go home initially, but the Neela refused to listen. The white wolf sighed and accepted the company of the spotted oryx-like mount.

And so here they were, miles from home, with Elfric unsure what to do or how to feel, while Haluk grazed nearby patiently. Did their mom really mean what she said about the regret of letting him battle? Letting them both battle? Haluk had so much potential, Elfric discovered, and had begun training him. And by the turn of the new year, Elfric felt a change stirring inside him. Something telling him to leave and be on his own, with Haluk in tow. But he could not understand this feeling still.

"Where do I belong..." he murmured as he continued to stare up at the tumultuous clouds. Haluk caught his brother's words with his sharp hearing and paused to look over to the wolf. He approached Elfric while swallowing the delicious clover in his mouth. He bowed his head, and Elfric sighed, petting the Neela. His brother had been sighing all day; Haluk licked Elfric's face, in hopes of cheering him up even momentarily. Elfric grimaced instead though.

"You need to stop eating that clover, it makes you extra slobbery than usual," Elfric reprimanded as he wiped the extra slime off his face. Haluk shrugged, not quite understanding Elfric's full sentence, and went back to the grazing. The language barrier between prey and predator made it difficult for them to communicate. However, the more they hung out, the better it seemed to be getting. Still, while Haluk was picking up words from Elfric, the wolf could never truly understand anything the Neela was saying in response. There was an incident earlier that spring, while they were out practicing their weapons, when Haluk had whinnied something urgently to Elfric. But it had been too late for Elfric to figure out what the yelling was about, because he had backed up unwittingly into a hornet's nest hanging low on a tree branch. Though they both managed to escape the swarm by jumping into a nearby pond, they were both sore for weeks from the stings.

Elfric could not help but chuckle lightly as he lay there, reminiscing about it. It had been so ridiculous (and painful), but he was happiest being out in nature. If only he could make his mother understand that...

Suddenly, Haluk brought his head up, ears pointed forward, listening. Elfric took notice of the sudden change in the mount's demeanor and sat up.

"What is it?" Elfric asked, but soon got his answer. The earth beneath them shook violently. Was it an earthquake? No, that would be too unusual for these parts. It felt like...footsteps, with how each vibration felt. Haluk stared up the hillside, nickering to Elfric. Is he saying up over the hill?, Elfric wondered. The wolf scrambled to his feet and the two raced up the hill to get a better look at what was happening. They reached the top and Elfric gasped at the scene below.

A little brown spotted fox, a Jollin, was under attack! A giant pile of rocks and tree roots was stomping surprisingly fast towards her. It was a species of monster known as a Terrafirma. Elfric had never encountered one before, but had heard about them from his mentor Reischen. And he knew he'd have to act quickly, because the little fox was struggling to outpace the monster.

Elfric grabbed his Forj Tempered Machete from the saddlepack Haluk was carrying; the sword was warm, but not too hot to handle. The magma flowing throughout the blade glowed with power, while the handle of cooled molten rock was thrumming to life with power. Elfric could feel his strength increasing, a side effect of wielding the weapon. He pointed it towards the beast and let out a battle cry!

The Terrafirma looked to them, but ultimately ignored them in favor of the Jollin. Elfric and Haluk charged down the hill, ready to take on the fight.

As they got closer to the fray, Elfric could feel some intimidation creeping into his body. This Terrafirma was monstrous in size, a lot bigger up close than it seemed when up high on the hill.

"Haluk, save the Jollin!" he yelled, and he charged towards the Terrafirma's back heel to slice at the tree roots. The monster roared and halted in its tracks in nearly stomping the Jollin, who was exhausted from running. The Terrafirma looked behind it and took notice of Elfric finally. The wolf saw the monster raise its heavy boulder fist, and he dodged being slammed by it.

Meanwhile, with the beast distracted, Haluk swooped in quickly and the Jollin smiled excitedly as she grabbed his mane to swing herself up onto his back. But Haluk froze slightly in fear at the sheer size of the enormous monster.

"Haluk, get out of there!" Elfric cried as he swung his blade at the Terrafirma, and the monster was backing up to avoid the flames. They were going to be crushed!

"Hyup! Let's get moving, Neela!" the Jollin kicked his flank with her feet and he regained his composure and swiftly jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding the crushing foot of rock and tree limbs. Haluk took off like a speeding bullet, taking the Jollin with him. Elfric swore he heard the Jollin screaming 'Yahoo!' as they fled the battlefield. He shook his head and maintained his focus. He needed to be careful here and start figuring out how to take down this monstrosity. Where was its weak point?

Elfric tried to swing towards the tree roots wrapped around the rocks, hoping that cutting them would render the beast unable to keep moving, but it was already wise to Elfric's plan. It changed from bipedal to quadrupedal, keeping its back feet safely behind while it slammed its front fists towards Elfric, the ground shaking violently with each step. It was trying to throw him off balance, and it was succeeding. The wolf tripped and fell backwards. The Terrafirma opened its rocky maw, and it was ready to take a bite out of Elfric.

Elfric, however, was undeterred and right as its ugly face got close enough to him, ready to break him in half, the white wolf connected a forceful jab into its cheek, perfectly placed into a cracked area he had noticed minutes ago. The beast roared in pain, clutching its face as it pulled back, allowing Elfric to hurriedly stand up and reposition himself. With the monster distracted, he rushed forward and began to cut at the roots again. If he could burn the roots that made up its legs, it would not be able to keep walking. But as he sliced his machete, he still had yet to figure out a proper weak spot. He couldn't get a good visual from where he was at.

Because of the blind spots around him, he failed to notice the Terrafirma was raising its fist, ready to smash Elfric into a pancake. But suddenly, a shrill rang out, and the Terrafirma roared in pain again, as an arrow had connected with the diamond-shaped stone on its forehead. Elfric managed to cut one limb completely apart and the Terrafirma lost balance, falling backwards to the earth with a mighty slam. Elfric quickly glanced around, and noticed the Jollin was riding Haluk around the edge of the battlefield, with his Scavenged Bow in her paws.

"Dead center," the Jollin smirked. "Elfric! Aim for that gem on its forehead!"

How did she know his name already? He'd answer that later, as Elfric quickly looked back to the fallen beast. It was struggling to get back up what with its one foot completely rendered useless. This was his chance to end it all. His machete in his mouth, Elfric climbed as fast as he could and raced to the beast's head. Sure enough, there was the arrow sticking out from the diamond-shaped stone. It had left a giant crack. Elfric gripped his machete tight in his paws now, and raised the blade as high as he could reach. With a bellow, he stabbed the sword directly into the stone, letting the flames engulf the area around him. However, because he was strong enough to wield this weapon, it could never burn him. The same could not be said for the beast though, as the flames and magma incinerated deep down into its skull. It roared horribly, trying to sit back up, but in seconds, it was over. The beast was killed, and it crashed back to the ground, a soulless pile of rocks and tree roots. The air stilled once more.

"Alright! We did it!" the Jollin cheered as she rode Haluk over to Elfric. She pulled his mane back to make him stop, and she dismounted rather ungracefully, stumbling as she hit the ground. Her legs were tired from having gripped Haluk's sides to keep from falling while he had galloped.

"Who are you?" Elfric questioned her as he tilted his head in amusement. She readjusted her glasses on her face as she regained her balance on her feet.

"Hi, I'm Hanji! That was the most exciting fight I've ever been involved with! You were amazing," she complimented. "Your Neela, Haluk, is also a very good boy," she said as she stroked the Neela's mane affectionately. Haluk's eyes were soft, clearly he was melting into the touch.

"You...how do you know his name? and mine to for that matter," Elfric asked, his ears perking up.

"Oh he told me! He told me his name, your name, and about the bow and arrows in your saddlepack," she explained as she continued to pet Haluk, moving onto gently rubbing his velvet-like nose. Haluk wagged his tail happily.

"You can understand him? His language?? But how?!"

"I can tell you later. Right now, we might want to seek some shelter. It's going to rain again," as the Jollin pointed up to the sky. Dark clouds were blocking the sun again.

"Come on then, let's go towards the trees. There's a big old magnolia tree that will keep us dry."

She nodded in agreement and hopped back onto Haluk. Elfric packed his machete away quickly, as sure enough, the rain began to drip-drop on them. As they headed for the magnolia tree on the other side of the hill, the rain intensified and now it was a downpour. They were all soaked by the time they reached the tree, its giant leaves shielding them from the torrential rain.

Elfric shook the water from his fur. Hanji and Haluk did as well, and unfortunately because they were standing right beside him, he was completely covered again in rainwater. He sighed and shook himself free of water once more.

"Whew! Nothing like a good shower after that!" Hanji commented as she wiped the water droplets from the lenses of her glasses. Elfric watched her curiously.

"What were you doing out here anyways? You're lucky we were around, you were nearly crushed," Elfric chided. She didn't answer right away. Haluk grabbed a few leaves of the tree and munched on them. "Haluk those might be poisonous..." Elfric pointed out to the Neela.

Hanji put her glasses back on. "Oh no, he's fine. Magnolia tree leaves aren't toxic to Neelas. Now if it were an oak tree, that'd be a different story most likely!"

"Are you going to answer my question?"

"Oh right, I was out here studying the flora and fauna. I'm from the Saherimos desert, and this is my first time in a deciduous area. That monster rudely interrupted me while I was examining amphibians in a puddle. So, I'm really grateful you were both here and also able to fight it! I have some battle skills myself, but you seem a lot stronger than me," Hanji beamed at Elfric. He blushed a little, and she laughed.

"So, then why were you guys out here? Looking for trouble as well?"

"Err no. I was...just thinking to myself. I needed to get away from my family, especially my human mother," Elfric confessed. "Hey, I'm starting to get a little chilled, let me start a fire."

"Good thinking!" Hanji agreed and then sneezed. Elfric shook his head in amusement.

He made a small fire, careful not to set everything else around him aflame. It was just enough to dry their coats out the rest of the way and keep them warm. Haluk had nestled down and Hanji relaxed against him. Elfric had never seen Haluk so clearly happy.

"So, how come you ran away from home?" Hanji asked while she stretched her arms overhead. Elfric's face soured.

"I didn't run away from home. I just...left to take a walk," he corrected.

"Sounds like running away to me."

"Well it's not! My mother would blow a gasket at that. I have to go back home soon, and face the music," he said with sadness dripping in his voice. He poked the fire with a stick. Hanji's expression softened.

"I'm sorry. You're having problems at home?"

"Yeah. My mom doesn't want me and Haluk to live out here in the wilderness. She's worried for me, and I wish she wasn't," Elfric explained as he poked at an ember. Hanji shrugged.

"Well, that's what a good mom does is worry about her children. My mom never gave a rat's ass about what I was up to and where I went most days. And out in the desert, there's lots of dangers. You've got the sandstorms that randomly happen, the coldness of night, the Manticats roaming about, ready to feast on your little body!" Hanji exaggerated the last part by curling herself up into looking like a fierce Manticat. She was raised on her hackles, her tail curled to look like the stinger of the Manticat. She swiped with a forepaw and meowed as ferociously as she could. Elfric laughed at her impression.

"You laugh, but it's true. Especially for a Jollin, it's incredibly dangerous. But luckily, I had a friend who watched my back whenever I was out there exploring," she sat back now and smiled softly to herself. Elfric took note that there was a bit of sadness behind that smile.

"You asked before how I can talk to Neelas. Well, as a kit, I got into an encounter with a bunch of desert gulls. Nasty little birds you swarm you to try and peck you to death to eat your eyeballs. True facts," she began her tale. Elfric looked at her incredulously.

"No really, those birds are so mean, and remember, I was just a tiny little kit! So of course they were gonna pick on me. But then, a young Neela colt came charging in and shielded me while he fought them off. He was a cute little buckskin, and his name was Buck. Without him, I was surely going to be bird food that day." She closed her eyes as she remembered.

"So that's how you learned the language? You just hung out with him? Do you think over time I'll be able to have conversations as clear as day with Haluk like you can?"

"Yup, most likely! And we talked a lot too. It became easy to pick up on his language and he learned mine too. We spent every day together pretty much. At least, until it was months later, when his herd had to move on," Hanji frowned. She stared into the fire now.

"Wild Neelas are nomadic. They will find a place to give birth to their foals, stay there for many months, usually until about October. Then, they leave for winter grazing areas. Usually, the herds will often return to previous places they had foaled before if it was safe. But, I never saw Buck's herd ever again," she concluded her story. A tear threatened to leave her eye and she wiped it casually away. Elfric did not say anything, waiting for Hanji to recover a bit.

"There were lots of Manticats moving into the area. It's most likely the reason why they never came back. Buck's mother, who was the lead mare of the herd, just wanted to keep her family safe," Hanji reasoned. "But it still sucks, doesn't it?"

Elfric nodded and also began to look at the fire. The flames were beginning to relax and slowly, the fire was dying. It had stopped raining at least an hour ago, and the sun had begun to set for the day.

"It does. I wish I could convince my mother Haluk and I would be alright."

Hanji looked up and met Elfric's gaze. She smiled reassuringly. "I can help, if you like."

By the time the three of them had made it back to Elfric's home, it was nearly dark. The home was illuminated with lights, and almost as if on cue, the front door opened.

"Elfric, you're home! And you had Haluk with you, oh thank goodness. And, who is this?" his mother was relieved but intrigued by Hanji. The Jollin stepped forward to shake Elfric's mother's hand. The Jollin admired the red hair dye adorning her short pixie haircut. It was spiked with hair gel, and she wore a dark shirt that had the name of some kind of band on it. 'The Legend of Zelda', wonder what kind of music that was.

"Glad to meet you, Elfric's mom. Not often I get to meet an Earth human who lives here on Subeta." Hanji casually strolled into the house as if she lived there too. Talia and Skits were watching TV while sitting on the couch, but Talia quickly muted the device.

"Oh! Elfric brought home a girl!" Talia, a blue and white wolf with a spitz-like curled tail, squealed with delight. Skits, who was a mute mottled color of brown, black orange and white, tilted his head confusedly. Elfric glared at his sister as he walked in. Haluk had gone around to the small stable to get some rest.

"Stop that! Quit saying dumb things like that," Elfric went over to cuff her behind the ear but she dodged it, laughing.

"Ooo you gotta be quicker than that!" she teased.

"Alright Talia, you and Skits go upstairs for a minute. I need to talk to Elfric and his guest privately," Elfric's mother pointed to the stairs. Begrudgingly, Talia left with Skits in tow, the latter who was still very confused at what was going on. Elfric and Hanji sat on the blue couch now while his mother turned off the television. She sat in an armchair that had been used as a scratching post for a minion most likely.

"You may call me Fenix. And you are?"

"Oh I'm Hanji, I'm the Jollin your brave son and steed had rescued today. It was an incredibly glorious fight! You see, there was this Terrafirma, a monster made of stone and vegetation, and it was attacking me and your boys came to my rescue when the beast was about to make me as flat as a Frisbee!" Hanji excitedly narrated. Elfric rested his chin in his paw and refused to look at his mother. He was still angry about their fight from earlier, and he was certain Hanji's recount of the scenario this afternoon would surely end his battling career. She had a little too much enthusiasm in her recount of the events.

But Fenix simply watched Hanji, stunned in silence.

"And then Elfric drove his sword right into the monster's weak spot on its forehead, and with that, the fight was over! It was exhilarating, but oh you had to be there to see it all. And my legs are still barking from all that galloping around. I haven't been on a Neela in years!" Hanji laughed as she rubbed a sore spot on her right leg.

"I. I don't know what to say," Fenix stammered. She looked to Elfric who was still avoiding everything. "Elfric, you saved this Jollin's life," she acknowledged. He finally looked over with an eyebrow raised curiously.

"Yes he did! Your son and Neela are both incredibly brave. In fact, I have a favor to ask. I owe them my life, and as such, I wanted to ask, if you could let them travel with me?" Hanji proposed. Elfric held his breath. Fenix did not respond right away. She opened her mouth and then closed it again, akin to a fish out of water.

"Please mom? Hanji is a researcher. She will need protection from the monsters that wander around out there. Haluk and I would be careful," he pleaded to his mother.

Fenix sighed sadly.

"I guess I can't keep you home forever, can I?" she finally said.

"For what it's worth, ma'am, I am just as capable of a battler as your boys, so even if they got into trouble, I'd bail them out too," she poked Elfric in the rib jokingly. He ignored it as he searched his mother's face. She closed her eyes for a few seconds then opened them again. They were full of sadness, but also pride.

"It's just so hard to let my first child go out into the world like this. But, it isn't fair to keep you cooped up here. So...I'm willing to let you go out on your own, Elfric. With one condition," Fenix raised a finger up. "You must send me letters as often as you can to let me know how you're doing. Your little Arctic Chirrup needs the work out anyways."

She pointed to Jasper, Elfric's little long-tailed, white, snow leopard-like bird, who was resting in a tiny bed by the fireplace. He had certainly gotten more rotund in the past year, opting to sleep most hours of the day. Jasper opened a bleary eye long enough to look at everyone, hissing indignantly, before going back to sleep. The three of them laughed in amusement.

"You know I will, Mom. And we'll come visit when we can!" Elfric smiled earnestly from ear to ear. "Just don't be giving my room to Talia, you know she's been wanting to move into it cause my room is bigger than hers."

"I heard that!" Talia's voice echoed from the top of the stairs. Skits covered her mouth with his white paw, worried.

"Don't worry, she's not moving rooms at all," Fenix spoke loudly enough, and Elfric could hear Talia grumble out an "Aww man". He shook his head, still smiling.

"Well! That's settled then! We'll spend the night, and head out in the morning. How about I go inform Haluk of the plans? Okay? Okay, be right backkkk," Hanji sing-songed and casually excused herself from the living room. That fox is certainly sly, Elfric thought.

"Mom, are you really going to be okay with this? Hanji told me, it's okay for mothers to worry. I just...don't want you to worry too much," Elfric quietly said. Tears welled up in Fenix's eyes, as did in his, and they embraced into a hug.

"I'm always going to worry, but you're right. Worrying too much isn't good for me. And I will learn to stop doing that so much. So yes, it will be okay. I will be okay, because I know you and Haluk will be okay," she lovingly told her son, and he deepened his hug.

Hanji looked from outside through the window, and beamed proudly. Satisfied with the outcome, she waltzed off to Haluk's stable, hoping he hadn't been in too deep of a sleep yet. She was ecstatic to tell him the news, of the beginning of their new adventures together.

And the beginning of a new guild.