Kalon Summer Event Drafts

[Unleashed Squiid]

Res with all of the drafts to my summer prompts.

Daily Promps: x18 = 90
(Day 14 of prompts = 3rd place) +10 c:
Tavern SQ: x3 = 15
Raffi SQ: x4 = 20
Sawyer SQ: x1 = 5
Collected lost objects, +5
Fishing, + 5
Lilith's SQ- x4 =20
Sawyer's Luck: +3 (hehe 'luck'
Chickens searching: +21

=179
-50 = UC MYO
-100 = Baby's Breath Potion
=50??? (rip bank account)

Items:
Claw edit!
Claw edit

[Unleashed Squiid]

Every quest starts with preparation! No hero goes
on a journey unequiped. That would be ridiculous.
What sorts of things are your heroes stocking?
What class are they?
What weapons and armory do they need?
How do they feel about starting this journey?

Day 1-Featuring Eden

"Right." Her mother straightened out the old, metal helmet which fit a little too loosely over Eden's ears. "You look so fierce like this. If I didn't know what a softie you were, I'd probably be afraid."

"Mom!" Eden grumbled, a little too nervous to sound annoyed. The anticipation was eating at her, but deep down in her heart she knew that she was ready to embark on this quest. The inner-adventurer had been whispering about it for weeks, yet the fear of this journey still remained, lurking in the back of her mind. "Stop it. If you want to be helpful, give me words of guidance ... you know ... tell me how not to die."

Her mother grinned, and Eden suddenly realized that she had granted her too much power. She never asked for advice, but this event was too big not to do so. "Let's see ... If you see some strange looking kalon in a dark alleyway, make sure to steer clear, but if that's not an option, remember to win the fight. I know you're good at that." She winked, and Eden rolled her eyes. Secretly though, it took everything within her not to grin as well. "Plus," her mother continued, "the sword in your belt is crisp. It's got a good blade, and I've heard legends of it fighting a far greater evil than the one you'll face."

Eden smiled. The words calmed her down. She didn't have the heart to tell her mother that this quest actually could be life threatening. It was unlikely that she would meet anything beyond her own abilities to fight. Plus, it was better to focus on something completely goofy than to focus on her fears.

Even with her mom talking, Eden's thoughts slowly drifted away, back to the haunting images in her imagination. Again, she caught herself and decided to go through a mental checklist of what she needed. Helmet, check. Breastplate, check. Poleyn and greaves, check. Glancing into the satchel, she counted even more supplies. Sword, dagger, and poison vials, check. Music box ... Music box? Why was that in there?

She looked up to see her mother paste a happy look on her face, but it was quickly overrun by sadness. "Eden, I know," she whispered. "I know you are putting your own life at risk."

Eden didn't know what to say. "Why are you so calm about this then?"

"I suppose it is the case that I know too much about you. I know that this is a dream of yours. I know that you would never forgive yourself for not going on this adventure...."

"Oh."

"I want you to play that box when you feel homesick. Just so you know that you're not alone."

Sadness held her back, but Eden refused to let her heart make the choices. There was nothing that she wouldn't be prepared for.

"Thank you, Mom," she breathed. It was time.

The two exchanged a hug before the young kalon turned and walked outside her home. Off on a journey that she would always remember. Off to a land that would forever fill her dreams. But as she walked out, the wind in her fur and hope in her heart, she heard her mother call, one last thing --

"Dear, you forgot your satchel!"

[Unleashed Squiid]

his ears snap straight, curious. "you want to help? i could use it. how
about take care of the little street gremlins? you have to convince them
out from their hidey-holes, y'know, they like to hoard pretty things. here,
take this." [he hands you an assortment of false jewelry and patterned silk].

fill out the form,
with a completed picture or story. you can choose what the
gremlins look like; story must be at least 500 words, images
must be at least colored with a background [fitting to the land] with at least minimal shading.

username; Unleashed Squid
kalons featured; Eden and Calypso

Eden jumped back. "Woah" she breathed. It was only a flash; a mere fragment of a second but the faux coin had vanished. This was definitely the right place to be. The only problem was that these gremlin were too smart for their own good.


makes calypso into a statue-covers her in gold
they're too smart to come out when someone is actually there, so she hides trojan horse style

Dropped

[Unleashed Squiid]

The path out of town forks two ways. What sort of places do they seem to lead to?
Which does your hero take, and why?

Day 2-Featuring Eden and Calypso

Eden was focusing so hard on the satchel's strap which had come undone that she didn't even realize that there was a split in the path ahead of her. Mind you, on this path, there was only right and left; there was no middle road to walk on, and no signs telling which was the correct route to travel. The kalon continued on, going straight, walking to the very edge of the stone, and then off of it, onto nothing but dirt, where the path cut off.

Calypso watched the scene taking place, and just let it unfold in front of her. Had Eden actually been in any sort of obvious danger, she would have stopped the situation immediately, but Eden's cluelessness as Calypso saw it here, was not at all harmful. It was too amusing to cut short. "Hmm" she said, waiting for her friend to realize. How long would it seriously take?

Now bored of Eden's mistake, Calypso was brought to realize that there were no signs at all out here. Surely there should have been some sort of road marker, but this passage was was barren of any identification at all. She would have to use her own intuition, or as Eden liked to call it, idiocy.

She examined the two roads carefully. Both were made of flattened cobblestone fragments. Both looked to be the same length and width, yet both curved off into the forest around them, blocking off any telling of where they lead to. The left road seemed creepier than the right, as it had an odd aroma about it; something close to, but not quite, the smell of decay. The right smelled pretty good; along the lines of the clean scent after a rainfall. But there was also something not quite right about it. Calypso couldn't put her paw on it, however something about the right passageway was just off.

She shook her head, and looked up to see Eden...or where she should have been. "Uh, Eden?" She called. When there was no response, she crept over to the edge of the path, frightened. Then, one step at a time, made her way into the wilderness...and of course, her annoying friend was there, completely fine. Calypso wasn't sure whether to be irritated or relived, but then noticed that Eden was examining a gem of some kind.

"Ah there you are, look at this." Eden said with a smile.

Examining it, Calypso's blood felt cold. This, whatever it was, proved something here was not quite right. "Come on, we need to get going."

"But it's cool, right? It came flying from the right side of the forest over ther-"

Suddenly something jumped out of the bushes-some sort of troll. Calypso screamed, and Eden stood frozen. The monster eyed them down, and began its hunt. With a sudden burst of speed, it raced forwards, directly towards where the two kalons stood. Calypso grabbed her unmoving friend, and they ran back onto the path again, only a hair ahead of the beast. But where the ran was into the middle of the path, not left nor right, as Calypso still was unsure of where to go.

"Which way? cried Eden. Calypso took a breath and decided to trust her instincts on this one.

"Left!" Calypso shouted back.

"Wait, what?! It's so eh...it's--what's that smell?"

"Go left!"

"Fine! I'm trusting you on this one!"

They raced down the road, the monster at their tails, onto the left path. Through the curves of the pine forest they ran, wondering whether their stamina or the monster's determination would give out first. Hope was beginning to dwindle, when suddenly the beast let out a cry which shook the very ground on which they were standing on. Another crash followed, and Calypso dared to turn her head and look. The beast was dead.

Silence only lasted for a moment, because as soon as Calypso and Eden had stopped running, a new voice began speaking to them. Now completely out of energy, they had no choice but to listen to his words. "Wow, ladies, that was close. It was a good choice to come down this path." The new kalon gestured towards the road they were standing on. "This here is our camp...a safe haven for travelers like you. If you had gone down the right, well, I'm sure you know what would have happened."

"Actually we don't" Eden wheezed, out of breath.

He looked a bit surprised, but then continued anyways."Well, that's the way to some big troll's cave." He paused, then examined his paws. "I thought everyone knew that."

[Unleashed Squiid]

Poor Briceus seems a little over whelmed by a stranger that has walked into the tavern! Give me a helping hand in boistering his confidence! Draw or write about your party trying to help him get the courage to talk to the stranger! In return he has promised a few goodies! If you're just really good at being a wing man maybe you'll even get a little extra!

All writing must be a minimum of 200 words
Drawing must be at least a recognizable sketch
Please only post finished quests! NO RESERVATIONS OR WIPS
Please only include the Kalons in your party [not all must be included]
All quests must be posted by roll over! [ 8 PM EST ]

Username;; Unleashed Squid
Kalons being used;;Eden and Calypso
Quest response;;

"You're going to do WHAT?!." Bri stared at the two onlookers in shock, but that wouldn't stop them. "Calypso, no! I know what you're thinking. Don't you even think about trying it. No, no no! What if she doesn't like me, it'll ruin it! Please, please don't."

"Aww, it looks like the poor guys got a little crush on someone" Calypso whispered. She suddenly felt kind of mischievous and decided to toy with him a bit. "That's cute." She looked up, expectantly and was rewarded by a scowl. It took all of her might not to break out laughing at her annoyed...friend? Sure, she could call him that. Her friend.

Eden grinned, but said nothing. She wasn't good with emotions at all, and was probably only smiling because she was thinking about lobsters or something. That, Calypso knew for sure. She surely would never smile because of a little crush, although it was possible that she would smile at the mischief in Calypso's voice. But she was getting sidetracked. Whether Briceus wanted to or not, she would set him up with that orange kalon that he was swooning over.

To her surprise, Eden seemed in on it. "What's the plan" she asked, loudly.

Calypso let out a huge sigh. At least that was better than nothing at all from Eden, although she wished that the kalon could be more subtle.

"There is no such plan!" said Briceus. It was obvious he was getting flustered. "You hear me?"

"Fine, fine" said Calypso. "If you never want to talk to that beautiful, amazing kalon, then there is no plan. I'll just go home, and you can forget this ever happened."

Bri's eyes widened. "Wait, no, I do! I really do, but she's probably thinking I'm so weird just looking, and ah! I don't know if I can do it!"

"Relax, you're fine. We can do some of the work for you. We're ladies too, after all. I know what works and what doesn't." she glanced over at Eden, who she was pretty sure was lost in thought again. "Just be confident, you know."

"I don't, actually. That's far harder said than done. I can't even get her to talk to me..."

"No, no. We can get her to do that, trust us. We've got a plan. Just say you think she looks pretty and keep your head up high. Here, try it on me."

"Uh..you look like a pumpkin...but a nice one?"

It took all of Calypso's being not to laugh. What was it with tonight that was so funny? Maybe it was that she felt bad for the poor guy. After all, he seemed to be trying hard. So why was it not working?

"Okay, well maybe you need an example." She thought for a moment, then used her best manly voice impression. "Hey, I couldn't help but notice that your dress is really pretty. That shade of blue really suits you." Calypso followed the statement with a wink. She glanced over at Eden for support, but the kalon was gone. "Oh no." Eden had gone too soon. Calypso wasn't sure if Bri was ready yet, but she knew that she had to get in place for when Eden got back. "Well, I guess training is over."

"What? No! We barely even started!"

Eden sprinted into the crowd of people, on the hunt for the pretty orange las, while Calypso, against every one of Bri's rules, walked over and put her arm around him. "Hey, Bri," she said luxuriously.

"What are you-" he snapped, but quickly realized that the orange kalon was being led over by Eden. Quietly, he hissed at her. "No, you're going to ruin it. She'll think we're-"

Calypso suddenly burst into tears. Of course, it was all going to plan so far. She could make herself cry at will. "Bri, I can't do it anymore. You're just so nice, so caring...you're so considerate of all of my emotions and all of my needs. But I am so unworthy of your overly incredible and selfless and perfect love. I have to break up with you because you are so kind to everyone where I'm just a mess. You care for me unlike any other kalon I have been with, and you are so handsome too, not like me. You're just too good for me. I'm sorry." She quickly bolted away, leaving the bar dead silent.

Not only did the orange kalon look over, but so did every other female in the room. As she ran, Calypso grinned. She looked back to see Bri awkwardly smile. She couldn't hear what he was saying, but he said something and the orange kalon laughed. Everything was fine so far. They talked again, and to her shock, she began writing down something on a napkin and then handed it to Bri. He had done it. From across the bar, the two made eye contact. She winked at him. His face was full of shock, as if he hadn't quite comprehended what had happened yet. But then he smiled. He winked back, and then turned to the orange kalon, and resumed his conversation.

Calypso sighed. That had been chaotic. Yet the pure joy in Bri's face was enough for her to call the situation a success.

[Unleashed Squiid]

Oh dear. Looks like even with thorough prep, your hero wasn't thorough enough.
They've forgotten something they need to make camp tonight.
How do they make do or improvise?

Featuring Eden and Calypso

"Hey Eden, pass the tent kit"

"Gotcha." She passed it over.

"Alright, almost done...and...it's set up! Nice!" She beamed at her new creation which stood before her. Speaking for the fact that she never had set up a tent before, Calypso was proud. It stood firmly in the group with perfectly calculated positions of each stake. They had been set up at exactly the right angle measurements from the ground to the tent's top in proportion to the length and width of each side of the fabric. It truly was an engineering masterpiece.

"Well it took you long enough," Eden said with a scowl. What was not previously mentioned was the fact that Calypso's sentence above, which was nicely laid out with three periods that separated long gaps of time, had actually taken about three hours. Now, it was dark and the two could see nothing at all. Eden waited patiently, but Calypso was still admiring her work, even though she couldn't see it. "Well, are you going to get in the tent now?" she asked.

"Yes, yes my bad. Can you pass me your sleeping bag so I can neatly put it in?"

"Mhmm..." Eden searched through her satchel, and fear began to rise in her chest. Surely it had to be in there. There was no way she could possibly have forgotten a sleeping bag, no that was impossible. But if it wasn't in her satchel, then where was it? By this point, that kalon wasn't even looking though her bag anymore, although her paws still churned around the items inside of it and her unfocused eyes still stared down at her supplies. "Ehmm, Calypso..."

"Friend, you've been searching in the same pockets over and over. I think you have to call it quits. Here, at least bring me mine. Oh, and my pillow, too. It should be in the second pocket of my leather pack..." She waited, and heard the sound of a zipper, some shuffling around, and then steps. Eden only carried her sleeping bag. That was odd.

"I couldn't find your pillow," she said, confused. "Is it possible that you could have forgotten it?"

Calypso's blood felt frozen. She remembered it in the place where she had left it, and in horror realized that it was still sitting by the door to her home, waiting to embark on an adventure which it would never go on. "Oh..."

"It's okay I wanted to sleep on the dirt tonight anyways. And I'm sure it'll be nice and comfortable to sleep with no pillow too." It took Calypso a moment to realize that was sarcasm.

"Well, what do we do? You have a pillow but no sleeping bag and I have a sleeping bag but no pillow."

"We could have it so one kalon sleeps comfortably each night..."

"Uh, no."

"Wait! I have an idea....but I don't think you're going to like it." Eden eyeballed Calypso's perfectly set up tent. Calypso looked it up and down. She refused to even think of doing such a thing. How proud she was of it's perfectly proportioned stakes and perfectly angled fabric. She had put so much time into measuring out every detail with that protractor which she had somehow remembered to bring, and not her pillow. Through the hours of work, Calypso had become attached to her creation. The kalon did not want to see all of that time put to waste, but she did have to admit that it would be more comfortable than the dirt for a pillow.

Her voice cracked as she spoke. "Tent, I'm sorry I have to do this to you. It's not you, it's me. I promise I will maybe remember you."

Eden rolled her eyes. She had spent enough time with Calypso to know that she was just stalling at this point. While the kalon gave her speech, Eden walked over to the tent and tore it down. She split off a piece of the no longer beautifully angled fabric and handed it to her melancholy friend. Not caring at all, she curled up in a ball, falling asleep to Calypso's eulogy to her poor, perfect tent.

[Unleashed Squiid]

Just when you thought things were gonna go well, right?! Well this should be an easy fix; just get the ring from the weasel! For this day draw/write about your party helping Briceus hunt down the weasel and return the ring! Please follow the same guidelines as Day One

Username;; Unleashed Squid
Kalons being used;; Eden and Calypso
Quest response;;

"Woah!" Eden jumped back "Where the heck did that come from?"

"It's a...weasel?" Calypso had seen plenty of those on her farm. They were tricky little creatures, but in the end, they seemed to be too smart for their own good. However, after careful observation, she had begun to pick up patterns of their behavior. For even though they were clever, they were fools for shiny things.

"Yeah that's what it looks like. I'm sorry, Bri, we'll get it back!"

"We will?" She really did want to help, but Calypso wasn't sure exactly how to help out with a treasure-seeking weasel. The only way she could think of was tricking it with even more gold, but getting the ring back by doing that would cost even more than replacing it. But then she saw Bri's face. It was too pitiful for her to refuse. With a sigh, she finally said, "Fine, Bri. We will try to get it back, but I can't guarantee anything. You had better remember this moment!"

Eden turned her head, and whispered something that would be just out of earshot to Bri. "I have a plan" said her friend. That at least was good. "So, weasels like gold right?"

"They like anything shiny and bright..."

"Didn't they have that big stash of fake gems in the hole next to the tavern from all of the people who try to pay with fake currency?"

"Yes..." Where was Eden going with this? Calypso could see that excited sparkle in her friend's eyes. Whatever this plan was, she was proud of it. Hopefully that meant it was good. Yet with Eden, Calypso didn't ever know what to expect. She was crazy, impulsive, and unpredictable, but those were the traits which made her a genius.

--A few hours later--

This was ridiculous. Calypso hated this plan, but somehow found herself going alone with it because she was too nice to say no. Frustrated, but compliant, she walked over to the very center of the bar, and stood very, very still. How humiliating. She hoped nobody she knew was around. This plan had better work, or else Calypso was going to be a rather cross kalon.

Eden grinned, her net in hand, waiting for the weasel to come their way. She knew that the creature would come eventually, so she stood, ready to strike at any moment. And there it was! A flash headed right towards the gem plated "statue" in the center of the bar! The sticky, glue-covered statue which may or may not have had her friend inside of it, Trojan-Horse style.

Eek! Calypso reached out her arm and stuck the weasel in the glue which was now growing tacky. The plan worked! Not only did Calypso capture the creature, which carried the golden ring, she also was looking quite fabulous. Eden made her way over to the weasel and plucked Bri's ring out of it's claws. "This isn't yours." she told it, knowing perfectly well that it could not understand her. She then slowly peeled the weasel off of the statue, making sure not to harm it at all, and, just for good measures, gave it a new piece of treasure. One of the fake crystals that was sticking out of Calypso's new armor.

"Wow, that was eventful," she said, relieved, and handed the jewelry over to Bri. "I hope you don't mind it being a little sticky. The glue will come off with water and soap."

"It's fine" he replied. "I'm honestly just glad to have it back. I know that the stranger is gone for today, but I'm sure that they will come again."

Eden smiled. "I'm sure they will."

[Unleashed Squiid]

It looks like the nasty creatures running around town have made their way into the tavern! Quick to arms adventurers, defend your resting place and the tavern from the monsters! Draw or write how your party reacts to the sudden barrage of monsters and how they get rid of them! Please follow the same guidelines from the past two prompts!

Username;; Unleashed Squid
Kalons being used;; Eden and Calypso

Quest response (1,338 words);;

"Oh."

"Oh?! Is that really all you can say right now? The tavern is being attacked, and your response: 'Oh.'"

"Well there are plenty of things I want to say, but most of them are not very ladylike." Calypso said, with a snort. "But seriously, what do we do?!"

"Uh...is that...?"

"A weasel? I thought it was okay after we gave it a fake crystal. "

"Not just a weasel, I--Ah! Duck!" Eden put her arm around Calypso and dived to the floor, bringing her friend crashing down with her.

"Watch it, my lucky watch is in my pocket."

"Shh!" The two rolled under a table in the tavern. "What do we do?" Eden hissed, making sure to be as quiet as possible, "and what are those..things?"

"I don't know, I just asked you that! I think--!" Eden's paw shot out and covered her mouth. Footsteps could be heard, echoing along the floor beside the table. They stopped for a moment, causing Calypso's heart to freeze with it. Her ears cocked every so often, moving around the room to soak in every noise, and every vibration in the room. Random shouting could be heard, and a few clanks of swords, or arrows, or other tools against armor. She stopped breathing, listening intently to the sounds around her, waiting for the steps to continue, and then go away for good. There was a faint tat, tat, tat, as the steps were drowned in the chaos, but at least that meant the creature was gone.

Eden and Calypso slowly moved so that they could observe the scene unfolding around them. To her shock, friends were paired against themselves, and monsters stood to the side, not attacking at all."That's odd, why are the kalons fighting each other?" But all of her questions were answered in a moment.

Her eyes traced over a young kalon who was shaking so badly from fear, that he was barely able to lift his sword up. Yet then came a monster, slithering slowly towards him. It stopped dead in front of him, and began to trace its evil black tail around his feet, looking the kalon straight in the eyes. The kalon let out a cry of fear, but then his face turned chilled, as if he had suddenly had cold water splashed into his face. The kalon sprang up, no longer shaking nor afraid, and began to attack, but his foe was not the monster.

"Eden, did you see that?" whispered Calypso?

Eden nodded, slowly, and Calypso could tell she was thinking hard about this one. "So they're hypnotizing them with their eyes, then. That's pretty crazy.."

"Yeah, I know. We can't look at them, then...but if we can't fight."

"Not necessarily, we just can't look into their eyes. Here, I have a plan." Eden grinned. Typically that expression would scare off Calypso. Her plans were usually crazy and reckless, but today, the kalon had never been happier to see Eden's chaotic smile. After all, a little recklessness what what the two needed right now if they were going to survive.


--Later--


"How dare you!" Calypso looked furious. "I will never do that!" In a fit of rage, she whipped out her sword.

Eden looked shocked. "Fine, do what you must." The kalon armed herself with a dagger, and just for extra measure, a vile of poison.

The two eyed each other ferociously, neither making a move. They circled, slowly drifting to the corner of the room, awfully close to a monster. Calypso lashed out, her sword only a whisker away from Eden's nose, and Eden, in return, echoed her friend's behavior with her own blade. The kalon leaped into the air, preparing for a fatal strike downwards onto Calypso, but at the last moment, turned, and instead plunged her dagger into the monster.

Immediately, the creature dissipated into smoke. Several kalons stopped fighting immediately, and looked around confused. Eden quickly explained the situation, and they all turned towards the monsters, anger in their eyes. More and more kalons slowly were freed of their trances, and began to join the two in their battle. But as soon as kalons were freed, more were frozen by the bigger and more dangerous monsters who seemed skilled in their combat.

"We're going to need more than this" cried Calypso. "This isn't going to last forever." But then an idea hit her. The weasel was the one leading this revolt, so surely he could sway the monsters again into leaving. She thought for a moment, and though it pained her, she knew what to do.

"Hey weasel!" she shouted, "I am here to talk! I--I won't hurt you."

Slowly, but surely, a face popped out of the darkness of a corner. A curious and pointy little face. Calypso sighed. "Weasel, I'm sorry we took your ring, but it wasn't yours to take. It was important to someone I care about, and I had to get it back for him..." she paused, feeling a little crazy. But somehow, the animal looked at her with understanding in its eyes.

"I know this is going to be hard for me to do, but if I give you this, I want you to call peace. To leave us alone." slowly, the kalon took her watch out of her pocket. "This is my own treasure. It is important to me. But if you leave, and take your army too, then you can have it."

The weasel stuck out it's paws, looking excited.

"Nuh, uh. You have to promise!"

It let out a squeak, which was as close as Calypso figured she would get. Reluctantly, she let the scrappy little thing take her lucky watch. It was sad, but she knew it was the right thing to do.

The little weasel bobbled away, back into its hole. Calypso waited for a while for it to come back; surely it would, right? Surely it had understood what she had asked? But with every passing moment, despair grew in her heart. It had been minutes now, at least five, and it was still gone. The monsters were still attacking the poor kalons in the tavern, and were still beginning to overpower them.

But then there was a noise accompanied by a rumble, off in the distance. Slowly it grew louder, and more violent, and Calypso began to see something off in the distance.

"What...?"

The tavern was suddenly alive again; the fighting grew ten times louder; twenty times louder, until it sounded like thunder. What had happened? Everything was so fast now that she couldn't quite see, or comprehend anything. Within moments, the monsters had been overpowered, and were now dying down at rapid rates. What in the world could have been that strong.

When Calypso finally realized, she nearly laughed. The weasel had come back after all. And with it, an entire army of weasels to help her fight. With a loud battle cry, the kalon dove into battle, now fighting with both the kalons, and her newly made allies.


--Later--


"Let's promise never to speak of that again."

"Why? The entire village practically knows by now."

"True. What do you think, Bri?" Calypso asked, her mind somewhere else. But when she looked over, her friend seemed to be in shock. He was vigorously trying to clean up the mess that the battle had made, but was failing miserably. "Oh, sorry." She turned back to Eden, who stared off into the distance as well. Calypso knew that she would probably not be able to talk to her either.

Instead, the kalon turned away and decided to walk back to her temporary home, here in town. It was only a few steps outside, when she heard a squeak, and turned to see her little weasel buddy following her, with a pretty, yet unscathed, golden watch around it's neck as some kind of necklace.

"It looks good, little friend," she said. How cute. She bent down, and pet the little creature on the head. "Oh, and by the way, thank you."

[Unleashed Squiid]

Your hero had made it through the night, despite their minor set back!
You've made it to the first crystal!
How ever did you find it?

Featuring Eden and Calypso

"No, I will most certainly not pay for that chair!"

"That would be almost all of my money, I can't spend it all on a chair, Calypso."

"Don't be ridiculous, was I the one who broke it?"

"No, but you could help a friend out." After the poor kalon paid for her mistake, she stormed out of the bar, Calypso at her heals. "Stop following me!"

"No, I know where you're going. It's not safe." She could see the sign leading out of the town up ahead. Back home, Eden had a tendency of going into the wilderness when she was upset, but in this land, Calypso knew that the wild was an unforgiving place. She couldn't let her friend go there, at least not alone. So, after Eden she traveled, figuring that, if she could not stop her, she may as well go with her. The two were a team, and that was that.

After the fifth dirty look, Eden finally had given up. She didn't want Calypso there, but figured she wasn't going to leave her alone. So, instead, the kalon did the logical thing; she ran. Calypso yelled something, but Eden didn't listen. Seriously, could she get off of her tail?

They reached the sign, and then passed it, going further and further until the village was left far behind. Calypso hadn't remembered how much stamina her friend had, but she wasn't going to give up...or maybe she would. There was no way she could run for much longer. Then suddenly, the kalon ground to a halt, as Eden suddenly flew off the ground, nearly doing a full flip in the process.

"Woah, friend, are you okay!?" She rushed over, ignoring the item in which Eden had tripped over, and checked out her friend.

"I'm fine."

"that looked painful...you sure--"

"Calypso look!" Eden's eyes were huge, and she stared at an object laying in the dirt, a few feet back. Suspiciously, it was in the same spot as where she had tripped. But then Calypso noticed something; this was no rock! This was a crystal! One of the crystals.

"Oh man..."

"We should really bring that back with us...how many chairs do you think it's worth?"

[Unleashed Squiid]

Thank goodness your hero managed to return that crystal to rights. We'll drive back this shadow plague yet. But the journey continues! Your hero is about to explore the forest.
What kind of place is this, and how do they feel about it?

Featuring Eden and Calypso

"Oh, wow. It sure is dark."

"Oh, really? I never would have noticed." Eden looked around, thoughtfully. All around her was plants and life which was shrouded by shadow. It was like she had stepped into a thick, unbreaking fog which would run until she reached the end of this path. She wasn't quite sure whether or not she liked this place, but she could say for sure that it was unsettling.

"Um, Eden...look." Calypso squinted off into the trees, at something, which, in this darkness could have been anything. What Eden saw was a small, black blob of an object which could have been a large deer or a boulder. "I'm going to check it out," she said.

Eden saw no harm in this, and decided to sit and wait until her friend returned. She, herself was not interested in this object as she wanted to study the trees instead. How interesting this forest was. It was truly unlike any forest she had been in before, even though the kalon's own home was built in a forest.

Tall, unwavering pine trees rose like skyscrapers against the pipe-cleaner clouds so many miles above her head, and she stared in awe, looking at the sky for a while. Every so often she would be rewarded by a bird fluttering by, or a moth, or a bee. But then, a noise sounded, far off in the distance, pulling Eden's attention away. "I wonder what that was," she murmured, and decided to find out. It had sounded like a sort of great shatter, as if a tree had fallen over, which was quite odd, speaking for the fact that there was no wind nor rain.

So, Eden decided to climb a thick-trunked pine tree in front of her to see what the epicenter of that sound was. Up the tree she climbed, and into the tops of the pine forest she rose. It was a beautiful and magical scene. The tops of each tree cutting off, leaving nothing but sky for miles. But then the kalon became greatly worried. For off in the distance, in the direction her friend had gone off in, trees were being rustled and cracked to the floor in large numbers. Some sort of monster was out there.

Never before had Eden sprinted so fast in her life. The kalon raced after her friend, screaming, against all logic for Calypso to stop. "Wait, no!" she called, knowing her friend was in ear distance. "Calypso?!"

"Woah!" her friend came trotting back, perfectly fine, but now confused. "What's wrong, you look like you've seen a ghost."

"I have...or something similar. There was this thing in this section of the forest, I don't know what, but it's not safe to be here!"

"Oh, are you sure? It seems pretty peaceful, I--"

Suddenly birds poured out of the forest, flapping violently in their direction, obviously flying for their lives. Eden's hairs went on end, and she jumped back, stumbled a few feet, and then bolted, Calypso at her heels. Obviously they didn't need a second warning.

The monster seemed to catch sight of them, however, and began to chase, thundering through the pine trees and terrifying the poor creatures in its wake.

"What do we do?!" screamed Calypso, but Eden already had a plan.

"The trees! Use the trees!"

"What?"

"They're dark, and we're small enough to zip in between them. This thing isn't! It can't see! Ah!" A tree crashed down beside her. "Split up!"

Indeed the kalons ran, Eden running left, and Calypso right. The monster stopped for a split second, debating, before choosing to follow Eden. Secretly though, the kalon was happy. She knew enough about forests to know how to get away. And this time was no different. She ducked behind large trunks, and zipped through fallen logs to get away. Her small body could easily turn and twist to fit through tight spaces that the monster could not, and the effort of smashing down obstacles slowed it down dramatically. In fact, after little over thirty minutes, Eden had lost it.

Now, thinking back, the kalon was sure she knew the answer to how she felt about this forest. Had that chase been anywhere else, there was no way she would have made it out unscathed. Yet because of the dark canopy of trees, and all of the trunks and rocks, she had fled safely from a great danger. This forest was awesome! And now that she thought about it, this great darkness was her friend. Here, in this darkness, she was safe.