A Flawed Alliance

Chapter 3- The Threshold

The night rush of air prickled my face as Sean shut the door. Crescent was right behind me, barking madly and snapping at my feet. My mom and Lien stood a little ways behind.

Sean motioned me outside. "That's the signal. Where's your suitcase?"

I widened my eyes and decided to search the kitchen for my suitcase, but I didn't go far. Crescent had already brought my suitcase for me and was waiting for me to pick it up.

"Go to the park," my mom beckoned. "Your instructors will be there. Train well okay?"

"Yeah," I nodded, instantly diving into my mom's arms for a hug. "Take care of Crescent for me, will you? Oh, and say hi to dad for me! Bye mom."

I stayed encased in my mom's arms until she had to push me away from her. There was a soft pat to my head before my mom grabbed Crescent's collar and pulled him closer to her. Lien stood next to her with her blue jay, looking at Sean and me with a sense of understanding. "Bye Lien," I said.

She replied back, "Bye. See ya Sean."

"See you."

Both Sean and I ran from the door and to the open, past some houses and into the park's cover of the trees. Once we saw some light from the canopies of the trees above, we stopped and took a short break. Sean kept on running soon after that and weakness devoured me as I released all of my strength to follow him.

The night was pitch black save for tiny stars way up in the sky. I fumbled through the trees, trying in vain to keep up with Sean's long legs. My boots squished through mud as the park's sprinklers erupted. In the distance, I could see shadowy figures huddled together at the edge of the park.

As we got closer, I saw a small man holding up a sign reading Marine Auxiliaries. I pointed to the sign and declared, "Sean, that's yours."

He looked at me, not sure whether to wait until my group showed up or to go ahead with his own. I kept pointing until he ran off and disappeared with the throng.

I breathed out. My vision blurred as I tread through wet grass, my lavender off-the-shoulder top almost sheer with the water and my black belt and straps tapping harshly against my thighs. I raced deeper in the park until I saw another group. This time I could see a man with light skin, holding up a sign that read Mythical Creature Auxiliaries. I tried to blend in with the crowd, slinking myself behind a girl who was a head taller than me.

A voice echoed across the park. It seemed that I had arrived just in time. "Welcome to your Mythical Creature Auxiliary cohort. I am Aaron Wright, your new guide throughout your training with your animals. If you have any questions, you will be asking me."

I ducked a little under another man's arm to get a better look at my instructor. The first thing that caught my eye was his haircut, chiseled and cut right to the head where there were only hair stubs. The brown in his eyes glowed a warm golden tone as the streetlights reflected off of them. But the gold was there only for a moment. The second I saw it, it was gone, returning to a dull brown.

He had no animal next to him. I expected him to have a dragon, or some kind of strange mythical creature next to him, but none. My teacher had no animal. How could a teacher without his own animal be able to teach others?

Despite his looks, his voice was surprisingly deep and warm, as if his lectures were intellectual and inspiring. He clapped his hands once and then brought his hands to his side. "I'm sure the siren was a good surprise for all of you. Makes moving days easier for you, doesn't it? Besides, you all knew training was going to come. This will all be part of the process, the journey."