It was time. Ace double checked that he had all his belongings zipped up in the oversized bag latched onto his back before leaving the inn he was staying at. Surprisingly enough, the knight hasn't paid much in this old fashioned fancy inn. It barely sat on the borders of Era which is probably what made it cheaper than the rest. The gas mage had no problems walking over half an hour into town for the most of his stay, and he definitely wasn't complaining now as it spewed him out just at the gate of Era, on the path to Magnolia town; which he was headed.

The young dark skinned mage was fed up with the trouble he'd faced in Era. It all happened in a flash and he was rendered unconscious with the hazy memory of what happened last. He remembers the silver haired dragon slayer as well as the lightning mage, and he definitely remembers fighting to keep Theseus locked up... It was tough adjusting to what happened as he still carried the wounds from that day. His superiors at the headquarters investigated with him to gather as much information as possible, but that was just about it. He was compensated with jewels for his bravery. Ace was sickened... He had done that with sole motive of the better good for everyone, not expecting a reward. With time Ace came to accept the compensation and moved on to a new start. It was time for a new chapter. It was time to get better and chase that goal of mastering his magic.

He started his 24 hour journey with a long narrow road swerving up and down the vast grass coated hills that bordered the town. A few hours into his travel, Ace was completely engrossed with his book, not even looking down at the plain rocky road ahead of him. His peripheral vision vaguely guided him on the straight path under the huge trees. What once was a huge vast field now seemed to look more like a forest of trees, but how was he to notice. Then suddenly, a series of howls interrupted his peaceful train of thought. The gas mage lowered the book down as he slowed his pace a bit. His eyes peeked over the pages to his left. He saw nature playing its part unfair as ever. A mother canine protecting her offspring, only barely able to stand up. She howled at the pack of wolves that stood before her unmercifully. It was the first time the twelve year old has seen such a thing happen right before his eyes, but it wasn't that different at all with kids being bullied at his school. It was a mere second before the wolves tackled the orange furred dog. Ace's flashback burnt right before his dark eyes as he witnessed the mother struggling. The baby canine peeked Ace's attention as it rammed it's fragile body against the much bigger wolves. Insignificant physical damage was done, but it did move Ace emotionally enough to make him dash in attempt of helping the growlithe-species. The mother was on the ground bleeding out as her baby stood before her and in front of the wolves. It was truly special watching something like this. The baby was sacrificing it's life for the mother. It was intuitive yet still staggering.

Ace hadn't stopped for a second. He kept dashing from the side towards the wolves. If there was any chance to save the mother then there was definitely no time to be wasted. He formed a layer of chlorine beneath his feet as he ran and it mixed wth the surrounding gases while rushing forwards awaiting a signal from its caster to erupt upwards. A flick of Ace's wrist followed a quick eruption of the toxic gas. It burnt through all three of the wolves' skin and managed to knock two of them down as well. Ace wasn't concerned about the wolves at the moment. Broken bones or not they had to limp their way back to escape. The young dark skinned boy turned towards the mother. The baby was on top of her licking her cheek. Ace slowly approached the injured canine but was interrupted by the brave roaring of it's baby. The baby's howl was breaking up badly as he stood between him and the mother still protecting her from any harm. Ace hung his arms up to indicate that he's here to do them no harm.

"Here here... I'm here to help"

He whispered as he still made his way to the two. The baby canine grew more and more quiet as Ace got closer. He stopped howling and watched Ace as he inspected his mother. The gas mage felt it. Her cold body was laying on the floor. A pile of blood still dripping down from her wounds. She was gone... He turned his head back to the baby canine very slowly. With an angered sad look stuck to his face the rune knight stared into the baby's eyes as they streamed with tears.

"I'm sorry..."

He didn't even have the guts to say it out loud. One teardrop made it's way down his smooth dark skin before he quickly wiped it at the corner of his chin. His hands were still layered in the mother's blood as he hugged the young orange furred canine. They buried the mother's body next to the tree where she passed away. He then planted a large stone at the top of the grave before glancing over at the young canine still standing tall next to him. He petted the young creature then looked back at the grave for a brief second as he walked away.

He could hear the tiny footsteps of the young canine behind him not stopping no matter how far he went. Ace turned back, "Your home's over there. Go now". The young growlithe just looked at Ace with a returned serious face. Ace tried leaving once more but the growlithe followed after him again with light tapping of it's little paws on the ground. "So it's like that huh?" he jokingly stated as he glimpsed back at the dog. "You'll have to carry your own weight though, yeah?". Ace petted the baby growlithe softly and watched him roll over next to him.

"What a playful little thing. You sure did know how to stand up for your ma though, and that was brave... You looked like a lion protecting his own out there... Like a King"

"King... I'll call you Anax. That's what a tribal king is called in Greek, so you better live up to that name, aight?"

"Now come on, we've got to show you what Magnolia looks like"

Ace walked off with Anax next to him. It was his first time holding the responsibility of someone else fully. His mother was gone, now Anax has nothing but This twelve year old mage.