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Description
Word Count: 2059

Salia:
+ Pupils (4 acorns)
+ Nibblers (15 acorns + one time unlock )

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To say that Rallen usually wasn’t very enthusiastic about school would be an understatement. His mind would often wander as the teacher lectured, and his notebook would remain almost completely blank. However, that changed when either the lesson got hands on, or the Adventurer’s Guild was the one running the class like they were today. Doran Braeburn was currently giving a talk about what to do when faced with a predator, and Rallen was eating it up. His ears were shifted as far forward as they could go, his eyes were as focused as could be, and his notebook was being filled to the brim with anything Doran said. Even his vessel, Zoza, looked as intense as a living plush could be. To his left sat Jeena, who was honestly impressed with Rallen’s work ethic. After all, she usually had to help him pick up the slack in his notes once class was over, especially after the pre-algebra incident. Though considering the topic at hand, maybe it wasn’t so surprising that Rallen was so focused. The orange kit had always dreamed of joining the ranks of the Adventurer’s Guild. Meanwhile Jeena…honestly wasn’t sure where she wanted to go once she became an adult. Both the Promethean and Preservation societies were both very tempting due to their connection to the technology she loved to tinker with so much, but at the same time the Adventurer’s Guild also seemed kind of appealing. After all, Jeena would be able to get up close with any new Old World tech as soon as it was found. But the whole “fighting predators” thing didn’t seem like it was up her alley at all. Then again, she’d never actually tried fighting anything before. Rallen said it was fun, but Rallen also said that he had a “favorite crater”, so Jeena took what he had to say with a grain of salt. “Alright, kittos!” Doran’s loud voice brought the pink kit out of her thoughts, and she looked at him curiously. With all of the kits’ eyes on him, Doran drew something on the chalkboard behind him. “Now,” he put a hand on his hip and gestured to the drawing, “can anyone tell me what this is?” The class stared blankly at the drawing for a few moments, it was rather…crude to say the least. “A mutant potato?” “A messed up kibee toy?” “Oh! I know, I know!” Rallen thrust his hand in the air, “It’s a Vendetta Black!” “That’s right!” Doran flashed a thumbs up, “This here is one of the more common predators you’ll find out there, they’re clever, they’re sneaky, but they’re also solitary. And today, I’m gonna let you take one down for practice!”

  The classroom exploded into a cacophony of excited conversations as Doran left the room, presumably to fetch the Vendetta Black. One voice, of course, belonged to Rallen. “You think it’s gonna be a real Vendetta?!” The orange kit asked, eyes shining in excitement as he leaned in towards Jeena. The pink folk chuckled and shook her head, “I doubt it, a real predator wouldn’t have been able to get this far into the Grove.” Rallen huffed, “You don’t know that, for all we know there could be a secret training room full of predators!” Jeena scoffed, “Seriously, Rallen? A secret training room?” Rallen went to open his mouth, but was interrupted by a laugh to his right. The orange kit quickly turned to face another orange kit, though this one had green accents. “Sorry, sorry,” the other kit said sheepishly as she tried to stifle the rest of her laughter, “I just…really? Sorry to burst your bubble, but my sols are in the Adventurer’s Guild, there’s no room like that.” Rallen pouted and grumbled to himself, and Jeena patted his back sympathetically. “But you’re right about one thing, it would be pretty neat to have an actual predator to fight.” The other kit said with a smile. Rallen perked up right away, “Right?!” “Oh no,” Jeena said with a hint of playful sarcasm, “now there’s two of him.” The trio shared a laugh at that, and introduced each other. The green and orange kit was named Salia, and she was planning on going into the Circle of the Moon when she grew up. “The Circle of the Moon?” Rallen rose an eyebrow upon hearing that, “But this is a fighting class. What are you doing here?” Salia puffed out her chest, “Some of those honeyhops get vicious, you know! Besides, my lune is a gravekeeper, and I wanna follow in her footsteps!” “A gravekeeper?!” Jeena and Rallen gaped, it wasn’t every day that you ran into the child of a gravekeeper, or a kit that so openly wanted to be one for that matter. But despite the shock, they weren’t put off by the revelation at all, in fact, they both found it interesting. The trio’s own conversations soon blended into the rest, at least until Doran burst back into the room. “Alright, everyone, settle down! It’s time to begin the demonstration!” The room went dead silent as Doran dragged someone into the room with him. It was definitely another folk that Doran brought with him, but no one could really tell who it was on account of the poorly made Vendetta Black costume they were wearing. “A good defensive tactic when you’re out exploring is to travel in groups, most predators wouldn’t try going after a well-equipped squad unless they were starving and desperate,” Doran explained as he turned to the fake Vendetta, “so, let’s say you found a predator like this one while out and about.” Doran smirked, and the costumed folk beside him started to look nervous. “See that flag?” The dusty folk asked as he gestured to an orange flag around the fake Vendetta’s waist, “What I want you to do is take down our Vendetta Black here, and claim that flag as a prize. He can’t stop you all!” “W-Wait, Doran! This isn’t funny, I-!” “Go get ‘em!”

  Doran barely finished saying “go” before Rallen launched himself out of his desk, followed by Zoza scrambling after him. Jeena ran from her desk mere seconds after her best friend and his vessel, calling after the orange kit as he blindly charged into battle. “Rallen, wait!” Before she knew it, Jeena had caught up with Rallen, and found herself getting into a battle stance almost instinctively. Shortly after, a blur of orange and green joined the fray, “You’re not gonna leave me out of this, right?” Salia asked with a smirk and a brief flash of her teeth. “The more the merrier, I’d say!” Rallen grinned, then faced his opponent and puffed out his chest. “Alright, Vendetta Black, we’re gonna take you down and keep the Grove safe!” The orange and grey kit proclaimed, pointing a clawed finger at the other folk as he did so. Meanwhile, the costumed folk put up his sock covered hands in a placating gesture, “H-Hey, come on now, kittos! You know I’m not really a Vendetta Black, right? Why don’t you just go back to your desks and let me get outta this stupid costume?” The fake Vendetta pleaded as the kits’ gazes bored into him. Rallen hummed in thought, “You know, if you were anything else, I might’ve believed you,” he then got into a fighting stance and bared his teeth, “but everyone knows Vendetta Blacks can talk and make plans!” “Crap, you learned that already?!” The costumed folk took a step back, but Rallen thrust a clawed digit forward and shouted, “Iku ze, Zoza! Get ‘em!” In response, Zoza leapt at the older folk and latched onto their leg as tightly as he could. As the costumed folk tried to kick the vessel off, Rallen pounced. The orange kit dug his claws into the older folk’s potato sack costume and held on tight. “Jeena, Salia, help me out here!” Rallen shouted as he felt a sock-covered hand try to pry him off. Without a second thought, Salia darted behind the older folk and chomped on their tail. “Ack!” The fake Vendetta yelped in pain as they thrashed about in an attempt to dislodge their unwanted passengers. As all this was happening, Jeena saw an opportunity. The pink kit charged forward, ducking under Zoza as the Vessel was finally dislodged, and ramming into a sock-covered leg. “W-Woah!” The costumed folk wobbled slightly as Jeena slid to the side, grabbing onto the potato sack with her teeth as she did so. With the fake predator sufficiently distracted, Rallen began to climb up his foe, pausing to perch on their shoulder. The orange kit glanced to the side, “Zoza!” He called out, and the vessel came running. This time, the plush creature pounced on the costumed folk’s tail, further distracting them. Meanwhile, Jeena tugged hard on the potato sack, trying to throw the other folk off balance. When she realized that wasn’t working, she took to running around their legs, nipping and swatting at their ankles as they awkwardly tried to step around her. Finally, everything was in place. Salia and Zoza gave the long tail one final tug, Jeena slammed her tiny body into the sock-covered legs, and Rallen made a jump for the flag. “A-Aaaaah!” A shout of surprise, followed by two thuds echoed throughout the room. A brief moment of silence followed, until Rallen stood up suddenly, grasping something bright orange in his hand. “I got it!”

  After that, other kits took their turns with the fake Vendetta, each group trying their luck with different strategies. Rallen watched intently, taking notes on what everyone was doing, right up until the bell rang, signaling the end of class. “Aww, already?” He pouted, but gathered up his materials regardless. He then turned to his best friend, who looked to be in deep thought, “Jeena?” Rallen nudged her gently, “You good?” The pink kit abruptly startled out of her thoughts, “O-Oh, yeah, I’m fine. I’ve just…got a lot to think about.” Truth be told, Jeena had enjoyed going toe to toe with the fake Vendetta Black, more than she thought she would. It was…a weird feeling to say the least. Rallen raised a brow, “You’re always thinking, though.” Jeena just chuckled and shook her head. Shortly after, Salia came to join them, chattering excitedly about what happened in class that day. As the trio talked animatedly to each other, another folk entered the room without their notice. “Salia,” a gentle, yet gruff voice said, getting the group’s attention, “it’s time to go home.” An older, grey-furred folk with a heavy brow stood before them with a barely there smile. Salia grinned happily, “Papa Grant!” she squealed as she flung herself into the folk’s arms without hesitation. As the grey sol embraced his daughter, Rallen stared at the scene with wide eyes. He recognized this folk. This was the same folk he’d bumped into months ago back when his first changes came in and he was looking for Jeena. Salia’s sol looked down at Rallen and Jeena, “Are these friends of yours, Salia?” He asked, getting a nod from his daughter. Grant chuckled, “I see,” he smiled at Rallen, “and as for you, you haven’t had any more collisions, have you?” Rallen rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, “N-No sir!” “Wait, papa, you know Rallen?” Salia looked up at her sol in confusion. “I wouldn’t say I know him, but we bumped into each other in the halls once,” Grant then looked at Jeena, “and I’m assuming you’re the ‘Jeena’ he was looking for that day?” A look of surprise came over the pink kit’s face, “Y-Yes. Sorry if he bothered you at all.” “It’s quite alright, he didn’t bother me at all.” Grant just chuckled, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to take Salia home now.” “Bye, Rallen! Bye, Jeena!” Salia waved as Grant carried her out of the classroom, leaving Rallen and Jeena to stare after them. “We should probably get going too.” Jeena said, nudging her friend towards the door as she did so. “R-Right. Say, Jeena,” Rallen’s voice took on a questioning tone as he walked out with the pink kit, “since Mr. Grant is in the Adventurer’s Guild, you think I’ll see him a lot when I join?” “Who knows, Rallen? Who knows?”

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Acorns: 25/371

Description
Word Count: 2059

Salia:
+ Pupils (4 acorns)
+ Nibblers (15 acorns + one time unlock )

========================================================
To say that Rallen usually wasn’t very enthusiastic about school would be an understatement. His mind would often wander as the teacher lectured, and his notebook would remain almost completely blank. However, that changed when either the lesson got hands on, or the Adventurer’s Guild was the one running the class like they were today. Doran Braeburn was currently giving a talk about what to do when faced with a predator, and Rallen was eating it up. His ears were shifted as far forward as they could go, his eyes were as focused as could be, and his notebook was being filled to the brim with anything Doran said. Even his vessel, Zoza, looked as intense as a living plush could be. To his left sat Jeena, who was honestly impressed with Rallen’s work ethic. After all, she usually had to help him pick up the slack in his notes once class was over, especially after the pre-algebra incident. Though considering the topic at hand, maybe it wasn’t so surprising that Rallen was so focused. The orange kit had always dreamed of joining the ranks of the Adventurer’s Guild. Meanwhile Jeena…honestly wasn’t sure where she wanted to go once she became an adult. Both the Promethean and Preservation societies were both very tempting due to their connection to the technology she loved to tinker with so much, but at the same time the Adventurer’s Guild also seemed kind of appealing. After all, Jeena would be able to get up close with any new Old World tech as soon as it was found. But the whole “fighting predators” thing didn’t seem like it was up her alley at all. Then again, she’d never actually tried fighting anything before. Rallen said it was fun, but Rallen also said that he had a “favorite crater”, so Jeena took what he had to say with a grain of salt. “Alright, kittos!” Doran’s loud voice brought the pink kit out of her thoughts, and she looked at him curiously. With all of the kits’ eyes on him, Doran drew something on the chalkboard behind him. “Now,” he put a hand on his hip and gestured to the drawing, “can anyone tell me what this is?” The class stared blankly at the drawing for a few moments, it was rather…crude to say the least. “A mutant potato?” “A messed up kibee toy?” “Oh! I know, I know!” Rallen thrust his hand in the air, “It’s a Vendetta Black!” “That’s right!” Doran flashed a thumbs up, “This here is one of the more common predators you’ll find out there, they’re clever, they’re sneaky, but they’re also solitary. And today, I’m gonna let you take one down for practice!”

  The classroom exploded into a cacophony of excited conversations as Doran left the room, presumably to fetch the Vendetta Black. One voice, of course, belonged to Rallen. “You think it’s gonna be a real Vendetta?!” The orange kit asked, eyes shining in excitement as he leaned in towards Jeena. The pink folk chuckled and shook her head, “I doubt it, a real predator wouldn’t have been able to get this far into the Grove.” Rallen huffed, “You don’t know that, for all we know there could be a secret training room full of predators!” Jeena scoffed, “Seriously, Rallen? A secret training room?” Rallen went to open his mouth, but was interrupted by a laugh to his right. The orange kit quickly turned to face another orange kit, though this one had green accents. “Sorry, sorry,” the other kit said sheepishly as she tried to stifle the rest of her laughter, “I just…really? Sorry to burst your bubble, but my sols are in the Adventurer’s Guild, there’s no room like that.” Rallen pouted and grumbled to himself, and Jeena patted his back sympathetically. “But you’re right about one thing, it would be pretty neat to have an actual predator to fight.” The other kit said with a smile. Rallen perked up right away, “Right?!” “Oh no,” Jeena said with a hint of playful sarcasm, “now there’s two of him.” The trio shared a laugh at that, and introduced each other. The green and orange kit was named Salia, and she was planning on going into the Circle of the Moon when she grew up. “The Circle of the Moon?” Rallen rose an eyebrow upon hearing that, “But this is a fighting class. What are you doing here?” Salia puffed out her chest, “Some of those honeyhops get vicious, you know! Besides, my lune is a gravekeeper, and I wanna follow in her footsteps!” “A gravekeeper?!” Jeena and Rallen gaped, it wasn’t every day that you ran into the child of a gravekeeper, or a kit that so openly wanted to be one for that matter. But despite the shock, they weren’t put off by the revelation at all, in fact, they both found it interesting. The trio’s own conversations soon blended into the rest, at least until Doran burst back into the room. “Alright, everyone, settle down! It’s time to begin the demonstration!” The room went dead silent as Doran dragged someone into the room with him. It was definitely another folk that Doran brought with him, but no one could really tell who it was on account of the poorly made Vendetta Black costume they were wearing. “A good defensive tactic when you’re out exploring is to travel in groups, most predators wouldn’t try going after a well-equipped squad unless they were starving and desperate,” Doran explained as he turned to the fake Vendetta, “so, let’s say you found a predator like this one while out and about.” Doran smirked, and the costumed folk beside him started to look nervous. “See that flag?” The dusty folk asked as he gestured to an orange flag around the fake Vendetta’s waist, “What I want you to do is take down our Vendetta Black here, and claim that flag as a prize. He can’t stop you all!” “W-Wait, Doran! This isn’t funny, I-!” “Go get ‘em!”

  Doran barely finished saying “go” before Rallen launched himself out of his desk, followed by Zoza scrambling after him. Jeena ran from her desk mere seconds after her best friend and his vessel, calling after the orange kit as he blindly charged into battle. “Rallen, wait!” Before she knew it, Jeena had caught up with Rallen, and found herself getting into a battle stance almost instinctively. Shortly after, a blur of orange and green joined the fray, “You’re not gonna leave me out of this, right?” Salia asked with a smirk and a brief flash of her teeth. “The more the merrier, I’d say!” Rallen grinned, then faced his opponent and puffed out his chest. “Alright, Vendetta Black, we’re gonna take you down and keep the Grove safe!” The orange and grey kit proclaimed, pointing a clawed finger at the other folk as he did so. Meanwhile, the costumed folk put up his sock covered hands in a placating gesture, “H-Hey, come on now, kittos! You know I’m not really a Vendetta Black, right? Why don’t you just go back to your desks and let me get outta this stupid costume?” The fake Vendetta pleaded as the kits’ gazes bored into him. Rallen hummed in thought, “You know, if you were anything else, I might’ve believed you,” he then got into a fighting stance and bared his teeth, “but everyone knows Vendetta Blacks can talk and make plans!” “Crap, you learned that already?!” The costumed folk took a step back, but Rallen thrust a clawed digit forward and shouted, “Iku ze, Zoza! Get ‘em!” In response, Zoza leapt at the older folk and latched onto their leg as tightly as he could. As the costumed folk tried to kick the vessel off, Rallen pounced. The orange kit dug his claws into the older folk’s potato sack costume and held on tight. “Jeena, Salia, help me out here!” Rallen shouted as he felt a sock-covered hand try to pry him off. Without a second thought, Salia darted behind the older folk and chomped on their tail. “Ack!” The fake Vendetta yelped in pain as they thrashed about in an attempt to dislodge their unwanted passengers. As all this was happening, Jeena saw an opportunity. The pink kit charged forward, ducking under Zoza as the Vessel was finally dislodged, and ramming into a sock-covered leg. “W-Woah!” The costumed folk wobbled slightly as Jeena slid to the side, grabbing onto the potato sack with her teeth as she did so. With the fake predator sufficiently distracted, Rallen began to climb up his foe, pausing to perch on their shoulder. The orange kit glanced to the side, “Zoza!” He called out, and the vessel came running. This time, the plush creature pounced on the costumed folk’s tail, further distracting them. Meanwhile, Jeena tugged hard on the potato sack, trying to throw the other folk off balance. When she realized that wasn’t working, she took to running around their legs, nipping and swatting at their ankles as they awkwardly tried to step around her. Finally, everything was in place. Salia and Zoza gave the long tail one final tug, Jeena slammed her tiny body into the sock-covered legs, and Rallen made a jump for the flag. “A-Aaaaah!” A shout of surprise, followed by two thuds echoed throughout the room. A brief moment of silence followed, until Rallen stood up suddenly, grasping something bright orange in his hand. “I got it!”

  After that, other kits took their turns with the fake Vendetta, each group trying their luck with different strategies. Rallen watched intently, taking notes on what everyone was doing, right up until the bell rang, signaling the end of class. “Aww, already?” He pouted, but gathered up his materials regardless. He then turned to his best friend, who looked to be in deep thought, “Jeena?” Rallen nudged her gently, “You good?” The pink kit abruptly startled out of her thoughts, “O-Oh, yeah, I’m fine. I’ve just…got a lot to think about.” Truth be told, Jeena had enjoyed going toe to toe with the fake Vendetta Black, more than she thought she would. It was…a weird feeling to say the least. Rallen raised a brow, “You’re always thinking, though.” Jeena just chuckled and shook her head. Shortly after, Salia came to join them, chattering excitedly about what happened in class that day. As the trio talked animatedly to each other, another folk entered the room without their notice. “Salia,” a gentle, yet gruff voice said, getting the group’s attention, “it’s time to go home.” An older, grey-furred folk with a heavy brow stood before them with a barely there smile. Salia grinned happily, “Papa Grant!” she squealed as she flung herself into the folk’s arms without hesitation. As the grey sol embraced his daughter, Rallen stared at the scene with wide eyes. He recognized this folk. This was the same folk he’d bumped into months ago back when his first changes came in and he was looking for Jeena. Salia’s sol looked down at Rallen and Jeena, “Are these friends of yours, Salia?” He asked, getting a nod from his daughter. Grant chuckled, “I see,” he smiled at Rallen, “and as for you, you haven’t had any more collisions, have you?” Rallen rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, “N-No sir!” “Wait, papa, you know Rallen?” Salia looked up at her sol in confusion. “I wouldn’t say I know him, but we bumped into each other in the halls once,” Grant then looked at Jeena, “and I’m assuming you’re the ‘Jeena’ he was looking for that day?” A look of surprise came over the pink kit’s face, “Y-Yes. Sorry if he bothered you at all.” “It’s quite alright, he didn’t bother me at all.” Grant just chuckled, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to take Salia home now.” “Bye, Rallen! Bye, Jeena!” Salia waved as Grant carried her out of the classroom, leaving Rallen and Jeena to stare after them. “We should probably get going too.” Jeena said, nudging her friend towards the door as she did so. “R-Right. Say, Jeena,” Rallen’s voice took on a questioning tone as he walked out with the pink kit, “since Mr. Grant is in the Adventurer’s Guild, you think I’ll see him a lot when I join?” “Who knows, Rallen? Who knows?”

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Acorns: 25/371