[BasilFox]

Ashenclaw

Tikal

"This is utterly ridiculous!" shouted an obviously annoyed temple hollowheart.

"You're telling me." answered a chaos serraptor.  

"Somehow I don't think we're talking about the same thing." Tikal turned to fix Ashenclaw with one large, glowing, blue eye. He looked away after a few seconds to scan his surroundings. "Ridiculous..." he repeated under his breath. At a louder tone he said, "I can't believe Basil sent me to the Tengel Rainforest! While tempest gets to search for an Akail in those wonderful crystal caverns. Unfair is what it is! tempest may fancy going on a hunt for rare creatures every once in awhile, but I'm a mapmaker!"

Ashenclaw huffed and looked at Tikal. "Tempest is a mapmaker as well. And if mapmakers are so respected why do I have to tag along with you?"

Tikal fixed his gaze of Ashenclaw once again. "Because we do not hone our fighting skills, Ashenclaw."

The pair went off deeper into the rainforest, stopping every once in awhile to record something of the map or to investigate some movement in the bushes.

[BasilFox]

It was not long before the pair came to a fork in a game trail. "Well which one should we take?" "I don't know....Perhaps we should split up and investigate both? We'll meet back here after we've gone....100 meters?" With that Tikal walked off to explore the left path, while Ashenclaw explored the right.

[BasilFox]

For a while now sounds of rustling bushes had drifted to Tikal's ears. They were definitely behind him, like something was following him. For every step he took, there was a rustle. Finally he had had enough.

"Who's there?" He whipped around expecting to see someone, but no one was there.

"SURPRISE!" A black and red figure jumped out of nowhere, startling the hollowheart. It didn't take long for Tikal to realize who it was. The laugh was enough.

"Ashenclaw, don't do that! Besides aren't you supposed to be checking the other path?"

"It was a dead end, so I decided to find you."

Without another word Tikal turned around and continued down the path until they reached a clearing. "We can stop here, do some training and then rest.

[BasilFox]

Tikal woke up from a very good nap. He turned around to find that Ashenclaw was still training. "Aren't you going to rest? I don't know how many clearings like these we will find."

The serraptor stopped biting and clawing the sturdy log. "Well aren't you going to train? It's one of the reasons we stopped."

Tikal sighed. "I'm a mapmaker. What use do I have of fighting skills? Rather I focus on my intelligence, endurance, and exploration skills."

Ashenclaw grumbled something about pansies.

[BasilFox]

The forest was now getting very dense. It was all the pair could do to see the path let alone walk it. It was now that Ashenclaw took the lead, slashing aside branches and vines with powerful jumps and slashes from his powerful back claws.

After awhile the vegetation began to clear up on the path a little {and not because Ash is a vegie murderer xD}. Tikal, once again, took out the map and drew the area they had just passed through, bewaring travelers to bring a sword or machete to cut down heavy vegetation. That done, he stowed the map in his bag and the pair set off once again.

[BasilFox]

It wasn't long before the pair exited the forest. The game trail did not go deeper, but rather led the way out. "I'm not going back in there. I think I've done enough for Basil right now." Ashenclaw started off towards home, carefully avoiding the rainforest. "I suppose that I too will go home...After all I can't go in there alone. Perhaps next time I will have a better partner." Tikal too set off, flying above Ashenclaw to make sure he didn't get into trouble on the way home.