On the ocean's distant horizon, the sun had just begun to break on a new day. A thin wisp of smoke danced in the air from the smoldering cinders of a campfire on the beach that bordered the Windshire woods. It was the campsite of Ken, Argo, and Vanessa; the last three Recruits in the Ranger Academy yet to retrieve the valuable Miracle Fruit from the trees of a nesting colony of Livid Wings.

The night before Ken had hatched a plan which he did not tell his group the full details of due to it being not only ridiculous but risky, and he refused to put his teammates in jeopardy. At first light he left the ventured into the forest and had the others wait for him on the opposing side of the inlet, which the colony was nestled in the center of, with all of their belongings. Though they agreed, Vanessa and Argo were skeptical about what Ken had concocted. Argo was especially distrusting as a result of his hidden animosity towards Ken.

After a long trek around the colony through the woods, Argo and Vanessa arrived at the opposing side of the inlet. The pair came to a rest just outside of the Livid Wings' territory and waited for Ken to return.

As they began to eat a quick breakfast of walnuts and blueberries, Argo asked, "Did he tell you any details about this plan of his?"

Vanessa was a little puzzled by this question and replied, "No, if he had told me anything different, you would know about it as well."

"I see." Argo said as he cracked open a walnut. "I just figured with the way he seems to confide in you, that maybe he might have pulled you aside while I slept."

Vanessa was starting to feel uncomfortable by these accusations but remained firm, "He confides in me no more than he confides in you. What's provoking this, Argo?"

"No reason at all, just a false observation." Argo said before he picked up his food and took a stroll down the beach to get a better view of the colony while he ate.

Vanessa remained by their belongings while she ate; watching Argo with suspicious eyes.

With the colony waking up, the Livid Wings began their usual routines of maintaining the fortitude of their nests. The males incubated the eggs while the females inspected the grass and sticks that made up the nests' structure. The sound of their fluttering calls soon filled the inlet; it was a noise that Argo was growing tired of hearing. He stood progressively throwing the walnuts and blueberries in his mouth with more frustration in every toss.

Argo's mind was continuously looping around the humiliating failure he had made to retrieve the fruit the day before. The pain of his injury was almost nonexistent on a physical level but internally he was still very sore. Over and over again, the series of events played again; staring the Livid Wing in the eye as it charged at him, the painful blow of its head-butt, then watching Ken valiantly defending him and Vanessa while he was as helpless as an infant. In his mind the pain of embarrassment far exceeded the pain of his injury.

"He can't succeed." He said in his thoughts, "He is not better than me. There's no way he can be."

Argo felt slightly guilty for thinking wrongly towards Ken after all they had been through but it was far too difficult to keep the thoughts from entering his mind.

Vanessa sat watching Argo closely; studying his state of being. She could not read his thoughts, but she had a bad feeling that she knew exactly what was on his mind. Ever since their first meeting, Vanessa had always been weary of Argo's attitude towards Ken; regardless of how well the three of them worked together. Confrontation between the various working and social classes was not an issue for most of the inhabitants of Shogun, but every now and then, there were a few individuals who would take their positions in the world with too much pride. Vanessa worried that Argo was a prime example of one of those individuals.

The sun continued its journey upwards into the sky. It was approaching noon and there was still no sign of Ken. Vanessa's worries moved from Argo's troubles to the whereabouts of the third member of their team. He had been gone for hours and to an undisclosed location. Argo was also starting to wonder where Ken was.

"Should we go look for him?" Vanessa asked.

"Where would we start?" Argo responded. "We'd waste more time trying to find him and in that time we'd either spend too much time never finding him or he'd return while we're gone. Either way would be wasting too much time."

Vanessa did not want to agree with Ken due to her suspicions but he was right. Her frustration started to become as unbearable as his.

"I knew he'd botch this up." Argo said.

"We mustn't lose faith in him yet." Vanessa said.

"We should just steal the fruit on our own and go." Argo said drawing a disgusted look from Vanessa. "The two of us should be able to get by them without trouble again. I say we just grab the fruit and go."

Before Vanessa could argue back, there was a sudden burst of commotion at the colony. The males had begun taking off for their daily hunting. Sensing another opportunity, Argo raced off into the woods to begin making his way down to the colony.

Vanessa tried to call him back but he ignored her. Though angry with his brash actions, she had no choice but to follow him. Their run through the woods eventually brought them to a large pair of trees that bordered the colony's territory.

"Are you mad?" Vanessa quietly scolded. "Have you forgotten what happened yesterday? This will not end well."

"I will not fail again." Argo said scanning the area from behind his tree. "Just you watch, I'll get this fruit and we'll be back on track to becoming Rangers."

Driven by his desire to best Ken, Argo attempted to make a run for the Miracle Fruit Trees. Vanessa foresaw Argo's charge and snatched him back by the collar, making him fall to the ground. Argo quickly scurried back to the tree and glared deeply at Vanessa.

The noise of their scuffle quickly drew the attention of the female Livid Wings. The alerted creatures were now scanning in the direction in which Vanessa and Argo were hiding. A few of them started to stand up from their nests to investigate closer.

Vanessa and Argo's pulses were steadily climbing with the prospect of their position being given away. Suddenly Vanessa noticed an odd looking figure rushing from the stream that the inlet was connected to. With the Livid Wings attention on the two trees that she and Argo were hiding behind, the figured got within the colony's territory unseen. Vanessa slowly looked around the tree, to Argo's confusion and discovered the mysterious guest's identity; Ken.

"Ken's back." She whispered excitedly.

Argo directed his attention in the direction she was looking. He was both pleased and displeased to see Ken's return, but like Vanessa was also curious as to what his plan was; more so why Ken was running in a waddling manner. Closer inspection revealed that Ken had his arms full of round objects. From the distance and angle it was hard to give an exact identification but before they could get a better view, the chillingly familiar shrieks of the Livid Wings soon filled the air. At first the pair thought they had been spotted but soon discovered it was Ken that sounded their alarms.

They watched as Ken raced from tree to tree, dropping the objects he was carrying at every one. With the colony soon dropping to the ground to chase after him, he quickly dropped the others in the center of the area and ran for the same trees which the Argo and Vanessa were hiding.

"What are you two doing here!?" He said in a panic, but did not wait for a response, "Never mind, just push further into the trees!"

The trio backed into the trees before the colony could catch up to them.

Luckily they made it far enough away from the Livid Wings that the angry creatures chose not to pursue and returned to their nests. Realizing the coast was clear, Ken had the group stop to rest.

"What in the name of the Gods were you doing!?" Argo scolded.

"You'll see soon," Ken said. "We have to go back to those trees though."

"Why?" Vanessa asked.

"You'll soon see." Ken said once again.

The group rushed back to the two trees where Vanessa and Argo were originally hiding. Much to Ken's delight the colony had all returned to their nests.

"Good." He said while cracking a slight smile. "Now we just have to wait for the signal."

"What signal?" Vanessa asked. "What's going on?"

"Start talking right now; no more shrouding this in anymore secrecy." Argo demanded.

"Listen, I did not want either one of you being put in harm’s way that's why I chose not to say anything but please have more patience." Ken said.

"No," Argo countered, "You tell us what's going on or..."

Argo was interrupted by the shrieks of the Livid Wings once more. He pressed back against the tree so hard that he hurt the back of his head.

"Good they made it!" Ken said delighted as he looked back around the tree.

"Who?" Vanessa asked.

Ken pointed out towards the colony, "Some old friends of ours."

Argo and Vanessa looked out towards the colony and saw a large number of Gold Clip Crayfish emerging from the stream and entering the colony.

"This is madness." Argo observed.

The large crustaceans charged into the colony just as the Livid Wings descended upon them. The two groups of creatures clashed and began engaging in a battle. Though the Crayfish were out maneuvered by the Livid Wings, the talons and head-butts that the winged creatures were using to fight with had no effect on the Crayfish's shells. Snapping pincers, scratching against shells, and the angry shrieks of the winged beasts echoed throughout the area. The two warring species seemed deadlocked, as neither side could gain the upper hand. As more Crayfish emerged from the stream, the odds were starting to mount against the Livid Wings.

Eventually a few unlucky Livid Wings found themselves caught in the vice grips of the Crayfish's pincers. As the rest of the colony rushed to their aid, the Crayfish were able to surround and subdue them. Argo and Vanessa watched in awe as the crustaceans began pinning all the Livid Wings to the ground one by one while Ken watched in delight; his gamble was paying off.

Once it looked like the colony was subdued, Ken said to the others, "Now's our chance! Let's go!"

The three of them raced from their hiding spot to the Miracle Fruit. Once there, as they began ripping the fruit from the branches Argo spotted the Crayfish retrieving the objects that Ken had placed at the base of the trees; the skulls that the crustacean used to lay their eggs in.

By the time the three of them were able to pull the fruit from the branches the Crayfish had a hold of all the skulls and were retreating for the stream. Ken and the others made a quick dash back to the woods then proceeded to hurry back up to where Argo and Vanessa had placed their things further up the inlet.

The Crayfish who retrieved the skulls were disappearing into the stream. Once they were gone, the ones subduing the Livid Wings released the feathered creatures and also retreated into the stream. The Livid Wings regrouped and stood their ground but the battle was over. Once all of the Crayfish were gone, the defeated creatures returned to their nests, nursing their bruised limbs.

The group returned to their supplies over joyed that they had retrieved the Miracle Fruit.

"You came through for us!" Vanessa said as she hugged Ken with the utmost gratitude, much to Argo's silent dismay.

Ken was caught off guard by Vanessa's embraced but quickly snapped out of it, "No time for rejoicing now. Let's start making our way to the mountain!"

The trio quickly gathered their things and began making their way in the direction of the mountain in the distance. Though Vanessa continued to show gratitude Argo displayed none, only excitement towards finally being on their way to the nesting site of the Blue Crows.

For the next two days the trio trekked through the wilderness and navigated through thick vegetation. Had it not been for the excitement from the prospect of completing their six weeks of survival, the journey would have been miserable for them. Invigoration kept their morale high and not dwelling on painful thoughts; with the exception of Argo.

Though Argo was excited to finish the course just as much as the others, he was quietly furious that Ken had succeeded in where he had failed. The only thing keeping his anger subdued was the hope that once the course was over he could branch away from the group through the remaining years of the cycle. There was also always the chance that Ken would not make it through to the end.

Argo may have done well to make his attitude towards Ken hidden, but his actions were starting to show signs of his inner resentment. During their journey to the mountain Vanessa had begun to notice that she was receiving assistance from her two partners but she was the only one assisting Ken. Though Ken was assisting everyone, Argo had a tendency to keep him out of his attention span whenever Ken needed assistance. Vanessa did not want to think Argo would be so low as to deliberately refuse to help, but the signs were growing increasingly unsettling.

By late afternoon on the 2nd day of their journey, the group had arrived at the base of the mountain. They could see the campfires of the other Recruits, which was a nice sign that they were making good time. With the fading light, it was decided to camp there for the night for safety reasons. Come nightfall the trio had a fire of their own going. As they sat down in front of it, they began contemplating the day ahead.

"I recommend we stash our stuff somewhere here and climb up as lightly loaded as we can." Vanessa said to which Argo and Ken agreed.

"Hopefully the Blue Crows won't be hard to find."  Argo stated. "I'm ready to be done with these six months."

"I have actually been enjoying this." Vanessa said to Argo and Ken's surprise "I've long grown bored of my family's estate. Persuading my family to let be become a Ranger was such a great move for me."

"I can understand that." Ken said. "Being trapped in one place can be rather daunting."

"Why did you join, Argo?" Vanessa asked.

"My oldest brother is a Ranger." Argo said. "I always listened to his stories whenever he visited home and it made me want to become one."

"What about you, Ken?" Vanessa asked.

Ken paused for a moment. The question had recalled the terrible day when he lost his family. Flaming wreckage, the image of his parents being flung into the blazing inferno, and the sight of the warlock disappearing with his sister; all of those moments from that dreadful day happened in his mind so clearly it was as if it were happening again.

"Ken?" Vanessa asked in concern.

For a brief moment Argo too started to feel somewhat concerned for him.

After a brief moment of staring at the campfire Ken finally answered, "It's just something I've always wanted to do."

Trying not to give in to the sympathy that Vanessa was feeling, Argo suddenly said, "Well, we best get some sleep. Good night everyone."

As Argo laid down on his sleeping mat, Ken agreed, "He is right. I'm going to get some sleep as well. Good night Vanessa."

Though her curiosity about Ken's past still annoyed her thoughts, Vanessa bid Ken a good night before retiring to her sleeping mat as well. At first trying to go to sleep was difficult for the three of them but the sounds of the various insects and calls of the creatures of the night gradually put them to sleep.

The following day the trio was making good time as they trekked up the mountain. However Argo was once again displaying troubling signs of his resentment towards Ken. Vanessa, now in need of proof that her hunch was correct, decided to go ahead of the group with Ken following last.

"Let me go first." She said before climbing up a twelve foot high rock face.

Just as she had planned, Ken was the last one to climb up. As he neared the top Vanessa went a little ways ahead so that Argo would be forced to help Ken up. Ken reached out to pull himself up while Argo once again tried to keep Ken out of his attention frame.

Disaster suddenly struck when Ken's foot slipped and he was left dangling from the ledge. Vanessa, having heard Ken's slip and him struggling to climb up, peered back and saw what she had feared. Argo did nothing to help Ken up. When it looked as though Ken was about to fall, Vanessa rushed back to help him up.

Once Vanessa had helped Ken up onto the ledge, she suddenly turned around and punched Argo in the nose.

"You cockroach!" Vanessa scolded as Argo fell back on his rear end.

"Are you mad!?" Argo said as he clutched his nose in pain.

"Oh but I am Argo Taurus!" Vanessa said. "Ever since the beach you have been neglecting to help Ken whenever he needed assistance. Is your pride really so important to you that you would refuse to assist your teammate!?"

"I don't need to help him and nor do I need to answer to you!" Argo said finally letting his anger to the surface. "That peasant has been humiliating me for the last six months!"

"Humiliating you?" Ken asked in confusion.

"Yes!" Argo shouted before pacing back and forth as he delved into a hateful ramble, "I saw the way you showed off the other day when we were attacked by those creatures, and then wanting to upstage me after my failure. It's been the same with every endeavor for the past six months! So I ask, why on earth do you feel entitled to my help, peasant!?"

Suddenly, as Argo finished his pacing along the side of the hill, the ground beneath him suddenly gave way from his weight. As the few rocks and large clumps of dirty tumbled down the mountain, Argo was left hanging onto the edge for dear life.

Without thinking Ken rushed to pull him back up. After a few moments of struggling and Vanessa coming to aid as well, they managed to pull Argo to safety. As the three sat on the ground trying to catch their breaths and their hearts pounding in their chest, Ken suddenly stood and pointed his finger authoritatively at Argo.

"You listen, and listen well." Ken said like a judge before someone on trial. "The only humiliation you have received was not my doing. You bring it upon yourself with your own desires to prove that you are better and your extreme sense of pride in the title you once had. When will you realize that title you had is no longer yours. If you continue to think you are a lord and not a Ranger then you will never achieve the goal of being like your brother."

Ken looked over and extended his hand to Vanessa. She took his invitation, and he helped her stand up.

"Now," Ken said, "You don't have to look at me as a friend or an equal. Nor do you ever have to look at me as superior to you Argo Taurus." He then extended his hand to Argo. "Can you look at me as your teammate though?"

Argo looked Ken's hand, and then up at Ken. "Why did you save me just now?"

"Because you are my teammate." Ken said "We are in this together, and we will finish it together."

Argo looked back down at Ken's hand. After a second's pause, he reached out and grabbed Ken's hand, and allowed him to help Argo up.

With everyone on the same page the group pressed further up the mountain. This time around, the team worked together without restraint or prejudice on anyone's part. With the last altercation, Ken and Vanessa had gotten through to Argo; he was looking at Ken with a more respectable view.

Eventually the group started to notice that they had yet to pass any of the other Recruits, which made them wonder if they were going the right way. That all changed after coming around a narrow path and spotting a beautiful blue bird flying overhead.

Though it looked like a normal, albeit large, bird, there was a mystical essence to it. There was no mistaking that the group was looking at one of the sacred Blue Crows.

Suddenly a strong and benevolent female voice, one which did not seem to come from any particular direction, whispered to all of them, "Stay on the path."

The three of them looked around confused and on edge.

"Do not be afraid." The voice said. "Continue on young Rangers. You will see us soon."

Once the voice disappeared Vanessa said what was on their minds, "Do you think that was the Crow?"

Argo and Ken did not know what to say.

"Let's continue one like it said," Ken finally said. "If Blue Crows are sacred then I believe they would be able to possess the ability to speak in such a way."

With Ken leading the way, the group continued on. Eventually they began to see the more solid evidence that they were growing near to the nests of the crows; the other Recruits making their return journey down the mountain. The trio quickened their pace to an almost unstoppable charge; no ledge was too narrow, no rock too high, nothing would turn them around.

By early afternoon they had reached an area of the mountain that seemed more level than the rest. Immediately they took notice at the magnificent spectacle that lay ahead; the top of the mountain was a honeycomb of Blue Crow nests. There were dozens of the beautiful blue birds.

"Our journey is almost over." Ken observed. "Let's deliver the fruit."

Ken, Vanessa, and Argo made their way up the faded path to the base of the rock which the Blue Crows were nesting. Once reaching a certain point the birds suddenly took notice of the three teen’s presence.

"Halt!" A collection of voices suddenly said, catching them by surprise.

As the three froze before the birds, which were all staring at them, they suddenly felt on edge. The numerous, soul-penetrating stares did not help either. After a few moments, the seven largest crows flew down to the base of the rock. Upon landing, the group quickly took notice the size of the birds; they were roughly a full meter tall.

Suddenly the feminine voice from before spoke, "Step forth one at a time to present your fruit young Rangers."

"I'll go first." Vanessa said, in light of the others' hesitation.

Argo and Ken watched as Vanessa stood before the Crows. She suddenly started to look around at them in a slightly erratic manner. At first she seemed panicked but started to calm down. Eventually she suddenly took in a sigh of relief and placed the fruit before her. One of the crows flew down to take the fruit. After picking it up in its peak it flew into the air; releasing a sparkling blue feather that landed down in front of Vanessa's feet.

As Vanessa returned, Argo asked with eagerness, "What just happened?"

"It's a judgement." Vanessa said. "They can speak with their thoughts and look into your soul. If they think you are worthy they will take the fruit and grant you a feather."

"A judgement?" Ken asked.

"Yes." Vanessa answered, "They look into your soul to see if you are truly worthy of becoming Rangers. If they believe you are, then they will as for you to present the Miracle Fruit and then they will offer up a feather in return."

Ken and Argo looked at each other, feeling both curious yet nervous about how they will be judged.

"Which one of you will go next?" Vanessa asked.

"I'll go." Argo said hesitantly. "I don't know how I will be judged, but I would rather get it over with than wait in suspense."

"Best of luck, Argo." Ken said.

Argo looked at Ken and for the first time since before their final task started he said, "Thank you, Ken."

As the noble-son walked up towards the Blue Crows he felt afraid; fear that his actions from before would now cost him his dream.

The walk to the stone on which Vanessa stood, was both short and traitorously long for Argo. He stood before the Blue Crows, waiting in suspense. As he looked at every one of them, he suddenly felt the fear take over his soul for the sacred creatures were not speaking.

Suddenly he heard the echo of a male voice making him jump, "There is much fear."

"Not only that but he has a lot of anger as well." Another male voice said.

"Indeed, Argo Taurus." The female voice said. "You are brave, strong, and have a strong will. Yet you are also dodged by much anger and fear."

"Please, I know that I have done wrong." Argo said with his thoughts. "I can do better. I will do better."

"You are a most difficult one to judge Master Taurus." A lighter female voice said. "You are teetering between a hateful coward and a strong destined warrior."

"Am I not worthy to be a Ranger then?" Argo's thoughts said. "Have I failed?"

"If your actions from before had persisted." The first female voice said. "You would have been labeled as a foolhardy coward. Your anger alone would make you unfit for becoming a Ranger."

"Shall I step down then?" Argo's thoughts spoke with a most somber tone.

"On the contrary." The first voice said raising his hopes. "Though you have much that could weigh you down in you journey ahead, you have one key trait which will prevent you from failing; redemption."

"You may have gotten off on the wrong foot young master Taurus." The first male voice said. "But you have recognized your faults and are slowly stepping onto a better path."

Argo felt a great feeling of joy swell up inside him as the first female voice said, "You may present your Miracle Fruit."

Much to the relief of Vanessa and Ken, they witnessed Argo place the fruit before him and he was awarded a feather from another one of the seven Crows. He returned to his teammates with a far greater feeling of relief; one which started to make him tear up. Argo thanked Vanessa and Ken with the utmost gratitude as they congratulated him.

The time had come for Ken's judgement. Though he felt less on edge having seen the success of his comrades, there was still a feeling of anxiety. Standing on the same stone that Argo and Vanessa did, it was not long before he too began hearing the voices of the Blue Crows thoughts.

"Curious." One of the male voices said. "Very curious."

"Indeed." Another one of the voices agreed. "This once has a different soul from the others."

The benevolent first voice added, "You have a rare soul young Ken Khan."

"Forgive me," Ken's thoughts said. "Why is my soul rare?"

"Unlike the other young Rangers we have seen today," The lighter female voice said. "You have the same desire to become a Ranger."

"But your desire is not just a simple dream." One of the male voices said. "You have a cause to enact justice."

"This is a both great yet dangerous trait, young Ken." The first female voice said. "To seek justice and avenge your loved ones is a righteous cause. However if you let yourself become too consumed by this desire, you could go down a darker path."

"I do not wish to go down a dark path though." Ken said in his mind. "I only want to avenge my parents and rescue my sister if I can. If I succeed in that task then I will not let it corrupt my duties as a Ranger."

"Seldom to individuals ever go down a dark path young master Khan." A male voice said. "Sometimes even the most noble of warriors can be tainted by once just causes."

"Fortunately for you, there is a vast amount of goodness in your heart." The first voice said. "Do not ever let go of that goodness you have within you Ken Khan. If you retain that good even in the darkest of moments, you will go on to become a great Ranger. You may present your Miracle Fruit."

Ken placed the Miracle Fruit before him. Unlike Vanessa and Argo, the largest of the Blue Crows flew down and stood in front of the fruit, but took a moment to look deeply into Ken's eyes.

The first voice suddenly spoke, "We, the Blue Crows, are the sacred overseers of the Windshire Forest. With such watchful eyes we have the special gift to recognize the true nature of those who come to us for judgement. It is because of your heroic qualities that I, Adonia, present unto you Ken Artemis Khan my feather. May you go on to become a great Ranger."

Adonia picked up the fruit and as she gracefully flew up into the air, one of her feathers tumbled down through the air, into Ken's hands. With the judgement of the Blue Crows over, they returned to their nests while Ken returned to his team. Before making their way back down the mountain Ken paused to look at the brilliant blue feather then back up at the nests. Adonia locked eyes with Ken one more time before the group finally departed.

Just before dusk on the last day of the task, Ares and Quint stood with Overseer Risho at the gate to Windshire Forest where the Recruits first set off on their six month survival course.

"It appears the only ones unaccounted for are Vanessa, Ken, and Argo." Quint said looking over the list of recruits.

"Hopefully they make it." Ares said. "It would be nice to have everyone who started the final task, complete it as well."

Overseer Risho looked up at that moment to the trees and spoke, "All have completed it, Ares."

Ares and Quint looked in the same direction as Risho. Emerging from the darkening shadows of the trees, were the last three recruits.

"Welcome young masters," The Overseer greeted the three, "I trust you all were successful in your final task."

Vanessa, Argo, and Ken all revealed the feathers they had received.

"Very good." Ares commented. "You have completed the final task. Before returning to the barracks, we ask that you provide the names of the Blue Crows that presented you with the feathers."

Vanessa said, "The name of the Crow who gave me mine was, Sonya."

After seeing Quint write the name down, Argo then said, "My feather's owner was Kaisar."

"Very good, very good." Quint said as he wrote the name down. "Now, Master Khan, what was the name of the Blue Crow who gave you your feather?"

Ken looked at his feather and then said, "Adonia."

Ares and the Overseer's interest perked up, as Quint said, "Adonia... very good... wait, bloody hell lad, did you say Adonia?"

"Yes." Ken said. "Is something wrong?"

Ares and Risho looked at each other then back at Ken with a delightful surprise.

"You have done nothing wrong, young Khan." The Overseer said, "For the leader of the Blue Crows to present her feather, one must truly have a rare soul."

"Indeed." Ares said, "Let us just say that it is her way of saying you completed this course at the top of this class."

"Yes well done, laddie." Quint said.

"Well thank you sirs." Ken said a little surprised.

Once the name was written down, Quint rolled up the parchment, "Well that does it sirs. All the remaining Recruits passed the final task."

"Well done you three." Ares said. "Now you may return to the barracks and join the others. Later we Quint and I will collect the feathers and then there will be a feast for you to attend as a celebration for completing the survival course."

The three thanked Ares, Quint, and the Overseer before making their way to the barracks. As they walked away, Ares and the Overseer looked on with knowing eyes.

"It appears Master Liam Hanzo was right to bring that boy here." Ares said. "Adonia's feathers are only given to the Recruits who hold the most potential for greatness."

"Aye, if he completes the cycle he will be a great Ranger." Quint agreed.

"We shall see." The Overseer said, trying to remain optimistic. "The remaining years of his cycle will tell. Though I may have to look into this boy's bloodline, something tells me this may not be a random case of extraordinary potential."

Ares and Quint looked at the overseer with curiosity, before Ares asked, "Do you think he might be decedent from another great Ranger?"

"It's a distinct possibility." The Overseer answered.

Ken, Argo, and Vanessa returned to the barracks with the late afternoon light casting the area in a brilliant golden glow. It was a fitting end to a great triumph on the Recruits part. This was not, however, the end of their long journey to becoming Rangers.