Hello everyone. Here is my update to this story. Hope you like it

Two weeks

The sun was out today; the rain was absent from the sky; the birds were singing and the wildlife ran freely. The smell of water was still present in the air, creating a somewhat cool atmosphere. The forest was full of life, light shining through the trees and hitting the small stream on the ground. Raziel hid behind a bush with a bow and arrow in hand, Taos following behind. The two crept quietly towards their target: a gray rabbit with white spots. The target would have been Taos if he'd agree to volunteer. But Raziel didn't think that having an arrow stuck inside you would be much fun. So they stuck to the rabbit instead.

"Raziel are you sure about this?" asked Taos. "Wouldn't you want to practice on something that's not cute and furry?"

"Shh, be silent. He'll run away." Raziel rose slowly to get a clear shot of his prey. The rabbit used its front paws to clean its face and ears. The boy smiled; this was his chance. He aligned the arrow and pulled the string back, aiming for the vital organs. Taos yelped just before Raziel released the arrow. He looked down at his friend, who was crouched.

"Don't hurt it, please. Please, Raziel," whined Taos. "He's only a baby."

"Taos don't start," replied Raziel. The boy re-aligned the arrow in its proper position and aimed once more. The rabbit hopped in the other direction and stopped at the small stream. Raziel followed, trying carefully to avoid making any noise. He crouched and licked his dry lips, waiting for the perfect opportunity to fire.

"Raziel," Taos whispered. The boy ignored his friend's protests and moved closer, seeing that the rabbit had gone farther away from him. "Raziel stop. Please? Why don't we keep him instead and you can practice on something that's not as fluffy?" The boy paused for a moment and sighed. He lowered the bow and turned towards his friend.

"What do you suggest I practice on then?" he whispered. Taos bit his lip and began to brainstorm. Raziel noticed his expression changing after mere moments, perhaps seeing if certain ideas would work.

"Are the lightning bolts not striking today?" he commented. Taos frowned and picked up a pebble, threatening to throw it. Raziel covered his face.

"Don't you dare," he warned. "Have you forgotten that I have your bow?" Taos smiled.

"I wasn't aiming for you." Raziel raised one brow, suddenly considering who the target was. He turned slightly, seeing the rabbit not five feet from him, watching him with his onyx eyes. Raziel opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

"Pick him up, Raziel. He's probably lost his family. There's no way his mother would leave him out here alone, vulnerable to nature's beasts. Let him come to you so we can take him home." Raziel's stare remained on the rabbit and vice versa. He sighed and took a kneeling position, facing the animal.

"Give me some grass, Taos," he whispered over his shoulder. Taos obeyed and immediately handed Raziel several blades of grass.

"There's a good rabbit. Come on, now." The boy held out the grass to the small mammal, as far as he could reach. The animal sniffed around before proceeding to take the offered food. Raziel smiled, watching the furry creature take one blade at a time, nibbling until it was gone. Its nose wiggled from side to side, making Taos chuckle.

Raziel slowly ran his hand over the rabbit's head and down its spine. The creature embraced Raziel's touch and came closer. The boy found this as an invite and picked up the rabbit, cradling it like a baby. Taos emerged from his hiding spot and appeared in front of Raziel.

"Awe, look at him. Isn't he cute?" Raziel grinned.

"Yes," he replied. "But I'm never going to get this exercise down if you shove furry animals into my face, Taos. Warriors have no emotion; nothing can stop them from their objectives." He handed the rabbit to his friend and went further into the forest.

"Raziel's just jealous, little guy. He has to beat his brother, you know."

"Are you taking to the rabbit, Taos?" The boy looked up and shrugged, embarrassed at himself. Raziel rolled his eyes.

"Do you wish to follow me? Or would you prefer to remain here with…him?" Taos brought a hand to his chin in thought.

"Let's see. Go with crazy boy, who wants to kill furry animals or stay with a furry animal? That is quite a dilemma here, Raziel." Raziel sighed in frustration. "What to choose, what to choose."

"Alright, I'm gone. I'll be back later."

"No! Onyx and I are coming too." Raziel stopped and turned to Taos with an unsure expression.

"Onyx? You named it Onyx?" Taos gave a confirmed nod. Raziel made an 'O' shape with his mouth and mumbled: "And you said I was crazy?"

"Hey that's no way to speak in front of him, Raziel. Do not insult his name."

"Oh I'm sorry," he said dropping his supplies. "Please, please forgive my ignorance and rude behavior, Onyx." He bowed down. "I am but a human."

"You see, Onyx, Raziel loves you already." The boy got up from his position and retrieved the bow and quiver of arrows.

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2 hours later…

"Well this expedition was pointless," said Raziel.

"I told you there would be more rabbits. It's not my fault you happened to attract so many," replied Taos, watching the handful of rabbits hopping around his feet. Onyx was busy eating blades of grass near the white fence of Taos' home.

"Get rid of them, Taos," said Raziel shaking his head in failure. 'All that time for nothing. All I got out of it was furry rabbits,' he thought.

"No, Raziel. My home is there home."

"Well then do you have a better idea for moving targets?" he growled. Taos was taken aback at Raziel's sudden change in tone.

"Well, you know how to ride a horse don't you?" Raziel nodded. "You can ride a horse and see if you can hit a tree or another inanimate object when you come by. Notice how I said inanimate, Raziel."

"That's a plan worth trying. And don't worry I won't kill your precious rabbits, Taos. I'm not a cruel as you've presumed me to be."

"Right, Raziel. Watch the rabbits. I'm going to get Steel." Taos ran towards the stables without another word. Raziel smirked and sat on the ground, watching the creatures eat peacefully. As he did, his mind wandered.

'If I succeed with this exercise, what will be done next?' he thought. 'Since I got archery pretty much down, and sword fighting comes with ease, I suppose I should work on strength training. This means I have to be very muscular…well sort of.'

"Raziel, Steel's feeling a bit under the weather today, so you'll have to ride Lavender instead." Raziel stood and crossed his arms.

"So? What's the big deal? She's a horse isn't she?" Taos rubbed the back of his head and shrugged his shoulders.

"Um…well of course, but she's a bit stubborn. You see, she doesn't like strangers. So you might be in for more than you bargained." Lavender snorted at Raziel as she confronted the human. Her big black eyes sent a warning message to the boy, as if not to get in her way. She was a dark brown color; her mane was black as was her tail. Her legs did not seem stable enough to hold Raziel's weight for a long period of time. Raziel supposed that he would only ride her as long as she would permit him to. Or better yet, until her body gave out.

"She's been in our family for two generations. I know she seems a bit rusty but I know she'll turn out just fine. Trust me, friend." Raziel nodded in agreement. He would do his best to get the basics down today while the sun was still out, and while he still had a horse to ride. Raziel mounted Lavender without much trouble, she seemed to not care that a foreign rider was aboard. Or the boy's weight didn't seem to hurt her.

"All right, Lavender. Raziel is my friend, okay?" Taos rubbed the horse's snout, while speaking to her softly. "Be gentle with him. I don't want to hear him crying like a little girl if he gets hurt." Raziel mumbled inaudible words under his breath and took hold of the reigns. He gently nudged Lavender's sides with his heels and she began to stride.

"Where should I shoot, Taos?" Raziel called over his shoulder. Taos chased some of the rabbits out of the way, preventing them from getting stepped on.

"Uh…here!" Taos ran to the target he and Raziel made for archery practice and removed it from the stump that held it up. He then picked up a large pumpkin from the patch beyond his fence and placed it on the stump.

"There! Just pretend that's a head, Raziel. Pretend it's a mean bloodsucking vampire! With an ugly face and huge fangs…and big yellow eyes and-

"Alright I get it!" Raziel was now facing Taos, ready to come by and shoot the target. "Those descriptions…why don't you say "pretend it's me, Raziel" just to make things that much easier?"Taos frowned and moved out of the way, picking up Onyx before perching himself on the white fence.

"You could say thanks at least! Without me, you'd have nothing, Raziel!" Raziel rolled his eyes and pulled an arrow from the quiver.

"I thank you kindly, Taos. You know I'd never forget to give you credit. I appreciate what you've done. And when I make it to the top, it will be you that receives recognition. You have my word," he finished, giving the other boy a sly grin. Taos snorted and continued to stroke Onyx's fur. Once again, Raziel nudged Lavender's sides, this time with greater force. Lavender neighed in anger and took off.

"Easy there!" Raziel shouted, trying to grip the reigns and the bow at the same time. Several arrows fell out of the quiver and landed on the grass. "Taos help!" The boy immediately jumped off the fence and put Onyx on the ground. Panicking, Taos yelled.

"Lavender stop! Stop!" With that said, the horse obeyed, skidding to a halt. Raziel lost his balance and flew forward onto the ground. He lay there quietly; his body absorbing the pain he had just received. In all honesty, he was scared to move. He was scared that a broken bone, a sprain, or even a bruise would ruin his chance of competing.

"Raziel!" shouted Taos, running towards his injured friend. "Are you alright?" Raziel did not answer. His face was covered in dirt; lip bleeding from the impact. Most likely hit a rock. His clothes, filthy, grass stained. The black tunic he now wore was no longer black alone.

"Ugh…Taos," whispered Raziel, cracking his blue eyes open. Taos gave a sigh of relief and shook his head, thanking God that he would live.

"I'm-I'm sorry, Raziel. I shouldn't have let you-

"Shut up," he began, cutting Taos off. "It was my fault. Don't…blame yourself." Raziel attempted to sit-up, aware that his body was covered in fresh wounds. A different taste touched his tongue as he licked the substance that ran down his chin. Curious, Raziel wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and examined it. He smiled: it was blood. In discovering the somewhat salty liquid, Raziel licked the rest off of his hand and face. Taos gave a disgusted expression.

"That's disgusting! Don't do that!" Raziel licked the last drop off his finger and looked up at Taos, who gagged in response.

"Why? It is my own. I am healthy and not diseased."

"But still, Raziel. You never know what kind of germs you're picking up. Ugh…like you care anyways, right?" Raziel smirked and got up from his seated position.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Mother is not going to like this one bit. I swear she'd probably have more of a fit over my clothes than my lip. That woman…"

"Well? What should we do now, Raziel? We cannot use a horse because Lavender will not listen to you, and Steel is sick. Any ideas?"

"Hm. Well, we could skip the moving target exercise and move on to strength training."

"I thought we were going to spar one of these days?"

"Yes, well, apparently neither of us has the strength to do great harm to each other so there is no point in fighting with our bodies like this. I think we should gain a decent amount of muscle and stamina before we do anything that might kill us." Taos rolled his eyes.

"Why can't we just fight how we are? What's wrong with looking like this?" Raziel sighed in frustration.

"Because when I compete, my opponents won't be scrawny children! They'll be young like us, yes, but they will have far more strength than either of us can fathom. Believe me, Taos; boys that wish to become Sarafan go through hell. Most of their training is intense, some that adults could never keep up with. What I'm saying is, my opponents will have bodies like those of boulders: solid and difficult to penetrate. That is why we must train. To be prepared against stronger enemies in the real world, and to ensure our victory over them." Taos gave out a loud yawn.

"Wow. That was some speech," he replied sarcastically. "I think your mother would have been proud."

"Stop talking about my mother!" growled Raziel. "Fuck!"

"Ah! I'm telling your mother, Raziel!"

"Argggh! That's it!" Raziel tackled Taos to the ground and pinned him. "Take…it back! You'd better not say anything!"

"Let me go! Come on Raziel I was joking."

"I wasn't! Give me your word now that you will not tell and I will release you." Taos struggled under Raziel's weight, failing to get free.

"What if I refuse?"

"Then you will die!" yelled the boy.

"Fine! I won't tell your mother, Raziel. Now let me go!" Satisfied with his victory and superiority, Raziel released Taos and stood. "My God, you don't have to be so wild," he said rubbing his now red wrists. "Let us go then." Raziel gave a confused look and raised a brow.

"What?"

"Let's go "strength train," as you say. We are wasting what is left of the day by disagreeing and fighting. I will accompany you as long as you promise not to go so hard on me. I am not as physically fit as you. And I am not competing." Raziel crossed his arms. Maybe he did overreact just a little. Taos was here to help him and all he was doing was mistreating him. And even now, after being threatened, he still willingly wanted to help. Raziel gave a small nod.

"All right then. Let's go. We should train somewhere away from people. That way we do not disturb them." Taos rose from the ground and followed Raziel without another word.

"How many more, Raziel?" asked Taos, out of breath and struggling to hold himself up. Push-ups had never been Taos' favorite; if anything he hated them. He could care less if he could lift his weight with his arms.

"Just…five more and that will make one-hundred. It's not so difficult, you can do it."

"Argh. I hate you!" Taos went down again, following Raziel's movements, and not moving as fast as the other.

"Tell me something I don't know." Raziel went down again for the last time and rose. He remained on his hands until Taos was finished with his last one. Raziel mentally smiled at his friend for trying so hard to impress him; he had not given up yet.

"Gah! That…that was nothing," said Taos. "I could do a hundred more."

Raziel chuckled. "Oh? Let's see." The other frowned and rolled on his back.

"Not right now," he replied out of tiredness. "Maybe tomorrow or…never."

"That's what I thought. Well," he said rising, "let's go run a few miles. I think we can make it to the pillars before sundown. Want to give it a try?" Taos gave the boy a concerned expression.

"Are you mad? It'll take us hours to reach the pillars from here. What if we don't make it back?"

"We will. Look, I promise that if you're too tired to move on your own, I'll carry you back. No! I'll carry you back anyway. Think of the training that'll give me."

Taos frowned. "I'm not fat! If that is what you are claiming."

"No I'm not. So are you ready to go or am I going to have to go alone?" Taos sighed and put a hand through his hair. He stared at Raziel for a moment, wondering if, yet again, he would follow the other.

"Alright, let's go I suppose." Raziel smiled and motioned his friend to follow him to the path of the pillars.

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"When we get back, you are dead!" Taos struggled for every breath to fill his lungs with oxygen. He could not believe what an incredible feat he accomplished. Sure his legs would be stiffer than a board tomorrow, but he did make it all the way.

"You see? That wasn't so bad-

"Tell it to someone who cares!" growled Taos, dropping to the cold marble floor of the grand pillars. Raziel rolled his eyes and moved toward the tall columns that were worshiped and glorified in Nosgoth. He could not believe that he was standing here before them; so close and in person. His father had never allowed him to even set foot on the base.

Raziel ran his hand along the balance pillar, his favorite of the nine. It was almost as if it called out to him at times. It was the strongest of them, and clearly the most important. Without a balance pillar, there would be no balance guardian; without the balance guardian, there was no balance in the land. Raziel wondered if he would ever meet the so called balance guardian. Only time would tell.

"Raziel it's getting pretty dark. Let's head home?" The boy touched the pillar one last time and walked back to his tired friend. Just then, a flash of white caught Raziel's eye. As quickly as it came, it quickly disappeared. The boy blinked several times, ensuring himself that he was not seeing things. There was no sign of white anywhere, so Raziel forgot the matter.

"Yes. We should get going."

"And I am going to enjoy a free ride, let me tell you." Taos moved closer to Raziel, ready to jump on his back.

"Okay then." The other was given permission to climb on. In doing so Raziel gave one last look at the pillars and jogged on the path back home. In his mind, he wondered if he would ever see the "white" creature or thing that passed by so quickly. Perhaps, he would come again…another day.