Black Shadow ran as fast as he could, he felt like he was moving faster than he had ever run before. The trees were flying past him and the grass behind him was kicked up and flown a few feet. It took but an hour for the fatigue to seep into his mind and for him to stop. Black Shadow took in a few more deep breaths and began to run again. He had a goal: Get to the elven kingdom and call upon queen Olivia.

The stops became more frequent until Black Shadow was forced to stop completely. He was tired, and hungry. Sitting on a log for a momentary rest, Black Shadow began to think about making camp. He was in a well wooded area; shelter would not be difficult to locate. Food was not hard to find either, as there were plenty of wild animals around to kill. He followed a small, nearby stream that he found until it lead to a small opening under the wooded canopy, the south end bordered by a felled tree. Using his sword, he began to chop up a small section of the ground before taking off his gloves and scooping the dirt out of the ground, making a small pit. Sheathing his sword, Black Shadow used rocks from the stream to create a relatively large fire ring to accommodate cooking dinner.

Going out into the woods, Black Shadow started the hunt. He crept silently through the trees, listening intently until he heard rustling in the distance. More silent than a cat, the dark archer moved through the woods swiftly until his prey was in view. Sniffing around a berry bush was a mother black bear. She was a large and admirable opponent; but Black Shadow liked a challenge. He knocked an arrow and drew back his bow to take aim. Shadow drew in a deep breath, ready to let the arrow fly, when he felt Baby Espoir stirring. Shadow’s eyes grew wide as he felt her yawn and reach up to grab at his mask. He had almost forgotten that Espoir was even there. The archer slowly brought his bow down and began to turn when she let out a happy coo. It was that cry- the cry of a happy infant- that alerted the bear of Shadow’s presence.