The night had reached its peak before Arrow returned inside. "It felt kinda strange to rest during the day, like how will I sleep at night," Jai asked.

"Well, I just thought it was a lot for you to take in, so a little rest would do you good. Besides, you've got a journey ahead of you, and you'd be no good wound up," Arrow replied. "We're going to leave soon and get to the thick inner part of these woods."

"Um, not even the best game hunters go that far," Jai whispered.

"That's the point, to not be found," Arrow replied. "After Cyra passed, the world of Firehearts fell apart. Actually, to be quite fair, the last four legends did a greater disservice than anything. Well, except Basir, the Windmasters made progress." Arrow stood up and moved everything back to its respective corner.

Jai stood up as well and began helping him tidy the hut. "How do you know all of this stuff?"

Arrow stopped in his tracks and sighed, "My father."

Jai noticed that Arrow seemed uncomfortable talking about his family, so he decided to let it go. Once the hut was tidy, Arrow led Jai away and into the depths of the woods. It was challenging to walk in the thick of the woods. There were creatures overhead and crawling around. Arrow was a few steps ahead, and Jai stayed close, not wanting to get lost. It was difficult enough during the full daylight, but the night was different. Jai was struggling just to see what was ahead of him.

"You know everything in the woods is afraid of fire, even the trees. So don't worry, relax," Arrow spoke without looking at Jai, expertly navigating the forest.

"So you say, besides, I can't always get fire. It's temperamental, I can always get light and heal, but that fire is something else. Are my eyes still gold?"

"Yeah, since the moment you healed me, and I opened my eyes, your eyes have been gold," Arrow reassured him. "Hey, look," Arrow stopped in his tracks, "Do you believe me?"

"I don't know what to believe; everything I've known wants me dead. So, to be honest, since I don't want to die, what you're giving me is all I've got."

Arrow turned around and smiled, "I didn't want to force you into anything. I just want to help. Like I said, I'm technically at your service. Let's go. It's not much farther." The pair continued for another ten minutes into the thick woods where a giant tree stood. The trunk was at least twenty feet wide. It was probably the tallest tree in the woods. "Behind here," Arrow motioned for Jai to come. There was a substantially sized cabin tucked behind the tree. Jai was in awe because it was so well camouflaged. The cabin could pass for scenery if one was not looking at it closely. That was probably by design.

Arrow knocked on the door. Jai noticed that the knock was unique, but as quickly as he heard, he forgot. The door cracked open. Arrow motioned for him to come closer, and he pushed the door, allowing Jai and himself to go inside.

Jai was greatly surprised to see at least a dozen people looking at him when he walked through the door. "Don't stare. That's rude," Arrow scolded them, and they all looked away. "Don't mind them. None of us have seen golden eyes before," he chuckled before leading him through the cabin past everyone's murmurs. All the way in the back was a woman who had her back turned to them. She was looking at a particular map on the wall. The place was unfamiliar to Jai.

"Hey, Cal, do you have a minute?" Arrow gently touched her shoulder.

She didn't turn around, "Sure, what's up?"

Arrow smiled, "Why don't you take a look." She turned around, and her honey-colored eyes went wide as her jaw dropped. "Cal, you shouldn't stare. That's rude." She quickly closed her mouth and cleared her throat.

"I'm sorry, Arrow's right. I didn't mean to stare at you, but your eyes. I never imagined this. The gold is so intense yet gentle. Oh, I'm Calida, leader of the Flamethrowers."

"I'm Jai," he replied.

Arrow patted Jai's shoulder, "The three of us should talk in private."

"I can manage that," Calida walked to the center of the cabin, "Everyone, hear me! I am going to send everyone out on a training assignment. This will be a hunt, I want one precise shot to a vital area of your game. You have one hour. Do your best. We all can see that we are one step closer to fulfilling our mission. Now take your positions." Everyone scurried to make one single file line. Calida began counting. She counted heads up to fifteen. "Number one and number twelve, stay back and guard the cabin. You will use crossbows. Odd numbers grab longbows, and even numbers grab recurve bows. Your hour starts now." There was one cabin wall filled from top to bottom with bow and arrow slots, and everyone rushed to the wall to get what they needed.

In about five minutes, everyone was outside, leaving Arrow, Calida, and Jai. Calida was beautiful. Her hair was off black and pulled into a ponytail with a few wavy stray strands falling in front of her face. Her eyes were honey-colored, and her skin was light brown with deep golden undertones. She had a scar running in a straight line from under her right eye to her jaw. It had healed but left a mark. Jai was still in awe that she sent the others hunting in the thick of night. He carefully observed her while waiting for someone to speak.

"So, are you going to talk to me or what?" Calida asked in a temper.

"Well, you're the leader, so I thought you were going to start," Arrow shrugged his shoulders.

"Hello! You brought him here, Mr. Second-in-command, so get to it."

"Miss Calida, leader of the Flamethrowers, you can clearly see you're in front of a legend, so go for the formal introduction," Arrow retorted.

"Are you two done?" Jai asked the bickering pair. "I'm Jai, twenty years old, six feet even, and an Emberite. My gifts include light manipulation and healing. I can turn light into fire, but that's temperamental. Um, the man who raised me wants to kill me, and I can't remember my parents. Anything else?"

"I'm sorry, Jai. Arrow and I have the tendency to get fired up sometimes. But like Arrow said, you are clearly the legend. The golden-eyed Fireheart. And the timeline is about right too," she looked towards Arrow, "it is usually about two to three hundred years from the time of death of the last legend to the birth of the new ones. My grandfather served under your predecessor, Cyra of Kindle. She developed a small personal army of archers to serve as her guard. Once she passed, my grandfather decided that we should keep the tradition. Generations of Flamethrowers have lived, trained, and died waiting to be of service to the next golden-eyed Legend."

"The world has fallen into such a disorder that we need the Legend to set us straight," Arrow chimed in.

"Are we talking about the wars?" Jai asked.

"Yes," Arrow replied.

"How do you want me to solve them?"

"Well, where's your team," Calida asked.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Jai replied, shaking his head.

"So the one who knows hasn't sought you out," Arrow asked in disbelief.

"Obviously not yet, but remember, Cyra didn't meet her fellow legends until they were in their forties or fifties. So, that's not unreasonable." Calida explained.

"Um, I'm really new to this. Who are the Legends you keep talking about, and what are they for," Jai asked.

"He was raised by a man from the World Order," Arrow explained to Calida. She nodded in understanding. "Well, the legends were Cyra, Basir, Aenon, and Ila. Cyra was the Fireheart, Basir a Windmaster, Aenon a Beach Waterbearer, and Ila a Landkeeper. These legends are gifts from the Universe, and their lives are lessons to the people they represent. In the past, some legends taught us new abilities, like lightning for fire or ice for water. Sometimes they are to lead us through a hard time or solve our problems. And sometimes, they challenge us so that we will be ready to face any obstacle that we cannot see coming. At the end of the day, legends have to define their purpose and forge their legacy."

"Jai, we are here to help, serve, and protect you. All of us are willing to die for your success. So please accept us. We are a gift from Cyra to you," Calida gently touched his shoulder.

"I accept you. Arrow has already helped me in many ways. Arka raised me, but I never believed in the World Order for fear of losing my gift. I want to understand it better, my gift. I never want to lie or appear as something that I'm not. I don't feel strong enough to handle my own gift right now, so I don't know if I can solve the problems of the Firehearts," Jai looked down at his lap.

"Your gift is like a muscle. It gets stronger with use. What you don't use, you lose. You just need some training, that's all," Calida assured him.

"Where can I train? Who will train me?"

"We can probably handle training -"

"No, Arrow, he needs the best, and you know what I mean," Calida cut Arrow off mid-sentence. Arrow looked furious as he shook his head. "It's either Tora or Sheraga."

"Tora won't take him. He has enough he's dealing with. Besides, it would be more physical danger to Jai to get him there," Arrow grumbled.

"So Sheraga it is," Calida sighed.

"Who's Sheraga?"

Arrow put his hand over Calida's mouth, "The DragonLord of Pyroc."

"Hey, that's where you're from. I definitely want to go there," Jai smiled.

Calida pulled her face away from Arrow's hand. "Okay, I'll brief the Flamethrowers. They should be heading back soon. Jai, feel free to get to know them when they come back. They are going to be excited to get to know you too."

"I want to get to know them too," Jai replied.

"If you need anything, let us know," Arrow sighed and stood to leave.

"Arrow doesn't seem to like talking about his family or Pyroc. Is it really okay to go there," Jai asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Yes, what did I tell you? We made an oath to help, serve, and protect you. Don't worry about Arrow... I've got him. Over there, to your left, is a bathroom. You can wash up there. You will see a closet with some extra towels. You can use one. To your right, that big room is where we all sleep. Then there's another bathroom to the left of that room. We cook, eat, and socialize, usually sitting on those large maroon rugs. Make yourself at home." Calida smiled and stood up, following Arrow. Jai smiled. They seemed so close that he felt a warm feeling in his chest. He hadn't had friends before. Zay was probably the closest person he had to a friend, and Zay really isn't friendly. He stood up and went to wash up like Calida told him to feel free to do.

Once Jai closed the door, Calida gently brushed Arrow's shoulder, "It's going to be okay."

"I hate that place. I know you're right. Jai needs to go there and have the space and freedom to learn," Arrow sighed. "I wasn't accepted then, and I will probably be accepted less now. So much has happened." He brushed loose waves of Pyrocean hair away from his amber eyes.

"Your family loves you, and I'll be there. Let me being there for you make a difference. You always told me we're stronger, so let's be strong together." They took a deep breath. Arrow turned and embraced her, his chin on her head lingering in her embrace.