I wake up to a piercing pain in my hips. Wincing considerably, I get up and sit on my bed. I reach towards my hips and feel something solid placed against it. Suddenly I remember, it is the box I got from The HUB. Excitedly I open the lid of the semi ornate box, inside all I can see is a lone scroll. Reaching inside, I pull out the scroll and to my dismay there is nothing else in the box. I sigh in disappointment, I had hoped there would be something apart from the scroll.

I try to pull open the scroll, but it seems to resist my pulling and as hard as I try I cant seem to get it to open. The seal refuses to break despite my fastidious attempts. I give up on tearing it apart, concerned it would get damaged. Somehow Alpha remained asleep while I was groaning when trying to pull it open. Slowly I shake him awake and he opens his eyes lazily, stretching himself out he gets up.

I smile at the little wolf and make my way over to the bathroom. The bathroom is a simple affair and even has a shower, how that works I have no clue, as I had not seen an instance of technology in this world. The face that greets me in the mirror is a brown skinned face with dark hair falling into my eyes. My eyes were black, a kind of void like black absorbing all light. I cup a handful of water and splash it onto my face, I feel a lot more awake now.

After getting ready, I realize that I have only one set of clothes with me. I now know my first stop, a clothing store. Walking downstairs into the bar, I find that the crowd is a lot more orderly and quiet. I make my way over to the counter and see Bjorn again, I greet him and he grunts in my direction.

"Any place where I can buy some clothes?" I ask

"Yea, go down the street and take a left, you will see it immediately," he answers. "You are not from around here are you?" he asks.

"No sir, I am not. Regarding the clothes however, how much do clothes cost, I don't want to get scammed again," I reply

"You should get a couple of sets of clothes for 1 EP. What do you mean by scammed again," he asks with interest.

Pointing to my backpack, I tell him how much I paid for it. A series of guffaws follows my statement, my face red with embarrassment I walk out the inn, ignoring his jeers.

I buy a couple sets of clothes, noting the massive difference in style between what I am wearing and what the local wears. People here usually wear long flowing robes but I did see a couple of people sporting a tee. Making my way to the Beast Sanctuary, I try to retrace my steps seeing how much I could remember. After a while, I forget the route and have to ask someone for help, they point me in the right direction and soon I am standing in front of the gates again. There seems to be a different guard at the entrance and he brusquely asks me for my membership card. I pull out the plain metal card and hand it over to him.

He gives it a casual glance and nods me through the gate. As soon as I am through I leave Alpha on the ground and tell him to follow, he seems happy to be able to stretch his legs. I walk down the same path to the lodge in the Sanctuary, I don't see O'Lam outside so she might be inside the same room. I open the heavy door to the room and hear a surprised voice.

"Ashwin?, good to see you again," she says with a small smile on her face.

"The pleasure is all mine," I reply as genuinely as possible.

She snorts and asks me to stop with the pleasantries.

"Well, I came here to talk to you about determining Alpha's species," I say.

"Oh yes I remember telling you about the benefits of knowing his species, its simple enough, I will just need some of his blood for this test."

I agree and motion for Alpha to go towards her. Cocking his head, he looks at me confused. Sighing, I pick him up and hand him over to the sanctuary ranger. Quickly she pulls out a needle like object and inserts it into Alpha. One high pitched whimper later and we are walking out of the Sanctuary, Alpha looks at me betrayed. Snorting in amusement I ignore his behavior and look around the city.

"Excuse me, " I stop a passerby who turns to me and looks in an enquiring manner.

"Where could I find the Grayps Clan Headquarters?" I ask.

"Ah, the Grayps Clan," he says knowingly, his eyes scrutinizing me like I am a cut of meat.

Shrugging off his invading glance, I listen carefully to his directions and proceed in his specified route.

Sometime later, I see the small but imposing purple banner hanging over a simple doorway. That was the banner of the Grayps Clan, the first thing their enemies would see before they were vanquished would be a flash of magenta.

I am confused by the size of the building behind the doorframe, one of the four clans of Elder City had such a small headquarters? Knocking on the robust door, a scowling face greets me.

"What do you want?" the woman says, somehow managing to make the words sound polite.

"I am here to meet Ferdinand," I reply.

She harrumphs and moves out of the way, gesturing me in.

I walk into the building, the door closing behind me with not a sound. A small lounge area with a desk greets me, seeming much smaller than it looked from the exterior.

Seeing my confused look, the woman smirks and motions me forward to the man sitting behind the desk.

"Name," he asks brusquely.

"Ashwin," I reply.

"Ah yes, the contestant that Ferdinand met. Come on in," he says, suddenly a small hatch opens up in the floor and the woman pushes me into the darkness of the underground.

The hatch opens into a slide that leads downwards. Stumbling from her push, I fall into the darkness of the slide. What seems like a dozen seconds later, I find myself in a small, poorly lit room. The door in front of me opens and I walk into the next room.

The brightness of the room blinds me for a few seconds, my eyes unable to adjust from the darkness of the previous room to the radiance of this one. My eyes begin to water and a few seconds later, I can see a bit more clearly. In front of me stands Ferdinand and two others, a bright smile on his face.

"Welcome," he beams.