Ch. 18 Acorn

"Gladly, although, I can only offer shelter and food for now. In the future I may even be able to help you look for them." (Perfect, this tired out even better than I could've hoped. If they come back looking for him I'll be able have a trio of squirrels I could teach how to forage. They could collect berries and herbs, while Gala and I could collect meat.) This was the optimal outcome Gabriel could've thought of. He only hoped to bring this little one to his side, but now he may potentially have more contracted creatures without any effort.

"My name is Gabriel. What is your name little one? If you're going to follow me I can't just keep calling you that."

"My name is Acorn, it's nice to meet you Mr. Gabriel." With a sweet smile Acorn walked up to Gabriel with his fore paw out as if to shake hands before remembering Gabriel was a bird. Gabriel let out a light *kekeke* as he unfurled his wing touching the tip to Acorn's paw. "Happy to meet you Acorn. Now, before we head inside I'd like to complete the ritual. I'll have to give you a small cut and you'll have to bite my talon til I bleed to complete the ritual " Gabriel lifted his talon and gently grabbed the left hind leg of the squirrel, pressing into it with one talon until the skin broke. He brought the same talon before Acorn's face asking him to bite it. Acorn managed to draw blood quite easily having teeth sharp enough to crack nuts. Gabriel immediately pushed the open wounds together and received the contract notification.

'Would you like to form a contract with Chaos Squirrel?'

(I knew it! He's a special breed and not just some fancy looking squirrel! Yes!)

'Contract agreed by target, two conditions acknowledged, refer to contracted page for more information, Contract Successful.'

Once again, it felt as though Gabriel's soul was being smothered before being gently released with what appears to be another paw print in his soul.

(It said there is conditions this time.) Opening up to the contracted tab Gabriel wanted to check the squirrels stats and these conditions for the contract.

'Acorn

Species: Chaos Squirrel

Realm: Broken - Standard (Adolescent)

Affiliation: Companion (Bond - Weak)

Stats: Available Points: 0

Agility:6

Endurance:0

Strength:1

Intelligence:2

Magic:1

Abilities:

Light as Feather, Forest Bound

Skills:

Seed Shooter'

(Not bad, not bad, roughly the same as I was back then except he has that two special traits.)

'Contracted

Gala

Acorn - Take in Family

Protect until strong (30 days)'

'Quest acquired. Raising Acorn.'

(Finally, the first quest was just to eat, I wonder what this will be about.) After going into his quest tab Gabriel was surprised to see he had gained another quest and never even realized it.

'Active Quests:

Raising Acorn - Make sure to protect your new companion until he is capable of protecting himself. Help Acorn to reach Basic realm as soon as possible. Time limit: 30 days

Helping Gala - Your companion witnessed your evolution and has resolved herself to become strong. Help Gala reach Basic Realm as soon as possible. Time limit: None'

(Hmm, I don't remember getting the quest to help Gala, but both quests seem to be basically the same. I just need to help them grow... I wonder if this is because I'm now in the Basic Realm...) Unsure of how to proceed with either quest, Gabriel told Acorn to follow him as they made their way back into the hideout, covering the entrance as they went. After getting into their hideaway Gala had already become alert noticing an unfamiliar scent.

"Relax Gala, I have a new friend that will be joining us. Meet Acorn. Acorn, this is Gala my other companion." Gabriel used his wing to point at Gala who gave a slight bow to Acorn.

'Where did you find this child Gabriel? Where are his parents?' Gala was concerned Gabriel had just gained enmity with someone by stealing their child.

"He was wandering around outside, starving and I gave him some food. Apparently, his parents had recently died and his brothers disappeared while foraging. I've decided to bring him with us." (He's adorable, don't ask anymore questions please.) Gabriel felt he didn't need to justify his decisions, but also didn't want to be rude to his companion. After a brief introduction Gabriel decided it was time to eat the left over wolf meat.

*Thud* "Gala, let's finish eating this today, we can clean the fur in the river and use it for a warm place to sleep. The bones we can use to stabilize the walls in here so they don't collapse." (Being dirt, it's likely these walls will collapse without some sort of support. If I use my beak to create little cavities we can force the bones in them for support.)

*Chiiiiiii!!!* Acorn ran behind Gala as soon as the wolf corpse hit the ground. "I'm sorry Acorn, I forgot to mention, I can use some magic. One of which allows me to store things, so I can always carry food for us."

Still in shock, Acorn gave the corpse a once over before making his way back to Gabriel. "Is that where the crumbs came from! I thought you had them hidden under your wing!" Acorn giggled seemingly completely relaxed after just screaming and running for safety a moment ago. Gabriel and Gala both couldn't hold it in and started to laugh too.

It was nearing noon as they finished eating and cleaning the fur. Gabriel took his time dragging the fur over top of the entrance branch to dry after Gala carried it back. Knowing they still had to find dinner for himself and Gala, plus find some berries or nuts for Acorn, Gabriel had an idea.

"Okay you two, here's our plan for today. Gala, you will protect Acorn and help him to find some nearby berry bushes for a constant food source. I will scout the area and find something for us to eat for dinner. Be careful and don't wander too far from the hideaway." Gabriel immediately took flight, finally stretching his wings fully he realized he could now soar through the sky with little to no effort. (Time to hunt.)