Axel and Spliff followed Brace to his house, a small wooden home with little inside. In truth, Brace was a very wealthy man — in fact, he was a legendary treasure hunter! However, for many reasons, mainly to keep a low profile, Brace kept only what he felt he needed.

  “How about we all share one, and you guys bring the other to Axel's mom?” Asked Brace.

  “Sounds good.” Said Axel.

  Brace unsheathed a dagger from his side and cut the fruit into three equal pieces. It smelled like nothing Axel or Spliff had ever smelled before; it was like a flower. Axel and Spliff took big bites out of the center of their slices.

  “It tastes so good,” Said Axel.

  “It tastes so weird,” Said Spliff.

  “Just like I remember them.” Said Brace. “Too bad they’re going extinct.”

  “Told you!” said Spliff to Axel.

  The boys were both thrilled to see Brace. Brace was rarely in town, as he was always out treasure-hunting or on some adventure or quest, almost always to make money or acquire rare items or creatures.

  You see, Brace was not only a treasure hunter but also an animal trainer. Due to recent technological advances, people can now capture and form a mental connection with every species of creature on the planet. With a device called an I.C.C.T., which stands for Individual Creature Connection and Transporter, humans can store creatures the size of cars into a device small enough to fit in a person's hand. A device that looked like a USB flash drive with the ability to recall and send out a creature through a button on each I.C.C.T., Brace Knapps has the power of four different species at his fingertips. An incredibly expensive item, once the initial connection between a human and creature is made through an I.C.C.T., the I.C.C.T. will only house that creature until the creature's death, and can only be used by that one human until their death. After a creature belonging to an I.C.C.T. dies, the I.C.C.T., once empty, can capture another creature. Once a trainer dies, the I.C.C.T. will not function until it is returned to the company, and ownership is transferred to another individual, allowing the creator to be recalled and sent out again. Previously, trainers worked with certain species and trained them as companions without using technology. However, there are many benefits to using an I.C.C.T. in this modern age. Other than being able to control creatures that are otherwise too violent and aggressive to bond with or train. An I.C.C.T. allows for compact storage, the ability to move creatures faster than some species are capable of moving by recalling and sending them to a new location quickly, and, perhaps most of all, a creature connected by an I.C.C.T. will receive information from the user's brain in real-time. A sort of extra sight or sense that a creature has, making it more likely to do what its owner wishes through an ability to understand some of the human's thoughts and emotions, even from hundreds of miles away — another benefit to having a creature in an I.C.C.T is its slowed aging rate. When inside an I.C.C.T., a creature will age about four thousand times slower than expected.

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  There are some downsides, however. A human can not send out many creatures at once without side effects. The I.C.C.T. was designed with the expectation that only one creature could be out at a time for any given trainer. It just so happened that multiple creatures could be out of their I.C.C.T. from the same trainer simultaneously, but with significant drawbacks. For example, a trainer with four I.C.C.T.s can bring out a creature as usual, and everything will work correctly. However, if he brings out a second one, he will notice a decrease in speed, dexterity, agility, stamina, focus, etc., and the same will apply to the two creatures that are out along with him. These symptoms will worsen the more creatures the person decides to take out, until even pain becomes a symptom. Despite this, there are ways to minimize some of these effects. Training in focus and experience having two, or in rare cases, three creatures out at a time, allows some trainers to move freely with two or even three creatures alongside them. Many people can sit down and meditate, allowing two of their creatures to be more or less altogether unaffected. It's rare for someone to have two creatures out at a time while still moving around freely, and at the current time, only one man is known to be able to have three creatures out and move around simultaneously without significant drawbacks.

  “Show us your creatures, Brace,” Spliff said.

  “You know I don’t like to take them out if I don’t need to, Spliff.” Brace would always remind Spliff that he wanted his creatures to all outlive him and to see what the faraway future had to offer by keeping them inside their I.C.C.T.s

  “Come on, Brace. You rarely show us any.” Said Spliff.

  “Ya show us Clover again,” said Axel. “He’s my favorite.”

  Clover was the name Brace gave his Dobberbat, a species of large bat that, on average, is about three and a half feet taller than the average human. Dobberbats have long necks, pointed ears, and webbed arms, making them well-suited for flight. Clover, in particular, was especially large, standing at fourteen feet. Its rare green coat of fur and a streak of luck that Brace found after capturing the creature led to its fitting name.

  “Ok, fine,” said Brace. “Let’s go outside.”

  When Brace stepped outside, a green beam emanated from the I.C.C.T. to a spot on the ground. From that spot, a mass of glowing energy quickly formed into the creature Clover.

  “Whoa, so cool!” Said Spliff.

  Axel approached Clover and reached out his hand to greet the beast. Clover sniffed it and then matched it with his head to allow Axel to pet it. After this, Clover flew to impress the kids, showcasing its flying skills by darting back and forth and completing circles efficiently. The young boys cheered and whistled, infatuated with the creature's poise and talent.

  “Brace,” Said Spliff. “We've been thinking, and we want you to teach us how to fight like you. We heard you’re always fighting off bad guys on your adventures, and we wanna learn to do the same.”

  “I will not teach you,” said Brace.

  “Why not?” Asked Axel.

  “It's because you two are still too immature. You guys lie, cheat, and steal; you don't take anything seriously, and a weapon must be taken as seriously as possible. And I know you'll try to get me to change my mind; you can save it. I'm not gonna.”