Again, thanks to the readers, I love the reponders. ^_^ Enjoy! Note: Things seem to be picking up again, ne? ^^ Spowaban eventually sculpted Kanani into a true fighter. She was capable of effectively blocking and countering any attack he should throw at her. In a way, she was able to release what little bit of her mother she had inside of her without technically hurting anyone. On the day marking her fifteenth year of life, she actually beat Spowaban into what can accurately be described as "a pulp." He needed to rest for a good two or three days so she spent some time every morning with Cirol on the ferry, went back to Spowaban, and spent the sunset with her suitor, holding his hand and whispering about things that were only important to the moment. They always parted with a lingering kiss and a lengthy hug before she went back to the cave to tend to her trainer. Unfortunately, Spowaban was a swift healer and in only three days of Kanani's bliss he was almost fully recovered and training resumed with a force previously unseen. She would easily become the key to Frizzghigge's victory over the neighboring planet. She had been honed into a deadly weapon of war that could easily defeat anything. However, she lacked the necessary cruelty needed to become a true weapon, and that could only be gained at a real soldier's training camp, rather than a cave in the middle of nowhere. //Soon... He thought, Soon she will be forced to go... I hope she won't hate me too much when she finds out...// *~*~* As it happened, it was easier splitting up Kanani and Cirol than he thought it would be. Cirol had become smitten with another, more regular, passenger and Kanani had slipped some in his affections. He wasn't as eager to see her every week, and didn't hug or kiss her as passionately as he had before. Finally, he had to break her heart and tell her the truth. Instead of bursting into tears, she slapped him solidly, said some things that she had heard from some of the rougher men in town, and left in an angry huff. Shocked, he watched her leave and gingerly wiped a small trickle of blood from his lip. She stomped into the cave, finally crying some, and poured out the situation to Spowaban, scrubbing angrily at her stubborn tears. "He's such a mean, cold-hearted two-timer! I can't believe I ever even liked him! Ugh! He's so awful! A miserable person! I hope his new girl breaks his heart and laughs when she does it!" she sniffed bitterly and started randomly moving things around, slamming them down roughly. "You know? I'm so... Nauseated by him! He's just so... Augh!" she threw down the tunic she was holding and crumpled on the floor, crying angrily. "Spowaban? What's wrong with me? Why doesn't he like me anymore?" her tears fell freely and quickly as she looked up at him. "I don't think it's that he doesn't like you anymore... He's just an arrogant bastard with no heart," he gathered her up in a hug and gently tried to comfort her. Frankly, he was appalled that anyone could dare to hurt his Kanani. She was his family now, and he felt that if Cirol were to walk up right then the boy would be hung and gutted. Her crying ceased after a few moments and she laughed lightly at her foolishness. "If Erfen was alive to see me now... He would be shocked that I'm getting so emotional over a man not liking me." She laughed lightly again and rubbed away a few more tears. She felt oddly better then, as if her tears helped relive the pain. She didn't have to train that day so she simply did things around the cave, helping Spowaban with some pesky little odd jobs that had to be done. They repaired some clothes and had a nice large lunch of freshly gathered herbs and some Jacklan meat she had hunted down. They walked along the river and after Spowaban went back, Kanani had a long bath and washed her hair. She wasn't happy by any means, but at least she wasn't crying. She pushed thoughts of Cirol out of her mind, since it squeezed her heart bitterly whenever she considered him. However she thought about Jukilo and what she had felt about him. Jukilo had been gentle and handsome, nothing really like Cirol. Cirol was a good kisser and was something nice to look at. There hadn't really been any substance to her attraction to him. Jukilo at least, had taught her how to communicate. Also, she was much younger and sadder with Jukilo. With Cirol, however, she was a little older and wiser. It also hurt a lot less than Jukilo had. She supposed that if she could find Cirol, than she could easily find another man whenever she wanted to. That was the beauty of a "fluffy" relationship, she decided. When one ended she could always find another. She decided instead, to devote her time to her training. Spowaban was actually relieved to see this change. She was very delicate emotionally, and he was worried that she may have become unhinged again. He didn't think he could handle having to emotionally heal her before making any progress. She was amazingly powerful, as he soon found out. She was simply too strong to be believed. Everytime he even tried to make an attempt to attack, she floored him. Soon she would have to be sent to the official training camp, where people weren't afraid of hurting her. There, he knew, would be only young men and a few women, who didn't want to do anything but be there. He knew, also, that she would be immediately transferred to the Elite Training Corps, and with any luck she could become a Commanding General within a fairly short time. On Frizzghigge, women were encouraged to go into the Imperial Army, but few in fact did. Women were often considered more intellectually and creatively talented, so they often were encouraged to get good educations and learn important life skills. Men, however, were considered more physically skilled, so they were encouraged to go into athletic and military fields of work. Both sexes were also encouraged to go into one another's "fields" but few did, just the same. Kanani was a great exception to the rule. She was a very quick learner, nearly genius in her ability to learn things as soon as she was told them, but her real might lay in her strength. She had well over three times the physical abilities of the average adult man on Frizzghigge, and over four times the strength of the average woman. She had swift reflexes and excellent hearing and vision. She could launch a stone with her sling at anything within 3,000 feet with deadly accuracy. Indeed, she was exactly what was needed for Frizzghigge to move forward in the War. Also, her intelligence and tracking skills led her to be an amazing strategist. She could make a deadly and accurate attack plan in only a matter of minutes. Also, she was a highly skilled observer and could easily anticipate enemy actions with ease. She had real talent for putting herself in the enemy's situation and manipulating that information. These skills had all been acquired when she was in the Camp with the hunters. She had to be able to put herself in the minds of the animals she hunted in order to kill them. An ability to observe and anticipate the actions of the creatures was also needed. Good, quick senses and reflexes were a must, and her training with Spowaban helped to enhance those skills to their nearly maximum potential. So, essentially, Kanani was amazing. Simply and utterly amazing.