Running, was it?  Elliot narrowed his eyes.  This new instructor was underestimating him.  What kind of provocateur, after all, wanted for light feet?  What shadowed emissary of the night did not emulate the majestic wolf of the wilds in feats of endurance?  How could such a mighty beast, mysterious and silently powerful, not forge onward at the head of the pack?  Yet, when command issued its missions, the capable operator obeyed without question.  Without a moment's errant hesitation, Elliot sprinted into action to lead the Wards in their circuit.

Scarcely had a few moments passed before a shout diluted his haze of antiheroic determination.  Over the pounding of his own feet, Elliot heard the yell of Protean, albeit oddly strangled.  Nobody who did the things that nobody else could do, however, could afford waver in their duty, so Elliot kept his eyes ahead.  It came as a surprise, then, when something large, feathered, and wholly unexpected hurtled overhead.  He flinched on instinct even before the creature's tail smacked him between the eyes, and instantly the toymaker broiled in anger.  He reasoned that this bizarre and infuriating beast was Protean, set on bothering the Wards while they exercised, and the combination of surprise and pain twisted his face into a mask of range.  The shapeshifter set to laughing, and Elliot could practically feel the steam bursting from his ears.  [i]What the hell!?[/i]  His inner monologue revved up and cut loose.  [i]What kind of retarded two-year-old does something like that!?  This insipid moron actually thinks it's fun to mess with people like this?  I hadn't realized we'd be undertaking special training today—learning how to cope with monumental assholes.[/i]  A wise Ward kept his true thoughts to himself, however, and Elliot held back his burgeoning rage to persevere in his task.  [i]Even if this guy is strong enough to warrant being a part of this organization, who sends the class clown to ruin the day of moping teenagers?[/i]

His focus shifted to Protean's ultimatum.  With the utter ease of keeping his feet moving and his ears listening at once, Elliot was able to hear the shapeshifter's pronouncement, including the punishment.  Beneath his breath, he snarked, [color=8F9779]”Embattle a tyrant, deprived of backup, with nary a plaything?  Not a chance in hell.  If my mind falters, he can whale on me all he wishes for all I care.  No paragon of twilight could bear to honor this farce.”[/color]  Yet, his keen mind cut into the proffered riddles.  The first one he could make neither heads nor tails of, but the second seemed more approachable.  [i]What travels around the world and has corners?  A box?  A postcard?  No...no![/i]  He laughed out loud despite himself and placed a hand in front of his face as if to shield the onlookers from the splendor of his own radiant intellect.  [color=8F9779]“Hah!  Achieved all on my lonesome.  Google, where is thy sting?  The answer is a stamp!”[/color]  He returned to his steady jog, miffed that Tulpa had beaten him to the punch.  In fact, he was surprised that she'd lasted so long in this exercise.  Could it be that one of these goody-two-shoes nearly rivaled him in physical ability?  Impossible!  Elliot kept up a steady clip, maintaining a position just ahead of her to show her what-for.  Now, however, he found himself thinking of who would be forced to suffer a fight with Protean.  How fitting was it, after all, that the dumbest wannabe hero would be the one to receive a smackdown from a person she was supposed to look up to?  [i]A rude awakening, but a necessary one!  Revelation's light falls upon us all, sooner or later.[/i]