“Tell me once more what happened yesterday, boys,” said the town mayor. He was a tall and chubby man who was primarily jolly in temperament and a fair and honorable mayor. He sat in his office chair, surrounded by paperwork and supplies covering the desks around him.

  “Like we told you,” said Spliff. “Axel and I were playing near the forest yesterday when we noticed a strange man talking to some classmates of ours. We didn’t recognize him and felt something was off, so we ran to get Brace. By the time we made it back to where the man was, he was already dead.”

  “I see,” said the mayor. “And this man, before you went to get Brace, did it look like this man was looking for someone?”

  “No,” replied Spliff. ”He wasn’t looking around then; he was just talking to our classmates. We couldn’t hear what they were saying.”

  “Ya, we were too far to hear anything.” Chimed in Axel.

  “I see,” said the mayor. Then, there was a moment of silence. “Well, boys, I’m sorry I had to drag you in here to ask something you’ve already answered. I wanted to formally hear your answers before deciding on how to proceed. I thank you for your time and hope you boys are doing all right after what happened. I know what you two saw yesterday must have been tremendously heavy. Are you alright?” The mayor asked with concern.

  “We’ll be alright,” answers Spliff.

  “Ya, we’ll be fine,” said Axel

  “I’m glad to hear it, “ said the mayor. “Please send in Mr.Knapps on your way out.”

  As the boys opened the door to leave the mayor's office, they saw Brace for the first time since the day before. Brace placed his hands on the children’s heads to comfort and cheer them up. Then, he walked into the mayor's office and closed the door.

  “How are you, Mr. Knapps?”

  “I’m fine. Thanks for asking, Mr. Mayor. And how are you?”

  The mayor finished packing a pipe full of tobacco, lit the tobacco, and inhaled before exhaling away from Mr. Knapps so as not to insult him.

  “Well, Mr.Knapps, as you can imagine, I’m a bit shaken up by what happened yesterday, and I’m feeling for my townspeople, who I know are distressed by yesterday's events. So, I’d like to hear what happened yesterday from your point of view so that I know how best to proceed,” said the mayor.

  “As I told you yesterday, Axel and Spliff came running down my street, yelling for me. When I came outside, they told me there was danger at the welcome sign. When I ran there, a man I’d never seen before had four young girls tied up and on the floor. When he saw me, he readied himself for battle with an axe in hand. When I approached him, he tried to strike me. So I fight back. Once he was dead, I started untying the girls and told Axel and Spliff to go get you.”

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  “I see,” said the mayor. “And you're sure you’ve never seen this man before?”

  “As sure as someone could be.”

  “I understand.” Said the mayor before puffing more on his pipe. “My concern is that your travels have brought troubles to this town. That someone came looking for you, and people got caught in the middle of something that wasn’t meant for them.”

  “That is almost definitely not the case,” said Brace. “I always have one of my creatures up in the sky, ensuring I’m not followed during all my adventures.”

  “I see,” said the mayor. “So do you think this was just a random crazy person who wandered into our town, unfortunately?”

  “I think most likely, yes. However, it could also be a human trafficking organization that is connected to this individual.”

  “I understand. Said the mayor. “Do you think there might be another attempt at a kidnapping then?”

  “I can’t say, Mr. Mayor. Though I don’t think it’s likely. We should pray for the best and prepare for the worst. Don’t you agree?” Asked Brace.

  “Precisely. Of course. That’s what I’ll do then.” Said the mayor. “Thank you for taking the time to talk with me, Mr.Knapps. And thank you for protecting our town. I’m glad you were here.”

  After his talk with the mayor, Brace went to look for Axel and Spliff, whom he found talking in the town center.

  “Are you two alright?" he asked.

  “Yep,” said the two boys, who looked happy to see their friend.

  “If you guys need to talk about what you saw —

  “No, no,” Spliff interpreted, “we really are all right.”

  Brace paused briefly to determine whether Axel and Spliff were genuinely okay. He was concerned for them but decided not to pursue the matter further.

  “You guys did a good job coming to get me yesterday. Those girls are safe, thanks to your quick thinking.”

  “Ya, but we would have been helpless if you weren’t around.” Said Axel in distress.

  Brace said nothing. After all, Axel was right; perhaps everyone else in the town would have been helpless against the man from the day before.

  “That’s why we were thinking, and we want you to teach us how to fight like you can,” said Spliff.

  “I’ve already told you no,” said Brace.

  “But what if you weren't home?” Asked Spilff. “You're always away, and what if something bad happens again?”

  Brace thought for a minute; the boys were so young and often careless, as most children are. But Brace thought back to the night he walked home with the boys. He thought it must be hard for them without fathers. On top of that, the boys made a good point: What would happen if something like yesterday happened while he was out of town?

  “I’ll train you,“ he finally said. The boys looked at each other with excitement and joy. They would finally be trained by their hero and learn to use weapons. “But you two better follow all my directions without complaining, or I’m quitting.” Said Brace.

  “We will,” said the boys with cheer,

  “Thank you.” Said Axel

  “You won’t regret it,” said Spliff.

  “Alright,” Brace said with a smile. “I'll talk to Mr.Asrock and your teachers to let them know you’ll miss some school time to train. If it’s okay with them, I’ll see you two tomorrow morning. I’ll meet you outside my house at six a.m., alright?”