use many of the first time visitors were all arrogant and quite confrontational when he issued the ultimatum.  Over ten days, hed been called to the gate fourteen times.  Six were human parties he evicted quickly, two were Avatars of gods of other worlds which seemed to realize where they were and tried to talk Tarrin into letting them pass, three were winged Deva who politely excused themselves and returned through the gate, one was a weak Demon that Tarrin immediately destroyed without any real trouble, and two were humans that seemed to know Spyder.  Both, a tall, handsome male Wizard in a black robe and a woman wearing a heavy cossack, asked after Spyder, and when he told them she was taking a break, they said they understood and said theyd be back another day.  After the third time, the task of defending the gate was already tedious, and it got no better.  So far, not one person coming through the gate intrigued him or seemed interesting to him in any way.  He thought it would be more exciting being the Guardian, and he was a bit disappointed.  He dealt with gods all the time, so their Avatars didnt seem very interesting.  The Deva were interesting, handsome human-like men and women with white-feathered wings on their backs, but they looked too much like Aeradalla to seem exotic, and they were too damn nice.  The only Demon hed encountered was a pitiful little ball of flesh that was stupid as a stump and so weak it was barely an effort to destroy it, obviously one of their weakest that was probably just lost.
	Jasana was absolutely furious with him after the first time he returned home, after he told them what he was doing. She wanted to come to Haven, but he knew that Spyder and the gods would not allow that.  She took it personally when he told her no, and refused to see him the next time he came home to visit.  But, much to her dismay, he was tremendously unmoved by her tantrum, and he refused to see her the next time he returned home.  She was quite contrite afterwards.
	But it wasnt always boring.  Nineteen days after he took over Spyders job, he got a rather unusual visitor through the gate.  It was a solitary human man wearing exotic colored armor, armor like that portrait from the inn in Shorans Fork, that Eastern armor with its wide plates and wicker-looking appearance.  It was capped by a large helm with a very ugly mask made to look like a face, fashioned from steel and painted red that fit over the face of the man, probably something to intimidate the opponent.  He had two slender, curved swords of the same style as his own tucked into a sash around his waist.  He stepped from the gate and gave Tarrin a look of surprise, then removed his helmet and bowed politely.  A thousand apologies, honored one, but where is Spyder-san?
	Shes taking a rest, he answered levelly.
	Ah.  Might I ask when she shall return?
	I honestly dont know, but itll probably be a while.  A few years, maybe.
	It is good she rests, but I regret the lost opportunity to defeat her, he sighed.
	Defeat her? he asked curiously.
	For ten years, I have labored to best Spyder-san in honorable combat, but I have found myself lacking, he answered.  She teaches me rightful humility and makes me a better man for my defeats, but I make myself a better man by continuing to try until I finally succeed.  He gave Tarrin a curious look.  Are you the equal of Spyder-san?
	Tarrin laughed.  Maybe in five thousand years, he answered bluntly.
	I will return to my home, but I offer you a friendly challenge, he declared.  I will return in twenty days.  If you wish to face me in honorable combat, we will test ourselves against one another.  Non-lethal, of course, he added quickly.  It is unseemly to kill honorable opponents without cause or reason.
	That intrigued Tarrin not a little bit.  I just might take you up on that, he said.  I was trained by the best warriors in this world.  Id like to see how they stack up against one of the best from another.
	Then I eagerly await our meeting, he said with a bow.
	Why not now?
	It is not my custom to issue an immediate challenge.  I prefer my foe to be at his absolute best, so I always give him time to prepare for our contest.
	Tarrin chuckled.  I swear, you sound like a Selani, he mused.
	Spyder-san has made the same observation.  In twenty days, we will battle.  Until then, may your days be filled with peace and your estates prosper.  He bowed once again, then turned and entered the gate.

	Despite being the Guardian, he found that he still had plenty of time for his familyif ony because never sleeping gave him plenty of spare time.  He talked to them through the amulets every day, and managed to return home for a family meal with his parents and Jenna ever three days, at the request of his father.  His mother had been getting a bit depressed, and having her children around her more often, his father felt, would be just what she needed.  Jasana had a storm of pique when she found out about them, because she wasnt invited.  But then again, neither were any of Tarrins other children, so her arguments lost a great deal of their weight when she argued about not being included.  But Kimmie managed to quite effectively explain to her that it was quiet time that Tarrins first family needed, just like the time that Tarrin spent with them.  She pointed out that Tarrin lived in two separate worlds, the human world and the Were-cat world, and that meant that there had to be a degree of separation between them.  Much to his surprise, Jasana accepted the explanation, and was actually rather gracious about it afterward.  She even started going through the gate by herself to spend time with her grandparents, so theyd have some company.  Jasana was of an age where she was allowed to do a little tight wandering around the house on her own, because nothing in its right mind would attack Tarrin Kaels home, and the Woodkin that lived near him would always keep an eye on the wandering cub to make sure she didnt get into too much trouble.  Going through the gate to see his grandparents was more than allowed, but she wasnt allowed to leave the farm.  And she knew better than to disobey.  Tarrin and Jesmind had a very long arm, and she knew that if she disobeyed, they would find out.  Even though they wouldnt talk to each other, she knew that if one of them found out, shed get it from both of them, and that was not a good thing.  Jesminds punishments were physical, but Tarrins punishments were psychological.  She got it from both ends when she ran awry of her parents, and shed learned the hard way that the best way to avoid getting a thrashing and some serious mental stress in her young life was to simply not disobey in the first place.
	Tarrin felt that that more than anything brightened his mothers mood.  Elke Kael always needed to feel needed.  She was a true mother; a nurturer, a teacher, a supporter, a guide, and not having any children around to teach and love was starting to depress her.  Tarrins departure was planned, but Jennas was unexpected, and his mother had buried her grief of that loss for years before it started eating through the armored defense she had erected against it.  
	After initially getting lost in Spyders library for two rides, he decided that perhaps it was certainly worth his time to start wandering around a while to see things.  At first he was going to start in Suld, but he already knew Sulasia rather well, and he was too well known in the West.  So he decided to start from Abrodar instead.  He was certainly well known in that ancient city, but he doubted the peasants and commoners a days walk from its aged walls would even know his name.  And hed never really seen anything of the magical kingdom of Sharadar other than the capital city.
	Hed almost forgotten about his little appointment.  Twenty days later, exactly twenty days, he was called to the gate once again, and the eastern warrior stepped from it, wearing the same armor as he had the first time Tarrin had seen him.  He bowed elegantly as soon as he saw him.  Good day to you, Guardian.  Have you considered my offer?
	My name is Tarrin, he answered.  And yes, as long as its spar, Im more than interested.  I havent had these for very long, he said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder at his wings, and Ive never fought since I got them.  I need to practice to learn how theyll change my style, and its always best to practice against someone who is at least your equal.  I think youre probably better than me, so I think youd be a perfect partner.
	Your praise honors me, and you are right, introductions are certainly in order.  I am Tsukatta, humble Samurai in service to my daisho, Lord Yukuzomi Kasawara.  Your friend, Lady Spyder-san, taught me much.  I would be honored to be of service to the one who helps her now.
	Tarrin nodded and called forth his Ironwood staff from the elsewhere.  I wont use magic, he promised.
	Then for now, neither shall I, he answered politely, drawing one of his elegant swords in a smooth, graceful motion.
	Tsukatta, Samurai warrior, was a monster.  He had the ultimate, perfect balance of speed, power, and skill, and it was only Tarrins Were-cat gifts and extensive training that allowed him to stand up to him.  This man, though human, far outstripped any mortal human Tarrin had ever seen with both his blinding speed and his incredible power.  He was as fast as a Selani and as strong as a Troll, and that was a deadly combination.  Tsukatta had skill to match his physical prowess, wielding his elegant weapon with a level of mastery Tarrin had only seen in the Selani.  They sparred for nearly four hours, and in that four hours Tarrin learned a great deal, both about his wings and about his fighting.
	His wings, hed discovered quickly, didnt really impact his balance or fighting style.  They were effectively weightless, so they didnt alter his balance at all, but moving them did shift his momentum or alter his center of gravity.  Not from the weight of them, but from the fact that they pushed the air as they moved, and that air resistance fed back into his movements.  Tsukatta allowed him to work through learning how that worked by simply moving into a defensive posture and letting him practice, then pressing him with amazingly complicated attacks once he had an idea of it, to refine his understanding.
	After he got an idea of how to move with his wings, he battled Tsukatta in earnest, and learned a great deal about finesse.  Tsukattas major threat was from his light, elegant handling of his weapon, where a mere repositioning of his wrist could launch him into a new attack routine.  The man was a whirlwind, and that weapon of his seemed to come from every direction at once.  But after an hour or so, Tarrin started understanding his moves, learning his patterns very well, and became a much more significant threat to him.  Tsukatta was, admittedly, more skilled than Tarrin, but Tarrin showed that he was no opponent to take lightly.
	Excellent, Tarrin-san! Tsukatta said brightly after nearly four hours of spar, as they ended to have a meal.  Neither of them were even winded, and Tarrin had a suspicion that some kind of magic was at work here, something he couldnt feel.  You would do honor to any daisho you serve.
	I had good teachers, he answered.  Ive never met a human as strong as you are.
	He tapped the wide belt around his waist lightly.  This is a magical object that gives the strength of an oni, he answered, using a word not even Tarrins charm could translate.  I have found that great strength also creates great speed.  My strength has little weight to move, so it gives me great speed.  He laughed.  It took me nearly a month to learn how to walk without jumping up and hitting my head against the ceiling.
	I didnt have that much trouble, he said absently.
	I noticed your strength.  What gives it to you?
	He waved his paw before him.  This does.  As you noticed, Im not human.  Im a Lycanthrope, a Were-cat.  One aspect of it is the proportional strength of a cat, and cats are very powerful animals.
	You were not born so?
	He shook his head.  Ive adjusted to it, though.  Truth be told, I dont want to change back.
	Then you are as you should be so long as you what you wish to be, he said sagely.  Well, I must go.  I will return in twenty days, and we shall better each other once again.  Is this acceptable to you?
	Im already looking forward to it, he smiled.
	Thank you for the meal.  Next time, I shall bring food from my world for you to sample.
	I think Id like that, he said sincerely.
	Tsukatta bowed, and Tarrin did the same, then he stepped through the gate and left Sennadar.  Tarrin had to chuckle a little bit.  Spyder was right, there were some interesting people that came through the gate.

	The main problem with wandering, he discovered quickly, was the eternal threat of being called back to Haven.
	It never failed.  Just when he found a place that he thought was interesting, he would get called back to Haven, and then he would be incapable of returning there unless hed had time to ground himself.  He started getting a bit surly about the entire affair after the first ride, when he reached a tiny village full of very nice and interesting people about a days walk from Abrodar no more than four separate times and was called back to Haven before he could ground himself and give him a new forward point from which to begin when his work at the gate was done.  It made him rather short-tempered with the people that came through the gate, and he offended several Avatars of gods who had come through out of curiosity when they stumbled across the the lone gate to Sennadar.  But on Sennadar, their divinity wasnt worth a pile of Dargu skulls, and he made sure they understood that by manhandling them in a very abrupt manner when they arrived.
	The solution, hed discovered, was flying.  Tarrin didnt fly very much, exactly because he enjoyed it.  He didnt want to enjoy it too much, for he was still careful about coming to enjoy his divine gifts so much that it caused him to separate from the mortal world.  But flying served as the solution to his problem, allowing him to make huge jumps of distance and land to ground himself, then return to moving on foot and exploring the local territory.  The tactic served his needs perfectly, and as a result, he had grounding points all over Sharadar within two months, all of them within two days walk of one another or two hours flying, allowing him to go nearly anywhere in Sharadar within two hours.  Fireflash certainly approved of Tarrins solution, though the drake often had trouble keeping up with him, so more often than not he was a passenger in a satchel Tarrin made for him, carrying his drake much as Ariana once carried him from the city of Amy Dimeon and to the ground below.
	Needless to say, sightings of the winged Were-cat were flying all over Sharadar, and myths were already starting to sprout up about his unique appearance and the fact that from the ground, he was rather hard to see because he flew several thousand spans above the ground, mainly to avoid crashing into birds, and also to give him a very panoramic view of the ground below.
	Hitting birds was not pleasant.  The last time it happened, he was picking goose feathers and guts out of his hair for nearly a day.
	Tuskatta continued to visit, appearing every twenty days, when they would spar.  Tarrin learned from the Samurai more than he thought he would, and Tsukatta was more than willing to serve as a test subject for some of Tarrins experiments.  One of the more eye-opening tricks Tarrin perfected in his spars with Tsukatta was using his wings as a weapon in combat.  They were totally mutable, and much as he had used them as spears to try to impale the shadow of Val, he could change their shape, control them, and unleash them against his opponents.  He found that changing them into whip-like tentacles was quite effective, for they would go as far as he wanted and they moved with extreme speed.  When doing that, he could flail at Tsukatta from a safe distance.  The other trick hed learned was to flare them out and cause a multitude of tiny lances to blast out from the inside volume of them, like a storm of arrows but still attached to his wings, but this trick wasnt easy.  He had to create each and every lance, and concentrating on so many and making them all move at one time scattered his concentration more often than not.  But he did learn how to do it with about eight or ten of them.  Tarrin was no centipede, he didnt have an instinctual understanding of how to control that many limbs at the same time, and the ability to control them was the main limitation he had with the technique.
	Time seemed a strange thing when one didnt sleep.  It seemed to flow by slowly, but the progression of it was actually rather brisk.  What seemed like rides to him actually turned out to be months, when he stopped and thought about where hed been and how long it had taken him.  Hed explored Sharadar, the jungles of Darrigon, the desert of Kypernius, and the upper plains of northern Stygia and Arathorn.  He even went south to see the snowcapped Burning Mountains, where almost every mountain in the chain was a volcano of some kind, be it active or extinct, in a wild unclaimed territory called the Burning Lands.  Nearly the entire southern third of the continent was uninhabited by humans, or at least inhabited in an organized manner.  There were lots of miners in those mountains, hunting for diamonds and gold and other precious ores and gems, but it had to be very dangerous work with the threat of volcanic activity.  There were also any number of hermits, fur trappers, and woodsmen who made the forests on the northern edge of it, near the jungles of southern Darrigon, their home.
	After finishing there, he moved north, into Telluria, and was amazed at the civilization he found there.  Telluria was devoted to technology, and their cities were nearly as advanced as Wikuna.  They too had paved streets, but of large grayish bricks rather than that concrete that Keritanimas scientists had developed.  Tellurians seemed more interested in the science of mechanical contraptions than overall advancement, though.  When he visited the city of Telluria he saw a young man riding by on a strange metal frame that had two wheels on it, propelled by a crank he turned with his feet that was attached to the back wheel by a chain.  When he asked someone what it was, the woman called it a bicycle, and lamented that it wasnt considered proper for a lady to ride one.  They had clocks all over their cities, on the corners of major intersections, each of them precisely in agreement with all others, a testament to the Tellurian skill of clockmaking.  Hed seen any number of strange devices that were built of gears, pulleys, chains, and springs, from a mechanical lift that whisked goods from the ground to a large window on the fourth floor of a warehouse to a little toy soldier that a young boy was playing with, which was wound up with a key like a clock hed once seen and put on the ground.  When released, it walked around in jerky, erratic circles until whatever propelled it was exhausted.  Then the boy simply picked it up, put the key in its back, turned it to wind it up, then did it all over again.
	But he didnt spend all his time wandering.  When not wandering he was with his family, and when not with them he was reading in Spyders library, and when not doing that he was usually dealing with interlopers at the gate.  The interlopers that came in through the gate were as varied as Spyder warned they would be, and after nearly a year, hed certainly had enough experience to be able to tell the serious ones from the utterly ridiculous, and some which were nothing more than bizarre.
	One such example of the ridiculous happened about four months after Tarrin started defending the gate.  They certainly didnt look very ridiculous at first, and when he first saw them, Tarrin had been very curious.  One was a truly monstrous human, nearly as tall as Tarrin, with small dark eyes and a fierce black beard, and the other was a Dwarf!  An actual Dwarf, one of the Dwarves that lived in other worlds!  Seeing him reminded Tarrin of all his Dwarven sculptures and portraits, and he realized that this one looked remarkably like the Dwarves that had once lived on Sennadar, for he was short, barrel-chested, wide-shouldered, thickly bearded, and looked solidly powerful.
	Perhaps the first clue that these two werent exactly all there should have been the Dwarfs helmet.  Both were wearing plate armor, the armor of warriors, but the Dwarf had on a helmet that had a double-headed battle axe blade affixed to its top, and the open faced helmet had a stout chinstrap that kept it firmly on the Dwarfs head.
	Despite his curiosity, he also had a task to complete.  Go back, he had told them sternly, ruffling his wings in an impressive manner that drew attention to thema trick he learned from Spyder about intimidation.  This world is forbidden to all visitors.  Go back, and never return.  If you come back, youll die in this room.
	I am Aragoth, the mightiest warrior in the universe! the tall human shouted arrogantly, though his eyes were a bit wild.  No man threatens me and lives!
	That wasnt a threat, Tarrin said with narrowed eyes, which ignited from within with their unholy greenish aura.  But Ill be happy to give you one.  Now get out, or Ill kill you here and now.
	You dare command ME? he screamed.  Grunger, to my hand!
	Then, the most insanely ridiculous thing that Tarrin had ever seen occurred.  The Dwarf turned and jumped into the air, and the human dipped down and caught the Dwarfs ankles in a huge hand.  The Dwarf pulled his arms in across his chest, and the human started flailing that Dwarf around like a weapon!
	It was ridiculous!  Here was this huge man swinging a Dwarf around by the ankles, but Tarrins confusion ended swiftly when that double-headed axeblade on the Dwarfs helmet suddenly made perfect sense, in a twisted sort of way.  The Dwarfs helmet made him a living battle axe!
	Tarrin probably made an eternal enemy that day.  After backpedalling to get clear of the axe-capped Dwarf, he started laughing uncontrollably.  Aragoths face turned purple with fury, and the Dwarf Grunger started hurling curses at him.  You mock the legendary axe Grunger? the Dwarf screamed.  Ill have you know I was the most powerful weapon ever made before a curse turned me into a Dwarf!  Now Ill drink your blood, you fire-winged hairball!
	A single sweep of Sorcery through the Dwarf told him that he was, in fact, nothing more than a Dwarf.  He just thought he was a legendary axe.
	Still laughing, Tarrin paused to weave four quick spells, Summoning forth his four Elementals.  Partly because it was time for him to do it, and also because he wanted them to see this.  The four of them took one look at the odd pair, and they too burst into their own form of laughter.
	He fears us, Grunger! the human boomed confidently as Tarrin continued to move back.  He conjures reinforcements!
	I just wanted them to see how stupid you two look, Tarrin told them with another laugh, then swept the human off his feet with a wave of his arm and a strong weave of Air.
	And I thought that humans could get no stranger, his Water Elemental said to him with amusement.  His relationship with his Elementals didnt really change very much even after he got his wings, though it did require just a little tweaking with his Water Elemental.  Tarrin was now a divine being aligned against Water, and at first she was a little worried that it was going to cause problems.  But her bonding with him was an aspect of his Sorcery, not of his divine power, and that kept the two of them distinctly separate, and thus allowed them to interact without any problems.  It did, on the other hand, give his Fire Elemental a serious ego problem, and for a while it felt that it was superior and favored over his other Elementals.  He had to disabuse it of that notion quickly.  They both were beings of fire, but they were still simply one aspect of a complicated relationship that had four sides.
	You insult me?  Now you die! Aragoth shrieked insanely, jumping to his feet.
	Get your sorry butt out of my dimension, Tarrin said scathingly.  Youre not even worth my time.
	Shall we dispatch them for you? his Air Elemental asked.
	Dont kill them, but herd them out the gate, he answered aloud.  Show them how unimpressed we are with them.
	With pleasure, his Fire Elemental said eagerly.
	To make it even more insulting, Tarrin sat down and watched as his four Elementals tormented, harassed, and humiliated the two ridiculous males.  The Water Elemental sprayed a torrent of water in the face of the human, then the Earth Elemental followed it up by grinding its club-like hand in his face, leaving his face smeared with thick mud.  The Air Elemental held the Dwarf rigidly immobile in midair as the Fire Elemental spanked him with a fiery paddle, leaving scorchmarks on the tail of the chain mail shirt that protected his backside.  Tarrin had to laugh as the two invaders got free, and got chased around the room by four Elementals who were thoroughly enjoying themselves.  The Earth Elemental softened the stone of the floor and trapped the human by the feet, then the Air Elemental planted the Dwarfs axehead helmet in the stone beside him.  The Water Elemental soaked both of them, then the Air Elemental used its power over air temperature to unleash a blast of arctic wind on them, freezing the water and leaving ice in the beards of both of them.  Then the Fire Elemental rose up in the face of the human and radiated a flash of heat, instantly turning the mans face red, like he was sunburned.
	Cowards!  Using magic when you lack the courage to face us! the human screamed, at least before the Earth Elemental shoved a huge glob of mud in his mouth.  He continued to try to talk, as muffled sounds like Grff!  Mmblgl mml lmffg blgmml! escaped through the mud in his mouth.
	Thats enough, Tarrin chuckled, standing up.  Keep in mind that I never touched you, he told them, still chuckling.  And Im much worse than my Elementals are.  You can throw them out now, he told them.
	The Earth and Air Elementals picked up the two crazy invaders and physically threw them through the swirling gate.  Then, after the last tendrils of their shrieked curses faded, all five of them burst into uncontrollable laughter.  Its a good thing Fireflash is asleep, Tarrin wheezed.  Can you imagine how embarrassed those two would feel knowing they were beaten by a drake?
	Fireflash would have taken both of them easily.  One blast of paralyzing gas, and it would be over.
	Unfortunately, characters like Aragoth and Grunger werent the only ones to come through the gate.  Five days after that little misadventure, Tarrin faced his first serious opponent in the form of a mighty Demon called a balor.  The thing, a twelve span tall monstrosity with a heavy body, horned, ugly head, and large bat-like wings came charging out of the gate with a nasty looking whip in his hand.  It was obvious that it knew what to expect on the other side of the gate, for it came out already loaded for bear and ready to do battle.  This rash assault put Tarrin out of sorts for a few seconds, but not long enough to quickly use Druidic magic to eliminate all magic in the gate chamberDemons of that caliber had formidable magical abilities, and he didnt want that thing to teleport all over the place like the glabrezu did when he fought it for the Book of Agesand met it head on.  Tarrin learned two vital lessons from that experience.  The first was that Demons feared him, for when the balor got a good look at him, much of his battle fervor cooled.  The second was that his wings werent as invulnerable as he once believed.  The Demon lashed that whip at Tarrin, who brought his wing around his flank to protect it, and he felt an angry blast of pain lash through his wing.  The red-orange of his wing cooled to a line of reddish-black along where the whip struck it, and it was then that he understood the nature of them.  His wings enjoyed the same protections that Demons did, that only extra-dimensional beings had the power to harm them.  The Demons whip was an item that fit that classification.
	Tarrin had never felt pain in his wings before, and the shock of it instantly sent him flying into a rage.  His feet left the ground as his wings exploded with brilliant light and searing heat, and they trailed tongues of flame as the Were-cat launched himself at the balor with his staff in the end grip and coiled over his head to smash the ugly thing into the floor.  A whip was no weapon to use to try to defend against a staff, so the Demon retreated and prepared to try to dodge out away from the attack. Paws shrouded in fire unleashed the staff at the Demons face, feet similarly shrouded in fire, hovered over the stones of the floor.
	What ensued was a fairly ugly series of traded blows as the balor sought to get some distance from the enraged Were-cat, but the Were-cat simply ignored the savage lashing of the whip as he concentrated on crushing the balors skull.  Many deep, ragged lacerations striped Tarrins sides, lower back, wings, and torso as the Demon ripped away skin and flesh with every strike of the whip, but the Demon showed just as many signs of injury in short order.  Tarrin knocked off one of its horns in his flurry of incensed strikes, sending it spinning off towards the gate, then he smashed in the left cheekbone of its ugly face and nearly slammed it to the ground with the sheer power behind the blow.  The fact that Tarrin was airborne, carried by a power that Druidic magic couldnt cancel, factored in tremendously to his advantage, allowing him to get eye to eye with the Demon and giving him much more mobility.  The Demon could not retreat, and did get knocked off its feet when Tarrin unloaded a massive overhanded blow, whipping the staff over his head and driving it into the crown of the Demons head.  When it was down, Tarrin pulled back, hovering over its body, then sent a dozen fiery spikes out of his wings and lanced them into the Demons body.  L