Heat.<br/><br/><br/>That was the first thing Kai thought of every morning as he woke with the rising sun in the hot, dry state of California. Even after so many years he still couldn’t get used to the temperature and lack of humidity that seemed to create a sense of reality and fantasy all at the same time. Such an environment was not one that he was meant to be in, that much was for sure. Any species such as his own were meant to stay in the cool climates, up in mountains or across snowy plains. The acclimation time to San Francisco was difficult for that very reason. The first few weeks were the hardest, hot flashes caused Kai to become bed ridden for almost five days straight while trying his hardest to keep any food and fluids he could get in his stomach.<br/><br/><br/>That hadn’t happened for awhile though. Now he sat on the back porch watching the sun rise over their small little pond. It gave him a sense of happiness to know he had a home to enjoy, his own place in a chaotic city. His own peace.<br/><br/><br/>“Kai!” Well, for the most part.<br/><br/><br/>“Out here.” He didn’t have to speak loudly, he never did. Yoako seemed to be able to sense wherever he was whenever she needed him. Kai smiled for a moment as he thought about the priestess, his toes skimming the water below him as he swung his legs patiently. She was the emotion in their relationship, always practically bursting at the seams with whatever she was feeling in that very moment. She couldn’t keep a poker face if she tried, she was an open book. Meanwhile Kai was likened to a rock far more than he would have liked to admit.<br/><br/><br/>Within moments the temple keeper swept into his little oasis in a flurry of fabric and hair, her face flushed as she looked at him. Kai rose an eyebrow, brushing his feet a few more times before pulling them beneath him, so he could move to stand.<br/><br/>“I had a vision last night as I slept. Someone has entered the city, they are after something someone has. All I could see was a name and a face. Tisu Bagci.”<br/><br/><br/>“That sounds very intense Yoako, very dramatic.” Kai shifted the collar of his Kimono, adjusting it for a moment out of slight drowsiness. He didn’t understand why she was in such a rush to tell him about her dreams. Usually she would talk about them with him as they went about their daily chores around the temple. It was rare that she would make such a show about it.<br/><br/><br/>“The new presence is evil Kai. Something not like what we have seen in our years. The gods have given me that vision for a reason. We are to help this man. Tisu. But first we must find him. You know I cannot just leave the temple, so you are going to find him for me.”<br/><br/>This surprised him, eyebrows raising Kai looked beyond their little garden at the large buildings that kissed the sky. He rarely left their little haven. The thought of going out for a long period of time amongst the crowds and sounds thrilled him and terrified him all at once.<br/><br/><br/>“Where will I find him? I don’t know my way around the city.” Yoako was already shaking her head, reaching into a pocket she pulled out a piece of parchment.<br/><br/><br/>“I have written down where you can find him. Go now, we can’t afford to lose time. I have a feeling whatever it is will be here quicker than what we are ready for.”<br/><br/><br/>Kai nodded, taking the address before being ushered out onto the sidewalk in front of their temple. There was already traffic in the roads, people walking about and cars weaving in and out of the roads around them. No one looked twice at the boy in Japanese garb, the fashion wasn’t as unusual as one would think in the area that they lived. It was far less common now than it had been even a decade ago, but it still existed.<br/><br/><br/><i>Okay, two streets down, one to the left. </i><br/><br/>He walked down the road, going over the directions in his mind while thanking whoever named the streets around them in such a way that made navigation so much easier.