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Abacus listened with interest as Lelaus named off some of the monsters, seeming to drink in the information. He opened his mouth to reply, then closed it into a grin to turn and return the wave to Daggart. "Hey Daggart," he greeted, "Join right in -- we were discussing monster taming, specifically hunting them."

He turned back to Lelaus, one hand tapping his camera thoughtfully. "I don't think I'd fare very well at hunting or capturing them myself, but I'm a bit intrigued. Can you tell me more about the process?" Who knew? Perhaps he could learn how to trap in order to get a better view of his subjects before releasing them, or apply the knowledge elsewhere. "Are there limits to what you can catch?"

Daggart grinned as he nodded to Abacus "Alright!" Enthused, he listened attentively, an expression of great interest settling into his features the more he heard, "Traps and Lures...? I really liked your familiars, did you hunt them yourself?"

When Lelaus answered his initial question, Daggart nodded seriously, "Will... you show me? I want to find out more about hunting. Cyphr and I chase things in the gardens but it's never a monster..." He trailed off, sounding disappointed, he rather liked the idea of defending people by getting rid of the bad monsters. "Are there rewards for hunting like that? What kind of training do you get? It can't really be as easy as laying out a trap or lure... can it?" Brimming with questions, Daggart's eyes sparkled with interest.

When the two began to ask him a slew of questions, Lelaus perked up his ears and flared his whiskers at attention. He had very quick reflexes and was trying to catch them all.
"I hunted all of my familairs myself. Mind you the familiars I stared with, years and years ago were ones i bought or won or earned... But in my experience you get the best bond and the most successful experience with Familiars if you train them yourself. Not necessarily catching them yourself, but training makes all the difference in the world." Lelaus nodded and swished his tail, rolling back onto his heels. "The rewards of hunting are the thrill of the fight, the essence exposure which can lead to distinctive Additions when you transcend, the fees for the monsters when you sell them, and sometimes fees from the City as a thank you for making things safer." Lelaus grinned and squatted suddenly, bored of standing still and trying to force himself to focus. "The training varies from monster to monster, but the training for Hunting requires knowledge of the monster's abilities and natural habitat, as well as any potential dangers. It also helps to study on things like signs of illness so you can see what sort of state the mnoster is in. Some monsters are only violent towards Empyreans when ill, others become much more dangerous if they're unwell. In the end, the more knowledge you have the easier and safer Hunting becomes." Lelaus paused and nodded to himself. "Yeah, and lures and traps are just the tools. The actual know-how of where to look, how to disguise the lure or trap, when and how to hunt the monsters is a complex art. It takes cunning, and stealth, and caution and courage!" Lelaus pumped a fist exhuberantly.
"as for Training," Lelaus continued, looking from Daggart to Abacus. "It varies from monster to monster. Some are far easier to catch than to train, where as others are extremely difficult to catch at all, but once you have become quite docile. That's further affected by the individual monster's temperament. And on that note, the lures and traps aren't built with specific effects on monster's temperaments simply because leaving them 'blank' in that respect makes them more versatile. However, some monsters really don't take kindly to being taken captive - like the Vepar for instance, or the Uvall, very proof and aloof creatures. In such cases, it's not the trap or lure that has an affect on the Monster, but the circumstance. These are things you learn from experience." Lelaus smiled and rocked down in his squat. "And of course some monsters can't ever be tamed, like Mechiresa or Belial. But of course..." And Lelaus trailed off, a glint in his dilated eyes. "If you two were interested in tutoring to earn your certificates, Lelaus might know a thing or two about it..."

"I am too!" Daggart replied, drawn into the idea of monster hunting and taming. The choleric held no fear and agreed with Lelaus about the satisfaction of the hunt; wanted to taste it for himself. He'd often played at being a hunter, defending the weak and saving the city.... being of true service to his home and this just sounded perfect.

In all the classes he'd had so far only the hands on ones had interested Daggart - physical education and crafting. He liked to works with his hands, understood things far better that way but he wasn't slow by any means. "If you wouldn't mind, I really like that, professor.... earn hunting and training certificates."

Abacus jerked back in surprise at Lelaus' sudden move, silently chiding himself. If he was that easily startled, then how would he catch his own monster or familiar? At least my reflexes aren't that bad, he thought, quickly smothering his embarrassment. I'll need to work on that.

"I'm ready, and I think..." Abacus answered, taking a moment to reaffirm his choice in his mind, "I think I'd like to start with the Bael, since your's is the one that perked my interest in the subject."

Lelaus rubbed his hands together, pupils dilated and nostrils flared in excitement. "Bael and Ipes, both extremely useful!" He began to pace as he waved his paws about animatedly as he began to explain them both. "The first thing, of course is to learn about the Monster itself. What does it look like, what can it do? The role they play in our lives. In the case of the Bael, they live codepedantly with us when we find them. The Ipes have no need of us, but a great deal of curiosity. We can feed their curiosity in order to coerce them to work for us. Now," And he leaned in to Daggart, grinning manically. "There are books about Ipes and Ipes in books. Which did you see?"

"You see," Lelaus continued, "You've gotta learn what they like to eat, where they naturally live, signs of illness, precautions, behavioural patterns, likes and dislikes, and any special skills they might have that could make them a help of hindrance to us."

As soon as Daggart said his choice, Abacus looked at his friend curiously. An Ipes? What -- ah, well, I might find out what one is in a moment. He nodded his head in agreement when Lelaus spoke, recalling the lessons from class. "Not only that, we have to learn all about them as if we were one of them in order to understand them better, right?" He asked, recalling Nata'ala and her seemingly curious actions.

There's monsters that can appear IN books? Abacus felt his jaw drop at Lelaus' disappointment, then hurriedly picked it up again. "Do the Ipes just... appear in books? Or is there a way to tell when one's around?" He asked quickly, "Or is it all a matter of picking up the right book and being surprised?"

The journeyman shuddered at the description of how the Bael were treated in Outsider's hands, making a resolution right then and there to keep an eye out for such beasts. Even if they were a monster, who deserved to bleed to death? He wondered if there was someone familiar with the Outsider's -- what was it? 'Grafting Systems'? If there was a way to tamper with them, and make them backfire in such a way to eliminate the Bael... Ah, but that's just one creature. Who knows what they do to others?

Abacus blinked at the sudden questions, then tilted his head to one side to consider. "They live... in the mountains, in rocky places right? As for food..." He recalled Nata'ala, and took consideration into her body structure. "Not a carnivore, I suspect due to how fragile they are, but... Smaller, like insects? And since they live in high places, probably mushrooms and other vegetation that they can find?"