Though safe from the forest, swords drew, and the armed Ravenours rushed Vin away from their priestesses. The young woman who'd led him seemed to explain that he wasn't their enemy, and the gatekeeper's eyes hovered over Vin's ears for confirmation.

There was a large, chained gate in the stone wall that was lowered, and more Ravenours walked out. Words were exchanged, but Vin was more occupied with his ruminations.

The idea of praying wasn't what was strange. Even on Earth, humans prayed to icons like Christ and Buddha. In various dated cultures, humans believed in mythological idols like Zues, Thor, etc. The difference now was that the physical embodiment of these people's faith had been tangible, though criminal.

The dealings between the Ravenours ended with the armed patrols humbly bowing to the young women, which was curious, considering the men were much older and perceptibly stronger.

She commanded Jazzy and Antsy, who returned behind Vin and led him inside the gate and into an enormous town. His foot immediately landed on an extraordinarily smooth, level gray stone. They say design reflects one's mind; well, that would speak volumes about the town's one-tracked lines. An extensive street seemingly split the village in half, and one— and two-story buildings rowed on each side like a parted sea of structures.

That massive road stretched far away until it transformed into a large, round town square big enough to fit most of the city's occupants. Vin couldn't clearly see because of how far away it was, but there was a sizeable gray statue/water fountain at the center of the town square, and he could guess what it was of.

At the end of the square was the most prominent building observable. It was dark stone, with black and purple-branded banners on each side, likely a castle of sorts for their folks in power.

As the woman led him from the gate, he heeded the crowds of dragon mutants who'd quickly gone from minding their own business to halting and fluttering their eyes in bewilderment.

There were people of diverse ages, with the average person being quite large compared to humans. Generally, those individuals had muted skin colors and similar dragon features across the board. It didn't matter how they looked; their jaws lowered in disbelief at the sight of him being led into their home, not just free of shackles but also free of any clothing.

Only a handful of the inhabitants were armed, but it didn't make him any more comfortable. His host hadn't bothered to explain their situation to the common folk. With their imaginations allowed to wander, their stupor quickly became disgust, then indignation.

Vin expected to find food, temporary shelter, information, or anything like the villages and inns in fantasy fiction. But none of that was presented; only hate was bred. He heard coins hitting the floor as a shopkeeper froze mid-transaction to wipe their eyes of probable illusions.

Vin kept close to the escort as they passed the first buildings on the right of the wide road. Their roadwork and carpentry were more advanced than he expected. He observed everything with a banal expression, as if completely disinterested, but their infrastructure was laudable. While his eyes drifted from site to site, he almost ran into the back of the one-winged woman, who'd suddenly stopped.

Vin traced her sight to an incoming group of armed individuals, a small army, one that'd clearly already been notified of the atrocity that had taken place. Their uniform differed slightly from the Ravenours he'd previously met. They were armored more heavily, and their badges and accent colors were red instead of purple.

The woman's demeanor shifted after she saw the leading man, who approached with a fiery face. Her body firmed as she straightened her posture and upped her head with a regal pride that spoke of authority. Vin could only see her back but could imagine a calm, majestic look on her face as she took weightless steps forward to meet the army halfway.

How she carried herself, how her guards followed her every word, and how the men at the gate bowed. It was becoming clear she was someone of importance. At her young age, the only fair guess was that she was the daughter of a high political or even sovereign figure. There was a lot he didn't understand. After all, the closest thing he'd experienced to a royal was when his sister turned four and wore a crown during her birthday party, commanding him to bring her brownies.

Vin watched the young Ravenour woman composedly approach a sturdy, box-faced man with rich scarlet scales and a warlike buzz cut that showed the entirety of his rear curved horns.

Authority and superiority bled from the woman's voice the moment she opened her mouth to address them. A single sound fully emitted from her, but before her voice could register, a sickening, heavy smack echoed through the air as the man's sizeable palm struck her face. Her head rattled from the impact, and she dropped.

Vin didn't flinch, though his eyes followed her as she fell to the ground from the sheer force of the strike. The militant man yelled something offensive at her, stepped over her, and then directed the barbarity of his eyes at Vin before drawing a sword from his waist.

Dozens of the onlookers, including the young woman's two trusted guards, gasped in awe at what transpired. Vin's resting scowl rose from his one-winged guide, his only hope, to the irate man who led several troops.

The regal woman's companions rushed forward frantically to defuse the situation. They gestured wildly, repeating the only word Vin could understand from their heated exchange, "Human, Human."

Their efforts fell on deaf ears as the assumed General stormed towards them. With a swift, merciless swing of his sword, he swung at the more disciplined of the two guards whose adrenaline hurled him a pace backward, leaving him with a deep gash across his chest. The wind was cut as another slash was thrown toward the youthful Ravenour, another nuisance to the General's objective. After seeing the doom that nearly befell his ally, Antsy was already primed to prepare for the worst and quickly ducked the blade directed at him.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

The female Ravenour got off with just a bruise on her face. However, the militant man judged the two guards to be much easier to butcher without consequence. He was so eager to kill them both, members of the same village. Of the same race.

"Brutes" slipped off Vin's tongue so easily. It wasn't an insult just directed at the man, but his opinion of the entire race. From their first encounter, the only thing they displayed was violence. Sure, there was an initial misunderstanding at the river, but they hadn't become more accommodating since. Even more, he couldn't comprehend the sheer brutality of the situation now unfolding. Nothing justified attempting to murder your own people without trial or reasoning.

Though incomprehensible to the alien man, Vin's comment earned him the General's attention. That brute was willing to hold off on killing the other young Ravenours and prepped their sword to exterminate the trespasser first.

The gate had closed, so Vin couldn't run even if he wanted to, which he wasn't thinking of. His mind hazed with rage; he might as well still be trapped in that cage, confronted with the deadly swamp decay. After dropping his Journal, Vin clenched his fists and mean-mugged the militant man. He widened his feet, and once the heavy sword came down on him, he promptly slid left of the blade. A heavy gust from the slash slapped his face, but he tensed, hauled his fist as far as it'd wind, and then blasted his knuckle into the side of the brute's head.

Stone. Vin heard an unsettling crack, followed by a soaring, electric-like pain that traveled through his body as he observed his hand slump downward with gravity.

His wrist broke.

Macy had taught him the proper way to throw a punch. His form was perfect and fierce, and his new body was much more capable than before. So, what went wrong? How could a creature's skull be so strong, like hitting a boulder?

Vin's face contorted inward with torment as he warred against the incredible urge to howl in pain, but that sick world wouldn't hear him suffer.

Another vicious slash was aimed at Vin, but his sore legs could still bounce him back in time. The brown-skinned woman met Vin's retreat, flinging herself before him, filling the space he'd just created between himself and the irate General.

She intercepted a swing with her own sword, yelling reasoning at the assailant. There was an unmistakable bruise on her face, and sharp inhales filed from the many onlookers while she strained herself, barely managing to thwart that butcher.

The man with scarlet scales was losing patience. His stern sword raised again with more savagery than the last. He'd seemed ready to see the attack through on the woman, but a booming shout stopped the fight.

Vin's rage had fueled to the point that it'd snatched most of his sense, and he didn't even notice when the new band of soldiers appeared. Unlike the group with the militant man, they bore primarily black and purple uniforms like the company he met at the river.

The woman must have recognized the man's voice because she whipped the General with her shoulder as she darted toward the new figure. It was a crowned man painted with a dark, frightening frown, someone to whom she bore a striking resemblance.

The General struck Vin with a callous gaze and then lowered his weapon before he turned around. Even he seemed to hold trepidation for this grim-faced ruler.

Soon, the woman was vehemently explaining to the man, whom Vin assumed was her father. His aura was dark and threatening, so much so that all of the townsfolk quickly took to one knee: This person was, without a doubt, their King.

The crown they bore was forged of black metal and adorned with gems. Their skin was slightly grayer than hers, which polarized with his intense flame-colored eyes. He had black scales, two sets of horns, and large wings that looked sturdy enough to take flight. His transformation was much fuller than his scaleless daughter; even his ears weren't pointed like hers. She, indeed, was one of a kind among her people.

The man wore black leather armor underneath a black kingly fur coat as if always prepared for both the role of ruler and warrior. He held out his large, war-scarred palm to his daughter's face, signaling for her to cease. Her mouth shut on command, and then the man effortlessly walked up to and passed the General with a silent glare. In addition to being larger, Vin sensed that this nobility was capable of much more heinous acts against his enemy. Neither man uttered a word, but an invisible, speechless fury steamed the air.

The King made no detours, arriving at Vin, who'd been surprisingly close-mouthed despite clenching a broken wrist. A heated stare was exchanged between them, neither willing to blink and break the tether of their outward aggression. The royal looked away first; his slick hair covered part of his eyes, but he glanced at the evident youth before him. His luminous red irises shifted from Vin's ears to his arms, down to his feet, and back up before he articulated in a deep, raspy, threatening tone that'd cause children to wet themselves, "Human."

Vin could sense the clear difference in power between them, which made him more bitter. That person was capable of protecting not only himself but also his family and an entire community. That world truly played by different rules, where the strong led and were revered as kings and queens.

At that moment, he wanted that kind of strength more than anything else. There was a brief flash of thought about the Journal he'd dropped a few paces away. There was a person, Cameron, who'd stated they'd gotten stronger from doing "Quest." Vin didn't have much time, aside from practicing skateboarding, to play many games. Yet, he did remember classmates mentioning systems that leveled you up from completing quests. That planet had some elements like those fantasy games, so he had to wonder if the same was possible for him. He mused on the possibility of being able to come back and fracture the jaw of the General who tried to kill him.

The King seemed to await something vocal from the human, but Vin was silent. The royal's intense glare lessened, and they removed their black fur coat and handed it out to the air, which prompted a servant to collect it. A thinner black robe was left over his leather armor, and he, too, removed that before tossing it at Vin, who caught it with his functional hand before wrapping it around his lower half.

The ruler shouted something that had to have been akin to "make room" because every soldier there retreated dozens of paces away, leaving only him and Vin within arms' reach. Soon, a second command was given, and something even more unpredictable happened.

Upon the following order, a servant appeared with something familiar, yet, in that situation, outlandish. Vin's face loosened, and he tilted his head in confusion, unsure he was seeing the right thing because of all things; an attendant brought a wooden, mostly pristine skateboard.

He should have gotten used to the nonsense of that planet, but an alien species of brutes owning skateboards was a new record of crazy.