The rest of the tour was a blur to Kazius. He had been so preoccupied that he didn’t pay much attention to the more mundane parts of the tour.

Damon had mentioned something about how The Tribe enjoyed hunting due to their roots as travelers and hunters.

He remembered they stopped by the docks at some point and Damon had shown them quite the long sail boats they used for fishing. Considering their Wind Abilities, it was likely quite convenient to travel the river that passed through the mountain valley in such a way.

Lastly, they passed some farming that was done along the side of one of the smaller mountains that formed quite the impressive terraces. That was around the point he started to pay attention again.

It was afternoon now, close to sun set. Kazius was hungry, but while on the road they did not have the time to eat that much so it wasn’t a big deal for him or the group.

“How about we go on a hunt together and bring some food back? I’m sure everyone will be starving soon.” Kazius suggested.

At this Damon beamed. Kazius wondered if he ever had gotten to hunt with others before. Considering his situation with The Tribe though… He could only imagine how hard that must be, after all, during the tour Damon had mentioned a lot, but in the end it all could be summarized as one thing.

Group activities.

Hunting? Done in a group. Farming? Same. Fishing on the long boats? Clearly, they were made to hold many people. It didn’t come as a surprise at all, even with the limited knowledge Kazius had on Werewolves or even just normal Wolves, it was beginning to become more and more clear why Damon was so willing to do anything to make friends.

Kazius, Eve, and Alice all knew loneliness from their own experiences… But the need of friends was not as ingrained in them as it was for Damon.

Alice smiled and nodded, clearly catching on.

“I would like to join too. It would be a good warm up before tomorrow.” She added.

“I don’t really want to hunt… And Eve isn’t ready for something like that… But we will help anyway… I am very good at finding things… Do you want to forage with me, Eve?” Azanor decided to ask.

Eve beamed at this, clearly happy that Azanor was not leaving her behind.

“We will find lots of good things!” Eve exclaimed happily, clearly having no problems with the suggestion.

At this, Damon genuinely could not look any happier. Almost as if someone had given him an incredible gift.

“Buahaha! I would love to! I will make a dinner so amazing that you won’t be able to believe!” Damon beamed.

With that, the group would split up.

Damon would then lead Alice and Kazius to a forest area that was close to the biggest mountain out of all of them. It was enormous, Kazius genuinely had no clue there were mountains that big in this world. He wondered just how far they would be able to see from the top. Would he be able to see Ratier even from so far away?

“What mountain is that one?” Kazius decided to ask.

“Buahaha! That’s Mount Ulf. The forest near it always has the biggest game!” Damon exclaimed happily.

It was then Kazius remembered Damon’s words.

‘THAT was the mountain he climbed as a child?! No wonder Caleb wasn’t sure whether to be angry or impressed! What was a child even doing there all on his own?! Did his parents not watch him?’

“THAT’S MOUNT ULF?!” Kazius exclaimed in shock, voicing his thoughts.

Alice too seemed shocked.

“What were you even doing up there?” Alice asked in horror, clearly picturing a child doing such a thing.

Their only response was just a booming laugh.

“Buahaha! I always enjoyed to adventure too far for my own good!” Damon admitted.

‘That seems more like a lack of self-preservation than seeking adventure to me…’

“Anyway, we should catch dinner! If all the noise we’re making is any sign… It should be here soon.” Damon admitted with a wide grin. Of course, ‘we’ was a lot of people, considering the one laughing and speaking loudly was him.

“What do you mean by that-“ Kazius questioned curiously only to hear a loud thud and crash… Followed by another… Then another… This continued until the ground began to shake and stomping could be heard getting closer and closer. Followed by what sounded like a cross between a trumpet and a pig squealing.

‘Getting closer…’ Kazius could swear he heard a choir of murmurs warn him in his ear. He could sense the shadows grow tense. Their breathing was jagged, but nothing close to what it had been when Leo and Alex were close. For the longest time, Kazius was unsure if they were in his head, but it was becoming clear that was not the case.

Azanor’s words when he had explained to Kazius what he was came back to him. The nervous warning he had given about not discussing it too much.

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‘The Shadows have ears… But does that mean they have mouths too? What about eyes? Or arms or legs? I have a feeling the trick to getting stronger is to listen… To talk to them… To try to be them… But something about that realization makes me think Azanor might not think that is a good idea… But what other choice do I have? I am what I am… I have to use the abilities I have to protect. I doubt something like this would cause a problem…’

Kazius had no time to dwell on his epiphany though. He could see whatever was approaching, was knocking over tree after tree in it’s mad dash towards them. Something strong was coming, that much was clear.

“WHAT IS THAT!?” Alice exclaimed in shock. Things in the Wastelands were strange, but it was clear that the sheltered princess was starting to be exposed to things that were outside her comfort zone.

“Buahaha! Dinner! We got lucky! Seems like a big one! Svinfant get really angry at loud noises and this one must have been close by!” Damon exclaimed contently with a laugh, clearly excited to take down this ‘Svinfant’ with them.

Kazius grew curious, eager to see this beast up close.

He did not have to wait long at all.

It sprinted into the open as it knocked over two more trees, heading straight at them. What came out what appeared to be a massive boar. Or at least something that resembled one. Not only did it have a much longer snout than a boar or a pig, but it’s tusks were incredibly long, curving up and looking incredible sharp. It stood at 12 ft tall (3.66 m)and 24 ft(7.32m) long. It was covered in thick long fur that looked tougher than metal armor. Its hooves were long and pointed, almost like claws.

It was shocking to see such a creature, so similar to the boar and pigs Kazius knew of, yet so different. It was almost like the farther from Ratier they got, the stranger the creatures got.

It looked dangerous, but Kazius was certain they could take it down… But he supposed this would be a good start to their training as well. They had no room to cower. They had to get stronger… If this was what hunting was like around these parts, then they needed to be able to at least manage this much.

Still, the charging of the creature was dangerous, and he did not want to risk it reaching them, much less to have Alice get hurt again. So, he would test out his theory. Rather than just try to blindly manipulate shadows, he would treat them like they were a part of him, distant body parts. They were not clay to manipulate, they were a part of him.

The creature seemed tough, charging ahead like some unstoppable force… But seeing the shadow casted by the Svinfant itself… Kazius reached out to the shadow it casted. The shadow was constantly beneath the creature, never able to out run it.

‘Think… Think… That shadow is like my hand…. I just need to use it… To grab it…’ Kazius would tell himself.

Worried at first if he was doing things right, Kazius saw Damon use his wind to try and slow down the creature… But before Damon could get far… Dozens of small and thin arms would spring up and tie around the creature suddenly, halting its movement as it was pinned down.

Kazius had been unsure if it would work, but he actually managed to stop the momentum of the creature. It struggled frantically, threatening to break free as it let out a fierce cry that almost resembled the sound of a trumpet combined with a squeal.

Damon was shocked by the sight of Kazius’ shadows, but more than anything, he seemed impressed. He did not seem to care about the nature of Kazius’ powers at all.

“That’s perfect! Now we just need to pierce it! Be careful! Svinfants only stop when their heads are cut off! We need to keep aiming for the neck!” Damon exclaimed, practically jumping with joy despite the morbid warning he gave. He truly could not be happier than on a hunt with friends. It was a dream come true, it seemed.

To think the creature would keep moving even once they somehow managed to stab it… It was definitely a tough hunt, but a fulfilling one.

“I’ll take the left!” Alice called out.

With that, Damon and Alice would move to opposite sides.

Damon would grip his spear tight, giving himself a faster sprint with the help of his Wind, aiming at the Svinfant’s neck on the right.

As this occurred, Alice would control her sword quickly. The massive blade moved fast, managing to slice at the Svinfant’s neck from the left.

Together, with Kazius restraining the creature… They would take it down. The head would finally fall off when Kazius would form a spike that launched up, stabbing right through the middle with a loud crack.

Damon seemed shocked, but happy, in total disbelief.

“Buahaha! I can’t believe we did it! I’ve never hunted a Svinfant this big! And it got taken down so quickly!” Damon exclaimed happily with a wide grin.

Alice seemed happy. She seemed proud of herself, likely feeling better considering she expressed her desire to become more capable. Kazius was proud of her too… And himself…

“I can’t believe we took something that big down.” Alice stated in awe.

“Me too.” Kazius agreed, content with his realization, but also their teamwork.

“Now… How to get this to town…” Kazius would add while in thought. If there were more of them, they could cut it up and carry it…

Damon would grin, looking smug for once. He would move, grappling the dead beast for a bit before with a loud grunt, he managed to lift the thing! Kazius knew Damon had ridiculous strength from back when he saved them, but this was insane. He was an absolute Monster, but Kazius knew better than to just settle on the term. At the end of the day, he knew Damon meant well.

Considering how his own Tribe treated him, it was honestly astonishing how he did not use such a strength to defend himself, much less to teach someone a lesson.

Then again, Kazius was a Monster too…

What else could he do if he listened to The Shadows more?

He had a long way to go to catch up to Damon… And… What mattered was how he used the power. To be strong did not make someone terrible, much less a villain.

Alice was left with her mouth agape, clearly shocked at what she had just seen.

“How are you carrying that thing?” Alice managed to ask.

“Buahaha! I am very good with my Wind! There are many ways to use it! I would stay away from touching the Svinfant while I carry it. To carry very heavy things I use the Wind to make it lighter.” Damon admitted contently.

‘Now that makes more sense.’

He has strength, sure, but that explained a lot. Damon seemed to treat himself like he was not the smartest, since he could not read, but Kazius believed he had to give himself more credit.

After all, it was not everyone that could understand how to use their powers so efficiently… Kazius felt he had a lot of catching up to do with his new friend. He would be perfect to train them, or so Kazius believed… But a part of him worried that this was all just part of some plot by The Oracle… Whatever it was… God or not… He did vaguely recall seeing a Werewolf at his side… The details were fuzzy since it was so long ago… But… Despite how odd the situation with Damon was, the fact he saved them combined with his vision from that day… Was enough for Kazius to be certain about him being a friend.

With that in mind, Kazius approached the head of the Svinfant. Curious, he attempted to picked up the severed head of the Svinfant. It was heavy, far too heavy for a normal Human to pick up… But… With Damon’s idea in mind… He tried something. His new strength after he came to understand what he was… combined with the support of the shadows casted on himself by his own clothes… He managed to pick it up. It was difficult for him despite being nowhere near as heavy the body… But it was a clear sign he was going the right direction.

“Shouldn’t forget this, it is quite the trophy.” Kazius admitted.