Chapter 4: A Rough Start

 With Lepris by my side, the tides of battle turned rather quickly: the power of my wide slashes and the quickness of his blows proved too much for the little goblins and the enemy ground forces got decimated in less than a minute... even though that did tire us out very quickly as well. Whenever the winged avians charged at us from above, I had Lepris intervene: by jumping high in the sky, grabbing them with his gigantic ears and sending them crashing down into the wingless enemies with a slap, we hastily got rid of the flying menace even quicker than I could have ever imagined. Even though we were using the same exact tactic each time, the 'F.E.A.R.'s never bothered to switch their own and were dispatched with ease: another cruel reminder that strength is nothing without a good mind to support it.

Eventually, we reduced the entirety of the battleground to a gooey black pulp, formed by the remains of the monsters we had eliminated. Now here I am, looking at the mess we have caused, wondering why we are still trapped within the 'Astra-grid'... that certainly cannot be good.

My name... is Red. I am a fire dragon, and the only survivor of the massive surprise attack that completely destroyed the capital of my kingdom. After barely escaping from my castle and finding myself in a world I did not even know existed, I made a contract with a mysterious entity in the hope of reclaiming what I lost. While searching for a place to rest for the night, I met a strange human named Lepris... and, since then, things have only worsened...

“We did it! We actually did it!” my companion shouts as he stands on his right leg and punches the air above him “Can't believe it was that easy!”

“Because it was not: this battle is not over yet...” I tell him as I inspect the sword in my hand: the seven gems that are held within its fuller are still shining brightly, meaning the danger has not yet subsided “Something is coming for us! Prepare yourself!”

[1-03 – Eternal Fire – Chaotic by Waterflame (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhN9OdjE4m4)] / [2-03 – Battlefield of Suspense – Battlefield: Faith is My Pillar (From Etrian Odyssey IV) by Yuzo Koshiro (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1_7UQHIDcA)]

Lepris barely has any time to understand what I just said before the black blob resting below our feet starts moving on its own and begins accumulating in the centre of the arena; the remains of hundreds of creatures fuse together into one monstrous abomination that appears to be exactly like the goblins we just defeated, only much bigger... in fact, it is so big its size is twice my own!

“Okay, what the heck is that!?” the man asks me as he points at the 'F.E.A.R.', not knowing what to do.

“Exactly what you think it is.” I answer as the creature leaps towards us, trying to smash us with its enormous size “Move! Now!”; we barely manage to get away from the impact point as the creature lands right where we were a moment ago, missing us by the skin of our fangs “We need to take this thing down, and fast!” I tell the shape-shifting human “Else we risk more of them joining the fray!”

“Heck no!” he replies as he once again prepares himself for battle “I'm not dealing with all those creeps again! It better stop once we bring down this big guy!” to be frank, I hope so as well: another round would be devastating, and I am not sure we would even be able to survive that in our current state.

Lepris leaps at the black-fanged goliath and kicks it hard in the face with his right foot: the monster emits a faint growl, which probably means it did suffer some damage, but it immediately retaliates and punches the man right in his stomach, sending him flying away screaming; he harshly lands in the cold dirt, thankfully not unconscious “Lepris! Are you alright!?”

“I'm... fine...” he manages to answer as he somehow gets up, the will to keep on fighting still burning in his eyes “You'll need more... than that... to beat me!” I... I am impressed: this human alone has surpassed each and every one I have seen so far, both in strength and in character... he truly is a force to reckon.

As the behemoth turns to attack me, forcing me to dodge its attacks one after another, I evaluate all the possible alternatives available to me right now: I could continue battling using only normal and special attacks, but that could prove difficult, even impossible perhaps... the best and safest way for me to end the battle quickly is to use a finisher, though that would mean I only have one chance to, literally, finish this.

I consider using the most powerful spell I can cast, but immediately realize I need some time to properly assemble it... I would be dead before I can even utter the poem that accompanies it! However... if Lepris were to divert the creature's attention in the meantime, I would definitely have enough time to prepare it!

“Lepris! I need your help!” I call him “I need you to distract this thing for me! Our very survival depends on it!”

“Got it!” he says as he charges at the monster from behind, stoically ignoring the pain he must surely be suffering, and kicks it as hard as he can in the back, making it stumble forward and giving me enough time to distance myself from it; the titanic fiend does not waste any time, however, and instantly attempts to get revenge on the human who struck it: fortunately, Lepris had the smart idea of jumping backwards in the meantime, avoiding its attack and further taunting the beast into attacking him and him alone.

As my companion dodges each and every single attack the giant attempts to hit him with and simultaneously keeps it away from me, I proceed to harness the power needed to cast this sacred spell: after breathing deeply a few times, I form some sort of containing globe with my right and left hand and begin pouring my own fire directly into it with the help of my hands; the burning blaze then transforms into a slowly growing sphere of living fire, only waiting to be fired.

“Souls of the oppressed, of the unforgiven, of the glorious: heed my call!” I shout as the sphere between my hands begins to grow even further and blue sparkles of energy flow in and out of my body “You, who have served this kingdom with your very lives, I ask for your help once again!” either the noise I am making or the power I am drawing has alerted the monster of what I am doing: it immediately stops attacking the shape-shifter and instead charges at me, probably knowing full-well its existence will surely cease if I ever do finish this poem “You, who fought tirelessly for the ideals you believed in, lend me your strength to pursue my own!” Lepris is faster than the monster and positions himself between me and the creature, ready to stop it no matter what; the 'F.E.A.R.' lunges at him, planning to take him out in one blow, but the human is ready to serve a healthy dose of vengeance “Furious Flurry!” he charges his arm-like ears with the last remains of his strength and unleashes a flurry of blows onto the incoming behemoth, which was not prepared to deal with such a potent counter and is left defenceless: not only is Lepris's attack too strong for the monster to break through, it also sends it flying high up in the air... I could not have asked for a better opportunity than this “Together, we stand! For honour, for glory, for freedom!” the sphere in my hand is now as big as it should be, and far more powerful than I remembered it; as I launch the sphere towards the monster, I shout aloud, with all the anger I have left “Burn in the flames of Hell! Blazing Inferno!”

The spell is quick and reaches its target before gravity can pull it back down; as the two bodies come into contact, the sphere suddenly explodes... or rather, it expands: it is now the size of a house and as hot as the Sun itself, or so they say. Any pained cries the monster may be making are either suffocated by the intensity of the lava that is reducing it to dust or silenced by the loud noise of the explosion. The power of the everlasting inferno paints the entirety of our surroundings of a reddish shade of orange, but it does not produce that familiar scent of burnt chicken I am used to: that is likely due to the fact we are, technically, in another dimension... the senses must be working differently in this odd plane of existence.

“Who... w-what are you?” Lepris asks me, amazed and confused, as I sheathe my sword and transform back into a human “Just a dragon who is fighting for what is right.” I say as the dimension we are in falls apart rather hastily: the burned grass turns clean and fresh, what little is left of the previous enemy horde disappears in an instant and the gigantic ball of fire vanishes in thin air, allowing us to see an even brighter sky than before. Everything has returned to the way it should be... for now, at least.

“Oh, man... I'm exhausted!” Lepris sighs as he drops to the ground, his body quickly reverting into that of a human; he deserves to finally have some rest, he has done a great service to me by helping me defeat those cursed fiends.

“Can I have a word with you?” I ask as I approach the man, who eyes me surprised “You have my gratitude, my friend: without you, I doubt I would have survived that onslaught... e-excuse me, are you even listening to me?” the poor guy is looking at me oddly... actually, now that I take a better look I believe he is looking through me: he is mumbling something, but the words are so garbed and confused I cannot quite make out what he is saying.

“...Well, again, thank you for your kindness; now, if you will excuse me, I have to find a suitable place for me to rest through the night.” I pat him on the shoulder and turn the other way, preparing to leave... but before I can make another step, he grabs my jacket's sleeve and stops me “Waitwaitwaitwait! Wait! You mean you don't have anywhere to stay at?” he suddenly asks, very interested.

“Unfortunately no, I am afraid.” upon hearing my answer, he springs back up and begins talking to himself “Yes! Yesyesyesyes! That's great!” his body instantly stops moving as he realizes the words he just said are... regrettable “Wait! No! T-That's not great! I should feel bad for you!” he immediately turns to look at me in the eyes and begins bowing repeatedly, seemingly without end... honestly, I do not even know what to say any more: his reactions are very strange, and his sentences are even more strange!

“I-It's alright Lepris... you need not bow so many times...” I tell him, unsure of what to say or do to make him stop behaving so oddly.

“O-Okay, I'll stop... sorry...” he apologizes as he looks elsewhere, clearly embarrassed “What I meant to say was... i-if you don't have anywhere else to sleep at, w-why don't you come to my place and sleep there? I've got a spare bed after all...” now that is a possibility I did not think he would have suggested: sleeping on an actual bed rather than on a tree branch would drastically improve the quality of my rest... besides, this way I will not have to track this man down tomorrow for an explanation. But, can I really accept?

“That is a very generous offer...” I reply, taken aback by his willingness to help “The only thing I fear is... are you sure you can invite someone like me to your home, just like this? Someone who you have not met before, someone who is... so different than you in every way?”

His answer is straightforward and doubtless, clearing my own doubt from my mind “Of course! We saved each other's lives! It's the minimum I can do for you after everything you've done for me tonight... and we're not that different, after all... I mean, we're both otherkin, right?” he signals me to follow him, something that I gladly do; as we prepare to leave the area, I spot something moving right next to a tree a hundred or so feet away from me... however, when I turn my gaze to inspect the area better I find nothing of interest: it might have been a nocturnal animal, or maybe what I saw was just a mirage influenced by my tiredness... though I cannot shake away the feeling I really did see something out of the ordinary...

After the tough battle, we headed towards Lepris's 'apartment', which I found out was not very far away from the park we were in at the moment: I almost felt sad while leaving that beautiful place, especially since the brightness and lifelessness of the buildings we got greeted by at the exit could not even compare with the sense of calmness that the small forest provided. The little time we had to chat before we reached his house was hardly enough to discuss the serious topics I wanted to talk about and, even if we did have said time, my companion insisted we abstained from discussing such matters in public: honestly, I cannot understand why I was not the one to suggest that in the first place... maybe fatigue really is wearing me down...

The building his house was in, I discovered, was one of the very first buildings I saw upon arriving in this world, one of the monumental colossuses that stretched all the way up to the sky and reflected the darkness of the night and the gleam of the moon with their glass-made surfaces... it is a shame the inside is not as beautiful as the outside: the entry hall is painted dull white, which is already an outstanding eyesore, and the few decorations that are in the room are so random and unnecessary I am tempted to ask for the man that brought them in in the first place only to punch him on behalf of the entirety of this building's inhabitants. Seriously: how can a creepy white mask, the upper section of a bronze battle armour, a painting that reminds me a lot of this city viewed from above and, most irritatingly of all, a carpet that looks like a skin, fake by the way, of a black and white animal fit in the same room!? Not even the aristocracy decorates their homes like this, and they are champions when it comes to bad taste!

“Please, tell me this is not your home...” I sigh as I unwillingly enter the horrible building.

“Ha, very funny! No, mine's up above... fourth floor, in fact. You wanna climb the stairs or take the elevator?” he inquires, pointing at a closed metallic door next to a set of stairs; “I am not in the right mood to experiment tonight, so... would you mind if we took the stairs?” I ask, desperate for some rest. At first he eyes me estranged, but then agrees to climb the stairs all the way to his apartment.

His room is right next to the stairs, I find out: the doorway is made of a poor quality of brown wood and a plaque right above the centre reads '3-A'. He opens the door using a key he held in his shorts' pocket and allows me in: the first thing I see is a gigantic window that overlooks the road below the edifice... and stares directly into yet another building that is most certainly just like the one I am in at the moment. The room itself appears to be a perfect fusion of a bedroom, a kitchen and a living room: on the left stands the kitchen counter, which consists of... a lot of complicated machinery I have never seen before, the middle of the room is occupied by a huge green sofa made out of a leathery and somehow soft material and, between said sofa and the kitchen, a somewhat old wooden table with two chairs, and on the right stands a common white twin-sized bed. There is also a door that connects to another room on the far right, but I feel like I need not check that out right now.

“Phew, I'm exhausted!” Lepris says as he shifts into his more monstrous self and throws himself on the couch, clearly satisfied by the fact he can finally have some rest “So, this is my home. Kinda neat, huh?” he asks for my opinion while looking at me with his big, black eyes.

“It could sport some more decorations, but what you have here at the moment is more than enough, in my humble opinion.” I reply, with the little strength I have left; social norms impose me to keep conversing for as long as my host desires, but I really want to rest, even if just a bit...

“Yeah, this place could be much better...” he looks away, unsure of what to say “But hey, it could be worse... I mean, this is still better than having no home at all, right?” suddenly, his long ears stand rigidly upright as his jaw hangs wide open and his body becomes completely paralysed; he then falls to the ground, quickly recomposes himself and begins bowing at me once again, repeating the words “I'm sorry” over and over again. This is getting old already...

“Do not worry, I am not mad at you...” I make him stop as I explain, tired “I do still have a home, the problem is that... well... it's complicated, alright? Could we just... go to sleep, please? Today was the worst day of my life, and I want to end it as soon as possible.”

“S-Sure! Sorry, I didn't realize that... ah, darn it! Please, the bed is all yours.” with his permission, I take off my shoes, throw myself on the bed, rest my head on a soft pillow and fall in a deep slumber...

He's sleeping already, the poor guy... he really must have had a rough day. As I watch him slowly snuggle inside the blanket, I wonder whether bringing Red in was a good idea: on one hand, he's helped me both against those thugs and against those freaky monsters... even though it looked like it was his fault they came in the first place... plus, he's an otherkin, just like me, and he deserves what little help he can get. On the other hand, he's a complete stranger to me, and I've never really had any... no, that's not a good excuse. He stood up for me and saved my life: I should repay that kindness, in my own way.

“Plus, he's kinda cute.” the words escape my darn mouth before I can shut it with my paw: at first I try to improvise a good excuse, but then remember the dragon's sleeping like a rock. Thank God, I would've probably died if he actually listened... perhaps I should go to sleep too: tiredness is really making me act like a jerk... and like a dork.

“Sweet dreams...” I quietly wish him a good rest as I reach for the light switch and turn it off...

These candid marble walls look... familiar... too familiar, in fact. “Come on, Sol! You are faster than that!” I hear myself shout, but I did not say anything: as a matter of fact, I do not even have control of my own body, who appears to be much smaller and weaker than I remember; even my voice has become like that of a child... perhaps because I now am one. The golden necklace I am wearing is producing a faint metallic sound as I run away from my pursuer.

“Please, My Lord, I beg you... allow me to rest for a moment, please...” I slow down my speed only to see my retainer resting next to a pillar, trying to catch her breath: feeling a tad sorry for wearing her down like that, I fly to her and apologize... but, before I can say anything, she leaps at me and pins me down, a somewhat satisfied expression on her face “Oh, please, My Lord, do you truly believe me to be that weak? I have much more stamina than you, and we are in a semi-open area: there was no reason for me to suddenly stop like that.” even though she has a point, I am quite angry at her for deceiving me like that.

“I was just worried, that's all! You have no reason to ambush me like that!” I argue as she stands up before helping me get up as well “How was I supposed to know you had not stumbled or hit something on accident... is it really so wrong to care for someone you love?” I ask, still ired.

“You forget, My Lord, that you are currently in training: I am supposed to mimic a potential assailant, and you cannot afford to be 'nice' to an enemy... unless you want to be stabbed in the back, of course.” I sigh in defeat, knowing full-well I should have expected something like that from her.

I remember, now, when this occurred... yes, I definitely do: I was a child, filled with enthusiasm but lacking in virtue and training, and Sol was more or less the same age as me now... the only difference between her past self and her present self is that she once was a bit less empathic. I believe this was the day she began showing some... tenderness, if I recall correctly.

“If I may ask, what is that necklace that you are wearing?” she inquires, only slightly interested.

“Oh, this? My father gave it to me, as a present... but it does not really fit with my aesthetic, does it?” I reply, kind of embarrassed at the thought I was wearing an ornament commonly associated with the fair sex “Say, what if I were to gift it to you? It would look much better on you, trust me!” before she can object I forcefully make her wear that seemingly meaningless jewel: the pendant looks like the image of a dragon, its eyes are made out of shining red gems... a fine piece of jewellery indeed, but not one I am comfortable wearing.

“M-My Lord, I... I cannot accept...” she attempts to remove it but I stop her “Please do: you deserve it. Today is your birthday, am I right? Then please, accept this gift as my thanks for always being there for me.” speechless, she tugs the pendant, confused “My... birthday...?” after a short while, she lets it go and turns her gaze to face me, lowering herself a bit so I do not have to stare up at her “This... is truly a wonderful gift. Thank you, My Lord: I shall conserve this pendant like the most sacred treasure for the rest of my life...”

I finally manage to wake up upon noticing that the bed I am laying in is much different than the one I have been sleeping in for my whole life: I quickly get up, worried I might have been kidnapped or worse... before instantly recalling the events of the previous day. I have yet to fully accept the fact I am no longer in Draconia, for some reason; the events of yesterday appear to me more like nightmares than actual memories... and yet, they are far too vivid and scary to be illusions.

I realize I have slept with my clothes still on: that was not very hygienic, not at all... well, at least I had the decency to take off my shoes. I decide to put them on and look for Lepris, the shape-shifter if I recall correctly, and find him tinkering in the kitchen: he is still morphed into his non-human self, and his clothing has not changed either... apart from the pink apron with the drawing of a huge yellow heart and the words 'Kiss the Chef' that he is now wearing. It may sound quite rude, but I find that garment very exhilarating: the fact I am not bursting in laughter is a miracle in and of itself... seriously, why would he ever buy, much less wear, something so stupid?

“Oh, hey! You're finally up!” he greets me, quite cheerful “I've cooked you eggs and sausages! You want them?” he grabs a plate next to him and starts heading towards the table in the centre of the room... but he suddenly trips and threatens to drop the plate: it is only through a combination of lightning reflexes, impeccable timing and a tiny bit of luck that I manage to catch the dish he prepared me mid-air, saving it from a premature end on Lepris's floor.

“Oh... my... God...” the man releases the breath he was holding in and lets himself fall on the chair next to the table “Man, I'm such a goof... you just woke up and you already had to fix a mistake I did!” as he seemingly drowns in despair, I put the plate on the table where it belongs and attempt to comfort him “Please, calm yourself: the dish has not gone to waste, I am perfectly fine... and, though it was not very pleasant, I am now fully awake thanks to you! So please, stop crying... and take off that nasty apron, please!” not only do I stop him from loathing himself, I also crack a smile on his face: it seems as though those social etiquette lessons I had to attend were not very... accurate, at all “Heh, you're right... this thing's useless.” he takes off his apron and throws it on the sofa, meanwhile encouraging me to eat the dish he has prepared for me.

Even though these eggs and sausages are moderately different from the ones I am used to, their familiar flavour somehow manages to make me feel less... alone; after finishing to eat my humble breakfast, I thank Lepris for cooking such a fantastic delicacy. “Y-You liked it!? Thank you! I'm not that great of a cook, but I tried hard!” he blushes upon hearing my praise.

After a few more compliments about the food and the house, I manage to bring the focus of the conversation where I wanted it all along “So, yesterday you called me an 'otherkin'... may I ask you what that is and why I am one?”

“Well, I call 'otherkin' all humans who can transform into animals... I don't know if there's a more 'official' name for us, so I'm rolling with it until someone gives me a better one!” before I can object and clarify that I am not a human, and therefore not an otherkin either, he adds to his explanation “You see, I'm the only otherkin I know of apart from you... and I was kinda wondering if there were others: one day, a few years ago, I found a bunch of people on 'Tumblr' calling themselves that and saying that they were dragons, wolves, foxes and the like... and I thought that, maybe, they were like me as well! But when I told them what I could do, they turned me down claiming I was a 'faker' and a 'troll'... and something else about 'checking my privilege'... I dunno, but the name stuck with me.”

“Pardon me, but I did not understand a word you just said... and I doubt I would even if you were to repeat yourself.” I stop him, wishing to clarify this misunderstanding immediately “Unfortunately for you, you are quite mistaken: I am not an otherkin, or even a human for that matter. I am a dragon, who once lived in a world inhabited solely by dragons: my human body is merely a facade I use to hide among your kin, and it is only allowed by this ring I am wearing.” I show him the black ring, but that is clearly the latest of his problems at the moment.

“W-Wait, what? You're kidding me, right? Please tell me you're joking and you don't really believe that...” not only does he not believe me, he now thinks I am raving... I should probably have expected it, but I am quite disappointed nonetheless. What I say now and how I say it will no doubt severely impact my future... and my relationship with Lepris.

“To be honest, I have never been more serious before.” I answer as I transform back into my draconic self, which he admires as amazed, surprised and, at the same time, terrified as he did last night “I should probably tell you what happened to me yesterday: perhaps this way you will find trusting me a bit easier...”

“O-Okay... I understand... kinda...” Lepris stands up and distances himself from the chair, unsure whether to believe what I just told him or not “So you just... expect me to believe everything you've said!? That not only are you a real, actual dragon... you also come from a world filled with dragons!? And that you're a prince who managed to escape alive as his castle got invaded by... other dragons!?”

“You forgot the part where I met a cat named Karma who could shoot laser beams out of magical cards.” I add that one last part to the overall summary, but then realize it might not have been a good idea.

“You're not making it easy for me to believe you!” he sighs a bit louder as he walks in circles around the room, pondering on what to do “I mean, yeah, you can spit fire and all, but... it's kinda difficult to believe you come from a whole other universe!” he stops walking and returns to his chair, a pained expression on his face “Then again, most comedians would've probably laughed once or twice at this point... so either you're telling me the truth or you're freaking crazy...” I do not know what to say, so I decide to stay calm and not speak a word until he quiets down.

“Okay, so let's pretend you're telling the truth.” his eyes meet with my own as his gaze becomes dead serious “You said that this 'cat', who might be another otherkin for all I know, assigned you a task to complete before Sunday... so, what is it? What does this guy want from you?” I briefly ponder whether I should tell this man what Karma advised me to do... before coming to the conclusion that, were I not to do it, I would completely lose my credibility. Besides, not even I know what exactly they asked me... perhaps this is the right moment to ask for elucidations?

“I would like to tell you but, before that, I need you to translate a key word they used: without it, not even I can understand the overall meaning of their message.” I tell Lepris, who immediately replies “Yeah, sure... what's that?”

“Pardon me if it's common knowledge in this world, but... what is a 'teenager with attitude'?” before a few seconds spent trying to realize what I just said in complete and utter silence, he suddenly starts laughing uncontrollably before falling off his chair and rolling on the ground like I just said the biggest idiocy in the world. That is not good at all.

“Since you said you would help me reclaim my kingdom, how, exactly, do you plan on doing that? If you are scheming something, I would like to be informed of the major details.” I tell the cat, who answers my question very eagerly “You're going to perform a direct attack on the capital, free your fellow dragons, eliminate the majority of the enemy defenses with their help and defeat the mastermind behind the attack.”

“...Are you insane?” I manage to ask, utterly confused by Karma's idea “By the time you will allow me to return to my kingdom, the enemy will have completely conquered the city and gained control of its every defensive position! Even if I were to attack right now, I would never be able to wipe them all out alone!” just then I realize how foolish I was to even think I would have been able to defeat the Thundarian menace by myself... even though my honour will never forgive me for it, perhaps Sol's idea of sending me away was, indeed, the most intelligent one.

“I can solve your 'time' problem...” Karma winks at me as his tongue sticks out “I will stop time in your world... well, kind of: it will still flow, but very slowly... by the time you'll come back, you'll find out that only a few hours will have passed; most likely just one, worst case scenario two.” I ask him if he can really do something as incredible as manipulating time, to which he answers “Even if I couldn't do it, I have a friend who can help me... so yeah, no problem.” at least they seem confident...

“Alright, now that that issue has been taken care of... what should I do until you allow me to return back to my world?” he decides not to answer me, and instead tells me to figure out the answer by myself; after a few seconds spent evaluating every option, I finally understand what they want me to do... and feel kind of stupid for having had to figure out such a simple conclusion “Gather allies...”

“Bingo.” he congratulates me for my wits before becoming even more serious “Here's the catch though: as I told you before, you can't rely on the system, You can't trust the police, you can't trust the masses and, most importantly of all, you can't trust the government. If your real identity were to be leaked, you'd be dead or worse before you even know it: people here tend to react harshly whenever they think they're being threatened... and they see everything they can't understand immediately as a threat.”

“So... that means I am alone.” I reply, disheartened.

“Not really... people in general are dumb, but single individuals aren't... sometimes, at least. You won't have an army to support you, so you'll have to resort to plan B...” their grin expands immensely as they explain what they have in mind “Recruit a team of teenagers with attitude! Guaranteed against evil sorceresses, intergalactic overlords and monstrous freaks who want to destroy all we hold dear!”

“A-Alright...” honestly, I do not know what to say... especially since I did not understand a word they just spoke “So, what should I do again?”

“You'll figure it out, don't worry... I'm sure everything will be clear to you if you let your fate guide you to your destination...” once again, the cat cares not if I actually understood... trusting them, or anything he says for that matter, becomes more difficult and even impossible with each word that exits their devious mouth...

“Well, this dude's a freaking genius...” Lepris says as I finish recalling the words the cat used the previous night, his laughter having quieted down a bit “Did they leave you their number or something? Because I'd be totally down for a chat with them!”

“The only thing they left me is the ring and their ominous words, but it appears as though they will return sporadically to check on me... and honestly, I cannot say I am thrilled.” I answer his question, glad that Lepris is finally taking me somewhat seriously “So, do you believe me now?”

“I mean, it's kinda hard, you know...” he mutters, still thinking about it “Hmm... you know what? Now that I think about it, it doesn't really matter...” he stands up and invites me to do the same “Even if you're lying or crazy, you're tons of fun! You're the first person who's ever talked to me so casually in years! I can't just dismiss you because you don't have any proof at the moment... besides, if you're not wrong, everything you've said right now will happen very soon, right? I just have to wait and see... and, in the meantime, we can be friends!”

“That is a wonderful idea.” I lend him my hand to shake “So, will you aid me, at least for the time being?” he immediately grabs my hand and shakes it energetically, a big friendly smile on his face “Yeah, sure! Count me in!”

As he ends the handshake, grabs the empty plate on the table and goes to what looks like a sink to wash it, I ask, interested “So, what is a 'teenager with attitude' anyway? You have not answered this question yet.”

“Well, it's a quote from a famous TV show, so maybe that cat just joking, but... teenagers are people aged thirteen to nineteen, you know? Like me: I'm eighteen, so technically I classify as one...” what a convenient coincidence... indeed, the fact that the first man I spoke to is exactly the kind of warrior I need by my side is far too incredible to be a mere fortuity. I will need to meet Karma again to be sure, but... perhaps fate really is by my side.