Startled by the accusing tone of the stranger, Sage whirled his attention to a man he was sure had only just arrived to the town. Sage wilted back under the stranger’s stern expression he had cast upon him with eyes glowing a strange earie blue.

With his oddly bright eyes and pale complexion Sage thought that something about the man was obviously not entirely human, though what exactly he could not say. Sage initially did not know what to make of the man, other than he was dangerous and possibly an experienced fighter. Though the crest on his tabard was almost familiar, Sage could not put a name to it.

“I swear I have nothing to do with any of this” The boy blurted before he could have thought of any reasonable reply.

He winced when he realised that the stranger would probably find him even more suspect after saying something like that, so he gestured to the open portal instead.

“That portal leads to another world.” He said quickly

“Unfortunately, the other side leads to a place called the ‘Vale of Dreams.’ It’s a desert with a corruptive magic that changes creatures into monsters called Reavers” He hastily explained.

“Uh, Sorry. That probably does not explain much, does it?” he apologised earnestly to the stranger for what he felt was a severe lack of information. He would need both the libraries of the elven city and the lore keepers of the desert Kitsune that lived beyond the tainted desert to even begin to appropriately explain just why the Vale was the way it was.

But then again, not everyone liked to spend hours looking into another worlds obscure history like he had. Sage turned his attention back towards the Kenku girl, the last he had seen of her she had been utterly decimating the Reaver, but now she was soaring upwards to possibly gain a more advantageous position, but then Vitruvian joined her in her ascent.

“Wait …What are they doing?” Sage uttered dumbstruck as he tracked their ascent higher and higher, before they began plummeting towards the Reaver at what should have been terminal velocity all so that they could behead the beast with two decisive separate strikes.
It was a stupid move to make and made no sense from a tactical standpoint. The Reaver had been paralysed and Stare had already proven that its chitin and mutated flesh were no match for the blade of her Katana.

The most efficient way she could have dealt with the beast would have been to have just walked up and casually lopped off its head.

And yet Despite knowing how excessively unnecessary it was to finish of the Reaver in such a way, Sage cheered regardless. And he was not alone, the entire town became an uproar of cheer and jubilation as the townspeople all saw the beasts head hit the ground minus its body. Stare and Vitruvian became the centre of the towns praise as they clapped and cheered at the defeat of the beast.

That was when the boy had realised what exactly that had accomplished. While the Kenku could have just walked up and finished the Reaver off, there would have been no fanfare, no sense of victory. Instead this moment would now forever remain in the memory of each person who had witnessed her grandiose blow that slayed the beast.

For the people of Harnsey would always remember the Kenku who slayed the Reaver from another world.

If they had been seeking to establish any sort of reputation than they had succeeded, of that Sage had no doubt.

But not only that, Sage had noted from the way Stare and Vitruvian had soared upwards into the air that there was an intimacy between them, a connection that only companions, friends, lovers, or maybe even something closer to kin, or family would ever have. There was something special that was unique to them alone, a closeness that he could not put into words.

The boy’s cheeks began to burn red with embarrassment as he felt guilty that he had possibly caught a glimpse of something that was supposed to be private.

But his new-found adulation soon turned sour knowing it may only be a temporary victory. Sobered by his thoughts the boy quickly began to assess the current situation, and with a deep resigned breath, the boy stoically turned back to Lorenor.

“I am sorry to ask this of you, but can you please lend me your aid. I fear that the danger will not be over until the portal is dispelled. One Reaver has already made its way through, and I do not doubt it will be that last”