The stranger was slowly approaching Arun with an enigmatic smile on his face. The raptor that accompanied him had calmed down for the moment, but seemed equally ready to leap on him at the least bad movement.

The vet was not really sure what to do in such an unexpected situation. The stranger stopped at last, putting his eyes in those of the young man who was on his guard.

"I suppose, considering the clothes you wear, that you're not from here. You must be one of those dirty guys of the city, aren't you ?" The boy asked his question in an unwelcoming tone, and his smile had now disappeared. Unfortunately for Arun, it seemed he was not very friendly.

"Indeed, I come from the city. Why such hatred towards the people who live there ?" The vet tried to keep his cool while thinking about how to escape if the bird or his interlocutor decided to attack him.

And he had done well to think about it, since if he had not jumped to the side to avoid the spear of the stranger, he would have been impaled at once.

"Ignorant of the city... Do you dare to tread our lands again ?" Anger was now visible on the boy's face, who seemed determined to attack Arun.

The vet wasted no time and got up quickly, grabbing the spear that had planted next to him. He did not know how to defend himself with bare hands, so using a weapon...

Moreover, it was too heavy for him. It was a spear carved in a bone, with some jewels and precious stones encrusted here and there. This boy was definitely out of the ordinary.

"Stay where you are!" Arun threatened his opponent with his own spear, pointed forward, a little shaking. Holding a weapon of this weight and size firmly was not easy without training.

The boy stopped again, and sighed with annoyance.

"Vikion, it's your turn." After uttering these simple words, the black vulture that accompanied him spread his wings again, and produced a great gust of wind that unbalanced Arun.

Seizing this opportunity, the stranger rushed to the vet and gave him a violent blow in the stomach, which made him fall to the ground, breathing with difficulty.

"People of the city like you don't take care of their bodies. It was arrogant of you to think you could fight me." The boy said, picking up his spear, pushing Arun's trembling body away with his foot.

It was at this point that Naal and Astera finally came out of the cavern, noting the thorny situation in which the vet was.

"Arun!" Naal exclaimed, rushing to the young man's body with fright. Nevertheless, the boy barred the road with his spear, preventing her from advancing further.

"You don't touch him, he got in trouble all by himself, and you too are there. I don't know why you were so close to Vikion's nest, but I won't let you go like that." He said in a threatening voice, which left the poor woman frightened and nailed to the ground.

"Vikion, what does that mean?" Astera's voice echoed in the veterinarian's head as the raptor spoke to her bellicose companion.

"You brought humans into our nest ! Humans of the city ! I trusted you, Astera !" The other black vulture answered her with an accusing air, whistling badly.

"They are not ordinary humans, it's my mistress, and a vet who helped me a lot !" Astera tried to explain the situation to the male who was more stubborn than ever. Admittedly, it was normal for a bird to protect its nest, but this one did not seem to want to understand the situation.

Vikion pulled back a little, turning his head to the boy who seemed to understand something from him.

"Hm ? This woman is the mistress of Astera ?" The stranger looked at Naal, who was still on the floor, not knowing what to do in such a situation.

A big smile lit up the stranger's face as he reached for the veterinarian's client. He suddenly seemed to have become friendly and peaceful.

"Excuse me for the bad impression I made you, miss. I am Alden Cor Narza, the master of Vikion." The boy introduced himself politely, showing the giant black vulture that was his pet with his hand.

"Naal... Shantura..." the woman pronounced weakly without moving, her voice still flickering.

"Since our meeting was driven by the fact that our respective pets decided to start a family together..." The boy bent down and suddenly grabbed Naal by the hand, raising her to his level and pulling her against him putting his other hand on her hips. "Tradition dictates that we do the same, don't we?"

The tradition ? But what was this madman talking about? Arun, who had heard everything since then, began to get up with difficulty. The belly pain was still strong. The stranger had hit hard.

"Let me go, degenerate, rapist !" Naal tried to free herself from Alden's embrace, when she finally managed to overcome the fear that had held her so far. How did she find herself in such a situation? Since when were there humans in addition to other islands beyond the sea? It was way too much information for her...

"Let her go !" Arun rushed to Alden hoping to knock him down, giving him a chance to escape with Naal. He would be a very bad veterinarian if he put his clients in danger... And for the moment, that was what he had done to the poor woman.

A sharp pain pierced his chest, and cut his breath. The boy's spear had pierced him clean, leaving him no chance of survival by piercing through his ribs and right lung. Alden removed his weapon from Arun's body, sighing at the sight of having smeared it.

"Come on, I don't have more time to lose here." Naal had frozen in front of the vision of the vet's lifeless body, as if any desire to live and flee had left her too. Her mind could no longer understand the situation. Was it the reality ? How was she there ?

Alden quickly climbed on the back of Vikion, taking Naal with him. The giant bird flew away with a flapping wing, without waiting a second more.

"Vikion, you're not going to get away with that !" Astera, mad with rage, flew off in pursuit of her companion, who was abducting her mistress.

"Forgive me Astera, but I will follow the wishes of my master, whatever they may be." The boy sighed again, bored, seeing that the black vulture was following them with the firm intention of stopping them. He seized his spear again, and threw it in the direction of the raptor, which he touched in full wing.

Quickly stopped, Astera was forced to land in emergency, crashing half on the hard ground of the savannah, a few tens of meters lower. Perfect ! The vet and the bird were out of his way, Alden now had peace of mind.

He looked at Naal, who had fainted by his side again. He was lucky that it was a pretty woman that fate brought him ! After all, it was the tradition of his village to marry the person to whom the pet belonged who mated with his. No matter who it was.

Alden looked towards the horizon. A plateau overlooking a mount appeared in front of him. The village was still far enough, and it seemed like a perfect place to stop before going there. The sun was high in the sky, they still had time in front of them.