Safina was a barren, desolate land with scarce water sources. Despite having a river, the dry desert landscape offered little sustenance for its inhabitants, who numbered in the thousands, most of whom were women as men were becoming increasingly scarce. The town at the centre was home to a handful of monsters, all of which were of the weaker variety. The town was decently defended, enough to repel any small hunting parties.

However, to the man after whom the village was named, Sabasa was his beloved home. The hero found solace in being there, and being with his wife, Sphinx. The mysterious woman had crossed paths with him years ago while he was travelling alone in the desert, searching for civilization. She was searching for 'food' at the time.

The hero bravely confronted the monster, brandishing his spear, and surprisingly, the monster let him go. She had been intrigued by the man's resistance, pride, and refusal to back down. All things a monster loves to see. As the man tried to shake off the monster who was following him, he eventually relented and allowed her to stay by his side.

They spent the night talking and sharing their stories under the stars, and the monster even asked for consent before jumping him, something she never imagined herself doing.

This unexpected encounter marked the beginning of their relationship, which eventually led to marriage. In a world where marriage was rare, the two of them dreamed of a free world without oppression, and together they aimed to make that dream a reality.

The man now leads a group of like-minded individuals, which includes some monsters who decided that their superiors were going too far. The group had mostly stayed on the defensive in the region, defending any village from attackers. Eventually, they decided to form a headquarters of sorts.

The base was named after its leader, and thus, Sabasa was born. It was placed in the centre of Safina, making any operations or patrols to nearby villages not too much of a trek. The Hero also chose this location so his wife could be close to her home, the Pyramid.

Over the years, he and his wife grew even closer and decided to have a child. To his and his wife's surprise, the child was a boy. A human boy. He had his mother's dark magic dwelling within him and his father's large frame. He was now six years old and looked more like his father every day. The organisation his father led was also growing, now more than a thousand strong.

The region was still somewhat contested, with monsters running the north and humans in the centre and south, although Ilias's religion had spread to one of the villages in the south. News of the fall of Gelon reached the Hero's ears, and he was disheartened. Gelon was one of the last independent human civilizations; now only Sabasa remains fully independent. If things keep going the way they are, Ilias may be the only choice.

It was then that a knock sounded at his door. Strangely, the next report was scheduled for a few hours from now. As the Hero opened the door, one of his guards informed him that a small, purple-haired boy with a sword slightly too large for him was waiting outside.

So, this is Sabasa, smaller than I remember but still large enough.

As Luka looked around the village, he noted the stone walls and the guards patrolling them. It was a well-defended town. At the centre, he saw a small castle, much smaller than in his time. He was let in with little trouble; they seemed to be open to newcomers. Luka explored the town, taking in his surroundings.

There was a line of shops and markets on the ground that led to the castle. Houses were behind them, and more alleyways and small roads sprawled out from the path. The map he bought was outdated, as it showed Sabasa as a small village. When he asked a guard about it, they said the map had to be about six years old.

And he said it was the 'deluxe' version too...

After reminiscing over his mistakes, Luka thought of how incredible humanity can be sometimes. In only six years, they had expanded this much. Although he did note some major differences in the technology of this age, the metal was somewhat crude, and the sanitation, food, and medical technologies left a lot to be desired. Still, the guards looked better trained and stronger than the ones he knew; constant threats and fights had turned them into far more talented fighters.

He had heard rumours of an organisation that ran the town, calling themselves 'The Resistance '. They were known for their heroism and for being mostly made up of humans. They did not discriminate between races. They were trusted by the people of Safina, and it was rumoured that a Hero led them.

Sphinx told me about him, the Hero Sabasa. Not as famous nor as strong as Heinrich, but still an impressive human. I remember Mom reading me his picture book once. I also met his descendant, the ninth king of Sabasa. His name was... Huh, I never actually learned it.

Luka continued to walk towards the castle at the end of the road, thinking over the recent events. He had concluded a while ago that he must be in another world, no matter how unbelievable it is. It's the only thing that makes sense. He looked down at his now empty wrist.

I'll have to hide the Makina from now on. It's far too suspicious-looking, and will only get me in trouble.

"Halt! Who goes there?"

Luka looked up to see two guards standing in front of the castle, and after requesting an audience with their leader, he was told to sit and wait. After a few minutes, a large, ginger-haired, and muscular man invited him in.

He looks so much like the king I know, although he doesn't have a scar and his clothing is less extravagant.

After walking further down the hall, they entered the throne room. It was just like how he remembered it being, if not much less grand.

"So? What can I do for you?" Sabasa said as he sat down on the comfortable-looking throne.

"Well... I'm a hero, and I came here to help people. I want to put a stop to this war, and I also must form a contract with the Spirit of Earth while I'm here." Luka explained. Sabasa was surprised by the words of the young-looking man.

"Really? And how are you going to do all that?"

"I know stopping the war is a big goal, and I can't do it alone. I came here to learn more about you and the group you lead. So far, I think we could work together."

"Well, isn't that something? So, are you asking to join or something? We don't recruit children, though..."

"I-I'm not a child!"

Although that outburst was pretty childish...

"Sure, sure. Look, I'm sorry kid, but I have a lot to do. I'm glad you also want to stop this war, but there's not much you can do. By the way, were you serious about trying to form a contract with Gnome? She only accepts extremely skilled warriors you know?"

"I know that, and like I said, I'm not a kid. I'll form a contract with her tomorrow, if she is still in the same place that is..."

"Hm? Have you met her before?" Sabasa asked.

"Huh? Oh, no. It's... In a book I read. It's said she's in the Safaru ruins; is that right?"

"I've never heard of anywhere called Safaru. Sorry to tell you, kid, but you got scammed. The spirit of Earth is in one of the caves in the north, which one in specific I'm not sure of. But don't go there, kid; monsters rule that area, and they are not kind to our kind." Sabasa warned. After talking a bit more, Luka took his leave. He had learned all he needed to know.

The Resistance was unmistakably a force for good in the world. The idea that humanity was still fighting gave him hope.

Despite human's weak bodies, short life spans, and lack of magic, they were still capable of amazing things. Tamamo was the one who said that. She also said that she was often surprised by how clever some humans could be. She was also surprised by how dumb some could be, but overall, she found humans weak, yet resilient.

They were an older race than monsters, and they were far more numerous than them. She also said humans were far more united than monsters. Only angels were even better unified than them, since they were all servants of Ilias, until Lucifina at least...

So, monsters, angels, and Humans are all fighting. I wish I had asked Tamamo more about the Great Monster Wars, but she always seemed ashamed and sad whenever she talked about it, I didn't want to pry.

From what I do know, Ilias should be losing. And she probably is since she tried to recruit me yesterday. Though there is one thing that would explain how she still fights... One thing I really don't want to believe... Is what Tamamo said about my mother true? Could she really have been that bad? She was nothing like that when she raised me.

Deciding to think about it later, Luka set off to the north. Making a contract with Gnome was his first priority, plus he could see how humans lived in monster territories.

"Right over there! That's her lair!"

"Thanks, Sylph," Luka said. He continued towards the cave Sylph pointed at. It took him longer than he thought it would to find it, but he was here now. The cave was completely ordinary-looking, with stalactites and stalagmites covering the ceiling and floor. It was dark inside the cave, but Luka could just about make out his surroundings. If it got really bad, he could summon his angelic power for light.

It was then that Luka heard a sound in the distance. Small feet walked across the ground ahead of him, before stopping. The walking then resumed, and the sound faded out into the distance.

One of Gnome's dolls probably, I should just keep going forward. With any luck, I'll find her before long.

"She always was a bit shy! Don't worry though; I think she'll at least talk to you before activating any of her traps!"

"Traps!? You didn't tell me about them!"

"Oh relax! It'll be fine. She only has them in case any angels come to attack her anyway. Unless you're an angel in disguise or something, you'll be fine."

Wait, angels... If she can detect that I'm part angel, will she attack me on sight? What should I do if that happens? And if Sylph is serious about those traps, then I should enter a Serene Mind just in case.

-! On my right, a spike trap!

And again! On my left!

As Luka ran past the traps, dodging left to right, swerving and ducking, he eventually made it through the cave. He walked into a large, open room, with a large rock in the middle. Standing on top of that rock was a small girl, wearing the exact same clothing Luka remembered her wearing. Overall, she looked the exact same. Being immortal probably does that.

Speaking of lifespans, Alice said that since I'm part angel, I will probably live a lot longer than a normal human. She said I could even outlive her, since my mother lived for millions of years... But still, I want to go out with her. Together. Just like we promised.

The small girl looked at the boy who entered, and was surprised to detect her old friend, Sylph, accompanying him. She couldn't sense that earlier. She was also surprised to see the boy, and not a powerful angel like what she detected. Could her senses be wrong? Or was this boy really an angel?

She had never heard of a male angel. Nobody had. She knew Ilias was getting experimental, but this was beyond what she expected. Besides, what purpose would it serve to make a male angel? They would just fall to monster's pleasure attacks easier than a normal female would. This would require further investigation.

The girl looked at the purple-haired boy, who seemed to be lost in thought. She made some very small gestures with her hands and thought of a question.

"Gnomey asked who you are!" Her longtime friend and fellow spirit interpreted for her.

"Oh, right. Hi Gnome, my name is Luka. I'm a hero, and I'm trying to end this war." Luka looked at the spirit as he answered. Her expression did not change. Thankfully, Sylph was there to interpret.

"She asked how you plan to do that. She also said she assumes you are here to form a contract."

"Thanks, Sylph. Yeah, I'm here to contract with you, Gnome. And as to how I'm going to end this war... I'll need more information for that. I don't know enough yet, but after I've formed contracts with all the spirits, I think I'll know what to do."

"I see, she says. Very well, I shall test you."

"Alright," Luka said. As he drew his blade, he watched as Gnome raised an eyebrow. Then she quickly looked directly at Luka, before punching at him. A huge slab of earth flew towards him, but Luka dodged it thanks to his serene mind. He pulled the blade up and slashed at Gnome. The Spirit of Earth took the blow and continued the attack, throwing more and more Earth at him. Luka continued to dodge and weave around the attacks, before summoning Sylph in preparation for a devastating blow.

"With Sylph's power...! Lightning Sword Flash!"

In an instant, Luka's sword flashed. Gnome defended against the attack with her arms, but the slash cut through her sleeves, and a small cut appeared on one of her arms. Gnome looked at the wound in surprise; no human should be able to hurt her. She was only distracted for a moment, though.

She raised her arms and began channelling a huge spell, but just as she started the spell, Luka attacked! His sword made a small cut into her flesh, leaving a slightly deeper wound than before. Luka pinned Gnome down, restraining her. The spirit looked into his eyes, and as she did, Luka suddenly realised the position he was in.

With a very red face, Luka jumped back from the small spirit. He noticed a small smile on the face of the spirit as she stood up.

"She says she thinks you're cute!" Sylph enthusiastically said. The tense fight atmosphere had completely disappeared. After a few moments, the spirit offered her hand to the boy.

"She says that she recognises your power, and that no human had ever cut her so easily before. She can also sense your affinity for the power of the earth. She will form a contract with you now!"

Luka sighed in relief as he took her hand. Gnome quickly disappeared into Luka's body, and Luka was filled with the familiar power he once held. He felt strong enough to take on anything, and all that extra training with Tamamo helped him refine his mastery of the earth. Now anything below queen class wouldn't even be able to scratch him, as long as he had Gnome summoned that is.

"Gnomey wants to know if you have any idea why she thought you were an angel!" Sylph said.

"Huh? Oh... Thats..."

I can't tell her I'm half angel; it'll be way too hard to explain. But what else can I say...

"You must have sensed my sword. It was made by an angel," Luka explained.

"Really? How'd you get that, Luka?" Sylph asked.

"I stole it from one of the ancestors, Tamamo No Mae. It apparently has the souls of 666 angels in it. I think she must have harvested those souls herself. Needless to say, she isn't happy."

I can't tell them how I really got Angel Halo, but they're sure to find out eventually. But I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

"You saw Tamamo? And even took a sword from her? Amazing Luka! How'd you do that?"

"Well, I got lucky, I guess. I was in Gelon when it was being invaded, and just happened to run into her. After a small fight, I managed to grab the sword before fleeing."

"And she just let you go? Tamamo never does that..."

"Her sister intervened, and they started fighting. I took that opportunity to run. Though she did send some of her kitsune after me, thankfully, I fought them off, remember, Sylph?"

"Yep! So, you were in Gelon huh? Did you live there?" As Sylph continued to question Luka, he started making his way out of the cave. Luka responded a few moments later.

"No, I'm from the Ilias Continent. I was raised as a follower of Ilias, but I eventually saw through her lies. Monsters are not evil, nor are angels, or humans. We are all just people. I believe that if everyone saw each other as fellow people just trying to live their lives, we would all be able to coexist. In fact, I'm sure of it"

"Hehe, how optimistic! Well, we'll just have to wait and see, right, Gnomey?"

"..." Luka looked at the two spirits who eventually grew to be among his close friends. He missed travelling the world with them; now he was only missing Alice and then it'd be just like old times.

Alice...

Luka thought of his wife once more. He had been thinking of her a lot recently. She was the mother of his children, and the love of his life. She travelled throughout the world with him, and together they got over their shared past. She was the reason he could keep fighting for a better future. He would do anything to get back to her.

He was worried about how she would take his absence; they had never been separated for long, and it had now been over a week since he last saw her. He promised her he would stay with her for life, and he intended to keep it. No matter what, he would do everything he could to make his way back to her.

"-uka! Luka! Are you listening?" Sylph shouted at Luka, trying to get his attention.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, I was thinking about something."

"I said, what's next? Going straight to Undine? Or are you going to pass the mountains to Salamander?"

"Oh, I think I'll just take the long way; besides, I have some people to check up on." He explained.

Luka thought of Luna; he had already spoken to her on the way to Sabasa, and she appeared to be doing fine. She was a sweet girl, and Luka wanted to see her lead a long, happy life. She deserved it after what she endured. She was just one of the many victims of this war. He would put an end to it, No matter what.

The bright light outside forced Luka to squint. After taking in the surroundings, most of which were sand and rock, he moved on towards a local village he had heard about.

It was only a short walk from Gnome's cave to the village, but all the while Luka had to come up with more lies about his past. He hoped that when the spirits eventually learned the truth, they could forgive him. He was never really a good liar, but Tamamo had taught him the basics; she said even a Hero may need to lie sometimes.

The village itself was run-down but not small. Some buildings on the outskirts had completely caved in, and those that hadn't looked to be on their last legs. Luka entered the village easily; there were no guards of any kind. This was unusual; monster villages normally have plenty of people defending them; why were there none here?

Luka continued towards the centre of the village when he heard screaming. The screams were those of people in pain, and he quickly saw some blood on the nearby houses. The further into the village he got, the worse the scene became.

Bodies littered the streets, filled with slashes or completely cut in half. Many houses were completely destroyed, and the ground was full of gashes. Some of them had wounds that could've only been self-inflicted, likely committing suicide purely out of fear of whatever had attacked them. He saw a monster sitting against one of the walls; she was missing an arm and was badly wounded.

"Are you okay? What happened here!?"

"It's her... The Daystar..." The monster then collapsed, and her breathing stopped.

Daystar? That's... No... It can't be!

Luka started to run and quickly made it to the centre. It was there that he saw a figure he had not seen in years. An Angel was smiling, covered in blood.

"Moth- I mean, Lucifina!?"

Lucifina was in the middle of finishing off another wretched monster when she heard that. She turned towards the source of the noise; she would shut it up soon enough. She looked at the boy for only a moment; humans did not interest her much, especially one so weak-looking as him. Just as she was about to attack the boy, she froze.

Impossible. Angel Blood? How can a human be part angel? And this power, it's seraphim tier at least...

Lucifina was puzzled as she further analysed the boy. Micaela told her that Ilias met a human with purple hair and told her that she should let him live. Apparently, the Goddess had plans for him. She had also heard he fought against Morrigan and won.

Now it makes sense, I thought that feat would be impossible for a lone human. But if he had angelic power...

Lucifina smiled as she looked at the boy closer. He could be a fun fight, and she would just have to tell Ilias she 'accidentally' killed him. He was not a servant of Ilias, and thus he was her prey.

Still, I should interrogate him first. A human with angel blood shouldn't exist. Perhaps he was an experiment of those monsters? How had Ilias not detected his blood? A common angel probably wouldn't be able to, but the Goddess should have easily seen it.

Unless Ilias had not descended to see the boy in person, If she spoke to him in a dream like she normally does, then she wouldn't have been able to sense anything.

Lucifina sighed. It was Micaela's job to do this kind of thing, dealing with humans was never one of her interests. Lucifina never punished any human like her sister or Eden did, nor did she reward any. The pleasures of the flesh were nothing compared to the pleasure of fighting, and especially killing.

Still, if she had to, she would get all the answers she needed from the boy. He was more valuable alive than dead. Injuring him may annoy Ilias, and converting him into one of their own could only be good for them.

Without a word, she raised her sword. She would hold back enough to only incapacitate him.

Luka looked at his mother as she raised her sword towards him. He would have to fight her; he had no choice. What she had done here was unforgivable.

But can I take her down? Tamamo said she was even stronger than Micaela and was responsible for more than half of the casualties in the entire war. But at least I have one advantage, I know her moves, since I inherited them. If I counter her properly, then I may be able to seal her.

Luka only snapped out of his thoughts when he saw his mother attack, a large wave of light coming from her sword.

"The blade of judgement comes for you..." Lucifina said calmly, still wearing an unnerving smile.

Luka quickly raised his sword to guard, and he was thankful that he had the foresight to summon the spirits beforehand. With both the earth and guarding, the blow did minimal damage to him.

"The power of the earth? You have contracted with the spirits, I see. Consorting with monsters... Well, we can always fix you later." Lucifina said, her smile unchanging.

The thought of such horrible words coming from his bloodstained mother horrified Luka. But no fight was ever won by being completely defensive. He'd have to be careful about what attacks he uses; he doesn't want to give his ancestry away.

"Oh, Earth, infuse my sword with your weight! Earth Rumbling Decapitation!"

Luka jumps forward and swings down on Lucifina. She stops the sword with her own, her expression unchanging.

She's fast. Too fast for me, even with Sylph. I'll have to use my angelic power.

With that, Luka summons a holy aura. His speed, strength, and endurance increased by a huge amount. Lucifina only takes a moment to prepare for another attack.

"The jaws of the Rakshasa come to make the wicked pay..." Lucifina says, as she begins to swing faster than the eye can see.

"All life returns to nature from whence it came!" Luka shouted, forcing his sword to defend him from the blow. The two blades collided, and a screeching sound of metal on metal was heard. But eventually, his mother proved too fast for Luka, and two of her attacks connected, leaving two cuts on his chest.

Ow... If I didn't have Gnome summoned, they would've been much worse. I'll have to thank her later.

Deciding that she had been holding back long enough, and impressed with the boy's performance, Lucifina decided to use her infamous technique, one that was feared by monsters, humans, and even her fellow angels. She was confident he would survive the attack, probably.

Luka, not noticing his mother's change in posture or slower breathing, swung his sword as fast as he could while backing away from her, hitting twice thanks to Sylph. The attacks connected but left no marks. Lucifina simply smiled as she opened her mouth.

"I am the Star of Morning, the child of dawn... The star thrown to the Earth shall obtain victory..."

Luka realised what he had done, and he began to panic. It was too late, however, as his mother had already begun her attack. A comet appeared from nowhere and landed on top of Luka. The blow was even stronger than his own version, and in an instant, he was flung to the ground. He heard and felt his shoulder dislocate, and the rest of his body was not doing much better. He endured the pain and managed to stand up.

He silently took a second to meditate, healing himself. He looked up at the blood-stained seraph, who only looked right back at him. She was impressed that he could still stand after all that; perhaps she had underestimated him too much. After she was done with him, she still had more to do in this village. Some monsters were still hiding, and some had even gotten away by now. This was taking too much time. The plan didn't account for outside interference.

"Haha, veeeery impressive~. To stand even after all that... But how much longer can you last? I can't wait to find out."

Lucifina smiled madly as she started one of her signature moves once more. Luka did his best to dodge the blows, but evading all nine consecutively was impossible.

Luka struck back at the seraph, dealing a fair amount of damage, her body had a few cuts afterwards. If the seraph felt the pain from said cuts, she did not show it. Smiling just as she had since she first saw him, she continued the attack. Eventually, Luka was backed into a corner with no escape.

He could use his most powerful move to escape. It would stun her and buy him time to run. But it would give away his lineage, and he could not afford to do that now. Otherwise, Ilias would stop at nothing to capture him.

As Luka pondered the situation, the seraph suddenly sighed.

"Damn monsters, appearing now of all times... and an ancestor at that... oh well, the more the merrier!" Lucifina giggled. She then turned away from Luka and started to slowly fly away. Just before leaving, she turned around and asked him a question.

"Hey, what's your name, boy?"

"...Luka."

"Luka... I'll see you later. Don't die! Not yet at least." She laughed a bit more as she flew away, leaving Luka alone.

Luka let out a large sigh of relief, finally letting himself relax. If she had continued to attack, he would have been defeated for sure.

What did Marcellus ever see in her...

Luka smiled as he remembered his father, and his family overall. The tender, caring mother he knew was completely different from the one he just fought against.

Micaela said my mother spent 500 years living among humans. Did she change that much in that time? Come to think of it, Tamamo also lived among humans for 1000 years, ever since the great monster wars, And she's completely different from the one here.

Is that how we rehabilitate them? Sealing them and making them live among humanity? But then, how could we even set that up? And we have no guarantee it would work. Still, it's useful to know.

Luka pressed on, deciding it was best to get out of there as quickly as he could. Before that, though, he would look for any survivors.

"Why. Why help me?"

"I told you already, I'm a hero. This is what I do." Luka was starting to get annoyed by the Scylla's repeated questions. He had her arm around him and was helping her walk out of the village.

She was the only survivor he could find; the rest had probably run away already. She couldn't run thanks to the numerous broken and torn tentacles she acquired. Unfortunately, Luka did not know any healing magic, and could not help her more than this.

"Anyway, what happened here? I know Lucifina attacked, but what else?" He asked.

"What more is there to say? The Daystar found us, and we died. Except for me, all thanks to dumb luck. Everyone... They're all dead now," she said, before looking straight into the boy's eyes. "So why! Why are you helping me!"

"This again? I told you, I'm a hero. Look, I don't care about the fact that you're a monster. To me, you're just another person, and of course that would mean I'd help you when you're in need." Luka explained, but the monster looked just as confused as before.

"Whatever, I give up trying to figure you out. You're so weird." The Scylla said back. A long minute of silence followed before Luka realised he had forgotten an important question.

"Oh, what's your name, by the way?"

"Huh?... It's Omori."

"Omori. It's a nice name," Luka said.

"..."

"..."

The silence came back and continued for a few moments longer, before the Scylla decided making conversation would distract her from the pain.

"...What's yours?" She asked.

"Luka."

"Luka... Fine, I'll tell you what happened. This was a monster outpost. We took control of this village a few months ago, but it's at the edge of our territory, and it was never well-defended in the first place. It was easy pickings for the Daystar. It seems that it was a coordinated attack, as we received reports of nearby and distant villages being attacked at the same time. Thankfully, Hikuro was nearby, in fact, she should be here by now."

Hikuro... Tamamo said she was just as cruel and hungry as the other ancestors, and just as powerful. It would make sense she was here, she liked Sabasa and deserts apparently. That's probably who mo- I mean, who Lucifina went to fight.

"She's your ancestor, right?"

"Yeah, but she doesn't care much about us. Only those close to her benefit. I'm just a foot soldier. Just fodder. I didn't get anything but scraps."

"I see. This used to be a human village, right? Where are they?"

"The humans? We ran out of them a while ago. Some were eaten, raped to death, or sent further inward. We've been eating bottled stuff for a while. This village isn't a strategic location, so like I said, we only get scraps."

So many... This village had at least a few hundred humans, and they had already run out. 'Sent further inward', I wonder how many of them were sent straight to Hikuro or another ancestor's mouth! It's unforgivable.

"We're here." Omori pointed out.

Luka looked up to see that they had reached the edge of the village. It was about a mile or two back to Sabasa. Bringing the Scylla all the way there would take a lot of time. Still, if he could save her life, it was worth it. And maybe with a bit of rest, she could get enough energy to heal herself. It was well into the evening now. They could go maybe a few hundred metres more before stopping to camp.

"Alright, let's keep going. I'll set up camp when it gets dark."

"...Ok."

The Scylla was still shocked by the human's kindness. Any normal Human would have killed her by now, or just run away and left her. Never in a million years did she expect to find one who would not only not kill her but actually help her. Most of her fellow monsters wouldn't do that; in fact, most of them would eat her for her weakness.

She herself was also looked down upon for her weakness and for how she preferred to not eat humans, but only pleasure them for food. She was often bullied for that when she was a child. For some reason, she always found herself feeling bad for humans, even though she had always been told they were little more than food.

But something told her that was wrong; they could talk, think, feel, and love just like she could. They were just as intelligent as monsters. Why were they treated so differently? She had never understood.

Her thoughts drifted back to the boy who was helping her walk. She never imagined such kindness existed. Are all humans like him? If so, would they accept her? If she could live among them, would she be happy? She didn't know, but she wanted to find out.