Kapitel 2: Never Stood A Chance

The scream had come from not too far away to my left. The sound led me away from the clearing I had wanted to check out.

'Did you hear that?' I asked inside of my head, rather than out loud this time.

'I'm literally having tea inside your head right now. Of course, I heard that if you did! What's the plan? 'Gripton asked me.

I took the right glove off and put it in my pocket. This could be a chance to test out my new skills.

I quickly looked around and bent over to pick up a fist-sized rock. Then I stood up straight and ran at the sound.

'Plan?' I asked in my head as the rock in my right hand started to vibrate slowly.

'What do you plan on doing?' Gripton asked me, sounding a bit stressed out.

'I'm saving the damsel in distress, duh! What else is there to do? I mean, I don't mind looking the other way, but this could be my big shot!' I explained in my head as I ran.

'Ah, well, this should be interesting.' Gripton said and then got a mental picture of a man leaning back in a chair, chuckling.

I ignored the irritating voice and continued to run towards the sound of the yelling. I was curious to know what was causing the person to scream like that?

A wolf? Bear? Sasquatch? Who knew in this new and crazy world!

It didn't take me long to get there, but I stopped short when I saw what was making all the noise.

A little pointy-eared Goblin or Elf boy. The creature had fair skin and wasn't very tall, but I didn't look for long.

The massive spider that was almost as tall as me, six foot two, was what had my attention. I had never even dreamed of something the size of this monster.

The creature was black with green patterns, but they were hard to make out. The spider was covered with black hairs that obscured them.

I turned to walk away before the giant ass spider that was trying to eat him saw me. That thing was a big nope.

I needed to make my way back to that clearing I wanted to check out. This creature would make it or not.

'WHAT ARE YOU DOING! This is the first person that you meet, and you are just going to abandon them!?' Gripton shouted at me.

I clutched my ears to try and stop the echo, but it was useless. Though I did stop from turning away.

"Help, I see you up there!" The Goblin called to me, making the spider start turning towards me.

Great…

'Look, I have a rock, and that is a giant spider. Fucking laws of nature and shit. The spider is high on the food chain, so how am I to disrupt nature?' I asked as I started to walk backward, preparing to bolt.

"HEY! STOP WALKING AWAY, YOU HEARTLESS BASTARD!" The Goblin thing screamed at me.

Now the spider's big black eyes were shifting back and forth between us. I knew that was going on here, and I definitely looked like I would be a better meal than the runt.

'Really? That is not a man,' Gripton said in a matter-of-fact tone.

That shocked me, but guy or girl didn't matter now. The spider turned towards me, and I could tell that it looked hungry from the spit dripping from its mandibles.

The rock in my hand was vibrating far more intensely now. It was also starting to make my hand numb from the shaking, and it kept getting worse.

Feeling like a bomb about to go off in my hand, I made my choice. I turned and pulled back my right arm, taking the pitcher's stance, and chucked the rock.

I was no wimp, and I put some heat in the throw. I had never seen a spider so giant, and I gave the throw nothing less than my all.

The vibrating rock hummed through the air, and I smoked the hairy fucker in his fat ass. The spider reared and screamed a piercing noise that forced both of us to cover our ears.

Then the spider looked like it was about to charge me but fell to the ground instead. Dead.

'Look, I fixed it. Can we go now?' I asked Gripton in my head.

Something started to happen before he could tell me some bullshit hero line. There was a humming noise coming from inside of the spider.

The green-haired so-called girl Goblin got up to rush to me but stopped. She seemed to hear the same humming from the dead spider as I did.

"I think that we should-" I started to say, but it was too late.

*BOOM!*

Even twenty feet away, I was blown off my feet and got knocked back on my ass. There was no fire or smoke from the explosion, but there were bug guts everywhere.

I tried to lay back on the grass, but my conscience piped up before I got the chance.

'Is the female, OK?' Gripton asked, and I groaned while rolling my eyes.

'Me? Yeah, I think that I am alright! I was just knocked on my ass, thank you very much!' I growled in my head.

'Well, get off it and go check on her. The girl was far closer to the explosion that you caused! This is why I asked if you had a plan!' Gripton growled back.

'Hey, about that question I had before, you know if we could just leave...' I asked, letting my voice tail off, but Garry wasn't having it.

'HYDE! AND THAT IS NOT MY NAME!' Gripton roared in my head, sending it into the echoes again.

This screaming in my head was starting to get old, real fast.

'You need to stop yelling and unbunch your panties, grandpa! I'm going,' I growled as I got up off the ground.

It was weird to hear my name again. All the way out here in some other world long gone from the one I knew.

As much as I just wanted to leave, the man was right. I caused this, so now I gotta go deal with this shit.

After getting up, I walked over to find her out cold but still breathing. The smell coming from the area was worse than the north end of a cow going south!

The small girl was covered in the stinking green bug guts. I was surprised that it almost matched her hair, but the girl was fine.

I was about to turn away again when the voice of unreason piped up again.

'What do you think you are doing?' Gripton exclaimed in my head.

I had been turning around to leave because she was out cold but still very much alive. It might not be the most honorable thing to do, but I didn't want to get roped into this world's shenanigans quite yet.

'The fuck you want me to do with her? She's not dead and covered in gross ass bugs guts that stink bad enough to knock a dog off a shit wagon!' I declared in my mind.

'You have to carry her.' Gripton told me in a voice that didn't make it sound like an option.

'To where? The local 7-11? Maybe Chuckie Cheese? She is knocked the fuck out. She isn't gonna tell us!' I railed, but something told me that I wasn't going to win this one.

'Pick her up, and I will guide you,' Gripton said in a tired voice.

'You're awfully fucking bossy. I thought I was the hero, and you're the sidekick?' I demanded.

'The way that you are acting right now is far from heroic. I question if I made the right choice picking you! Now, pick her up!' Gripton growled.

Sure, maybe I wasn't a hero then. I always got roped into something that I wanted no part of in the past.

This didn't really feel much different.

Still, as much as I wanted to leave, I couldn't actually leave this girl defenseless. I was just getting tired of everyone forcing me to do what they wanted.

This was supposed to be a new life. That's what I had thought, but it was starting to shape up much like my last.

I always ran from one task to the next. Yet, it always made other people's lives better, leaving me with nothing.

'I am not going to force you to do anything, but I will also not sit by ideally while you make stupid choices! I brought you to this world so you could help it, not go on a vacation!' Gripton said in my mind as I walked over to the girl.

Well, looks like this world was going to be more of the same as my last. It wasn't like I had it horrible, but was it some much to ask for a little bit of a break?

The girl had started to moan and move as I got closer. Now that I could look closer, I could see scratches and cuts from garbage that got knocked up in the blast.

I groaned, but I had to admit, the moans this tomboy gremlin was making were kind of hot. Suddenly, the girl was starting to look more and more like a woman.

'Oh, now you're gonna help her? At least I know one way to make you listen in the future now! Ha!' Gripton laughed in my mind, making me roll my eyes.

'Don't judge me, pervert teacher. Do you want me to help her or not?' I asked in my mind.

The last thing I needed was for this person to think that I was talking to voices in my head. I did not want to try and explain that.

There was also the fact that I didn't want to mention that I wasn't from here. Even though what I was wearing was clearly different from the girl, I could just play it off as being from a distant land.

'I'll say not, just so that I can watch you squirm, hehe,' Gripton chuckled, irritating me.

The girls' moans were getting louder, and I was having trouble concentrating. Did I just hear Garry say no?

'Did you just say no?' I asked.

'Yes, and yes. You don't have to think of a question, and then metally ask it! I am in your head; all of your thoughts are displayed for me to see! AND MY NAME IS GRIPTON!' Gripton growled but then finished in a roar, making me want to hit something.

'Weren't you just the one forcing me to save her! Now you say I can just leave?!' I retorted.

'I suggested that you do it,' Gripton said, changing his tone to calm and casual.

I got a mental image of what I assumed was him sitting in a chair, examining his nails. This guy was starting to get real old, fast.

'So now I just leave her moaning in pain? After all of the hero crap you spouted?!' I demanded.

'Yup,' Gripton answered.

"Grrr!" I growled but then turned my attention back to the girl.

She was starting to move now, so I walked up to her slowly. I was staying on guard because I did make it look like I was going to leave her, so she might become violent.

"OwO, It hurts. Are you there, stranger?" the girl said as she tried to wipe the goop from her face that was covering her eyes.

"Yeah, Yeah, I'm coming to help," I groaned as I took my sweater off, revealing my white t-shirt.

The shirt said:

I'm not always a dick.

Just kidding, go fuck yourself!

I was kind of hoping that I would have a different shirt. I wouldn't wear this to a girl's parents' house for the first meeting.

I think it should probably go the same for new races as well. It was too late now, but maybe I could think of something.

I walked over to her and squatted down, pushing my hoodie into her hands. I also looked to see if I could do anything to help her.

Nope. Just a bunch of scratches. She just needed to shake it off and possibly have a bath.

"Am I going to die? My father will be so sad!" The girl cried as she tried to wipe the bug guts off her body.

Part of me wanted to play a joke, but the girl seemed to be pretty shaken up. No point in making fun of someone that seemed genuinely scared.

"You will be fine. It's just scratches and bug guts," I explained.

She sat up slowly, and she looked like she was in a lot of pain. I tried to stand up, but then I slipped on bug guts, falling to my back.

The impact knocked the wind out of me worse than the blast had. Now, the back of my white t-shirt was covered in guts.

Too bad it wasn't the front.

I was going to get up to try and help clean her off but slipped. I had underestimated how slippery the spider's insides would be.

"Are you alright?" I heard the green-haired Goblin cry out as I lay on the ground with the wind knocked out of me.

'So, we pick the maiden up. Then we take the maiden to a stream and...' -Gripton started to tell me but trailed off.

I had my eyes closed, but then I felt the pressure of someone crawling on top of me. My eyes shot open, and I was staring into the face of the girl.

I was frozen with shock, not sure what to do. The girl had crawled on top of me, and our faces were so close that our lips almost touched.

The girl had a concerned look on her face, not really sexy vibes, plus I could smell the bug guts worse now. I decided that kissing her might not be the right move.

"Are you okay?" The girl asked.

Instead of answering, I reached up to grab her shoulder to push her back a bit.

'NO!' Gripton screamed in my mind, but it was too late.

I had unthinkingly placed my right hand on the girl's shoulder. The moment it connected, the girl burst with light.

I turned my head to the side to avoid the light, but it didn't bother my eyes for some reason. I could feel the girl changing, and I was almost scared to look to see what I had just done.

After how the rocks had reacted, I prepared myself to have my life ended again. I almost deserved it for being so stupid!

If I got another chance, I would have to start using what little brains I seemed to have.

I waited, and the light disappeared, but the girl didn't blow up. She did feel a lot heavier, and her chest was now pressing into mine, but something felt wrong.

No, wrong was not the right word for it; this feeling was pleasant. I turned from the side to look back into the girl's face.

Woah!

'Woah!' Gripton said at the same time.

Almost bursting out of the brown dress she wore, the once short green-haired board was now smothering me. Her chesticles had ballooned, each nearly as big as my head!

The one Goblin had just morphed into something; not even my wildest dreams couldn't have crafted so perfectly. Her long green hair fell around her ample chest and into my face.

From what I could see, the girls' once board-flat form was now a masterwork of curves. The smell of the bug guts that now covered us was now nothing but background noise.

She had partially crawled on me before, but I was slowly smothered to death in her breast. Though, dying now won't be horrible.

"Are you okay?" The girl asked me.

"Mmhmm," I mumbled through a face full of titties.

Finally, with shock, the woman sat up to straddle me. As she lifted her breasts off my face and I gasped for air.

I guess I wasn't going to Oppia Heaven yet!

"Sorry! I saw you fall over, so I tried to see if you were okay! Then you touched me, and this happened!" The woman said with excitement, nearly vibrating as she straddled me.

Her movements started to elicit some responses in my pants as my blood also started pumping. Mind you, mine was all pumping to one place.

"Yeah, it did!" I said, reaching out to touch her, but stopped, remembering what had just happened.

The girl got off me and then offered me a hand to get up. I accepted, but with my gloved left hand this time, and took the other glove out of my pocket.

I slipped the glove one but couldn't help but smile as I watched her dance around with excitement. I looked down at my shirt, and thankfully she had transferred her share of the bug guts onto the front.

"You have a funny way of talking. Where are you from?" The girl asked me.

"I am from the west, and I have been traveling for a long time," I said, hoping that she believed me.

It wasn't much of a story, and I had to hope that she didn't ask me where I was from. Luckily, my answer seemed to fly right over her head.

"Really? My name is Kalita of the Sun Root Tribe," The girl explained.

Maybe this would be my chance to make a better impression than the first. Kalita watched me pound my fist into my hand as I grinned with a questioning look.

"I'm Hyde, and I am lost," I said with a smile.

'Smooth boy wonder!' Gripton said while laughing in my mind.

'Don't make sidekick references to me, Dick Head!' I growled back in my head.

Kalita didn't seem to notice the inner turmoil that was going on inside my head.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Hyde," Kalita said and then stuck out her hand, palm up.

This confused me because I wasn't sure what to do. I ended up slapping Kalita's hand, but not hard like I would a buddy.

"Cool to meet you too!" I said with a smile, but my slap of the hand seemed to get a strange look from her, so I added, "That is one of the ways we greet each other!"

I was lying through my teeth, but being put on the spot like that forced me to think fast. Kalita just grinned at me with the most beautiful smile I had ever seen, bug guts and all!

'Cool?' Gripton asked, and I could tell he was about to burst with laughter.

'Shut the fuck up!' I growled.

"You're quite cute and shy now, aren't you?" Kalita asked me.

I wasn't really the shy type, but I wasn't sure how to approach this situation. To tell the truth, I had a hard time not letting my eyes wander to trace every inch of Kalita's body.

"Just trying not to be rude and stare at your body, the clothes that you were wearing don't quite fit anymore," I said as I looked away.

"About that, how? How do I look like this now?" Kalita asked me.

"To tell you the truth, I am not sure. I have a special magic trick which is to give other things magic with my right hand or take away with my left," I explained, hoping not to sound weird, but her reply stunned me.

"That means you improved my magic," Kalita said with excitement.

That single sentence blew my mind.

I had thought that I was going to be the only person here that could use magic?! If this girl can use it, then just how many others can?!

"What? Your magic? You have magic?" I asked in bewilderment.

'Oh, yes, I forgot to tell you that! Everyone on the Planet of Leo has magic, but that isn't important right now! What in the Flying Ham Salad Sandwich is going on?!' Gripton nearly shouted.

Because of the shock of things, I decided I would let the near roar slide. This was quite the development, but I wasn't sure just how good this would be.

Something seemed off about this magic of mine. I was trying to ponder it but became extremely distracted by Kalita.

The woman was changing the size of her body at will. Not all of the forms were attractive.

There was one point where she looked to weigh about four hundred pounds. Kalita walked around like her weight had not changed.

I really had to give it to that little brown dress. Though, No matter how much Kalita changed, the dress never tore.

'Alright, what is going on? I need to reread this magic! Didn't I read it right?' Gripton mumbled in a distracted voice.

I was sent a mental image of a man pulling books off a shelf. This continued until he found the one he was looking for.

I say man because there was no way for me to describe him. Every attempt left me without words.

'What's wrong old man?' I asked in my mind as Kalita continued to mess around.

'Hold on. I'm checking something. The book of magic for Leo is completely empty, except for two pages. One of them is new, and the other is you. I wasn't sure what that meant, but now after looking at Kalita's page, I think I understand, partially,' Gripton explained, but then Kalita's voice shook me from my inner conversation.

"See? My magic before was to be able to alter my appearance slightly, but now I can alter my body any way I want! It's like you supercharged my magic!" Kalita said with excitement.

'Well, that could be worse, but there may be more to this power than meets the eye. People that you touch cannot hurt you or use their abilities to harm you in any way.' Gripton continued to explain but was choked.

'So you're telling me, you gave me the power to make everyone and everything way cooler than I am?' I exasperated in my mind.

'Really? That's your takeaway from this? I don't think you are fully gripping what I am saying. This is more than them not being able to hurt you; they cannot defy your wishes or will,' Gripton told me, and that stopped me in my tracks.

My previous concerns were dropped just like the feeling of my heart falling into my stomach like a rock. The implications of what Gripton had just told me were frightening.

'So you're telling me that anyone that I touch is under my control? They have to follow my will, even if that is to die?' I asked, starting to shake a bit.

'...Yes…' Gripton said cautiously.

'That is terrifying," I said as I felt ice creep into my veins.

'That is the correct answer. It is extremely terrifying, and none of that information was on the page when I offered you the power. With this power, you could easily become a tyrant and rule over everyone. The Humans only respect one thing, and that is power,' Gripton explained.

'Humans? So there are more races in this world than whatever Kalita is?' I asked, trying to divert the talk from the previous subject.

'Yes, but many of them have been corrupted. Hyde, this world is not going to be a picnic, and you will see many things that you can't unsee. Humans hate weakness, and any race that is not their own," Gripton explained, and I drew in a low and deep breath as a fire started to melt the previous ice.

This was similar to the problems from my old world, Racism. I would have to assume that has to be far worse here, but it was one of the things that I detested the most.

'That is also a good outlook moving forward, but there is more that I must explain. I was hoping that I could slowly educate you on the workings of this world. Unfortunately, with the development of your magic, we don't have that luxury. There is a river close; go get cleaned up, and turn your shirt inside out, for god's sake!' Gripton told me.

'Wait! I thought that you were god?!' I said in my mind, but that got a hearty laugh from the Great Gazoo.

'I am not god, but if you would like to think of me as that entity, by all means. That entity doesn't exist here. That figure is a religious ideal from your last world. There are religions in this world, but they are nothing like you are used to. Now stop dawdling, I have a good amount of explaining to do, and you need a bath!' Gripton ordered me.

'There you go with ordering me around again. You know I thought we were getting somewhere!' I complained.

'Fine, put it this way then! If you don't go have a bath, the woman does not want to go anywhere near you!' Gripton told me with a chuckle.

I groaned and cursed under my breath, but only because he was right. That was starting to get annoying!

I pulled my attention away from Gripton and focused. Kalita had settled on a form, and now she looked like a supermodel tossed into the jungle.

"What do you think?" Kalita asked me, and I closed my mouth that had slowly crept open without my knowledge.

"I'm happy you like the boost. I mean, It looks pretty good on you!" I said, trying to play it cool and not sound too excited.

"Really? Do you think so? I'm so happy you think that! Follow me! I know a stream we can wash off in!" Kalita said with excitement, and she started to turn to lead me.

"I'm down," I said as I shrugged and was about to follow her, but Kalita turned back to give me a concerned look.

"What's wrong?" Kalita asked as a worried look started to fill her expression.

"Huh?" I asked, not sure what had provoked the change in expression.

"You said you were down? Is there something bothering you? Maybe there is something I can do to help?" Kalita asked, and my eyes were drawn directly to her perfectly proportioned chest.

'Bwahahaha!' Gripton laughed uncontrollably.

"Sorry, It means OK, from where I'm from," I explained to the Jungle Model.

"Oh! OK, then follow me!" Kalita exclaimed, her smile returning in full force.

I was going to have to watch my words. If I didn't, people were going to start to get suspicious of me.

'Keep quiet up there!' I growled at Gripton as I started to move.

'Stop being so entertaining, then I would have a reason to laugh! Haha!' Gripton replied, still laughing.

I followed the green-haired Supermodel to a stream. Kalita had begun to wash herself off, still keeping her clothes on, but this did not help my distraction.

I had to clamp my jaw closed again so I didn't look like a fool, but Kalita noticed. She stopped what she was doing and then looked down at her brown dress.

There was nothing really left to the imagination between the cold and the water. I watched as a small knowing smile crept across Kalita's face, and then she looked back up at me.

Suddenly she was the lanky board Goblin again.

"Is this better?" Kalita asked with a bright smile.

'No.' Gripton told me flatly.

I had to hold back my laughter and force myself to hold a straight face. It was a lot nicer to see her like she was; I was staring at her like some creep.

"Uh, yeah… I mean, I really liked how you looked before, but I won't lie and say you weren't extremely distracting, hehe," I replied with a laugh that came out nervous rather than casual, causing Kalita to start laughing.

"Well, you looked so distracted before, and I can understand why. Still, you need to get cleaned up, and I am not helping," Kalita remarked with a cute smile.

"Ahh, ya a bit," I said and walked over to the water to join her.

This part of the forest seemed to be a brighter green than the rest. That could just be from the stream here or magic.

Magic.

That was going to make things such a pain to rationalize now. In my old world, people would use the term "it must be Magic!" as a joke, but now it would be an actual thing.

'This entire world is filled with magic and some things that not even magic can explain. It would be best just to go with the flow and not try too hard to rationalize things. You are a doer, and I will be the thinker for the most part until you better understand this world,' Gripton said, speaking up as I took my shirt, boots, and jeans off.

I was wearing black boxers underneath, but I decided to leave them on out of respect to Kalita. After that, I went over and slid into the water, my shirt and pants in my hands.

The water was ice cold, and I stood still in it for a moment. I needed to let my body get used to the drastic drop in temperature before I made any movements.

Kalita was watching me as I did this, or she was watching part of me. The stream was only as deep as my thighs, so my boxers were still fully exposed, and the woman was looking them over.

"Why do you wear short-cut pants under your long pants? How do they fit you so well?" Kalita finally asked as I sunk into the cold water to start washing myself and my clothes off.

"These are called underwear. They can help with certain male problems down there," I explained.

I was not looking at the woman. Instead, I was trying to concentrate on washing my clothes.

"Underwear? I have never heard of such a thing! Do girls wear them too?" Kalita asked curiously.

"Umm, yeah. Ladies' underwear is good to hold… umm, pads… for umm… when you bleed down there," I said with great hesitation, still not looking at her.

I wasn't really that uncomfortable with talking about a girl's period. The thing was that I knew some cultures could consider this topic taboo for men to talk about.

"Oh! Umm, I see. Well, that is something you might have to talk to the elders," Kalita remarked cautiously at first, but then said with a bit more excitement, "I know this is a problem, and it might be nice to see what kind of solutions you have!"

'Oh boy! Now you have gotten yourself into some hot water!' Gripton said in my head, and I got a mental image of the same man drinking tea with a shit-eaters grin.

'If they only ask me to design underwear, I am sure I will be able to rule the world! I will introduce sexy panties, and the world will fall to its knees!' I replied with determination.

There was a brief pause between the old man and me, but then we both burst out laughing.

The problem was that I did it out loud, and Kalita seemed to notice.

"What is so humorous?" Kalita asked in confusion.

"Nothing, I was just thinking about what the women of my town would think of what you just said," I lied, but it was better than saying what really happened.

"Oh, Well, I guess that kind of makes sense," Kalita said, still looking confused.

"I am impressed with how your magic works. The thing is, I am new to the area and kind of lost. Do you have a village nearby?" I asked, trying to distract Kalita from the previous topic.

"Oh yes! My husband will love this new increase in my magic! You will have to meet him! Once we find Thurman, we can take you back to our village!" Kalita said with excitement that almost exploded out of her.

Both of us were climbing out of the water as Kalita dropped the bomb. That bit of info caught me off guard, and I immediately felt a stone drop into my stomach.

I froze for only the briefest of moments as I stepped out of the water, but Kalita didn't notice. Once I was in the dirt, I started to make myself busy using my hands to wick away the water.

"…Your husband?" I asked as casually as I could.

"Yes, he will probably be looking for me. We got separated hunting that giant spider. They have been a lot more active lately, and the webs have been getting closer to our village," Kalita explained as I started to ring my clothes dry.

"Sounds good. Lead the way," I said, a bit more robotic than I wanted to, but again, Kalita didn't seem to notice.

'Well, It was a good try, but don't lose hope! She is offering to take you to a village with more people and maybe more women, right?' Gripton explained to me, trying to cheer me up.

'Thanks, but something about this is bothering me. I get that Kalita must be in love with this guy, but the way she lit up when talking about him was almost unnatural, right?' I replied in my mind.

Before Gripton could reply, I was distracted by the sound of a booming male voice.

"KALITA!" The loud voice echoed through the forest.

"THURMAN!" Kalita squealed, running off in the direction of Thurman's voice.

Seeing her taking off to leave, I called out to Kalita.

"Wait!" I yelled out before she could get too far.

Kalita immediately slowed down at my call. I needed to get some things straight before she ran off.

"Yes?" Kalita asked after finally stopping.

"Before you go, there are a couple things. Please come back, and then we will go together, okay?" I asked, and Kalita jogged back down the hill she had run up, nodding.

"Sure! What is it that you wanted to talk about?" Kalita asked me.

"Don't go telling people about my power, okay? Because it's a lot more complicated than what you think happened. You were lucky that something bad didn't happen, so let's just keep it between you and me and shorten your hair back," I explained to her, but the change happened before I could finish speaking.

This was the first time that I had seen a look of disappointment on her face. I could understand how she felt, but things needed to be like this until I figured things out.

I also didn't like how Kalita followed my every order without fail. That was disturbing, and I would have to be careful how I worded things from now on.

"Umm, I guess, if I have to. I was just really," Kalita tried to complain, and she even looked good doing that, but I had to cut her off.

At least the woman still had the mind to complain, but now was not the time for it. I was sure that whoever this Thurman guy was, he would be heading towards the sound of Kalita's voice.

"I know, but once we are in the village and I talk to the… Elders, or whatever you call them. After I figure out some things, we can reveal your new powers. Deal?" I explained, but she still looked disappointed.

"I guess so; I trust you; you did save me. Even if you were going to walk away!" Kalita accused me while glaring at me.

"I'm sorry about that, I'm new, and I don't really have any good excuses. I won't let it happen again," I explained.

That got me a smile that made me feel a bit better before she ran off. I didn't want to restrict Kalita, but I had no idea what kind of people were in her village.

I was also worried about whatever seemed to be wrong with the woman. Something about her crazy change in attitude when she said Thurman's name.

'Well, I have to give you some credit there. Smart move. It could be dangerous to let people know about your powers. Someone may try to force you to do it to them,' Gripton explained.

That was most of my point, but I also didn't want to get stuck in a tiny place. There was an entire world to explore, so I didn't want to get stuck taking care of people.

'You will not be stuck if you help people! They need your help! There is evil all over the world, and I brought you here to deal with it!' Gripton raged in my mind as I started to jog.

I had to start running a lot faster to catch up to Kalita. I followed as fast as I could, and I'm not slow by any means, but that little Goblin could move.

It was all I could do to keep her in my sights. Within minutes, we stumbled onto a six-foot-tall monster of a man.

He had dark green hair and pointed ears like the Goblin. The part that bothered me was the stupid smile on his face.

"Thurman!" Kalita squealed.

"Oh, my little Goblin! I was worried about you when I lost sight of you and the spider. Who is this hairless man in those strange black shorts?" The muscular man with only a hyde loincloth asked as I caught up.

'Oh, that's rich! Even the big idiot calls her the same!' I jested in my head as I slowed down.

'Well, she does look similar!' Gripton replied back.