—Arturo!— exclaimed Jonah, terrified when the monster decided to approach them.

The slave saw the monster, sensed the rocks and earth around him and knew what he could do, he just wasn't sure how to do it. With his mind he took control of the earth in front of the beast and used it to strike it. However, he only managed to raise a mound that the monster jumped over with no problem. Jonah threw a stone at it. It missed, but the monster ran after and knocked him down with one lunge.

—NOOOOO! ARTUROOOOOOO!— shouted Jonah, terrified.

The slave saw the problem, he knew he had to act as soon as possible.

—The earth is rubbed together and weighs a lot. I have to cut it to lift it more easily— he said to himself.

The monster raised one of its powerful claws to pierce Jonah's abdomen. Arturo did the first thing that came to his mind: he grabbed a specific segment of rock on the ground next to them and threw it like a cannonball straight at the monster's body. The rock pillar hit him in the jaw and sent him to the side. Jonah crawled to the other side to get to safety.

The animal shook off the blow, annoyed. It tried to pounce at the children again. Arturo saw it coming, studied the rhythm of its paws touching the ground and halfway parted the earth where it was going to step. He formed a big, deep hole, where the monster fell flat on its face. Then again took control of the earth to one side and compressed it all. The monster managed to grab hold of the edge and lift its head, but at that moment the earth had trapped half of its body.

Arturo knew perfectly well that this obstacle was not going to last long, since this type of beast lived by digging under the surface. Without a moment's hesitation, he took Jonah's hand and led him towards the slide. They hurried up, holding on to anything.

—Can't you open a tunnel for us or something?

—What do you want me to do? I can't do much!— explained Arturo as he tried to climb up— If I'm not careful, I could bury us alive!

—Can you at least make a ladder?! How can you be so incompetent?!

Arturo was not pleased with his master's comment, but Jonah gave him an idea. Anxious and in a hurry, he rested his hand on the surface of the slide and plunged it down. A section of the rock sucked in and allowed him to hold on to the remaining notch. Quickly he took the lead and Jonah hurried up behind.

They climbed quickly into the tunnel and ran at full speed towards the exit. Halfway through, however, they heard a roar from behind. It was the monster that had escaped and was beginning to catch up with them.

—Not again!— shrieked Jonah.

Arturo stopped in his tracks and turned around to face the monster. It ran at the boy and lunged at him, its claws ready to tear his neck apart. The young man stared up at the narrow walls and sky of the cave. As the beast leaped, he crossed his arms tightly. Immediately several rock stakes sprang up from all sides in front of him and impaled the monster in mid-air. It writhed in pain and exhaled its last grunts, kicking desperately until it died.

Silence returned to the cave as the two boys caught their breath. Arturo realized he was drenched in sweat.

Then he looked at the dead monster in front of him. Even if it was in self-defense, he wasn't happy to see it die in such a painful way. He didn't like to think that he had done it himself.

Jonah approached him from behind, admiring the work he had done. The stone stakes spanned the entire diameter of the tunnel.

—Well done— he congratulated him.

Arturo was surprised to receive such a comment from Jonah, but did not know how to respond. More important than appearing polite were the lives of the people above ground.

—We have to go help the people— he urged.

—What? No— Jonah refused— We have to flee. It's very dangerous there, there are many monsters and you don't want anything to happen to me, do you?

Arturo saw no point in arguing with him, so he simply turned around and began a light jog towards the exit of the cave. Jonah stood for a while, next to the corpse of the monster. Even if he wasn't the nicest slave in the world, he understood that it would be better to follow him.

When they came to the surface they saw the bare valley again, its great walls in the distance and the huge rocky towers behind. Beyond was the derailed train, and beside it, the big monster trying to pull something out of its interior. From the distance, the screams of the people inside could be heard.

—There are still survivors!— he thought.

—Well, the beast is distracted— remarked Jonah— Come on, Arturo. Let's take the opportunity to...

But before he could repeat his plans to Arturo, he was already running straight into danger. Jonah, irritated, wanted to shout all the insults he knew for what a fool he was, but he did not want to give his location to other monsters nearby. At that moment when his slave was throwing himself to certain death, he decided it would be best to run away. After all, Arturo wasn't even his slave anymore.

—How could he become a mage without any training? How is that even possible?!

Ranting against his fate in this manner, he turned around and started walking the other way to disappear. His parents wouldn't like to hear what had happened there, he would have to take care of that matter, but later, when he was safe.

-------------------------------------------

Arturo was tired from all the running, he had never been very resilient. His windpipe burned every time he breathed, his legs ached, and sweat slid down his temples, tickling them. Still he forced himself to keep running towards the monster. When he got close enough he didn't wait to get its attention, he simply stomped hard on the ground to pick up a blunt rock. He held it aloft for a moment and immediately felt the pressure in the expanses of his mind, similar to muscle fatigue. He understood that magic was not an unlimited resource. He would have to use it efficiently if he was to survive.

Despite the danger, he couldn't help but notice that moving his body helped him focus on the movement he wanted to make. He had many, many questions about his control over the earth, but he would have to wait until he was out of danger.

Next he gathered momentum and hurled the rock with all his might towards the monster's head. The impact knocked it down and forced it to let go of the wagon it was trying to break. Furious, he rose effortlessly to his feet and looked at Arturo. His little brain managed to grasp that the boy had somehow hurt him, so he put the train aside and broke into a run towards him.

The young man picked up another stone to throw at it, but the monster simply shattered it with one of its claws. He realized that the same trick was not going to work twice. That left him facing a huge, angry monster that was running towards him in a hurry. He had but a few seconds left to think of something.

—No, I have to relax. I have to think clearly.

He took the deepest breath he could and surveyed the situation in front of him: a large mass was approaching at full speed, but he could do more than throw rocks. He remembered the way he had killed the smaller monster in the tunnel.

He noticed the beast's legs, the pace at which it stomped the ground. It was the typical gait of a quadruped, one pair of legs at a time. He quickly identified the cycle. When he got close enough, the boy grabbed the surface of the earth where the monster was about to step and slid it to the side. The monster lost its balance, stumbled and fell on its nose.

This wasn't going to stop it, but it was going to keep it still long enough. The huge beast tried to get back to its feet, but Arturo quickly raised the earth around its neck as a collar and compressed it to hold it to the ground. The animal roared, exposed and humiliated. The boy felt some pity again, but did not stop; it was a fight to the death. The huge animal kicked and thrashed with all its might, struggling to break the bonds that prevented it from killing its prey. Arturo had to make a great effort to keep it on the ground, but he understood that he would not be able to do it for long; he had to finish it quickly.

In a second he took control of the ground just below the monster's face, compressed it in the center to form a long, pointed stake, and helping himself with his arms, he drove it through the beast's nose. The stake went through its skull and out the back of its neck, drawing several gallons of blood with it. The monster screamed in pain for two seconds and finally died. Arturo felt sad, despite everything, but there was no time for regrets. He still had work to do.

—There are still monsters out there — he thought, turning around — I have to go and help people....

However, at that moment his vision became blurred and his head began to spin, to the point where he lost his balance completely and fell backwards to the ground, unconscious.

-------------------------------------------

He did not know how much time elapsed or what he dreamed. When he opened his eyes and regained consciousness, he noticed that he was in a roofed place. It took him a few seconds to recognize the interior of the train cars. He had not boarded the passenger section, but the structure was similar to the trains of his world.

He also noticed noise nearby: the sound of people walking, talking and performing tasks. Then he noticed something comfortable and fluffy under his head, clothes folded to make a pillow.

Puzzled, he got to his feet, still weak, and headed for the carriage exit. For some strange reason, he was extremely hungry. His stomach was hurting so much that he squeezed it.

—Someone brought me here— he thought— so the people must be okay.

He didn't need to be a genius to see that. After leaving, it only took him a couple of steps to notice a large crowd of people gathered in front of him. They were eating and keeping busy tending to the wounded or small children. After looking at them for a while, Arturo realized that they were the passengers on the train. He even recognized some of the slaves with whom he had been placed during the trip.

He stared at them for a while until something else caught his attention; a seven meter long hairy body lying on the ground on one side of the improvised camp. A few people were looking at it and commenting, standing around.

It wasn't long before they noticed him standing there. A couple of guards went to greet him and one of them stayed with him while the other went to look for the driver.

—Ah, it's the hero!— the driver exclaimed, with open arms and a grin from ear to ear.

He hugged Arturo with his strong arms, lifting him a few inches off the ground.

—It was amazing, kid! You saved us all!— he told him with joy.

—Uh? Really?— he wondered— but I only killed that one over there, I think— he said, pointing to the big monster.

—Yes, you did! And the other monsters fled because of it!

Arturo should have guessed. Eliminating the leader to dispel the enemy forces was a very obvious tactic.

—You're a hero, boy! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise— continued the driver.

—I saw it myself— said one of the guards— from the train. This mage threw ten-meter rocks at him. He took him on by himself and beat him.

Arturo remembered that the rocks had been smaller, but saw no need to correct him on that detail. The nonis stayed a few minutes talking about the encounter between the boy and the monster, apparently excited. Then the driver led the young man to another of the wagons, where they were serving the little food they had reserved. He was handed a plastic plate, with a portion that for a noni could be considered humble, but for a common human like Arturo was normal. The boy went to sit down and devoured it quickly, as if he were in an eating contest. It was so fleeting that he was surprised when he tried to grab more food with his spoon and found nothing. The worst part was that he was still hungry, very hungry. He thought about asking for more, but figured that with half the train wrecked, getting food for all the survivors had been difficult enough, so he said nothing.

—I'll have to wait a bit— he thought, though he wasn't so sure. His mind felt dry, fried, as if he had studied for a whole week without stopping even to sleep.

But without him expecting it, a new plate appeared in front of his face. Looking up, he noticed the train conductor and a few guards smiling at him.

—I don't know much about mages, but I do know that they eat like beasts— said the noni— have that extra ration, it's the least we can do to thank you.

Arturo opened his eyes wide in surprise. He had never expected such kindness from a noni.

—Can I really eat it?

—Of course, boy! Don't ask questions, just eat— said the driver.

—And this one too— said one of the guards, passing him another tray with food.

—And this one— said a second guard, with another tray.

—And this one— said a third one.

In the end, Arturo ended up with seven more trays, four of which he ate, the rest he gave back with much gratitude. While he was eating, the conductor took the opportunity to talk to him to find out how a mage had ended up on his train. He explained to the driver and the guards exactly what had happened in the cave. They were surprised, but not incredulous. Apparently such stories were not very fantastic in that world.

—It's phenomenal, don't you think? — One of the guards commented— Now you don't have to be a slave to that spoiled brat.

Another guard tapped him on the shoulder, reminding him that he was talking about a client.

—What?— asked Arturo.

—The mages' clause— said the driver— Don't you know it? No, of course not. The mages' clause dictates that a mage cannot be anyone's slave, just like that. Mages can be dangerous, much more so under the command of someone ambitious. That's why they are free people.

Arturo needed a moment to process what he was being told.

—So I'm free?

The nonis smiled at him.

—Yes, you are free— asserted one.

—Congratulations!

—Congratulations!— repeated the others.

—What are you going to do now?— asked the driver— Are you going to the city of mages?

—City of mages?— repeated Arturo, euphoric.

—Yes, it's very famous in Nudo— said the noni— It would do you good, being a novice mage and all. I'm sure it will make you a good mage.

Arturo felt like going immediately. He loved being able to use magic. The very idea that there was an entire city dedicated to the subject made his hair stand on end... but then he remembered his family and friends.

There were priorities.

—First there are people I'd like to find— he confessed— during the invasion we got separated and... I need to know they're okay.

The driver and the guards looked at each other's faces with a certain complicity. They had had nothing to do with the invasion, or any invasion for that matter, but there was still a sense of collective guilt simmering. Fortunately, the mage with the power to destroy them all at that moment didn't seem to have any resentment against the entire species.

—Do you know where they are?— asked the driver— If you know the city where they are, I can take you there on one of my trips, it won't be a problem, right, guys?

—Not at all— replied the guards.

Arturo scratched his head thoughtfully.

—Thank you, but I really don't know where to look— he admitted— Until a few hours ago, I didn't contemplate the possibility of being free.

There was a deep silence. No one knew what could be done, it was not common for slaves to become free from one moment to the next and start looking for their families.

Later, a flying ship appeared and extracted them all to take them to the first stop, a city called Bivifera. There, Arturo decided to get off. He needed to start investigating as soon as possible, any city would do. He said goodbye to the nonis, thanked them for everything and left. In Bivifera they seemed to be preparing for a parade, something about someone important, but he didn't think it would ever affect him, so he didn't give it any importance.