Reid let himself into the simple looking building, and resisted the urge to pinch his nose. There was a smell to this place that, unfortunately, reminded Reid of his time on Thad's ship.

Three of the cages were empty, but stained floors indicated that people had their lives ended on that metal.

Another seven cages only held women and children. The child-sized collars and chains iced Reid's gut. He hadn't done nearly enough to the guards outside.

The final two cages held all the men. In one, a lone figure stood with his hands on the bars. He had chains around his wrists, but no collar and no connection to the floor.

The final cage was packed so tightly, the mass of men inside couldn't sit down properly.

Everyone he saw looked slightly starved. None of them had 'bulky' frames, and Reid imagined they were all slighter than him, even when they were healthy. They stared at him like he was a hallucination as he walked over to the first cage. He picked the closest one with children. As he approached it, one of the men in the crowded cage shouted to him.

"Release the officers first! We can defend you while you free the rest."

The lone man cleared his throat and pointed at the crowded cage. "The guards are dead. Quiet yourselves, act with dignity, and wait." He turned to Reid. "Please, see the children out of irons first."

The crowded cage quieted at the admonishment. Reid paid more attention to the lone man as he set the kids and the women free.

The lone man's face was drawn and gaunt, but his eyes carried the same sort of look he'd seen in Win and a few others. It was the natural confidence and will that went along with spending years in charge. Even in a sorry state, he managed to seem dignified. His face and body were both bruised, and the simple pair of tan pants he wore were cut and bloodied in more than one spot. Blue blood was still an odd thing to Reid, but he was more used to the idea after spitting out a bucket of the stuff.

He pushed power into his hands, and attempted to replicate the type of motions he'd seen the CCE's fingers make when they broke apart the metal collar around his neck in the Warrens. Metal struggled against his grip, but he managed to get the things off without the metal cutting into any of the kids' skin. The women and the children were pointed to the building with waiting food and water - though many stayed behind. Reid promised himself that he'd find someone to pass out medicine for him later. There were more than enough of Win's pills to go around, after all.

When the last two cages remained, Reid was closer to the one with the lone man. He walked to the door, but the man waved him off and pointed towards the crowded cage.

"Them first. Please."

Closer to the man, Reid could see the bags under his eyes. He had a series of lines up and back on his head that looked almost identical to what Reid had done to his own face.

When he opened the crowded cage, people flowed out like a shaken soda. Some waited for Reid to remove their shackles, but a group walked to the lone prisoner's cage and spoke softly with him. As Reid freed more of the men from their restraints, the group around the lone man continued to grow. Reid had to have them make a space just so he could get to the door. He crushed the metal in his hand, twisted, and pulled. The door creaked as it swung open, and the man inside went to a knee.

Shuffling sounds made Reid look to his sides, and he realized every other prisoner had gone down to their knees as well. Was this like a bow to greet people thing, or was it a show of gratitude? Reid decided that staying standing was his best option.

"Thank you, brave soldier. I owe you much. Please, tell me your name."

Reid scratched the back of his head. "It's Serroc... uh, just Serroc. Hi. Am... am I supposed to bow?"

The man rose to his feet. "You do not bow today, Serroc. But to ask that question, you must be another lost child of Vuxarina. Welcome home." The man extended a shackled hand, palm up. Reid took it and gave an awkward handshake, which led to gasps from the gathered crowd.

Nyx was conveniently silent.

"It is my pleasure to greet you, Serroc. I am Hugo Vux, and so long as my people will have me, I am Vuxarina's crown prince - or the crowned coward, depending on whom you ask." He put on a sad smile.

That was a odd and self-deprecating thing for a prince to say.

A prince.

Reid was fairly sure Win was some kind of royalty, but he'd never met a prince. He could've really used some tips from an old and knowledgeable entity to tell him what he should or shouldn't do in the presence of the man. Reid placed his hands on the prince's manacles, and carefully pulled them apart.

"It's nice to meet you, Hugo." Reid's simple greeting was, once again, met by gasps in the crowd. That was going to get old.

Hugo sent an annoyed look at the men, and they backed off.

"Come, Serroc. Let us sit together, and I will share stories of my people."

#

There was general surprise and a bit of suspicion at the rations Reid left for everyone within the base. More than a few upset gazes told Reid that the officers were unhappy at the fact that he'd destroyed all the step-down equipment, but he didn't care. The things were practically bombs, and he wasn't going to have kids sitting and eating next to bombs.

The Vuxarinan people were already scavenging better clothing for themselves out of the base's lockers, and more than a few had taken advantage of the showers.

Reid sat with Hugo, outside, and stared at the landscape. It was a mountainous forested terrain, with trees that looked like an odd mix between evergreens and willows. Needles weighed heavy on strands that flowed and danced in the wind. Peaks rose as high as the clouds off into the distance in one direction, and there were signs of flat grassland at the edge of his vision in another. When Reid focused on the beast quest, he could see a marker appear in his vision above one of the smaller peaks - and it took most of his self control to not just haul off and follow it to his destination.

Hugo waxed on at length about Vuxarina and its culture. If loving your planet and its people was a requirement to be royalty, the man was overqualified. To hear him tell it, Vuxarina before the awakening was as close to paradise as one could get.

The prince rattled off facts about the natural landscapes and rolling fields of pink wheat grasses, the multi-hued forests filled with an ever-expanding list of native creatures being catalogued by scientists. A mostly-unified people spread out over a pair of supercontinents that dominated the planet's surface. Cities built with advanced technology that was at least a few decades ahead of where Earth had been pre-awakening, or technology that was at least more embraced and available. It all created images of a truly incredible place, filled with happy and peaceful people.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

But things did start to descend from the idea of perfection he'd woven. With such a long-ruling and stable monarchy behind the oversight of the planet, some things stagnated. Though technology advanced, old traditions remained - and even grew in popularity.

Hugo stared at the faraway clouds. His officers lingered just a little too close for them to have proper privacy.

"The physical deference is a tradition, or... something like 'good manners' for those in royal circles. It began as many things do - in conflict. When Vuxarina was much younger and there were true struggles for power, it was customary for leaders to be the most physically or personally powerful individuals in their region. When two leaders clashed, the loser's ranks would be purged of anyone strong enough to be considered a 'threat' to the conquering leader. Strength itself was seen as a challenge to the authority of those above you. As technology progressed and we stopped fighting with fists, that mentality largely went away. But - bored noble houses are like idle children; they will find their own mischief if left alone. So a few hundred years ago, the concept of 'physical deference' made a comeback. Nobles became obsessed with remaining less physically built or powerful than the ruler of their generation. When those around my age grew, they staked themselves to be just slightly weaker than I."

His eyes moved from the clouds to the ground.

"The awakening should have been a boon to us all. The palace and the main noble districts were left somewhat intact by the change, and the citizens quickly regrouped in what remained there. My father was... quite close to the end of his natural life. His malaise abated with the awakening, but he was in little condition to go out and fight beasts. For me, it was a well-meaning suffocation of my potential. Father refused to put me in danger - and my officers followed his orders as well as the traditions. We were a group of rulers frozen in place for the wrong reasons, not progressing because those at the top were either too old or too pampered to fight and grow and rise. Beasts that were all but dead already were sometimes dragged to me, and a gun placed in my hands. Those were my only levels, pitiful and meaningless."

Hugo's hands balled into fists.

"Belar outmatched us from the beginning. In part, it was because of our inaction and lack of levels. In part, we had spent too long at peace. We had a few effective weapons against the invaders, but our arms stores and our capability to replenish them were too small to matter. It is a shame I will carry for the rest of my life, but I convinced my father to set loose three weapons of unrivaled destruction against our invaders. They scarred Vuxarina in a way that will take centuries to heal - but even those loses didn't send Belar's forces away. It killed many, but they were not deterred. Instead, they carved a path in blood to my father's doorstep, and held him responsible for the fusion bombs."

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then relaxed his his hands and looked Reid straight in the eye.

"Serroc, I have no worries in my choice to surrender to Belar. I care not that my people see me as a coward for it. That act saved many lives at the time. I do regret what Belar did after - but there was no better alternative in the moment. Belar's forces possess F Rank armor that proved nigh impossible to break, and weapons we could not defend ourselves from. So now you know, Serroc. You know what Vuxarina was, you know what awaits us outside of this tutorial, and you know of my shame and regret."

Hugo stood as he continued - before Reid could get a word in.

"Serroc, my people sit in the camp you liberated eating your food and drinking your water. You have proven yourself to be a friend, worthy of a tacit trust and respect. We owe our freedom to you already, but I apologize... and humble myself."

Hugo went to a knee, and Reid heard shuffling from the nobles nearby. They, too, were kneeling - and each was staring daggers at Reid.

"Even after your generosity, I must ask you a favor."

Reid stiffened, and prepared a dozen responses to say 'no'. No, he wouldn't be their champion. No, he wasn't going to be some guiding light. No, he wouldn't volunteer to defend them or take on Belar for them or be Hugo's personal warrior or anything of the sort.

"I ask you for one simple additional act - one show of your great strength compared to that of my officers so I may use it to push my people away from these insidious traditions. Please, help me finish convincing my officers, so we may forge our own path to strength such as yours."

Reid blinked a few times.

That wasn't the blanket ask for assistance he was expecting. Hell, it wasn't even close to the 'save us all' mentality that he'd feared. It made all the gears in Reid's head seize up and stop working. He only managed to vocalize a quick "huh".

Hugo lifted his head at Reid's lack of a response, then smiled.

"I see - you were expecting a request of greater greed. I seek not an easy solution, Serroc, but a lasting one. I have naught to offer you in return but my gratitude and support. I know they are close - they just need a bit more convincing. An example of just how far behind the deference has made us. If you are willing, I believe a chance to show them is on its way."

He tilted his head, and Reid turned around to follow it. A trio of the prince's posse were angrily stomping their way over. Reid rose to meet them. Each was tall, but thin - and it was evident they had been that way even before whatever rationing or starvation they'd endured in their cages. The one in the lead, with a crop of hair that looked like a sideways mohawk shouted.

"We are grateful for your aid, lost child, but your deeds do not excuse your actions! You insult Prince Hugo. When his majesty stands, you stand. When he kneels, you kneel. It is the way of things."

Hugo called out. "Yudel, I allow it. Serroc has not insulted me."

Bad-haircut-Yudel wasn't convinced. "Your highness - we know you are too kind and merciful a ruler to correct this lost child, so we shall happily take on the duty of justice and punishment! Serroc, your disrespect cannot continue. You must absolve yourself."

Reid took a breath, and tried to relax. The ask from Hugo had thrown him off balance mentally, and he was still feeling a bit sideways in his thoughts - but this guy was brandishing. That meant Reid just needed to channel Win. Be calm and collected, and show his strength... use it to fulfill Hugo's ask and show what they were all missing from not leveling up.

"One second." Reid held up a finger as he spoke, then searched along the ground for a few moments. He came back with a pair of fist-sized stones, and held both out in his hands. "Pick one."

The angry man looked at them like it was some sort of trick, then grabbed the rock from Reid's left hand.

"Now, squeeze. Show me you have the power to tell me to do anything." Reid's fingers slowly curled around the stone to punctuate his sentence, and a bit of power flowed into his hand. It made the process of crushing the stone easier, and it flaked and popped before falling away in pieces.

Opposite him, the man gripped the stone hard as his face changed colors with the strain. Reid took two quick steps and pulled the thing out of his grip, then crushed the second stone in his palm.

"Don't be angry with me for not following some asinine rules - be angry with yourselves for allowing those rules to hold you all back. If you spent more time focusing on what you can do to improve, maybe your prince wouldn't have had to fire those weapons or surrender to Belar."

Yudel let out an outraged gasp, but the men behind him were looking less angry and more ashamed. More had come out to watch the spectacle, and Reid found himself talking to most of the freed officers and a small group of women and children.

"Hugo is doing everything he can to try and set you all up for success - for collective improvement. He knows that if you continue to stagnate, you will fall to Belar again. Strength and Power are necessary for survival, and if you don't strive for them, you will not survive. It's time to make some change - for the better."

Yudel bristled and balled his fists, but Reid continued before he could speak. "If you can't crush those rocks, you can't fight Belar and you sure as hell won't be able to hurt me. Take a swing and prove me right. Prove that all your traditions should be thrown away."

He watched the man's resolve waver, then fall away completely as the prince stepped up even to Reid's side. The crowd looked contemplative, so Reid hoped he'd at least swayed a few. He wasn't exactly good at speeches.

When he noticed a smile tugging at the corner of Hugo's mouth, something tugged at the back of Reid's mind.

"Serroc speaks the truth! We have clung too long to antiquated ideology. I will not be the burden of our people any longer - and I cannot stand idly by. We will fight and grow - all of us, at our own speeds! We must seize the power to challenge our invaders, the same way Serroc has done!"

Nods filled most of the crowd. Hugo's smile crept wider on his face.

"I stand before gathered Vuxarina, and make these proclamations! Deferential Tradition is dead! My people shall grow! Even if they exceed me, I shall rejoice in their accomplishments! And to prove my resolve, I claim now and henceforth that I hold Serroc to be high in my gaze!"

Excitement grew in the audience. Something was happening.

"I look upon him as I would my brother. And so may he BE my brother!" The crowd was practically boiling. "In the witness of our people and my trusted officers, I proclaim Serroc to be of equal standing to Hugo Vux, prince of Vuxarina and heir to the throne!"

The crowd jumped in excitement as Hugo placed an arm around Reid. He turned and gave a slightly apologetic smile as the crowd settled and knelt down... bowing to both of them.

Well, fuck.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.