《Unknown World》 Prologue - The Void *scriitch scriitch* ¡°Alright that should do it¡­ uuuuh¡­ Yeah looks nice.¡± Isaac wiped a little sweat from his brow, smearing some of the dust from the chalk he was using. His homeroom was currently in charge of the ¡®labyrinth¡¯ part of the event. They were given the gym since it had the largest space and used replaceable office walls to map out the maze. Since his class was in charge of this particular event he had been given a small area in the maze to do with what he wanted. Once more he looked over the decorative magic circle he had made and gave a nod of satisfaction. The event has been exciting for him and he had quickly grabbed a spot under the skylights, hoping that the moon would give his stand a more magical feeling to it . He had quickly decided to do a fortune telling theme, going out to buy drapes and an old table from pawn and hobby shops in town. The room was based off of the cat¡¯s tent from An**al Cr***ing and he had almost fully decorated it. As for the circle itself. He used geometry, norse runes, roman words, and even a few math symbols to create a pretty bad ass replication that he could be proud of. His plan was to set up the table in the center of the circle and dramatically hand out candies. The kids would get normal candy, the adults would get prank candies with both good and bad centers, like tabasco or caramel. ¡°Only a week now. I¡¯ll set up the actual table the night before¡­ I hope no one decides to mess with it.¡± He frowned a little, and quickly forced away the negative thought. Taking one last look over everything made him appreciate the scene once more, though he couldn¡¯t resist setting the crystal ball in the middle of the ¡®array¡¯. ¡°Maybe it will absorb some energy or something and I¡¯ll get lucky.¡± He laughed at his own joke and quickly left, waving to several of his classmates who were setting up their own little niches as well. The gymnasium slowly quieted as the class trickled out, the day ending and the cleaning staff locking up for the night. Night crept into the dark building and slowly moonlight seemed to filter in through the sky lights. The crystal ball seemed to sparkle a bit and reflected it all over the room giving the chalk a pearl like glow. It bathed in moonlight for hours, seeming to somehow thrum with energy. Once dawn broke, the energy seemed to go dormant as the circle and crystal ball seemed to glow just enough to be unnoticeable. Kids started to once more pour into the school as the sun rose further into the sky. Isaac was panting heavily as he quickly ran. -Shiiit gonna be late, Mr. Ambrose is gonna kill me!- Due to a late start, mainly the once in a blue moon breakfast his mom made, he was trying to run quickly, just barely dodging people with his slightly below average physique. He almost knocked over a few of the freshmen as the bell rang. The class looked over as he swore and skid to a halt in front of the door, bent over and gasping for air. Mr. Ambrose raised an eyebrow at Isaac and shook his head slightly giving a small sigh. ¡°Alright Isaac, I haven¡¯t started attendance yet. I¡¯ll let it slide this time since you just barely made it.¡± Isaac lifted his head and gave a tired smile and a thumbs up. He was sweating heavily from the run and brushed his light brown hair out of face and quickly made his way to his seat. His chair shifted as he fell into it tiredly, several of his classmates laughing at his slightly ragged appearance. He hadn¡¯t even had time to comb out his bed head. ¡°Alright everyone, only a few days till the event begins. All but three of you are doing an exceptional job.¡± He looked over at the three ¡®rebels¡¯ in the class and gave a small scowl. ¡°No matter though, keep up the good work everyone else. As for other announcements.¡± Isaac finally started to catch his breath and cool down, the teacher¡¯s voice slowly becoming a buzz in the back of his mind.. He pulled a water bottle out of his bag and took a large gulp of it. Typically the teacher would have busted him, food and drink were not allowed in class, but ignored it this once to which Isaac was grateful. After homeroom ended Isaac quickly made his way to the bathroom. His hair dripped with water after it was rinsed out and comb roughly by his fingers. He only peeked up at the mirror, making sure he wasn¡¯t a total train wreck anymore, before turning and leaving not wasting more than a few moments. Now, Isaac was one of the average students. He wasn¡¯t bullied; he wasn¡¯t in any large cliques. He was an outlier who could blend in anywhere. That being said he was friendly with almost anyone, giving the majority of people a good impression of him. This is exactly why his current predicament was rather rare. The only group he couldn¡¯t get along with were the ¡®rebellious teens¡¯. They were a group of five bullies who would try to pick fights, argue with the teachers, anything really. Of course it was his three classmates from homeroom who currently had him surrounded. ¡°Hey Isaac, we saw your room was almost done so we were hoping you would help us get our extra credit. Of course the reward being, we won¡¯t mess up your area, or your physical well being.¡± Isaac sighed a bit and rubbed his face a little, looking a little frustrated. He let that frustration bleed into his voice with plenty of sarcasm. ¡°Of course Will, just leave the plans there. I am not being a part of your group though.¡± They laughed as if they scored some huge victory. ¡°Awesome!¡± The three were excited as Isaac butted in. ¡°If I need to move something too heavy or unwieldy you¡¯ll have to help though. So just make sure you show up for about ten minutes.¡± They sneered at him a bit, the response Isaac expected, and left without another word, quickly pulled into their own little world. Like that, for the rest of the prep time, he was either building the three lunkheads¡¯ attraction, helping with other parts of the labyrinth, or in classes. It was hectic but the maze was a perfect chance to work on his craft hobbies. The new room he was given quickly turned into a Victorian torture room, utilizing paper mache for the torture devices such as the Iron Maiden, while he made several of the ¡®hallways¡¯ in the maze into disorienting optical illusions. It was a rather nasty trap but as long as no one when into seizures than it was ok. He was very tired during the week trying to get everything together. No one entered his area the entire time and he was too busy to check on it. Not being able to make last minute adjustments to his original space was wearing on his but he swallowed down the annoyance to try and enjoy the festive atmosphere. After all, he would be given time to make some final arrangements before the event¡­ Or at least he hoped he would. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Finally it became the evening of the Halloween event and he had on his fortune telling costume. His teacher helped him to adjust it to make sure it looked presentable. A wine colored cowl adorned his head and shoulders shadowing most of his face. He wore black, loose fitting sailor type pants and some simple black dress shoes. To finish off the outfit, he chose a black sweater with a wine red undershirt to match the rest of his clothes. It was simple but with the costume jewelry accessories he looked like a mock up of a character from the Arabian Nights story. Students and teachers waved and greeting him as he made his way towards his little area. Isaac finally saw his room and smiled. Not even a single mote of dust had been disturbed, making him vastly relieved. It would have been terrible if he¡¯d have had to redraw the circle in just a couple hours. He didn¡¯t even really want to risk smudging it by setting up the table. By being exceptionally careful he managed to set up the table. He did, however, notice that there seemed to be something different with array he had made. It was such a minute change the he was unable to spot what was different. He quickly set up the table, carefully adding the tablecloth and the chair. The room was finally, totally finished which allowed him to take a well deserved rest as he examined his handiwork. LED candles and wall coverings as well as a few other decorations gave it a somehow mysterious air and energy seemed to permeate the room. It was almost too much for him to keep his excitement in check as he sat. He had set up two large bowls of candy for his visitors, one was the normal candy for children with cute little cartoons on the wrapper, and the other for classmates and adults that had the prank candies mixed in with real candy. He had put fortunes on those ones instead of the comics. The gym quickly became a buzz with activity as more and more people finally started to arrive and come in. His first visitor of the night was a little girl and her mother. It was amusing him to see the girl gasp and look around worried, as if a monster was going to jump out at her. ¡°Look mommy it¡¯s glowing!¡± Isaac slowly looked over the table and looked surprised. To anyone looking it seemed as if the candles were causing a soft glow on the chalk, making it seem totally natural. He gave a small smile and started. ¡°I have been waiting, have you come to claim your fortune brave little soul?¡± She meeped, it was adorable, and hid behind her mother who giggled and answered for her. ¡°How do we claim them?¡± His voice projected and the hood lifted a little, showing a slight malicious looking smile. ¡°On your left are fortune candies for children, and on the right are fortune candies for adults. Beware of bad fortunes.¡± The mother looked over at the generic candies and lifted her daughter who quickly grabbed one. She didn¡¯t like the sound of ¡®bad fortunes¡¯ and a slight frown appeared on her face. ¡°What do you mean bad fortunes?¡± A small chuckle came out of the hood as he dropped the theatrics to explain. ¡°The adult ones have a prank center in some of them. Thinks like lemon juice or Tabasco or wasabi. They aren¡¯t in the children¡¯s candies though.¡± A look of relief appeared on her face and she sighed. ¡°Oh and the wrappers have little comics and fortunes made by myself.¡± The little girl had already stuffed the candy into her mouth and was smiling. ¡°Mommy look I got a picture of bunny on a bike!¡± The two thanked Isaac and slowly made their way deeper into the maze. It was great fun and most of his conversations went like the first one. No one seemed to notice as the moon rose higher into the sky and even the fact that the circle seemed to be glowing stronger with each visitor was lost on him. His ¡®booth¡¯ was relatively popular, or at least well visited, and more people came by for candies. There were costumes abound and most people had one, even though the actual holiday was a week away, and he enjoyed watching the cute kids, strange adults, and slightly slutty teenagers, boys and girls, as who came to receive a fortune. Isaac noticed something was wrong when the candles started to flicker. Screams and cries of panic and excitement split the air as all of the electronics in the building suddenly went out. Isaac moved to stand as huge winds seemed to appear from nowhere and blow around. Baubles were knocked from shelves and people were knocked over as the screams slowly melded into a panicked chorus. Isaac swore and pushed back his chair, accidentally smudging the circle. Suddenly everything went still and quiet as the moon slowly rose directly overhead of him. His eyes were drawn up as the skylights suddenly exploded and the magic circle came to life. A pillar of light with him in the middle, several students saw it and gazed on in fear and awe. A shock wave seemed to detonate from the column of light and everything went to hell. For everyone but Isaac that is. Isaac found himself in a void. No light, no sound, even his own voice couldn¡¯t be heard. He quickly started to panic as he realized not a single one of his senses were working. -Am I in a coma? Oh god please don¡¯t tell me I di¡­ AHHHHHHH!- All his thoughts were scattered and dismissed as unimaginable pain wracked his very existence. As if hundreds of millions of tiny ants were pulling him apart molecule by molecule he went through agony, torture, and pain. It didn¡¯t seem to be stopping or weakening, only growing even more intense. The pain started to invade his mind, feeling like the tendril like roots driving themselves through his brain as bits and pieces of him were pulled out. Memories that had been crystal clear before were torn from his psyche. Fear quickly ramped up with the pain. His memories of his family, friends, school, even his own name was torn from him by the unbearable pain. The pain was inescapable as whenever he felt his consciousness grow hazy some now pain would jolt him back. He didn¡¯t understand and the confusion only furthered his fear. What seemed like several lifetimes passed before there was a change. A break in the absolute blackness of the void. A white portal, like a beacon of light, had appeared. His first instinct was to flee towards the light, scared of returning to the pain and the void. The light seemed to pull him in closer and fill his mind as he finally slipped into blessed unconsciousness. Chapter 1 - The Descent Isaac¡¯s eyes shot open and suddenly his breath was torn from his mouth. The sensation of falling had woken him. The air battered him and his clothes flapped wildly. He started flailing which sent him tumbling and spinning dizzily while the vague shapes of blue, green, white and brown flashed past his vision while making his mind swim. It wasn¡¯t till a full minute later that his mind finally kick-started and he finally realized what was happening. -Sh-shit I¡¯m falling! H-have to level out!- To stabilize himself he threw his arms out and the sudden jolt felt like a hammer blow to his spine. The skies that reflected in his eyes were a seemingly infinite blue, much richer than it had ever been before and a lilac sun hung inside of it. He was stunned looking at that foreign object with just one thought running through his head. -What the hell happened?- It took a lot of effort and several more seconds of tumbling before he could control his descent pointing himself towards the ground. -I¡¯m dead¡­ I¡¯m too young to die dammit! How the hell did I get myself into this mess¡­- A huge forest spread out below him, ringed by two great mountain ranges. Three small villages and a rather large castle town laid hidden, nestled inside the verdant forest. That alone would have been enough to leave him scared but the fact that he was still miles above the ground quickly drained his hope of survival. The brutal winds brushing past him tore tears out of his eyes as he tried to remember all the good times he had. He was shocked to discover that of the already marginal memories he had retained during his short life most of them were gone! Closing his eyes he tried harder to find the memories that should have been there. His mother and father and family were totally gone, his last and middle names were gone, it seemed like all but his most important memories had been torn from him. Slowly he curled into a ball, the loss of most of his mind sinking his already troubled emotions even further. The lack of resistance made his speed rocket once more. He shook and sobbed as the sudden depression tore through him. The loss of memories and the shadow of death making him break down into a human wreck. The torrential waves of fear, panic and regret taking their toll on him. It took forever till he finally leveled out with the mountain tops. Slowly uncurling sending him tumbling once more and he did not stop it this time just blankly letting the currents blast him around like a rag doll. -Was there any point? Why was I even born if I wasn¡¯t going to be given a fulfilling and happy life? Maybe I¡¯ll be happy in the next one¡­ I hope so¡­- Isaac resigned himself to his quickly approaching death, closing his eyes and turning to face the sky once more. ______________________________________________________________________________ ??? POV ¡°Mommy! What is that?!¡± A dark shape falling from the sky caught the attention of a young child and he quickly ran to his mother and pointed. She looked up and a small frown appeared mixed with a little confusion. ¡°I honestly don¡¯t know, l-let¡¯s go stay in the guild for a bit, I¡¯ll buy you something to eat.¡± She grabbed the boy¡¯s hand and he cheered as more and more people noticed the figure falling. The guild was three large interconnected circles that looked like cut bamboo. The roofs angled and each of the buildings had a different entrance. The mother made her way to the one with the knife and fork symbol. People were packed at the building with the sword symbol and the boy stopped his mother to look. They watched as a group of four explorers exited the guild confidently. The Warrior of the group drew the most attention with his polished iron armor, massive broadsword and handsome face. ¡°We are going to check what the strange figure is. All of you please stop worrying. We are mobilizing the rest of the explorers to protect the town while we are gone.¡± The guildmaster chuckled as everyone let out sighs of relief. They weren¡¯t actually HIS group, they were just the highest ranked explorers in the guild, so he followed with them to make sure everything would be handled properly. The hostler had the horses for the guild already saddled and ready for transit as the three hurried over. Large beasts that would give most war horses a run for their money stomped the ground in anticipation for the ride. ¡°Alright we need to hurry, make sure no one is hurt and figure out if it is safe to approach. Is everyone ready?¡± The group nodded to the Guildmaster and his grin widened. ¡°Good, now let¡¯s take our time so I can avoid work¡­ I mean so we can stay safe.¡± The stares of the group were causing no small amount of guilt in him and his smile cramped. The group of three consisted of two men, a burly man with two large metal bars covering his knuckles, a lanky gentleman with a large crossbow on his back and a slender woman in a light green dress. The guildmaster hurriedly made his way into his seat as the three took off. Complaints and cries from the guildmaster followed them as he spurred his horse to catch up. The ride could have been considered peaceful, the sun was bright, it wasn¡¯t too warm, it was actually the perfect day for riding. None of them were even aware of it though as they hurried to where the strange shape would hit the ground. A loud thud and an ear piercing scream sounded. After a brief glance at each other the riders quickly hurried their horses. Hidden behind the scream was a slightly strange undulating noise that no one seemed to noticed. The screams were agonizing and the guildmaster quickly issued out his orders. ¡°Let¡¯s hurry, we need to see if we can still save them.¡± Inside the clearing was a slightly abused body. Slightly; meaning a majority of his bones were broken, several organs were damage and severe whiplash left him moderately paralyzed. The only thing that had saved him was the fact that he fell on a King Slime, a rare evolution of the normal slime¡¯s branch. Four pairs of eyes were currently staring at him as his screams continued to erupt from his body. The slime was eating the helpless ¡®meal from the sky¡¯ alive and the pain was immense. Isaac, with another shriek of pain, was pulled from the King Slime by the Guildmaster who handed him off to the fighter who carried him to the druid. ¡°This is terrible. How did this... Slimes don¡¯t do this to their prey.¡± Isaac could feel warmth starting to move into his body, quickly becoming hotter and hotter and his whole body spasmed as bones and muscle and sinew were forcibly pulled into play by the strange energy. The sclera was totally red from ruptured blood vessels slowly turned pink as his body was roughly put back together. ¡°I think¡­ Maybe he was what was falling from the sky.¡± A sharp gaze met his comment and he tried to shrug it off. ¡°What else could it be? The screaming only randomly started but this level of damage should have taken minutes if not hours for the slow King Slime. I mean look at it.¡± Her eyes were drawn to the sight of the Guildmaster and the Archer easily fighting the beast in question. It was a glacial blue with a solid white, crown-shaped core that sparkled in the center. The beast itself stood almost four feet with a circumference of almost 15 feet. It was a massive monster. ¡°Ha! Good thing it was only a King Slime. It is simple-minded and easily beaten. Hey Mira, how is our boy doing?¡± She jumped at the sudden question and her voice squeaked just a little. ¡°Uh he¡­ Uh he is doing better, I stopped the bleeding and stabilized him but if we don¡¯t get him to the Church to see the Father he is going to die.¡± ¡°Hey boss, I have been hearing a strange sound since earlier and it¡¯s getting louder.¡± Behind another bow shot the ranger suddenly called out to the knight with a slight hint of worry in his voice. All of them stopped and the sound quickly became apparent. *totototototototo* <1> They all backed off from slime as the sound continued to increase in strength. A flash of light caught the fighter¡¯s eye and he looked up to see a rapidly flashing streak of silver. Three other gazes followed the first and the group froze, watching as the slime was suddenly detonated as the flash hit the ground. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Sputtering and coughing and sounds of disgust quickly broke the silence as the dust cleared away. The group of five, minus the currently unconscious Isaac, were looking at each other in disgust. Chunks of slime covered them like tar, making them shudder. The sound of heaving, started by Mira, almost caused a chain reaction as the Guildmaster moved towards the small crater, both to try to block out the noise as well as see what hit the slime. A rather small crater, barely more than an indent in the ground, had a silver axe handle sticking up from it. He stared at it for several seconds until his eyes were drawn to a pearly white crown. Before he could move to pick up the core of the slime monster the axe let out a ring, like the chime of a belland slowly absorbed the crystal. The guildmaster stared on in shock and quickly turned to the group. ¡°He¡¯s an Axe Meister, bring him here so we can grab this axe and save his life!¡± Urgency colored his voice and the group jumped to obey, bringing Isaac over to the simple weapon. The axe jumped the moment he got close enough and nestled in his hand. A little coloring returning to his face as his body relaxed a little. ¡°I wonder where he came from¡­¡± The druid Mira looked up at the sky curiously but only saw the lilac sun, slowly shifting from the gentle lilac of the day time to the deep and foreboding byzantium of night. <2> ______________________________________________________________________________ Isaac jerked awake with a gasp and a groan, stiff muscles creaking from the sudden violent motion. Fighting back tears caused by the moderate aches in his body he started to sit up. -What the hell happened¡­ W-was it a nightmare?- He went to rub the sleep out of his eyes and quickly jumped as the axe in his hand almost thumped his head. The axe almost struck his toe as the surprise loosened his grip. Forgetting about checking himself he slowly picked up the axe once more. It was a simple silver axe. The handle and the blade seeming to be one piece and adorned with a simple green gem. A green box almost caused a second near miss and he jerked back onto the bed in surprise. The green box was filled with what looked like corrupted computer data and the letters seemed to be wriggling and twisting, making his vision dance. Letting out another groan he was forced to close his eyes rubbing them to try to clear his vision. There was a click and a slight groan and he slowly opened his eyes to see two older men walking into the room. All Isaac was able to do was stare dumbly as they spoke some sort of strange gibberish at him. The first man was a slightly buff guy with a serious look and short brown hair while the other was in what could only be religious robes of some sort and had soft grey hair. An oily feel doused his confusion and he shivered with revulsion. The sensation of his very being being pulled through a sewer assaulted him as he looked up at the robed man who was staring intently. Surprise flashes across the old man¡¯s eyes and he quickly turned to the buff guy and they started to talk rapidly. Isaac didn¡¯t know what was going on but it seemed like they were trying to figure out something. They kept looking to him and Isaac was starting to feel self conscious, blindly lifting the covers as if he was some sort of fragile maiden afraid of being raped. The buff guy saw the motion and suddenly the argument seemed to be over. ¡°Zoirtsg blfmt nzm, tvg wivhhvw zmw qlrm fh.¡± The priest waved towards a chair where a whole outfit was laid out, drawing Isaac¡¯s attention to it before both men stepped out of the room. <3> ¡°What the hell is happening, have I gone insane¡­¡± The first reaction was a whimper as he curled up unknowingly holding his new axe like some sort of strange teddy bear. It seemed to pulse in time to his heartbeat which slowly calmed him down. ¡°Right¡­ all I can do is try to figure things out slowly.¡± Several deep breaths later and he was putting on the clothes with a slight frown. -Really scratchy¡­ I hope I can find something softer later.- There was a knock on the door that interrupted his thoughts to which he responded by quickly grabbing his axe. Staring intently at the door the axe was the only thing keeping him from panicking, maybe he¡¯d be able to throw it and escape. The very idea somehow offended him and he squeezed the axe tighter. The priest and buff guy once more entered the room which caused Isaac to relax just a little. The two looked genuinely surprised to see him so on guard and the buff guy gave the priest a wry smile. The two spoke for a few seconds and the priest waved for Isaac to follow. Isaac was wary but slowly moved to follow him. A beautiful church was outside the door way. It wasn¡¯t huge, but it was clean and the lighting made it seem warm and inviting. The gentle aura shaved away at Isaac¡¯s wariness till he put the axe through, what he assumed, was a loop that was made with the axe in mind. His curiosity surged as he continued to look around a bit. The priest moved closer and nudged him towards a beautiful statue. The priest and the buff guy slowly knelt down and the situation prompted Isaac to do the same. -Um¡­ If you can tell me what is going on I would appreciate it?- A bell suddenly resounded in his head and he frantically looked up. He was ready to bolt at a moment''s notice when a violet screen filled his vision. The previous box had given him a slight distrust and he flinched and closed his eyes. After several seconds he decided to peek and found a progress bar. His eyes slowly opened and he curiously tilted his head as the bar quickly filled up. A warmth somehow built from inside of him to every inch of his body. The priest nodded at him calmly while the buff guy was just looking on with an amused look. Surprisingly their lack of panic actually calmed him further. The bar continued to fill up under his vigilant stare.
Greetings Otherworlder! Your soul¡¯s signature has been added to the Lifestream. I am one of the Goddesses watching over this plane. Universal restrictions prevent me from explaining much but I can at least tell you that you have been moved to the Basic level of the 1st Plane. I understand that this does not explain much but you are no longer capable of returning to your own universe. Since you are not able to return we have made you a part of ours. With this you can understand both the written and spoken languages of the plane you currently inhabit as well as the others you might visit. You also have access to a special dimensional space that is proportionate to your level and your force. The trip between universes damaged your soul. So you would not die we formed the broken parts of your soul into the weapon at your hip. It is known as an Ego Weapon and will grow in power as you train it. The Divine Council also decided to give you the gift of magic as an apology for being unable to send you back. That is all the information I have been authorized to give you, I am truly sorry for your loss but I hope you can and will, come to see this new universe as your home. Good luck Isaac and hopefully we will meet in the Higher Planes.
The statue seemed to resonate as that message appeared in front of him. He was forced to read it several times before he unwittingly dismissed it his voice leaking out. ¡°H-hey wait! What do you mean I can¡¯t go back! Wh-what about my memories?! You drop all this huge stuff on me and can¡¯t even tell me why?!¡± No answer came to his outburst and he just stared dejectedly at the Goddess statue, a small and terrified voice finally being pulled out of his throat. ¡°But... What am I supposed to do now?¡± ________________________________________________________________________ I dunno how to do foot notes on this so~ 1. Just imagine a Helicopter''s propeller 2. I had to look up a decent shade of purple 3. The gibberish is a crypto-quote, solve it if you want Chapter 2 - Depression and the Beatdown Lightning raced through his muscles and brought him to his knees. Isaac stared up at the statue, and a dark sticky feeling bubbled up inside his skull. The grinding of his molars echoed in his ears, his face twisting into a pained grimace. ¡°Alright then, I¡¯ll leave it to you. If you need anything I¡¯ll be at the guild.¡± The words just barely registered to Isaac but he didn¡¯t, couldn¡¯t bring himself to even care. A small weight pressed down on Isaac¡¯s shoulder as the priest tried to comfort him. His eyes were dull from grief as they turned up to look at the priest. ¡°Let¡¯s have a chat shall we?¡± He helped Isaac to his feet and led him out of the main room. They moved into one of the side rooms, the Priest¡¯s office, where Isaac was offered a seat. Isaac looked down at the floor in a daze, not noticing as the priest sat in his own chair. A short cough broke through Isaac¡¯s haze and his head rose mechanically. ¡°So then, introductions are in order. My name is Dell. I am the head priest in this small church.¡± Isaac nodded slowly. ¡°Ah¡­ Hello¡­ I¡¯m Isaac.¡± A wavering and near lifeless voice was just barely audible. A small chuckle was suddenly let from the old man and Isaac lifted his head. ¡°What¡¯s funny?¡± Isaac watched the old man give a dismissive shrug before giving Isaac a sarcastic smile. ¡°Are you just going to give up then?¡± The sudden condescension at his plight quickly ignited Isaac¡¯s irritation. ¡°And? What do you suggest? I was pulled from my world, had my soul torn to shreds, and now I don¡¯t remember most of my life! Then your goddess tells me I can¡¯t even return?! Why shouldn¡¯t I give up?¡± Dell blinked a couple times and tilted his head. ¡°Cause you¡¯re a man?¡± The tone of the statement sounded more like a question and startled Isaac a bit. ¡°Wha...?¡± Dell gave a chuckle and leaned back in his chair. ¡°Well¡­ You can¡¯t go back, you don¡¯t have most of your memories of your old world. However it means you don¡¯t REALLY have any ties, responsibilities, obligations or bonds that would necessitate your return.¡± He shifted and moved over to Isaac, kneeling down a bit so they were eye level. ¡°So why not live for yourself?¡± The confusion in Isaac¡¯s eyes became murkier as he tried to refute. ¡°What about my family? And my friends?¡± Dell gave a sympathetic smile and nodded. ¡°I think they would prefer you to make yourself happy. You are alone, in a foreign world, with nothing to rely on and no way back. Nothing is familiar and you are completely alone. You have been given a rare chance however. To start over from nothing and build your life however you want it to be.¡± He gave a sad sigh and patted his shoulder once more. ¡°You were brought to this village and the Goddess herself has told me to assist you. If you don¡¯t have a home here, then just carve one out. If you don¡¯t like this plane then move to the next one. Nothing is holding you back.¡± He stood and turned around, looking out the window. Life slowly filled his voice and gained a small shred of confidence. ¡°I don¡¯t know how to do that, I haven¡¯t even graduated high school yet.¡± Isaac stood and started pacing, a heavy hot feeling building in the back of his throat. ¡°Even when I was in school I was only average. I don¡¯t have any talent. I¡¯m skilled at some stuff but that is only because I did it a lot. How am I going to support myself in this new world that I know nothing about?¡± His voice cracked from fear and his own anxiety as Dell turned to him once more. ¡°What did you want to do with your life? In your old world?¡± Isaac looked up and frowned. ¡°I¡­ I hadn¡¯t decided yet. None of the normal jobs seemed good enough.¡± Dell chuckled and nodded, for some reason Isaac found his body began to relax and he could take a deep breath and just calm down a bit. ¡°Well how about this. For the next few months you stick around here. You can take up side jobs cleaning or sweeping and stuff. We¡¯ll have Marcus, he was the man who was here just a while ago, take you under his wing to teach you about how to defend yourself and about your weapon. I¡¯ll let you keep the room you are in now, it is for disciples but you need it more right now.¡± The depression was slowly being replaced by a small light in Isaac¡¯s eyes, his bearing taking on a less frightened and more hopeful quality. The axe continued to sit quietly at his hip, he never even noticed that his hand hadn¡¯t stopped touching it since the Goddess had sent her message. Isaac lifted his head to the old man and nodded slowly. ¡°Alright. All I can do is try¡­ What country are we in? I think I remember a castle as I was falling.¡± Isaac retreated from the exasperated scowl that adorned Dell¡¯s face. ¡°This plane is too large to have countries. There are Kingdoms and the owner of the castle wants to turn this valley into one. This village is just known as Regent village, after the man who founded it.¡± Dell stood and led Isaac to his feet. ¡°I would love to chat with you longer Isaac and I¡¯d hate for you to think I¡¯m chasing you out of my office, but I have some work to do. I suggest you spend the rest of the day getting used to the village.¡± It did feel like Isaac was getting thrown out but he hid his discontent as best he could. There were several people in the church now and Isaac suddenly realized what Dell¡¯s work was. With a sigh Isaac nodded and shook his head. ¡°I see, what should I do for food? I haven¡¯t eaten since I fell and I¡¯m pretty hungry.¡± Dell just grinned and led him outside and pointed at the guild building. ¡°That building is the guild. It has the only restaurant and it is relatively cheap. Just find Marcus, tell any of the employees and they¡¯ll send him a message. He¡¯ll feed you.¡± Isaac gave a nervous nod and Dell nodded once more. ¡°Alright young man, go ahead and get something to eat, calm yourself and stop worrying so much.¡± ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll come by later than if that is ok?¡± Isaac looked to Dell with a hint of worry in his voice. Dell just laughed and patted Isaac¡¯s back with a nod. ¡°Of course, anytime you want Isaac. Now I have to get the sermon ready, you go ahead.¡± Dell watched to make sure Isaac was ok before stepping back into the church. Isaac started to look around, slowing a bit to examine his surroundings. The buildings were all large and tall with a plethora of signs marking the different goods they sold. Hundreds of people, if not more, were chatting or shopping or just bustling around the main road. Weapons, food, trinkets, artifacts, clothes and an impossible variety of other stores lined the street beckoning to the crowds with bright colors or pretty hawkers. Large cobblestones paved the street and a fine layer of dust rose with each of his steps. Several people stopped to look at him as he passed but just as quickly dismissed his presence. Other than being a little small he cut a pretty average figure. It was a large village, to the point where Isaac wasn¡¯t sure if it couldn¡¯t be classified as a town. The buildings were simple, if large, wooden storefronts. They didn¡¯t have windows but instead had large shutters that opened up like lids. It was interesting and Isaac stopped at a few to see the strange items. There were bone, metal, wood, and even stone items. The village was small enough that a barter system was the normal currency, but the rare coins made their way into people¡¯s pockets. He never saw anything larger than coppers though. The guild was composed of three buildings. The buildings were circular and the roofs slanted to one side. The walls were made with large wooden slats, arranged like a barrel with wide metal bands holding them together. He was unsure if there was anything else holding it together but it looked cool nonetheless. Isaac made his way toward the building with the pen and quill symbol above it. He knew the restaurant was the one with the fork and knife, he could smell the scent of meat cooking as the breezes spread it around. The building with the crossed sword intimidated him and he quickly distanced himself towards the building he thought of as the safest best.. Stolen story; please report. Isaac made his way to the information branch, quietly searching for the shortest line. There were several receptionists and lines so he quickly picked one near the wall, a weird oily feel was lightly pressing against him. He shivered a little as the feeling of being watched grew stronger but he couldn¡¯t find anyone who was looking at him. His body tensed a bit more as he tried to fight down the paranoia. ¡°Greetings, how may we be of assistance to you today?¡± It had taken several minutes for Isaac to reach the front of the line and the receptionist in front of him gave him a small polite smile. His wrecked nerves seemed to relax a little with the professional smile from the woman and he gave a jerky nod. ¡°I was told to come meet with Marc¡­ I mean the Guildmaster? Dell told me to come.¡± Her face remained with a pleasant smile as she looked over the scant amount of paperwork on her desk. ¡°Ah! You must be Isaac then. My note here says to come get him and he will meet you in the restaurant. You can wait for him there.¡± She looked back up at him and quickly waved over one of the messengers. Thanking the young woman timidly he made his way towards the smell of food, curious about what sort of things they had to eat. He hadn¡¯t thought about it before but it was entirely possible that none of the food would be things he liked. Did they have hamburgers? Spaghetti? With a slight apprehension, Isaac went and found a seat. The sounds of chatter reached him as he finally started to examine his surroundings. The first thing that came to his mind was ¡®cafeteria¡¯ It had a lot of long tables and the front counter had several people taking orders. ¡°Hey, you! You¡¯re in our spot!¡± An aggressive voice suddenly split through the pleasant chatter. Not wanting to get involved Isaac turned only to find a group of three glaring at him. Isaac quickly froze for several seconds at the sudden situation. ¡°Are you deaf?! Move you stupid brat!¡± His body moved automatically to avoid the confrontation and he apologized immediately. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯ll move.¡± An arm shot out to grab his as he tried to pass them, a rather sinister smirk on their faces. ¡°Hey~ You look like a beginner. Have you joined the guild yet?¡± Isaac¡¯s hand inadvertently went to his axe and one of the others sneered. ¡°What? Are you going to attack us?¡± Issac¡¯s eyes widened and he quickly shook his head. ¡°N-no I wasn¡¯t even thinking about it.¡± He watched their eyes light up as he flinched and quickly denied their claim, his heart sinking further. ¡°Then why were you reaching for your weapon? In fact, maybe you better hand it over to us so you don¡¯t get hurt.¡± His hand held tightly onto his axe and he tried to leave. He didn¡¯t get more than a few steps before he was surrounded. Isaac quickly searched for a way out but he had been surrounded by the three. ¡°Hey now! We didn¡¯t say you could leave! Drop your weapon obediently or we¡¯ll take it from you!¡± The restaurant was slowly becoming quiet as they watched the three explorers bullying the rather plain looking Isaac. Panic was starting to set in as he looked for an ally among the crowd, only to have them refuse to meet his eyes. ¡°Ha! What are you looking for? Fine since you are resisting we¡¯ll just take it from you!¡± Hands on his back kept Isaac from backing up as the guy in front reached for the silver axe. There was a flash of movement. Isaac could feel his arm moving out instinctively, lashing out while he held the axe. A look of shock plastered itself across his face as the slightly bloodied axe sat in his hand. The bully had a large gash along his arm and Isaac was standing there looking confused. He gulped and started to stutter, trying to apologize and the harsh sound of weapons leaving their sheaths met his ears. ¡°Hey! How dare you attack the young master!?¡± Isaac¡¯s eyes were wide with fear as he tried to run. Breath was forced from his lungs as he was tackled to the ground and surrounded once again. Isaac coughed as the weight that pinned him moved and he closed his eyes tight. ¡°Damned brat! We¡¯ll just kill you and TAKE your axe then!¡± Ill intent began to radiate from them and Isaac quickly curled up, holding up the axe. ¡°T-take it! Take it!¡± The men snorted and the young man quickly kicked directly into Isaac¡¯s stomach. An bitter smell quickly followed the sound of heaving, causing the men to laugh and sneer in derision. ¡°Hmph! This puny commoner can¡¯t even take one kick from me and he wants to protect his treasures? How laughable, let this be a lesson you little shit!¡± Once more the axe came to life, dragging Isaac¡¯s arm to slash up the ¡®young master¡¯s shin before he could grab the weapon. The young man let out a cry and collapsed, holding his bleeding leg and screaming in rage. Isaac froze again, tensing up once more. ¡°Murder this little fucker! You stupid little bitch! Just bow your head and grovel when your betters appear!¡± The other two quickly started to beat him, not even using their weapons. Isaac could feel each blow a dull ache that quickly grew more painful. Several broken ribs and a broken arm later and suddenly a voice shook the restaurant. ¡°Knock if off you Goddess damned hooligans! I told you if you tried this shit again I would revoke your guild membership! If you killed him I swear to every divine I know of I will have you hanged!¡± The two men froze and quickly backed off as a wave of bloodlust suddenly covered the four of them. Pain wracked his body and he coughed, spitting up a little blood. Ice cold fear suddenly washed over him and he curled up tighter, grabbing his axe in a panic. He closed his eyes tighter as he heartbeat drowned out most of the other noises. There was a muffled yelling but the words were unintelligible. ¡°Hey Isaac! You ok?¡± The call of his name snapped him out of his stupor and he peeked behind him to find the guildmaster standing over him with a look of pity. ¡°Jeez, those stupid brats¡­ I¡¯ve told them not to come here but they just don¡¯t listen.¡± The fear had been replaced once more by pain and curiosity. His breath was wheezy and smelled of blood. His face was mostly untouched but his chest and stomach had taken some damage. He felt the touch of cold glass at his cheek and looked over to find Marcus with a red bottle. ¡°Here, drink this, it isn¡¯t the highest quality but it¡¯ll have you patched up in no time.¡± He smirked at Isaac, the previous resignation and irritation seeming to evaporate into nothing before Isaac even had a chance to notice. He looked at the small vial dubiously and looked up at Marcus once more. Marcus gave a nod and smirked and Isaac sighed a little, downing it in one gulp. ¡°How surprising, I thought for sure you would sip at it.¡± Isaac could feel the guildmaster¡¯s arm hook under his shoulder and he was easily lifted to his feet. It was bar none the strangest sensation he had ever felt. He could ¡®feel¡¯ the bones and organs healing themselves as his body filled with a new sensation. He couldn¡¯t put words to it but it felt somehow familiar. His face suddenly twisted a bit as an extremely bitter aftertaste suddenly assaulted his tongue, almost making him toss up once more. ¡°Feeling better? Good let¡¯s go get you cleaned up while we have that chat.¡± Marcus grinned at him and patted his back as Isaac fought back the nausea and obediently followed him to one of the tables for lunch. Chapter 3 - The Training Montage By the time Isac reached the table the red potion had seemed to heal up his body and even the nausea had become nonexistent. A phantom pain was still bothering him but he was more focused on Marcus. He was a little scared of the man, that cold feeling that invaded his body still very fresh in his mind. "Mind if I order for us?" Marcus flagged down on of the waiters while asking and Isaac shook his head without thinking much. It was a strange gap. Isaac was trying to figure out how the jovial looking man could hide such a scary side. He hadn''t even technically seen him till he had chased off the attackers. He was staring intensely while trying to figure it out. "So down to business. Well I say business but I would like you to join the guild. We employ most of the people in the village." Isaac took a few moments to realize he was being spoken to and tilted his head. "I''m not sure what exactly the guild does?" Caution and slight paranoia weighed on him after the recent encounter and he couldn''t help but be worried. "Anything and everything. From escorts to auctions and security to hunting. Of course the one here mostly deals with hunting, gathering, prostitution, and crafting." Marcus was grinning as he watched Isaac who looked decidedly shocked. "One of those things is not like the other..." It was the only thought that his brain registered. The rest slipped through his fingers like wisps of hair. "Ah yeah I guess with so many store fronts you would think that the crafting requsts wouldn''t be that common but most of the owners belong to the guild and are more than happy for us to send materials and customers their way." Marcus laughed again and with a troubled look on his face Isaac decided to just let sleeping dogs lie. "Well putting that aside. It sounds dangerous and I am not sure I am comfortable with leaving the town after what just happened." Marcus'' jovialty seemed to dim a bit and his smale faltered a little. "You... Don''t have much manliness do you? Don''t sweat the small stuff so much. You survived a fall from miles above the ground without crippling yourself. Plus you have a soul weapon, fighting will come easy to you once we build up your basic physical abilities." Marcus talked himself into excitement again but most of Isaac''s had died with the second slight to his personality. "We both know I survived with blind luck through no ability of my own and as far as manliness goes I''ll leave it to meatheads who rush headlong into danger for something as stupid as excitement. Since you don''t seem to be inclined to actually help me than I''ll figure something else out." Isaac was burning up now and a thick muck was clinging to the inside of his skull. His hand was stroking the axe head as he began to walk away, "Wait boy! I am trying to help why are you so angry?" Flustered surprise came out of the guildmaster''s mouth but none of it could penetrate the stick emotions that were threatening to bubble over. He couldn''t explain it well but he couldn''t relax. His entire body was tense and his jaw was beginning to hurt from clamping his jaws. He nearly lashed out with the silver axe with a large hand landed on his back. "Seems you aren''t fully better yet. Lets give you a safe place to work out some of the frustration." The rational part of Isaac''s mind managed to hold back his flaring temper enough to stiffly nod, not trusting himself to talk. "Come on then. I''ll give you a nice little bit of information on your axe when we get there." Marcus didn''t waste any breath on small talk and Isaac was inwardly thankful for the consideration. Already the thick irritation was being forced back through sheer will. Even without most of his memories he could understand how disgusting these negative emotions were. He actually missed the route they were going he was so focused on trying to calm down and the ended up at a large training center with a lot of people people hanging around training or sparring. "Excellent, this here is the training hall, come over here to the axe rack. This is where we keep the training weapons. We take our weapons seriously so the number of wooden replicas is enormous. I don''t want you to feel like I am trying to push you so this is not a gift. You can pay the guild back however you''d like later. I want you to touch your axe to eaxh of the different styles of axes here though, I think you''ll like the result. Then feel free to pick a dummy and hit it till you feel better. Might be meatheaded but sometimes that is the easiest way to work out stress."Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. A quick glance around was all it took for Isaac to lose interest in the training facility but he would gladly take up the offer to hit something. The axe section of the training hall had more than forty types of axes all of them weapon types from two hand poleaxes, one-handed war axes, throwing axes, and dual axes. Of course all but a couple were made of wood and the ones not made of wood were only plated. Isaac chose one at random while a crowd began gathering. The first was a strange one handed serated axe and the moment his axe touched the training weapon the window for his axe sudden appeared. Isaac nearly missed as the wooden axe suddenly looked like it had a big nasty bite take out of it and his silver one began to warm up. Isaac''s eyes were drawn away from the window to watch in shocked fascination. Luckily it was silent though Isaac swore he could hear a crunching sound. It took three bites before the training axe was devoured and the crowd broke into a noisy cacophany. Isaac tuned it out to look at the window again. - Training Series Unlocked: One handed- One Form - Training Weapons: 1/10 - Rank 1 - Training Stam. Rec. (S) - Training Time: 0:00 - Rank 0 - None - Weapons Sync: 0% - Rank 0 - Training Forms Rank 1 Unlocked. Training Weapons - Weapons to practice the forms and fighting with specific weapons. Does no damage to enemies and improves both stamina and stamina recovery while training either in training areas or in uncivilized areas. Training Forms Unlocked - Rank 1 - One Handed Training Forms - Forms, Katas, Stances, and Movements to help improve training Isaac sucked on his teeth for a few seconds while trying to figure out what the new notices meant while his expression remained annoyed. Most of it didn''t need explaining if he was being honest, unlocking both training weapons and the training achievements were kinda self explanatory though the brie descriptions did help. It seemed like absorbing all the training axes would make training them easier though whether that was good or bad remained to be seen. It didn''t take an absurd amount of time. About two seconds per weapon and Isaac only needed to aborb 50 of them to unlock an entire catalogue of axes to train with. As a side note it counted both halves of the dual axes as one axe and three throwing axes before they unlocked but each counted towards the weapon count. There was a huge number of axes in a large number of styles. Apparently the training series only unlocked weapon style axes though. He looked once more at the window just to check. - Training Series Fully Unlocked - Training Weapon [Axes} Completed - Training Weapons: Fully Unlocked - Training Stamina Recovery (XL) - Training Forms [Axes]: One Handed - Two Handed - Dual - Throwing - Basic Axe Combat Isaac took several seconds looking through the new training weapon catalog and decided to start with the most basic two handed axe and the Two Handed Form. Isaac was surprised. He was honestly expecting a video or just a picture but instead a three dimensional figure appeared next to him in a casual appearance with the butt of the axe on the ground and the haft resting on his shoulder. Isaac looked around but after the axes had been eaten everyone had went back to training, either ignoring or not seeing the illusory figure which suited Isaac just fine. Marcus had also disappeared so Isaac just casually chose a couple training dummies in the corner and took a stance. Immediately the figure turned an ugly red, startling Isaac and a different stance took its place. Isaac was going to ignore but when he tried to go back to the stance he was going to take, feet spread and the weapon held parallell to his shoulders, it began flashing red again. The axe in his hand suddenly gave a small shock, like a stab of static electricity, breaking his stance and Isaac growled but relented. The stance he ended up taking was dominant foot in front while holding it a little like a spear but with the head of the axe a bit higher. This time the figure turned a less ugly red and he watched as the spots he wasn''t matching right were highlighted. Hunger completely forgotten slight indignation and the barely controlled irritation worked in concert to disallow him to hold the axe wrong. Such begins the first part of Isaac''s training.