《Fantasy Collision》 Prologue - Truck-Kun Fantasy Collision Prologue ¨C Truck-KUN It was quiet and it was calm; the dull droning of voices, machinery and the general bustle of humanity was muffled by the walls as people passed the window to the break room by, the room itself empty but for one man who exuded a sort of cold uncomfortable air that let any who approached know they were not welcome... That man was me. "Hey Harry, We get her all loaded up for you." A voice broke the silence as it¡¯s¡¯ owner bursting through the doors and into my company his hand was raised over his head and a grin had been plastered to his face. Same as normal I suppose. "Your'' trucks been loaded up; seems like you''ve got a lot to carry today, finish up your break and head on out; I left a list of the orders and their addresses on your dashboard." Mike grinned sauntering forwards with a mix of mirth and pride that crashed against the barriers of disassociation and isolation I had erected against him. It was an old battle; one we had repeated for many moons neither of us willing to yield ground to the other, a matter of pride with our way of life on the line. I sighed laying down the paperback I had been reading into my pocket, I was just going to have to finish it when I got home. "My name''s Harold please use it." I rose to my feet brushing away the crumbs from my lunch and grabbing the uniform coat folded on the coffee table in the middle of the rom. "Hey you''ve still got five or so minutes relax or you''ll work yourself to an early grave." Mike was a worrier, the middle aged man pushing ever closer against my barrier, the walls between us beginning to groan and creak. A strategic retreat was called for. "The sooner I finish work the sooner I can clock out; I have stuff to get back to." I pulled on my coat and before my ''friend'' could follow I made my way outside of the door and into the loading bay jogging quickly in the direction of the car park. I had been working for blue crescent for over two years by then I suppose; and in those years I had battled daily against stress, sleep deprivation, exhaustion; and Mike''s overwhelming, soul crushing, almost inhuman level of positivity. Blue crescent is an electronics company based in Europe, it deals with design, production and distribution; the company is of a moderate size and is spread across a few dozen countries of course each outpost fights a daily battle against its competitors in order to stay afloat and as soon as a large company moves in and the number of customers dries up that branch of the company is severed, closed down and locked up. Yet somehow for each factory closed another is opened somewhere else, it was like a game of cat and mouse that would never end. Of course since London was a major city there was still a fair number regular customers in the populace, not enough to warrant a large store, just a warehouse to which goods could be sent and from which they could be distributed once ordered. And it was my duty to see that any delivery arrived on time. Not that I ever really did - the only reason I managed to deliver anything on time was because the sooner I finished up my deliveries the sooner I could go home. I took a deep breath stepping out onto the asphalt hands shoved deep into my pockets as I glanced upwards towards the summer sun, the air was fresh and carried with it the stench of exhaust, two of the three trucks parked promptly besides the thin row of cars that had been driven in alongside a single bicycle that belonged to one of the interns. As a general rule interns were cheaper than regular workers. A yawn crept out from my lungs sending a shiver down my spine as I fished the keys for the truck out of my pocket, the steel grey truck emblazoned with the image of a blue-crescent-moon upon its side sitting just a short walk away. The sooner I got my work finished the sooner I got home; Julia would complain I wasn''t home on time. Ah! That''s right; to correct the obvious mistake Julia is not my girlfriend, nor is she my wife, lover or romantically involved with me. She isn''t related to me either and she isn''t my roommate. Julia is my pet... Okay that sounds worse than what it actually is; she''s my cat, Julia is my cat and she was waiting for me in the Truck. I shook my head to clear away the random cloying thoughts and opened the door. I really needed to go home and take a nap. I sidled into the truck settling down into my seat staring blankly at the wheel before me. Just needed to keep going; day in and day out life was always the same - the same faces, the same feelings the same sufferings and anguish but all of that was made pointless if I just gave up. For a moment my eyes drooped low and by body leaned forwards, dull and lonely eyes staring blankly at the dials and hands and buttons displayed on the dashboard before me. It would probably be best if I just tried to sleep... A spasm of pain shrieked through my arm that moment, as those dull eyes of mine; ringed by circles turned to face the little creature that had crawled onto my lap and was nibbling at my hand. A low sigh escaped my body as I smiled back down to her; "You''re right, let¡¯s get going..." And with that I started the engine as the small warm body covered in black fur with piercing blue eyes stared up at me. I had yet to realise exactly what she had done and to this day I cannot say whether it was the thing that had saved me or condemned me.
I had six deliveries in total, a fairly smaller amount than usual... That was probably Mike''s doing; he tended to give me the easier assignments, for all intents and purposes that overly positive air-head was my boss, and he tended to do whatever he wanted to. I let out a sigh looking at the roughly scrawled hand written note with my delivery route written on it in green ink; still despite it all I couldn''t bring myself to hate him. Well that was to be expected I guess, he was the only person I considered my friend, or rather he was the only person who was willing to consider me his friend. I just liked my friends at a comfortable distance.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Ah, well looking at the note it seemed like I had three deliveries to the usual clients; computer, electronics and mobile stores that were either buying individual parts or the completed products. But it also looked like there was a house call for a personal computer, some monitors being taken to a videogame store and some kind of fancy super-computer going to a university on the edge of town. All of them would be easy with the exception of the university as I would need to drive out of the city to reach it. London was a strange city, high-rises and apartment complexes bordered suburban landscapes, the wide roads of the city centre turned to thin winding paths that dived and strafed within the city of walls, a labyrinth in concrete fitting of city that had stood since near the founding of England and it was a mix of old and new a great heaving mess of buildings and people all mixed up together. "I don''t really have a schedule today as long as everything gets delivered." I muttered voicing my thoughts aloud to keep them clear and out of the fog; "I''ll just leave the university to last; it¡¯ll be less of a hassle if I go later and there are fewer people." I let out a sigh turning my eyes back to the road Julia mewling besides me laying on the seat next to mine stretching beneath a bolt on sunlight. Summer had come it seemed, the one short weak of summer that those who lived in Britain waited for with eager earnest. Of course I hated it, partly to ruin everyone else¡¯s fun and partly because I couldn''t stand hot places; it made it difficult to sleep. It wasn''t just the sunlight that had come this weak either; the streets were crawling with tourists as well. Not just foreigners but people from up and down the country would visit London for one reason or another usually just to see the sights and take a break from their jobs. The same went for the majority of foreigners as well, young men and women toting backpacks and hanging around in groups of two or three pointing and laughing and taking photos. And mixed among the crowd were masses of youths almost uniform in appearance with black hair marched along by a teacher. School students from china come on trips with their high schools, Colleges and etcetera. The roads were for the most part choked, and the air conditioning in the van had gone bust in my first few months of the job. The truck was a piece of crap. I wiped away the moisture gathering on my brow and turned into a near empty street slowly gaining speed as I made my way to my first destination. The game store was closest to the centre of the city and I could work outwards from there delivering to where I needed to go; it was best to be methodical, doing pointless things like that helped to keep my sanity intact. And within a few moments of the thought popping into my head I turned a second corner glancing at the inbuilt satnav blinking in the dashboard. Right the store would be at the end of this road. I looked up a small grim smile crossed my face pulling away at my cheeks as the traffic lights before me flashed green, it seemed fate was smiling on me. The mass of foreign students of around the college age halted as the lights turned off shuffling back onto the pavement. I had been where they were two years ago, of course now I was twenty, living far away from my family, with only a pet cat company. And I loved that cat dearly. Eh, these kids probably had a brighter future than I did. I released a sorry sigh my eyes drooping down for a moment before they caught a glimpse of movement in the corner of their vision. The crowd shifted slightly and exhaled sending a young girl stumbling forwards into the road where she collapsed, she fell to her knees in the middle of the road... it took a moment for the thought to register in my mind; she was in the middle of the god damned road! I moved with force slamming my foot down on the brakes Julia screeching besides me as she was thrown from her seat. But I had built up too much moment, this huge hunk of junk as going too fast and the wheels were screeching as I strained to stop it. I pulled the wheel hard but it resisted my pull, and no matter how hard I dragged it away the truck wouldn''t change its¡¯ course, and even if it did I''d just plough into the pedestrians standing stock still on the sidewalk. And then from the group of students a second body burst forth, small and slow but brave none the less. A young pudgy man rushed in front of the truck grabbing the girl who stood on her knees facing down the truck in sick anxiety, fear and shock. He knocked her away pushing her from the path of the truck rolling to the sidewalk and out of harms way; out of my way, grazed and bruised but alive. Of course there was a price; life for life and blood for blood. In that moment my body locked up, I passed the traffic lights in the blinking of an eye, and just as quickly the young man vanished. He disappeared from view and a shock coursed through the truck as its steel frame was dented. My body wouldn''t move as my brain failed the process what had just happened, it was impossible, the young man couldn''t be dead, no there was no chance that could have happened. It was a ridiculous thought. I felt my stomach well up beneath me as my eyes caught the flecks of blood smeared across the wind shield as the game store drew closer into view, my body wouldn''t move and I couldn''t command it to do so; it hit the curb hard and leapt into the air before diving down to strike at the store screams from the panicked public ringing in my ears. Time seemed to slow after that the moments crawled by, they trickled past and left me staring in mixed wonder and horror. The glass before me cracked as the automatic doors of the shop crumpled beneath the force ton of steel impacting them driven home with hellish force the trucks body screeching as the chassis collapsed and scattered shelves and game into the air where they seemed to hang. Time grew slow as the broken windshield scattered and my body sat rigid caught by my seatbelt Julia flying past my face in panic. Carnage death and destruction, it couldn''t be real; I couldn''t be the reason for a tragedy like this, but I couldn''t draw my eyes away, from the bloody stains covering the bonnet of the truck. In the end all I could do was force my eyes closed: and that was the end of it... Or at least it should have been. I should have died then and there, but as I sat eyes squeezed tight a sense of vertigo playing with my senses time began to speed up again. There was no jolt of force or resounding crash I just sat there in silence waiting for my death until at last I opened my eyes and stared up towards a canopy of leaves framing a clear blue sky through which dark shapes soared. Shapes with wings and tails, heads and feet and claws, creatures with horns and scales and teeth and eyes that glimmered in the light like uncut jewels. I looked up at the dragons flying but a ways above my head a sing word escaping my lips. "Huh?" It was even really a word, but it seemed to be enough; to tip the equilibrium of my current situation the branches beneath my creaking as the tree within which my truck had been lodged began to creak sending myself and my truck plummeting to the earth. Well maybe it wasn''t earth any more. Chapter One - Within Sight Chapter One ¨C Within Sight It was strange. The sudden sense of shock and fear, the sensation of the impact; the horror and disgust, and then nothing: one moment I was dying and the next I was hanging in a tree. If anything could be counted as strange that could. And if you traced back all the strange events that followed afterwards they all came back to this one single impossibility. It was at that moment my conception of ''common sense began to unravel. It shook my bones. The impact sent a jolt through my chest beating at my heart as if it demanded entry; the truck tumbled from the eaves dragging leaves and branches down with it. The back of the vehicle rammed the earth leaving me clutching at my seatbelt for support as the truck slowly tipped forwards landing safely on the loam conducting a shock wave up my spine. A dull agonising pain clawed at me as I stared ahead at the wall of trees in front expression blank slowly gasping for breath. And ever so slowly my grip relented leaving me upended staring at the sky where those winged lizards wheeled above each the size of a small car. It was impossible whateverthiswas it was impossible! My hands began to shake and my legs trembled as I fought to free myself from the seatbelt wrapped about my chest, the normally stiff apparatus coming free with ease... That wasn''t normal, the seatbelt always jammed, and even if it wasn''t jammed it would remain as stiff worn by time and age. I turned my eyes about myself glancing around the truck my eyes focusing on the windshield keeping the world above at bay. Not that there was anything special about the glass, it was the same as it had always been and that was where the issue lay.The glass had shattered during the crash I remembered that much, the bonnet of the truck had crumpled, and the off white coating of paint covering the chassis had been flecked with blood and gore. At least it had been. It was almost like the truck was brand new, the windows were fixed, the bonnet unbent and the paint job gleaming with a fine lustre, even the old coffee stain that had plagued the dashboard since before I had taken the role as driver had vanished. And along with all the rest Julia was missing as well... And that was when I began to panic. "Julia!" I screamed throwing aside my confusion and dragging open the door. She had to be around here somewhere she had been with me during the crash so of course she would have been somewhere nearby. Ha who was I kidding; what was the point in using logic in a situation like this? I didn''t know where I was or what I was doing. Still confusion and desperation pushed me to act as I cast my eyes about the forest within which I had landed. It was a dark place; a wooded place where the light broke the canopy sporadically and pierced the leaves to drive away the dark although I currently stood at the edge of a bright glade of green grass. Still it was an unnerving place: but one that held less fear than the panic that was currently coursing through my veins. "Julia, where are you; come out and I''ll give you a treat!" My voice gave a quavering laugh before behind me a heavy thud shook the earth. The vibration coursed through the souls of my feet as I stood stock still, glancing up towards the blue sky above for a brief moment before staring back down to my feet. Intuition told me what was waiting behind me, and for once I had the good sense to listen. I trudged in silence creeping ever closer to the safety of the truck I had left moments earlier, a pair of eerie eyes following my every move. I refused to look, you don''t look wild animal in the eyes, that''s just good advice, especially if said animal is an ambush predator. Of course I don''t think dragons count as ambush predators. I leapt forwards hurling myself towards the door that I had wisely and hastily left open landing in the truck before closing the door tight behind me, a loud bag sounding through the glade bringing the second dragon down alongside the first, and atop the truck. The metal framework of the truck groaned as the five ton lizard roamed slowly atop the vehicle as I struggled to grasp my seat belt slamming it home before curling into a foetal position; feet on the seat; hands about my head staring wide eyed out the window as a pair of green orbs slowly slipped into view. Dragons, bloody dragons, with bloody horns and teeth and scales and everything right there beyond the glass. And they were attacking my truck; it had finally happened I''d had the mental breakdown everyone said was coming. I had been shipped off to a mental institution after I had hit that Chinese kid in the road. It must have been the guilt, the guilt had driven me off the deep end; and this dragon was meant to represent the punishment I wished to inflict upon myself... Actually no matter how I thought about it that was ridiculous. The dragon exhaled sending a column of smoke from its nostrils clouding the windshield. It huffed dragging itself down and sliding off the ground of the truck to rest before the windscreen, massive head the size of a boulder turning round to pin me in place. The dragon''s scales were green, a solid verdant green like that of oak-leaves or damp moss, it''s underbelly a marble white, and its teeth like ivory the tips coloured black as if with ink protruding from its jaws wild and misshapen aligning with the vicious scars that ran along its rounded snout as a mantle of horns grazed against the glass-windscreen eliciting a screech that pierced the ears and sent a chill strait down my soul. The dragon shook its head its horn impacting the glass as the first, the one that had landed behind me dragon slunk its way through the grass, a long slender body coming into view. But unlike it''s bulky compatriot this dragon was blue and holding an appearance more in line with that a rat than any reptile, supporting itself on its wings, a slender pointed head covered in small bony nubs and thin yellow eyes the shade of yellow snow four of them two either side of its head. I swallowed hard attempting to hold my fear. The two creatures glaring towards me through the glass with eyes that told of hunger, anger and vengeance; and I knew in that moment I was going to die. The green dragon reared up onto stubby legs head held high, a hellish flame, burning bright green within its open maw. I was going to die! The Idea was growing ever clearer in my mind and all I could do was staring wide eyed at my impending doom. The dragon leaned forwards its skull igniting with green flames that spilled and clung to the truck as it teetered there. For a brief moment everything was still before the dragon tumbled forwards ramming its'' jaw down into the bonnet of the truck. The vehicle tipped upwards the front bumper pressed to the earth the suspension screaming; straining to remain intact before the truck fell backwards the dragon pulling its head away. And despite the awful force the hood remained unscathed... Ah, things just seemed to be making less and less sense around here. The dragon reared back again skull still burning with that green flame, my stomach churned - it didn''t seem like this was going to end anytime soon. The green dragon careened forwards and slammed its jaw into the truck causing the vehicle to Buck once more, all while I continued to cry head held in my hands muttering in short bursts prayers to keep the beasts at bay. The dragon impacted the windshield a wave of green flames engulfing the truck before knocking it back a step as I cowered my heart racing in my chest, weak and light almost so fast that the multitude of beasts seemed to blend into one single palpitation, as a heavy thud resounded through the air. Six times the dragon rammed the truck, its iron skull meeting the thin sheets of steel unable to leave so much as a dent against the vehicle before at last the green dragon collapsed trudging away to lie within the grass it''s head still smouldering leaving me to face it''s blue compatriot. The lizard almost seemed to smile as it approached slinking across the forest before mounting the bonnet and pressing its face against the glass. I remained crouched where I was waiting to see what would happen next and hoping against hope I would survive this truly, utterly, inexorably hopeless situation. Ha! That didn''t seem likely: I was going to die! And that was when a sudden wave of vertigo assailed me. The Truck moved, just an inch at first but that inch was enough to break the bonds of gravity: an inch became a metre, and one metre became ten the truck slowly rising higher and higher into the sky. A cold wind rushing in as I sat staring at the world about me, this strange world I didn''t quite understand; the mountain range to my left the open plains to my right and the band of forests that divided the two. The winds blew in and chilled me to my core as in that moment the last ember of hope carried within my soul died, faded and were no more. Well at least I would have a beautiful parting view. The journey didn''t stop, not until I had reached at least a-hundred feet above the waiting earth. Well maybe it wasn''t Earth after all.Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. It was hard to describe what happened next, I remember a brief moment weightlessness, the sensation of the force pulling me upwards vanishing as before I knew it I was hurtling downwards my stomach rising up into my throat. it was horrifying, the movement of my body, it was like my organs were being shuffled pushed upwards into my head, I couldn''t speak my scream died about me, tears streaming up my face; I wailed like a newborn; I didn''t want to die; I really didn''t. Of course the fall had nothing on the impact... It travelled upwards through my feet, into my guts and reverberated within my soul releasing a pure and honest peel from my heart, as a haltering screech died in my lips the sound finally reaching my ears growing thin as I ran out of breath... and then unable to take any more, I passed out.
My body rushed forward of its own accord stirred from a deep sleep brought on by fear. It was surprising, relieving and terrifying all at the same time the simple fact that I was alive. In the end I was unable to stop myself from rushing forwards head colliding with the steering wheel, a good amount of sense and nonsense knocked clear out of my cranium. Which was in all honesty; something I desperately needed. "What''s going on?" I mumbled eyes drifting about panicked, "what happened with the dragons?" The dull question was answered with clarity upon looking out the window. The woodland glade had been scorched, the grass was black and had been turned over here and there great gashes clawing out the soil, multiple craters left by the impact the truck had made within the dirt remained, which probably explained why my current view of said glade was at an abnormal angle. The truck had collapsed against a tree and was now leaned to the left-hand side. I stared hard for a long moment trying to understand what was going on looking up to find the clear sky having grown slightly dull, turning to a purplish haze as the last light of the far east began to die sinking beneath the border of the day and plunging the world into night. For a moment I sat still, breath held tight within my lungs, refusing to let it escape me, as I tried to process exactly what had happened; the bizarre, mysterious and ridiculous events that had led me to whateverthiswas. First I hit some oriental kid with my truck and crashed into a storefront. Second I found myself and my truck hanging in a tree, and then I fell. Third I was attacked by a pair of dragons: flying, fire breathing, man eating dragons and I came out unharmed... Was it just more or had things been escalating for a while now. Well insane or otherwise I was going to have to deal with the current situation. Which right not meant that I was going to have to right the truck, of course to do thatI was going to have to get out of the truck, outside where the dragons were... Okay, now I really did sound crazy. Of course if I didn''t get out of the truck there was no chance of me ever seeing Julia again. She had to be around here somewhere. And if that was the case I couldn''t just sit around twiddling my thumbs. I took in a deep breath before muttering to myself beneath my breath steeling what few frayed nerves I had left "once more unto the breach." And with that I released my seatbelt, and tumbled sideways into the closed doors. I hadn''t really thought that through. By that point I''d gotten tired of randomly crashing into things already; it was quickly becoming a habit - and one I wanted no part in. A few moments later I found myself stood once more on my own two feet safe upon solid ground, safe at last. I glanced upwards briefly to the darkening sky above, it didn''t seem like there were any dragons nearby. Still caution was the greatest defence. Well with the truck in the position it was currently in, if I unloaded all of the gear in the back then I would probablybe able to push it upright again. Normally that wouldn''t be an issue, the boxes of spare parts, laptops and computers I usually delivered could just be carried out by hand. Of course the supercomputer currently loaded in the rear was a different matter, there was a good chance I''d need a forklift for that, and currently I didn''t have one on tap. Well it was best to check anyway, maybe there was something I could do. Worst came to worse I could just take the thing to pieces and carry it out like that. I nodded to myself reaching deep into my pocket fumbling about for the keys a strange warm sensation reaching my finger tips. It felt like leather. Maybe I''d left my wallet inside. I reached down to check the back pocket of my pants; nope my wallet was accounted for though it did feel bizarrely lumpy. I sighed and reached back down into my coat pocket and removed the offending object. It was a leather bound book. The pages were yellowed with age, spots of ink splattered here and there the book¡¯s title written with steel characters secured to the cover on the front of the book; A mages guide to daily life... And back it went. I had enough to deal with as is; more than enough! I grabbed my keys and continued on my previous course. Undid the lock sealing the rear of the truck and throwing the shutter upwards to let in the light and let out the dust. Stagnant air assailed me from within, along with the image of what lay piled in the back of my truck. Well there was no way I was going to deal with that. And yet again there was another impossible thing I had to deal with. Whoever was responsible for this scenario was going to suffer. Well for now I was just going to try and right the truck as it was, if that didn''t work was going to have to deal with this new issue. I sighed taking a proper position besides the truck plating my feet by the roots of the tree upon which it was leaning and pushed for all I was worth. My bones ground, wrenched and screamed, a slight sweating forming on my forehead before with a final push the truck was righted tumbling sideways and shaking as it settled on its tires. For now I just needed to get to sleep, I couldn''t deal with anything else; exhaustion was an adversary I was far too familiar with. Come morning I was going to look for Julia and when I found her maybe then I could answer the mind numbing questions currently rattling about within my head; gnawing at my skull. Of course things couldn''t be that easy; sleep just wouldn''t come. The night was dark a slow slinking thing that crawled its way towards the dawn. Sleep evaded me, the darkness dragging on, as I lay across the seats head placed against an arm rest the doors shut tight, one window rolled down but a fraction of an inch to let the chill air in and keep me from suffocating. A single light shone above, mounted on the headboard sending down orange rays which provided me barely enough illumination to read. I would probably pass out from a mix of exhaustion and sleep deprivation sometime soon; I was just going to get the next few chapters finished first. I glanced timid to the clock resting in the dashboard, if I went by it then it was currently Eleven P.M, It was kind of hard to believe it was still the same day. I needed to sleep so come morning I could begin my search for Julia; the sooner I found her the sooner I could answer my other questions. And until I slept I was going to focus myself on the world printed in black and white before me. Just keep walking no matter the cost, no matter what it is that lies ahead; keep marching along until you reach the journeys end. The path may be twisted and bent, or you may have no path at all; but if you kept walking eventually you''d get where you needed to go. The only inconstant was time. A good solid message, printed on the page. I smiled briefly; really there was no better time for those words. I released a heavy breath turning the page. I really did need to sleep; and sleep properly, I didn''t know what would happen tomorrow; I didn''t know what the dawn would bring. I had already survived a car crash, a fall from a tree and an attack by dragons and it was only my first day wherever this place was. Hopefully this was all a dream and tomorrow I would wake up safe and sound in a hospital bed. Well calling that hopeful seemed a little strange. I shook my head clearing away the random thoughts. I slammed the book down and switched off the light folding my hands over my chest. If dragons couldn''t get in the truck then it was doubtful anything else could, I just needed to sleep. The light faded and vanished disappearing into the night as I waited blankly for sleep to claim his dues as a flicker of colour split the night and was painted on the ceiling. I blinked it away a mere figment of my imagination and refocused myself on slumber. But the light came again it flickered once more before vanishing, but this time clearer and brighter; no mere delusion. The burning of that artificial dawn grew ever more frequent, and it grew brighter, and it grew closer by the second. I moved slowly within the darkness crouching low and glancing out through the window towards the lantern swaying in the distance. Well it looked like a lantern. Although the flame seemed abnormally bright, almost like a light bulb for its colour and intensity, it shone and flickered slightly swaying back and forth within the glass, reflective rays bouncing off the brass casing. The light seeming to disguise the one who carried it in darkness. My eyes adjusting slowly to the light as the individual drew closer, but I felt sure it was human or at least something similar. Yeah it was a human that was clear enough as it held the lantern up towards its face, mouthing words into the night. A child, of seven or eight years standing there alone drenched in darkness only his face visible. I moved forwards pushing the door aside, opening it by a hairs breadth to let in the sound, soft words drifting in on a harsh wind. "So we meet once again, Truck-Kun." Chapter Two - Who The Hell are You Chapter Two ¨C Who The Hell Are You "So we meet again Truck-Kun..." What in the hell is wrong with this kid? That was the first question to pop into my head; the child''s expression was overly serious to say the least, the choice of words strange, the manner of dress abnormal. This kid was most certainly, beyond reasonable doubt, a weeb. I couldn''t think of any other reason he''d use honorifics, yeah he was probably a weeb. I took a deep breath and exhaled; standing around judging the sad, sad little boy wasn''t helping the situation. Down to the facts; in front of me was another human being; one who undoubtedly had a better understanding of the current situation than I did. Even if all I got out of a conversation with the child was a location it would make the effort worth it. I pushed the door aside and stepped forwards into the light, the child startling turning his lantern on me casting a beam of light into the shadows. "Who''s there?" The boy cried stepping backwards blasting me full force with a ray of lamp light which burned its way into my eyes momentarily blinding me. I cringed at the light attempting to blink away the colours that had lodged themselves deep within my corneas. Damn: it was going to take ages for my eyes to adjust again. "What the hell don''t point that my eyes!" I yelled waving my hands in the kid¡¯s direction warding off the stream of light. The boy slowly lowering the lantern letting it rest on the ground before drawing something from his hip. "Who are you?" the child questioned again this time his tone more serious; less frightened, though it seemed odd hearing it come from a child. No odd didn''t cover it: it was unnerving "My name is Harold Blood, and who are you" I returned squinting in the darkness attempting to look at the boy as once more my eyes had to adjust to the darkness of the woods. "You''re from earth." He ignored me asking a question of his own the child growing tense. No it wasn''t a question; the child¡¯s eyes seemed harder now, catching in the light, clear and burning. The kid definetly understood what was going on. So this place really wasn''t earth, well I''d decided that the second I''d laid eyes on the dragons. Still it seemed I wasn''t the only one who had been dragged into this world and that meant there was still a chance; I could find Julia. "Yeah I am, and you are too right?" I gave my reply looking the child up and down. He was seven years old that was my current guess. He was tall for his age, with soft brown hair that seemed flecked with red, and light brown eyes that constantly shifted between warm and cold. Of more interest though were his clothes; they were hand made, the cloth of his shirt seemed rough and the buttons looked as if they were made from bone, the shape slightly crooked about the edges. His trousers were some type of thick hemp and his shoes leather. A red sash was worn about his waist; a sword resting therein, well a scabbard the blade had been drawn and was now pointed towards my throat. "Not exactly; my name was Sasuki Sota and upon my death I reincarnated into this world with all my memories intact. My mind and my soul are from earth yes but this body is not. Here my name is Rimond Gale and I am heir to the Gale knightly house." So this kid was Japanese, at least at a guess. Or rather he had been? Still he seemed like a weeb. I really didn''t understand what was going on; mainly the stuff about reincarnation. Ah, things just seemed to be getting more complicated. "And you, if you''re from earth I assume you built this truck." "What do you mean built? Also could you put the weapon down?" I sighed rubbing at the back of my head. The child scowled before nodding as he sheathed the weapon at his hip and let his hand rest upon the pommel. "So you didn''t build it then... Where did it come from" The child cast up sceptical eyes that seemed to hover about my right shoulder, refusing to look at my face. This kid was getting weirder by the second. "I crashed this truck into a videogame store, and the next thing I knew I was falling out of a tree. Now could you please explain to me exactly where in the hell I am?" It was about time I got a few answers of course before that could happen a harsh voice split the air. "Rimond!" The voice cut through the darkness of the woods: stirring in the night, "did you find anything; we''re planning on heading back to the village." A series of lanterns flittered beyond the tree line, drawing close, the figures of men printed in black here and there large lamps mounted on long poles carried in their grasps. The child grimaced; "just a couple of scorch marks. I think this is where the dragons were but I can''t find anything else in this darkness." Rimond called back in a light hearted voice raising his lantern up from the ground and waving it through the air. "Then we''ll head back, come on lad." the crowd of lights began to shuffle. "I''m gonna keep looking for a bit." The child gave his response, expression flickering conflicted; "I think there might be something around here." "The woods are dangerous even for you, your mother will worry, come home and-" "The dragons will have scarred off everything else in the area; I''ll come back after a few minutes. It''s not like I''ll get lost, I know these woods better than you and I''m more than capable of handling myself." The man huffed at the child response gesturing for the group to depart. "Cocky brat - do as you will. Just make sure you come home safe and sound. The other beasts may be cowering in their dens but that doesn''t mean the dragons are." The lanterns roamed downwards in the dark shrinking into mere specks of light before vanishing. And once again I was left alone with the brat. "What was your question?" The child huffed glaring back up at me, "You wanted to know where you were right?" Rimond dropped the lantern to the ground before neatening his outfit and marching about within the scorched glade within the glow of his lamp "Welcome to the world of Garrat; you are currently standing on the Corsire continent in the Daumine kingdom ruled by Olfas Daumine and his daughter Wesmire Daumine. This is a world of myths, magic and transmigrators of which you are now one." Rimond smiled giving a short bow before raising his head and glaring down his nose in my direction. Somehow I got the impression he had been waiting a long time to say just those words. A sigh escaped me, this kid really was cocky, obnoxious too, definitely a weeb; there was no doubt. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. "So this really is another world..." I grumbled below my breath reaching up at grasping at my chin. "Do you have any idea what it is we''re doing here?" The brat''s haughty attitude reasserted itself without further delay. "We''retransmigrator; people who have come to this world from earth. There are three general methods of transmigration; reincarnation into a new body where your mind and soul are brought to this world and placed in the body of a child or possibly an adult, that just so happened to be what happened to me. Summoning where a gateway is opened up and you are sucked through it, you know the basic hero stuff really. And finally transposition occurring when a person dies and their physical body is shunted over to this world, I''m guessing you''re the latter." I stood still for a short moment before I gave the kid a nod as he marched about the glade in the direction of my truck. "Honestly you''re in a fairly unfortunate position. When people come to this world there is an exchange, they''re given power, status and ability in equal measure to what they''ve lost or what they''ve suffered. Being transposed means you can''t be given status or any major abilities without the intervention of a god or other being. And if that were the case you wouldn''t be as confused as you are now. It looks to me like you brought this truck with you into our world, which means it is the only tool you have here. Most people in this world possess increased physical and mental faculties as well as magical powers and abilities putting you at a disadvantage since you will be unable to use magic. For example I myself have increased statistics in every field; I''ve reached level thirty through hard work and effort, and gained an apprentice rank in swordsmanship and magic." The child shrugged. "This world is basically your'' standard run of the mill fantasy but if you don''t have any money, weapons or skills then survival is going to be pretty tough. Ah I know I think I can help you out." Rimond grinned, turning around arms akimbo "If I introduce you to my family they could probably help you find work here, as a knightly household they have a fair amount of influence over this area; call it a gift from one transmigrator to another." I stared blankly ahead as the child continued to ramble, I got the acute feeling that the brat was looking down on me. Someone really needed to knock some sense into this midget¡¯s thick skull. Ah it could wait ''till later I had more important stuff to worry about. So I had been transported to another world... Okay ignoring the fact that the given scenario made just about as much sense as giant magical fire breathing lizards, I had somehow ended up in another world, and most worrying: Julia was nowhere to be found. But If I had been transported truck included, then surely she would have been dragged along as well. I''d have to ask Rimond, no way around it. "Hey, someone else was caught in the accident with me. If they died too would they be brought here?" I questioned pushing forwards grabbing the kid¡¯s shoulders, eyes wild and wide open. It was best not to mention that this ''someone'' was a cat - the conversation would go quicker that way. "What happens then, do they appear in the same place or different places?" Rimond shrank back a hint of fear creeping into his gaze. "How should I know, I died alone!" he yelled back. I grit my teeth releasing his shoulders. The child released a sigh, and unclenched his fist that had been wrapped white knuckle about the hilt of his sword. He shot me a glare before mumbling low beneath his breath and turning back up to face me. "Okay then tell me how you died and maybe I can think of something." I gave the kid a nod, it was best to just go along with this cocky brat for now; he obviously understood what was going on a lot better than I did, and if he really had lived another life on earth then he was probably a couple years older than I was. "I work for an electronics company; I was delivering some hardware to a game store when some school kids got knocked in front of my truck. I tried to swerve; the truck was moving too fast..." I swallowed hard trying not to recall the sensation of the truck colliding with the child or the spray of blood that followed. "I hit one of them, jumped the curb and crashed into a game store. Then I was here." I finished as succinctly as possible. Rimond nodded, "and where did this happen, what time, what day, did anything strange happen before hand?" He folded his arms in front of his chest and furrowed his brow. "It was near the centre of London not too far from Westminster Bridge I suppose. I think it was around noon, maybe one in the afternoon on the twenty-eighth of June. And as far as I''m aware nothing strange had happened before hand no." The child paused for a moment his body visibly stiffening. "And what happened during the crash, don''t skip any details." Rimond pushed, growing clearly tense. Maybe there was something to this, I breathed hard and recalled everything I could remember; I needed to find Julia. "I was exhausted and I turned into an empty street on my way to deliver some spare parts to a game store. The traffic lights were green and a group of foreign students from china or somewhere were waiting besides the road. A girl was pushed into the road by accident I think, and after that a pudgy kid rushed into the road and pushed the girl out of the way. I tried to swerve but I was going too fast and I hit the boy. After that I froze up and..." The boy raised his hand in order to silence me, the tension having been replaced with a strange glint in his eyes. "Go back a bit; what did you say about the students." "They were Chinese I think; and the girl was pushed into the road by accident, and the boy rushed in to save her." "Not that, what did you just say about the boy?" Rimond repeated his tone stern, his voice raised. I was starting to get a bad feeling about this. "What, that he was kind of fat?" And that was when things started to devolve. "Ha, ha! You bastard, not only do you run me over with your'' crappy truck but then you start insulting me. Do I look fat to you!" The child screamed drawing his sword and marching forwards, the weapon raised overhead glinting in the lantern light. "Do I look fat to you?" This kid had some real issues... Rimond swung haphazardly the steel dragging its way into the dirt as I stepped back to avoid the wild strike. But at that moment the child froze. He didn''t tense or shiver, he froze in place, almost as if time stopped, although a heavy bead of sweat was already forming on his forehead. He looked up slowly into the night a vague fear caught within his gaze, causing my eyes too to follow his path catching a glimpse of the four serpentine eyes that waited therein. Gigantic eyes coloured pallid yellow; illuminating a face of pale blue scales and a row of disjointed teeth. There wasn''t even enough time for me to register the waves of fear and adrenalin pumping through my veins; the dragon leaped forwards, mouth wide open, eerie blue flames roiling within. Ah, great, everything just kept getting better and better.