Max woke up and the sky was red. Not an angry red, more like a soft, weak strawberry color that blended in with the almost white nearly pink shaded clouds that swirled over the scene. He liked it, despite it being alien.

Then the smell of smoke, the feel of hot ash, and the screams of women and children hit him like a wave of reality. His eyes snapped over the scene taking it in in an instant. "These raiders are destroying one of my last shrines. Burning, pillaging, and raping everyone and everything in thier path to kill me. Stop them, and we can turn this settlment into the beginings of a home for ourselves." It was the goddess, spirit lady max was just talking too. But the voice didn't touch his ears, it filled his mind. "Choose a weapon. I don't have a lot of power right now, so the selection is limited."

Pictures of three weapons apeared in front of him. A wicked looking axe, his crowbar, and a sword. "I don't know much about using any of these. Do you have a shotgun?" He asked out loud, but the voice didn't respond. He grunted, and selected the one thing he was familiar with. The crowbar's weight filled his hand and he took in the scene with more clarity of purpose.

"Read your stats, and select one of the skills I have accessed for you. I'm sorry i'm not much more help right now. . ." The voice trailed off, and though Max could hear her it was as if she were in a room on the far side of the house. He could tell she was speaking, but her voice was too weak and unclear to understand. As she continued to speak a list of three options apeared in the same types of boxes as the weapons had. One showed a stick figure man weilding a club, shouting to get the attention of others. In the little animation the other figures stopped and looked at him.

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The second box held the same stick figure man as before, but instead of shouting, he held a wicked looking club and smashed the ground. The three figures surrounding him went flying away. The third box, again the same little stick figure man, showed him holding out a club, and the weapon igniting into stick figure flames. Then the figure struck out and caved int he sckull of one of his attackers, while lighting the cloths on fire of a second, and then blocking the third.

Max looked up and away from his three options and back twaords the village. It was a small town, half a dozen homes, and a few dozen smaller buildings all surrounding a large chapel. Some of the buildings were on fire, most were covered in snow about a foot deep. It was then that Max felt the bitter cold hit his skin, and he realized he was only wearing the cloths he had back on Earth. A t-shirt, ripped up leather riding jacket, ripped up and bloody jeans, and thick work boots.

Shivering, he spotted his targets. Five men were harrassing dozens of civilians near the center of the town with spears and clubs, trying to carral them into the chapel. A sixth man rode a horse, and in his free hand he held a torch. The six bastards intent was clear, and so was his purpose. "My grandpa alwasys said you had to fight fire with fire." Max whispered as he hit the third box and started running twoards the town.