I woke up to yet another strange ceiling. This one appeared to be made of white marble with a diffuse light spread through it. Unlike last time however I was not on a slab of stone but a soft mattress and wearing an undershirt and shorts.

“Oh gods, NOW where the hell am I?” I exclaimed frustratedly.

“Oh good, you’re awake. Relax you’re not in Hell, just where the gods meet,” an old voice replied.

“I asked ‘Where the hell am I?’ Not ‘Am I in Hell?’ although with the way my life is going I wouldn’t be surprised. Now my next few questions are: WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU, WHERE THE FUCK AM I, AND WHAT IN THE NAME OF ALL THAT IS HOLY IS GOING ON!!!”

My voice seemed to echo around in the room I was in as the old man seated next to me uncovered his ears after the echoes of my tirade had faded away.

“No need to swear and shout. I am…let’s say a caretaker of sorts for the realm you have somehow fallen into. Before you ask I have no idea how you got here and therefore have no idea how to send you back. For future reference you might not want to call on a higher power when swearing since names have power here. Now you are a special case; since your race says ‘Human’ there is no problem there, but I’ve never heard of a ‘Space Marine’ class before. Interesting design if a little overpowered.”

“That’s what my DM said when I was playtesting it,” I replied while getting up from the bed. “For future reference, since you appear to be managing things around here, I need a name to call you by when I’m complaining about life. I’m not just going to call you some random old dude since you gods can probably change your features at will. You said you were a sort of caretaker right? How about I call you Q? You kind of remind me of him, and since you are the ‘caretaker’ you probably have power over normal notions of time, space, the laws of physics, and even reality itself right?”

The being now named Q mused, “Technically since I’m the ‘caretaker’ as you put it I’m not supposed to directly interfere, but yes I do have that power.”

“So why have I been stuck in this world for a few days and not brought here sooner?”

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“Well,” Q admits ashamedly, “You sort of slipped through the cracks of the word. We had no idea you existed until you started to get experience.”

“By ‘We’,” I asked, “do you mean the royal We or this world’s pantheon?”

“The pantheon” Q replied. “Each being of this world is supposed to have some sort of higher power that they can look up to. It is a very crowded pantheon with Major Gods for each of the races, Gods for classes, Minor Gods of activities, and many others. You however don’t. That’s how you slipped through. No one knew you were there until you started to get experience through the system, at which point you became my problem.”

“So what now,” I inquired.

“Well since you don’t have a God so how about you pray to me?” Q said with a cheerful air.

The glare I gave him could have melted a titanium bulkhead.

“...I take it that’s a no then. I still am going to be your contact up here until you get back to your world or choose a God of your own. Perhaps your very own God Emperor?”

Thinking about it Q was probably my best point of contact. I didn’t know or understand anything about how deities worked in this realm. They could be some sort of anthropomorphic personifications or actual beings who somehow came into godly amounts of power. Best the devil you know then the devil you don’t.

Thinking about my situation in Lumarest and its fantasy setting I asked a very pertinent question.

“Do you have anything to make me less conspicuous?” I asked hopefully, “The armor is great and all but rather noticeable in this fantasy setting, not to mention weighing a ton.”

“Keep in mind with your new body some of that weight is yours. I can’t do much for your size or weight, you’ll always stand out due to those but here take this. It’s a Ring of Arming. It allows you to switch between two sets of armor and weapons. I’d recommend seeing what is offered at the blacksmith for a more period appropriate apparel.”

Taking the ring I examined it. It appeared to be a perfectly smooth ring bearing a massive turquoise stone carved in the shape of a heavily armored knight.

“Well put it on. When you wake up it will be on your finger and all you have to do is think about swapping the armor and it should work. I’d recommend having something to change into so you’re not standing there in the buff. Maybe if you ask your traveling companions nicely they’ll get you some new clothes.”

“Wait...should?”

“Well that’s all for now. See you if something else pops up. Bye now.”

“Should!?!”

The last thing I saw as the room faded around me was Q jauntily waving goodbye.