I felt the familiar grip of the Hot-shot Lasgun in my hands as I leaned against the inside of the trench. My comrades from the Kaerls of Fenris surrounded the trenches around me. The Krieg commissar was walking down the trench line, preaching about the value of waiting for the right moment to attack, to maximize your sacrifice in the name of the Emperor. Several of the Kriegers manning the trench turned their heads briefly to look in his general direction before returning their gaze to the battlefield in front of them.

I didn't need to peek over the edge to see the horrors that would make depictions of hell from back home look like cute children's drawings. Lakes of blood filled the craters lefts by the numberless artillery pieces on both sides, dumping their ordnance on the enemy without pause. limbs strewn about no-mans land as if a giant had casually thrown a bucket of toothpicks on the ground. The screams of the wounded and dying were mixed in with sporadic gunfire. The sickening stench of rotting flesh, infected wounds, gunpowder, guts, shit, piss, and vaporized blood

... I could no longer remember the sound of silence...

Leaning my head against the dirt, I closed my eyes and thought back to how it all started.

_____________________________

It was just another day at work. Fit the plates for the balconies that the customer had ordered, go home, have a beer, and read a story or 2. He always did that. Went to work and spent his spare time reading stories. He didn't care what they were about, as long as they were epic and glorious. Dungeons&Dragons stories, Isekai stories, Scifi stories, Space operas, and his favorite of them all. Warhammer 40k stories.

He was smitten with the Warhammer universe and everything in it. He had spent many a night wishing for dear life that he would wake up in the 40k universe as a mighty space marine. Vanquishing the enemies of the Emperor with blade and bolter. Live forever as a space marine had the potential to do, provided they did not die in battle. He could easily see himself as a chapter master, guiding the Imperium into a new age of technological progress and understanding instead of the backward and fearful approach they currently had in the lore.

When he was finally on his way home, he was excited. He had gotten a book he had been waiting for, for the longest time and could not wait to get home to read it. But his colleagues had other plans. One of them was celebrating his birthday at the local bar and they would not take no as an answer. So Björk very reluctantly agreed to come with. A couple of beers and he would head home as soon as it was socially acceptable.

That was his first mistake.

Björk's second mistake...Talking to the guy..

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They had spent a great many hours talking, much longer than he had originally planned to stay at the bar. The stranger kept asking questions about his reasoning for wanting to leave this life behind and what kind of life he would prefer instead if he got to choose. When he had mentioned the 40k universe and explained the basics, he had committed his third and final mistake. He had not seen the red flag in the sadistically gleeful smile that crept over the stranger's face as he offered to buy the next round.

Björk had only had 2 beers over the last several hours so he felt fine to drink another. it was rare to meet people interested in 40k, who were not already a fan, and despite the strangers' creepiness, the longer he spent with him the less the creepiness seemed to matter.

They shared another beer when Björk suddenly felt like he needed to get away from the stranger. The aura of strange, evil atmosphere that had started emanating from him was unsettling, to say the least. He made a half-assed excuse and rose from his seat to get the hell away from the man radiating danger and... Something foreign. Something that did not belong in this world.

The stranger hand snapped out, fast as a striking snake, and grabbed his right elbow. He felt a burning sensation under the palm of the stranger, burning its way into the skin on the inside of his elbow joint. He let out a yell of pain and ripped his arm free of the strangers' grip. Before anyone could move, the stranger had jumped up from his seat and bolted out of the front door.

An hour later I was on my way home. The burning had not left any mark, but I did not feel well. I didn't feel sick, I just didn't feel well. The last thing I remember is puking in an alley before everything went black.

__________________

I have no idea how long I was out, but when I woke up, I didn't really wake up. I was there but I was not present. I just heard a voice in my head as I regained consciousness.

WELCOME, NEW SOUL. YOUR LIFE IS ABOUT TO BEGIN AGAIN. PLEASE SELECT RACE.

"Race?" I thought to myself. "I am human if that is what it means."

RACE SELECTED: HUMAN.

ADDING 10 POINTS TO LUCK STAT.

SELECTING RANDOM SPAWN LOCATION.

"Wait, no, I didn't choose anything!! I want a do-over!!"

ALL CHOICES ARE FINAL. FOR LIST OF AVAILABLE CHOICES IN THE FUTURE, PLEASE USE THE COMMAND *show options*

RANDOM SPAWN LOCATION CHOSEN:

SEGMENTUM OBSCURUS.

CALIXIS SECTOR

SUBSECTOR: MARKAYN MARCHES

KARRIK SYSTEM

PLANET: KARRIK.

PLEASE TRY NOT TO DIE.

I could feel consciousness fade and return, but this time I was in a body again. I slowly opened my eyes. I was laying in a stone room of what looked to be a monastery. I could hear chanting somewhere and the air was thick and heavy with incense. I could see skull adornments and an eagle symbol i knew all too well from the stories I loved so much.

The Imperial Aquila.

While I was looking around, I noticed a weird blinking in the corner of my vision. When I focused my thoughts on it, a screen popped into my vision.

HUMAN. LEVEL 1.

STAT POINTS REMAINING: 5

ALIGNMENT: PURE IN THE EYES OF THE EMPEROR.

LITANIES: 1

AUGMENTATIONS: NONE

LEVEL: 0/600

STRENGTH: 5

AGILITY: 5

PERCEPTION: 5

WILL: 5

LUCK: 15