Dianna saw them coming slowly, but was unable to react. Despite intuiting what was going to happen. Despite being as tall as any of them. Despite wishing she had met them again and killed them a hundred times. Despite all that, she felt as if her body was not the same. As if something essential was missing. As if she couldn't press the start button, which she couldn't find anywhere.

Frightened, she watched as two of the assailants pounced on her, like hungry predators. She watched as they grabbed her by the arms and shoved her against the wall with unbridled violence. She felt a terrible blow to her head as she hit the wall. Her eyes closed involuntarily, trying to endure the pain. In the midst of that momentary darkness, she felt and heard some of her clothing being ripped apart, as well as the edge of the automatic knife on her face. As if it were a whiplash, she felt with disgust how they groped her. Finally, she felt terribly stupid.

"If they were going to do this to me anyway even if I didn't resist... Why didn't I fight back? What was the point of being terrified? Enough regretting! Enough panicking! She felt as if each "enough" was an insult she was unwilling to endure. "Enough of waiting for the horror to pass. Enough, damn it! If I want to save myself, I'll have to do it myself. And I will do it."

Dianna opened her eyes, furious. Not as much as she wanted to, but it was enough to take the reins. "They are just as I remembered them. But that was two years ago. I've changed a lot since then. I've gotten a lot stronger and learned to defend myself better."

The third assailant was very sure of himself as he rested the edge of the automatic knife against Dianna's beautiful face. Very close to her. Without hesitation, Dianna leaned her back against the wall and her left foot against the floor to anchor herself as much as possible.

With all the force and speed she was capable of, she launched a kick aimed at the testicles of the wielder of the automatic knife. With the unexpected blow, the knife moved and slid terrifyingly sharp across Dianna's skin. She felt the cold steel edge cutting her as she prepared the next strike. Swift and fast. Without hesitation, she brutally struck the side of her second assailant's knee. The one who, until that moment, grabbed her right arm.

Dianna didn't hear the much desired crack in the knee of her attacker. She immediately understood that the angle had not been the right one. But the effect had been the desired one. The pain made that bastard suddenly writhe in agony. Dianna took advantage of his pain and, in one quick movement, released her right arm. Free al last, Dianna quickly punched her first assailant's ear. She knew it wouldn't cause him too much damage, but it was a good move to distract him from what would come next.

Dianna took advantage of the fact that he wasn't letting go of her left arm and prepared her right knee. She tensed her leg with all the strength she could muster and hit the bastard's ribs. The blow, this time, was satisfying. The ribs cracked with an unpleasant sound. A scream of pain followed.

At that instant, Dianna felt the cut on her face began to ache her with a searing pain. She quickly brought her hand to her face, finding the warm liquid. She pulled her hand away and saw a lot of blood on her palm. Too much for her taste. That was the fuse that detonated her elusive rage. She let out a scream that would have inspired Kentaro Miura himself for a good scene in his manga.

Dianna seemed possessed by the devil himself. Her eyes rolled back for just a second. It was as if she transformed into something diabolical. Something that only the scarred being could perceive. Next, Dianna jumped onto the chest of the third assailant who hadn't yet recovered from his sore testicles. The blow crushed his ribs and knocked the breath out of him. The blow hadn't killed him, but he wasn't going to need much more either.

Dianna lifted her left foot and cautiously calculated to step on his nose. She didn't need to hit him too hard. She just needed the pain to force him to expose the junction between the temporal and parietal bones. After a quick blow that made his nose to bleed, the bastard did as expected, he tried to protect his nose by turning his head. At that moment, Dianna had already prepared a series of blows in which she had used all her strength and fury.

From the first impact, that poor bastard was knocked unconscious. From the second impact, a horrendous crack that presaged the worst was heard. From the third impact, the skull deformed grotesquely. Dianna didn't waste another tenth of a second with him. She knew she had killed him and only regretted that it had been too quick. She wished she could have made him suffer for hours for everything he had made her feel for three long years. Endless nightmares in which they cut her face without being able to resist.

Leaving all that sorrow behind, she focused on the second assailant who was screaming furiously at the sight of partner in torture, lying there. Inert. To which Dianna responded by yelling arrogantly. "Don't think I care about your yelling, trash. It won't be long before you join him."

Dianna lunged at him, kicking him in the face with such precision and speed, that he couldn't have been able to dodge it even if a seer had told him a week before how Dianna was going to hit him. The result of so much anger and speed caused several teeth to loose their natural anchorage forever. Their owner saw them on the ground, along with a lot of his blood. He barely had time to think about holding his jaw. Dianna had already kicked him the ribs when the though crossed his mind. This time, the bones didn't make as bloodcurdling a sound as one might expect. Perhaps it was because Dianna didn't put too much force into it, as she sensed the first assailant moving behind her back.

Dianna, submerged in a sea of rage, realized this too late. This one took advantage and grabbed her from behind, wrapping his arms around her body. "Damn bitch! You're going to pay dearly for this!". What the assailant did not foresee, was that Dianna had spare change to pay him. However, it wouldn't be entirely to his liking.

Dianna prepared a headbutt. But, knowing she was as tall as she was, she dropped a few inches as she landed the blow. That made the impact coincide right in the nose of the third bastard. The incredible pain forced him to let her go immediately. The poor bastard tried to hold his nose as blood began to spurt out. Dianna soon prepared a kick as he writhed in pain, but never got the chance to launch it.

Just behind the third assailant, at the end of the street, three other silhouettes walked calmly. Diana was puzzled to she them walking, calm and laughing. Her anger froze in an instant when she saw what one of the individuals was dragging. It was the corpse of the girl who, until recently, had fled in terror. He was carrying her by the hair as he dragged her tiny feet along the ground. As if she had never been a living being. As if she had never breathed. As if she had never been the joy of her home. An adorable little girl that everyone loved. A little girl less than seven years old who had her whole life ahead of her. She would never play with her dolls again, waiting for her mother's arrival. She would never get a goodnight kiss from her daddy again. She would never fall in love or have her first kiss. Never again, nothing.

Behind the three perpetrators, there was a fourth hooded figure, who slowly raised his hand in the air and waved it gently. The whole stage faded like black smoke. Everything vanished in an instant. Dianna couldn't stop shaking. Everything had vanished, but her face, was still cut and bleeding. The scarred being added. "I told you this wouldn't be just an illusion."

Dianna looked down at the ground in shame. She knew she should have acted differently. She knew she should have helped the little girl. But, she knew it now. Before, she hadn't even thought of anyone but herself. Dianna understood then. "You're right! I'm selfish. If that little girl had been real, she would have died because of me."

The scarred being interrupted her. "You own and are responsible for your actions. Not for the actions of others." Dianna stared him dumbfounded as the being continued. "The little girl died because they chose it to be so. Their decision, their responsibility. It is useless to carry that kind of guilt. Because they are unreal. What is your fault, is having a stronger and faster body than the one Mother Nature gave you. You didn't do anything to protect an innocent."

Dianna looked at the ground, averting her gaze. As if a disgusting spit had been thrown at her. She felt dirty knowing she could have done something and didn't.

The scarred being approached, slightly wiggling the fingers of his left hand. Dianna felt her cheek sting and took a step back. The being added. "May this new scar remind you of who I want you to be, because, you have something within you that I only bestow to those who make good use of it. So far, you haven't used it as I wish. Follow that path, and I'll take it from you in its entirety. I remind you that if I do, you will die on the spot."

Dianna looked furious. She felt so vulnerable. She didn't know whether to stay angry or calm down. "What should I do then? Thank you for your mercy and kiss your feet for all this generosity?"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

The being smiled calmly, but surprised at her sarcasm. "Save that for later, child. You're going to need it, trust me!".

The scarred being raised his hand and moved it as if caressing the air again. Suddenly, everything went dark, but Dianna could still hear his voice for a few seconds. "I strongly recommend you to run away from Ian and learn from Emily. The Emily I chose and made a deal with, would have saved that little girl without a second thought. She may not be the same now, but she hasn't changed in that."

Dianna was confused. "That I should run away from Ian?! Why should I run away from Ian?!" Then, she thought of Emily. "Do I have to befriend her? Wait a minute! This is the first time that I don't feel grossed out by saying her name. What the hell?"

Gradually, she saw something more than the immense darkness again. She floated accompanied by thousands of very small lights coming from below upwards. That made her feel a tremendous vertigo. As if falling into an abyss. A luminescent progression bar appeared floating. Accompanying it, a voice echoed from all sides. "Initializing protocol. Initiating scan and parameter reset. Please, stand by!"

As the progression bar started, it automatically aborted. "There is a serious problem. Automatic protocol canceled. Initializing manual protocol. Stats reset will be performed in hidden mode." Dianna listened to that stunned. "Stats? What is this, a video game?"

Immediately afterwards, and as if she had been sedated before an operation, she fell asleep. She became completely numb. She felt she was being carried, but thought it was a dream. So she thought of Ian again. She dreamed that he carried her in his arms and kissed her. Nobody had kissed her before. Thus, the dream was pleasant and full of new experiences. However, the dream ended abruptly when a faint but tolerable smell of dirt reached her nose. "Why the hell does it smell so bad?"

She tried to open her eyes, but couldn't. She was still too numb. Gradually, she heard a distant murmur. It sounded like the screams of a very rough woman. She also heard signs of a fight. It sounded like slaps and some punches. When she could finally see, she realized that she was naked on a bed of straw and covered with an animal skin.

"What is this? My second chance? Am I alive again?" Very close to her, and somewhat blurry, she saw a terribly angry woman. "Oh, shit! What's wrong with that woman? She looks like an orc with human skin." She stared at her attire, and then, dumbfounded, noticed the two moons in the sky. "OMG! Where the hell am I? What is this? An isekai?"

Suddenly, the huge woman's scream startled her. "Put on your damn clothes, I'm sick of waiting."

Somewhat tense, she saw several high school classmates, dressed in rough-textured clothes. They looked like potato sackcloth. "What the hell are they doing here?" At that instant, she saw Ian not far from her. She also saw his perfect ass about to be covered by some rudimentary pants.

Blushing, Dianna quickly grabbed the clothes from beside the pile of straw that served as her bed. She covered herself with the nasty skin that served as a blanket, and dressed as quickly as she could. Huddled down. It was obvious that the half-orc's patience was very limited, and she had no intention of testing it.

As soon as she could, she stood up and surveyed her surroundings. But Rebecca didn't let her focus on anything in particular. Almost without precedent for such behavior in recent months, she approached her, whispering. Letting her discover something that without a mirror, she hadn't discovered in a long time. "Who the hell! Are you Dianna?! Where were you? I didn't see you earlier, when we were gathered all together in that room without walls"

Dianna didn't understand what he was referring to, nor why Rebecca spoke to her like it was no big deal. They didn't talk much to each other, but still, Dianna answered. "Where are we? How did we end up here?"

However, Rebecca hadn't come to talk to her, but to get a closer look at her. "If it wasn't for those ugly scars on your face, I'd mistake you for RedCow. Dammit! You're almost the same! Maybe you're stronger, your hair is lighter and your eyes are more turquoise. But the rest..."

Dianna noticed that Rebecca had no makeup on. Nervously, she looked at Nina who was writhing in pain for some unknown reason. Perplexed, Dianna found that Nina also didn't have the makeup she knew she put on every day. She grabbed a strand of hair and brought it into her line of sight. The dye was missing. Hesitantly, she tried to touch the scar that ran up from her neck to her face. She couldn't touch it without remembering about the moment she had gotten it. Unexpectedly, she also found the fresh new scar. Dianna saw Rebecca out of the corner of her eye and looked around for Emily. "There it is! Shit! Am I really going to have to get along with her? With these bitches around? Come on!"

However, to Dianna's astonishment, Rebecca was no longer paying any attention to her. Rebecca was stunned, seeing something new. Something that had made her eyes wide open. Dianna searched for what had Rebecca so impressed. But, Dianna, was also surprised when she found it too.

Unexpectedly, it was as if there was another Emily. There was another red-haired girl among the high school students. Although her hair was more orange and much lighter. She wasn't as tall as Emily, and she was certainly much weaker. She was dressing shrunken and appeared to be talking to herself. From the latter, Rebecca realized who she was. "Am I freaking out? Is that the crazy one? Is that Tanya?"

Dianna didn't know Tanya very well. In fact, hardly anyone knew her, since she didn't socialize with anyone. Everyone at school said she was crazy, because she talked to herself and waved her arms in the air, as if she was moving through some kind of menu. Her way of dressing was very unfeminine, always with extremely loose clothes. She was so inconspicuous that she was almost invisible, except that she was very tall and very pretty. Probably, if Emily wasn't the center of all the teasing, she would be.

Rebecca looked questioningly at Dianna and then at Emily. "Why the hell do you look like three peads in a pod now? Maybe you've always been like that? Are you triplets or what the hell is going on?".

Dianna knew before "it" got inside her, she didn't look like she does now. "Could Tanya be trying to hide something too? I dyed my hair because I didn't want to be mistaken for Emily. But, it didn't cross my mind, not for a second, that someone else could be doing the same. Could it be that what happened that time in that old roadside fast food building has happened more times?"

At that instant, he saw Ian heading towards them. Too fast and too aggressive. "Shit! Maybe he thinks I'm Emily and Rebecca is bullying me. Are we so alike now?"

Ian stopped abruptly and took a closer look at Dianna. It seemed obvious that without makeup, Emily and Dianna looked the same. The same, except for the scars and the slight differences in the hair and eyes color. Ian stood there, glaring at both of them. Serious and scathing. Rebecca, unable to bear Ian's penetrating gaze, left.

Dianna thought she had nothing to fear. But then, she noticed something about Ian. "He looks different. Like an animal looking at its prey. He's scaring me. Is he looking at me like he did with George? Yes. He looks at me with hate." At that moment, she remembered the warning the scarred being had given to her. "Do I really have to run away from Ian? No. I have to talk to him."

Dianna attempted to approach Ian to strike up a conversation, but he turned slightly, crossing his arms, not taking his eyes off her. "I don't know what's going on here, but I'm afraid you're will find out soon enough that I'm not who you think I am." Dianna was petrified. "But... he gave me a piece of gum on the high school bus. I thought he liked me. Shit! Shit! Shit! Something has changed in him and I'm afraid that, I'm not going to like finding it out."

In response to Ian's attitude towards Dianna, Tanya did something unexpected. Something that Dianna had never seen her do before. Touch another person and talk to someone directly. Without slouching or babbling. Although, it seemed like she was trembling. She placed her hand on Dianna's back as she looked at Ian. "Stay close to Emily. Something is seriously wrong with her, though I don't know what it is and neither does she."

Ian seemed surprised that the ever elusive Tanya was addressing him. In fact, she had never done so before, much less to give him orders. Ian responded, narrowing his eyes. "What the hell are you talking about?"

But Tanya didn't respond. Trembling, she focused on Dianna and whispered to her. "You're coming with me. Make sure Emily doesn't look us directly in the face. We'll always stand behind Beth or Ian. She doesn't know about this."

Dianna's jaw dropped. “What doesn't Emily know?” Dianna gritted her teeth angrily and glared at her out of the corner of her eye. “Why the hell do I have to go with this one and do what she says? I don't know her at all.”

Ian didn't seem entirely pleased and asked suspiciously. "What were the conditions you agreed to, even after you knowing them?". Dianna didn't understand the question, but Tanya seemed to tremble even more. Then, she looked down at the floor. It looked like she was starting to cry.

Dianna stared at Ian blankly. Ian was remorseful, she could clearly see it on his face. Without delay, he regained his composure and changed his rictus. It looked like Ian was dying to get an answer from Tanya, but he chose to remain silent and turn his back on both of them. Dianna watched them as if she had missed the most important episode of the TV series on everyone's lips. "What conditions are they talking about?"

Dianna was lost in thought, intrigued about by the conditions they were talking about. However, as Dianna was about to ask, a voice was heard, drawing the attention of Dianna and all the students in general. "My name is Tught, and you are on Zurah, an insignificant place on a planet that is not your own, humans. However, that doesn't seemed to stop you from coming here."

Dianna couldn't believe what she was hearing. It sounded crazy, but she was sure that this couldn't just be a dream. "Certainly, this is an Isekai." As the thought crossed her mind, she couldn't help but smile as an incredible excitement began to overwhelm her. "I can't wait to get started."