"What happened to him?" I heard her voice before I opened my eyes. It was Nithia, she'd returned.

What did she mean?

I began to move my fingers, then my hands and arms—just small movements. I was waking up my body.

My body? I felt different somehow.

"He is in our world now," Alara said.

I opened my eyes to find both women leaning over me. I was still on the bed mat. The covers had been returned to it from the floor in front of the fireplace. Alara was dressed again—well, as much as she was before.

"I didn't know this would happen to him!" Nithia's eyes were open wide. The expression on her face was perky. Everything about her was perky, though.

The door to the cottage was open and the morning sun shone into the room. I felt a cool breeze come in and heard what must've been a few leaves drifting across the stone floor just inside the doorway.

I knew there was a conversation to be had, especially with Alara, but I said nothing for a few moments while I looked up at the two beautiful women. Alara's eyes connected with mine and I saw the corners of her mouth curl upward.

I gave her a wink and nodded to Nithia. "Good morning, ladies."

"Good morning, Den," Alara said, raising a leather flask and offering it to me. "Are you thirsty?"

"Why, yes," I said, taking it from her. "I am. Thank you."

She nodded and smiled more fully, as I drank my fill.

Wow. I was thirsty.

Then the realization hit me. I recognized her voice as the one in my head from class. And then I realized what she had meant by lifting the veil of confusion. I choked on the last sip of water in my mouth. Nithia looked alarmed and reached for me, but I held up my arm to block her as I coughed and spit out a bit of the water.

"This can't be," I said.

"What?" Nithia asked.

Alara took the flask from my hand. "It is as I said. The veil has been lifted. Your journey here is complete now."

My heart started pounding because I knew what she meant. I knew she was right. I knew this wasn't a dream!

I grabbed the side of the bed mat with each hand to brace myself. "This is impossible. How? Why?"

Nithia turned to Alara. "So, you were able to complete the task alone?"

Alara tilted her head slightly. "As best I could. His body has already begun to respond, as you can see. But the return of his skills will happen more slowly. His other skills, I mean."

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Nithia looked ashamed. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you, Alara. You've done so much for me since you took me and my sister in. I just couldn't-"

"It's okay, Nithia. This was never what you asked for. It was wrong of me to ask you to take over your sister's role. She chose her path. You have every right to do the same."

I hopped out of bed and stood up. "Okay! I need some answers."

Nithia gasped and drew her hand to her mouth. She turned her face away from me, but then slowly nudged back a little to sneak another glimpse despite herself.

Alara glanced below my waist and giggled.

"What?" I looked down. Morning woody. "Right." I gestured a mea culpa toward Nithia. "Sorry." After looking around for a second to locate my boxers, I gave up on them and instead pulled one of the blankets from the bed and held it in front of my offending member.

Nithia stopped pretending to avert her eyes, and instead stared at me—the rest of me, I mean. "You're so much bigger now."

Alara giggled again.

"It's a morning thing," I said.

I stretched slightly, as much as I could while holding the blanket in place.

Huh?

For the first time since I woke up, I actually noticed myself—my muscles. I was bigger. A lot bigger. "What the hell?"

I never really worked out, not in the gym with weights, anyway. I was never exactly skinny, but I'd never been jock-level buff. And this—I looked myself over again, flexing my pecs and curling my arm which wasn't holding the blanket over my cock—this was HGH and steroids shit.

My heart felt like it was going to explode. Where was I? Why? What happened to me?

I fell back into a seated position on the bed.

"Somebody tell me what's going on, please." But somehow I already knew, sort of. I just had to hear someone say it to me.

Alara turned to Nithia. "Gather some roots and berries for breakfast. I'll talk with Den."

Nithia nodded, then glanced at me—her eyes widening again—before leaving the hut.

For the next ten minutes, I sat in stunned silence as Alara explained to me how I came to be in her world, which she called Galderia. She told me how she, as Priestess of Carnera, had the responsibility of serving the Carneran Guardian. Then she told me I was the new guardian. She said she had for many moons been praying for me to come, ever since she felt the death of the previous guardian, Balfin. She had spent day and night pouring her desire up to the heavens. When she heard the heavens answer her plea, she told me, she was given the power to reach out across worlds and summon a champion, a would-be conquerer, someone of great strength and unyielding courage.

"And now you are here," she said.

Her crazy-ass story looped through my head. I tried to make sense of it. To understand how it could be possible. But I knew it was not only possible, deep inside I knew it to be true.

"Fuck me."

"So, soon?" she asked.

"What?" I lifted my eyes from whatever had been in front of my blank stare. "Oh, no. It's a figure of speech."

"Oh, I see," she said, but I could see she didn't really know what I meant.

I held my hands in front of me and turned up my palms. Then I made them into fists, squeezing and appreciating my thick forearms. "So, I'm stuck here?"

"If you're asking whether you can return to your home, then no. I know it must've been a great sacrifice for you. I saw the many great deeds you did for your people—the terrible monsters you slew, the women you protected, and the man who fought by your side. What was his name? Conan?"

"What?"

"I know it was selfish of me to take you from your world, but our champion had fallen. When the gods bestowed upon me the right and the power to choose another for our people, I reached out with the guidance of the gods and found you. I knew someone who had done so much, who had defeated so many terrifying enemies, was the man we needed."

"You're fucking kidding me."

"No. I saw into your mind. Well, not saw exactly, more like felt. But the thoughts, the images, the experiences you carried in your mind made it clear you were the one."

This is just balls. I got zapped to another world by who knows what kind of power because this woman thought I was a Conan-level badass? I've fudged a resume to get a job once or twice, but this is over the top.

THE REST OF THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN REMOVED TO COMPLY WITH AMAZON'S EXCLUSIVITY TERMS OF SERVICE, SINCE THIS BOOK WILL BE PUBLISHED ON AMAZON (INCLUDING KINDLE UNLIMITED) AS OF OCTOBER 8TH.