Ben Pryce was a normal human. He had medium height, short blond hair, hazel eyes and a shabby beard. He had a plain face with angular features. An appearance you could see anywhere and forget just as easily. He lived on planet Earth, currently in its 21th century according to the modern calendar.
Ben went through all the standard accepted steps to become a successful member of society: kindergarten, school and university. He now had a desk job which payed decently, although he wished he could receive a bit more.
Strangely though, even after going over all those stages and becoming “successful”, he didn’t feel happy. On some occasions he felt merry, on some he felt sad, but most of the time he just existed. Everything just seemed so meaningless. His life could be resumed to waking up, working and sleeping for five days then trying to find something to take his mind off living for two days on the weekends.
He usually did that by means of learning. He would look for any and all tidbits of information that he could find interesting, subject notwithstanding. He learned about crop rotation, how to create artificial gravity, what the Monty Hall problem was, you name it.
He also made an effort to learn new skills. The only rule was that it could not take too much time to gain reasonable proficiency with it. Skills like marksmanship, juggling, solving a Rubik’s cube as fast as possible, making sweets, painting and many others were already in his weird mixed-and-matched toolbox of knowledges and know-hows.
That is why his co-workers jocosely nicknamed him “Trivia Lord” and “Mr. Jack-of-all-trades”. He felt it was justified, though not very humorous.
Another way he kept his mind of things was immersing himself in different worlds. Be it by means of movies, TV series, books or games.
Today was a day like any other on Ben’s life. He was waiting at the deserted bus stop for the transport that would take him to the office, where he would work for 8 hours before taking the same bus back home.
He was sitting on the bench fiddling with his phone, playing the trivia game “Who wants to be a bazillionaire?” when the air around him started to shift and spark. A sudden jolt of electricity coursed through his hands.
“Ouch! What the heck?”
His hands jerked because of the stimulus, making him drop his phone. He clicked his tongue in annoyance. The air shifted once more and, in a white flash of light, Ben Pryce was gone. He had literally disappeared from the face of the Earth in an instant, the only clue he had being there once was the cell phone on the ground.
Ben was floating in complete darkness. He had the sensation that his body was being compressed and then extended again, like an accordion. When it finally stopped, his knees made harsh contact with something solid. He was feeling dizzy, nauseous and his knees hurt.
Ben opened his eyes. He was in a well-lit, spacious room with a high ceiling. The floors and the walls were made with precisely cut stones of light grey color.
[Probably limestone.] he thought without really thinking about it. It was an automatic reaction. A coping mechanism the brain uses when confronted with something shocking. Similar to when someone free falling from a cliff suddenly realizes how beautiful the day is.
There were no windows and the abundant light was coming from stones set in the walls at regular intervals. Guards wearing chain mail, a shiny helmet and carrying a short spear were arrayed along the room to the sides.
[I am probably underground. But those are definitely not lamps and these guards…]
His brain was starting to catch up. He looked around. He was standing in the middle of a circle with strange symbols made of chalk. Around him were eight strangely dressed people who were sweating profusely, some of them were almost keeling over. They were wearing silk robes and carrying wooden staves.
[Oh shit! Is this what I think it is? Is it really happening? Could it be real?]
He pinched himself. It hurt. But pain was not the only sensory feedback he was receiving. His nose was itching so much he was tearing up. It was the terrible stink of people that didn’t take kindly to bathing and used tons of perfume to make up for it. He started to breathe through his mouth.
[I know where this is going. There are many books and light novels with this theme. But what a bummer, there are no other fellow earthlings. And where is the God/Goddess that should have talked to me and given me a cheat skill?]
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While he was complaining in his mind, two people approached the circle as the robed figures made way for them. They were dressed extravagantly and, when added to their way of walking and attitude, one could easily infer they were nobility.
One was a short, fat, middle-aged man with black hair. The other was a young girl, with curly black hair and a baby face which contrasted with her more well-developed body.
“Who are you people? Where am I?” Ben asked.
They looked each other in the eye and nodded. The short middle-aged man talked in a language Ben couldn’t understand with one of the robed figures.
The man advanced towards Ben and gave him an adorned golden ring. He made the gesture for him to put it on. Feeling like he didn’t have much choice in the matter, he put the ring on his finger. He was marveled when the ring automatically adjusted its size to fit him.
[I guess this is a magic item to help me communicate with them,] he thought.
“I guess this is a magic item to help me communicate with them,” a voice said. It was a more ethereal version of Ben’s voice, one that didn’t come from his lips.
[What the heck, it speaks what is on my mind?!]
“What the heck, it speaks what is on my mind?!”
[No way! Stop, I don’t want to!] Ben thought as he made a conscious effort to block his mind off.
There was a brief period of silence.
“I see that you adapted very fast. Correct, this ring helps to translate what is on your mind to those around you and what those around you say to your mind. Of course, if you make a conscious effort you can filter what thoughts will be revealed,” said the young woman.
“Who are you? Where am I?” Ben asked.
“Welcome, distant traveler. You are in Starfall city, which belongs to the Balt Kingdom. We call this world Flanac and it is my pleasure to receive you on behalf of the Hampshire House. I am Earl Frederick Hampshire and this is my daughter Hanna,” replied the barrel shaped middle aged man eloquently.
“It is a pleasure to meet you,” Hanna did a short curtsy in response to her father’s words.
Ben started thinking fast, but also carefully enough to block his thoughts from being spoken out loud. He looked at the armed guards which were positioned around the room with their sharp weapons in tow.
[They sound respectful and all, but…] he pondered. He started to organize his mind, filtering what he wanted to say.
“Hello, my name is Ben Pryce. I assume you used some sort of spell to summon me here? What for? Could you please send me back?”
“Yes, we utilized magic indeed. We are in dire need of help right now, so we asked our brightest magicians to devise an experimental spell to summon people from other worlds. We are glad it worked!” said Frederick in a gleeful tone.
“Yeah, sure, but what about me? Magic doesn’t exist where I come from. There is no way I could be able to help you if magic can’t solve your problem. Please send me back.”
“I am afraid that will not be possible. Like papa said, we used an experimental spell. We are already shocked it worked. I am sorry to say there is no hope in sending you back.”
[Can’t go back? No way! You can’t do that!]
“Hanna is right, I am sorry. But you don’t need to worry. There are many tales and myths about world travelers and the people that came from the stars. I am sure you have extraordinaire knowledge and abilities we could use.”
[There are people coming from the stars? Is he talking about aliens here? And what the hell, they don’t care even one iota about me. Fucking kidnappers! They have taken me from Earth and brought me here to work for them. And I don’t even have a say in the matter, look at all those guards!]
Ben was outraged. His eyes were only half-opened. He wasn’t much more looking at them but staring straight through their heads. He kept his mind closed and an impassive facial expression.
“I am sure you are feeling overwhelmed and tired right now. I will ask the guards to escort you to your room, so you can rest. The maids will bring you something to eat. You will feel a lot better tomorrow morning,” said Hanna sweetly.
Ben was escorted from the basement to the third floor of what looked like a big mansion or maybe a small castle. He was politely guided to his room. A guard closed the door after him and stood in attention on the corridor.
It was a big and well-furnished bedroom. There was a fluffy carpet on the floor, a fancy and outrageously big bed against the wall and a large wardrobe. A table with two chairs was set against the window.
He didn’t fail to notice that the windows were barred with iron rods. He threw himself into the bed and grabbed a bunch of pillows. He removed the ring from his finger and started punching the pillows and complaining out loud.
“FUCK! Crazy, selfish bastards! I ought too, I ought too!”
The guard opened the door and checked what was going on inside before discreetly closing the door again.
After tiring himself from punching and complaining, Ben put the ring back on his finger and seated by the window. Outside he could see what looked like a typical European medieval city.
He felt rage towards the people that simply kidnapped him, but he also had to admit the prospect of a medieval world filled with magic appealed to him.
[I can’t believe it, a proper fantasy setting! I wonder if I can learn magic… And what about other races like elves and dwarves? There are so many things to discover!]
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
A small maid entered the room with a trolley carrying many dishes. She put all of them on the table before bowing and leaving the room.
Ben started eating while looking outside. It was interesting, observing the people coming and going. Suddenly his eyes opened wide.
[Oh my god! Is that an eastern dragon?!]
“Oh my god! Is that an eastern dragon?!” the ethereal version of his voice exclaimed.
==========
Back on Earth, someone else was also exclaiming.
“Jackpot! An iX!”
The passerby then picked the cell phone up and put it inside his pocket before walking away smiling.