WELCOME, KIERA MACGUIRE,

TO "Aiewapa Iriöq"

YOU ARE CURRENTLY INSIDE OF A SAFE LOCATION. DO NOT WORRY. LANGUAGE, AND LOCATION INFORMATION WILL BE GIVEN UPON REQUEST WHEN YOU ARE AWAKE. THIS IS ALL THE FRONTIER SYSTEM CAN OFFER AT THIS TIME.

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Even as I woke up, I stayed on my back for a while longer. The trip here, as far as I knew, was almost instant. The warmth around me is the same one that enveloped me an hour ago. I... really didn't want to get up. The nature around me wasn't at all like anything I remembered. Trees had silver leaves and crimson trunks, with grass that was thankfully still green. Birds didn't sound like birds, and what I think was supposed to be a squirrel had six legs and four tails, as well as some quills on its back. No thanks!

Groaning, I sat up, rubbing off the grass from my sweater as I looked around some more. It seemed to me that, yup... different world. Fudgesicles. Staring at the grass in front of me, the only thing that remained the same so far from Earth, I felt over it, sighing as it brought me some modicum of comfort. In front of my feet was my pack that Owen filled, as well as two shields. I think they were shields at least. They looked shield-like. They had three pointed tips near what I assumed was the top of it, and they curled slightly, tapping against the ground. It's body was roughly the size of my torso, but there were no straps. Though maybe they were on the other side - but that wouldn't make sense, as there was a depression in it clearly meant to hold an arm.

Considering F.S... no. I won't consider anything until I'm proven it's something that some all-powerful-magic-wielding-dude would do. Other than that, nearing the bottom of the shields, I saw there was a large point, basically a thick sword. It had several points along the way, though, looking kind of menacing. And from what I could see, that was probably the length of my arm.

Is this what it meant by "protects and attacks"? I sighed into my hands. I was remarkably calm for suddenly being brought to another world. Though, to be fair, I did lose all my energy when I was still on Earth, so maybe I was just in shock. Rolling onto my feet, I picked up and slung my backpack over my shoulder, and then moved to grab one of the shields. Funnily enough, when my right hand touched one of them, they both shook in place for a moment before they up and flung themselves onto my arms, throwing me back!

Back on the forest floor, I lifted my hands to see that the shields, although they had some weight, didn't hinder my movements. I could feel the tingling in the back of my mind, telling me there was something important it wanted to tell me.

Despite the itching in the back of my head, I thought to myself God where even am I? Unknowingly prompting a green box to appear in front of my closed vision and also removing that itch from my head.

Planet: Aiewapa Iriöq

We (the) Chosen

Country: Farghal Ibduji

Farghal ----

Peaä rorm Anaä TIP: When you learn words of the common language, they will be added to the menu! Get to learning!

Well... at least it wasn't only when I was sleeping. That was good at least. Even if I had to learn a new language for this system to tell me things properly, then it showing me what I've been taught is going to be... useful? Maybe? I hope...

I just hope this goes well. Opening my eyes again, I take in the canopy of silver leaves before pushing myself to my feet again. Too long I had spent lying down, and now it was time for me to move. With surprising ease, I stood up, the weight of the shields hardly even noticeable when I was completely on my feet and balanced. A sudden burst of giddy energy built up inside of me as I jumped in place a few times. I don't even know where it came from- maybe being on a new planet? Maybe the fact I was still alive?

Whatever it was, I began to briskly move my feet as I paced through the forest. Soon enough, I found the giddy energy welling up to a peak and I suddenly began to spin and jump around the trees as it finally boiled over. My hands flew into the sky, then fell down beside me, my short hair flowing subtly in the gentle wind caused by my movements. I won't lie, I felt... pretty. For the first time in a long time, I was myself. I was alone and I could just be me. And, out of nowhere, I began to sing to myself. It wasn't anything special or anything, but it felt right.

Without me noticing, I had reached the end of the forest. After several more moments, I calmed down, taking a deep breath of the air. it tasted of uncontaminated, untainted and untouched freshness. I wasn't sure how to really describe that, but it was good!

I now stood on a large flat expanse of land where, in the distance, maybe a few kilometres, was a town. I suddenly felt a pain in my eyes and covered them with my hands as I fell to the floor, shields hiding my eyes from the sun. I held back a scream until the pain eventually subsided a couple of seconds later. Gasping for breath eyes not even letting out tears, I looked up to the sky again, wanting to cry but unable.

I let out a shaky breath before I looked to the town again. This time, no colour. No pain. But I did notice it was extremely... primitive. Like the time of knights and the like. Gulping back saliva, I stood up, using my shields to prop myself until I got myself steady. This might be seen as stupid, idiotic even, but I tried to focus on the town again. The entire town was surrounded in a bloody red, and then it disappeared again, but it revealed something I didn't notice before: smokestacks. Black smoke billowed out into the air and I finally heard someone scream. Something inside of me clicked, and I remembered what the class said.

"They are protectors. They are fighters." I repeated aloud as I ran forward. It was stupid. Extremely stupid! SUPER fucking stupid! But something inside of me screamed that it was right. I wasn't even that brave of a person! I was shaking in my shoes, you just couldn't tell because I was running. I got closer, and I could smell the iron in the air, and I doubted it was from my shields - which I wasn't even sure were iron. When I got even closer, I was almost out of breath, but I saw several men who looked well-armed - at least for the middle-ages. They were covered in leather and hide, with bits of metal, the only revealed skin being their hands and faces. Who the hell said bandits exposed a ton of skin? OWEN YOU LIED TO ME! Not only were they covered in armor, some were equipped with large swords, axes and others had large glaives.

I saw a woman get cut down from behind. A sword cleaved through her shoulder and likely hit her heart. Another man got stabbed several times while covering a child with his body. The child, a girl, began to run after the man pushed them away, yelling in a language I didn't know. She ran instantly, crying silently as she did. My mouth was agape. Carnage. this wasn't just a bandit raid - what I had thought it was when I first saw the men - it was a culling. I heard a child scream, the girl from before, as she tripped. One of the bandits walked towards her and raised his sword. I froze in place. My eyes widened and I felt my body seemingly no longer be in my control.

I felt my consciousness become mine again as my body was mid-charge. It seemed I moved on instinct. He was bringing his sword down, he would cut her - he would kill her, a child. I grit my teeth and brought my hands up before I dug my feet into the floor once more. A powerful, adrenaline filled lunge with speeds I didn't know I was capable of. My shields and their blade-tipped bottoms tore through his leathers and hides, and I tossed him to the side. My eyes weren't focused right, my breathing was heavy as I turned and saw another man trying to wrestle a large spear away from a bandit. I bolted towards them.

One. I thought.

I arrived in what felt like an instant, slid to the civillians side, and threw a shielded punch at the swordsman. It stabbed through his ribs and I felt bones get scratched as I saw the spike leave his shoulder. Kicking his body off, I was on my back, panting for air. I wasn't done. Not yet. Grunting, I rolled onto my stomach before pushing myself up. I heard a woman scream and my eyes went in that direction. RED

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Two. I counted.

There were three red spots in my vision and I bit back the pain coursing through my head. One was around the back of one of the houses. I entered the closest one on my left by zipping in through the house to see a man, wielding a pot and a large cooking knife trying to fend off a bandit. He was covered in scratches, was extremely pale, and looked like the bandit was simply toying with him. I grit my teeth and leapt forward, arms at my sides while pointing towards the bandit.

"HAH!" I yelled, which, thankfully, grabbed their attention. He turned to me, confused at first, before his eyes widened and he tried to block my shields. One of them was blocked, the other grazed his cheek. Without a beat, the man with the kitchen knife took less than a moment to gather himself and repeatedly stab the bandit in the back, even as he flailed. He swung a fist at me, and I think he broke my nose. I reached around his sides and held him close, before I pulled my head back and then flung it forward, a disgusting crack-ing sound coming from where his nose was. "Eat shit and die." I muttered as I made sure not to loosen my grip. Eventually, the Bandit stopped moving and I dropped him, looked to the door, and saw Red...Red...

That was three... Two left. I gasped

With all the strength I had in my legs, I pushed away from the house and jumped through the open door of the next, seeing a Bandit trying to exert force over a woman on the floor, a knife aimed at... her womb - at least where a womb would be. There was a noticeable bump in her belly too. I kicked off the floor with a fire in my eyes, zipping through the air before landing behind the bandit. I stabbed one ankle with a shield, severing his foot completely, which, obviously, caused him to scream and drop his guard. The woman, sweating and confused, didn't take long to scoot back out of range of the bandit.

He looked to me and raised a hand with tears in his eyes. "Yzayuy! Ruä!" Whatever he said, I didn't care. Another shield came flying down, and the woman screamed in terror as his head fell to the floor. I turned around and ran. There was one left, behind the house.

Four. My lungs were burning.

I wasn't me at the moment, I admit that, but I didn't rightfully care. Everything was dulled, and I was muttering something under my breath and I couldn't understand it myself. I sprinted, the woman behind me reaching for me and saying something I didn't understand. Move. Just move. I turned around the corners of building and saw two men holding another woman down as she screamed and wailed probably begging for them to not kill or rape her. I jumped forward. I threw a fist down into one's shoulder. He screamed, the other was surprised. I threw an arm towards him, but he blocked it.

"Aöeg!" He yelled. I wasn't sure if it was a name or some sort of curse, but I wasn't given time to think. He was either a quick thinker or experienced, because he instantly tried to stab at me. Thankfully, due to the odd angle at which his sword was at, it only grazed my back, ripping my sweater a bit below my bag. I sure felt that pinch, though. Thank god for adrenaline. Why didn't I have adrenaline when I was stabbed though?

Whatever the case, the man I stabbed in the shoulder threw me off and I rolled onto my feet. I don't know how I did that, but I did. If he ever lived, he wouldn't be able to use that arm ever again, I think. The one I surprised, who I'll call Deadman X, and the other one Deadman Y, swirled his sword around in a flourish before he tried to slice where my head was. I lifted my shields to cover my head, the metallic clang coming less than a moment later. Pushing with all my force, I moved back, lowering my arms to see him off balance. I exhaled deeply and raised one arm above my head, and the other below my chin. This stance felt perfect.

Blood dripped from both shields onto the soil. My eyes spazzed from one side to the other, watching Deadman Y flail on his side screaming and Deadman X attempting to regain his balan- NOW!

I threw myself forward and used the length of my shield to cover my head while the one below swung up diagonally and became embedded in his side. He coughed up something I was sure was blood judging by the splatters atop of my shield, I didn't realize until just now but... the ribs weren't the same as my own. I pushed the guarding shield up to bash in his face, before spinning to throw Deadman X onto Y. They collapsed onto the floor and, without giving either one of them a moment to breathe, I used both shields to pierce through them, all the way until I hit the dry dirt beneath them.

Five and six. I didn't have much left in me.

My vision started to go black around the edges. Was this tunnel vision? I felt sick... but something was keeping me awake, conscious but just barely. There had to be more.

I stumbled around the edge of the building and saw three more men, each on horses, with the one in the centre looking a bit stronger than the other two. He wore metal over his chest, unlike any other bandit I'd seen so far. He turned and saw me coming out from behind the house and looked to my shields. He quirked a brow before he saw blood and narrowed his eyes, nodding to me before speaking - probably to the two others.

"Oörua gafua."

The other two stared at me, bewildered for a moment before they nodded, sighed, and made their way to me. Was I being looked down on? It made sense. I was exhausted, bloody, and they probably know I'm not good at fighting... was I? I think I'm pretty decent if my encounters just now meant anything. By the time I was done thinking they had probably walked halfway from where they were to me, which was probably five metres. Shit... I took in another breath and got into my previous stance, and putting a smile on my face. God I was so thirsty. Licking my lips, the two apparently found that irksome, and jumped forward.

"Well fuck me..." I muttered, taking a woozy step back. I felt the swords cut my cheek and shoulder, but thankfully it was nothing really bad. Man, this adrenaline is fucking awesome. I know why Adrenaline Junkies do crazy shit now, I guess.

While both of their blades swung close to the ground, one of them continued moving with its force, spinning like a dreidel while his sword continued to cut against my shield. He would be called Lackey 1. Lackey 2 was the one who tried to stab me again. I just moved my shield down so he didn't kill me. I gasped for breath after a moment, and ducked forward. There was a cut to my thigh, but it was negligible. Turning around I saw a sword get real up close and personal with my chest. I moved as fast as I could, only for his sword to cut through my chest and take a large chunk of flesh with it. Gasping with it, I saw his maniacal grin. Cheeky. I grinned and chuckled dryly in return. There was a niggling sensation in the back of my head, saying something good would happen if I killed just one more.

His confusion was like a drug to me as my vision expanded to almost what was normal and my vision became next to nothing, like I was staring down a straw. Oh he was gonna die. I threw my entire body at him, blunt face of the shield slamming down over his back with a vicious crack. I was pretty sure that was him, but I didn't know. I began laughing harder, though, as I threw the point of my right arm shield into his spine. It seems he didn't pay rent, because his head was evicted from his body. My eyes widened a moment later.

Seven? My breath caught in my throat

"Well fuck me!" I yelled aloud, this time in ecstasy. With some sort of... probably magical thing flowing through me, I felt my wounds heal up, only leaving scars behind. Thankfully my nose was back to normal as well; and I was hydrated again! I felt like I had just been dumped into a cold pool on a boiling summer day. I took a deep breath in and out. Without realizing it, I fell onto my back, only to be met with the sight of a swordcutting down towards my head, again. I flicked my wrist so it was pointing to the side, and my shield rang out as it stopped the sword an inch from my neck. "Ahaha!"

I laughed and swung my other arm to Lackey 2's leg, the blade of my shield cutting halfway through and causing him to stumble back and cry in pain. With Lackey 1 dead and Lackey 2 on the ground, I decided to finish him off. I jumped up and used both of my shields to puncture where his lungs would be if he had the same biology as me, but the differing ribs I'd noticed had me second guessing that. Either way...

Eight. He was dead.

I turned to who I assumed was the leader of the slaughter. He was staring at me and the mess I'd caused with a smile and stretched his hand out.

"Ubure divimuy. Präefuy owcöc ufiifua" The fuck? What was that? Some sort of "I like you, join me" bullshit?

CONGRATULATIONS!

YOU HAVE LEARNED SOME OF THE LANGUAGE!

Ubure divimuy = I like you

Präeäuy = To join (me)

Huh... good to know. Why didn't that pop up when I thought one of those previous guys swore at me? I guess I had to have thought wrong then?

But, no, now that my mind was somewhat clearer, I knew without a doubt he would kill me if I took that hand. But he didn't know that I knew. I think. Did he? Oh who cares? I'll pretend he doesn't know!

I walked forward slowly, somewhat anxiously. He had a HUGE sword on his back, so I had to be careful, otherwise I'd lose my head! eventually, I was within distance to shake it. I took a breath, looked at his face while he stared down at me. What the hell... why are you so tall? He was easily over two and a half metres tall! I gulped. What was the phrase? "You only live once"?

I reached for his hand with my right, while thrusting my left towards his stomach. Thank god he didn't seem to think I would do that - maybe it's because I look frail? Or maybe being a woman helped. Well, whatever the case, he just took an arm-long spike through his stomach. But he didn't go down quietly. No sooner had I done that, he clenched his hand tightly with a look of anger and surprise in his eyes. He was crushing my hand! His left reached up for his sword, but I twisted my left arm, pulling it out before I bashed it upwards into his jaw. Repeatedly. There wasn't enough space for me to stab his chin, if there was I would have done that instead. Instead, the sounds of metal battering against skin and bone resounded throughout the village, even as he tried to talk.

"Ubu..." Bash "Aruä!" Bash "Waäia!" Crunch. I felt my hand splinter and break even as I sensed he bit his tongue off and his jaw broke. Bash! Bash! Bash! Eventually, his grip on my hand loosened, and he took a step back, falling and bringing me with him.

Nine... My mind was hazy now.

Finally, whatever was keeping me awake suddenly stopped, and I fell unconscious.

Fuck my hand hurts... I think I'm gonna cry...