Prologue:
I'd been reading fantasy stories and watching movies about old heroes since I was young. Ever since my mother first allowed me I've been playing any video game I could get my hands on, I fell in love with fantasy games and the stories they involved. I fell in love with manga, light novels and anime because it felt like being transported to a different world. There were even stories about being transported to different worlds, and they fascinated me.
Eventually, everybody grows up. The responsibilities of adulthood hit me like a truck. The light of my youth began to flicker, but never fully went out.
What a strange fate awaited me, the kind I had dreamt about when I was a child. The kind of passion I still desperately clung to as I aged. Despite knowing the impossibility, fantasies of being in other worlds were always there to keep me from completely losing the innocence I once had. From the time I was a child where I imagined the long stick I found was a staff, and I was a powerful wizard, to the dreams I had about besting the strongest swordsman.
"Hey Klein!"
This was an old voice I hadn't heard for years. While we hadn't broken up on the best terms, I've never been one to hold grudges like that.
"It's been a long time! How's it goin?"
I wondered what Samantha was doing in Washington.
"It really has been a long time, it's nice to see you're well"
I said sincerely, though not entirely enthusiastic about this encounter. Either way, we ended up walking together for a ways and talking about how our lives were now.
That's when I saw it.
There was a truck barrelling down the road at what I can only imagine is much faster than the speed limit, but that's not what caught my eye.
The truck had ran a red light and nearly hit a few pedestrians, showing no signs of slowing down. Perhaps the brakes failed or the driver was simply drunk, but I saw something else.
A little girl and her mother.
They had been crossing the road legally, they had the right of way. This truck didn't care about that. Even if it made the effort to stop at the point it was at there would be no way to avoid hitting them, and it didn't look like they saw it coming.
The decision was among the fastest I had ever made. I'm no hero, and I'm not cocky enough to believe myself to be immortal, but maybe the child in me that still fantasized about being in magical worlds came to the rescue. I could hear the confusion in the voice of the woman I had been walking with as I darted towards the road.
I was only 30. The life I had flashed before my eyes and I relived every moment in an instant.
Chapter 1:
I opened my eyes to see what resembled a throne room, but the whole area was dark and had a slightly gloomy feel to it. The woman sitting on the dark throne was a truly stunning woman, though her eyes seemed to contain a sinister aura that made me feel like my guts were being ripped out. Down the short staircase, standing on either side of me in a sort of center facing formation were more than a dozen ominous figures. Some of them looked like normal humans, but it seemed that more than a few of them were most definitely not human.
My heart began to pound. I have no idea where I am, and I'm getting a feeling from every one of these individuals that I've never felt from any being. Was this fear? No. I've been through life and death situations, I was a soldier. Just moments ago I relived the combined memories of my life, from the happy times to the time I held that man's head in my lap while he took his last breath. I've felt fear, this is different. This is a feeling of overwhelming power surrounding me, something beyond the realm of humanity.
"The ritual is complete, my lord"
The rattling voice came from an elegant human looking man, of the sort you would assume to be royalty. The only visible difference between him and a normal person was that his skin was a flat grey color.
What the fuck.
Where the hell am I? What ritual are these people talking about? The questions running through my head are endless, and at this point I wonder if I might not have died. Maybe I'm in a coma and this is an incredibly strange and twisted dream I'm having. I really hope that's the case, because if it isn't, I don't believe the outcome for me is anything good.
"You've done well, Limone. To be honest, I wasn't expecting this curious experiment of ours to work. It seems that you've outdone yourself."
These words were from the one who appears to be the queen, and I believe that I am the 'curious experiment' she spoke of.
"Thank you, my liege. What do you wish to do with this one?"
The one named Limone glanced in my direction as he said that.
"As much potential as he may have, he is still weak and human. If we begin to overtake his mind now the process will be easier when he becomes what he is truly meant to be."
She looked towards me.
"State your name, human"
Mind control? I was summoned to this strange place in order to have my mind stolen from me? No way in hell I'll let that happen. If my name isn't -
"Klein Vangarde, my liege"
What? What the fuck? When did this happen? I said that, but I didn't order my body to do so. Has it already begun? Did it begin before that facade they put on? How powerful is this demon woman in front of me? Just where the hell am I?
"Klein, you have been summoned here from an unknown place. Your soul is in a body that is likely much sturdier than the old body you once had, but you will need to train it. Unlike us demons born with the powers we have, you must grow yourself through hard work and dedication. Fortunately, your soul and body have more potential than any human on this earth, and this should come simply to you."
After explaining this, the queen burst into laughter.
"This is great! It's wonderful! To think that one of the races in the alliance of six would be their ultimate downfall! The irony of it is hilarious!"
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"Yes, my liege. "
I said this naturally, and my mind started wondering the different training methods I would be seeing. It didn't seem that I could fight the hold this woman had over me, but would I have a chance to do so if I became stronger?
"Ashker, escort our new toy to his quarters"
"Yes, my liege"
A tall man with dark hair and red eyes came to my side. He had black wings folded behind his back and seemed to be some form of demon. He motioned for me to follow him. My body moved without my conscious decision once again, and I followed him out the door.
"You're lucky her majesty has a sense of humor, or you would have been slain on the spot once the core molded into a human."
I was unable to respond, but at this point my mind is going through too many paces to care.
We walked down a long hallway, taking countless turns, and eventually ended up outside of the large castle. It was truly massive, like something you would see in a story. The entire area felt grim, as if the castle radiated evil itself.
"Our queen may have a sense of humor, but a pathetic bug such as yourself would not be permitted to stay in the castle grounds."
We walked to a house separate from the castle, yet still within the walls surrounding it. I mentioned house, but it was really more of a run down shack. It seemed these 'people' really thought highly of me.
Upon reaching the shack, the monster guiding me opened the door and picked me up by the throat.
"Count your blessings that you survived an encounter with me, you are the first human to have ever done so. You may be under her control, but the sight of you still makes me sick, and I wish I could kill you right now. Be a good human and stay in there."
This was all unnecessary, as currently the mind control seemed so effective that my body would have killed itself if ordered to. This man was a sadist.
He threw me inside the shack and slammed the wooden door. I could hear him walking away muttering about something. It sounded like he was upset that he wasn't allowed to kill me.
I laid there for hours, unable to sleep and unable to stop thinking about the situation I seemed to be in. I had free control over my body unless I attempted to break the orders placed on me, as I found out when I tried to open the door to go outside. My body had locked up and I ended up standing still for about 15 minutes before I could move again. Best not to try it right now then.
The shack was empty, with nothing but a very small, old bed that creaked if you looked at it in the wrong way, accompanied by some stains that were most likely blood and (possibly) vomit. I didn't want to imagine the fate of the person or thing occupying this room prior to me. There was a small opening on the floor a few feet away from the bed, which I can only assume is the equivalent of an outhouse. At least they didn't expect me to go on the floor, what humane treatment.
I looked down at my body. I felt younger, and upon closer inspection it seemed like the body I had when I was 20, but felt stronger. She said this body was 'new and sturdier', but for some reason I was in the same clothes I had been wearing before. I had a habit of dressing fairly plainly, so I was wearing blue jeans, a grey tshirt and a green hoodie that I bought years ago.
At least I didn't come here naked, that might have been awkward.
The watch on my wrist was still working, but I assumed the time was off due to the fact it read 3:00 PM, and it was pitch black outside now. It was still useful to me, and I was able to use it to keep track of the time I was in here, which had been a total of three hours. By my estimation, it was probably about 2:00 AM.
Just as I was thinking that, something strange happened. There was an explosion nearby, followed by a bright flash of light.
What the hell is going on?
After the explosion, nothing happened. I don't know what it was, but it seemed like the threat was gone for now.
Then I felt it, there was an aura coming my way fast that felt on par with the demon that led me to this shack. I was surprised I'm able to tell honestly, but it's not something I had time to think about.
Moments later, the door broke down, and a small group of what appeared to be knights rushed into the room and surrounded me.
Am I saved? Are these people here to rescue me?
"You must be the one, I'm glad we found you"
The words came from the man who appeared to be their leader.
"We're here to save you, my name is Knight captain Nevilam of the Sargonya royal guard."
As soon as he said this, my mind twisted. I tried to give warning to the men in front of me, but found myself unable to speak. It must have been a defense mechanism set with the mind control, should some people attempt to rescue me.
My body lurched forward, faster than I thought possible. My hands tensed as I clawed into the armor of one of the nights. To my surprise, his metal helmet creaked under my hand and was crushed. I can only hope he died quickly and without much pain.
There were 7 knights in total. I had just killed the one I believed to be the leader, yet none of them wavered. They leapt at me one at a time while I sliced them all down individually. When the carnage subsided, I was standing with blood covering my clothes, and seven dead men surrounding me. The fight was over in less than 10 seconds.
I was in pain. Agonizing on the inside over what I had done, and knowing that there was nothing I could do to stop it. I wondered where I had gotten that burst of power from, because I hadn't felt it until that moment.
"I see, I wish I hadn't let them come in alone."
This was a female voice, and one that didn't seem scared at all about the massacre laid in front of her.
'Please run. Run as far away from this place as you can before I do something to prevent you from running.'
I thought these words in my head praying they would be answered, but the time for that was gone. This woman's fate was sealed.
My body moved again, just as fast as the last time and with just as much ferocity. My hand was approaching her throat, and this would mean certain death for her.
But then, my hand stopped. Did I do it? Was my will enough to overcome this? Maybe, just maybe I would be able to fight the control.
No, it wasn't me. I didn't fight this control, there's nothing I can do as I am now to do so. What actually happened was something that surprised me immensely, yet filled my heart with joy.
My wrist was caught. A vine was now wrapped around the hand outstretching towards her neck, and it was immobilized.
"I understand, I can sense that a powerful mind control spell has been cast on you. It would seem that even given your lack of experience, this spell is able to pull some of your latent potential. The terrifying forbidden spell
My right hand being immobilized, I instinctively raised my left foot for a kick that would free myself. Unfortunately for the woman standing in front of me, the kick connected as she was pushed back to the wall. I instinctively ripped the vine connected to my arm, and my wrist was now free once more. My now free hand was prepared to strike again, when she looked at me with saddened eyes.
"
She pointed two fingers in my direction as she said this, and my body was completely immobilized. The ring on her finger turned to ash as she cast this spell
"I really wish it didn't have to be this way, but you are far more important than you can imagine."
"
What? What is this? This light overflowing my mind.
The female knight seemed to have a lot taken out of her from casting the spell, and she was panting. Observing her more closely, she was the epitome of beauty.
"What is your name?"
"Klein"
I can answer? This is amazing! Has the mind control been broken completely? What a powerful woman to override the magic of that evil queen.
"You have a powerful name, Sir Klein."
It seemed the spell had taken more out of her than I thought, she looked utterly exhausted now.
"Are you ok? We should leave, there are dangerous monsters here. The faster we get out of here the soo-"
"No"
She cut me off midway through my sentence.
"Ultimate spells all come with a price, and I was forced to use two of them on short notice. The ring I was wearing paid the price for
"You..."
"My mount is outside, his name is Bastion. Go to him and tell him Lilyana, third princess of the Sargonya Kingdom wishes for him to take care of you, and give him this pendant. Please be quick, my kingdom is to the east of here."
"You're a Princess? You're asking me to talk to an animal? None of this makes sense, please be rational. Isn't there any way I can save you?"
"You really are kind, I'm glad that I came here"
She looked at me with reassured eyes. There was no way I could deny her resolve. A princess had given her life for me, and I had taken the lives of seven innocent knights.
"Thank you, princess."