Chapter 1
"Everyone else is through, it's just us left."
In the distance, the roar of a beast was heard along with other sounds of destruction and burning. It didn't help that there was also screaming coming from various amounts of people. They were being torn apart by the creatures turned by the dark force coming after them. The door they barred was slowly being broken as the banging and the clawing commenced.
"Go. I'll be right behind you."
"What!?"
"Just go!"
She pushed her best friend through the time portal, ignoring her screams of protest. Someone had to make sure that none of those creatures came close to the portal. With her sword in hand, she cut down the first while keeping an eye on the portal that slowly closed. She cursed as one of the beasts grabbed her, causing her to tumble and fall into the portal. Upon coming through, she slammed onto the ground, but the creature that came with her went limp. She looked over and saw her blade through the creature's throat. Unfortunately, her sword was broken, the upper half found on the ground.
Panting, she let out a groan and got up on her feet. She looked around and saw nothing familiar.
"Where the hell am I?"
Visibility was low for one, the fog only allowed her to see a couple feet in front of her. The air was cold, causing her to rub her arms in hopes of keeping herself warm. First thing she'll have to do is find shelter and then figure out what to do next.
But she couldn't even get far as she started coughing. During her search for shelter, she went through an area that radiated a strange bluish mist. A few minutes later, the coughing started, and then her vision began to blur. Being the stubborn person that she is, she persevered on, finding some kind of structure made of concrete. She found it really hard to breathe, and her body felt like it was going to melt inside out.
"W-What's happening to me?"
She fell to the floor and clutched her sides, curling up into a ball. If she had a mirror with her, she would see the dark veins on every part of her body. Trying to stay awake… she could only think of her family as tears fell down her face.
"Mommy, daddy… Morgan… I'm sorry…"
Just when she thought he had died, she came to but felt extremely weak. She could not move a single muscle and already began to hear a commotion from outside. She heard the voice a man.
"Holy shit! Hey, can you hear me!?"
She felt her body nudge at the person's touch.
"Damn, you inhaled the fumes. Alright, let's get you outta here."
She wanted to protest but couldn't. She had no strength left. So the stranger just hefted her up in his arms and carried her out. Her vision was blurry but she thought she saw some strange carriage made of metal with black wheels. The stranger placed her on one of its soft cushiony seats and made his way to the front. A horseless carriage… weird…
She could not keep her eyes open any longer and drifted back into unconsciousness. When she came to once more, she found herself on a bed with a strange orb of light attached to the ceiling above her. As she tried to sit up, she grit her teeth and winced as her body still ached.
"Whoa!"
She turned to see the stranger from before, carrying a tray of food. He immediately set that aside and rushed to her.
"Easy there." he said as he gently positioned the pillows so she could sit up comfortably. "You inhaled a lot of the fumes. You'll still feel like your entire body is on fire."
"Where am I?"
"Safe." he told her. "At my place. I found you in one of the old ruins in the Red Zone. You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?"
She shook her head.
"That's what I thought. You came through an RH."
She squinted her eyes, still trying to get used to the lighting. "RH?"
"Rabbit Hole." he clarified. "Portal to a different world. My guess it spat you out."
"You mean an outrealm gate?"
"I'm guessing that's what you call them where you're from?"
She nodded, still wincing at the pain at even the slightest movement of her muscles. "Halidom of Ylisse… ring a bell?"
He sadly shook his head. "Sorry. I don't. You're in the City State of Istanbul."
"Oh gods…" she whimpered as tears came out of her eyes. "I'm in a…"
"Hey." he said as he tried to reassure her. "You're safe now. Whatever you went through… that's behind you."
"But… my sister… my friends… they…"
"Get some rest first." he gently ordered. "You're lucky I found you instead of someone else. God forbid a hungry mutant. You went through a toxic field. So you're gonna be pretty immobile for a while."
She wanted to argue and protest but just couldn't. Whatever she was going through irked her. It made her feel weak and vulnerable. It wasn't helping that she didn't know if her friends and younger sister made it through the portal safely. What's going to happen to her younger sister? She promised she would take care of her.
The stranger chuckled at her expression.
"I know… being fed like this is… annoying. Just bear with it until the pain goes away."
She grumbled. "And how long is that."
"Another day or two. I'm Dima by the way."
"Severa." she quietly spoke. "T-Thanks for saving me."
He smiled. "Don't mention it. Now say 'ah'."
Hearing those playful words, she glared at him but complied as she was fed the spoonful of chowder. She had to admit though, the man can cook. This is some damn good chowder.
/-\
She had somehow landed on an actual outrealm, a world called Earth. She thought it was a dumb name since earth is just another word for dirt, but that is the name of the world. She was in a city called Constantinople, a city-state that was once part of a greater nation until it was destroyed four centuries ago.
Dima hummed. "Place I found you was deep in the Red Zones. Unmapped. You said that portal was a one way trip, so that means the RH that spat you out is gone. You're gonna need a stable RH and those are heavily regulated by the United Nations. You're gonna need connections to even go through one and that's something a merc like me doesn't have."
"Dammit." she cursed. "Just what kind of world did I land in?"
"A rather irregular one." he drawled as he finished his meal.
That's when he told her about the state of the world. Roughly four centuries ago, a great calamity befell on their world when an extrasolar object, a giant rock from across the stars as he explained, slammed onto the planet. Part of it hit the moon, diverting its trajectory onto North America, hitting Yellowstone Park, and triggering an effect the erupted the Pacific Ring of Fire. The amount of simultaneous volcanic eruptions had devastated much of the nations within the Pacific, changing the landscape, creating landmasses, and wiping out others. Much of the northern areas of South America had been wiped off the map, turning the lower half into an island continent like Australia.
For the first two centuries, the remaining populace had to live underground in order to avoid the toxic fumes from the volcanic ash. It was only until a century ago where the people could finally live on the surface once more. Constantinople was one of the first cities to be recovered as it was the least affected by the ash, saving the precious heritage of the city.
The Impact, as it was dubbed, killed over 4.2 billion people. 800 million more died from wars, famine and disease.
"Close to five billion…" she whispered in horror. "Oh gods…"
"Even after all that…" Dima muttered as he did the dishes. "Wars just keep on happening. The resulting eruptions created a new natural resource called cordium. What used to be volcanoes are now hotspots for mining cordium. It's volatile stuff but it practically offers large amounts of energy. There's a volcano just south of the city on an island that never used to be there until the impact happened."
She rubbed her head, trying to take it all in. "This is going to take a lot of getting used to."
He nodded at her words. "But you will get used to it."
"And I'm going to be stuck here a while, aren't I?"
"Looks like it."
She bit her lip, swallowing her pride as she looked at him with determination. "Will you help me survive in your world? I can't just sit around and do nothing."
He nodded and smiled as he sat right next to her, a beverage in what looked liked a metal case in his hand. "Don't worry. Once you're recovered enough, we can get you started out."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"Why go all the way to help me? I was just a stranger."
Dima's fingers went over to the top of his drink, creating a hissing noise as he opened it. After taking a sip, he gave her a smile.
"Why not?"
/-\
The people of Earth were advanced, far more than back home. Growing up, there were no television, no computers, no mobile phones, no showers. Everything was done by hand. Severa's most favorite thing for sure is the coffee maker. Never in her life would she ever imagine that such a wonderful hot beverage existed.
"Oh gawds…" Severa moaned after taking a sip from the mug. "That's so good!"
It had been over a day now since she came here, her legs were feeling better that's for sure, but it still felt painful and she needed support if she wanted to go to another part of the room. She still hated feeling this week but the coffee helped her relax.
"You guys never had coffee in your world?'
She shook her head at her friend's question. Yeah… he's her friend now.
"Nope."
"What kind of primitive barbaric society did you live in?"
She glared at his sarcasm. "Oh ha, ha. Very funny. I won't like though, the timeline I lived in went to shit when the dark dragon attacked."
"That will no doubt draw up concerns." he conceded. "There has been reports of sightings of these portals for a while now. Nothing inconclusive but it's got major powers very tingly at the mention of them. Access to different worlds means access to abundant natural resources, and even colonization."
"And you think there's a chance my world could be one of them?"
He nodded. "Possibly. But we need more information. For now, you're gonna have to bled in. If politicians find out that you're from another world…"
She nodded in understanding. They will no doubt come after and try to use her.
"Another thing. If you wanna survive, you're gonna have to-"
"I know." she stiffly said. "I'll probably have to become a mercenary… or… what's the sugarcoated term for it?"
He chuckled. "Private military contractor."
She snickered. "Such fancy words for mercenaries… really…"
He shrugged. "I didn't come up with it. Besides, high-ranking mercs get the best gear."
She raised an eyerbow. "Are you a high ranking one? And wait… you guys have a ranking system… like a-"
He shrugged. "I wouldn't be getting the good contracts if I wasn't. I just don't flaunt it like the others. And yes, we do have a ranking system. Think of the International Security Department like an adventurer's guild. The highest ranking ones get the best jobs."
"Oh… so that's how it is."
Severa understood that concept well. Even back in her world, there were adventurers and an adventurer's guild. Though the difference between an adventurer and a mercenary can get blurry at times.
Another thing Dima told her was how people fight in this world. While close combat with blades does happen, it doesn't happen as often because of the difference in weapons and doctrines. Firearms, or guns… imagine a crossbow that fires metallic slugs instead of bolts, then hurl them at velocities she thought only possible with magic. What was scary was that their range can be even be greater than a bow without having to aim so high. The downside to such powerful and advanced weaponry was ammunition, which can be depleted rather quickly in a fierce fight. Which is why most contractors in the field carry extra ammunition in their packs, as well as scavenge.
Others like Dima though know how to make their own, but that requires time and equipment that cannot be easily carried around.
An upside was that was that ammunition is cheap. Hundreds of millions of them roll of the factory line all around the world each day. Crazy how conflict can actually lead to prosperity so quickly. As for the guns, there are different kinds, and they come in all shapes and sizes. Long, short… it didn't matter.
/-\
Next Day
"Easy…"
"I know!" she growled as she held on to the rails, her legs fumbling around trying to keep balance. It felt like she was trying to learn how to walk.
"Just try not to rush-"
"I'M NOT!" she snapped. The frustration was already getting to her. Dima didn't react. In fact, he looked a little amused.
"Alright, that's enough."
"I can still-"
"Come on."
She grumbled as the young man helped her to the sofa.
"It's just for a few more days." he urged. "I know you can handle that. Besides, it could even be less with how quickly you're recovering. You'll be fine."
A heavy and loud sigh escaped Severa's mouth. "Gods… I hate this. I just can't stop thinking about my little sister…"
He handed her a glass of water and smiled at her.
"Focus on yourself first. Won't do any good to burn yourself out."
She took the glass of water and nodded a thanks, drinking it all. "Do you have any siblings, Dima?"
He shrugged. "Can't really say."
It was clear to her that he didn't want to answer. She decided not to push the topic any further as it probably won't do her any good. He saved her life after all. But it did confirm that he does indeed have a sibling, possibly more than one. The fact that her friend doesn't want to talk about them tells her that there is a rift between him and his family.
Dima put his smile back on. "You know what, I'm gonna go order some pizza. And tomorrow, we can go to the Grand Bazaar. I'm sure you'll like all the stores it has there."
Her eyes momentarily brightened at the mention of the bazaar. She saw only glimpses of the city on television. By tomorrow, she can hopefully start walking normally. For now, she's just here, recovering. So with the wheelchair that had been provided to her, she made her way out into the balcony, feeling the gentle breeze of the wind. Dima's home was on the very top of a building called an apartment complex, a special building that makes up several homes that allowed the development of a city to save space. Istanbul had countless of these apartments all across the city. From atop this balcony, she was presented with the beautiful view of the city.
Another thing that she found interesting about Istanbul was-
"Meow."
She turned her head to see a brown and white cat on the side, to be specific, it was right by a house made for it. And in an instant, she heard the mewls of kittens from within, with one of them emerging to meet her
"Never thought I'd see cats again…" she muttered. She turned towards the doorway to see Dima leaning on it and smiling. "I didn't know you had pet cats."
"They're not mine."
She was taken aback by that. "But… I… you… cats..."
Dima let out a laugh as he refilled the feeding bowl of the little family of cats. "It's a tradition here in Istanbul. Stray cats live like kings here. It's been like this since ancient times."
Severa was about to say something when the mother cat just plopped right onto her lap and curled up, purring as her hand unconsciously started stroking its fur.
Dima smiled at the scene, watching as Severa's crimson hair moved as the wind gently breezed by.
Severa never could have imagined that she would land herself in a different world. She was supposed to go back in time when she went into that portal. She was supposed to be with her friends and her baby sister. But she didn't. She got herself into a completely different world, with different people, and different culture. It wasn't all bad but she can't help but worry. Her sister meant everything to her. But she knew that if she was going to find a way back, she will need to adapt, and that means learning the ways of the people of this world. But this meant that her world could probably be in more danger. If a portal landed her here, this meant that a portal to her world could be found. Dima mentioned of other portals popping up… The last thing she wanted is to involve her world's problems with this, and have this world's problems involved with hers.
No matter the world, people are still people, and that means greed can be a major defining factor. She remembered her father teaching her that greed is one of the sole reasons for waging wars.
"Gawds…" she exhaled. "What the fuck is going to happen now? Did I just endanger my world even more?"
Dima sat beside her, looking up at the night sky. "Who knows at this point? But what I do know is that your arrival is just the beginning of something. Good or bad… well… only time will tell."
"Very reassuring, Dima."
He gave her a grin. "Part of my charm, Sev."
She didn't say a word after that, but she did glare at him.
End Chapter
Author's Note: There is a Discord server where me and other authors interact. I owe them for helping me with this.
The Discord code is: 9X3G3U7a