Side Stories #1.1

The Warrior's Story

When he awoke, there was only darkness. It wasn't cold nor burning hot, but a cool breeze, one that soothed the heart during difficult times. He sat up and…huh, what is this soft feeling?

He focused his attention on the area lightly illuminated by the red glow from his chest plate and saw…grass? He tightened his right hand. His trusty shotgun was still there.

He closed his eyes for ten seconds, and when he opened them again he was able to see the stars, and the objects that the moon subtly shined on. And some color from his immediate surroundings also. Judging by the dark silhouettes a couple of meters away from him, he was in a forest, the gathering of tall, dark, pointed but soft and rustling things all but confirming it.

He looked up and saw the moon. There was something different about it, he just couldn't put his finger on it. Maybe it was because he hasn't seen one in a while.

In a LONG while.

The man swiveled his head around, checking his immediate surroundings.

There were only trees and grass for now. Unfortunately for the grass, it was green only outside of his area. The ones in his immediate proximity were burnt. Expected, although a little sad. But hey, at least the trees didn't catch on fire, wouldn't that be a sight for sore eyes?

He was in an open area with no trees, strangely enough. Grass only. Except for the few tree stumps in front of him. A town or a village must be close by.

The warrior stood up and trekked past the trees, following trails of scattered stumps. It seems they were attempting to harvest wood sustainably, since some had saplings next to the stump.

After walking for a while, the man stopped. As if to contemplate, he put an arm on his waist. It was a few seconds before he raised both arms and pulled on his helmet. As the hissing of pressurized air escaped, the man finally felt the cool night touching his face. He grinned, a first in a long time.

He couldn't take all his armor off, however, because if he did he'd only be in his underwear. And if he met any townspeople, they'd definitely freak out. Not that an armored man coming out of the woods would do any better, however.

The fresh smell of the night filled his nose; the flowers, dirt, trees. The scented air filled his chest with a subdued excitement, bouncing around and giving him a tiny amount of dopamine, something only Mother Nature could do after a long hard day.

He heard the sounds of chirping of bugs, rustles of roaming animals, the rustling of the trees. For the first time, he felt that it was going to be okay. That right now, he was fine. If he could, the man would have teared up, but his experiences kept him from doing so, his past still strong despite the serenity of his surroundings.

After indulging himself for a couple of minutes, he kept walking. Eventually, he came out of the woods and was met with a dirt path leading to somewhere. Following it he found himself in front of a wall. Funnily enough, the wall was only big enough to slightly overtake the trees surrounding it. Completely redundant, as anyone could climb the trees and go over it. Hell, he could reach over it with a jump.

The entrance wasn't in his immediate view so he went around the wall until a spot of light could be seen emanating from the wall, at least from where he was. He could hear someone talking. Something about a woman?

They were probably the city guards.

He could hear two distinct voices, a number he could easily take on but he didn't feel like fighting people in a world he just fell into. Finding information on how to get back was important, and fighting was a detriment to it.

Could he?

If a walled city looked like this, then they probably didn't have the tech for teleportation. A stone wall was a good indicator of that, unless the Makyrs had visited here too (a possibility he felt was highly unlikely)

He brushed the thoughts out of his head. Whatever, he just wanted to see the place.

The armored man walked away from the wall, then to the two men guarding the gate.

"Huh," a guard said, "who's he?"

"He's wearing some armor," the other guard said. "And… is that a gun?"

"A soldier maybe?"

"But from where? Never seen THAT kind of armor! Never seen that kind of gun too! Look at those things on it!"

The wanderer, without caring, walked up to the two men.

"Hey," the first guard lazily said, "who are you and what do you want?"

The man said nothing.

"I'll try," pushed the second guard, lightly snickering at the first one. "Sir, what is your business with this town, at this hour? Entry is usually not permitted at this hour!"

"Damn, that sounded pro," whispered the first guard. "You practice it every day in front of the mirror?"

"Oh shut up!" the second guard hissed.

Both stopped their bickering and stared at the stranger. He said nothing, yet again.

"Maybe he's mute," the second guard quietly suggested.

"Yeah, maybe," agreed the first guard.

The second guard returned to his professional posture and inquired, "Sir, do you want to enter the city?"

The man nodded.

"Are you here to harm the townsfolk of Trinta?"

The man shook his head.

The guard looked at each other and shrugged.

Might as well let him in, both communicated through their expressions. Not like he could be worse than them.

"We must confiscate your weapon, though. It looks dangerous," the first guard stupidly said.

The stranger gripped his gun tightly, and stared down at the guard.

Perhaps feeling very uncomfortable and weak, the guards opened the gates and allowed entry to the towering man.

The stranger was mesmerized by the sight entering his eyes. It was night, so the details were a little hazy but the beauty still made it through. It was a sight he'd never seen, even through the double-digits amount of alien worlds he'd been to.

There were no houses. Well, houses as you'd envision them. The structures, only being lit up by the occasional street lamps and lit windows, were still amazing nonetheless. Instead of metal, glass and concrete houses, the "buildings" were trees grown within the walls, with houses either carved into the trunks or being the trunk, with only windows and doors to discern them from actual trees.

The trees were massive, as you could imagine. The stranger looked around and saw a sign that said Inn. Problem was that he had no money. With that, the warrior went to the wall and leaned on it, waiting for the night to pass.

"Hey there, stranger!"

A voice rang from nearby.

The stranger lifted his head to see a plump woman in front of him. She was wearing an apron with a simple dress. She looked to be in her late thirties.

"I've never seen you here, you new here?" she asked.

He nodded. Couldn't hurt to play along.

"I run an inn around here. I'm assuming that you have no money. I'll let you stay here for a night. In return, I want you to work for me to pay it off, deal?"

The warrior stared at her.

"Of course, you only have to work a day if you stay here for a night."

He couldn't see the harm in that. He stood up and followed the woman into one of the massive trees. This building was a building seemingly carved into the trunk. The inside was as spacious as the trunk wide, with the stairs leading to the rooms. The first floor was both a reception area and an eating area, kind of like an inn from the Middle Ages.

"I don't know your circumstances," the woman started saying, "so I won't make you take off the armor. Anyways, your job for tomorrow will be cleaning and mopping up the first floor before and after the day ends. I'll let you stay the night then also, and then you can head out the next day. Or you can stay and work here. Your choice. Ah, you hungry?"

The man shook his head.

"Well then. Your room is Room 2, have a nice stay."

He walked up the stairs, found a door with two on it and entered. The room was as cool as the outside, so it felt nice. He took off his helmet and put it on a desk. He then tapped on a receptor on his armor, which released the mechanisms holding the armor together, took it off and put it, sitting up, by the wall next to the bed. He then shotgun next to the armor.

There were a lot of things he didn't need. He didn't need food, nor water for a long time. And, relevant now, he didn't need sleep. His stamina was basically infinite. He walked back to the desk and picked his helmet up. He held it up to the lamp hanging on the wall, exposing the Mark pigmented on the forehead area of the helmet.

He wiped it with his finger, as if to rid a stain. Of course, it was permanently plastered on there, but that symbol, though granting him many blessings, cursed him with a dark path that only he could follow.

He put it back on the desk and laid down on the bed. He didn't need sleep, yes, but he was capable of it.

He closed his eyes and greeted the world of unconsciousness with disdain.

Well guys, I've decided to insert a certain character into the Otherworld of Instant Death! I am hoping to expand on the development of this characters journey, going outside of the realm of side stories and interacting with the Shadow Monarch at some point. There will be three parts to this side story, which I will gradually release once a week.

As for my progress on collecting data through the source material, I am currently on Vol.7 of the light novel. As for my plans for SL: Ragnorak, I heard that the story was pretty mediocre, so I'm thinking of just skimming the main story and just focusing on parts where SJW appears. Anyways, have a wonderful week and see you next time.