A hero reborn, p.1
A HERO REBORN, page 1
A HERO
REBORN
BOOK 1
IAN GREY
Copyright © 2021 Ian Grey
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First and foremost, this book simply would not have happened without the support of my incredible wife. She has read this story in all its various stages and gave helpful input every step of the way. To her, I tip my hat, if only I had one. I would also like to thank friends and family who offered support and encouragement. Without your help, this book would not be half as good as it is now.
Finally, a big thanks to you, the reader. I hope the time you spend in my world is well spent and that you enjoy these characters. As someone who has spent a lot of time with them I can assure you they are good people…mostly.
Chapter 1
Jake sat in the driver's seat of his car, wondering how badly he needed his job at the restaurant. Outside his window, snow drifted lazily down to the black pavement of the restaurant’s parking lot. He had been working as a server there for a couple of years now while trying to figure out what he wanted to do with his life. College had not really gone the way he’d hoped. Now he was stuck at this dead-end job with a sizable student loan over his head.
“Well, time to go suck today’s dick.” He said bitterly, taking one final drag from his cigarette. He worked his mouth just right and puffed out a tiny smoke ring that broke against the windshield.
Stepping out of the car, he tied a black serving apron tightly to his waist. Checking briefly that he had all his pens and loose change, he made his way to the front side of the building. A small herd of people were already lining up at the door.
“Who the fuck eats pasta this early.” He grumbled irritably, annoyed to see it’d be a busy morning right off the bat. It wasn’t that he hated people. He just hated serving them. What he wouldn’t give for a chance to start things over and do it differently. If he could just get the opportunity, things would be so much better.
Without warning, Jake felt his body suddenly leave the ground as he slipped on an unseen patch of black ice. For a brief moment, he saw the grey sky above him. He could feel something warm running down his neck, then everything went black.
♦♦♦
“Hey Elmon, he’s over here!” A woman’s voice faintly called out somewhere to the left of Jake’s position. One of the customers must be getting him help—what a stupid way to injure himself. The medical bills alone would be a nightmare, not counting losing a Saturday’s worth of tips. His head didn’t hurt anymore, though. Was that a bad sign? The warm feeling on his neck was also gone. What was going on?
Slowly he opened his eyes; the grey sky was still there, which was comforting. He tried to move and found his body responded fine as if nothing had happened, which was comforting. Then he saw something far off in the clouds fly overhead, and his heart stopped.
A red dragon straight out of any of his fantasy video games soared further and further away till it was just a speck in a grey ocean.
“Great I’m concussed and seeing things.” He said to himself, sitting up and checking the back of his head and finding no wound. How was that possible? He was sure he had cracked his head open on the asphalt of the parking lot.
“Yes, I see him Lyra, don’t get too close. We know nothing about him!” Came another female voice not far from where the last one had spoken.
“Are you well, stranger?”
A soft hand griped his shoulder from behind him. Turning around, he saw the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life. She looked to be in her twenties like him with a very athletic body. She was wearing an outfit that made her look like a fantasy world cosplayer. Her long blonde hair was loose and wild, running down her shoulders. Her torso was covered only by a tight leather work corset exposing a toned navel. A line of muscle divided her exposed midriff, and a small silver stud glinted in her belly button. She wore a short skirt with knee-high black boots completing the ensemble. Her waist was small, but her thighs were lushly thick and toned. Her breast threatened to explode out of their leather confinement.
“Y-yeah, I’m alright. Uh, where am I?” Of the million questions he currently had, he felt this was the most pressing. He was obviously not behind the restaurant anymore.
“That is good! We both saw you fall a great distance from the sky. As for your question, we are at the border to the kingdom of Konia.”
Jake stared blankly at her, not knowing how to properly process what he was hearing. He had fallen from the sky!? And the Konia was no place he had ever heard of before on earth. On earth…
“Stupid question I know, but uh, do you guys have magic, monsters, and guilds here?”
The girl laughed. It was a nice sound to Jake, almost like bells.
“Stupid no, silly perhaps. Yes, we naturally have those things here though we only have one guild. There are not many kingdoms that have more than one you must have traveled far indeed if that’s where you came from.” She offered him a hand, and he took it slowly, getting off the snowy ground.
“Yeah, you could say that,” Jake said absently, looking around him. The lands looked perfectly normal for another world. There were no giant pink and purple mushrooms or magic crystals spouting out of the ground like in his video games. Snow-capped furs and pine trees towered around them. The ground was blanketed in a heavy layer of frost with the occasional ordinary-looking bush here and there. A recently walked path was visible in the snow, and ahead of them, he could just make out a wooden sign with some writing on it.
“You could even go so far as to say I’m from a different world instead of the kingdom.”
The girl’s eyes grew wide, and she gasped at him.
“Elmon take care. I told you we know nothing of this man!” A girl, shorter but no less beautiful, came up from behind the blonde that had been talking to Jake. So her name is Elmon. That’s a fantasy name if I ever heard one. Maybe I did hit my head too hard, and this is a weird coma? He wondered to himself as the girls talked to each other.
“What!? Surely you jest Elmon!” The new girl shrieked with surprise cutting Jake’s train of thought short.
“That is what he told me. Look at how he dresses. His clothes are of no kingdom I have ever seen. What of you, Lyra?” The blonde demanded hotly, clearly not liking being doubted by her companion.
“You stranger, what is your name, and where do you come from?” The shorter girl barked at him in a demanding tone. She was obviously the bossier of the two. A slight twinge of annoyance ran through Jake. He never liked bossy people, and this was his coma dream, after all, not hers.
“No need to be a bitch about it. My name is-
“A bitch!?” She shrieked. Her hand went to the handle of a sword strapped to her waist. She drew it with lightning speed and pointed the tip of her weapon at Jake’s throat.
“Choose your next words with care, stranger. I do not take kindly to insults.”
A normal person should have been shitting their pants right then and there. He had never had a real weapon pointed at him. She radiated a dark killing aura, but instead of fear, he felt only angrier. His skin was starting to grow hot.
“My name is Jake. Mind putting that away. It’s starting to piss me off.” He said, nodding to the drawn weapon.
“Lyra, I’m sure he meant no offense to your honor. Where he comes from, his insult may not mean so much.” Elmon offered reassuringly, putting her hand on the sword and slowly lowering it.
“Fine. Now answer my other questions, Jake. Where do you come from?” Lyra spat angrily, her eyes still full of rage. It did little to quell Jake’s own indignant rage. He folded his arms obstinately and grunted.
“ Say please, and I’ll tell you.”
It wasn’t the smartest move he’s ever made, but Jake had never been good with being told what to do. A part of him would rather feel that sword in her hand than give her the satisfaction of giving her what she wanted so easily. He wasn’t sure if his bravery came from the sheer impossibility of what he was seeing and hearing. Still, something about this place was amplifying his stubbornness a thousand-fold.
He reached into his apron pocket, and Lyra snarled, raising her weapon back in an offensive stance, ready to pounce. He produced a pack of cigarettes from the pocket. Not noticing the seething woman in front of him as he fished around for his lighter for a moment.
“Fuck, that’s better. You ladies smoke?” He said with a sigh of satisfaction savoring the smoky hit of nicotine. He offered the pack to them as he spoke.
“I think we shall pass. That is an interesting contraption you have there, though. How did you harness fire magic into such a small container?” Elmon inquired, looking at his lighter with a deep interest.
“What this? Nah, not magic babe. Just a regular old lighter. Where I’m from, magic isn’t real, so we make
“And just where is it you are from?” Lyra asked, trying but failing to keep the rage out of her voice. It was clear to him that she was not used to people talking back to her. It gave him an odd satisfaction. He turned to Elmon, ignoring Lyra completely.
“Elmon, right? See, I’m from a place called earth, and like I was saying, we don’t have magic or any of that cool shit you guys seem to have here, so we make do with science and inventions.”
“It is hard to imagine a life without magic, but we also have science here as well.”
That impressed Jake; he had never heard of a place where magic and science could coexist in his books and games. Typical, it was either one or the other. He was eager to see what his brain had cooked up while he was surely bleeding out in a crappy parking lot. Maybe he was in an ambulance by now and was being assessed by a paramedic. It would really suck to die before getting to see at least one kingdom in this crazy place.
“That a fact? I’ve never seen magic and science coexist. I’d very much like to travel with you if you are heading back to the kingdom soon. If not, I’d still like to travel with you if you’d have me aboard.”
“Out of the question!!” Cried Lyra stamping her foot. “Elmon do not even think of hearing out this absurd request. We still know nothing about him; he could be a bandit or some wayward rouge.”
Elmon sighed, putting a hand on Lyra’s shoulder.
“If he speaks the truth, he would be another worlder; how many ages has it been since our world has had one walking it? This could be a joyous nay legendary moment in our life’s history, Lyra. I say we indeed take him with us and teach him of our world. He clearly knows nothing of our common sense. Judging from the insult he issued you. But he offers his goods and information freely. No rouge would be so forth coming.”
She said, holding up the lighter as proof. Lyra was still not convinced and said.
“He didn’t offer me anything freely. I have no cause to trust a word he says. For all, we know he fell from that firedrake we saw mere moments ago. No, Elmon, this is not wise. He will be nothing but trouble.”
“Uh, if you don’t mind, Lyra, I’d like to speak for myself for a sec,” Jake said with a touch of annoyance.
“Yeah, you guys don’t know me from Adam, and that’s fair enough. Strip me down if it makes you feel better, but I haven’t lied. I have no fucking clue where I am, and I’m probably going to die out here without someone who knows the ropes.” He paused to take another glorious drag before continuing.
“It’d suck to die here before getting to really see this world. I’m sorry if I offended your honor or whatever when I called you a bitch. Where I’m from, it’s not so big an insult you’d kill a guy for saying it. Let me tag along at least long enough to learn about this Konia place. Sound good?”
He spoke as sincerely as he could, still feeling some of the residual anger. Lyra looked at him long and hard, then turned to Elmon, who nodded smiling. She sighed with exasperation, sheathing her blade and throwing her arms in the air.
“Fine! You want him to come along so badly. When he cuts our throats in our sleep, it’ll be by your doing, Elmon. Damn your soft heart.”
She stormed off before Elmon could say anything, making for the worn path in the snow.
“Pay her no mind, Jake. She is not one to quickly trust new faces.”
Elmon said apologetically, her face falling a little. He couldn’t help but notice the favoring view of her cleavage as she looked down.
“No worries. Not your fault, and besides, she’s kind of right I am a total stranger.”
He blew out a small hazy smoke ring and quietly watched it blend into the grey clouds above.
“Also, in fairness, I did fall out of the fucking sky. And like you said, everything about me reeks of being from another world.”
“I never said you reek, Jake. On the contrary, you smell a good deal better than most men I encounter on the open road.” Elmon said earnestly.
Jake laughed a deep, genuine laugh. How long had it been since he had a real laugh? Not one of those bogus fake laughs he gave to customers to get better tips. For the first time in a long time, he felt lighter, like a weight had been lifted from his chest.
“Did I say something wrong?” Elmon asked, unsure, watching Jake double over, grabbing his knees for support.
“N-no, you didn’t ha-hah. Sorry about that. just give me a sec.”
He said breathlessly, letting the laughter slowly ebb off. He straightened back up, still grinning, and said.
“Ah. Sorry about that. It’s just been a long time since I’ve felt so good. Odd thing to say, given where I am, but this all feels like a wonderful dream. To be honest, I kind of hated my old life. Here, maybe I can do things a bit differently and get a second shot. I know that probably sounds strange but-”
Elmon shook her head, now also smiling warmly at him.
“Not at all. I too have known the burden of being unhappy with one’s life. It can be quite a feeling to be free of it. Your mirth is justified.”
She paused, frowning thoughtfully.
“Judging from your attire, I would guess you worked in a tavern of sorts. The black apron is telling enough. However, your other clothes are rather foreign to my eyes. I have heard that other worlders wield great power. Maybe we can better assess you at the guild in Konia? Rest assured, your days of managing a tavern are well behind you.”
Jake beamed at her and said nothing about wishing he had at least been a manager. Everything she had just said made his heart happier than he could ever remember it being. He felt like a kid again unboxing a badly desired game at Christmas. Maybe just maybe, this all wasn’t a crazy dream. Even if it was, he would be damned if he wasn’t going to live it to the fullest. Overcome with excitement, he took Elmon’s hand in his own and said.
“You’re an angel Elmon. If I do somehow have power, I want you by my side wherever it might take me in this crazy new world.”
Elmon blushed deeply, looking at their hands.
“My, but you are forward, Jake. For now, let’s see what awaits us in Konia. I would be honored to travel with the fabled other worlder if you are indeed one of those legendary people.”
Realizing what he had done, he let go of her hand quickly, also blushing, and took another drag for his cigarette.
“Sorry about that. I got a bit carried away.” He said, a little embarrassed as he blew out a thick cloud of smoke over his head.
“Think nothing of it; there are worse things than an honest forward man.”
Something in the way she said that made Jake’s heart skip a beat. He knew it wasn’t smart flirting with the very first girl he came across, but he just couldn’t help it. Not only was he more fearless with weapons, but apparently, his charisma had also taken a boost from coming to this world. If a girl like her had come up and started talking to him in his other life, he would have never had the courage to be so forward about his feelings.
“I’d very much like to reach Konia before nightfall if that isn’t too much trouble!”
Lyra called back to them in an irritated voice. Jake hadn’t had time to notice, but the temperature was the one thing that had not changed since he had opened his eyes. The black AmonAmarth hoodie he was wearing was keeping warm, but that was with the sun still up. He didn’t know how time worked here, but if it wasn’t too different from when he’d fallen, then it was just now noon.
“When does the sun typically go down, Elmon?” He asked her as they made their way over to where Lyra was grumpily waiting for them at the wooden sign.
“We still have many hours left; the day is young. When we get to Konia, I can show you how we track time and days here.”
Jake nodded, happy to hear that their time seemed to be about the same as the one he was used to, at least so far.
Together the three of them made their way down the snowy trail that seemed to wind on and on for miles through the dense sea of snowy forest. Jake didn’t know what awaited him in Konia, but he was grateful to his luck to have been found by Elmon. A part of him was nervous about the guild. As far as he knew, there was nothing special at all about himself. If all else failed, maybe he could carry the gear for Elmon and be something like a squire to her. His heart sank a little at the idea of such a secondhand role, but anything was better than what he had left behind in that damned parking lot. Come what may, he would make the best of life this time and work as hard as he needed to make his dreams come true. With a small grin on his face, he kept pace with Elmon looking back up to the sky, searching for more dragons.
