A Lord for Men

The Chapel of Anticipation

Your eyes flew open with a gasp as you weakly pushed yourself off the floor.

"Where am I?" You spoke internally, looking around the room until your eyes locked with the figure of a person.

"Perhaps she'll tell me where exactly I am." You smiled underneath your helmet, standing up and slowly making your way over so as not to scare her, only to stop dead in your tracks as you saw the woman up close.

She was dead.

You were alone. No comrades; no information about your whereabouts. Just your trusty katana on your hip and a bow on your back. Well, you'd make do. There was no point in complaining.

As you turned to leave, you couldn't help the feeling that this woman would have held some significance to you... Well, it was too late now. Best leave the dead to rest.

You turned and walked over to the front doors, pushing them open and revealing the new lands you'd be exploring.

The Lands Between.

Immediately, your eyes lock on the humongous golden tree.

"That's not obvious at all." Chuckling slightly, you knew that's where you'd head... As soon as you made your way off this island.

Well, there was only one way: cross the bridge connecting one side to the other. But you couldn't help but feel on edge. It was lonely and quiet—almost too quiet for your taste.

Tip Toeing over the bridge, you saw an open area with a large statue of a woman overlooking it all. If anything screamed a fight, it was this place.

And, lo and behold, your intuition was correct. Years in the Lands of Reed honed your senses, and you were able to predict something would happen upon your arrival.

Seemingly from the heavens fell a foe with a loud THUD, sending shockwaves through the air.

What you didn't expect was to be faced with an abomination. A creature that very clearly had parts of it that didn't belong—grafted onto it to strengthen the creature, and you'd be next.

No. You could tell that many had fallen to this creature, but you wouldn't. This wouldn't be your end, not like this.

You placed one hand on your sheath and another on the hilt of your blade. If this creature wanted your parts, they'd lose a few of their own.

You'd faced skilled warriors, but this wasn't the same. This grafted abomination was unpredictable, swinging in every direction.

You dodged, you rolled, and you jumped over every attack you could, quickly slashing off any limbs you could, but they seemed endless.

Your efforts were working, but you were tiring, and the damage inflicted on you was also beginning to affect your ability.

Thinking on your feet, you managed to stagger the Scion, but instead of inflicting further damage, you ran to a nearby tree that reached over the edge of the island, climbing it as quickly as you could.

There is no shame in self-preservation.

The creature was weakening, and thankfully for you, you had a long-range option. You knew carrying a bow would come in handy.

Raining down from above, you chipped away at the Scion's remaining health with fire arrows, and eventually, the beast fell.

Letting out an audible sigh, you leaned back against the bark of the tree, trying to catch your breath and soothe your injuries.

"I just need a minute." You mentally spoke, your heavy breaths easing with each passing second, until you jumped off the tree down to the 'arena.'

Walking around, you picked up the swords and shield that the Grafted Scion had been using. "These aren't my style, but there may still come a time where they will come in handy."

Once everything was strapped securely onto you and the extra items were placed into your inventory, you walked toward the end of the island.

"It's a cliff... W-What am I supposed to do he—"

You were swiftly interrupted the moment the floor below you broke and you fell.

"This is even more embarrassing than dying to that monster. Out of everything, it's gravity that kills me."

And those were your last thoughts. This was it. Death on your first day here... Or so you thought.