AN: If you haven't read the Prologue yet, you should. Without it the beginning of this chapter will leave you confused.

As I opened my eyes I could see wooden walls. I didn’t care about how I suddenly had a body, I didn’t care about how I was suddenly transported to another location. I just wanted to remember that voice at all costs. It sounded oddly familiar and made me feel as if nothing in the world but that voice mattered. At the same time, it had a motherly feeling to it, like a mother welcoming its child after a long journey.

After that feeling finally faded I realized that everything seemed far bigger than I remembered it to be. The walls were gigantic and the roof seemed to be dozens of meters high. Unbelieving I started to walk around, surveying the area.

The sound of my bare feet touching the floor were the only thing that I heard as I looked around. Is this a dream? I had to be sure so I pinched myself as hard as I could. After a horrible pain confirmed that this wasn’t a dream I walked back to where I ‘woke up’.

As I maneuvered past gigantic chairs I heard loud footsteps coming closer. Out of nowhere I was grabbed and lifted up by a giant…child?

“There you are!” He said.

He started to run towards the door which I had previously overlooked while holding onto me. After opening it we passed some other doors as we quickly approached something that looked like a big hole in the wall.

“WHAT THE HELL IS TAKING YOU SO LONG! Hurry the fuck up!” An impatient voice shouted.

The giant child was startled and ran even faster until we went past the hole, stepping outside.

Farmlands filled my vision, the golden grain was nearly glowing and a light breeze caused it to gently sway. A cloudless blue sky covered the heavens and I could feel the warm rays of the sun. The only thing I did was stare after seeing this scene which seemed to have come out of an ancient painting. This is definitely not the world I came from. Scenes like this have ceased to exist after the 23st century, after earth was abandoned due to heavy pollution and destruction of most ecosystems which caused the oxygen in the atmosphere to slowly vanish.

The humans of that time tried everything they could to keep the earth habitable but the destruction they had caused was too heavy. The remaining colonies favored efficiency over aesthetics and genuine nature became something that only the rich could afford.

“Why are you stopping? I said hurry up!” The same impatient voice told at us.

Immediately my attention was drawn to a powerfully built middle aged man who was combing through the fields with a sword in hand.

Are we still in the middle ages for him to have a sword? Maybe it is a fake. Yeah, it has to be a fake. As we stepped out of the hole he noticed us and gestured for us to come to him. Now that I look closer I think this man is also a giant! No, that would be impossible, they look like normal humans. I think the other giant carrying me is just a kid, which would mean that I am most likely a toddler.

The kid that was carrying me sprinted to the middle aged man until he was right at his side.

“I got him! Why did you tell me to bring him here?” the kid asked.

The man sighed as he ordered him to put me down. After that he took one of the sickles that hung on a nearby rack and started to cut the grain down. Taking one of the cut off stalks he started talking.

“Son, do you know what this is? This is our lifeblood, the fruit of a whole year filled with labor. The father of your father already planted the same seeds, cut the same wheat for a single reason. Do you know what it is?” As his surprisingly deep voice said that he looked deeply into the eyes of that kid.

Kid: “Yes, to feed the citizens and warriors of Frumentum so our glorious city can continue to exist!” The confused looking kid replied.

The man sighed once again and said: “Yes, it is. Normally you would have continued my work but it seems that you have talent in cultivating. As a dutiful citizen of Frumentum I have to send you to the Academy in order for you to grow up to be a strong warrior capable of defending our lands from those wretched beasts.” In the last few seconds his eyes became slightly moist. I wonder why, though. Shouldn’t he be proud if his son is going to protect us from danger? And what is this academy he speaks of?

After understanding finally dawned on the kids face it shouted: “No! I want to stay here and tend to these lands just like you!”

Though the man looked sad, he shouted: “ENOUGH, you ARE GOING TO attend the Academy, do you understand? Now follow these gentlemen. They will bring you safely to the place where they will train you.”

As soon as he ended his sentence two men appeared from the fields. Their bodies were, in contrast to the middle aged man, lithe, but contained explosive power that waited to be unleashed. Both of them had brown hair and rough faces. One carried a big warhammer on his back whilst the other one carried a greatsword. Their weapons seemed far too heavy for them but they moved as if they weighed nothing. The thing that intrigued me though was that none of them wore any armor.

While I was still confused they walked up to the kid, whose face was now full of tears, and gestured for him to follow them. Though he seemed unwilling at first he followed them reluctantly. I watched them as they walked down a primitive road that wasn’t even paved.

After they couldn’t be seen anymore the middle aged man, whom I suspected to be my father, looked at me and I swear I could see moistness in his eyes.

“Now that your brother is gone you have to take over his position, ok? It’s just you and me now, John. Just you *hic* and me.” His nose seemed to have become stuffy as he started to sniff.

He nearly started to cry, but seemed to calm down before he could do so. Picking me up, he carried me back into the room I was in when I came to my senses and plopped onto a wooden bed without a mattress. He quickly stripped down to his undergarments and laid himself on it.

In the end he wept himself to sleep with me in his arms. When sleep finally settled in he just repeatedly whispered a name:

George