Chapter Text
Chapter: 1: Start of a new journey
"Liam, are you done yet?"
"Yeah I just have to finish this", I replied hurriedly while packing the last of my belongings.
My name's Liam Astopher. A 21 year old fourth year engineering student. Since I will be graduating in a few months, I thought of moving out of my parents home.
I had already finished packing most of my essentials. Furniture and the household objects had been delivered to my new apartment yesterday.
I looked at my now empty room in nostalgia. The only object that could be seen is an old wooden cupboard. For curiosities sake I opened the cupboard to inspect if I had left something out.
In a glance most of the things stored in the cupboard were unnecessary junk. As I was about to close it, my eyes went to a small cardboard box.
"What do we have here?", I couldn't remember what I had put in that box and so I opened it to see its contents.
To my surprise the box was full with all of my old Nintendo switch and Pokemon games."Damn! I still have these!? Can't believe after so many years they're still intact. Let's hope these still work as they used to".
I was quite happy with my find. Since my childhood I have been infatuated with Pokemon. It all started with collecting the cards. Which led me to playing all the games of the franchise, collecting all the rare Pokemon and legendaries no matter how hard it was to catch them.
The last game I had played was Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. While I still have the Pokemon Go app on my phone, I had stopped playing because I was busy with my studies.
Humming the opening Pokemon song I swung my backpack in one arm and left my room.
I was vibrating with glee in anticipation of playing these games, since now I have a lot of free time on my hands.
"Shit!"
As I was climbing down the stairs two things happened. First was that one of my shoelaces had become undone making me trip on my own feet. Secondly my grip had slackened enough for the box to go flying off my hands.
In that moment time seemed to slow down to a trickle. The source of all of my fond memories might get broken into pieces. In an act of desperation and idiocy I also jumped off the stairs to catch it.
Good news, I barely caught it with my forefingers. Bad news, now both the box and I were falling headfirst down the stairs.
My head collided with the floor as pain bloomed on my forehead of which I had never felt before. Everything felt hazy and my sight was rapidly fading.
I could feel the warm blood pooling under my head as my sight became slightly redder. The last thing I saw was the game pieces of my Nintendo switch.
Before the last vestiges of my consciousness could leave me I heard a shrieking scream. Probably my mom. 'Sorry mom', was my only thought.
Moments later it felt like I was being hauled by someone, and the distant blaring of an ambulance answered my unasked question.
With each moment that passed I could feel my life slipping away. 'What a pathetic way to die'. 'I wish I could've played with my games before my death', was my only thought before the darkness claimed me.
I don't know how much time had passed in this dark void that I was currently drifting in. It had to be days or even weeks.
I couldn't see anything, I couldn't hear anything and I couldn't feel anything. Only the void existed and nothing else.
In this endless void only one thought ran through my head, the same one which I was having before my death.
"Do you want a second chance?"
The endless cycle of silence had shattered in that moment. I don't know who said it or why they said it, but the spoken words sparked something inside of me. Compelling me to speak up. And so I did.
'YES!'
Everything around me shattered as blinding lights filled my vision.
[Starting System Delta]
[Processing…]
[Processing…]
[Processing…]
"Huhh…?", my consciousness had started to come back slowly as I started hearing strange noises.
[ Trainer Name: Liam Astopher]
[Age: 21]
[Title: Rookie Trainer]
[Processing…]
[Processing…]
[Processing…]
My mind abruptly became clear as coherent thoughts started to form. And then all my memories hit me like a freight train.
"Agghh What the hell is happening?!", I move my head to look around and only find wilderness around me.
[Procuring Sources…]
[Loading…]
[Loading…]
[Loading…]
This time the noises were more clear and understandable. And as I focused on it my vision filled with a HUD made out of blue light like a hologram.
[Sources Procured:]
[Pokémon Scarlet and Violet]
[Pokémon Legends: Arceus]
[Pokémon Scarlet]
[Pokémon Brilliant Diamond]
[Pokémon Sword and Shield]
[Pokémon Platinum]
[Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal]
Pokémon Black and White]
[Pokémon GO]
[Pokémon Sun and Moon]
[Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha]
[Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon]
…
…
…
[Pokémon X and Y]
[Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire]
Every single pokemon game I ever played was displayed on the holographic screen. I still felt disoriented and things are not getting any better.
[Processing Pokemons:]
[Incorporating…]
[Incorporating…]
[Incorporating…]
It took me some time but I finally got control over both my mind and body. And was anticipating what would happen next.
[Incorporating Complete]
[Total Pokemon: 7843]
…
[Inventory Status: Open]
[Inventory item : 13,000]
…
[Best of luck in your journey trainer Liam]
And then abruptly the holographic screen faded away. Like it was never there to begin with.
"Ok, let's try to figure out what's happening. First thing first, I died in an incredibly stupid way. I remember that clearly", I shivered from remembering the endless void. "Secondly, someone (most probably god or whoever he was) brought me back to life. With this strange system".
I nodded to myself at that. Everything was starting to fall together. "This is making out to be a rather cheesy story from a crappy fantasy novel", at that I chuckled to myself.
As I got up from the ground and dusted myself off, I looked around myself once again.
I was standing in a clearing surrounded by large forest trees. I was wearing the same clothes I had before I died. Which were a loose red and black hoodie, black jeans and a pair of black sneakers.
Checking the pocket of my jeans I found my apartment key, my wallet and my… phone!
Hurriedly I pulled out my phone and let a sigh of relief seeing that it was undamaged and still had 32% charge left.
The first thing I wanted to do was call 911, but after seeing that there was no signal I turned off my phone and put it back in my pocket. "It's better to save what power I have and use only when needed".
Other than the clothes on me, the only other belonging I have is my backpack. How the hell did it stay with me in the first place? Well lets see what I can forage from this.
Opening my backpack I found a lot of things. Which were mainly my laptop and chargers, my headphones, another pair of clothes and underwear, a towel, a toothbrush and toothpaste, a compass, a torchlight, a butterfly knife, a lighter and a packet of cigarettes along with a box of chocolates (which was a gift for a friend) and lastly a bottle of mineral water.
"Well at least I have everything I would need to survive in the wilderness. Now, I clearly remember dying and getting resurrected by someone or something and there also was the system, hmm…", I sat back down on the luscious grass thinking deeply.
After a few minutes I made up my mind and got up once again. "Ok, let's try this out. Hope this works. System!"
After uttering the word 'System' the Blue holographic HUD once again showed up displaying my personal information, as if I was a video game character.
Not giving any thought to that my eyes Locked on the option written as pokemon. With much trepidation I put up a shaking finger and tried clicking on it.
The moment my finger touched the glowing hologram, a new set of holograms started appearing in front of me.
[1. Pikachu]
[2. Bulbasaur]
[3. Charmeleon]
…
…
…
The list of Pokémon's seems to go on forever. "Ohh man, if it means what I think it mean… things have just gotten out of hand."
Getting reincarnated and thrown into the middle of nowhere with an (immensely powerful) unknown system. I don't even know if I'm on my Earth or not.
"Lets play it safe and see if it goes well or not", with that I started scrolling the HUD in search of a Pokemon which won't maul me to death the first chance it gets.
[73. Turtwig]
"This should be good enough", the pokemon my finger stopped on was a level 5 unnamed Turtwig. Since it's a grass type Pokemon and a herbivore, there's a chance that it won't attack me outright.
Breath in. Breath out.
"Hope for the best…", and with that I click on the screen. Seconds later green iridescent light came out of the ground and started condensing. It was mesmerizing seeing a quadrupedal form take place right in front of my eyes.
And when I snapped out of my daze, the pokemon had already taken a solid form. It looked the same as in the game and series but much more realistic. It even had the small sapling growing out of it's head. Overall it looked… cute! It was the size of a small puppy with pudgy limbs, obviously it would look adorable.
As I was about to speak up another flash of light filled my vision, and random information started pouring in.
[Pokemon: Turtwig]
[Level: 5]
[Evolves to: Grotle]
[Height: 40.6 cm]
[Type: Grass]
[Weakness: Fire, Poison, Flying, Ice, Bug]
[Ability: Overgrow]
[Weight: 10 kg]
Everything about the pokemon was laid bare before me. Even when and where I caught it (including which game).
Now with more confidence I stepped forward, keeping my stance low and hand up where he could see them. "Hey buddy… What's up? How have you been?"
The Turtwig tilted it's head adorably but also stepped towards me. With a leap of faith I reached with one arm to pet it, and was rewarded with the pokemon leaning into my touch.
"Turt…", it purred so sweetly as I was petting it. And with that all my paranoia and self-control broke. I reached out with both arms and began petting and scratching it incessantly, while showering it with praises.
"Who's a good boy? Who's a good boy? You are. Yes! You are!". This continued on for a while.
Once both me and Turtwig had calmed down. I faced him and asked, "Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Turtwig nodded his head.
Ok now's the important questions. "Do you want to be my pokemon?", I asked nervously hoping against all hope that he wouldn't say no.
The pokemon looked at me as if I had asked him the most stupid question in the world. But eventually nodded his head.
I was so happy that I tried to pick the little fellow up and spin him around. But I failed to even pick him halfway up, because this little fellow weighed fricking 10 kilos!
Putting back the now amused pokemon down I asked another question. "Will you obey my commands?"
And I got an affirmative from the pokemon.
"Ok let's test a few things out shall we".
And with that I started my experiments with my new buddy.
I mainly asked Turtwig to perform a few moves on the nearby trees. And like both the game and series, the moves act out the exact same way. When Turtwig performed [Razor Leaf] on a nearby tree, a chunk of the bark was cut out effortlessly.
We performed a few more experiments. But all of them went the same way I thought they would.
It was already getting dark once we were done. "Ok, one last thing. Can you return back to the PokeBall? system? Or whatever".
In reply the small pokemon just shrugged.
"Ok then let's try this… Turtwig return!", as I said the grass type Pokemon once again turned into moats of green light and disappeared. "I actually didn't think that would work".
But with the absence of Turtwig I had remembered a glaring point that I forgot. I was surrounded by a forest, which had gotten much more darker and quieter than it was a few minutes earlier. Even the crickets had stopped chirping.
The fear I had forgotten came back twofold. The forest was never a safe place to stay. "Making Turtwig return wasn't such a good idea now that I think about it".
But the little pokemon wouldn't have been much of a help because of his small stature and low level, if some wild life had decided to attack us then.
Without wasting more daylight I once again opened up the system and started scrolling. "I need something that is both strong and wouldn't look out of place".
[136. Arcanine (Lex)]
My scrolling ended on a very familiar pokemon that I used to play with. With out further ado I called him out.
Much like Turtwig he also materialized from moats of orange glowing lights. And like Turtwig another flash of light filled my vision.
[Pokemon: Arcanine]
[Level : 86]
[Weakness: Rock, Ground, Water]
[Height: 2.1 m]
[Type: Fire]
[Evolves from: Growlithe]
[Ability: Flash Fire, Intimidate]
[Category: Legendary]
[Weight: 155 kg]
No sooner had the pokemon materialized, it jumped and pounced upon me. I was frozen in fear and so couldn't even try to move away from the larger pokemon.
As the large canine brought its maw closer to my face, I thought it was about to rip my head off. But rather than that as the maw of the beast came closer it started… licking me?
I was now laughing hysterically as the pokemon kept licking my face like a house dog. "I missed you too old friend", I told Lex while scratching him on the muzzle.
The reason I chose Lex was because he was quite strong and didn't look much different from a very (Very) large dog. But the main reason was because of his trait of being loyal.
"Ok, buddy I know that you're happy to see me. But we have to get out of this forest before the sun fully sets. Can you help me with that buddy?"
Lex bark loudly and enthusiastically nodded.
I stood up and dusted myself off from any lingering dirt. "Then let's go. The sooner we are out of here the better".
With that Lex started sniffing around the clearing. A minute later he barked indicating me to follow him through the dense foliage. And with new found hope I started following the larger beast.
It took us an hour of walking to get out of the wilderness and onto a mud packed road, which had signs of people passing through.
"Great job buddy! Without you I would've been screwed", I praised the much larger pokemon in appreciation and started scratching him on the muzzle.
I was really thankful to Lex, because we had to take a lot of winding paths, that I would take normally. I wanted to reward him somehow, but I didn't have anything tha… hmmm.
"System. Open inventory!", I called out. No sooner had I said that the blue screen appeared showing me my inventory items. There were a lot of options, but I locked on the one labeled as Berries and clicked on it.
[1. Cheri Berry]
[2. Chesto Berry]
[3. Pecha Berry]
[4. Razz Berry]
…
…
…
Clicking on the one labeled as Razz Berry, I inputed the number of berries I wanted. Soon enough, in a flash of light three razz Berries had appeared on the palm of my hand.
Nodding to myself in satisfaction I offered the berries to Lex. "Here you go buddy. You deserve this."
The pokemon didn't waste any moment and gobbled the berries with gusto. Chuckling at his enthusiasm I started patting him.
From there on we continued walking on the dirt road for a while. The sun was also about to set, bathing the world in a red hue. As we were walking Lex stopped and turned around to look backwards.
Soon I got my answer as to why. Six men on horseback along with four mule drawn carts were heading our way. 'Using horses and mules in this age of day?', it gave credence to that wherever I was, it wasn't anywhere near home.
I turned to my companion, "Lets wait for them to come closer and ask for information".
Lex barked in confirmation.
Third Person's P.O.V:
The six of them had been hired as guards by a merchant from the Reach. Their job was to safely escort the supply carts to maiden pool. Since the pay was good they accepted the job.
Even so hiring six guards for three carts was too much… but not without reason. Recently banditry in the riverlands had grown a lot. No merchant wants to travel alone from the fear of getting attacked by bandits.
They have been traveling for the last two weeks without much rest. It was quite boring to say the least. But soon this arduous trip would end, since maiden pool was just a days travel away. The prospect of getting paid got the men to smile.
"Halt!", one of the guard's shouted as everyone stopped in their tracks.
"What's the matter? Did something happen? Are we about to get ambushed?!", the merchant sitting on the largest cart asked fearfully.
"Nah, at least I don't think so. Its a man standing in the middle of the road alongside a- The SEVEN HELLS the fuck! Is that a fuckin LION?!"
All of the men now solely focused on the giant beast. It was larger than any beast they had ever seen. By height alone it was taller than most war horses.
It looked like a mix between a lion and a tiger. Where the beasts whole body was covered in orange fur with stripes of black on it. And much like a lion it had mane the colour of white.
"Hello gentleman."
The voice from the man besides the beast broke them out of their fearful daze. They had completely forgotten about the man and were in the process of pulling out their swords.
Much like the beast, the man was also quite odd. He was about 5'6'' tall with a mop of cleanly cut black hair pushed backwards. He had brown eyes, and was wearing the strangest of form fitting clothes they had ever seen. It was obvious this man wasn't from Westeros. He also had a strange accent to his speech.
But most surprising thing was that the man wasn't scared in the slightest, while standing next to such a terrifying beast as if it was a household animal.
Getting themselves under control one of the guards stepped forward and ask,"Who are you? And why are you baring our path?"
The man smiled cheekily and gave a shallow bow, "Hello, my name's Liam Astopher. I'm kinda lost as to where I am currently. Would you be kind enough to provide me with some information?"
All the men looked incredulous at the strange request from this strange man. But another of the guards came forward. "Is that thing… yours?", the man asked with trepidation.
The strange man now known as Liam looked at the guard confused. But soon got what they were hinting at. "Ohh, him, yeah his my companion. Don't mind him much, he's harmless…".
"Grrrr…", the beast growled at one of the guards who had their sword half out of the scabbard.
'The Fuckin thing just growled', was the thought from everyone.
"…as long as you don't antagonize or threaten him", the man finished sheepishly.
After a few minutes of discussing between themselves one of the guards came forward once again. "What do you want to know?"
The man now in high spirits asked, "Where are we currently standing?"
Again they were perplexed by the strange question but still answered, "We're currently in the Riverlands, a days travel away from Maiden Pool."
"Hmm… and this 'Riverlands' which country is it a part of?"
"What do you mean by 'country'?", the guard asked perplexed.
The man now was more frazzled. "I mean… forget that, which continent are we on?"
That they could answer. "This is the continent of Westeros".
As soon as the words flowed out of the guards mouth, the whole demeanour of the man changed. As if lightning had struck him. The horror on his face was palpable."T-this is the continent of Westeros?"
"Yes".
"The same one which is near Essos?"
"Yes".
"The same one where the Targaryens rule over?"
"Well… they used to rule over in the past. But yes".
The man breathed in deeply. "Excuse me for a moment please". The man turned back with shakey legs and took a few steps away from them.
The man breathed out and then…
"MOTHERFUCKEEEERRRRRRRF!"
Liam's P.O.V :
Out of all the worlds. Of all the universes. I had to fucking end up on Westeros. A world with no technological development and with even lower morals.
Like for fucks sake it was Game of Thrones, where kindness gets you killed faster than any poison ever could.
A society where the people born in power decide what is right and what is wrong. And those same people would spill rivers of blood for the smallest amount of wealth.
The so-called Lords might say that their duty is to the realm and its people, but in reality they don't give two shits about their small folk. They are nothing but power hungry parasites.
'And I have to survive in their society, which in a few years would delve into an all out war'. I was still in shock from learning which hell my fate had landed me in.
I would have preferred the pokemon world over this any day. 'And how can I forget the ice zombie apocalypse'. I chuckled at myself deprecating thoughts.
"Grrrr", Lex nudged me with his muzzle. Seeing me down made him sad too. So he was trying for a while to get me out of my funk.
"Thanks buddy, I'm feeling ok now. Here, have this", I offered up another berry which I had pulled out of my inventory.
I looked around myself but it seems no one saw it, or to put it simply no one other than me can see the system.
I was currently riding on the back of Lex, traveling with the people we had met up with earlier. After figuring out where I was I requested the men to let me accompany them, since I was a foreigner and didn't know the land as they do.
At first they were quite reluctant to let me join. But the merchant being intrigued by both me and Lex had said that we could accompany them. But if only I swear upon the gods that, me and my Pokemon wouldn't bring any harm to them. But I could see the guards still being cautious of me, or better of Lex.
The merchant seems to be quite a devout follower of the seven. As he gives a prayer after each hour has passed.
Night had fallen upon them like a curtain of darkness. The men were saying that they would be putting up camp a little ahead.
Soon we reached the spot and everyone started disembarking and preparing camp.
Me and Lex had excused ourselves and sat a little farther away under a tree. I closed my eyes and leaned my back towards the tree, trying to digest the events of today.
Lex also plopped down beside me and put his head on my lap, as my fingers ran through his wild mane.
An hour later I heard footsteps coming closer to me. As I opened my eyes I saw the merchant coming towards me with two steaming wooden bowls.
The man was definitely nervous yet continued walking towards me. Once close enough the man offered the bowls of porridge and bread. "We had some l-leftover, so I thought you and your friend should eat some too".
Nodding while saying "thank you" in a low tone, I accepted the bowls and put one in front of Lex for him to eat. Lex didn't waste any time and dug in.
The merchant slowly crouched down and sat on the grass opposite us. Minutes passed as the man was just watching us eating contently.
Breaking the awkward silence I asked, "What year is it?"
"Hugh?", the man let out a confused sound.
"I asked what year is it?"
"Ohh, it's 289 AC the start of summer".
"Hmmmm". 'The same year the grayjoy rebellion happened', I thought to myself grimly.
"You really aren't from Westeros", he said to me.
"Ohh… What gave it away?", I asked jokingly.
The merchant chuckled as well,"My name's Hamel, I'm an apprentice merchant. And you are?"
My entire vision was filled with a bright flash as a new screen of information appeared before me.
[Name: Hamel]
[Age: 26]
[Occupation: Apprentice merchant]
[Current thoughts: Intrigued, Scared, Worried]
[Potential: * * *]
It was quite surprising to see another man's personal information without even prompting.
As the silence was getting awkward, I decided to reply. "I'm Liam Astopher, an engineering student".
"What now?"
"Doesnt matter, you wouldn't get it", I waved his question off. "Where are you from?"
The man now known as Hamel replied, "Who me? I'm from the Reach of Longtable". Hamel looked at me curiously, "Where do you come from? If You mind me asking".
Even if I were to tell you the truth, you wouldn't believe me. No one will. But… what should I tell him? Soon people will ask me the same questions. I need a place where no one can trace me to, and call me on my lie but where….
'Yes, that place should work nicely'.
"I come from Kanto, a kingdom beyond the sunset sea", I replied to while my face gave nothing away.
"There is a kingdom beyond the sunset sea?", Hamel sounded bewildered from hearing the new peace of information.
"Yes, but the kingdom is too far away, and the sea is treacherous for sinking any ship that wishes to pass through it".
"But then how did you come here and why?", he asked me perplexed.
I corked an eyebrow at the timid man, who asked far too many questions for my liking.
"It's… complicated. I was sent here against my will and for reasons that are beyond me. The ship I was on had sank before we could dock. But I was lucky enough to survive by floating on a driftwood, that brought me here", I lied through my teeth while not giving away anything.
"I'm sorry to hear that", the man gave me his condolences, which to me sounded sincere. Suddenly as if remembering something important, the man clasped both his palms in a prayer and started mumbling softly.
Once Hamel had finished praying I asked, "It seems you're quite the devout follower of your gods".
As my words registered, the expression on Hamel's face became solemn. "It's nothing like that. It has been three years since my wife and I have been married. The two times she tried giving birth, both babes had been stillborn. Four moons ago my wife told me that she was once again with a child. When I asked the septon for advice, he told me to pray to the mother after each hour had passed. He told me that if I can do this then a healthy babe will be born."
I felt pretty bad after hearing his story. It must have been hard. "I'm sorry for asking".
Hamel waved his hands frantically in order to dispute my statement, "No, you have nothing to be sorry about. And I still have hope left. This time the babe will be born healthy and hale".
'Hope' is such a fickle word, yet… "I hope so too".
The amiable atmosphere had persisted after changing our stories, and an understanding was reached.
"I wanted to ask this for a long time but, what kind of beast is that? I have never seen or heard anything like it?", he asked curiosity lacing his voice.
After a few minutes of contemplation I decided to speak with a few half truths mixed in. "His name is Lex. He is an Arcanine, a mix breed between the summer tigers and wild lions. Arcanine's are big, strong and one of the most loyal you could ever find."
When I looked at Lex I could see him giving me a glare (Lear?) when I said 'mix breed'. But looked quite proud at himself when I said big, strong and loyal.
The look in Hamel's eye's were one of amazement,"Really? How old were you when you found him?."
I had actually forgotten when I met the big guy. But when I called (summoned?) him out of the system, the information of when, where and how seemed to be highlighted on my mind.
"I was probably thirteen or fourteen when I found the big guy in a forest called the 'emerald forest'. He was just a pup then not even reaching ankles", I chuckled at the fond memory as Lex jabbed me in the ribs.
The silence had persisted for a time and was broken by Hamel. "Can… can I pet him… please?"
I sent Lex a look of amusement which he returned with a quirked eyebrow. How a Pokemon could quirk an eyebrow was beyond me. But slowly Lex got up and approached the timid man.
Hamel seeing that the beast had approached him and didn't bite his head off, gathered his courage and gently caressed Lex's wild mane."…What a majestic beast".
The surreal moment was broken by the sound of a shrill scream and sound of metal clashing against metal.
I quickly got up and ran in the direction of the camp just to see that chaos had ensued. The tents were on fire, as seventeen men in burgundy clothes had surrounded the camp.
Two of the sellswords who were on guard duty, had been the first to be killed. And as I came in, another one was stabbed through by a spear. The other three sellswords were still trying to defend themselves from the continuous attacks from the bandits.
"Ahhhh".
One of the bandits had noticed me and was charging with rusted axe, intending to cut my head off. Seeing death coming at me once again, I did the thing that any normal human being would do. I froze. I was so terrified that my suppressed memories had triggered, making me freeze.
As the man was preparing to swing his axe, an orange blur rammed into the bandit severing his right arm from his elbow. Before the man could even register the pain from his missing limb, Lex bit the bandit on the neck and ripped out his jugular.
There Lex stood covered in blood atop the gorey remains of the bandit. One of the bandit archers had taken the opportunity and shot an arrow at Lex.
In a show of speed, Lex caught the arrow midflight with his maw and crushed it.
"GRRRRAAAAAAAA!", Lex let out an ear piercing scream making everyone freeze not being able to move a muscle.
Slowly the now blood covered pokemon (who looked much more terrifying) turned and looked me in the eye, asking for instructions.
Suddenly an invisible force beared down upon me, as a feeling of clam coldness enveloped me. I felt much lighter, even though I just witnessed men get killed brutally and would have died myself if not for Lex.
I looked around myself just to find the lowest of society's scum, who would kill and pillage just for the fun of it. These people me in a heartbeat if they got the chance. They don't deserve mercy. I looked back at Lex. With ice in my voice I only said two words. "Kill them".
It wasn't a command but a verdict. Before the bandits could figure out what was happening, Lex was upon ripping them limb from limb.
They couldn't do anything but watch as one by one all of them were brutally ripped apart. One of the bandits dived forward in order to slash at the beast with his sword. But the cold steel just bounced off as it impacted the body of the beast.
Not having the time to back out, the bandit was bisected by the beasts sharp claw.
The couldn't do anything against the rampaging monster. Because this wasn't a fight but a massacre.
While the sellswords were doing much better than before, though one of them had let his guard down and paid the price with his life.
The remaining two sellswords were facing off against three bandits. Both sellswords were working in tandem. They had been successful in slashing through one of the bandits eye giving his partner the chance to finish the bandit off.
But that had been a mistake, since the strike left him wide open for a counterstrike. The other bandit took this opportunity and swung.
Thankfully the sellsword was skillful enough to pary sideways, so that he only lost three fingers rather than his life. But it was obvious to see that he was out of the fight.
As the last tall sellsword was about to engage the lone bandit. Another bandit who had been hiding this entire time, jumped on the sellswords back and started choking him. Taking the opportunity as it was, the other bandit came forward to swing at the sellsword.
The sellsword was lucky enough to pary the slash but he was running out of air.
Thinking quickly I opened up my bag and took out my butterfly knife. I waited till the perfect moment and ran towards the sellsword. Before the new bandit could register my presence, I shoved my butterfly knife into his eye.
"Aghhhaaaaahg…", the bandits screams reverberated through the surroundings, when it stopped the dead body slid down the sellswords back and flopped on the ground lifelessly.
As I pulled out my knife the blood rushed out of it. I just looked at it with my hollow uncaring eyes, with coldness I never thought I possessed. I just murdered a man in cold blood, yet I don't feel a thing.
I could feel the disgust rushing in at my actions, but every time it reached a certain level it would get suppressed forcefully. It felt wrong… yet I couldn't dispute its usefulness.
The sellsword had finished the remaining bandit and was now looking at me. "Thanks for the assistance", the man said with a shit eating grin.
From the side Lex came covered in blood and gore, barking like a happy go lucky golden retriever that wanted to be praised for doing its job.
I just laughed at the absurd situation humorlessly while thinking, 'What kind of sick hell had I just landed myself into'.
No victory could be found in the battle against the bandits. Although all of them had been either killed by the sellswords or (mostly) by Lex.
But it wasn't without any cost as four out of six of the sellswords died. Alongside one of the two helpers who had accompanied Hamel had died in the midst of chaos.
Other than that the only damage that occurred was done to the camp and supplies they carried.
That night all of us gathered in one place and tried to get some sleep, while feeling relieved that Lex would be the one keeping guard over us.
In the morning we ate what was salvageable from the burning tents and prepared ourselves to move out.
But before that all of us (even Lex) helped dig the graves for the deceased.
While for the bandits, we took everything that could be considered valuable and only dug a hole big enough to bury all of them. Hamel recited a prayer of the deceased, that he had once seen a septon perform.
And with that we left the camp in order to reach Maiden Pool. It was mid afternoon as the sun shined brightly over us.
Unlike before, this time I was also riding on a horse, as Lex followed besides me. The horse belonged to one of the deceased sellswords.
I had only rode thrice on a horse. But those were pretty hard to control without their riders. But this one seems to be quite well taught. It took me very little effort to make it move in the direction I wanted.
It was a tall black horse, which had a sheen to its coat. Hamel gave me this one because he didn't want Lex to get tired while carrying me.
After yesterday's events all of them were relieved to have Lex with them, rather than being scared. It seems that witnessing him kill a dozen armed men easily had instilled respect and admiration for the pokemon.
Hamel had said that it would take another hour or so for us to reach the outskirts of Maiden Pool.
"It seems the horse had taken a liking to you".
I turned to see the tall sellsword coming at me from the opposite side of Lex. He was quite tall, reaching 6' in hight. He had a clean shaven face alongside silky long black hair that was hanging on his shoulders.
"She is a very good girl", I replied keeping it short.
"That she is", the sellsword agreed. "She belonged to Golfurd. The bastard took good care of her, and never stopped blabbering about it. I hope you also take good care of her".
I raised an eyebrow at that, "Won't the belongings of the deceased be returned to their families. That's what Hamel told me".
The sellsword just grinned at me. "That is, if he had any family. He was raised as an orphan, so he doesn't have any family."
"What about friends?", I asked.
"Your looking at him. The bastard was one of a cunt, having beef with everyone he met. I was the only one who even talked to him".
"Then you keep it", I told him not getting where this was going.
"I would, but the shitty horse once flinged horseshit on me. The bastard Golfurd laughed at me for an entire moon. So I hate this shitty horse and it hates me. While I could sell it. The price of horses had gone down recently, so selling it would just be a waste", the man shrugged.
"Then what are you gonna do with it?"
"Hmm… since the horse clearly doesn't mind you riding it, why not keep it. That way my debt to you will be paid", he said with the same kind of expression you would expect from a con artist.
I was starting to get annoyed with this conversation. It was obvious that the man was 'beating around the bush' as to speak. "I don't like things that I get for free, and there wasn't any debt to begin with. Anyone would've done the same thing in my shoes".
"I wouldn't".
That caught me off guard. And so I turned towards him, the jovial expression from the mans face had vanished.
"If it was me I wouldn't. That night if it weren't for you and your beast, I would have been the first to flee. Hells I had made my mind the moment I saw their numbers. Then it would have been a gamble of if I would've lived or died. So, yeah I do owe you a debt".
I might have judged him too harshly. As a smirk appeared on my face. "Even if you do, you aren't a Lannister. And I still won't take anything for free".
The man laughed heartily. "No I'm not a Lannister. But you must pay your dues". The man looks at Lex, "Say how about I give this horse and some extra coins in exchange for your beast?"
All the mirth in my eyes had disappeared and the cold feeling came rushing through once again. "Lex isn't for sale. Mention this once again, and I'll make you suffer".
"GRRRrrr!", besides me Lex let out a guttural snarl.
"Woah!? Hey! hey, it was just a joke, I swear. After watching what your beast could do, I wouldn't think of it even in my dreams".
I gave the man my most serious stare. "Then stop speaking in circles and get to the point. What . Do. You. Want?"
The sellsword seemed to be surprised at my straight forwardness. But resolved himself soon enough. "Join me".
"What?", I asked not understanding what he was saying.
"Become a sellsword, and join me."
"Why should I?", I asked guardedly.
"Because its clear to see your a foreigner in this land with a powerful beast. And by the looks of it you don't have any coins. People will notice this, powerful people. In Westeros coin is what makes or breaks a man. And being a sellsword pays quite well, if you choose the right jobs that is", the man explained.
Its true that above all I needed money and I needed it fast. While there are many ways for me to earn, by producing modern day goods and selling them. But producing itself would cost a lot of money.
"Say I become a sellsword and join you, but how can I trust you not to stab me in the back later?", I asked while scrutinizing every minute differences on his expression.
"Its quite the opposite actually. Rather than trusting me, it's me who could trust you more to watch my back. I had said this once but if it weren't for you, I would have been dead. So if you were to put your trust in me, I will keep it with my life", he replied with sincerity.
For a few moments I just looked at him weighing the pros and cons. Taking a deep breath I came to a decision. "Alright I'll join you. But if you ever go against your word, your dead".
"Then it's settled. We can start looking for work once we reach Maiden Pool. By the way the names Rohn. But you can call me partner", the man now known as Rohn said cheekily.
I stared at him unamused. But still introduced myself as a basic courtesy, "I'm Liam Astopher. And you can call me… Liam".
"Nahh… that's just so boring though", the overgrown man whined.
I corked an eyebrow at this new side of the man and asked, "Then what will you call me".
The man started smiling impishly and replied, "The Beast-Master".
And so the story of The Beast-Master starts. And soon the entire Westeros would hear of it.