“Hello in there? Anyone here?”

“Tyr, I don’t think no one be in there.”

“Shut up Denny. Hello! Max? Are you in there?” the voice grew louder, finally waking Max up.

Max looked around. He could tell it was morning, or even noon. He found Clammy, she was shaking, obviously afraid of the people outside. Max stood up dusting himself off. He started at the door, a hand shot up and grabbed him. He turned and looked at Clammy, confused.

“Be careful, not everyone in this world is as caring as you.” She whispered softly. Max nodded his head. He remembered the condition she was in yesterday; something had done that to her. She had every reason to be wary of people. Max pushed open the door and saw two males and a female. The males were wearing what he considered “adventuring” gear.

The first male, obviously the leader, was tall. Maybe 6 feet. Dark short hair that matched his brown eyes. He held a slight smirk, it made him look arrogant. But Max figured in this instance he was the savior and he had every right to be confident. He wore two swords both with black pommel and dark brown scabbards. Max guessed that he was a physical specialized adventurer. The other male, who Max assumed is Denny, was Tyr’s complete opposite. He has long dirty unkempt blonde hair and acne covering his hairline and nose. He was wearing robes made of dark purple fabric. This made Max think he was a mage or caster of some kind. He carried a wooden staff. Thick at the top with intricate carvings tapering downwards. The staff reminded him of the Minimap Runestone. Denny held a creepy smile. He honestly reminded Max of some people he went to highschool with.

The last was the girl. She had dark skin; Max would have considered her heritage from one of the Middle Eastern countries. She held a bow and quiver. Her clothing made Max do a double take. She was wearing rags. She had no shoes on. No protection. Nothing. She also carried most of the knapsacks. Max could see a red tattoo drawn on her right hand. She tried to hide it when she noticed him looking at her. She also never made eye contact. Obvious signs of abuse. Tyr stepped forward giving a slight bow. The others quickly followed.

“Well met, Lost Lord Max. I am Tyr, this is my brother Denny, we are The Hollow Bringers, copper rated adventuring team at your service.” During this whole exchange, he never dropped his smirk.

Max regarded him for a moment. Then the other two. The girl was obviously a slave of some sort. Max knew the term Porter would fit her. Someone whose job it is to simply carry stuff. Max decided to roll the dice.

“And she is?” Max asked not dropping eye contact. Voice filled with fake confidence.

“She is unimportant my Lord. She is merely a servant.”

“Why is your servant wearing nothing but rags.”

“She has a… debt, My Lord.” Tyr replied, straightening himself.

“I see. Clammy!” Max called, “let's get going.”

Clammy walked out of the cabin, over the dried blood at the doorstep, and grimaced. She saw the slave clear as Max did and made a face of worry. She moved her eyes over the brothers. She lingered on the oily one for a bit longer. Max gave her the best look of reassurance he could without the others seeing. She walked beside Max, giving a small bow.

“What not going to introduce yourself?” Tyr said with a scoff.

“She was just attacked by... Goblins? Leave her alone. She's had it rough.” Max interjected.

“Ah! Yes, they can be nasty little buggers. Lesterwood has an open bounty on them. They are considered a breeding race. Meaning they rape any and all so they can to reproduce. They don’t have females from what I am told. I am terribly sorry.” Tyr explained, stunning Max for a moment.

"Alright! Here's what we are going to do! We are going to walk to the main road. It's about three miles in that direction." Tyr pointed east, "it's going to take until nightfall to reach the tree line of the farms. We will camp there and make the rest of the journey tomorrow."

"The main road is east?" Max asked, confused from Iris’s earlier direction.

"Correct my Lord," Tyr said. The slave woman's eyes glanced up.

"East? What? No. Just head down the river. You will be able to see the city in the distance quickly. Why are you going to go to the main road?" Iris asked.

Realization flickered in Max’s mind. He was being lead away from the city. These people intended to harm him and Clammy. The look on Denny’s face when Clammy walked out of the cabin should have been a good enough sign, but this confirmed it.

"Alright Tyr, lead the way." Max hoped that Iris would get the message. Tyr smiled and turned.

"Oh, that bastard! Sir! The rats are leading Max away from the city. Yes Sir...I think he realized something was wrong. Right Max? Say anything to confirm anything at all!" Iris sounded very concerned.

"So uhh, Denny. Are you a mage?" Max asked although he knew the answer.

"Yes! Yes! I am a [Lightning Mage]. You know what lightning is right?" Denny's smile didn't falter.

"Yes, I know what lightning is." Max said, adding, "My world had no magic. Could you maybe show me some magic later?"

Denny's smile elongated. "I could teach you, but you would have to pay... Do you have anything to?"

"I've got some gold... would that work?"

"Mhm... how much?"

"How's say... Ten gold? "

Max saw Clammy’s eyes dart to him, slightly shaking her head. He just winked back.

"Twenty-five gold" Denny demanded.

"Twenty-five... but you have to explain it well."

"Alrighty. Next time we take a break." Denny's smile couldn't get bigger.

"Twenty-five gold? For a tier one lightning spell? Max that's not even worth two gold. My boss talked to the city guards. They are sending a unit to you. Stay alive Max. Do not let them know about the Racial traits. They will kill you for them."

Max had to think of a plan. His life might depend on it.

They began walking. At first Tyr seemed nice and calm. But after Clammy, who was barefooted, started bleeding similar to how Max did two days prior, Max lost all hope for the brothers. Tyr stated that they should have left her back in the cabin if she was going to be such trouble. They didn’t sign up to baby sit. That she was just dead weight. After the second belittling, Max stopped the group and removed the boots the brothers had given him.

Iris had prepared the brothers with basic gear and clothing for a single extra person. He was given a thick pair of leather boots, a cloak similar to his last, and a floppy hat. After he argued with Clammy for a few minutes about accepting the boots, he tore up his new cloak and tied the scraps to his feet. He gave Clammy a wink and a smile after he noticed her staring at him.

They continued to walk, and Tyr made off handed comments about the forest and how it was not safe for children. Which, to Max’s surprise, Clammy agreed with. He wasn’t surprised at the subject matter, but rather that Clammy choose to speak to the man. Denny, meanwhile, kept arching electricity off himself and muttering. Max wasn’t quite sure what he was doing, but he figured it was rather normal since no one else seemed to be reacting.

As they ventured further from the safety of the cabin, Clammy became increasingly frightened. She twisted and turned at every sound. When Max asked her about it, she replied with, “They died this direction.” That put Max on edge, along with the others. Goblins, as Tyr explained, were small bipedal monsters. They breed fast and died faster. They lived their entire lives in just a few years, if the were lucky. The ate everything from bugs and frogs to deer and Human. The were short, Denny explained, only reaching just above the knee. But they were fast and there were a lot of them. More powerful variants existed, goblin shamans, chieftains, war leaders, even hob, but they rarely moved outside their tribe’s land.

An arrow shot through the tree ending with a thump. All heads turned to the slave woman who was already drawing back another arrow. Max and Clammy quickly followed the path of the first and saw a sickly green mass of flesh pinned to the bottom of a tree trunk. A pale tan goblin was now charging towards the group, swinging a crude steel club that was much too large for its pudgy body. The second arrow ripped through its chest and out its back. It died choking on its own blood.

“What the hells woman!” Tyr snapped. “I told you all experience is ours!”

He punctuated his sentence with a slap that knocked the woman down. Staring at the floor, she muttered something barley audible. Tyr anger reddened faced leaned down until he was looking for level at her.

“What was that slave?” He spit.

“I thought it would be best to not allow an ambush. If the Lost Lord was hurt…” She trialed off.

“Of course!” Tyr bellowed. “Well done.”

Seeing Tyr’s flip in personality made Max’s sweat run cold. Max glanced to Clammy, and it was safe to say that her expression was enough for Max to know she would agree with him. The woman was stiffly getting up, her dead eyes showing nothing more then before. Denny made his presence know with a sharp zap.

Max wasn’t sure what he was doing, but as he watched Denny hunched over a dead goblin, a sense of foreboding overcame him. Denny was electrocuting the goblin carcass with a delightful smile. Dead muscles twitched as countless volts of electricity fried what little structure remained.

“What’s he doing?” Max whispered.

“Denny likes watching muscles jump and twitch. He says its an art form.” Tyr answered.

Right, Max thought if you are sadistic.

Denny eventually decided he’d had enough fun and gathered back with the group. Tyr told everyone that those goblins were scouts and that they should be on the look out for more. They encountered two more groups of two, which were quickly dispatched with bolts of lighting or a slash from a sword. It sickened Clammy to see how easy her tormenters died. Just the day before she was running for her life as four people sacrificed themselves.

Max had a plan. Well sort of. He was going to use his new trait to overpower the brothers. He was going to cast a powerful Grasping Roots, making use of his new racial. Going for Tyr first and hoping that Denny will stumble and panic. Once both are caged, they will wait for the guards.

I can do this. Max assured himself.

They kept walking, eventually stopping in a small clearing, time for a break. Tyr sat back to a tree and closed his eyes. The woman put her packs down clearly trying to take the strain off. Clammy stayed close.

“YOU DUMB BITCH, I TOLD YOU TO BE CAREFUL WITH THE PACKS!” Denny was turning blood red. The woman started to cower backwards. Tyr opened his eyes, assessing the situation.

“DO YOU NOT have anything to say? Do I need to remind you?” Denny started to pull his arm back, looking to strike her, but Tyr interrupted.

“Denny, stop. Not now.” He nodded towards Clammy.

Denny turned, all anger vanishing. “Of course. There's more fun stuff to do right now anyways. How about that lesson?” Smiling towards Max.

“Sure, what's the spell called?” Max tried to get Denny away from the women, moving towards a fallen log. Max mentally commanded his last notification into vision, confirming for the last time the usage.

Congratulations you have gained the racial trait: Demigod: Divine Powered!

Demigods live in the legacy of their parents, Divine Powered puts their powers on an even plane. Although it is only for one strike.

Allows the caster to power a spell or skill using the divine. Empowering it by 1,000%.

Cooldown: 1 Month.

Unlock the doors to the Heavens… If you can reach them.

Max had read and reread the box. He knew it by heart. If this didn't work. He and Clammy were probably going to die. Max only had one concern: the slave mark on the woman. Did it have a remote killing function? Could one of them order her to attack? To free them.

“The spell is called a shocking touch. It's a common, easy to learn spell. Normally used to stun animals before their slaughter. Or… for some more fun reasons.” Denny glanced at the woman.

“Hmm... What we called someone like her in my world was a slave. Most of the time, they would try and run or fight back. How is she so… docile?” Max questioned.

Denny gave him a sadistic grin. “It's simple. Magic! Slave Contract is a spell, the class [Contractor] or [Slave Master] can learn. It's one of the easiest tier three spells to learn. But it requires a special license. If you don’t have the license, you will be executed.”

“How does it work? Also, do you buy slaves? Is there a Market?” Max needed him to keep talking. This information could be critical.

“Oh, a Lost Lord taking a slave? How daring.” Max only responded with a shrug. Denny started to take off his glove. The back of his hand had a red tattoo, the same as the woman.

“It's quite simple really. This binds her to me. I just have to invoke the contract by supplying the tattoo with some mana. BAM, she must obey. And yes, there is a market, but not in Lesterwood.” Denny looked proud of himself.

“Hmm, no market in Lesterwood?”

“Indeed not. Lester – the towns founder – hated the idea of slaves. So, he outlawed them. But now that he’s dead, they are able to be brought back into the city.”

“Do they all look like her. Skin color I mean?” Max cringed at his question.

“No. All skin colors and all races. Why?”

“On my world, at least where I lived, slaves were often people of certain skin colors. They would be enslaved literally for the color of their skin. Nothing else.”

“Oh!” Denny hummed. “I see what you are asking. My slave was given to me by our… benefactor. She had a debt or something. Nothing to do with her skin color.”

“I see, I see.” Max glanced at the woman. “About that spell?”

Denny held up his palm and with a great smile, a small orb of lighting appeared. It reminded Max of a plasma ball lamp. A central power source with lines of arching electricity. A small amount of heat pulsed with every new zap of current. Max watched with fascination. To him, this was amazing. Clammy, who was close to Max, didn’t look impressed. To her, who had seen real magic, though this nothing more than a cheap trick.

“You bring a ball of mana into your palm and electrify it.” Denny said.

“That’s it?” Max asked, wanting more information like Iris had given him about the other spells.

“That’s it.” Denny shrugged. “If you can’t do it, then you can’t do it. You are probably not mana touched. Its rather rare you see.”

Max rolled his eyes which seemed to annoy Denny.

“I would like my payment now.” Denny demanded.

“I’ll give it to you when we get to Lesterwood.”

“Oh, you won’t be getting to the city. Lost Lord...” Denny formed a condensed ball of mana in his palm. An arc of lightening lashed out, striking Max in the neck. He started foaming at the mouth as electricity arced off him. He tried to fight it, but the current was too strong. The last thing Max saw before he passed out was Tyr stalking towards a shocked Clammy.

Max awoke with stiff muscles and the sounds of screaming. It took Max a few moments to orient himself. His hands were tied behind his back and his head was pounding. He could taste iron and it smelled like ozone. He was still in the clearing. The sun still high, Max figured he was only out for a few minutes. Then he saw her. Clammy. Being held down. Denny on top of her. Dagger in hand, slowly, methodically, slicing her clothing off and into her skin. His hands moved all over her body. She was gagged and her eyes were franticly darting around.

The slave woman watched with horror. Blood spilling out of her nose. Tears in her eyes. Max started to yell.

“Denny! What is this! Why are you doing this!” Max demanded an answer. Denny didn’t even look up from his...prize. An answer did come, however. A voice spoke behind Max.

“Sorry Max, but our boss knows about the valuable items you Lost Ones always seem to have. And… well he wants them.”

Max quickly turned, shuffling on his butt, “Then take them, you don’t have to let Denny rape her!”

“Ahh... well... I kind of do... It's easier to control him when he is satisfied. And I know that he is starting to get tired of ol’ rags over there.” He said nonchalantly, like this has happened hundreds of times before.

Max couldn’t believe his ears. He's been in this world for only 2 days. He’s already talked with a god, been almost killed, used magic, saved someone's life, and now he was going to be killed after watching someone be raped. This was not what he wanted; this was not going to be how his life ended.

Max resolved himself. He quietly whispered “Iris. Send a Pulse request”. Tyr had stalked closer to get a better view; Max assumed. He only had one chance. He materialized his dagger and got to cutting. He ignored Iris' questions. He had a goal. He looked inwards, his mana, erupting infinitely stronger than before. Last time, with the wolves, his mana was a simple waterspout. This time, a typhoon. He finished cutting the ropes when the pulse notification appeared. He chose yes.

Many things happened at once. Max added all his extra stat points into wisdom. A blue pulsing wave of mana erupted out of Max. He yelled “GET OFF HER!” while leaping to his feet, dashing towards Tyr. Denny started to feel weird, like he was weightless. Then he began to float. Higher and higher, faster, and faster. He started to scream for his brother.

“Tyr! TYR! HELP!” Tyr hesitated, looking between his brother and Max, he chose to rush to help. But it was too late, Denny was too helpless now, too high in the air, breaking the tree line. Screaming his head off, Denny started to use his magic, lightning started striking at targets seemingly at random. Tyr turned to match Max.

Max materialized his sword in his right hand. Dagger in his left. He threw a wild swing, the sword bounding off Tyr’s. Following through with the dagger, Max kept the pressure. Max knew the only way he could win this fight was by being aggressive, never letting Tyr recover.

Swing after swing, Tyr dodged, and weaved, parrying, and deflecting. Almost toying with Max. A smile began to sprout. Only it wasn’t Max’s. Tyr suddenly dodge rolled, turning slightly invisible.

This stunned Max, Invisible, what the hell, he thought. Max’s inexperience started to become apparent. With the distance the roll gave Tyr, he was able to draw his second sword. Their swords clashed again; this time Max was on the back foot. Max started to notice, his skin becoming warm. After a successful parry, he looked at himself. He was covered in small cuts.

His heath bar slowly dwindled. Tyr took advantage of his confusion, suddenly dashing forwards, inhumanly fast. Presumably another skill.

The kick that Tyr gave knocked the wind out of Max. He fell to the ground dropping his weapons gasping for air and trying not to puke. He rolled onto his back, looking up in fear. Tyr spoke.

“Well, that was fun, but seriously, we best be moving on soon. That was the system pulse, right? Someone will be here soon. We need to get--!” Tyr cut himself off when there was a thump behind him. He turned and looked on. It was Denny landing. Crashing. Squished. Blood and viscera splattered around. Bones broken and sticking at odd angles. Denny was dead. Brutally.

Tyr looked in horror. His brother dead. He sat there in shock, only to be broken out by a white-golden light emanating from behind him. He turned, simultaneously wildly swinging out in rage. He missed, as Max had moved. Tyr’s sword hit the dirt, a dark shock wave erupting from the blade. Tyr, looked up regarding this brother's killer.

“I am going to enj--” an arrow broke through his throat. Ending his sentence for him. A second quickly piercing his right back shoulder, jutting out through his leather armor. Tyr dropped his sword, turning, falling to his knees. There stood the woman. The woman, he watched his brother rape countless times, the woman whose name he never learned. She drew back on the bow string. Losing the arrow. It penetrated his skull through his eye socket, killing him instantly.

Max regarded the woman for a moment. But then turned and ran to Clammy. He crouched over her cold bleeding body. Denny had cut her, a lot and deep. Bright red blood drained from her, signifying an artery was severed. She was going to die. Max had no water. No way to heal her. Max sat there for a moment. Thinking. Water. Water. WATER IN THE AIR! Duh how could I be so dumb.

Mana poured out of Max. Dissipating into the air. Stretching while simultaneously contracting. He moved his mana instinctually, without instruction and without knowing if what he was doing was even possible. Droplets started forming on Max and Clammy, like a cold drink on a hot day. Max knew he couldn't heal her completely, not with his limited mana. He focused on the deepest cuts. The left side of her neck was the worst. Bright red blood quickly oozed from it. Max focused his effort, not even noticing that she was choking on her own blood.

The water droplets started to form together, creating orbs of water. They flowed to her neck, healing the damage. The arteries started to sew back together, blood rerouted to better and more effective paths. The water orbs were turning red. He moved onto the next spot. Right thigh, bright red blood. Max noticed that Clammy was coughing up blood. Meaning her air ways were getting cleared. Max had very little mana left, pushing into the single digits. He had to make it count. He willed the droplets to disperse, creating a red mist. Max thought, Mist is water, why can't it heal? Water moved like the inside of a sauna, dense and thick. Her superficial cuts started to close. The major damage at a stable spot. She would need more help. But he couldn’t give it.

The woman was behind Max, intently focused on what Max was doing. An idea suddenly formed in her head, and she rushed over to one of the brothers’ packs. She removed a small glass vial and poured it down Clammy throat. She was watching Clammy with such intensity that she didn’t even notice the guards breaking the tree line The guards checked over the brothers, deciding they were no threat. An Asian looking woman suddenly appeared in front of Max, eyeing his work. The last thing Max heard before his headache took his consciousness was.

“It’s alright boy, Take a rest. You have earned it; she will be fine.” the woman said while pulling out a large gourd. Water began to flow.