First was confusion, then came fear and at the end disgust.
When I went to sleep yesterday I'd never, even in my wildest dream, imagine that I'd wake up in a place I don't know nor to voices I couldn't understand much less to a time long past.
About 3200 years ago is the estimated time for the setting of the Trojan war, yet here I am, scared and in the midst of something I've only ever imagined as fiction, a tragedy to read for school, or some knowledge to brag about if that makes you feel better then others.
Am I on the losing team? Am I doomed? How can I flee?
I sure didn't wanna become a slave of some sorts or be killed for being the loser, I didn't even realise I was clutching a sword deeply embedded in the chest of who knows who until a big hand grabbed me from my shoulder, spoke some gibberish which I assumed was Ancient Greek and brought me near a camp, but at least one of my worries was solved in an instant.
The man was smiling, not a vicious smile of someone who just got a fun toy to play with, but a smile of relief.
At last, I'm safe… for now.
Once we got to the camp I found a more or less secluded place to try and calm down, all the fear washing away from my being, I was finally able to breath. Checking myself up to understand if I was in my body or whatever fantasy setting decided to destroy my entire life I started crying.
Hair!
I had hair, mid length wavy black hair. I have been living as a boldy since I was 20 and now in my what should have been thirties I once again had hair.
And while tear were flowing uncontrollably and I was trying to wipe my face that my hands were not as slim and dry as I remembered, but full of callous and my arms were lean, almost toned and not bones with skin as sleeves.
"Dimitris! Kerdísame!"
That's when I heard a voice beside me and I heard what I assumed was my name for the first time. Dimitris, from the goddess of nature, seasons and most commonly agriculture.
Funny to have a name recalling a goddess who basically has authority on the domain of life at the end of a war, especially for someone who basically was dead meat anyway.
Either way, whatever my name was, I smiled as solfty as I could and accepted the hug coming my way and although I didn't know the person touching me the comfort of human touch I had almost forgotten got to me instantly and as soon as my body recognised a sense of safety, I fell asleep.
When I woke up in what I assumed was a barrack I was brought to, shock and anxiety grasped me with their unforgiving chains.
A blue screen was in front of my eyes.
[Synchronization clompeted]
[Klaus Damocles' soul successfully bound to Dimitris body]
•Name: Dimitris
•Affiliation: Itaca
•Constellation: -
!attention! Previous contract with the Boar who roars has been terminated as the original soul as passed the Styx
•Variable stats : expand
•Invariable stats :
Luck - 3
Will - 9.1
•Skills and Magic knowledge:
!attention! All skills and magic knowledge previously acquired have been removed as the original soul has passed the Styx]
Oh, hell no.
"Fuck this WebNovel trope and whatever is going on"
[!attention! Future language detected]
[!attention! Alternate universe soul detected]
[adding current language and Dimitris' general knowledge to Klaus' soul]
Fuck, fuck, fuck, this is when all those transmigrated protagonists suffer brain torture.
As I was panicking and waiting for the pain to come a soothing feeling enveloped me.
"What the actual fuck? All those authors lied" but the system, or status panel, or whatever this was had a clear explanation.
[Due to Klaus Damocles' previous knowledge all mortal languages have been imprinted in your soul, the perfect knowledge of 7 future languages has been adjusted and modified to a personal trait.
•Personal trait - Babbel tower: all mortal languages are yours to speak, your mind is sharper and the possibility to acquire the skill parallel thinking is unlocked.]
[Due to Klaus Damocles' previous knowledge of current culture, tradition and rites being superior to Dimitris', knowledge transfer has been deemed useless hence stopped]
Sorry authors of my world, you aren't liars, it's this body that doesn't know shit, but let's get to work.
As I got up all those gibberish voices near me, finally transformed in understandable language full of glee for the win and mostly the end of the war, songs of happiness filled the barrack and a name was repeated endlessly.
"Odysseus! Odysseus! Odysseus!"
Oh, hell no. I should have seen it coming. It's even written in my status.
I'm from Itaca.
I'm so fucked.
While I was lost in my self-destructive thoughts of doom and years of torture to come, assuming I'd survive the first catastrophe to come, a man as dazzling as the sun entered our barrack, Odysseus had personally entered the scene.
"My friends! My comrades! We have finally won! Let's reunite, collect our spoiles and GO HOME! ITACA!"
The ear shattering cheer that followed woke me up and as I was pushed with the crowd to attend what they wanted me to attend with them I got a glimpse at Odysseus figure, the man was fine, extremely so, but my mind only saw him as a monster.
Bastard is gonna kill us all.
Fuck no, I am surviving.
I could accept dying of natural causes, but being brutally murdered by the choices of a man I clearly have nothing to do with?
No.
I had already guessed my main body had died, I was living with cancer for a good 12 years at that point and even though I wasn't sure of why my soul was here I was sure I was somehow dead; but another 12 years of torture on a ship?
That I could not accept easily.
As we finally got all together, all 600 original crew, Odysseus commanding voice reached us.
"Friends! All 601 of you are still with me, and it's now time to receive our spoils!"
601?
What?
And at that moment the blue screen appeared once again, for all the men, because even though I couldn't see theirs, they were clearly watching at something in the air in front of them and so did I.
[quest - destroy Troy:
• The eternal Owl commands the destruction of Troy,
• reward: depending on contribution, from 1 S rank skill to +n allocable points to variable stats]
This world… has magic, skills, quest… but even so… this is wrong.
601 men, am I an anomaly or was the epic just mistaken?
Maybe we have a chance at surviving!
Also…
The eternal Owl… is it Athena?
Is the Olympus not a place for deities, but constellations, I mean I doesn't chance a thing either way, but… Shouldn't Athena hate the Greek soldiers now? Didn't they do something to a temple or something?
Actually don't basically all gods hate greeks nowadays?
You know what? I am OUT, just gimme the reward, I don't care at this point.
[•basic participation reward: +5 points to allocate have been given,
•as the original soul as passed the Styx, all rewards for contribution before the binding of soul and body have been cancelled,
•you have killed the last enemy before the declaration of destruction: mana breathing technique - breathing of life (?) is being imprinted onto your soul, practice with caution before full understanding]
"I am sure you all are happy with your rewards, now let's get ready to get home! And don't forget to thank my patron constellation for this once in a lifetime opportunity! ETERNAL GLORY TO THE ETERNAL OWL!"
As Odysseus once again woke me up from my daze I couldn't help but think of our doomed future, but I tried to be positive, at least Athena didn't seem to hate us and maybe, just maybe, since this was a quest, maybe we weren't godly fucked.
So I just sucked up my worries for later and thanked the goddess.
"Yeah, sure. Thanks miss Athena, I guess"
I just couldn't bring myself to be a believer of anything whatsoever, sue me, but I lived as an atheist my entire life.
You know what just thank the whole pantheon and underworld, I don't wanna take the slightest chance here.
"Also, I guess thank you Olympus as a whole and Underworld for not claiming me"
And just as I was about to go find a place to observe these war hungry monkeys to decide what to do, someone grabbed me from behind, and a loud screen appeared in front of me.
[The Sawing Sisters are looking at you]
[The Eternal Owl asks you to not use the Name, further violation will be punished]
[The Father to whom all go is intrigued]
"Didn't know you were so pius to thank the whole Nebula Dimitris? Shouldn't you only thank my patron?"
The man himself was clutching my shoulders, while this system was giving me a panic attack, this man, the cause of my future doom was clutching my shoulders and fully pushing himself on me.
"Captain, I… I just don't want to let loose ends, you never know"
"Captain? Dimitri… why aren't you using my name, we are friends aren't we? And what happened? You have always been so ferocious, did the war tame you even if I couldn't?"
And while Odysseus was smirking I was so shocked my brain momentarily died.
For how handsome and charming this bastard was, I had principles. Unbending principles, but how could I forget this bastard couldn't keep his pants on, although I only read of stories with women…
Wait a second, this body slept with the cheating bastard who's about to kill me?
"Hahaha Captain don't joke around, I'm still untameable, just tired"
"Still captain… Dimitris have you forgotten my name!? What is going on?!"
"Hahahah nothing really, how could I forget your name captain? I mean… Odysseus. I'm really just tired, okay? Bye!"
And as I left a dazed Odysseus looking at me with confusion I deftly run away to find a place to decide what the fuck I was gonna do from that moment on.
Only when I found a shore where I could be alone I finally let out my frustration.
"What the fuck is going on? Magic, 601 men, skills, gods or constellation, a system, I transmigrated in this man who clearly has some business with Odysseus, I mean I sure am glad I have hair and it feels like I don't have cancer but what the fuck is going on?!"
"Also I don't fuck with merried menZ for fuck sake!"
"Holy matrimony doesn't mean shit here does it?!"
[!attention! Detected future Nebula influence, since the system can't forbid the use of future knowledge all atemporal statemen henceforth made will be automatically transmitted in modern english to the audience]
[!attention! The holder of the keys is looking at you with caution]
[The ONLY housewife is applauding your remarks on married men]
[The ONLY housewife bestowed you a skill]
[Rank F skill : Negative answer, if your willpower is higher then the target's you can enforce a change of mind embuing mana into your voice.
Restriction: once a day on each target, unusable in combat.
Type: mental, growing]
"I knew my girl Her I mean, her greatness The ONLY housewife had my back on this, those men are so disgusting! All hail monogamy!"
No offence Zeus, but you a whore.
[The ONLY housewife smiles bitterly]
Sorry girl, but now I really need to understand how to move on.
It was time I understood were I stood in this world in term of strength, or I could kiss goodbye this life on the first island we where going to stop. Since I was pretty sure I would not be allowed to just stay in Troy, I opened my status directly going to my variable stats.
[variable stats:
•strength - 2.4
•constitution - 2.1
•agility - 3.5
•dexterity - 3.2
•intelligence - 10 (limited to general rank)
•mana - 0
•general rank - F
•free points - 5
!attention! Introducing power system to new soul:
Mortal ranks are divided from F to A
Further divisions will be explained when the body is ready;
Free points can only be allocated to stats having a minimum value of 1.]
Figures I have 0 mana, no free lunch anywhere.
Just as I was about to distribute my free points a voice came to me.
"Dimitris, the Captain is calling for all of us, he received a quest for all of us from The Tides that shattered the ground and he wants all of us to accept with him! We are gonna get great rewards again!"
What the fuck?! Poseidon? Isn't it too early for him to join the slaughter?
Oh, hell no.
Running to Odysseus with all my might, I was thinking of ways to get out of this shit to no avail, sure this body slept with the man and he could have some kind of feelings for it, but does human greed know end? It doesn't.
"Odysseus, you shouldn't accept his quest!"
Yes, I played the name card, but to no avail.
"Oh? Now you remember my name Dimitris? You don't need to worry, we are men of the sea, I'll protect you all well!"
"You don't understand! Just avoid it, we all got great rewards from your patron!"
[unable to perform skill: Negative Answer, mana insufficient]
And that was the moment my life changed forever.
"Don't worry Dimitris, I'll take good care of you!"
With a smirk on his beautiful face he then turned to the heavens and fully yelled.
"We accept your quest oh great The Tides that shattered the ground!"
[The Tides that shattered the ground laughs vehemently]
[quest accepted by your affilate commander:
Get back to Itaca.
Rewards: depending on The Tides that shattered the ground]
Grasping Odysseus arms I couldn't control myself anymore.
"You, Odysseus, have just killed us all. Reckless bastard"
"Oh Dim I don't mind this kinda talk, but don't worry! I know what I'm doing!"
[The sewing Sisters are curiously looking at you]