1 1-The Fifth

"If a man dies, shall he live again?" -Job 14:14

"By god, it worked! But wait...there's five, there was never meant to be five. Was there a miscalculation in the spell?" One among many figures cloaked in what appeared to be priest robes spoke out.

"It's a blessing, Gods will has gifted us with another hero!" Another spoke.

"The fuck?..." John said as he quickly rose to his feet, looking around at these strange people. Inspecting the noticeable weight in his right hand, he found a sizable revolver chambered in .50 AE with an engraving of a woman along its barrel.

(Picture Of Gun)

"A Shield?" One of the four Asian teenagers present mumbled to himself as he peered at the shield affixed to his right arm.

"Please great heroes, we seek your aid to save our world from destruction!"

"What do you mean by destruction?" The one carrying a bow asked.

"The tale is long and convoluted, but suffice it to say, you are the fou...five Cardinal Heroes, summoned here by an ancient ritual to assist our world in its time of greatest need" The man who appears to be the head Priest said, bowing his head with everyone else following.

"Fantastic, now do the reverse of that and send me back from where I came, and no, that isn't a request!" John demanded as he quickly approached the Priest with said weapon in hand, pointed at his head, causing him to stumble back until he hits the wall.

"But I, I"

"I said *BANG* NOW!!" John roared, causing the one with the Shield to run up behind him, only for John to shoot a second round into the ground just in front of him, releasing a streak of red energy instead of a bullet.

"HE CANT! No one can!" one of the other female Priests responded, getting John's attention.

"And why is that?" He asked in a venomous voice.

"Because there is no counter-ritual, the only way for any of the Heroes, Vassal or Cardinal, to be free is either vanquishing the waves or death!" She responded.

"Is this true?" John asked the Head Priest whose collar he currently had clutched in his free hand and gun in the other shoved against his head.

"Y-YES!" He muttered as he began to visibly wet himself.

Letting go of the man who slumped to the ground, John threw the firearm to the ground, only for it to disappear, then reappear back into a holster that was affixed to his right thigh.

"Well, I guess that answers that question..." The one wielding the sword said.

"P-Please Heroes, accompany us to meet with our King, he will explain everything" Another one of the Priests requested as they begin to exit the room with subtle haste, eventually leaving only the Shield and John alone.

"Did you really need to do th..."

"Shut the fuck up" John interrupted, not having moved from facing the wall until now when he beings to head in the direction the others did.

"That guy has some serious goddamn issues," The Shield thought to himself, eventually also walking off.

"So, you men, seasoned and young, are the Cardinals Heroes of legend! I must say, I am most shocked at the summoning of a fifth, but it's most opportune for our circumstances. We have records of conflicts arising during the summoning of the Heroes, so due to our circumstances, and there being no harm to my people during your outburst, I am willing to excuse your actions, this once" The King spoke, getting no reaction from John to change his blank stare.

"Now, onto what is important. This is the land of Melromarc, and I am her King, Aultcray Melromarc the 32nd. If I may ask, I would have you all identify yourselves" The King requested.

"Ren Amaki, High School Student, 16 years old" The Sword responded.

"Motoyasu Kitamura, College Student, 21" The Spear responded.

"Itsuki Kawasumi, still in High School, 17 years old" The Bow responded.

"That's my cue. My name is..." The Shield attempts to say but was cut off.

"Ren, Motoyasu and Itsuki, very good" The King interrupted.

"Yo King, I think you're falling short of a couple of people..." the Shield protested.

"Forgive me" The King responded.

"Hey, you just say 'yo King', do you not know any royal etiquette?" Itsuki asks.

"So what then? His majesty?" The Shield asks.

"King is fine" The King responds.

"Alright, fair enough. I'm Naofumi Iwatani, College student, 20 years old" Naofumi said, with all attention suddenly turning to John, taking him several seconds to acknowledge it.

"John," He said

" *clears throat* Now then, onto the business at hand. I am to explain as to why you have been summoned here today" The King spoke.

"Is he ignoring us?" Naofumi asked, leaning slightly towards John.

"Best just get used to it, typical higher ups" John responded.

"My beloved country of Melromarc and the world beyond is in the greatest danger. The Waves of Calamity of ancient legend have once again fallen upon the world. The first occurred mere days ago, and suffice it to say, we were woefully unprepared and paired dearly for it. With the Dragon Hourglasses, ancient artifacts of incredible power and unknown age, we can calculate the precise date of these incursions, with the second destined to arrive in less than a month. We will need the Cardinal Heroes at their most potentially powerful to save this world" The King said.

"That's all well and good, but I hope you didn't bring us here expecting us to fight for free," Ren asked.

"Of course not. Upon the complete repelling of the waves, should you choose to stay within our land, you will all be rewarded in degrees comparable to Nobility" The king's right-hand man responded.

"Well, looks like we'll need to take you at your word," Motoyasu said.

"We will not renege, so long as you don't either," Ren said.

"And we won't tolerate you looking down on us" Itsuki said.

"uhh, yeah, what they all said" Naofumi agreed while scratching his head.

"If I can trust that we have come to an agreeable arrangement, I would have you all now check your Status's" The King requested.

"Say what now?" Naofumi asked.

"Concentrate on the little icon in the bottom right of your vision. Reminds me of the little menus back when I played Command and Conquer" John responded as he pulls up his stats.

"Damn, your old" Motoyasu chuckled.

"And yet here I am, very capable of kicking your ass" John responded with a death stare that sent a chill down the Spear Heroes spine.

(Picture Of Status)

"So what is all this exactly?" Naofumi asked.

"It's called 'Status Magic', a power exclusive to the Heroes, Cardinal and Vassal alike" The right hand responded.

"So what now?" Ren asked.

"You must set out on your respective journeys and evolve these legendary weapons you have been bestowed with, but beware, heroes, forming a party amongst yourselves simply won't work. By their very nature, the weapons repel each other, halting their growth when in the presence of one another, but fear not, for we have sent for the best of the best adventurers to form your parties" The right hand said, making the majority of the heroes look to their weapons with curiosity.

Being not only escorted to their room but provided with dinner, the heroes begin to banter amongst themselves, eventually leading to the discovery of them all being from alternate versions of Earth.

"Who won world war 2?" Motoyasu asked.

"The allies. US, Britain with some of the Commonwealth, and the USSR. The US ended it by dropping two nukes on Hiroshima and Nagasaki" John responded from out on the balcony.

"Yeah, basically the same here, but Russia was never on anyone's side, they just repelled the Nazis...I think. I slept through most of History" Naofumi responded.

"Yeah, that's not even close to what happened on my end..." Itsuki responded, leaving the room to only imagine what his timeline is like.

"Well, that explains the blonde hair..." John thought to himself.

"Say, John, where are you from anyway?" Naofumi asked.

"Australia. No idea why you lot just so happen to be Japanese..." He responded."So there really are separate versions of our worlds...crazy" Itsuki muttered to himself.

"Alrighty, night" John spoke as he headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Motoyasu asked.

"Bed, hell be damned if I'm gonna be a zombie tomorrow," John said as he proceeded to make his way to his room.

Flopping onto the bed of his assigned room, he thought of the future for the first time in years, with the day's exhaustion eventually drifting him off.

"Dad? why did you have to leave? Why did you let me die?" Veronica asked as she turned to face John, only for her to have a bleeding bullet hole in her forehead, causing John to jump awake from his slumber in a cold sweat.

"Uh, sir Hero?" A feminine voice calls out from the other side of his door with occasional knocking.

Letting out a long sigh, John rose to his feet, making his way over to the door to greet the young woman on the other side.

"Yes?" He asked.

"I have been sent to retrieve you, sir. The King seeks your presence within the Throne Room!" The servant girl responded.

"Do I need to?" John asked.

"Uh, well, it is a royal command, so...yes?" She responded.

"Fine. And let me guess, rumours of my hostility have been making their rounds around the Kingdom by now?" John asked.

"Uh, uh, y-yes sir, I know it has already spread amongst those in the Palace, but I can't be sure about the residents of Castle Town below" The girl responded with a slightly more nervous look.

"Hmm. Thank you" John said as he walked past the girl and in the direction of the staircase to the first floor.

Eventually reaching the doors that lead into the Throne Room where the others had already assembled, John stood in place for several seconds before he noticed he was being stared at by the four of them.

"What?" He asked.

"We've been standing here, FOR AN HOUR!" Motoyasu growls.

"Congrats, want a medal?" John responded.

"Whatever, let's just get this over with," Ren said as the doors began to open into the Throne Room full of summoned adventurers.

"We have assembled the greatest adventurers from across our land. These brave souls will assist you all in fighting the wave" Aultcray said, spreading his arms out to demonstrate.

"I work alone," John said, casting a mixture of surprise and furrowed brows among the adventurers.

"Hmm, so be it. Nevertheless, it is time for the future champions to choose" Aultcray spoke as the line Infront of him began to move to their respective choice of Hero, with none forming behind either Naofumi or John.

"What the...Three there, five there, four there...Yo King, this has to be some kind of mistake!" Naofumi asked with concern.

"I must admit that even I did not expect this. *right-hand whispers in his ear*. Ah yes, now I understand. Throughout the night, rumors have sprouted pertaining both the Shield and the...*right-hand whispers again* G-Gun hero. Specifically, the Gun Hero's violent tendencies and both he and the Shield being ignorant of this world. In the legends, it is stated that all heroes arrive with a deep understanding of our land" The King spoke, with Naofumi beginning to plea with the other Heroes for some party members.

"Sir hero" A feminine voice called out from the back of Motoyasu's group. "Would you kindly allow me to switch parties with the Shield Hero?" She asked.

"Are you sure?" Motoyasu asked curiously.

"I am" she responded with a smile, all while attracting John's investigative stare.

"Will there be any others who wish to join Master Naofumi on his quest?" The King asked the room, but silence reigned for the next several seconds. "*sigh* very well. Master Naofumi, it seems you will be required to build your party elsewhere. But as for all of you, we will be providing you all with monthly funds to aid your adventures. However, this one time, Master Naofumi and John's payments will be higher. Please accept them with our thanks" the King spoke as with a wave of the hand, women approached carrying small chests filled with coin.

"The Shield Hero will receive eight hundred silver coins, Gun Hero John will receive one thousand, while the rest of you receive six hundred" The right hand spoke.

"Proqueour all necessary equipment and make haste" The King ordered."Sir" the other four responded.

With John appearing to be walking towards the exit, he subtly leans next to Naofumi, whispering something no one else could hear, before continuing to walk as though nothing happened, striking a surprised look onto the Shields face.

Making his way into the town below, John couldn't help but gain a slight smile on his face at the cozy medieval fantasy atmosphere, something he had an appreciation for ever since he read both The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings as a kid.

"Oh my my my, would you just look at you!" A man with white bird wings on his back and dressed in blue and gold robes said as he sped his way over to John, inspecting and caressing his shirt sleeve.

"Can I help you?" John asked with an uncaring attitude towards the man's intrusive nature, caring more for the fact that he was taking up his time.

"Ah yes, apologies, I sometimes get carried away. My name is Sebastian Vicuna, fashion extraordinaire. I also hale from the realm of Siltvelt. May I inquire as to how you procured such fine coverings? Sebastian asked.

"From another world" John responded.

"Ohhh, so your one of the Cardinal Heroes, say, you wouldn't happen to be that Gun fellow who's said to have quite the temper, would you?" Sebastian asked.

"I have a feeling you've already figured that one out, so if you excuse me, I'd rather be..." John attempted to say but was cut off.

"Anywhere else than here, yes I do agree darling people can be so dreary sometimes, but allow me to give you an offer you cannot refuse. If you would allow me to relieve you of those coverings, I will not only gift you with suitable replacements but give you a Heroes discount in my Boutique, as no offence sweetheart but you look as though you're in the business for some protection!" Sebastian said.

"You sell armour in a clothing Boutique?" John asked.

"I dabble dahling, now, yes, or YES!" Sebastian insisted.

"what percentage discount are we talking?" John asked.

"Hmm, how about thirty-five per cent? I don't charge lightly dahling" Sebastian bargained."Fifty, take it or leave it" John countered.

"Ohh I LOVE how you drive a hard bargain dahling...deal" Sebastian said as he took John by the hand and hurried him along into an elaborate clothing store.

"Now, I will go and procure those replacements, but in the meantime, you can rid yourself of those magnificent garments in here," Sebastian said as he pulled back a curtain of a changing room.

John sighs as he steps into the surprisingly spacious chamber, somehow succumbing to the charismatic nature of this mysterious and possibly homosexual bird person.

"Gelda dear, fetch me the entire Marshall collection in Nocturne Silk for large men size!" Sebastian called out to someone likely in the back of the store.

"Coat and hat included sir?" A feminine voice replied.

"Indeed dear" Sebastian replied.

"Yes sir" The voice replied, with the sound of running eventually following."Here you are sir," The voice said.

"Thank you dahling," Sebastian said to the still mysterious figure.

"Here you are my dear, try these on for size!" Sebastian said as passed over a pair of pants, ,gloves, boots, a shirt, a caped coat and a hat, all in colored as black as night.

"Jesus, how much will all this be?" John asked.

"That is yet to be decided dahling. The silk for the clothing is collected from the Nocturne Spiders who inhabit caves to the east. Comfortable, durable and magic resistant!" Sebastian responded.

With silence ruling the room aside from the occasional belt buckle clacking, the Gun Hero eventually emerged, dressed in the likeness of an old west gunslinger with his old clothes draped over his arm.

(Picture of Clothes)

"It's...my god. FREE, IT'S FREE OF CHARGE!!" Sebastian roared in happiness, with Darla who was revealed to be a type of cat Demi-Human attempting to question her boss over the poor business choice.

"Oh please Darla dear. One cannot put on a price on perfection!" Sebastian said with a shine in his eyes.

"Then I'm sure you won't be bothered by this, and thanks" John said as he placed both his old clothes and a small pouch of silver containing two hundred coins into Sebastian's hands, leaving him speechless as the Hero made his way out of the store.

"PLEASE COME BACK IN THE FUTURE, I WILL SPONSOR YOU IF I MUST!!" Sebastian shouted from his storefront at John who was already a distance down the street, getting a small wave from the man without turning back.

"How can I help you today friend?" A food stall merchant asks John who is browsing."How much for an apple?" John asks.

"That would be 2 coppers" The merchant responded.

"I'll have a sack of ten, keep the change" John said as he handed the merchant one silver.

"Wow now sir, you must not be from around these parts. This silver piece here could get you fifty" The Merchant said.

"Well aware, buy yourself something nice," John responded as he waited for his apples.

Eventually heading for the town's gates while feasting on one of the juicy little morsels, he was once again stopped in his tracks when a pulsing sound resonated from the Legendary Gun itself. Drawing the weapon from its holster, John was surprised when the engraving on the woman glowed in sequence with said sound. Caught off guard when the weapon seemingly pulled the almost completely eaten fruit from his hand and devoured it, he quickly realized that not only can his weapon absorb objects, but can also morph to share properties of said objects. Pressing the icon that was labelled 'Apple Gun', the weapon shone with a brilliant light, eventually dying down until all that was left was a small red revolver with an apple stem as the hammer.

(Inspiration Of The Apple Gun)

"Well then" John said to himself as he pressed the 'Base Gun' option once more, returning it to it's previous state.

"Good to know"