1 The Promise

"Stop!"

The referee pushed the fighter off, knocking him to the ground before he started waving his arms. With pity in his eyes, he called the doctor over and turned his attention towards the winner.

Mike Kaiser slowly opened his eyes, trying to make sense of what had happened.

"My head…where am I? What happened? Everything is so hazy."

The ring doctor heard his whispering and assured him he would be fine; he just lost in a professional MMA bout and would be taken to the infirmary for further checks. Mike desperately tried to stay awake, but no matter how hard he tried, it was in vain.

Closing his eyes and with his consciousness slowly fading away, the last thing he could hear was the announcer declaring the end of the fight:

"Winner by rear-naked choke, Silva "the assassin" Zold!"

Inside the land of dreams and in a half-delirious state, he suddenly heard another voice, but it did not sound like the announcer or ring doctor.

"You do not seem to be satisfied with this world?"

The ominous voice made the dream world tremble. Mike dared not breathe as the presence demanded absolute respect and worship. Even though Mike's whole being, body, and soul shook tremendously in the face of the pure power and pressure, it did not seem malevolent, nor did it seem to be harming him.

"Who are you?"

He was known for his mental fortitude and willpower, which bordered craziness and often led to almost fatal consequences throughout his life. Despite that unique gift or curse as more rational people would define it, Mike took what felt like several hours to form these three words into a question.

"I am, have been, and will always be."

The godly presence did not give a clear answer, but the moment Mike wanted to ask for a more detailed explanation, the insurmountable pressure increased even further. It was evident that nothing would be added to what had been said.

<<Couldn't he just have answered he's some kind of god or something? What kind of bullsh*t answer is that?>>

Mike was slightly annoyed by the response, but even if he had the courage of every single professional fighter combined, there was still no way he would show discontentment. Thus he kept those thoughts locked in his mind.

Feeling that it would be disrespectful not to answer the previous question, Mike thought about it for a moment. It was true he did not truly feel alive in this world. As an orphan, the former Champion never knew what family was. On top of that, throughout his life, the experience of being betrayed by people he believed in and thought were friends destroyed all remaining trust. In the end, Mike cut ties with every single one of them, leaving him without anyone he was attached to anymore.

Nonetheless, this was the world he grew up in, and even if he had to endure hardships, he was thankful for his life.

"I… think there are good things about this world," said Mike.

The doubt in his voice was apparent.

"What if I offer you a new beginning… somewhere that would be more suitable for a warrior like yourself?", said the presence as it looked straight into Mike's heart and sensed the conflicting feelings he was fighting with.

"I know you feel constricted here. The place I can bring you to... every single need you have can be fulfilled there."

Mike was indeed an ambitious person. He challenged the heavyweight champion of the World Fighting Championship in the open weight category while being three full weight categories lighter.

For obvious reasons, the heavyweight champions had been dominating in the open weight category for years. There was a meaning in having weight classes after all, but the public seemed to enjoy watching heavier fighters destroy the lighter competition.

Mike was one of the few Lightweights that still dared to compete in the open category. He was also the only one that got to the finals and had a legitimate shot at winning the tournament.

Initially, he had been dominating Jeff Zold on his feet, but his mentality stood in the way of finishing the fight. Most people would have taken the win and the glory, but those things did not matter in Mike's eyes. His only goal was self-improvement. Mike had always lived by the saying, "If you stop improving, you stop being good." A title was worth nothing in his eyes. Who would he brag to anyways? Friends? Family? He had none.

There was no regret in his heart when he took the fight to the ground against a five times grappling world champion. His blood only pumped when facing such a challenge; only then did he feel alive.

"Where?" After reflecting upon his life and his situation, Mike only uttered a single word. He could not suppress his curiosity.

"A world where humans do not reign supreme and only the strong rise to the top. A place similar to those fantasy worlds your generation likes so much."

Now that was something that intrigued Mike. He had always been a fan of fantasy movies and novels. Apart from training, they were the only thing that helped him escape reality.

"A fantasy world, huh…?"

Medieval settings were much more to his liking than sci-fi worlds. Mike was not stupid, though; he knew about the lack of hygiene, followed by diseases in the middle ages. And that was not the only danger.

A fantasy world sounded nice, but what if he ended up being a simple farmer? Money and power go hand in hand, after all. If he could not even afford medicine, how would he, a person spoiled by modern society, survive in that world?

Maybe magic would solve those problems? But he quickly disregarded that thought. In most fantasy settings, magic was something that required talent. Not everyone could be a magician.

He could not just trust the mysterious being; maybe it was likely that he would be a "chosen one" and end up being part of a royal family with exceptional talent and unique powers. That was how it usually goes, after all. But what if it did not…?

Acting against logic was something Mike seldom did.

"Choose. Do you wish for a new life or to keep your current one?"

The voice seemed patient on the surface, but it did not seem smart to make it wait nonetheless.

"Oh, Great One, could I get five years? To prepare and to say goodbye to this world."

Mike put on his most respectful tone. He knew he was in no position to make demands and could only ask humbly. He cursed himself for not being a lot more respectful earlier, but he was in a state of shock after all. Such a powerful entity would undoubtedly understand that, right?

"Interesting. You are the first of your kind to ask for time instead of directly accepting or refusing my offer. I will look forward to what you will do with it. You shall have it." The presence seemed slightly amused. "Five years from now, your journey starts. Be prepared."

The moment Mike wanted to respond, he felt his body slowly waking from its slumber. Deep inside his soul, he knew that this had not been a dream.

"I'll start preparing right now!" He could not help saying his answer aloud, his face brimming with resolution.

"I do not know what you are preparing for, Sir, but you suffered a concussion. The only thing you should prepare for is a few weeks of bed rest."A startled nurse could not help but reprimand him.

First, he seemed unconscious, laying there without any sign of movement, and then he suddenly screamed that he wanted to start preparing for a rematch with that maniac Jeff Zold?

"Professional fighters are still as stupid as ever. What is so fun about bashing in other people's heads anyway?!"

The nurse shook her head in disagreement, but Mike could not care less about her remarks. With burning passion in his heart, he clenched his fists and started thinking about how he could prepare the best way.

<<No matter if it's just my hallucination or not, if it ends up being real, I would forever regret it. It's not like I'll lose something by doing that anyways. Preparing for a new world… seems fun.>>