Chapter 2: The Most Reliable Shipping Service

Suddenly I gasped out as I felt the rain hit my body, and I heard a door open.

"Leon! Are you alright?!" Greg nearly screamed at me, but I raised my hand, and rolled over.

"Felt better, that is for sure," I groaned as I pushed myself up.

My body was healed, but I still felt a bit jittery. The old man had kept his first part of the deal.

"You were just struck by lightning, man! How can you even stand?!" Greg demanded, and I looked down at the ground where I had just been standing.

"I think it missed me," I said casually, and Greg just blinked at me.

Ignoring him, I looked around and then sighed when I saw my bag that was undamaged. I walked over and picked it up, and started to walk home.

"Wait! Don't you want me to call an ambulance!?" Greg called out, but I just waved to him.

"Thanks for the supplies. See you next week," I called and headed home.

I wondered if there would be a next week? That old man seemed pretty serious about destroying the world, but maybe that was a bluff.

As I walked back to my apartment, I couldn't shake off the bizarre encounter with the old man. The threat of my world being destroyed seemed like an elaborate bluff, but the whole situation left me unconcerned. As long as my print got here, I would play ball with the old man.

I didn't really like people, surprise. It wasn't that I hated other humans, I just found most of them too emotional. Everyone gets worked up about things, and I understand that, but people like to bring their self created problems into your life. When that happens, something always goes wrong.

This old man was a perfectly good example of this. He pretended to want me to save his world, which he still actually might want me to, but when I refused, he turned psycho. Divine entity or not, people were all the same. They wanted something, and if you couldn't give it, they got mad or treated you like you were worthless.

With a long sigh, I flipped on my monitor. My browser was open and ViewTube's main page was the last page I was on. I refreshed it, and narrowed my eyes.

"100 mile wide meteor is heading for earth in 4 days?" I asked out loud, since every video on the feed was about it. "Oh well, not my problem," I sighed, and closed the table to check on my Hammazon order.

Nothing had changed. My order was still set to be delivered in three days! That was Hammazon shipping for you! Not even the end of the world will stop these guys!

"Eee-yaw!" I moaned out as I stretched my arms back and leaned back in my computer chair.

The next day I awoke to the sounds of sirens and gunfire far below.

Frowning, rather than try to look out from the window of my apartment on the 56th floor, I opened a new tab and clicked on the ViewTube link. This time the home page was filled with videos of alien attacks all over the world. Supposedly humans were putting up a resistance, but the alien leader had broadcasted that he would destroy our planet in three days.

I got up, and went over to my window.

The world outside it was filled with flying saucers, and bullets flying everywhere. It looked quite chaotic, so I closed my blinds, and headed to the kitchen to make breakfast.

---

"What is wrong with that boy?!" Garland, God of Garlandia roared over his throne, making his winged attendant wince and let out a small shriek.

"Maybe you are going about this the wrong way?" Shellimiara, Assistant to the God of Garlandia asked, but then winced as her god looked down on her, but then he scratched his bread.

"What is it that you suggest?" Garland asked, and Shellimiara perked up.

"Well, you see, Leon is a peculiar one. He's not like the usual heroes you summon to save worlds. He's... different," Shellimiara explained, choosing her words carefully.

"Different? How so?" Garland raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the idea.

"He doesn't seem motivated by typical hero traits. He's more interested in his own world and his peculiar hobbies. Perhaps if you appeal to his interests, he might be more willing to help," Shellimiara suggested.

Garland thought for a moment, then nodded. "Very well. I shall destroy all hobbies in 2 days tomorrow, but I will start with his first! Bwahaha!"

Shellimiara just shook her head, unsure about her god. It was true that Garlandia needed a hero to save the world. There had been a demon invasion five years ago, and had pushed the people of her world into constant war.

Because of this, Garland was given half the world's magic to summon a hero. Quarter of it is to be given to the hero, while Garland holds on to the rest, and gives it out as he feels. The problem that Shellimiara was worried about is that Garland had become a tyrant. She didn't think he would give the power to the hero.

There were many things that bothered her about this man, but he was their god now, as the prophecy went, and everyone believed that blindly. Everyone assumed the hero would come and save them, but who did the Hero really need to save them from?