4 Language Introduction

When Barok woke up, he felt a huge headache. It's hard just to stay conscious. Just as he thought to himself how did he sleep, suddenly he saw a bright light. All blurry at first, then his eyes focused. When he saw the condition he was in, his face grew grim. He was confined on a chair, strapped tight. He cannot move. The room he was in was white painted. In front of him was a table and a chair. It looked like it was finely crafted. The room was illuminated by a weird light source. Too bright to look it directly. There appears to be a large peculiar mirror on the wall, it felt as someone is watching him from the mirror. The room instead felt cold which was weird considering that he is inside a room. Suddenly he remembered. Before he was unconscious, he had met with a Ziegler.

He shook his body while yelling, trying to escape the chair he was confined to. It was a futile effort.

"Ra! Ra! Ra! Ire so tide ya! Sire!" (No! No! No! Don't kill me! Please!)

The Ziegler Empire is a famous empire among the continent. They are know for their ruthlessness. They are one of the superpower nations to harness a 'Wonder Weapon', the Boom Stick. It is a long metal tube with wooden stick attached to it. It produced a large 'boom' sound with fire spewing out. The next thing they know, a knight in full armor had it's body blasted into pieces. That it what the Kingdom of Schantilia told to their people about that evil empire.

The Ziegler Empire is located East from the Kingdom of Schantilia. It was bordered by the mighty Orca Mountain Range that spans thousands of Likras (Units). No one had passed through the mountains. As that is one of the reasons why the Ziegler Empire haven't attacked the Schantilia Kingdom. Henceforth the Ziegler Empire instead went on a conquest east. The fate of Schantilia Kingdom now lies on how long the conquest in the east. After the east is conquered. The Ziegler Empire lays it's eyes west, the Schantilia Kingdom.

As it is impossible, to travel by land through the mountain range, the only option is by sea. Both the Ziegler Empire and Schantilia Kingdom are at the dead edge, the southern part of the Continent. Therefore, both of them had access to sea.

Then shouldn't the Ziegler Empire launched an invasion through sea to conquer the Schantilia Kingdom? No, not yet at least. The southern part of the Schantilia Kingdom had it's shoreline heavily guarded. Port towns have hundreds of thousands of troops stationed. Even with boom sticks, it would be impossible without a massive army.

Spies from the Schantilia Kingdom who went to the Ziegler Empire reported that the Ziegler Empire are currently mass producing ships. It is estimated that the production of 8.000 ships will be finished in the next 2 or 3 years. In fact the Ziegler Empire had already been massing ships from 5 years ago.

The spies actually travel to Ziegler Empire by circling around the mountain range, which in itself took 8 months to travel to Adendhak, Ziegler Empire's main sea port and 8 months back to the Schantilia Kingdom. One of the reasons why the Ziegler Empire too didn't take this route. Carrying the supplies in itself will be too bothersome. The Boom Stick requires ammunition. The heavy cannons too are bothersome to be carried through land. Not to mention the only way to travel is by horse or foot, no planes and trains are invented, yet.

As Barok was denying his death. Suddenly a person, with an odd looking 'dress' went inside the room. Wearing a black coat that is purely black with no patterns like aristocrats usually wore. As Barok remembered that the Baron of Stulicia once visited the village, he wore a gaudy dress, colored with gold and and purple, it looked beautiful. Instead this man wore white undergarments with a peculiar long tie attached to the neck.

The man sat on the chair opposite to Barok and began to talk while pointing to himself.

"Tom." Then he repeated again while again pointing to himself. "Tom Dune." Then he pointed at Barok.

Barok was stunned for a while, then his lips opened.

"Barok, Barok Sultgaard."

"Barok Sultgaard?" then the man stared at Barok with sharp eyes.

"Jia, Barok Sultgaard." He said slowly, he was afraid this man would do something horrible to him.

Then the man took a piece of paper. It was an aerial photograph of a village taken by the drone a day ago. He showed it to Barok.

"Wer uni la magicia ro dienen?!" (What kind of magic is this?!) Barok's eyes widened with shock.

Tom's eyes too are widened from shock. He surprised that Barok said 'Magicia'.

"Magicia?"

"Jia! Jia! Magicia!" (Yes! Yes! Magic!) Barok then pointed to the light in the room

"Magicia!" (Magic!)

Tom has a rough understanding that the word magic is 'magicia', very similar to earth. While 'jia' probably means 'yes'.

He then exit the room for a while, then returned. He brought a drone. He pointed his finger to the drone and said "Magicia flying drone."

Then the drone started making weird sounds and the blade starts to rotate. It began hovering from Tom's hand. Then soared the room, flying in all direction, then landed on Tom's hand again. Tom then put the drone on the floor.

Barok's eyes remained wide. His jaws dropped. Magic! Real magic! It can fly! He though to himself. Is this the power of the Ziegler Empire?

Tom then sat on the chair. Pointing to himself, and said. "Tom Dune." He then points at Barok and said "Barok Sultgaard." Then he pointed at the photograph of the village. He repeated this motion.

Barok finally understands what Tom meant.

"Ma'al Hesse Fadele." (Ma'al Hesse Village). But he knew that this person might not distinguish the name of the village and the word 'village' so he points at Tom and said "Tom." Then pointed at himself saying "Barok." Then pointed at the village saying "Ma'al Hesse." Then he continued. "Fadele." He then repeats "Ma'al Hesse. Fadle. Ma'al Hesse. Fadele."

Tom who heard this widened his eyes in shock. This person is truly intelligent. An intelligent alien being! He grasped that the word 'Fadele' meant village while 'Ma'al Hesse' is is the name of the village.

Tom then questioned more and more to Barok. He mostly wanted to grasp a rough translation of the local language.

Before Tom left, another person went into the room, bringing food. It's steak, with mashed potato, salad and water. Served with a plastic knife, and a fork. The food was brought to the table and the person left the room. Tom said "Eat." Then he left the room.

Barok was dumbofunded when he looked at the food. It was simply too extravagant. Steak was a food for the aristocrats. Mashed potatoes were not something he had seen before, while the salad is common to his eyes. The other thing was a glass of water. It was simply mind boggling. Such clear glass was very expensive, while there are no such thing as water this clear. The peasants are used to well water which is muddy and it brought diseases, so the only alternative for water is normally ale.

He was also given some eating utensils. The utensils felt light and clean. He then ate his food.

While at Ma'al Hesse Village, a little girl with his mother stood grim. They were inside a house, sitting on the chair waiting for their dear husband and father to come home. It's been 2 days since Barok went out to chop some wood.

The village grew worried. Normally Barok went to chop wood west of the village, so the villagers went to search there to come no avail. Little did they know that Barok actually cut wood east of the village this time, and with some unfaithful encounter, he was 'kidnapped' by the SAS soldiers.

"Village chief! My men haven't found any clues to the whereabouts of Barok, probably this time he didn't go west like he usually do." The man said.

"What made you think like that?" Replied the village chief.

"No footsteps nor remains of Barok can be found. He occasionally goes east of the village, I suggest this time we search east."

"Yes, go ahead, I know Barok. He is very loyal to his family, it's impossible that he run away. Don't forget to bring weapons to protect yourself."

"Yes chief." The man then left.

Suddenly a small girl's voice can be heard.

"Is papa found?"

"Oh it's you Malika, no, not yet. But I promise you, we will find him."

The mother who was beside the little girl stayed quiet with a cold face.

While the villagers are searching for Barok east of the village, Sergeant Popov Petrov Antonov was monitoring the perimeter. He noticed a bunch of villagers approaching the outer perimeter.

"Uh... Sir we have a problem."