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I'm an international student with PSW visa after completing my master's in Banking and international finance. I'm about to start applying for jobs. Need suggestions to make it look nice and professional.
I'm just adding a part of my old CV. ( I just added few in the last minute, this is just for reference) I saw the CV's of my friends who are working in professional jobs right now. So I'm going to change the layout of my CV as well.
Masters
MSc. Banking and International Finance. Modules: Financial Risk management, Financial statement analysis, Investment analysis, Financial Modelling, Corporate Finance, International Money and Finance, Business and financial forecasting, Advanced Money and Banking, Principals Banking and Macro Economics.
Undergraduate Degree
B. Com Honour’s Strategic Finance
Additional: CMA – Certified Management Accountant/Cost and Management Accountant -Miles Education (2019 – 2022) Self Preparation- ongoing.
Higher Secondary Education
• M.E.C – Mathematics, Economics, Commerce and Accounts
Internship • Worked for the finance department of a company in India. Tax filing, daily journal entries and reviewing budgets and accounts.
Training program
Completed a one month training program of financial analysis from a German company.
Part time Work as a chef for 3 months Cashier, asst. Manager and Manager for 2 restaurants. ( Current)
Working at a Wearhouse as Wearhouse operative. (Current)
Position of Responsibility
School Cultural Activities Head House captain
Senior Secondary School School Prefect Graduation Event Coordinator (Second year) Head Event organizer (Third year) NPTEL Course Incharge (Third Year)
Volunteering
Delivered voluntary services at various disabled homes, and orphanages in India. Giving meal packs, collecting donations and daycare services. (2019 – 2022)
Clubs
• Entrepreneurship Club- Club Representative (2019 – 2020) • Start-up Club- Club Representative (2021-2022) • Innovation Club- Member (2021-2022)
Achievements and Works
• First prize in the entrepreneurship club for giving the best business start-up plan. • Completed Quantitative Aptitude Certificate course. • Completed a Business and Sustainability Development course provided by the government of India and a Workshop in Stock Market and Finance. • Participated and qualified in prelims in Commerce and Accounting quiz conducted by TIMES Education. • Participated in many cultural activities like dance, singing, essay writing and drama during school and college education. • Also served as Head Event Organizer for the department, conducted many academic and social welfare events and was responsible for all the documentation and reporting works of the department during the second and third years of graduation. • Research Paper: " A Conceptual Review on Mergers and Acquisitions in the Banking Sector". • Project work: "A Conceptual Review on Corporate Social Responsibility and its awareness among students and employees".
Dissertation: Sustainable Finance through Strategic Approaches: A Comprehensive Analysis of ESG Integration, Impact Investing, and Ethical Decision-Making within the Realm of Sustainable Finance
Awards • Student of the Year Award – Undergraduate Degree (2022) o For being an all-rounder of the department. • Elite Event Organizer Award (2022) o For organizing various exceptional academic and social events throughout the academic year. • Award for Outstanding Creative Work and Support (2021) o For delivering amazing creative work and providing support for the whole team.
Key Skills
• Management Accounting – Used for event budgeting. • Event Management - Organized various academic and social events. • Budgeting - used for college department academic year budgeting. • Taxation – filing taxes during the internship. • Cost Accounting • Writing research papers
Technical Skills • Tally • MS Office
Strengths
• Effective Communication • Multi-Tasking • Time Management • Positive Attitude • Leadership Qualities • Strong work ethic • Sincerity • Teamwork
Hobbies and Interests • Cooking • Travelling • Yoga • Reading • Dancing
Languages
• English (Read & write-Fluent) • Hindi (Read & write-Fluent) • Telugu (Mother Tongue, read & write-fluent)

me and my bf have been together for 6 years. he is ‘23 M’ turning ‘24 M’ in september and i will be turning ‘25 F’ in a few days and he works in a hospital as a security guard that has a nursing school attatched to it with a campus and dorms. my reason for making the post is because i was putting on his shorts that he throws on to go to the store and i went in the pocket and found a heart shaped paper that looks like it was made by someone. nothing special but the fact that someone would have to take time to make it is what’s throwing me off. I asked him where did it come from and he said that a girl from the pediatric unit was handing them out. I believed it but then i started to think. the way his job works they give them multiple pairs of uniforms and wash them so that the employees don’t have to wear their hospital clothes home. the problem with that is when he got this piece of paper he had to have taken it from his work pants, transferred it to his pants pocket that he went to work in, then transferred it into his shorts pocket. Am i crazy or does it sound like he got this paper from someone he may care about ? am i being childish ?
TL;DR: This is only my second post so please bare with me. If anyone needs anymore context before answering the question please comment your questions.

me and my bf have been together for 6 years. he is 23M turning 24M in september and i will be turning 25F in a few days and he works in a hospital as a security guard that has a nursing school attatched to it with a campus and dorms. my reason for making the post is because i was putting on his shorts that he throws on to go to the store and i went in the pocket and found a heart shaped paper that looks like it was made by someone. nothing special but the fact that someone would have to take time to make it is what’s throwing me off. I asked him where did it come from and he said that a girl from the pediatric unit was handing them out. I believed it but then i started to think. the way his job works they give them multiple pairs of uniforms and wash them so that the employees don’t have to wear their hospital clothes home. the problem with that is when he got this piece of paper he had to have taken it from his work pants, transferred it to his pants pocket that he went to work in, then transferred it into his shorts pocket. Am i crazy or does it sound like he got this paper from someone he may care about ? am i being childish ?
TL;DR: This is only my second post so please bare with me. If anyone needs anymore context before answering the question please comment your questions.

I've been thinking about this for a while and I noticed the questions I am asked which are almost always either financial or personal and rarely about job specifics.
How old are you? Where are you from? Do you have kids? Wife or partner? Other job? Still in school? Which school? Who do you live with? How much did u make at previous job? What kind of car do u drive? What part of town do u live in?
In simple terms they are looking for a young college/uni educated individual in good health and strong body that has generous parents that provide him/her with everything so they can use the employees cahouse to buy work tools and employee mandated uniform, provide their own healthcare, etc...
I noticed these kids working minimum wage jobs and driving a Benz with a new iPhone. I have no idea how they afford that.

Hello everyone, just wanted to share my experience living in Canada since November of 2023.
I speak 4 languages fluently (English,Spanish, Ukrainian and Russian). Do have experience working as a settlement worker+translatointerpreter in Red Cross (and similar) companies. Been actively volunteering in the past 5 years, and still do volunteer in Food banks here in Canada. I also have plenty of experience working as a Barista and a Hookah Man (I was the best Hookah man in my hometown). You folks can't even imagine how grateful I am to have a possibility to live in Canada now. It was a Dream I thought would never come alive, but it did... Under bad circumstances,sadly. Before moving here I have heard about Canadians being well-mannered and nice. How people would oftenly say "Thank you" and "I am sorry", to the point where it became a stereotype. And i was like "This is crazy... I can't believe these people are so nice to everyone around". I am a carrying, well-mannered person who says "Thank you" and "I am sorry" more than I should (I guess), but the moment I found out about Canadian values and manners - I fell in love with it Instantly. Not because of money or possibilites, but sincerely good people. I just wanted to experience it myself. Be surrounded by good people and show them how Grateful I am to be a part of this Wonderful community. I dreamt about it. Dreamt about being included in it, having a possibility to Contribute to it, to show that I want the best for this place and people living here. Since November 2023 I have sent around 2000 CVs (resumes) using Indeed, Jobbank, Glassdoor and other similar websites. I have visited at least 10 employment agencies/centres, but they never helped me, but rewrote my CV every single time (just 3 days ago my CV was changed again by an YMCA employee). Good thing to mention: same YMCA employee helped me get $100 on my Presto card (for free) so at least I won't have to spend my last money paying for bus trip to foodbanks i volunteer at, so I can keep doing it for one more month. (I know some of you will say that volunteering in such position is a bad thing, but I can't help myself there. Since the start of war in Ukraine I just couldn't stop thinking about people in Real need, and I decided that since I could help - I shall help, at least because I am quick on translating people)
When I just arrived here in Canada I've immediately printed a bunch of CV's of mine and went outside to drop them at all kinds of Hookah lounge bars. The first bar I've entered had Indian folks only working there, which I didn't even pay attention to. I have approached an employee and asked him to call his manager, since I was looking for a job and Am an experienced Hookah man. The guy complied, and after calling his manager he asked me "I guess you're a newcomer here in Canada,right?". That time i thought I just didn't look/act Canadian and it was obvious that I wasn't one. Turned out that question meant "You are new here,right? I ask you because apparently you don't know about the rules yet, which is - We have a cultural solidarity, so don't even try it here".
Then I went to all kinds of community centers (because I have a lot of experience acting as a settlement worker+translator in Red Cross and similar companies), applying for any position I was well familiar with (like a Receptionist, Translator or an assistant of any kind). I would be competing against people who barely spoke English, but still, somehow, would never receive a positive response. Applied to a bunch of Translation/Interpretation agencies, just for them to fail me by asking things like "Listen to this 3:28 seconds long Climate change speech written by a Chinese scientist, and then recap it in another language" (I have never experienced this kind of sabotage while applying to a Translatointerpreter job previously. Sounds a lot like If someone tried to filter out applicants to keep the spot Open).
In the last couple of days I have sent my resume to EVERY SINGLE OPEN POSITION at: Walmart, No Frills, Metro, Dollarama,Food basics, Starbucks, Tim Hortons, Vallue Village,Weed dispensaries like Hunny Pot, Canna Cabana and similar ones, various airports. And today I will send my CV to every single open position in Mcdonalds and BK. It looks a lot like I will end up homeless despite my skills, productivity and multilingualism... I have maybe a month more of cash to support myself, and then I am done pretty much (hopefully shelters or at least food banks i volunteer at will be able to help...). For anyone interested: I already received around 30 replies from Walmart, saying that they decided to not move on with my application; Vallue Village also said the same about every single position I applied to (around 20). I can't believe there's not a single Positive reply after all this time. Thought I'd help to build a statistic of a kind at least,by sharing details about these companies refusing applicants like me.
I have met and seen a lot of people here who do NOT support Canadian values, norms and culture, but I am Not one of them. I don't want to be amongst those who Doesn't even speak English, but still somehow gets a job here, or someone who spits on the floor in a subway, or those who openly dgaf about this place and Canadians but it's/their resources. Those, who are planning to drain this country and then leave,to go back to their hometown.
I will keep contributing to this country till i die, doing my best to show that I am a part of Solution, not a problem. And maybe someday, if i get lucky, i'd be accepted in this community for real. I know a lot of you say that Canada is lost already at this point, but way I personally see it:
You all are Canada. You - good people. Not those who steal, rape, abuse and insult. Not the Spitters or those who barely speak English. But you - Good, well-mannered, nice people. All the problems are coming from BAD people, and you have nothing to do with them. There's an INFINITE difference between a Canadian and a "Canadian", and "Canadians" are the enemies of everything GOOD here. But even if they steal everything from this country, they will not be able to turn their country into anything like Canada, because it's about PEOPLE,not about money.

It appears that CVS is making legal changes to their HR work policy to enforce Hybrid work requirements that would allow the company to terminate employees under “work policy non-compliance”.
This will save the company $$$s by not giving any lay-off package and better Optics in the market. Either ways, there seems to be oncoming potential impact on some people working there one way or another.
It is interesting to note that the company seems to be on a hiring spree of executives on one hand and planning to press the trigger on their other employees livelihood on the other. But hey, who has the authority to check on the social morality of top corporations and the fat pay check of these executives.

Tl:dr: Freelance Income is considered as a business or profession income, whereas salaried income. The treatment is different under income tax act, professional tax and GST act.

~Income Tax Act~

For easy understanding, the income tax divides the income based on the nature of the Income into 5 heads. They are:

1. Income from Salary
2. Income from Business or Profession
3. Income from House Property
4. Income from Capital Gains
5. Income from Other Sources

The rest of the income tax deals with special rules relating to situations or type of entities. These rules either increase your taxable income or decrease your taxable income or provide methods and rates to calculate the taxable income and taxes.

Your income for the financial year is categorized and totaled in a single ITR and then the taxes are calculated. You can not file multiple Income tax returns for one financial year.

So, the freelance income will be filled under the head of “Income from Business and Profession” whereas the Salary Income will fall under the head of “Income from Salary”.

This means that the benefits and deductions available to salaried individuals are NOT available for freelancers. The major ones are:
1. Standard deduction of 50000
2. Generous calculation of perks such as provision of Car by the employer.
3. House rent Allowance
4. Other Allowances such as Food, Uniform, travel, Leave Travel Allowance.
Note: The tax benefit on allowance is phased out in New Tax Regime.
~Professional Tax Act~
Professional tax is a state level Act that requires taxpayers to pay upto Rs. 2500/year as professional tax. As a salaried employee, the professional tax is deducted and deposited by your employer. But as a freelancer, you are required to enrol for professional tax(PTEC) and make the deposits on your own.

~GST Act~
Salaries are exempt from GST due to entry 1 in Schedule III of the CGST Act,2017.
But, the services provided by the freelancers are fully subject to the provisions of the GST Act. The freelancers must comply with GST Act. Currently as a service provider, you are required to register for GST if your turnover during the financial year crosses Rs. 20lakhs.

Once you register for GST, you are required to collect an additional 18% GST on your services. Though the client pays you 18%, if the client is registered under GST, it is not added to the cost of services as the client can claim credit of the GST paid to you.

Provident Fund: As an employee, you can contribute upto 24% of your total CTC to Provident Fund. A freelancer can not contribute more than Rs. 1,50,000 per year to Provident Fund.

Labour laws: Non existent , hence not discussed.

And that is all for my perspective on how Freelancing income is treated differently from a salaried income.

Tl:dr: Freelance Income is considered as a business or profession income, where as salaried income. The treatment is different under income tax act, professional tax and GST act.

~Income Tax Act~

For easy understanding, the income tax divides the income based on the nature of the Income into 5 heads. They are:

1. Income from Salary
2. Income from Business or Profession
3. Income from House Property
4. Income from Capital Gains
5. Income from Other Sources

The rest of the income tax deals with special rules relating to situations or type of entities. These rules either increase your taxable income or decrease your taxable income or provide methods and rates to calculate the taxable income and taxes.

Your income for the financial year is categorized and totaled in a single ITR and then the taxes are calculated. You can not file multiple Income tax returns for one financial year.

So, the freelance income will be filled under the head of “Income from Business and Profession” whereas the Salary Income will fall under the head of “Income from Salary”.

This means that the benefits and deductions available to salaried individuals are NOT available for freelancers. The major ones are:
1. Standard deduction of 50000
2. Generous calculation of perks such as provision of Car by the employer.
3. House rent Allowance
4. Other Allowances such as Food, Uniform, travel, Leave Travel Allowance.
Note: The tax benefit on allowance is phased out in New Tax Regime.
~Professional Tax Act~
Professional tax is a state level Act that requires taxpayers to pay upto Rs. 2500/year as professional tax. As a salaried employee, the professional tax is deducted and deposited by your employer. But as a freelancer, you are required to enrol for professional tax(PTEC) and make the deposits on your own.

~GST Act~
Salaries are exempt from GST due to entry 1 in Schedule III of the CGST Act,2017.
But, the services provided by the freelancers are fully subject to the provisions of the GST Act. The freelancers must comply with GST Act. Currently as a service provider, you are required to register for GST if your turnover during the financial year crosses Rs. 20lakhs.

Once you register for GST, you are required to collect an additional 18% GST on your services. Though the client pays you 18%, if the client is registered under GST, it is not added to the cost of services as the client can claim credit of the GST paid to you.

Provident Fund: As an employee, you can contribute upto 24% of your total CTC to Provident Fund. A freelancer can not contribute more than Rs. 1,50,000 per year to Provident Fund.

Labour laws: Non existent , hence not discussed.

And that is all for my perspective on how Freelancing income is treated differently from a salaried income.

so i've been training as a tech. not currently licensed but i'll be taking the ptcb next month. but i don't know if i can do it anymore. my PIC comes in half the time, stressed out & yelling at everyone cause he's leaving next week. we don't know who's now going to be in charge. my hours and pay are terrible and inconsistent. my contract i was hired with was for part-time, < 29 hours/week, at $18 with... a bachelor's degree.. (in california). which i said sure-- we can start there. i just needed a job. some weeks they have me at 15/16 hours. but currently i'm working about 35-40 hours. no contract change or raise. we are short staffed, over-worked, and so incredibly disorganized. never get to take breaks except when we close for lunch. all the techs i work with are miserable and talk about quitting. i come home from work every shift almost in tears because i am so exhausted. to work with shitty people and deal with shitty customers. i recently received an offer for a new job that's a consistent 9-5, $33-38/hr. i feel bad about possibly telling my current place since i've only been there for about 6 months, and i previously told them i was interested in getting my ptcb certification and joining more full-time. but they make the working conditions absolutely horrendous. the burn out is real. i had no idea the reputation CVS had with employees. is this just the norm ?? wish i had done some research before joining this sh*tshow. thoughts or advice ?

Hi everyone!
So here is my situation: I worked in Spain since 2017 (full-time employee contract) and had the chance to work remotely. In August 2019, I switched jobs to another company and requested an excedencia (unpaid leave) from my first company for one year. This was, of course, specified in an agreement, and the one-year duration was mentioned.
The idea was to secure my first job in case the second job didn't go well.
The second job went well until last December 2023. Two days before Christmas, they fired a lot of employees for economic reasons.
I immediately registered as a job seeker and requested unemployment benefits via the online platform. Three weeks later, they rejected my request, stating I had an excedencia with the first company (which I had totally forgotten about as it was over four years ago). I included the agreement and added a note saying that the excedencia was valid for only one year. Several weeks later, I got rejected again. I tried to submit it again and provided more information. Several weeks later, I got rejected again.
I finally went to the office in person and took an appointment, as the website wasn't working. Several weeks later, I met the person in charge. I tried to explain my situation, and the person just kept looking at her monitor and totally ignored me, then just told me to ask for my job back. She refused to speak further with me, literally fixed her gaze on the monitor, and ignored my questions.
I also contacted the first company, and they confirmed that this is the only document they could provide with our agreement, and the one-year date is clearly mentioned.
I sent over 300 CVs and got around 10 interviews since but still no job. I also had to quit my flat as I couldn't pay anymore. Now I am alternating between friends' places and my brother's place. I asked for help from an expat group on Facebook but received judgment instead. One guy offered to help in exchange for 5,000 euros.
I am very tired. I really hate anything linked with Spanish administration and websites, but I could really use that money to eat at this point.
I only had 3 days of sick leave in almost 7 years of working in Spain when I hurt my leg. I worked during COVID, and I never used any social benefits at all.
Any idea on how I can proceed? Any organizations that could help? Or anything that would help me?

I am not the OOP. The OOP is u/Holiday-Argument-451 posting in TwoHotTakes
Concluded as per OOP
1 update - Medium
Original - 4th June 2024
Update - 5th June 2024

My Job Is Overly Involved In How I Dress, Is This Borderline Harassment?

I've gotten a lot of different opinions from people in my life on this situation so I want to ask some unbiased people.
I (24f) have been working at my job for a year and a half. I do a good job, my reviews have all been good... except for how I dress. This is my first "corporate job". I put it in quotes because it's not really your average desk job. It's a sales office, we sell credit card machines. Its a company made up of 50 people, its a very laid back office environment. I am the receptionist... and part of the marketing team... and I do tech support... and I do office upkeep... I'm including this to show that I do a lot there. I don't just sit at the front desk and smile at people and transfer calls.. We do not have customers come into the office, the only people that come in that are not part of the staff is the occasional interviewee.
The dress code is jean casual. I signed a paper saying jeans and a nice top is the dress code. When I first got the job I felt like I was over dressing. I would wear slacks and a blouse, or a dress, or a pencil skirt and a button up.. you get the point. Business wear is not my style whatsoever... I'm an alt girly. But I know a job is a job and I sucked it up and bought clothes that were professional looking. but as I continued working I noticed everyone dressing extremely casual... I'm talking ripped jeans, leggings, slides, graphic-t's, baseball caps, hoodies.
As I continued working I realized that some of my job duties were pretty physical, sometimes I have to go into the bathroom to change the soap (if you've ever had to do that, you know sometimes that means literally laying on the bathroom floor under the sink to twist the bottle on..) or do major cleaning where I would be getting dirty. Wearing a dress or a satin blouse, was not it... So I slowly started dressing slightly down. Jeans that are not ripped, a nice top (not a t-shirt) and sandals or a clean white pair of slip on vans. Even that was more put together than 90% of the staff. Plus I was much more comfortable and confident.
I am the youngest employee, I feel like I still dress appropriately and I follow the dress code that was described when I accepted the job. The executive assistant Linda (64F) has taken a liking to me and has helped me be more professional with the way I interact with the CEO and things like that. She typically wears something like tights, ballet or the pointy flats, and a blouse or sweater (but shes 64 so the blouses are well... older lady longer blouses.. you get the picture). She did my first review and said I was doing great. Later in the week she pulled me in and told me that the CEO wants me to dress better. I was still new and trying to make a good impression so I again , bought some clothing that I felt were a little nicer but decided to stick to more of my style and colors that I liked. Since everyone else seemed to dress how they wanted too with no issue I felt like I would be able to do that too while still maintaining a professional look.
Well.. I guess not. Something is always wrong with how I dress but they always beat around the bush and don't tell me what they don't like. It's always so hush hush.. I don't wear leggings, I don't wear ripped jeans, I come with my hair done, jewelry... its business casual but like I said I'm a little alt so my outfits are black or sometimes patterned, I wear silver jewelry, I have a nose ring, that they said was fine... I even asked if they wanted me to change it to a stud and they said no it was okay. My tattoos are covered up... my hair is not an unnatural color... I don't wear like heavy alt makeup.... but I'm not a preppy blonde "clean girl" like their last receptionist.
I had my one-year review. Again, they said everything was great except... "Your dress isn't quite where we want it to be yet." At this point, I was fed up because I was really trying and I told them "You guys tell me this every review, I've bought a whole new wardrobe of business casual clothing even though the described dress code is jean casual. I feel like I dress more business-like than everyone else. I don't get what I'm doing wrong." Mind you this was my one-year review and was fully expecting a raise... they've added many more job duties than what I was originally hired for... I didn't even get a $0.50 raise. I said that I have already spent a substantial amount of money on clothing to wear at this job, I can't keep on buying different clothes for this job. They do a thing around Christmas where the higher-ups have to get their subordinates a Christmas gift. My higher-ups are the executive assistant, the sales manager, the marketing manager and the IT manager... I think they all assumed the others would get me something but none of them did. I really did not care about that at all.
Two weeks ago the executive assistant brought up the Christmas gift (she realized no one got my anything). She said that as a late Christmas gift, she wanted to get me some clothes for work. I felt pressured and in a sort of uncomfortable position so I just agreed. She suggested just ordering stuff online, I told her Shein was cheap and had a lot of variety (please don't come at me for supporting shein... i know its terrible.) I was fully expecting her to explain the kinds of clothing they were looking for and then I would be able to have some say so in like the color at least... but no... she basically had me sit there... she picked out different tops... they were all very older lady looking and colors and prints that I would never ever choose for myself.... floral blouses, bright orange, bright yellow... One of the tops came in a leopard print. I said "oh I like leopard, I can wear that with the black slacks I have." But no... i had to get the white with blue flower print. She got me gold jewelry.. like I said, I wear silver, and shoes with heels, and the pointy toe flats.
I was getting frustrated so I just let it happen. The clothes came in... and I was upset. I felt like they just dont like my style. I wore one full outfit she got me and I just looked like her.. not an outfit a 24 year old would wear. I decided to mix in the stuff that she got me with some of my own stuff. Yesterday I wore a pair of boot cut jeans, a nice black long-sleeve shirt, the gold jewelry and a pair of heels that she got me. I honestly thought I looked very nice. In the middle of the day she pulled me in and said that she was getting comments about my jeans from one of the male higher-ups. The jeans had no back pockets, but they were 100% denim. I was wearing heels, so I guess that like accentuated my legs. She told me that someone was saying that I needed to wear a top that covered my butt if I was going to wear jeggings.
I was having a rough day and I finally snapped a little. I said I felt like I was getting unfairly targeted about how I dress. I told her that I follow the dress code as described, the pants I was wearing were no jeggings, I wear the things they want me to wear, but the other women I work with continue to come in wearing leggings without their butt covered, tops with cleavage, graphic t-shirts, sweat pants, tight jeans, jogger shorts. I come in dressed in business casual even though the dress code is jean casual and there is still something wrong with my outfit almost everyday. I would understand it if I was wearing clothing that was inappropriate but that's not the case. I also said I'm starting to feel uncomfortable that everyone has something to say about how I look, I am the youngest woman here and I feel like they think they can push me around about things that don't affect my job performance. I walked out because I was sick of being insulted about how I dressed and made to feel insecure.
I have a meeting with her and the CEO tomorrow about it. Now I'm nervous that I'm going to get in trouble. Is this situation weird? Am I not seeing something? Or is this unreasonable and borderline workplace harassment?

Comments

Feeling-Object9383
OP, to be honest, at the moment you came in the office mixing their purchased items with your supplemented by golden colour jewellery, I was totally pissed.
Jeans and top were in your description. Stick to it. With the next comment, bring it and show it to them. Tell that you exactly follow the agreement. Golden jewellery instead of silver? Come on. What is happening is humiliating.
I would understand if you work in the front office of a luxury hotel. Then you wear a uniform.
Just say politely but firm: "I don't breach the dress code description." Don't spend much time for the further discussion.

Zombiewings2015
Exactly. “Explain to me how gold jewelry is ok but silver is not?” “Explain to me what’s wrong with my clothes in detail, so I can get this right.” “Explain to me in detail why this is against the code I signed” “explain to me how this is not considered harassment when I’m the only one getting talked to when wearing (clothing)”.

Secret_Pick6524
I've been in a professional setting for 23 years now and I have no fuckin' idea how women are supposed to dress. I've been in environments where I have to wear suits and some women would wear leggings and a tee shirt with a flower on it. And older women that dress like shit always seem to have some issue with some younger women that don't dress professionally by employee handbook standards, but dresses more professionally than most.

OOP: Yeah... its confusing... all the saleswomen dress like bums. I wear a form-fitting turtle neck and a knee length skirt with my hair pinned up.. its inappropriate... I look online for "young women, business casual outfit ideas" and follow that and there is still an issue... i don't get it.

fish1115
Who exactly has been communicating these issues to you? To me it seems like the executive assistant has a problem with you and potentially some resentment. Who is doing your reviews? I hope your meeting will put an end to this.

OOP: The EA has been communicating most of the issues to me. The customer service manager also said something to me when I wore a form-fitting black turtle neck saying others thought it was too tight. I have to do YouTube videos for the company too, I wore a green scoop neck blouse (no cleavage) the shot was waist up, and has three rings on and a silver necklace. The CEO looked at the footage after we filmed and said that I looked chubby (I'm 127 pounds) and that all my jewelry was distracting and had me refilm the entire thing with no jewelry, in a t-shirt with the company's logo on it and a sweater. So I cant be sure who is the one who has the most issue.
I get a review from the EA, and the Sales and Marketing manager. the reviews with the EA are the only ones that ever talk about how I dress. The two other managers I have reviews with are male. But with the comment about the jeans I was wearing, the EA said that a male higher-up thought they were inappropriate because they didn't have back pockets and my shirt didn't fully cover my butt but asked her to say something to me because he didn't want me to think he was looking at my butt... she didn't specify who said something.
I hope the meeting puts an end to it as well.

Update - 1 day later

Okay, everyone! I just got out of the meeting with the Executive Assistant and the CEO about my dress code.
First I just wanted to answer the question I was seeing a lot about why I haven't said anything to HR.. well, because the executive assistant is HR... we don't have an HR department...
TLDR: They don't like how my body looks in the clothing and the fact I wear dark colors basically.
I really wanted to be prepared for this meeting, since I am the youngest and I'm a bit of a pushover I wanted to make sure I didn't get bull-dozed over in this meeting. I printed out the section of the handbook that explained the dress code, and when I got home yesterday, I changed into the last four outfits that I had worn that I was dinged for and took pictures, including the outfit that was half my stuff and half the stuff they bought me. This morning I went around and took a few pictures of my co-workers (I asked for consent) who were wearing ripped jeans, flip-flops, and graphic-t's. These things are clearly prohibited per the handbook. I also brought with me a top that was bought for me, (a blouse from shein bright orange and frilly) then wore a top that I bought for the job that was fairly similar (a blouse from H&M that was dark green).
I asked if I could voice-record the meeting so I would be able to refer back to the feedback. they said okay. They started off the meeting by telling me that it was inappropriate that I argued back yesterday and walked out. (some people were confused when I said I walked out. I didn't leave work, I just walked out of the office.) I apologized for the arguing back but followed it up by saying "I report to 4 different people and have many tasks throughout the day, you two know that Tuesdays are my busiest days and I was frustrated that I was being called away from my job duties to discuss my attire as I was in the middle of a very crucial tasks."
They tried to swerve around that statement and just went into why they brought me in. They told me that they had made multiple attempts to get me to adhere to the dress code and that I had refused to comply. I told them that I have been trying to adhere to the dress code, pulled out the handbook, and read it out loud to them. I explained that I had been following the dress code as it is described in the handbook and asked if they could explicitly tell me what I had been doing wrong, I had bought different clothing, I had worn the clothing that they bought me and I dress business casual even though the handbook says "jean casual" because I understand that being at the front desk means I should be dressing up a little more.
They told me that the outfits I choose to wear are distracting. I pulled out the pictures I had taken of myself and asked them to explain in detail what was distracting about these outfits because I clearly didn't understand. Their response "The black pants with the white polka-dots are inappropriate." in that outfit, I was wearing a white flowy top that fully covered my butt and had a high neckline with white flats. I asked them to elaborate, they said the pattern is distracting. I wrote down, no patterned pants in my notebook in front of them.
The next outfit was a form-fitting black turtle neck, tucked in with a belt and cream dress pants. They said that the turtle kneck was inappropriate because it was a tighter fit. I wrote down, no form-fitting tops. I then pulled out the picture of the outfit I wore which included the heels they got me and the boot-cut jeans with no back pockets. They said the pants were highly inappropriate since they accentuated my behind paired with the heels. I wrote, no heels paired with jeans. I was keeping my mouth shut still. I then pulled out the shirt that was bought for me. I said I'd like to know how this shirt that was bought for me and the shirt that I am wearing now are different and why one is preferred over the other. They said that the bright frilly one is more inviting and presents the message they want more than the one that I was wearing. The dark green is not inviting but the orange is. This was their reasoning for my silver vs. gold jewelry question too.
I then said, "Okay, I think I'm starting to understand." I pulled out the pictures of my co-workers. I asked, do you see how I would be confused when the rest of my co-workers dress like this every day." They said that the other co-workers are held to a different standard since they are in the back office. I just nodded.
I replied "Okay I think I understand. So patterns are not okay unless they are bright loud colors and floral print?" they nodded and smiled "And since I am in the front, I am expected to dress business casual/business professional. Not Jean casual as described in the handbook." they smiled and nodded and said "yes, we're happy to create a new handbook for you to refer back to." and then I said "and for the other outfits, it's not really about the items of clothing, it's about how my body looks in the clothes, and my body is the thing that is distracting everyone at work. Not the clothes." They sort of stammered a little bit and I said "I really try hard to make you guys happy but I think it's inappropriate that this whole meeting was done, taking time out of everyone's day just to tell me that my body is being looked at in a way that is distracting people from their jobs. I am very uncomfortable and am feeling sexualized and harassed at this point. I understand that the dark colors and certain patterns aren't what you guys are looking for. But the other feedback you've given me is just about my body and how it looks. My compensation is not high enough for me to afford to buy any more clothing for this job."
They told me that I was misunderstanding this whole meeting and that was not what they were saying at all. The clothing I wear is not inviting and not the message they want to put out, it has nothing to do with my body. They pride themselves in being an inclusive and safe workplace and would never intentionally make anyone feel sexualized and they couldn't believe that I was interpreting this as harassment. They said that they felt like buying me clothes was a kind gesture to help me work on my professionalism and they thought that I would have been more receptive of that. They also said that if I'd like, they can extend my hours so my compensation is raised. They said that they would be having another meeting with me about the new handbook and to look out on my calendar for it.
I was so frustrated (I am an angry crier, I did not cry but I felt it brewing.) I just smiled and nodded and asked if there was anything else they needed from me. They said no and I walked out of the office. I had so much more that I wanted to say, but I choked up and was upset I didn't say anything else. I am looking for a new job, I don't want to do this other meeting. I feel like it's not worth trying to fight it anymore... I guess I'll just wear the 4 outfits they got me every day until I find a new job. I feel a little defeated and have a sour taste from all of this, but can't afford to just quit. But I have the recording so I'm going to research to see if maybe I have a case here. I'm not meant for corporate America...

Comments

Separate_Slice9706
They offered to let you work more hours so you can afford clothes that they approve of? How did they say that with a straight face?

BeefInGR
My boss put in for a $6/hr raise for myself and another guy (to get us just above market rate for what we do). The person who decides those things (not his boss) wrote back "we can offer them three hours of overtime every week but not direct compensation".

LlittleOne
That reminds me. My boss tried to ask her supervisor for a raise for me. Told her that I was doing the work of 2-3 people and I needed some better compensation or I was going to get burned out. Her supervisor told her "well if money is the issue, she can always work overtime"
It just felt like such a slap in the face to be told essentially, yeah you're working harder than most people, just work more and that should solve the problem"

LowBalance4404
I really feel like you need to get a lawyer involved in this. Nothing that they are doing is appropriate. And making a manual just for one employee?

tattoovamp
I agree. A lawyer needs to be involved. This is beyond ridiculous

stinstin555
Agreed. OP: Schedule a consult with 2-3 attorneys well versed in workplace litigation, the initial consult is usually free. Outline everything that you detailed here and put the recording of the meeting on a flash drive to play during your consult.
I believe you may have a case for a hostile workplace and the comments about how your body looked in certain clothes may meet the threshold for a workplace harassment claim. Good luck

I am not the OOP. Please do not harass the OOP.
Please remember the No Brigading Rule and to be civil in the comments

I wanna be cross trained in the pharmacy bc of hour cuts so I’m trying my hardest to get my 40 hours I’m so bored when I don’t work and I work hard, been going to other stores and my hours are just getting worse and worse, I really think I would do well in the pharmacy, I’m nice, kind, hardworking, never call in, and would love to have being a certified pharmacy tech on my resume, so I talked to a few pharm techs and the first few were very nice and encouraged me to come, even the sm said yes that I can be cross trained, but when I brought it up to the pharmacy manger she didn’t really say no but she really didn’t seem very happy that I wanted to come over and then I talked to another pharmacy tech and his reaction to me saying that I would cross trained soon was, “ oh” “I mean sure we could use some help” so like do they think the cvs store employees aren’t capable of doing it or do they just prefer people with actual medical experience

Good Evening
Recently, I travelled to Japan for 10-12 days, depending on how you count travel time. I also have a deathly allergen to nuts. While the smell doesn't make me die (although, any allergen people can confirm - it stinks to high heaven) , the touch and taste are big trouble. This includes cross contamination.
I wanted to quickly share my experiences in the country eating with allergies. I will preface with a couple quick things

I live in Canada, one of the greatest places on the planet for having a nut allergen.
- 2. I am more diligent than most people with a nut allergy - I base my decisions on safety and employee transparency. I have had 3 attacks in 24 years, and all have been from family members whos food I refuse to eat now. I know lots of people with anaphylactic allergens - including several who will just "eat around the nuts". I don't eat in store bakery food due to cross contamination, I actively avoid restaurants that use nuts (based on frequency in the cooking) and am low risk adverse
- 3. I speak next to 0 Japanese, so communication was a bigger hurdle than it may be for you. Its worth noting that more Japanese people speak English fluently than its made out to be online; for a secondary language, its pretty impressive.
- 4. I work retail and in a high school in Canada; I have trained around 50 people in customer service and witnessed a few hundred. I can say with out a doubt in my mind that the minimum wage/part timers/service industry people here are WORLDS above the average here. I would say 80% of my current department would be fired for their customer service skills in Japan. I have 0 bad to say about the service, and appreciate how difficult it is for my allergy
- 5. Japan has 28 major allergens - but not every nut is one. This means they don't have to identify them all on the wrapper of food in the same way we have it here.
- 6. Tokyo was, overall, Slightly better equipped for dealing with allergies. this is probably due to the fact its a major tourist spot, and closer to the major airport

I also want to note that I am making this post in response - research lead me to find things before we left, but I read everything I could find with very mixed results. I'm not sharing this to hear your opinion on how I conduct myself with my allergy; I'm sharing this as a guide for those who want a more detailed analysis of food allergen in Japan.
Lets Begin OVERVIEW
So, people will tell you how great Japan is with a peanut allergy. This is true - to some extent, very few items in japan carry peanuts in my experience. However, other nuts are fairly frequent. We saw a great deal of almonds, cashews, and pistachios. You can definitely avoid them; but its something to be cognizant of. The big thing here that's different is Understanding; People in Japan will look at you like an alien when you pull out your allergy cards (Linked below). While it takes them longer, they will help you to a high level to understand. I also appreciated the authenticity of their care; while in Canada I often get a "I don't know, man" or something equivalent, the people here were very confident saying either Yes or No. I walked out of around 50% of restaurants based on safety - a pretty big increase from Canada.
PREPERATION
Preparation is key for travelling anywhere with an allergy, and my first steps are always CHECK
C: Chains: Chain restaurants are so huge for people with allergens. Chains have uniformed stances, *Often\* the same menu and easy to find allergen info online.
H: Home: Cooking at home is great, if you have the time. renting somewhere with a stove may be a good idea for you
E: Expensive: While I didn't use this too much in Japan, Expensive restaurants can often be better than smaller operations due to career staffers,
C: Convivence: Identifying snacks and easy to grab food before leaving. In Japan, with the convivence store food being more edible, this was a huge help
K: Keep looking: This may be the hardest for me; after a few restaurants in a row tell you they cant accommodate, or don't know, it wears down on you. You have to keep your head up
This ideology helped me stay sane in japan; while it isn't always a big deal, I am a pretty big weightlifteathlete back home so I eat like a machine. I eat a lot, and especially when my walking was using so many calories and energy.
a HUGE assistance for me was my allergy cards; essentially, there are 2 cards that say everything that I am allergic to, and a preface mentioning both the food and the oil. I used two together, since the phrase Tree Nut isn't as common there.
Here is a link to the first card and the secondcard. For the second one, I cut and paste the nuts in Japanese and placed them in the clear section to avoid confusion from poor handwriting.
RESTURANTS/EXPEREINCES
Convenience stores: We ate at convivence stores a little bit. I would say a convenience store meal in Japan is equivalent with a fast food restaurant here (not great, but good enough). I often had a sandwich from the cooler. it was ok, and I used google translates camera (A MUST USE) to translate and asked the worker.
McDonalds: If you had told me, that while i was in Japan my most eaten place would have been McDonalds - i wouldn't be happy. However, I was pleasantly surprised - McDonalds Japan is consistently a pretty good meal. The ones in Canada are, quite frankly, horrendous. I would avoid the baked items, per usual, but i enjoyed fries, nuggets and Egg sandwiches quite a bit. When I asked the employee the first time we went, he told me to use the website linked here. He also came to check to make sure we were okay after the first few bites - much more than id ever expect at McDonalds here.
Ichiran: The biggest chain in Japan produced some of the tastiest meals. I loved Ichiran: the system was very helpful, they had posted allergy info in the restaurants and a simple menu. these are usually a recipe for allergen success. This chart here is similar. Interestingly, the chart doesn't list almond as an allergen, despite it being on a dessert. Overall, this was my favorite Japanese Restaurant - it was excellent and not too horrible for you.
???: I cant type the name of this one, but here is the address ongoogle Maps. Its the building in the picture with the blacksign. We had Soba and Fried Chicken here, and it seemed to be a small business. The food was quick, tasty and safe (they said no nuts many times). It was also empty.
USJ: USJ was supposed to be the golden child. The times i have gone to American theme parks (Disney World, USF) and always had a stellar time. I figured USJ would be the same, as they have an excellent website showing things. It was not. I couldn't find anything to eat (we tried several restaurants) but terrible curry and rice for 2000 Yen. I ended up just waiting for the Hard Rock Café in the Universal walkway. The staff were wonderful in the park, and the food looked ok - it was just too bad. The prices were also the highest we saw all trip
Hard Rock Café: At this point i was pretty hungry, so we went to the Hard Rock. It has some great food and excellent service. i had the fish and chips + the pulled pork sandwich. While talking to the server, I asked her about tipping; she said she gets tipped around 25% of the time, so I tipped her. She was just wonderful. I only mention the tipping because this was the only place in japan it came up.
TGI Fridays:Service was excellent, but probably our worst meal in Japan. Doesn't mean that it was bad, but just the quality at the other restaurants was higher. It was safe though, so maybe just don't get the burgers. Probably identical to the one in the states.
Kuche new München: Excellent food and service. I sent the whole restaurant into a bit of a mad dash trying to figure out my allergy, which made me feel silly. It was worth the wait, and I was so appreciative. it was so tasty.
Speed Round: Restaurants that immediately told me no: Wolfgang Puck, all of USJ, Travorra Travola (In the Fuji Outlet), Subway, and a few cook-your-own style restaurants all told me no very quickly. However, it was very politely and they seemed to feel bad, which made me feel bad....
CLOSURE Overall, Its very possible to eat in japan with a nut allergy. However, you need to make decisions more frequently than North America for safety. Baked Goods, Desserts and salads are often my problem in Canada, and the same was the story there. I want to once again re-iterate that the quality of care and food was so much higher. I personally hate being "the allergy guy" and no matter how frustrated i may be i never take it out on the staff. However, there is a world of stuff you could probably try that was just outside of my comfort zone
Thanks for your time and have a great day. I hope this helps just one person!

Chapter 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu_pq-AgvNY&t=310s

Traveling the country is never an easy task by oneself. Your truck breaks down, you can't get any sleep, you can't charge your phone whenever you want to, but you're free do whatever you want as long as you maintain your budget. Jacob Rissen had arrived at Garden City, Kansas to make some money for his next adventure. He'd been here for a few weeks and would soon be leaving. Whether it was the bright lights of All mart or the fact that he'd been at the register for six hours, Jacob Rissen was beginning to get a painful headache. He lived a mostly stress free life except for when his truck needed fixing. If ever the stress built up or he made enemies he'd say his goodbye's to his friends and leave for the next town. It was a skill he'd gained from his time in the Marine's having to make friends quickly and say goodbye at some time afterwards. He hadn't been a model Marine by any standards and no one looked at him for leadership. Jacob stayed under the radar easily hiding his true self which is where he made his peace. If anyone was to look to him for advice just because he took the job shortly after high school he'd have to question their inferiority complex. After three years of duty he'd been removed due to a 'personality disorder' but knew it was for the best. That had all been two years ago but he had yet to develop past that point in the civilian world.

"Did you find everything you were looking for?" Jacob asked as the customer finished loading their groceries onto the belt. He only half listened to the customer's answer sure that if there was an actual problem he could fix it. Several plastic bags were quickly filled with the customer's selections. Looking up to see past the customer he saw his boss judging him yet again. Cassie was a skinny girl of twenty three, one year and a few months younger than himself. He knew that she was watching to make sure he was careful with the glassware unaware that even at his speed he tried his best to keep the customer's satisfied. She'd recently changed her disposition to him and would watch him several times during the day surely wondering why he worked so hard. A promotion could be easily obtained but he wasn't interested in something so permanent. Stress wasn't something he planned to have in his life so avoided it as best he could. He switched from job to job every few months so had to work harder than most to keep good job references. In the time it took his boss to charge one customer, Jacob's line was quickly finished leaving him time to rearrange the candy bars and face the soda bottles in the cooler. He had no problem with pushing himself harder than anyone else knowing that he had to make up for the past months he'd been free from a job.
"Logan!" Shrieked Maria, a brown skinned, Central American nineteen year old girl who worked in the clothing department. She was incredibly short so it always surprised him when she clung onto him by surprise. Being a traveler had its advantages which included becoming someone new in every town. His boss and the store managers knew his name was Jacob Rissen but he went by Logan with everyone else. In every town he visited he planned out who he was going to be and how long it would last. It wasn't because he didn't trust them but sometimes he wanted to make a new identity when he entered a new town. Once people got to know him well enough he would usually leave them with a pleasant memory of whoever he was that time instead of the memory of Jacob Rissen never to be seen or heard from again. If anyone tried to look him up on the internet they couldn't find him and if they did they'd get more questions than answers. It was his own middle finger to society, harmless as it was.
"Hey. Where have you been hiding?" Jacob joked, wrapping an arm around Maria. She smiled from ear to ear blushing as she usually did when he played the romantic protagonist. Jacob Rissen was never this confident around women but knew that Maria had a crush on Logan. When no one knows or cares about you when you leave a town it didn't matter who you were in said town. Even if Jacob made a fool of himself he could just hop in his truck and continue down the highway. People would wonder where Logan had gone but would soon forget him afterwards. Even with Maria in his arm, Jacob was deciding on what name to go by when he left.
"We just got a bunch of new clothes in. If someone was to take me out tonight I bet I'd look good." Maria asked in that feminine way of asking a man out without making it a question. Reality struck Jacob like the cupid's poisonous arrow. He was twenty five and had lived a life of pain and misery only to find relief in his divorce. Almost immediately after leaving the Marines his ex-wife had left him for one of his friends. Needless to say he didn't talk to either of them turning to a life of self indulgence and failed relationships. Only recently had he found peace in traveling the country and wasn't ready to give it up. Maria's eyes looked up at him urgently wanting an answer he couldn't give her. Most of the women he dated had left quickly after they both got what they wanted from the other. Maria was an innocent of sorts. This was surely just because she was just a recent high school graduate and he would not take advantage of that.
"I... I really like you." Jacob said as he felt Logan's confidence leaving him. "But, I thought we were just having fun at work." Maria's smile quickly turned downward, opening slightly in disbelief. It was a strange sight he'd never seen in a woman that liked him. Whenever he made his ex-wife sad she'd scream and yell at him. A reaction like this made him immediately regret his decision almost wanting to marry Maria on the spot instead of push her away.
"Yeah, it's all just... fun. I'll see you later. Gotta get back before the boss notices I'm missing." She said shuffling her feet as she walked away. He wanted to follow her and try to change her mind but knew that the man she wanted didn't actually exist. Jacob was back now for better or worse and she'd likely never see Logan again.
"How about a break?" Asked Cassie, his boss, from behind him. He jumped, frightened at her sudden appearance and curious about how much she had heard.
"I should probably just leave her alone for awhile." Jacob said realizing he'd just do more damage than good.
"You mean how you left me alone?" She asked smugly.
"You're my boss. Flirting with you really was just fun." Jacob joked knowing she knew the same. They both smiled at the memory of his interview.
"You gotta remember though. People aren't characters on TV. We have real feelings." She pointed out quickly turning to serious then back to a smile while she lightly pushed him out of the aisle. "Now go take your break heartbreaker." Now on bis break, he made his way out the building into the parking lot as his headache kicked in even harder than before. He had to close his eyes and blink several times as the parking lot switched from concrete to grassy plains in his eyes. Instead of cars he saw trees, instead of roads he saw fields, and instead of people he saw a herd of deer. After a moment it switched back to modern times eluding to the fact that he really wanted to get out of the city. Apparently he wanted it so badly his brain was playing tricks on him. His truck was parked far away from the customer vehicles and he quickly checked himself over in the rearview mirror. His brown hair was lightening up in certain areas thanks to the excessive sunlight it received these days. Even the short hairs on his face had begun to brighten. Like most people he had spent the majority of his time indoors but was beginning to see what the rest of the world missed out on as he traveled. Even his personality was better for it as the natural light kept him at ease. Traveling around taking jobs here and there seemed to be a better fit for him than living just to work at a job he hated. His family described him as a ghost whenever he called them and perhaps they were right in a sense. Jacob only stayed in a place for as long as he wanted and only worked enough to survive for the next few months. One month of work could keep him and his truck going strong for three. Once harvest time came he'd go back to Nebraska and find a farmer to work for. That would give him enough to travel for several more months giving him a long vacation from work. Even if he was in an accident and his truck was destroyed he had enough saved up to buy a similar one. He turned on his phone and connected to the store's wifi. Placing his phone in it's handless holder on the dash he leaned back in his drivers seat only to turn his face at the basket and remember he had to do laundry after work. Jacob sat there for awhile enjoying one of his favorite shows as the ground began to shake. He looked down at his hand to make sure he had only been drinking the soda he just bought before realizing the store was being hit with an earthquake. Glancing out the window he thought he saw something large flying in the sky before jumping out of his truck to run towards the building as quickly as he could.
"Calm down everyone! No pushing!" He shouted as he helped the people out of the building as the ground continued to violently shake.
"You calm down. What's wrong with you?" Asked a nearby elderly man. He looked around and saw that even though the ground was shaking he wasn't needed. Everyone continued to shop as if nothing was happening.
"It's an earthquake!" Jacob urged hoping for some sort of answer. If he was the only one feeling the ground shake he'd have to go to the hospital. He had enough money to pay for his life but not enough if he was dying of a stroke.
"It's just an earthquake." The elderly man said scornfully before noticing the concerned look on Jacob's face. "Probably not safe to be shopping right now but we're used to it."
"Sorry. I just came to town." Jacob lied. He'd been in town for a few weeks but hadn't felt an earthquake for at least few years.
"That explains it. It hasn't happened for awhile now but about a month ago it was earthquake after earthquake. The news says it isn't a problem but I blame those frackers." The man said before leaving Jacob to feel like an idiot. Even if the town was used to earthquakes he should have noticed something earlier. He'd been hopping around nearby from town to town before reaching Garden City and hadn't even felt shockwaves. Realizing that the customer's were all looking at him funny he looked at his watch and returned to his truck to get his phone. For the next few hours he accepted his coworkers jokes. Cassie, his boss, was sure to come by every half hour to joke with him.
"The ceiling is falling!" She said in a squeaky voice low enough for none of the customers to take her seriously.
"I can help you over here." Jacob said with a smile to a nearby customer looking for a register. Although he had made a fool of himself he smiled back at Cassie as she made her jokes. It was better than being ignored by his boss altogether but wondered if he should write her down as a reference for his next job.
"Did you-" Jacob began as he looked up at the customer. For a moment it looked like the man's ears were pointed outwards before returning to normal ears. Realizing it was fairly rude to stare at a larger man much stronger than himself he simply started loading his groceries into the bags.
"That explains it Maria. Logan likes men. He is an attractive man, good luck." Cassie joked one last time before returning to her post. At the very least he had made the day easier for his coworkers and should be happy about that.
"Sorry about her-" Jacob began before bracing himself against his register. From the electronics department came a loud and forceful explosion shooting a piercing soundwave towards the registers. Almost instantly the headache he'd been fighting all day disappeared as the force of the blast knocked something loose in his brain. Down towards the electronic's department grew a giant tree branch big enough to build a small house inside of. Reality had a hard time reaching him as he stood there wondering what had happened. All around him were faces mirroring his own stunned look. Customers and employees alike stood like statues trying to grasp what had happened. How did a tree suddenly appear in the middle of the store? How was it still growing through the foundation? The tree branch from the electronics department quickly grew and became large enough for people to rest inside.
"Is that a tree branch?" His customer said before falling to the ground.
"Sir!" Jacob shouted as he regained his movement. He left his register quickly to help the man to his feet before seeing the arrow that had struck the man in the chest.
"What is... this?" He choked out, spilling blood from his mouth onto the white tile floor. Jacob was quick to leave the man's side as the customer's began to shout in panic. Civilian triage and military triage differed in certain places but were also alot alike. In the civilian world if someone looks dead you run to them. In the military world if someone looks dead you help someone else. Just because the man was talking didn't mean he wasn't dead. Treat the casualty, prevent further casualties, complete the mission. Jacob couldn't treat the causalty so had to move on to the next. Step two was critical to step three and if the man couldn't fight he couldn't complete the mission. Using his register he smashed the nearby soda cooler, wrapped a cleaning rag around the largest glass shard and held it like a weapon. It was the fourth luckiest he'd ever been as he looked up just in time to avoid a whizzing arrow. Dodging a bullet was one thing, but dodging an arrow was what really made time feel slower. When people say time slows down in a bullet fight they're wrong. Time speeds up even faster only slowing down when you're about to make a mistake but not fast enough to do anything about it. In order to keep from slowing down he made sure not to look back at the arrow and only forward at his goal. The archer who had tried to kill him was unseen as he hid behind a band of sword wielding warriors running down the aisles. Jacob couldn't take them all on with just a glass shard so took the route through the clothing department.
"Logan! What's going on!?" Maria screamed as she clung to him again. Jacob almost stabbed her as she surprised him but quickly tried to calm her down.
"We're under attack. I don't know why their using swords and arrows. Is anyone else nearby?"
"They killed them all!" She shouted again soaking his work uniform with red stained tears.
"Lept Ka!" Shouted a warrior thrusting his sword through the clothing rack. Jacob was quick to push Maria off of him as he grabbed his attackers hand through the rack and forced himself through, glass shard first. The rack had knocked over on top of his attacker but from the blood on the glass he knew they had to take this chance to run. If Maria was correct he would be of more use at the entrance to the store than the back.
"RRAAAAG!" Came a roar from behind them as they ran. Turning to look at the sound he saw the clothing department being burned down by none other than a green dragon. He knew it wasn't possible and that it must just be some kind of weapon but didn't think past it as he clutched Maria's hand in their sprint. Just as they reached the jewelry department the ground underneith him turned red showing some strange rune made of light. His feet immediately lost their balance as if being controlled by the strange looking glyph on the floor.
"Ir apo." Said a female's voice nearby. Before he could get up the voice's owner thrust a large expensive looking staff to his chest. The end piece didn't pierce him but rested on him instead.
"Ir mi." She said again with just enough emotion in her face to almost look sad. The end piece of the staff began to glow and heat up burning a hole in his shirt. The smell of burning fabric filled his nostrils as the cheap company shirt burned. Before she could do worse he pushed the staff away burning his hand. Although his hand was badly burned he forced both of them around the enemy's throat taking in her face as the life faded. He looked her over as she went unconscious, wondering why she decided to wear fake elf ears into battle. Part of him wanted to keep his hands there and continue his blood choke until she died but he had to get Maria out of the store. It didn't help that the strange woman's tears had found their way onto his hands. Confident that she would be out for a few moments he grabbed Maria's hand again and the two continued to run towards the registers.
"Jacob!" Cassie shouted from a nearby register she had apparently been hiding behind.
"Come on!" He said grabbing her with his other hand and pulling her from her safe space. The bodies of the customers were concentrated the most at the entrance of the store. Many of the dead had been killed from arrows rather than swords and one from a large perfectly circlular hole in the chest from what could have only been an energy weapon.
A nearby warrior pointed at them with a sword and yelled out a battlecry. There was a familiar 'bang' to his right as he watched the warrior fall dead. Apparently Cassie kept a pistol at her station and continued to fire wildly at the warrior's direction as the three of them escaped out the doors of the store. As unsafe as some may believe, he was glad to have her armed, shooting behind them as they went.
"Put down the weapon!" Said a police officer taking cover behind his patrol car. Cassie was quick to throw the weapon as the trio ran past more and more bodies of civilans and enemies alike. They quickly made their way out of the range of fire as more and more police cars gathered in the parking lot looking more like a mass grave. They didn't stop running until they reached Logan's truck.
"Hold it!" Shouted a nearby officer before he could get them in his truck and escape.
"We need to g-" Logan began before his voice disappeared behind the loud rifles the officers began to fire. The four used the truck as cover careful to watch the massacre that was occuring. The enemy didn't seem to know fear as they ran towards the barricade. As more and more police joined the battle the bullets easily pierced the enemy. More and more warriors emerged from the doors but were quickly killed from gunfire.
"RRRAAAGGHH!" Shouted the building as the ceiling was torn apart by the dragon-like weapon they had brought with them. Fire sprayed from it's mouth, igniting several of the parked cars. Explosion after explosion were seen as the police took cover and contionued to fire at the dragons. The rounds found their way through the dragons thick armor and it wasn't long before all the headshots took their toll. The dragon fell quickly to the concrete, dead. It was unbelievable how soon the battle had ended. So many civilians had been killed as they ran but one police department was enough to stop the enemy's advance. If it had happened a few hours later there wouldn't be half as many casualties.

Chapter 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu_pq-AgvNY

Traveling the country is never an easy task by oneself. Your truck breaks down, you can't get any sleep, you can't charge your phone whenever you want to, but you're free do whatever you want as long as you maintain your budget. Jacob Rissen had arrived at Garden City, Kansas to make some money for his next adventure. He'd been here for a few weeks and would soon be leaving. Whether it was the bright lights of All mart or the fact that he'd been at the register for six hours, Jacob Rissen was beginning to get a painful headache. He lived a mostly stress free life except for when his truck needed fixing. If ever the stress built up or he made enemies he'd say his goodbye's to his friends and leave for the next town. It was a skill he'd gained from his time in the Marine's having to make friends quickly and say goodbye at some time afterwards. He hadn't been a model Marine by any standards and no one looked at him for leadership. Jacob stayed under the radar easily hiding his true self which is where he made his peace. If anyone was to look to him for advice just because he took the job shortly after high school he'd have to question their inferiority complex. After three years of duty he'd been removed due to a 'personality disorder' but knew it was for the best. That had all been two years ago but he had yet to develop past that point in the civilian world.

"Did you find everything you were looking for?" Jacob asked as the customer finished loading their groceries onto the belt. He only half listened to the customer's answer sure that if there was an actual problem he could fix it. Several plastic bags were quickly filled with the customer's selections. Looking up to see past the customer he saw his boss judging him yet again. Cassie was a skinny girl of twenty three, one year and a few months younger than himself. He knew that she was watching to make sure he was careful with the glassware unaware that even at his speed he tried his best to keep the customer's satisfied. She'd recently changed her disposition to him and would watch him several times during the day surely wondering why he worked so hard. A promotion could be easily obtained but he wasn't interested in something so permanent. Stress wasn't something he planned to have in his life so avoided it as best he could. He switched from job to job every few months so had to work harder than most to keep good job references. In the time it took his boss to charge one customer, Jacob's line was quickly finished leaving him time to rearrange the candy bars and face the soda bottles in the cooler. He had no problem with pushing himself harder than anyone else knowing that he had to make up for the past months he'd been free from a job.
"Logan!" Shrieked Maria, a brown skinned, Central American nineteen year old girl who worked in the clothing department. She was incredibly short so it always surprised him when she clung onto him by surprise. Being a traveler had its advantages which included becoming someone new in every town. His boss and the store managers knew his name was Jacob Rissen but he went by Logan with everyone else. In every town he visited he planned out who he was going to be and how long it would last. It wasn't because he didn't trust them but sometimes he wanted to make a new identity when he entered a new town. Once people got to know him well enough he would usually leave them with a pleasant memory of whoever he was that time instead of the memory of Jacob Rissen never to be seen or heard from again. If anyone tried to look him up on the internet they couldn't find him and if they did they'd get more questions than answers. It was his own middle finger to society, harmless as it was.
"Hey. Where have you been hiding?" Jacob joked, wrapping an arm around Maria. She smiled from ear to ear blushing as she usually did when he played the romantic protagonist. Jacob Rissen was never this confident around women but knew that Maria had a crush on Logan. When no one knows or cares about you when you leave a town it didn't matter who you were in said town. Even if Jacob made a fool of himself he could just hop in his truck and continue down the highway. People would wonder where Logan had gone but would soon forget him afterwards. Even with Maria in his arm, Jacob was deciding on what name to go by when he left.
"We just got a bunch of new clothes in. If someone was to take me out tonight I bet I'd look good." Maria asked in that feminine way of asking a man out without making it a question. Reality struck Jacob like the cupid's poisonous arrow. He was twenty five and had lived a life of pain and misery only to find relief in his divorce. Almost immediately after leaving the Marines his ex-wife had left him for one of his friends. Needless to say he didn't talk to either of them turning to a life of self indulgence and failed relationships. Only recently had he found peace in traveling the country and wasn't ready to give it up. Maria's eyes looked up at him urgently wanting an answer he couldn't give her. Most of the women he dated had left quickly after they both got what they wanted from the other. Maria was an innocent of sorts. This was surely just because she was just a recent high school graduate and he would not take advantage of that.
"I... I really like you." Jacob said as he felt Logan's confidence leaving him. "But, I thought we were just having fun at work." Maria's smile quickly turned downward, opening slightly in disbelief. It was a strange sight he'd never seen in a woman that liked him. Whenever he made his ex-wife sad she'd scream and yell at him. A reaction like this made him immediately regret his decision almost wanting to marry Maria on the spot instead of push her away.
"Yeah, it's all just... fun. I'll see you later. Gotta get back before the boss notices I'm missing." She said shuffling her feet as she walked away. He wanted to follow her and try to change her mind but knew that the man she wanted didn't actually exist. Jacob was back now for better or worse and she'd likely never see Logan again.
"How about a break?" Asked Cassie, his boss, from behind him. He jumped, frightened at her sudden appearance and curious about how much she had heard.
"I should probably just leave her alone for awhile." Jacob said realizing he'd just do more damage than good.
"You mean how you left me alone?" She asked smugly.
"You're my boss. Flirting with you really was just fun." Jacob joked knowing she knew the same. They both smiled at the memory of his interview.
"You gotta remember though. People aren't characters on TV. We have real feelings." She pointed out quickly turning to serious then back to a smile while she lightly pushed him out of the aisle. "Now go take your break heartbreaker." Now on bis break, he made his way out the building into the parking lot as his headache kicked in even harder than before. He had to close his eyes and blink several times as the parking lot switched from concrete to grassy plains in his eyes. Instead of cars he saw trees, instead of roads he saw fields, and instead of people he saw a herd of deer. After a moment it switched back to modern times eluding to the fact that he really wanted to get out of the city. Apparently he wanted it so badly his brain was playing tricks on him. His truck was parked far away from the customer vehicles and he quickly checked himself over in the rearview mirror. His brown hair was lightening up in certain areas thanks to the excessive sunlight it received these days. Even the short hairs on his face had begun to brighten. Like most people he had spent the majority of his time indoors but was beginning to see what the rest of the world missed out on as he traveled. Even his personality was better for it as the natural light kept him at ease. Traveling around taking jobs here and there seemed to be a better fit for him than living just to work at a job he hated. His family described him as a ghost whenever he called them and perhaps they were right in a sense. Jacob only stayed in a place for as long as he wanted and only worked enough to survive for the next few months. One month of work could keep him and his truck going strong for three. Once harvest time came he'd go back to Nebraska and find a farmer to work for. That would give him enough to travel for several more months giving him a long vacation from work. Even if he was in an accident and his truck was destroyed he had enough saved up to buy a similar one. He turned on his phone and connected to the store's wifi. Placing his phone in it's handless holder on the dash he leaned back in his drivers seat only to turn his face at the basket and remember he had to do laundry after work. Jacob sat there for awhile enjoying one of his favorite shows as the ground began to shake. He looked down at his hand to make sure he had only been drinking the soda he just bought before realizing the store was being hit with an earthquake. Glancing out the window he thought he saw something large flying in the sky before jumping out of his truck to run towards the building as quickly as he could.
"Calm down everyone! No pushing!" He shouted as he helped the people out of the building as the ground continued to violently shake.
"You calm down. What's wrong with you?" Asked a nearby elderly man. He looked around and saw that even though the ground was shaking he wasn't needed. Everyone continued to shop as if nothing was happening.
"It's an earthquake!" Jacob urged hoping for some sort of answer. If he was the only one feeling the ground shake he'd have to go to the hospital. He had enough money to pay for his life but not enough if he was dying of a stroke.
"It's just an earthquake." The elderly man said scornfully before noticing the concerned look on Jacob's face. "Probably not safe to be shopping right now but we're used to it."
"Sorry. I just came to town." Jacob lied. He'd been in town for a few weeks but hadn't felt an earthquake for at least few years.
"That explains it. It hasn't happened for awhile now but about a month ago it was earthquake after earthquake. The news says it isn't a problem but I blame those frackers." The man said before leaving Jacob to feel like an idiot. Even if the town was used to earthquakes he should have noticed something earlier. He'd been hopping around nearby from town to town before reaching Garden City and hadn't even felt shockwaves. Realizing that the customer's were all looking at him funny he looked at his watch and returned to his truck to get his phone. For the next few hours he accepted his coworkers jokes. Cassie, his boss, was sure to come by every half hour to joke with him.
"The ceiling is falling!" She said in a squeaky voice low enough for none of the customers to take her seriously.
"I can help you over here." Jacob said with a smile to a nearby customer looking for a register. Although he had made a fool of himself he smiled back at Cassie as she made her jokes. It was better than being ignored by his boss altogether but wondered if he should write her down as a reference for his next job.
"Did you-" Jacob began as he looked up at the customer. For a moment it looked like the man's ears were pointed outwards before returning to normal ears. Realizing it was fairly rude to stare at a larger man much stronger than himself he simply started loading his groceries into the bags.
"That explains it Maria. Logan likes men. He is an attractive man, good luck." Cassie joked one last time before returning to her post. At the very least he had made the day easier for his coworkers and should be happy about that.
"Sorry about her-" Jacob began before bracing himself against his register. From the electronics department came a loud and forceful explosion shooting a piercing soundwave towards the registers. Almost instantly the headache he'd been fighting all day disappeared as the force of the blast knocked something loose in his brain. Down towards the electronic's department grew a giant tree branch big enough to build a small house inside of. Reality had a hard time reaching him as he stood there wondering what had happened. All around him were faces mirroring his own stunned look. Customers and employees alike stood like statues trying to grasp what had happened. How did a tree suddenly appear in the middle of the store? How was it still growing through the foundation? The tree branch from the electronics department quickly grew and became large enough for people to rest inside.
"Is that a tree branch?" His customer said before falling to the ground.
"Sir!" Jacob shouted as he regained his movement. He left his register quickly to help the man to his feet before seeing the arrow that had struck the man in the chest.
"What is... this?" He choked out, spilling blood from his mouth onto the white tile floor. Jacob was quick to leave the man's side as the customer's began to shout in panic. Civilian triage and military triage differed in certain places but were also alot alike. In the civilian world if someone looks dead you run to them. In the military world if someone looks dead you help someone else. Just because the man was talking didn't mean he wasn't dead. Treat the casualty, prevent further casualties, complete the mission. Jacob couldn't treat the causalty so had to move on to the next. Step two was critical to step three and if the man couldn't fight he couldn't complete the mission. Using his register he smashed the nearby soda cooler, wrapped a cleaning rag around the largest glass shard and held it like a weapon. It was the fourth luckiest he'd ever been as he looked up just in time to avoid a whizzing arrow. Dodging a bullet was one thing, but dodging an arrow was what really made time feel slower. When people say time slows down in a bullet fight they're wrong. Time speeds up even faster only slowing down when you're about to make a mistake but not fast enough to do anything about it. In order to keep from slowing down he made sure not to look back at the arrow and only forward at his goal. The archer who had tried to kill him was unseen as he hid behind a band of sword wielding warriors running down the aisles. Jacob couldn't take them all on with just a glass shard so took the route through the clothing department.
"Logan! What's going on!?" Maria screamed as she clung to him again. Jacob almost stabbed her as she surprised him but quickly tried to calm her down.
"We're under attack. I don't know why their using swords and arrows. Is anyone else nearby?"
"They killed them all!" She shouted again soaking his work uniform with red stained tears.
"Lept Ka!" Shouted a warrior thrusting his sword through the clothing rack. Jacob was quick to push Maria off of him as he grabbed his attackers hand through the rack and forced himself through, glass shard first. The rack had knocked over on top of his attacker but from the blood on the glass he knew they had to take this chance to run. If Maria was correct he would be of more use at the entrance to the store than the back.
"RRAAAAG!" Came a roar from behind them as they ran. Turning to look at the sound he saw the clothing department being burned down by none other than a green dragon. He knew it wasn't possible and that it must just be some kind of weapon but didn't think past it as he clutched Maria's hand in their sprint. Just as they reached the jewelry department the ground underneith him turned red showing some strange rune made of light. His feet immediately lost their balance as if being controlled by the strange looking glyph on the floor.
"Ir apo." Said a female's voice nearby. Before he could get up the voice's owner thrust a large expensive looking staff to his chest. The end piece didn't pierce him but rested on him instead.
"Ir mi." She said again with just enough emotion in her face to almost look sad. The end piece of the staff began to glow and heat up burning a hole in his shirt. The smell of burning fabric filled his nostrils as the cheap company shirt burned. Before she could do worse he pushed the staff away burning his hand. Although his hand was badly burned he forced both of them around the enemy's throat taking in her face as the life faded. He looked her over as she went unconscious, wondering why she decided to wear fake elf ears into battle. Part of him wanted to keep his hands there and continue his blood choke until she died but he had to get Maria out of the store. It didn't help that the strange woman's tears had found their way onto his hands. Confident that she would be out for a few moments he grabbed Maria's hand again and the two continued to run towards the registers.
"Jacob!" Cassie shouted from a nearby register she had apparently been hiding behind.
"Come on!" He said grabbing her with his other hand and pulling her from her safe space. The bodies of the customers were concentrated the most at the entrance of the store. Many of the dead had been killed from arrows rather than swords and one from a large perfectly circlular hole in the chest from what could have only been an energy weapon.
A nearby warrior pointed at them with a sword and yelled out a battlecry. There was a familiar 'bang' to his right as he watched the warrior fall dead. Apparently Cassie kept a pistol at her station and continued to fire wildly at the warrior's direction as the three of them escaped out the doors of the store. As unsafe as some may believe, he was glad to have her armed, shooting behind them as they went.
"Put down the weapon!" Said a police officer taking cover behind his patrol car. Cassie was quick to throw the weapon as the trio ran past more and more bodies of civilans and enemies alike. They quickly made their way out of the range of fire as more and more police cars gathered in the parking lot looking more like a mass grave. They didn't stop running until they reached Logan's truck.
"Hold it!" Shouted a nearby officer before he could get them in his truck and escape.
"We need to g-" Logan began before his voice disappeared behind the loud rifles the officers began to fire. The four used the truck as cover careful to watch the massacre that was occuring. The enemy didn't seem to know fear as they ran towards the barricade. As more and more police joined the battle the bullets easily pierced the enemy. More and more warriors emerged from the doors but were quickly killed from gunfire.
"RRRAAAGGHH!" Shouted the building as the ceiling was torn apart by the dragon-like weapon they had brought with them. Fire sprayed from it's mouth, igniting several of the parked cars. Explosion after explosion were seen as the police took cover and contionued to fire at the dragons. The rounds found their way through the dragons thick armor and it wasn't long before all the headshots took their toll. The dragon fell quickly to the concrete, dead. It was unbelievable how soon the battle had ended. So many civilians had been killed as they ran but one police department was enough to stop the enemy's advance. If it had happened a few hours later there wouldn't be half as many casualties.

Chapter 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu_pq-AgvNY

Traveling the country is never an easy task by oneself. Your truck breaks down, you can't get any sleep, you can't charge your phone whenever you want to, but you're free do whatever you want as long as you maintain your budget. Jacob Rissen had arrived at Garden City, Kansas to make some money for his next adventure. He'd been here for a few weeks and would soon be leaving. Whether it was the bright lights of All mart or the fact that he'd been at the register for six hours, Jacob Rissen was beginning to get a painful headache. He lived a mostly stress free life except for when his truck needed fixing. If ever the stress built up or he made enemies he'd say his goodbye's to his friends and leave for the next town. It was a skill he'd gained from his time in the Marine's having to make friends quickly and say goodbye at some time afterwards. He hadn't been a model Marine by any standards and no one looked at him for leadership. Jacob stayed under the radar easily hiding his true self which is where he made his peace. If anyone was to look to him for advice just because he took the job shortly after high school he'd have to question their inferiority complex. After three years of duty he'd been removed due to a 'personality disorder' but knew it was for the best. That had all been two years ago but he had yet to develop past that point in the civilian world.

"Did you find everything you were looking for?" Jacob asked as the customer finished loading their groceries onto the belt. He only half listened to the customer's answer sure that if there was an actual problem he could fix it. Several plastic bags were quickly filled with the customer's selections. Looking up to see past the customer he saw his boss judging him yet again. Cassie was a skinny girl of twenty three, one year and a few months younger than himself. He knew that she was watching to make sure he was careful with the glassware unaware that even at his speed he tried his best to keep the customer's satisfied. She'd recently changed her disposition to him and would watch him several times during the day surely wondering why he worked so hard. A promotion could be easily obtained but he wasn't interested in something so permanent. Stress wasn't something he planned to have in his life so avoided it as best he could. He switched from job to job every few months so had to work harder than most to keep good job references. In the time it took his boss to charge one customer, Jacob's line was quickly finished leaving him time to rearrange the candy bars and face the soda bottles in the cooler. He had no problem with pushing himself harder than anyone else knowing that he had to make up for the past months he'd been free from a job.
"Logan!" Shrieked Maria, a brown skinned, Central American nineteen year old girl who worked in the clothing department. She was incredibly short so it always surprised him when she clung onto him by surprise. Being a traveler had its advantages which included becoming someone new in every town. His boss and the store managers knew his name was Jacob Rissen but he went by Logan with everyone else. In every town he visited he planned out who he was going to be and how long it would last. It wasn't because he didn't trust them but sometimes he wanted to make a new identity when he entered a new town. Once people got to know him well enough he would usually leave them with a pleasant memory of whoever he was that time instead of the memory of Jacob Rissen never to be seen or heard from again. If anyone tried to look him up on the internet they couldn't find him and if they did they'd get more questions than answers. It was his own middle finger to society, harmless as it was.
"Hey. Where have you been hiding?" Jacob joked, wrapping an arm around Maria. She smiled from ear to ear blushing as she usually did when he played the romantic protagonist. Jacob Rissen was never this confident around women but knew that Maria had a crush on Logan. When no one knows or cares about you when you leave a town it didn't matter who you were in said town. Even if Jacob made a fool of himself he could just hop in his truck and continue down the highway. People would wonder where Logan had gone but would soon forget him afterwards. Even with Maria in his arm, Jacob was deciding on what name to go by when he left.
"We just got a bunch of new clothes in. If someone was to take me out tonight I bet I'd look good." Maria asked in that feminine way of asking a man out without making it a question. Reality struck Jacob like the cupid's poisonous arrow. He was twenty five and had lived a life of pain and misery only to find relief in his divorce. Almost immediately after leaving the Marines his ex-wife had left him for one of his friends. Needless to say he didn't talk to either of them turning to a life of self indulgence and failed relationships. Only recently had he found peace in traveling the country and wasn't ready to give it up. Maria's eyes looked up at him urgently wanting an answer he couldn't give her. Most of the women he dated had left quickly after they both got what they wanted from the other. Maria was an innocent of sorts. This was surely just because she was just a recent high school graduate and he would not take advantage of that.
"I... I really like you." Jacob said as he felt Logan's confidence leaving him. "But, I thought we were just having fun at work." Maria's smile quickly turned downward, opening slightly in disbelief. It was a strange sight he'd never seen in a woman that liked him. Whenever he made his ex-wife sad she'd scream and yell at him. A reaction like this made him immediately regret his decision almost wanting to marry Maria on the spot instead of push her away.
"Yeah, it's all just... fun. I'll see you later. Gotta get back before the boss notices I'm missing." She said shuffling her feet as she walked away. He wanted to follow her and try to change her mind but knew that the man she wanted didn't actually exist. Jacob was back now for better or worse and she'd likely never see Logan again.
"How about a break?" Asked Cassie, his boss, from behind him. He jumped, frightened at her sudden appearance and curious about how much she had heard.
"I should probably just leave her alone for awhile." Jacob said realizing he'd just do more damage than good.
"You mean how you left me alone?" She asked smugly.
"You're my boss. Flirting with you really was just fun." Jacob joked knowing she knew the same. They both smiled at the memory of his interview.
"You gotta remember though. People aren't characters on TV. We have real feelings." She pointed out quickly turning to serious then back to a smile while she lightly pushed him out of the aisle. "Now go take your break heartbreaker." Now on bis break, he made his way out the building into the parking lot as his headache kicked in even harder than before. He had to close his eyes and blink several times as the parking lot switched from concrete to grassy plains in his eyes. Instead of cars he saw trees, instead of roads he saw fields, and instead of people he saw a herd of deer. After a moment it switched back to modern times eluding to the fact that he really wanted to get out of the city. Apparently he wanted it so badly his brain was playing tricks on him. His truck was parked far away from the customer vehicles and he quickly checked himself over in the rearview mirror. His brown hair was lightening up in certain areas thanks to the excessive sunlight it received these days. Even the short hairs on his face had begun to brighten. Like most people he had spent the majority of his time indoors but was beginning to see what the rest of the world missed out on as he traveled. Even his personality was better for it as the natural light kept him at ease. Traveling around taking jobs here and there seemed to be a better fit for him than living just to work at a job he hated. His family described him as a ghost whenever he called them and perhaps they were right in a sense. Jacob only stayed in a place for as long as he wanted and only worked enough to survive for the next few months. One month of work could keep him and his truck going strong for three. Once harvest time came he'd go back to Nebraska and find a farmer to work for. That would give him enough to travel for several more months giving him a long vacation from work. Even if he was in an accident and his truck was destroyed he had enough saved up to buy a similar one. He turned on his phone and connected to the store's wifi. Placing his phone in it's handless holder on the dash he leaned back in his drivers seat only to turn his face at the basket and remember he had to do laundry after work. Jacob sat there for awhile enjoying one of his favorite shows as the ground began to shake. He looked down at his hand to make sure he had only been drinking the soda he just bought before realizing the store was being hit with an earthquake. Glancing out the window he thought he saw something large flying in the sky before jumping out of his truck to run towards the building as quickly as he could.
"Calm down everyone! No pushing!" He shouted as he helped the people out of the building as the ground continued to violently shake.
"You calm down. What's wrong with you?" Asked a nearby elderly man. He looked around and saw that even though the ground was shaking he wasn't needed. Everyone continued to shop as if nothing was happening.
"It's an earthquake!" Jacob urged hoping for some sort of answer. If he was the only one feeling the ground shake he'd have to go to the hospital. He had enough money to pay for his life but not enough if he was dying of a stroke.
"It's just an earthquake." The elderly man said scornfully before noticing the concerned look on Jacob's face. "Probably not safe to be shopping right now but we're used to it."
"Sorry. I just came to town." Jacob lied. He'd been in town for a few weeks but hadn't felt an earthquake for at least few years.
"That explains it. It hasn't happened for awhile now but about a month ago it was earthquake after earthquake. The news says it isn't a problem but I blame those frackers." The man said before leaving Jacob to feel like an idiot. Even if the town was used to earthquakes he should have noticed something earlier. He'd been hopping around nearby from town to town before reaching Garden City and hadn't even felt shockwaves. Realizing that the customer's were all looking at him funny he looked at his watch and returned to his truck to get his phone. For the next few hours he accepted his coworkers jokes. Cassie, his boss, was sure to come by every half hour to joke with him.
"The ceiling is falling!" She said in a squeaky voice low enough for none of the customers to take her seriously.
"I can help you over here." Jacob said with a smile to a nearby customer looking for a register. Although he had made a fool of himself he smiled back at Cassie as she made her jokes. It was better than being ignored by his boss altogether but wondered if he should write her down as a reference for his next job.
"Did you-" Jacob began as he looked up at the customer. For a moment it looked like the man's ears were pointed outwards before returning to normal ears. Realizing it was fairly rude to stare at a larger man much stronger than himself he simply started loading his groceries into the bags.
"That explains it Maria. Logan likes men. He is an attractive man, good luck." Cassie joked one last time before returning to her post. At the very least he had made the day easier for his coworkers and should be happy about that.
"Sorry about her-" Jacob began before bracing himself against his register. From the electronics department came a loud and forceful explosion shooting a piercing soundwave towards the registers. Almost instantly the headache he'd been fighting all day disappeared as the force of the blast knocked something loose in his brain. Down towards the electronic's department grew a giant tree branch big enough to build a small house inside of. Reality had a hard time reaching him as he stood there wondering what had happened. All around him were faces mirroring his own stunned look. Customers and employees alike stood like statues trying to grasp what had happened. How did a tree suddenly appear in the middle of the store? How was it still growing through the foundation? The tree branch from the electronics department quickly grew and became large enough for people to rest inside.
"Is that a tree branch?" His customer said before falling to the ground.
"Sir!" Jacob shouted as he regained his movement. He left his register quickly to help the man to his feet before seeing the arrow that had struck the man in the chest.
"What is... this?" He choked out, spilling blood from his mouth onto the white tile floor. Jacob was quick to leave the man's side as the customer's began to shout in panic. Civilian triage and military triage differed in certain places but were also alot alike. In the civilian world if someone looks dead you run to them. In the military world if someone looks dead you help someone else. Just because the man was talking didn't mean he wasn't dead. Treat the casualty, prevent further casualties, complete the mission. Jacob couldn't treat the causalty so had to move on to the next. Step two was critical to step three and if the man couldn't fight he couldn't complete the mission. Using his register he smashed the nearby soda cooler, wrapped a cleaning rag around the largest glass shard and held it like a weapon. It was the fourth luckiest he'd ever been as he looked up just in time to avoid a whizzing arrow. Dodging a bullet was one thing, but dodging an arrow was what really made time feel slower. When people say time slows down in a bullet fight they're wrong. Time speeds up even faster only slowing down when you're about to make a mistake but not fast enough to do anything about it. In order to keep from slowing down he made sure not to look back at the arrow and only forward at his goal. The archer who had tried to kill him was unseen as he hid behind a band of sword wielding warriors running down the aisles. Jacob couldn't take them all on with just a glass shard so took the route through the clothing department.
"Logan! What's going on!?" Maria screamed as she clung to him again. Jacob almost stabbed her as she surprised him but quickly tried to calm her down.
"We're under attack. I don't know why their using swords and arrows. Is anyone else nearby?"
"They killed them all!" She shouted again soaking his work uniform with red stained tears.
"Lept Ka!" Shouted a warrior thrusting his sword through the clothing rack. Jacob was quick to push Maria off of him as he grabbed his attackers hand through the rack and forced himself through, glass shard first. The rack had knocked over on top of his attacker but from the blood on the glass he knew they had to take this chance to run. If Maria was correct he would be of more use at the entrance to the store than the back.
"RRAAAAG!" Came a roar from behind them as they ran. Turning to look at the sound he saw the clothing department being burned down by none other than a green dragon. He knew it wasn't possible and that it must just be some kind of weapon but didn't think past it as he clutched Maria's hand in their sprint. Just as they reached the jewelry department the ground underneith him turned red showing some strange rune made of light. His feet immediately lost their balance as if being controlled by the strange looking glyph on the floor.
"Ir apo." Said a female's voice nearby. Before he could get up the voice's owner thrust a large expensive looking staff to his chest. The end piece didn't pierce him but rested on him instead.
"Ir mi." She said again with just enough emotion in her face to almost look sad. The end piece of the staff began to glow and heat up burning a hole in his shirt. The smell of burning fabric filled his nostrils as the cheap company shirt burned. Before she could do worse he pushed the staff away burning his hand. Although his hand was badly burned he forced both of them around the enemy's throat taking in her face as the life faded. He looked her over as she went unconscious, wondering why she decided to wear fake elf ears into battle. Part of him wanted to keep his hands there and continue his blood choke until she died but he had to get Maria out of the store. It didn't help that the strange woman's tears had found their way onto his hands. Confident that she would be out for a few moments he grabbed Maria's hand again and the two continued to run towards the registers.
"Jacob!" Cassie shouted from a nearby register she had apparently been hiding behind.
"Come on!" He said grabbing her with his other hand and pulling her from her safe space. The bodies of the customers were concentrated the most at the entrance of the store. Many of the dead had been killed from arrows rather than swords and one from a large perfectly circlular hole in the chest from what could have only been an energy weapon.
A nearby warrior pointed at them with a sword and yelled out a battlecry. There was a familiar 'bang' to his right as he watched the warrior fall dead. Apparently Cassie kept a pistol at her station and continued to fire wildly at the warrior's direction as the three of them escaped out the doors of the store. As unsafe as some may believe, he was glad to have her armed, shooting behind them as they went.
"Put down the weapon!" Said a police officer taking cover behind his patrol car. Cassie was quick to throw the weapon as the trio ran past more and more bodies of civilans and enemies alike. They quickly made their way out of the range of fire as more and more police cars gathered in the parking lot looking more like a mass grave. They didn't stop running until they reached Logan's truck.
"Hold it!" Shouted a nearby officer before he could get them in his truck and escape.
"We need to g-" Logan began before his voice disappeared behind the loud rifles the officers began to fire. The four used the truck as cover careful to watch the massacre that was occuring. The enemy didn't seem to know fear as they ran towards the barricade. As more and more police joined the battle the bullets easily pierced the enemy. More and more warriors emerged from the doors but were quickly killed from gunfire.
"RRRAAAGGHH!" Shouted the building as the ceiling was torn apart by the dragon-like weapon they had brought with them. Fire sprayed from it's mouth, igniting several of the parked cars. Explosion after explosion were seen as the police took cover and contionued to fire at the dragons. The rounds found their way through the dragons thick armor and it wasn't long before all the headshots took their toll. The dragon fell quickly to the concrete, dead. It was unbelievable how soon the battle had ended. So many civilians had been killed as they ran but one police department was enough to stop the enemy's advance. If it had happened a few hours later there wouldn't be half as many casualties.

Chapter 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu_pq-AgvNY

Traveling the country is never an easy task by oneself. Your truck breaks down, you can't get any sleep, you can't charge your phone whenever you want to, but you're free do whatever you want as long as you maintain your budget. Jacob Rissen had arrived at Garden City, Kansas to make some money for his next adventure. He'd been here for a few weeks and would soon be leaving. Whether it was the bright lights of All mart or the fact that he'd been at the register for six hours, Jacob Rissen was beginning to get a painful headache. He lived a mostly stress free life except for when his truck needed fixing. If ever the stress built up or he made enemies he'd say his goodbye's to his friends and leave for the next town. It was a skill he'd gained from his time in the Marine's having to make friends quickly and say goodbye at some time afterwards. He hadn't been a model Marine by any standards and no one looked at him for leadership. Jacob stayed under the radar easily hiding his true self which is where he made his peace. If anyone was to look to him for advice just because he took the job shortly after high school he'd have to question their inferiority complex. After three years of duty he'd been removed due to a 'personality disorder' but knew it was for the best. That had all been two years ago but he had yet to develop past that point in the civilian world.

"Did you find everything you were looking for?" Jacob asked as the customer finished loading their groceries onto the belt. He only half listened to the customer's answer sure that if there was an actual problem he could fix it. Several plastic bags were quickly filled with the customer's selections. Looking up to see past the customer he saw his boss judging him yet again. Cassie was a skinny girl of twenty three, one year and a few months younger than himself. He knew that she was watching to make sure he was careful with the glassware unaware that even at his speed he tried his best to keep the customer's satisfied. She'd recently changed her disposition to him and would watch him several times during the day surely wondering why he worked so hard. A promotion could be easily obtained but he wasn't interested in something so permanent. Stress wasn't something he planned to have in his life so avoided it as best he could. He switched from job to job every few months so had to work harder than most to keep good job references. In the time it took his boss to charge one customer, Jacob's line was quickly finished leaving him time to rearrange the candy bars and face the soda bottles in the cooler. He had no problem with pushing himself harder than anyone else knowing that he had to make up for the past months he'd been free from a job.
"Logan!" Shrieked Maria, a brown skinned, Central American nineteen year old girl who worked in the clothing department. She was incredibly short so it always surprised him when she clung onto him by surprise. Being a traveler had its advantages which included becoming someone new in every town. His boss and the store managers knew his name was Jacob Rissen but he went by Logan with everyone else. In every town he visited he planned out who he was going to be and how long it would last. It wasn't because he didn't trust them but sometimes he wanted to make a new identity when he entered a new town. Once people got to know him well enough he would usually leave them with a pleasant memory of whoever he was that time instead of the memory of Jacob Rissen never to be seen or heard from again. If anyone tried to look him up on the internet they couldn't find him and if they did they'd get more questions than answers. It was his own middle finger to society, harmless as it was.
"Hey. Where have you been hiding?" Jacob joked, wrapping an arm around Maria. She smiled from ear to ear blushing as she usually did when he played the romantic protagonist. Jacob Rissen was never this confident around women but knew that Maria had a crush on Logan. When no one knows or cares about you when you leave a town it didn't matter who you were in said town. Even if Jacob made a fool of himself he could just hop in his truck and continue down the highway. People would wonder where Logan had gone but would soon forget him afterwards. Even with Maria in his arm, Jacob was deciding on what name to go by when he left.
"We just got a bunch of new clothes in. If someone was to take me out tonight I bet I'd look good." Maria asked in that feminine way of asking a man out without making it a question. Reality struck Jacob like the cupid's poisonous arrow. He was twenty five and had lived a life of pain and misery only to find relief in his divorce. Almost immediately after leaving the Marines his ex-wife had left him for one of his friends. Needless to say he didn't talk to either of them turning to a life of self indulgence and failed relationships. Only recently had he found peace in traveling the country and wasn't ready to give it up. Maria's eyes looked up at him urgently wanting an answer he couldn't give her. Most of the women he dated had left quickly after they both got what they wanted from the other. Maria was an innocent of sorts. This was surely just because she was just a recent high school graduate and he would not take advantage of that.
"I... I really like you." Jacob said as he felt Logan's confidence leaving him. "But, I thought we were just having fun at work." Maria's smile quickly turned downward, opening slightly in disbelief. It was a strange sight he'd never seen in a woman that liked him. Whenever he made his ex-wife sad she'd scream and yell at him. A reaction like this made him immediately regret his decision almost wanting to marry Maria on the spot instead of push her away.
"Yeah, it's all just... fun. I'll see you later. Gotta get back before the boss notices I'm missing." She said shuffling her feet as she walked away. He wanted to follow her and try to change her mind but knew that the man she wanted didn't actually exist. Jacob was back now for better or worse and she'd likely never see Logan again.
"How about a break?" Asked Cassie, his boss, from behind him. He jumped, frightened at her sudden appearance and curious about how much she had heard.
"I should probably just leave her alone for awhile." Jacob said realizing he'd just do more damage than good.
"You mean how you left me alone?" She asked smugly.
"You're my boss. Flirting with you really was just fun." Jacob joked knowing she knew the same. They both smiled at the memory of his interview.
"You gotta remember though. People aren't characters on TV. We have real feelings." She pointed out quickly turning to serious then back to a smile while she lightly pushed him out of the aisle. "Now go take your break heartbreaker." Now on bis break, he made his way out the building into the parking lot as his headache kicked in even harder than before. He had to close his eyes and blink several times as the parking lot switched from concrete to grassy plains in his eyes. Instead of cars he saw trees, instead of roads he saw fields, and instead of people he saw a herd of deer. After a moment it switched back to modern times eluding to the fact that he really wanted to get out of the city. Apparently he wanted it so badly his brain was playing tricks on him. His truck was parked far away from the customer vehicles and he quickly checked himself over in the rearview mirror. His brown hair was lightening up in certain areas thanks to the excessive sunlight it received these days. Even the short hairs on his face had begun to brighten. Like most people he had spent the majority of his time indoors but was beginning to see what the rest of the world missed out on as he traveled. Even his personality was better for it as the natural light kept him at ease. Traveling around taking jobs here and there seemed to be a better fit for him than living just to work at a job he hated. His family described him as a ghost whenever he called them and perhaps they were right in a sense. Jacob only stayed in a place for as long as he wanted and only worked enough to survive for the next few months. One month of work could keep him and his truck going strong for three. Once harvest time came he'd go back to Nebraska and find a farmer to work for. That would give him enough to travel for several more months giving him a long vacation from work. Even if he was in an accident and his truck was destroyed he had enough saved up to buy a similar one. He turned on his phone and connected to the store's wifi. Placing his phone in it's handless holder on the dash he leaned back in his drivers seat only to turn his face at the basket and remember he had to do laundry after work. Jacob sat there for awhile enjoying one of his favorite shows as the ground began to shake. He looked down at his hand to make sure he had only been drinking the soda he just bought before realizing the store was being hit with an earthquake. Glancing out the window he thought he saw something large flying in the sky before jumping out of his truck to run towards the building as quickly as he could.
"Calm down everyone! No pushing!" He shouted as he helped the people out of the building as the ground continued to violently shake.
"You calm down. What's wrong with you?" Asked a nearby elderly man. He looked around and saw that even though the ground was shaking he wasn't needed. Everyone continued to shop as if nothing was happening.
"It's an earthquake!" Jacob urged hoping for some sort of answer. If he was the only one feeling the ground shake he'd have to go to the hospital. He had enough money to pay for his life but not enough if he was dying of a stroke.
"It's just an earthquake." The elderly man said scornfully before noticing the concerned look on Jacob's face. "Probably not safe to be shopping right now but we're used to it."
"Sorry. I just came to town." Jacob lied. He'd been in town for a few weeks but hadn't felt an earthquake for at least few years.
"That explains it. It hasn't happened for awhile now but about a month ago it was earthquake after earthquake. The news says it isn't a problem but I blame those frackers." The man said before leaving Jacob to feel like an idiot. Even if the town was used to earthquakes he should have noticed something earlier. He'd been hopping around nearby from town to town before reaching Garden City and hadn't even felt shockwaves. Realizing that the customer's were all looking at him funny he looked at his watch and returned to his truck to get his phone. For the next few hours he accepted his coworkers jokes. Cassie, his boss, was sure to come by every half hour to joke with him.
"The ceiling is falling!" She said in a squeaky voice low enough for none of the customers to take her seriously.
"I can help you over here." Jacob said with a smile to a nearby customer looking for a register. Although he had made a fool of himself he smiled back at Cassie as she made her jokes. It was better than being ignored by his boss altogether but wondered if he should write her down as a reference for his next job.
"Did you-" Jacob began as he looked up at the customer. For a moment it looked like the man's ears were pointed outwards before returning to normal ears. Realizing it was fairly rude to stare at a larger man much stronger than himself he simply started loading his groceries into the bags.
"That explains it Maria. Logan likes men. He is an attractive man, good luck." Cassie joked one last time before returning to her post. At the very least he had made the day easier for his coworkers and should be happy about that.
"Sorry about her-" Jacob began before bracing himself against his register. From the electronics department came a loud and forceful explosion shooting a piercing soundwave towards the registers. Almost instantly the headache he'd been fighting all day disappeared as the force of the blast knocked something loose in his brain. Down towards the electronic's department grew a giant tree branch big enough to build a small house inside of. Reality had a hard time reaching him as he stood there wondering what had happened. All around him were faces mirroring his own stunned look. Customers and employees alike stood like statues trying to grasp what had happened. How did a tree suddenly appear in the middle of the store? How was it still growing through the foundation? The tree branch from the electronics department quickly grew and became large enough for people to rest inside.
"Is that a tree branch?" His customer said before falling to the ground.
"Sir!" Jacob shouted as he regained his movement. He left his register quickly to help the man to his feet before seeing the arrow that had struck the man in the chest.
"What is... this?" He choked out, spilling blood from his mouth onto the white tile floor. Jacob was quick to leave the man's side as the customer's began to shout in panic. Civilian triage and military triage differed in certain places but were also alot alike. In the civilian world if someone looks dead you run to them. In the military world if someone looks dead you help someone else. Just because the man was talking didn't mean he wasn't dead. Treat the casualty, prevent further casualties, complete the mission. Jacob couldn't treat the causalty so had to move on to the next. Step two was critical to step three and if the man couldn't fight he couldn't complete the mission. Using his register he smashed the nearby soda cooler, wrapped a cleaning rag around the largest glass shard and held it like a weapon. It was the fourth luckiest he'd ever been as he looked up just in time to avoid a whizzing arrow. Dodging a bullet was one thing, but dodging an arrow was what really made time feel slower. When people say time slows down in a bullet fight they're wrong. Time speeds up even faster only slowing down when you're about to make a mistake but not fast enough to do anything about it. In order to keep from slowing down he made sure not to look back at the arrow and only forward at his goal. The archer who had tried to kill him was unseen as he hid behind a band of sword wielding warriors running down the aisles. Jacob couldn't take them all on with just a glass shard so took the route through the clothing department.
"Logan! What's going on!?" Maria screamed as she clung to him again. Jacob almost stabbed her as she surprised him but quickly tried to calm her down.
"We're under attack. I don't know why their using swords and arrows. Is anyone else nearby?"
"They killed them all!" She shouted again soaking his work uniform with red stained tears.
"Lept Ka!" Shouted a warrior thrusting his sword through the clothing rack. Jacob was quick to push Maria off of him as he grabbed his attackers hand through the rack and forced himself through, glass shard first. The rack had knocked over on top of his attacker but from the blood on the glass he knew they had to take this chance to run. If Maria was correct he would be of more use at the entrance to the store than the back.
"RRAAAAG!" Came a roar from behind them as they ran. Turning to look at the sound he saw the clothing department being burned down by none other than a green dragon. He knew it wasn't possible and that it must just be some kind of weapon but didn't think past it as he clutched Maria's hand in their sprint. Just as they reached the jewelry department the ground underneith him turned red showing some strange rune made of light. His feet immediately lost their balance as if being controlled by the strange looking glyph on the floor.
"Ir apo." Said a female's voice nearby. Before he could get up the voice's owner thrust a large expensive looking staff to his chest. The end piece didn't pierce him but rested on him instead.
"Ir mi." She said again with just enough emotion in her face to almost look sad. The end piece of the staff began to glow and heat up burning a hole in his shirt. The smell of burning fabric filled his nostrils as the cheap company shirt burned. Before she could do worse he pushed the staff away burning his hand. Although his hand was badly burned he forced both of them around the enemy's throat taking in her face as the life faded. He looked her over as she went unconscious, wondering why she decided to wear fake elf ears into battle. Part of him wanted to keep his hands there and continue his blood choke until she died but he had to get Maria out of the store. It didn't help that the strange woman's tears had found their way onto his hands. Confident that she would be out for a few moments he grabbed Maria's hand again and the two continued to run towards the registers.
"Jacob!" Cassie shouted from a nearby register she had apparently been hiding behind.
"Come on!" He said grabbing her with his other hand and pulling her from her safe space. The bodies of the customers were concentrated the most at the entrance of the store. Many of the dead had been killed from arrows rather than swords and one from a large perfectly circlular hole in the chest from what could have only been an energy weapon.
A nearby warrior pointed at them with a sword and yelled out a battlecry. There was a familiar 'bang' to his right as he watched the warrior fall dead. Apparently Cassie kept a pistol at her station and continued to fire wildly at the warrior's direction as the three of them escaped out the doors of the store. As unsafe as some may believe, he was glad to have her armed, shooting behind them as they went.
"Put down the weapon!" Said a police officer taking cover behind his patrol car. Cassie was quick to throw the weapon as the trio ran past more and more bodies of civilans and enemies alike. They quickly made their way out of the range of fire as more and more police cars gathered in the parking lot looking more like a mass grave. They didn't stop running until they reached Logan's truck.
"Hold it!" Shouted a nearby officer before he could get them in his truck and escape.
"We need to g-" Logan began before his voice disappeared behind the loud rifles the officers began to fire. The four used the truck as cover careful to watch the massacre that was occuring. The enemy didn't seem to know fear as they ran towards the barricade. As more and more police joined the battle the bullets easily pierced the enemy. More and more warriors emerged from the doors but were quickly killed from gunfire.
"RRRAAAGGHH!" Shouted the building as the ceiling was torn apart by the dragon-like weapon they had brought with them. Fire sprayed from it's mouth, igniting several of the parked cars. Explosion after explosion were seen as the police took cover and contionued to fire at the dragons. The rounds found their way through the dragons thick armor and it wasn't long before all the headshots took their toll. The dragon fell quickly to the concrete, dead. It was unbelievable how soon the battle had ended. So many civilians had been killed as they ran but one police department was enough to stop the enemy's advance. If it had happened a few hours later there wouldn't be half as many casualties.

Chapter 1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu_pq-AgvNY

Traveling the country is never an easy task by oneself. Your truck breaks down, you can't get any sleep, you can't charge your phone whenever you want to, but you're free do whatever you want as long as you maintain your budget. Jacob Rissen had arrived at Garden City, Kansas to make some money for his next adventure. He'd been here for a few weeks and would soon be leaving. Whether it was the bright lights of All mart or the fact that he'd been at the register for six hours, Jacob Rissen was beginning to get a painful headache. He lived a mostly stress free life except for when his truck needed fixing. If ever the stress built up or he made enemies he'd say his goodbye's to his friends and leave for the next town. It was a skill he'd gained from his time in the Marine's having to make friends quickly and say goodbye at some time afterwards. He hadn't been a model Marine by any standards and no one looked at him for leadership. Jacob stayed under the radar easily hiding his true self which is where he made his peace. If anyone was to look to him for advice just because he took the job shortly after high school he'd have to question their inferiority complex. After three years of duty he'd been removed due to a 'personality disorder' but knew it was for the best. That had all been two years ago but he had yet to develop past that point in the civilian world.

"Did you find everything you were looking for?" Jacob asked as the customer finished loading their groceries onto the belt. He only half listened to the customer's answer sure that if there was an actual problem he could fix it. Several plastic bags were quickly filled with the customer's selections. Looking up to see past the customer he saw his boss judging him yet again. Cassie was a skinny girl of twenty three, one year and a few months younger than himself. He knew that she was watching to make sure he was careful with the glassware unaware that even at his speed he tried his best to keep the customer's satisfied. She'd recently changed her disposition to him and would watch him several times during the day surely wondering why he worked so hard. A promotion could be easily obtained but he wasn't interested in something so permanent. Stress wasn't something he planned to have in his life so avoided it as best he could. He switched from job to job every few months so had to work harder than most to keep good job references. In the time it took his boss to charge one customer, Jacob's line was quickly finished leaving him time to rearrange the candy bars and face the soda bottles in the cooler. He had no problem with pushing himself harder than anyone else knowing that he had to make up for the past months he'd been free from a job.
"Logan!" Shrieked Maria, a brown skinned, Central American nineteen year old girl who worked in the clothing department. She was incredibly short so it always surprised him when she clung onto him by surprise. Being a traveler had its advantages which included becoming someone new in every town. His boss and the store managers knew his name was Jacob Rissen but he went by Logan with everyone else. In every town he visited he planned out who he was going to be and how long it would last. It wasn't because he didn't trust them but sometimes he wanted to make a new identity when he entered a new town. Once people got to know him well enough he would usually leave them with a pleasant memory of whoever he was that time instead of the memory of Jacob Rissen never to be seen or heard from again. If anyone tried to look him up on the internet they couldn't find him and if they did they'd get more questions than answers. It was his own middle finger to society, harmless as it was.
"Hey. Where have you been hiding?" Jacob joked, wrapping an arm around Maria. She smiled from ear to ear blushing as she usually did when he played the romantic protagonist. Jacob Rissen was never this confident around women but knew that Maria had a crush on Logan. When no one knows or cares about you when you leave a town it didn't matter who you were in said town. Even if Jacob made a fool of himself he could just hop in his truck and continue down the highway. People would wonder where Logan had gone but would soon forget him afterwards. Even with Maria in his arm, Jacob was deciding on what name to go by when he left.
"We just got a bunch of new clothes in. If someone was to take me out tonight I bet I'd look good." Maria asked in that feminine way of asking a man out without making it a question. Reality struck Jacob like the cupid's poisonous arrow. He was twenty five and had lived a life of pain and misery only to find relief in his divorce. Almost immediately after leaving the Marines his ex-wife had left him for one of his friends. Needless to say he didn't talk to either of them turning to a life of self indulgence and failed relationships. Only recently had he found peace in traveling the country and wasn't ready to give it up. Maria's eyes looked up at him urgently wanting an answer he couldn't give her. Most of the women he dated had left quickly after they both got what they wanted from the other. Maria was an innocent of sorts. This was surely just because she was just a recent high school graduate and he would not take advantage of that.
"I... I really like you." Jacob said as he felt Logan's confidence leaving him. "But, I thought we were just having fun at work." Maria's smile quickly turned downward, opening slightly in disbelief. It was a strange sight he'd never seen in a woman that liked him. Whenever he made his ex-wife sad she'd scream and yell at him. A reaction like this made him immediately regret his decision almost wanting to marry Maria on the spot instead of push her away.
"Yeah, it's all just... fun. I'll see you later. Gotta get back before the boss notices I'm missing." She said shuffling her feet as she walked away. He wanted to follow her and try to change her mind but knew that the man she wanted didn't actually exist. Jacob was back now for better or worse and she'd likely never see Logan again.
"How about a break?" Asked Cassie, his boss, from behind him. He jumped, frightened at her sudden appearance and curious about how much she had heard.
"I should probably just leave her alone for awhile." Jacob said realizing he'd just do more damage than good.
"You mean how you left me alone?" She asked smugly.
"You're my boss. Flirting with you really was just fun." Jacob joked knowing she knew the same. They both smiled at the memory of his interview.
"You gotta remember though. People aren't characters on TV. We have real feelings." She pointed out quickly turning to serious then back to a smile while she lightly pushed him out of the aisle. "Now go take your break heartbreaker." Now on bis break, he made his way out the building into the parking lot as his headache kicked in even harder than before. He had to close his eyes and blink several times as the parking lot switched from concrete to grassy plains in his eyes. Instead of cars he saw trees, instead of roads he saw fields, and instead of people he saw a herd of deer. After a moment it switched back to modern times eluding to the fact that he really wanted to get out of the city. Apparently he wanted it so badly his brain was playing tricks on him. His truck was parked far away from the customer vehicles and he quickly checked himself over in the rearview mirror. His brown hair was lightening up in certain areas thanks to the excessive sunlight it received these days. Even the short hairs on his face had begun to brighten. Like most people he had spent the majority of his time indoors but was beginning to see what the rest of the world missed out on as he traveled. Even his personality was better for it as the natural light kept him at ease. Traveling around taking jobs here and there seemed to be a better fit for him than living just to work at a job he hated. His family described him as a ghost whenever he called them and perhaps they were right in a sense. Jacob only stayed in a place for as long as he wanted and only worked enough to survive for the next few months. One month of work could keep him and his truck going strong for three. Once harvest time came he'd go back to Nebraska and find a farmer to work for. That would give him enough to travel for several more months giving him a long vacation from work. Even if he was in an accident and his truck was destroyed he had enough saved up to buy a similar one. He turned on his phone and connected to the store's wifi. Placing his phone in it's handless holder on the dash he leaned back in his drivers seat only to turn his face at the basket and remember he had to do laundry after work. Jacob sat there for awhile enjoying one of his favorite shows as the ground began to shake. He looked down at his hand to make sure he had only been drinking the soda he just bought before realizing the store was being hit with an earthquake. Glancing out the window he thought he saw something large flying in the sky before jumping out of his truck to run towards the building as quickly as he could.
"Calm down everyone! No pushing!" He shouted as he helped the people out of the building as the ground continued to violently shake.
"You calm down. What's wrong with you?" Asked a nearby elderly man. He looked around and saw that even though the ground was shaking he wasn't needed. Everyone continued to shop as if nothing was happening.
"It's an earthquake!" Jacob urged hoping for some sort of answer. If he was the only one feeling the ground shake he'd have to go to the hospital. He had enough money to pay for his life but not enough if he was dying of a stroke.
"It's just an earthquake." The elderly man said scornfully before noticing the concerned look on Jacob's face. "Probably not safe to be shopping right now but we're used to it."
"Sorry. I just came to town." Jacob lied. He'd been in town for a few weeks but hadn't felt an earthquake for at least few years.
"That explains it. It hasn't happened for awhile now but about a month ago it was earthquake after earthquake. The news says it isn't a problem but I blame those frackers." The man said before leaving Jacob to feel like an idiot. Even if the town was used to earthquakes he should have noticed something earlier. He'd been hopping around nearby from town to town before reaching Garden City and hadn't even felt shockwaves. Realizing that the customer's were all looking at him funny he looked at his watch and returned to his truck to get his phone. For the next few hours he accepted his coworkers jokes. Cassie, his boss, was sure to come by every half hour to joke with him.
"The ceiling is falling!" She said in a squeaky voice low enough for none of the customers to take her seriously.
"I can help you over here." Jacob said with a smile to a nearby customer looking for a register. Although he had made a fool of himself he smiled back at Cassie as she made her jokes. It was better than being ignored by his boss altogether but wondered if he should write her down as a reference for his next job.
"Did you-" Jacob began as he looked up at the customer. For a moment it looked like the man's ears were pointed outwards before returning to normal ears. Realizing it was fairly rude to stare at a larger man much stronger than himself he simply started loading his groceries into the bags.
"That explains it Maria. Logan likes men. He is an attractive man, good luck." Cassie joked one last time before returning to her post. At the very least he had made the day easier for his coworkers and should be happy about that.
"Sorry about her-" Jacob began before bracing himself against his register. From the electronics department came a loud and forceful explosion shooting a piercing soundwave towards the registers. Almost instantly the headache he'd been fighting all day disappeared as the force of the blast knocked something loose in his brain. Down towards the electronic's department grew a giant tree branch big enough to build a small house inside of. Reality had a hard time reaching him as he stood there wondering what had happened. All around him were faces mirroring his own stunned look. Customers and employees alike stood like statues trying to grasp what had happened. How did a tree suddenly appear in the middle of the store? How was it still growing through the foundation? The tree branch from the electronics department quickly grew and became large enough for people to rest inside.
"Is that a tree branch?" His customer said before falling to the ground.
"Sir!" Jacob shouted as he regained his movement. He left his register quickly to help the man to his feet before seeing the arrow that had struck the man in the chest.
"What is... this?" He choked out, spilling blood from his mouth onto the white tile floor. Jacob was quick to leave the man's side as the customer's began to shout in panic. Civilian triage and military triage differed in certain places but were also alot alike. In the civilian world if someone looks dead you run to them. In the military world if someone looks dead you help someone else. Just because the man was talking didn't mean he wasn't dead. Treat the casualty, prevent further casualties, complete the mission. Jacob couldn't treat the causalty so had to move on to the next. Step two was critical to step three and if the man couldn't fight he couldn't complete the mission. Using his register he smashed the nearby soda cooler, wrapped a cleaning rag around the largest glass shard and held it like a weapon. It was the fourth luckiest he'd ever been as he looked up just in time to avoid a whizzing arrow. Dodging a bullet was one thing, but dodging an arrow was what really made time feel slower. When people say time slows down in a bullet fight they're wrong. Time speeds up even faster only slowing down when you're about to make a mistake but not fast enough to do anything about it. In order to keep from slowing down he made sure not to look back at the arrow and only forward at his goal. The archer who had tried to kill him was unseen as he hid behind a band of sword wielding warriors running down the aisles. Jacob couldn't take them all on with just a glass shard so took the route through the clothing department.
"Logan! What's going on!?" Maria screamed as she clung to him again. Jacob almost stabbed her as she surprised him but quickly tried to calm her down.
"We're under attack. I don't know why their using swords and arrows. Is anyone else nearby?"
"They killed them all!" She shouted again soaking his work uniform with red stained tears.
"Lept Ka!" Shouted a warrior thrusting his sword through the clothing rack. Jacob was quick to push Maria off of him as he grabbed his attackers hand through the rack and forced himself through, glass shard first. The rack had knocked over on top of his attacker but from the blood on the glass he knew they had to take this chance to run. If Maria was correct he would be of more use at the entrance to the store than the back.
"RRAAAAG!" Came a roar from behind them as they ran. Turning to look at the sound he saw the clothing department being burned down by none other than a green dragon. He knew it wasn't possible and that it must just be some kind of weapon but didn't think past it as he clutched Maria's hand in their sprint. Just as they reached the jewelry department the ground underneith him turned red showing some strange rune made of light. His feet immediately lost their balance as if being controlled by the strange looking glyph on the floor.
"Ir apo." Said a female's voice nearby. Before he could get up the voice's owner thrust a large expensive looking staff to his chest. The end piece didn't pierce him but rested on him instead.
"Ir mi." She said again with just enough emotion in her face to almost look sad. The end piece of the staff began to glow and heat up burning a hole in his shirt. The smell of burning fabric filled his nostrils as the cheap company shirt burned. Before she could do worse he pushed the staff away burning his hand. Although his hand was badly burned he forced both of them around the enemy's throat taking in her face as the life faded. He looked her over as she went unconscious, wondering why she decided to wear fake elf ears into battle. Part of him wanted to keep his hands there and continue his blood choke until she died but he had to get Maria out of the store. It didn't help that the strange woman's tears had found their way onto his hands. Confident that she would be out for a few moments he grabbed Maria's hand again and the two continued to run towards the registers.
"Jacob!" Cassie shouted from a nearby register she had apparently been hiding behind.
"Come on!" He said grabbing her with his other hand and pulling her from her safe space. The bodies of the customers were concentrated the most at the entrance of the store. Many of the dead had been killed from arrows rather than swords and one from a large perfectly circlular hole in the chest from what could have only been an energy weapon.
A nearby warrior pointed at them with a sword and yelled out a battlecry. There was a familiar 'bang' to his right as he watched the warrior fall dead. Apparently Cassie kept a pistol at her station and continued to fire wildly at the warrior's direction as the three of them escaped out the doors of the store. As unsafe as some may believe, he was glad to have her armed, shooting behind them as they went.
"Put down the weapon!" Said a police officer taking cover behind his patrol car. Cassie was quick to throw the weapon as the trio ran past more and more bodies of civilans and enemies alike. They quickly made their way out of the range of fire as more and more police cars gathered in the parking lot looking more like a mass grave. They didn't stop running until they reached Logan's truck.
"Hold it!" Shouted a nearby officer before he could get them in his truck and escape.
"We need to g-" Logan began before his voice disappeared behind the loud rifles the officers began to fire. The four used the truck as cover careful to watch the massacre that was occuring. The enemy didn't seem to know fear as they ran towards the barricade. As more and more police joined the battle the bullets easily pierced the enemy. More and more warriors emerged from the doors but were quickly killed from gunfire.
"RRRAAAGGHH!" Shouted the building as the ceiling was torn apart by the dragon-like weapon they had brought with them. Fire sprayed from it's mouth, igniting several of the parked cars. Explosion after explosion were seen as the police took cover and contionued to fire at the dragons. The rounds found their way through the dragons thick armor and it wasn't long before all the headshots took their toll. The dragon fell quickly to the concrete, dead. It was unbelievable how soon the battle had ended. So many civilians had been killed as they ran but one police department was enough to stop the enemy's advance. If it had happened a few hours later there wouldn't be half as many casualties.