Forced to mature early by the abrupt death of his parents, Trevor had a different outlook on life than his peers.
Sometimes he decided to just relax and enjoy the little moments of life like having a coffee, watching a movie at the cinema and even joining meaningless online arguments, while at other times he was so overcome by the stress of both school life, adult life and personal goals he had set in order to bring pride to his surname that it basically left him mentally unstable.
It was this mental instability that gave him patience and allowed him to listen to the Deity of a crumbling world, something others would have written off as a hallucination.
After months of piecing together the faint outlines she left in the air with her finger, he managed to get the blueprints required to build the second part of an Interplanetary Teleportation Array.
An array with semi-rigid conditions which required a group of people not less than 20 in number but not up to 30 either to be able to operate successfully, a range his whole class of about 27 students fit perfectly.
The second reason he had chosen to use his classroom as the second point of the array was far less thought through and leaned more on the petty side.
Despite being unstable enough to classify talking with a Deity's projection as normal he was still human, and on the off chance that all this was a trap that led to some sort of endless torture and suffering, he wanted his classmates with him... as moral support of course.
Thankfully the Deity had not lied to him nor misled him. How did he know? Simple.
There was a crowd of kneeling white robed individuals wielding blades pointed upwards and unless this was some government budget cosplay meant to trick him, he was right.
"We greet thee travelers from another world. Saviours destined to eradicate the demon scourge of our world!!!" The knights shouted in unison, their synchronized speech serving as a testament to the effects of their absolute orderliness as a unit rather than the countless hours of practice.
"Ha. Ha ha ha. It's real. It's actually real. I wasn't going mad. That Alune woman was actually real. Ha hahaha." Trevor, overcome with joy started laughing and jumping about like a madman much to the shock of all those present.
For his classmates, it was his audacity to gamble all their lives on a chance that he wasn't crazy and proceed to celebrate his success like it was a normal Monday, and for the knights...
"Traveler, did you- did you just mention the name of the Great Mother, Deity Alune?" The oldest looking knight, most probably the squadron leader asked, his voice trembling with barely contained excitement.
"Great Mother…, ah yes Alune. She visited me in a dream and asked me for a favour, to save her people from certain doom, were her exact words if I'm not mistaken." Trevor just shrugged as he turned around to look at his dumbfounded classmates.
"Trevor you orphaned bastard, you sacrificed our lives because of a dream you had? A dream? Do you even hear yourself or do you not realize how mental you sound?" Brian shouted directly at Trevor, less than an inch separating them.
"Wow, it seems like the illiterate has finally learned how to speak with his mouth before using his fists. Transmigration sure creates miracles." Trevor wiped away Brian's spit with the hem of his shirt before continuing.
"Besides what do you mean by I sacrificed your lives, as if you had anything important to do. I merely wanted an audience to witness my ascension, you guys just happened to fit the bill. You should feel grateful."
Returning his attention to the priests who were still kneeling, his incoming question was cut short by a hand clamped hard on his shoulder.
"Mr. Sinclair, I think you owe the whole class an explanation. Like for starters tell us what is going on here and… what do you mean by we are here to serve as an audience for your ascension."
Hearing the class president raise the questions that had been burning at the tips of their tongues, the class nodded in support until their silent cheers were cut short the next instant.
"Who gave you permission to touch me?" Trevor said in a deathly cold tone.
The next instant the seemingly docile priests who had been silently bubbling in excitement had all realigned their weapons, their tips all angling towards the class president's neck.
"NONE SHALL TOUCH THE GREAT MOTHER'S CHOSEN ONE!!!" A synchronized shout boomed out from the knightly formation as they guided Trevor away from the class and encircled him for his own protection.
"Oh shit, that escalated quickly." One of the students at the back whispered while the others just quietly stared, too afraid to even gulp for fear that the knights may find the sound irritating.
"Kindly stand down knights, I think he, no they have all learned their lesson. Now as for your questions, Mr. Jack Stevenson, I'm in a good mood so I'll humor you." Trevor said with a smile, relishing his newfound authority.
"But first, dear Knights kindly lead the way to the closest place of worship. We need to begin with the awakening soon."
"As you wish Chosen One, follow me."
The squadron leader then began the descent from the grassy, low hill that the first part of the array was drawn on, a few of his subordinates bringing up the rear.
Finally on the move, Trevor turned back to explain everything to his classmates but first, he decided to take a moment to savor their expressions.
'Mmm. Eyes that once looked at me with pity and contempt now stare at me with fear and wariness. Power sure changes people.'
"Okay so where should I start from? Any suggestions, anyone, mmm. Oh come on I don't bite, feel free to ask me any questions you have." He chuckled lightly, seemingly finding their reactions a bit over the top.
Deciding to take a chance, Marcus, the dweeb rose his hand up.
"Erm– Trevor tell me, is there magic in this world. Like spells and stuff?"
"Why of course there's magic, well at least that's what the Deity told me, also in case you didn't hear, there are demons. How do you expect people to fight demons without magic? Use our fists, silly Marcus", Trevor said with a smile though he himself was not convinced.
If there was magic then why were they walking instead of flying or riding a magical beast. Seeking to resolve his own doubts under the pretense of putting Marcus at ease he requested a knight put on a little presentation for them, if it wouldn't bother them of course.
Breaking formation a bit, one tapped the ground a bit with the tip of his spear, wowing everyone as a block of hardened earth formed at the tip, transforming his spear to a sledgehammer.
"Cool, I can't wait to do something similar."
"Yeah. Maybe coming with Trevor was the right choice. With skill like that beating demons would be a walk in the park."
"Coming with Trevor, yeah right as if we had a choice. And if defeating the demons with such a skill is a cakewalk, why do they need us?"
Trevor was taking the time to bask in their amazement even though it wasn't directed at him in particular. Watching the class perception about him shift to the positive side was an added bonus he didn't believe he needed but he still accepted it anyway, just like he accepted in his heart that Ryan, the guy who shifted that sentiment back to the negative side was going to be punished.
"Erm darling, when will we be able to return home?" asked Sasha who was still reeling from the shock of how her plan was destroyed at a cataclysmic stage.
"Well that depends on the Deity, Dear. In the meantime why don't you get comfortable with this place, you might come to like it. Ah yes Mr. Stevenson, another question?" Trevor asked with a not so calm smile.
"Thank you Mr. Sinclair. Forgive me, I have two questions to ask, if you permit me of course." Jack said, adjusting his glasses.
"Permit you? Come on Jack, I'm not a tyrant or anything. You still have your free will. You can ask any number of questions you want, no need to be so formal with me."
"Okay thank you, Trevor. First, is it possible to shed more light on the awakening we are headed to, and second, do we have a choice on whether we want to fight these so- called demons?"
"More info about the awakening huh? Well I don't really know much about since it will be the Deity handling the process, as for whether you can opt out of fighting the demons… technically, no one can force you to fight them, you have free will remember. Just don't expect to get the same treatment as those who do?"
The procession got quiet for a while, students processing the new information and the knights keeping alert when suddenly and without warning, the squadron leader shouted, "We are here, the Temple of the Great Mother."