A breach in space and time opened, spitting out a man from its insides. "Oof!" Orion rolled on the ground. His lungs brimmed with fresh air, his fingers grazed the grass, and his eyes found the sun's brightness once again.
Enjoying his return to reality, he basked in the instant. 'Where are we?!' Tetra asked with a worried tone. There were many things that made her anxious, firstly, knowing where they were dropped off. "What are you doing?! Move, imbecile!" Suddenly, a man's voice shouted. Orion panicked at the sudden call and looked around him when a giant shadow covered the sky above him. "Hup!" Orion, who was in a sitting position, listened to the voice. He rolled forward and pushed on his arms, sending him further away from his original spot. *CRASH* A massive object destroyed the ground behind him. The air pressure impacted Orion's back as he was falling down, forcing him to roll uncontrollably the instant he touched the ground. "What is happening?!" He recovered his composure and turned around. "..." Corrupt beasts. And not the usual number. A truly terrifying number of corrupt beasts were marching toward him. This was five times greater than what the Three Lords' army fought against. And, when Orion looked at the thing that broke the ground behind him, it was the foot of a giant turtle. It was as big as the one he encountered at the southern border. With two eyes on each side, a massive shell covered the land below in darkness and dripped a corrupted fluid that ravaged the land. The corrupt turtle's left eyes scanned his surroundings and looked directly at Orion. "Those are impressive reflexes." From behind him, the voice that called him out became clearer. 'That voice... it can't be!' Orion heard the confusion in Tetra's voice while turning his head. "I don't know who you are, but you shouldn't be here. If you hadn't noticed, this is a battlefield." A man with short hair, wearing a red shirt and white jeans, walked next to Orion.
In his hand was a crude piece of metal that appeared to be a sword. Revolving behind his back were five easily recognizable elemental spheres.
Effortlessly, the man leaped forward and met the marching army of corrupt beasts head-on.
With a simple swipe of his sword, the air was chopped in half, ripping a third of the beasts to shreds.
Then, he ran under the giant turtle, avoiding the drops of corrupted fluids without batting an eye.
As he approached the leg, the crude sword in his hand shattered, reduced to dust.
The earth element orb broke off from the rest behind him and merged with the palm of his right hand.
Passing next to the hind legs of the turtle, he slapped them with his elementally charged hand.
While continuing toward the front, the giant legs merged with the earth, trapping the giant in place.
Sliding under the massive beast, the man released the earthen orb and became one with the fire orb next.
"..."
Orion and Tetra watched with awe as the man fired a beam of fire under the turtle, lifting its front legs off the ground.
As the rear end of it was stuck, the corrupt giant fell backward on the rest of the forces, killing countless beasts.
Its hind legs ruptured from the angle, splashing dark blood everywhere. But the man was already gone.
Leaping high in the air after merging the wind orb with his legs, he pulled a small piece of ore from a pouch strapped to his side.
The ore glowed a silvery hue before turning into another crude sword.
From the orbs behind his back, he pulled the water orb and rubbed it on the blade.
As his body fell down toward the upside-down turtle, he swiped the water-covered sword at it.
A splashing sound similar to a wave crashing on shore ruptured the air as a blade of water sliced the giant in half.
His feet gently touched the ground while another sword crumbled to dust in his hand.
The last orb sank into his back, releasing a powerful wave of electricity that moved forward. Every beast remaining fell to the ground as electrical arcs traveled from one to the other, until no survivor was left.
When the last corrupt beast fell, electricity shot to the sky, creating a lightning tree that dissipated as fast as it appeared.
'I... thought I'd never see him again.'
Tetra's melancholic tone made Orion ponder for a second about the man's identity. But, he wasn't ignorant. There was only one person, one human, that Tetra acknowledged.
"The Hero, Noah..."
Orion grabbed his chest as a strange feeling permeated through. Seeing the broad back of this powerful man, he felt a sense of awe.
"Phew."
Noah, the first Hero, turned around while checking his body. He clasped the pouch with ore pieces and wiped the dust off his pants, which remained in a pristine state even after such a bloody battle.
"Hmm..."
Grabbing his chin, he approached Orion and pondered for a second. Then, he asked him a question.
"You exert a feeling of familiarity. I have no idea who you are, but what were you doing here? Seeing your expression, you appear lost."
Noah extended his hand toward Orion, who was still kneeling in the grass.
"That's..."
Orion hesitantly went to grab his hand, but stopped. Noah took this moment to lean further in, grab him, and pull him up.
"Thanks."
"No problem."
Felling the solid ground under his feet more clearly, Orion smiled faintly. Floating infinitely made him miss walking.
"..."
Then, Noah began to observe Orion. His eyes scanned him as if he were naked in front of him.
"What is it?"
His gaze triggered Orion's cautious nature. Even if he had heard about him from Tetra and Henrietta and even Dramia and Drania, Noah was a stranger to him.
They were two people who should have never found themselves in the same place.
"I would like you to be honest with me."
The gaze Noah showed while scanning Orion was one of confusion.
"Your body is built like mine. Outrageously similar, even. As if you were a carbon copy of myself."
"I can feel an energy different from mine yet very close. There is also this strange energy similar to someone I know."
Tetra's soul began to become agitated.
'We can't tell him! Who knows what would happen to him if he were to-'
But as she was telling Orion to think about avoiding speaking the truth, Noah continued, revealing something that changed their perception.
"This might sound like a coincidence, but Miasma's actions suddenly changed too. I heard from Tia that the cores of the corrupt suddenly disappeared, animated by an energy she had no idea existed."
"To make it even worse, it appears Nature isn't responding to her calls anymore. We are in a difficult situation, and, out of nowhere, someone with..."
He hesitated before speaking terrifyingly accurate words describing Orion.
"With the same build as a Hero, appear."
A bead of sweat formed on Orion's cheek. His words were meaningless, as Noah himself had already pieced everything together.
"Miasma's changes, the Remnants becoming anxious, the apparition of a strange individual..."
"You're not from this era, are you?"
Orion took a step back, thinking of fleeing the scene. Yet, something deep inside compelled him to stand his ground and answer honestly.
'Orion, don't!'
Tetra's anxiety became clearly apparent as he took a deep breath.
"You're correct, Noah."
"As I thought."
Noah turned around while pondering out loud.
"I did notice a weird warping effect as you've appeared on the battlefield. Since you know my name already, and knowing that I haven't introduced myself, I believe you come from the future."
"..."
Choosing to stay silent, Orion swallowed hard.
'Tetra, this is pointless. He already knows everything.'
He heard a sigh in his head.
'Noah was keenly aware of many things. I never managed to understand him entirely, but I never knew he was able to decipher our origin from barely nothing.'
Suddenly, a third person appeared from behind Orion.
"!"
He felt a sharp and bloodthirsty glare on his back, which forced him to turn around.
Grabbing the hand that was ready to pierce his throat, he smiled dryly at the sight of the perpetrator.
"Who are you?!"
A pink-haired woman glared at him, exerting more strength as she screamed at him.
"Tia. What are you doing here?"
Noah stood in between them and grabbed her hand. He gently moved her arm back next to her, but wasn't able to calm her rage.
"I sensed something strange around you."
"I've felt it too, but why are you showing such aggressive behavior? This isn't normal coming from you."
Her gaze never switched to him. This era's Tetra was entirely focused on Orion.
'I'm... Was I always like this?'
The Tetra inside Orion's core exclaimed with bewilderment, seeing as she was incredibly menacing.
"How can I remain calm when someone wearing the power I am supposed to control appears around you?!"
"I am asking again. Who are you?"
Two heroes and two Remnants of Space and Time.
Thrown four thousand years into the past, a new chapter of this yore era began.