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Chapter 1. The Lost Soul

The Sounds echoes as the blood drips and flows down the river, Painting the once blue waters crimson red. The earth tainted with decay and death, and the air polluted with corruption. The once bright and welcoming earth now soiled, purged of life for no one to remember this sad tale.

….

Deep within a military like training field where two boys sparring. One having a giant like proportion, while the other, although also strikingly tall, had a sharp elven like ears. The boys looking at each other, as blood dripped from their swords. Overlooking them was the figure of a middle-aged man, stoic in figure, having a sharp clear eye that seemed to overlook the world with contempt, lacking the common traits of primitive humans, without a desire for wealth or power, but lifeless, almost as though programed to follow a certain pattern. Similar to the two boys training where the figures of other young-looking men and women.

Each also engaged in a brutal sparring contest, but unlike the two boys in the center of the field, the instructor gave little attention to them, this resulting in some casualties as the floor is ever stained in blood.

The young boys trained within this muddy field, for soon, war was to come to their doorsteps. The blood and mud carving its markings on their bodies, for a taste of what was to come. To live, and survive is why they trained, as their fate was not within their grasp.

….

Mid-afternoon, the skies clear with the occasional bird sounding in the distance, the bird like creatures landed from time to time to feast upon corpses that littered the ground. Upon an unknown battlefield was a team of a dozen men dressed in plated armor, standing within a forest like field as they examined the corpses around. They moved in an orderly fashion as they bent down and inspected the bodies on the floor, stripping the body of any possible valuables before moving the corpses aside. The group of men where thin in complexion, and extremely diligent when handling the corpses. If you were not too keen on details you may easily mistake them for grave robbers, as their actions did not win many favors if looking at it from a unique perspective. Although there where the occasional ones that pocketed some earnings from the corpse, they mostly focused on organizing the bodies before sending them towards the carriages not far away, at times feeling the pulses and noses of each corpse to see if any individual were alive, if so, they would be separated and loaded into separate carriages. Overlooking the process was an unknown man, having an aged look, his eyes spark as a hawk, having an unusually curved hair and mustache, and an arm on his sword, ready to unsheathe it from its scabbard with the slightest notice. It is unknown how long, the old man suddenly stopped, before turning his head to the soldier approaching him.

Unknown the words spoken, just making out the few words from the movement of their lips seemed to be about the figure of a boy. Rushing quickly over with the soldier, it was not long before they came across a heavily wounded body of a young boy. Looking at the body on the floor, the bodies cloth tattered, and a vast quantity of wounds on his body, a long exhale as the old man bends down to examine the boy. Upon inspection, the old man having an awkward look sighed. looking at the boy that laid on the floor, the soldier next to the old man could not help but whisper. "Sir, from the amount of blood loss, I am afraid to say he might not make it. The way it looks, the young master may not make it past the night."

A slight frown, the old man could not help saying. "Unfortunately, so, let's just hope it doesn't come to that. Otherwise, the adult may have our heads tonight."

After taking in a deep breath, he then signaled to one of the team to clean off and disinfect the boy's body. Turning his head to look at the knight in front of him, before whispering something in a low tone. Afterwards, signaling towards the team to load the boy into his personal carriage.

As the body is then loaded into the carriage, the old man's brows frowned before saying. "This really complicates things, hopefully you survive the night...."

It is unclear the amount of time that had passed, but as the clouds slowly gathered and covered the two stars in the sky, this signaled towards the team it was time to leave. Almost as if an alarm had just been ringing, the team quickly gathered the few bodies remaining into the carriages, setting torches on the dead that had piled before hurrying along their saddles.

Although it is unclear what made them so squeamish in leaving at this point in time, it was almost as though they were afraid to face the horrors of the night. But if going by pre-established knowledge about predators' hunting habits, a consensus could be made about nights being the most dangerous. Especially within a field of rotten corpses, rich in nutrition for the beasts stalking the shadows.

….

Far in the distance came a screeching sound that echoed through the horizon, this sound frightening the birds from the trees above. It was unknown what, but it seemed to run over a wooden sign, and if you were to take a closer look at the sign it would direct towards a town named Odin. It is unclear of the time passage, but in time two illuminating stars slowly rise under the clouded sky, illuminating the world. As with its rise a deep cold permeated the early morning. Not far from the forest a subtle voice gradually emerged.

Hey!

A long team marched forward, the wheels of their carriage collided with the stones on the road from time to time, causing the carriages to fluctuate. On the far side driving one of those carriage, the driver who drove the front was an elderly-aged man full of deep wrinkles, from occasion perching the back of the carriage with fear as though he was afraid to wake something.

Within one of those carriages a boy lay quietly, taking a closer look at the boy and he seemed perfectly fine. At least if you ignore the large wounds on his body and a vast amount of blood leaking from them and let us not forget the pointed ears that make him look elven in dissent. Though strangely enough, something bizarre seems to be happening to the boy, looking closely and you would find his wounds seemed to be closing at a rapid pace, bringing in a bit of hope that he might live past the night. At least, that is before you get to the large amount of blood painting the inside of the carriage with a grim picture.

Seeming to not be affected by the fluctuation of the carriage. The boy slowly reached out, touching one of the most note-wordy scars on his forehead, and as if it were struck by lightning the original calm face became hysterical, while also paralyzing pale in complexion as if a murder had just been witnessed.

Witnessing all this, the elderly man hurried faster towards the towns reach.

At this point, it has been a couple of hours and the two suns in the skies are slowly covered back up by the clouds. Overall, except for a few skirmishes with armed robbers, the team has been lucky, being able to enter the town's proximity with little to no casualties, except for some damaged armor and some discarded weapons along the way. Stopping the carriage just before they entered the town, the elderly man slowly signals towards the first half of the team to unbag for the night, and the others to lookout for potential dangers.

As he gets off his carriage, the elderly man slowly turns his head and looked up to the stars, stretching his hands up above as if where to say some type of incantation under what seems to be an eternity within the freezing wind.

After a few seconds he had gone to check on the passenger in the carriage. To his surprise, he had already started to wake up, and called out to him Alex.

Under the intense stimulation of pain, Alex slowly opened his eyes.

Pain! Hunger!

After the initial period, the pain gradually subsided and a clear sense conveyed in Alex’s mind, his will regaining some clarity and a deep cold permeated as he took in the cold breath of air.

“Who am I?”

Feeling the exhausted body, and the stinging sensation of cold from his wounds, Alex’s heart raised some questions, but before he could react, a large amount of memory began flooding his mind.

A quick converging motion as his chest forcibly compressed and expanded at a rapid pace, it is unclear how long, but just as fast as it came it slowed down as Alex exhaled air from his lungs. A deep silence enveloped this evening, as an unfamiliar memory slowly flooded Alex’s mind. This was the memory of this body, a 10-year-old boy named Alex, strangely the same name as his former self.

From the information gathered, Alex was born into a small noble family and is the sole heir to the small territory named Odin, and the plane currently located is a lower plane. When he was discovered to have a warrior talent, he was sent by his father to train at the Pinnacle of Port Orial, named after the Orial monarchs.

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Within the area, the Orial family were absolute. Being a shrewd and fruitful businessman, Alex's father would naturally want to move closer to the higher nobles, so his successor Alex was sent to the door at an early age. Both for better training, and to express his loyalty.

Unfortunately, it had not been a few months into his training, the scattered remint tribes of the south suddenly launched a violent attack on the northern parts of Orial. As one of the lords of the north, the court governing Orial was obliged to send troops to fight the remint invasion after weighing the political atmosphere. As such 9-year-old Alex at the time was encroached into the army. A year of blood and mud. The sounds of arrows, constant sword clashes, and the screams of falling comrades, only the lingering screams occupied Alex’s last fading sight.

“Sigh.”

Feeling the lingering memories in mind, as well as the stinging sensation of pain, Alex lifted his arm and touched one of the scars at his back. While looking at the large amount of what could be considered a bloodbath within the carriage, Alex mustered the last bit of strength to sit up.

“What a hellish world…, but at least could be worst.” Alex muttering to himself.

Trying to find his footing, Alex lingered back on memories of both the battlefield and previous library readings. In memory, although the remints forces are not all equipped with solid armor. Their beast like nature, strong muscles, and height generally ranging from 3-4 meters. It seemed like a creature built for war.

Going deeper into this body’s memories, Alex found a rather interesting fact. Although the remints forces are physically frightening, their most dangerous aspect surprisingly, is their reproductive capability.

Disregarding the size. If going by this body's memories of the combat professions within this plane, you would discover their combat prowess was in sharp contrast to their size. Though physically built, they are only relatively stronger than a poorly trained warrior, the warrior system being one of the combat professions within this plane.

If noting from the previous fragmented memories, a sanctuary warrior can destroy a mountain through pure physical strength. Unfortunately, due to their share numbers, this lack of strength is made up by their shared magnitude. Still filling the sharp wound on his back, Alex slowly recalled after he killed a dozen or more on the last battle of attrition before his vision faded to black, some lingering memory fragments reminding himself of being swarmed.

Looking back overall, if Alex had to blame anything for the current predicament, it would be his lack of strength in overcoming the situation. But then again, he can be said to be lucky, as the remint forces are known for their primitive and savage nature. At least he is not in some pot of stew being served to some remint soldiers.

“Mad Warriors Law.”

Thinking of a way to improve his standing in this world, a memory that is somewhat familiar slowly came to mind. Trying to recall the memory in mind, an abstract training method emerged within Alex’s heart, and before he could indulge in it, a sound woke him up.

“Alex, you are awake.” There was a sound coming from his front, with an evocation of surprise, breaking Alex’s thoughts.

It was the elderly-aged man with deep wrinkles and a bearded mouth having a short curled up hair. At this time, looked at Alex’s body.

From what Alex can recall, this seems to be one of his father’s butlers before being sent to the Pinnacle of Orial, behind him was a team of some sort who seemed to be setting up camp. From the looks, it seems as if their armor had a few cracks, almost as if they had recently been in combat. Quickly sorting out all possible variables, it was not long before Alex concluded that they should be the reclamation force, tasked to get bodies back from the battlefield.

Whispering a few words to one of the soldiers around, the elderly man first procured a Water-Pouch, before then presenting a flask that seemed to contain herbal content; after which he then proceeded to order some food for Alex. A deep breath, Alex slowly drank some herbal tea as he began chatting with the old man. Not long into their conversation, he suddenly heard some screams in the background. A frightful cry. As the voices extinguished, a slight frown, Alex turning his head for a second before continuing his discussion.

….

In time came a team of three carrying some food, looking at the freshly dripping blood on their sword, it should have been rummaged from one of the villagers' houses within this town. Taking what looked like a dried-up piece of dirt, Alex slowly forced the supposed food down his throat, with just a taste came a sense of bitterness filling the taste buds. Spitting out the piece of bread and taking a closer look Alex found what looked like some congealed blood on the food.

Seeming to see Alex’s warry nature, the elderly man explained with a low tone. "These are the last ration available in town, blood is practically flooding the earth and most of the storages are like this.”

Taking this in, Alex then grabbed the remaining dry food without a word, before nodding to express his understanding of the situation.

By morning, the carriages began moving forward. As the horses stormed past you can see the bodies that littered the floor, the blood-stained soil, and the tattered houses that had been broken into as they continued their journey.

Within the carriage, Alex suddenly spoke. "For me to be meeting you now, I'm guessing the previous battle was a complete failure."

A slight silence. The old man then took out a tobacco pipe. Taking in a deep inhaling motion. After a while, exhaling the air from his nostril. Letting the smoke disperse into the air before he spoke. "What is there to say my lord. Death and blood are the currencies within this war. If anything, it has been rumored that the sudden outbreak seems to be the work of the abyss, as some soldiers have been spotted stained with its corrupting markings."

"Fathers and sons kill each other within this ever-growing vacuum. Though most ongoing within the mainland goes on as usual, the lords that govern them are paying close attention. Apart from that, you may have to speak to the adult to get a clear picture." The old man continued as the carriages strived ever forward while scanning his surroundings.

Taking in the information, Alex fell into a moment of meditation. A sigh, he could not help but turn his head and look outside the carriage windows. Looking around, he saw the destruct faces of peasants that have been afflicted by this sudden conflict, the youngest groups, no more than five years of age coming closer to the carriages as they beg for food. The soldiers Ignoring them strived ever forward.

….

It was unknown how long, but from afar a tall castle emerged from the horizon. A closer look will show it was full of cracks, a sense of decadence can be felt permeating from it.

With time the team slowly approached an approximate distance before stopping the carriages. The old man slowly stepped out. there was a sudden back-and-forth conversation from a group of men coming out from the castle interior before they escorted the old man into the castle.

After a while, another team emerged to slowly lead the carriages into the castle gates.

….

"Geral adult!"

Deep within the castle walls, knights cladded in armor headed towards the outposts. Seemingly shown up from nowhere, in front of the old man was a deep dark armored man with a small team behind him, who were riding on creatures similar to a horse. The man's eyes were deep, though covered mostly by his helmet it still gave off a majesty, and the coated red armor seemed to give him an intense pressure.

Upon the old butler seeing the man, he quickly bowed and said with respect.

Geral Rasing his hands, he patted the butlers' shoulder before saying. "No need to be so formal old friend, you have after all been with the family for over a century, and your loyalty has proven your worth."

The old man delighted, a stuttering rebuttal as he said. "Yes, yes Geral adult. Sir, we found the young master."

Geral getting off the horse like creature, he then signaled to the team behind him before setting off with the butler to sit by a shade not too far off.

As they set off to sit down, looking around you would find a multitude of different slave races cleaning and organizing. The female slaves consisted mostly of a humanoid dark-skinned race that looked like an elf, while the male that worked the blacksmith forge consisted of ground dwarfs.

As they sat down, Geral Signaled to one of the female slaves to procure some drinks. "This mindless killing. I cannot help but wonder when the old days will come back." Said Geral, with a loosened eyebrow. Turning his head to look at the old butler. Falling deep into memory, before continuing. "Do you know because of this mindless conflict, I have had to forgo several hunting events. At times like this, it really makes you appreciate the venomous words and having to deal with noble antics. When this is over, truly over, it would be nice..."

Looking at Geral with a meditative look. The butler could not help but say. "I know my lord, freedom from her grasp. Away from the worrying eyes of the 16 great serpents. With that said, has the adult decided on forwarding the plan?”

A deep silence. After a moment Geral exhaled before then replied. "Yes indeed. Everything is almost ready, either we fall into an eternal silence or escape her vicious claws.” Reaching out to grab the bottle of wine that was just presented, the butler taking in a deep gulp before saying. "Sorry sir Geral, but mind if I ask about the adults' son, sir Alex. Though he doesn’t permeate with her taste, there is a deep stain within his soul, he may not be willing to play the roll needed.”

Silence, Geral fetching a tobacco pipe smiled before saying. "He is one of millions, though he does hold some sense of importance to the adult, he is Afterall a replaceable pawn. Beside we are after all an aging generation, even if we fail, our path will make a marking for future generations. Who knows maybe death, a true death may be for the best for all of us...”

After saying such Geral then looked at the carriages in the rear that slowly entered the castle gates. It was unsure what, but as he scanned the carriages that moved the bodies of the still living passengers, sending their bodies towards the family's households. He could not help but frown and spoke. "Useless wastes can’t even last longer..."

Within this ongoing process, Alex’s consciousness remains in an unbridled state.

His body has been seriously injured, and there was too much blood loss and internal injury, although treatable to a certain extent, his current state of being has hardly been stabilized due to some serious internal injuries. If you were to then add that he is slowly reorganizing his memories; it does not make the situation any more promising.

However, as time moved, he slowly adjusted himself, and began to elevate some of is built up tension. As someone who was within another environment, suddenly had a change of scenery would build up some consistent tension.

As memories become familiar, and the present surrounding security improves, said tension tends to loosen, though still made him at a loss.

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