Prologue

   How long have I been here?

   How did I get here?

   Why am I here?

   These are all questions that I intend to answer in time. I do not remember my name or my age. I do not remember how I appeared in this tiny, almost claustrophobic room. This room that - though empty and dark - I know is moving. Though I do not know how I know what I know, which is very little, this room is inevitably moving up. I do not know how long it has been moving up, but then again, I do not know much.

   When did it begin moving?

   Why is it moving?

   Where am I?

   My last question rang through my emptied mind. I had no memories, no recollection of anything. I did not even know if I were male or female without personally inspecting. On that note, I had a rather toned body. I must have done a lot of physical labor before I had inexplicably appeared here. I was not rippling with muscles, but that was only to be expected given my gender. I had only been awake for a couple seconds, and all that I had discovered was that the room was moving.

   I reached out my hands to feel the walls of the room around me. It was smooth and cold to the touch. The walls took a curved shape. The room I was in was probably cylindrical in nature. Now that my eyes were more accustomed to the dark, I could make out faint shapes in the walls. The shapes were mostly rectangular in shape, but there were some circular cuts mixed in as well. I realized now that what I was in most likely was not a room, but an elevator of some sorts.

   I paused.

   Elevator.

   What is that?

   Though the word was completely foreign to me, a series of images flashed through my mind. Images of moving rooms that took on different shapes. Some were cylindrical, some were cubical.

   When did I see these before?

   Ah, I see. An elevator is a moving room. It takes you up and down. So I am in an elevator.

   Elevator. I have learned something. I am in an elevator. I like this word. It gives me peace and satisfaction. I have answered one of my questions. But now, a whole new series of questions have entered my mind.

   Why did I suddenly know what an elevator was?

   Where had I seen elevators before?

   And another much more sinister question that had only recently entered my mind. Though I cannot say with absolute certainty, there is a strange air in this room. A miasma, almost. It is an awkward feeling of having been somewhere without any recollection of the event ever occurring.

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   As I pondered my predicament and the strange feeling of having experienced this before, I heard a sound for the first time since I awoke in this elevator. It was a very audible ‘clank’ from outside of the elevator. Immediately following the noise, the elevator began to shake and slow. Instinctively, I place a hand on the wall. It was then that the darkness around me was replaced by a blinding light.

   I squeezed my eyes shut. After so long in the dark, the sudden burst of light was painful as if a thousand suns had ignited themselves before me. Slowly, I forced myself to adjust to the new conditions. The walls around me were silver and reflected the light off of them. How strange. Whatever they were made of, it was an extremely hard substance. I now noticed that the shapes in the walls were in fact compartments as I could see a deep groove on the sides of the rectangular shapes.

   I pulled the compartment open to reveal an item with a handle and a long part that appeared to be the same material as the walls. I gripped the item, only to quickly retract my hand as I winced in pain. I looked at my palm as a red liquid oozed from the shallow cuts. A series of words enter my mind. Though foreign, I somehow understood their meaning.

   Metal. That is what this shiny material is called.

   Blade. That is what I grabbed. A blade is sharp. When something is sharp, it cuts.

   I took the item out of the compartment now, holding onto the handle. I know not how to describe it, but the item felt right in my hands. The eerie sensation of having been in such a situation before flowed through me again like an alien melding with my body. It was unsettling to say the least. I replaced the item and spent the couple minutes searching through the other compartments. They contained strange objects that I attempted to use to no avail. Unfortunately, I did not receive any new words or knowledge from touching those objects.

I turned to the final compartment that I had not inspected yet. It was the largest compartment and I was saving it for last. Opening it cautiously, I was greeted by a suit of clothing. Now that I was conscious about my clothing, or lack thereof, I could feel that the elevator was rather chilly. The clothes were extremely ornate despite its greyscale color scheme; they looked like something only an important person would wear. Though the material was flexible and comfortable on the skin, I instinctively knew that it was much tougher than metal.

   There seemed to be some sort of strange symbol on various places of the clothing. It was especially prominent on the piece of fabric which draped over my right shoulder. There the symbol was a bright gold, adding the only splash of color to the otherwise monochromatic scheme.

   It was then that the elevator jerked to a halt, forcing me to catch myself on one of the compartments I had left open. I jumped in surprise as I heard a monotonous voice coming from all around me.

   “Greetings. You have reached the Chamber of Examination. Please prepare for battle.”

   Before the confused me, the previously smooth surface of the elevator parted to reveal a bright room that was completely white, only to be disrupted by a single entity in the center of the room. It was large and wore a strange garment that looked hard to move in. In one of its hands, it carried a large object that had a blade. It took a stance, staring at me who still stood confused in the elevator. The image had resounded in my mind like a symphony at full volume.

   Ah, now I remember why I was here. I had come here to fight or to die.

   The item with a blade was called a sword. The Ancients used them to slaughter each other in their avarice.

   I am no longer clueless. I have a memory. Though I know not who I am, I know what I must do and what I am.

   With a newfound sense of purpose, I reached into the compartment naturally and picked up the sword. I held it in my left hand. Though I do not know why, it felt more right.

   I am Armed with Anamnesis.

   As I trod towards the entity, a single question still remained in my mind.

   Why?