In the dim confines of a dusty chamber lay amidst the rubble a young man. His eyes closed yet his chest
bobbed slightly with the rhythm of life.
Suddenly, his visage contorted, his head veins bulged pulsating beneath pallid skin, his eyes opened
revealing a bloodshot gaze as he collapsed from the chair onto the ground his right hand clutching at his
chest a silent plea of respite from his agony, his left hand on the ground bloodied, having attempted to
support himself to lessen the impact of the fall it encountered a sharp stone giving him an injury.
As his breathing intensified, suddenly, he trembled. His expression softened as he stood up as if nothing
happened, his hand dripping with blood and his gaze fixated upon the yawning expanse of the window.
"Where am I?" he muttered softly, his voice a whisper amidst the oppressive silence of the chamber.
As he reached the window a tragic scene was revealed to him.
A once-great metropolis now lay there in ruins, a haunting testament to humanity's hubris.
Skyscrapers, once towering giants, now stood there as crumbling monoliths, their rotten frames reaching
toward a dark ominous sky.
Streets that once bustled with human life were now littered with debris and filled with humanoid creatures
with veins pulsating beneath sickly grey skin.
“Nature” had begun to weave fleshy slimey tendrils through the cracks in concrete, as if dancing on its
enemy's grave.
The once gleaming facades of corporate headquarters and government buildings, now resembled ruined
temples, their shattered windows showing disfigured human cadavers some cut cleanly with the other half
nowhere to be found nearby, while others had faces filled with youth while their limbs and bodies were
akin to elders with maggots coming out of any injury they had. Fresh blood stained the floor contradicting
the fact that many insects had already gathered around the corpses dripping with pus a scene one
wouldn’t even see in his nightmares filled with contradictions and terrifying bizzareness. Yet the young
man watched the scene with detachment his cold demeanor unchanging.
Amidst the ruins, the echoes of heart-wrenching inhuman screams lingered like ghosts, broken only by
occasional heavy impacts coming from a faraway distance, recounting tales of an unforeseen tragedy, a
disaster that shook human society to its core.
In the heart of the city, a sense of eerie horror lingered, as “nature” and decay danced in a macabre ballet.
Silver rays of moonlight filtered through the broken skyline, casting long shadows that stretched across
the shattered landscape. And amidst it all, the city stood as a silent witness, as proof of humanity's
helplessness in the face of oblivion.
“I know I’m a heavy sleeper but I didn’t expect the apocalypse to befall the world while I was sleeping”,
lampooned the young man as he watched the scene with a cold complexion.
Suddenly, his brows furrowed indiscernably he seemed to notice a critical detail that put a heavy weight
on his shoulders.
“Despite the tragic scene before my eyes, it seems I am neither scared nor disgusted by what I see.…”
As he looked at the bizarre heart-wrenching scene, he heard footsteps coming from a distance they
sounded hurried and intense. Shouts echoed before reaching his ears, signs of human life. “Split up and
search every apartment, gather anything that seems useful if you find any signs of danger proceed
according to the agreed upon protocol ”
Moments later, a figure cloaked in a gothic multi-layered dress and covered in a dark cloak strode into the
chamber, a silver necklace with a complicated symbol hanging on her chest, her hair a cascade of ethereal blonde, her eyes mirroring the same hue, piercing and unyielding.
Beside a weathered window stands another, his countenance a tableau of stoic detachment, his features
chiseled, his gaze distant yet flickering with a hint of astonishment.
As her gaze met his, the woman's pupils dilated, delving into depths unseen, a silent assessment
shrouded in mystery. She held the necklace in her hand as she muttered something softly her actions
holding unknown intentions.
While the woman stood there her wary eyes scanned his body from top to bottom until it landed on his
left hand “Are you injured?” The woman asked as he followed her gaze and looked at his hand “Yes” He
answered in a detached manner as he raised it to observe it.
”Any other major injuries ?” she pressed
”No” he answered simply.
Suddenly a man with soft facial features wearing a black cloak entered the room a silver rapier hanging by
his waist and a silver necklace adourning his neck this man donning short raven black hair had different
coloured eyes a light blue right eye and a black left eye a countenance defying convention, he was shortly
followed by a more mature looking elder wearing a similar cloak and necklace this fellow was holding a
white box with a red crescent on it.
The two men stood side by side looking rather astonished by the scene in front of them, almost as if
communicating their thoughts their astonishment turned into weariness and caution their reaction a result
of unknown considerations.
Suddenly the man with mismatched eye colors started muttering under his breath in a fast
incomprehensible tone countless moving indescribable symbols started appearing in front of his left eye ,
they stacked upon one another as his muttering grew more indistinct. “He has no evil intentions” The man
suddenly spoke leaving the previous scene a passing daydream.
The blonde heaved a sigh of relief as the elder’s expression became warm he looked at the left hand of
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the cold-looking young man and raised the box in his left hand
“Let me give you first aid.” he said warmly
“Sure” He answered nonchalantly as if unconcerned by the matter.
The elder quickly disinfected the wound and wrapped it in a bandage the young man was then led out of
the room to regroup with the rest of the squad.
As the group got closer a tall man stepped out of the crowd, even tho wearing the same uniform as his
companions , his oppressive aura and stern gaze made him stand out. Every mouvement he made exuded
a sense of authority. The man had a dagger hanging by his waist sheathed in a leather cover, as he moved
his eyes to examine the incoming group, they were suddenly fixated on a foreign figure. It was a young
man walking amidst his direct subordinates, the giant quickly unsheated his dagger and walked towards
him with purpose.
As the young man watched the approaching leader, he stood there like a statue , his posture and
expression unchanging.
Soon the oppressive tall figure stood before him raising his dagger to meet his opposite hand.A strange
viscous blue liquid dripped out of his finger as he unsheathed his dagger. As the man raised his hand
dripping with blue blood the young man extended his left hand letting the liquid wet the bandage,
indescribable ravings echoed from the giant’s mouth into the young man’s ears as the blue blood stopped
dripping from the tall figure’s finger.
As he removed the bandage nothing could be seen out of his previous injury. A deep voice quickly
resounded:” It’s unwise to have an injury in such an environment”
“Thank you” the young man responded as his lips curled upwards
Slowly, the smile on the young man’s face disappeared once again as his gaze became distant. Fleeting
scenes appeared in front of him, a man with mismatched eyes teasing him about his choice of outfit, a
mature elder giving him life advice telling him to value his life more, a woman with golden eyes throwing a
tantrum over losing a card game yet being the most reliable when sought for help, a gentle yet fierce
expert combatant that had an obvious range advantage in close range combat.
“Are these memories?...” In a stupor the young man raises his hands and looks down upon his body “ If
they are, these are not my memories and it looks like this is not my body either, are these this body’s
memories? No, they are acting as if I'm a stranger to them, this makes no sense.”
As the questions piled up and the discrepencies unfolded before the young man, he was quickly reminded
by his earlier realization of his strange behavior, a cold and rational demeanor unfit of this strange and
mystical situation.
“That tall man is part of this body’s 'memories', I was able to make my assessment earlier by taking
advantage of that. They should be familiar with this body, yet they didn’t question my existence here. Are
they doing it on purpose? No, I need to be realistic there might be something else here. Are these
memories really this body's? Or were they implanted in me to serve some party's goals? Either way, the
conclusion is clear, these people have the advantage both in numbers and mysticism knowledge and
power. I need to go along with their wims for now and escape when I find a safe opportunity.” After a lot of
consideration ,the young man finally concluded his next course of action
Meanwhile, among the crowd, the blonde woman in a gothic dress looked at the young man who was in
deep thought. Her eyes devoid of emotion.
"It seems we found a survivor, the expedition will be cut short and we will be returning to base. The date
of the next expedition will be announced shortly after returning."Said the leader after looking around. An
announcement that was met with silence.
Soon after, the young man was put into a formation where he was surrounded by the 7-member squad.
The giant leader was at the forefront leading the formation holding his dagger with a firm grip. To his left
flank, the man with the mismatched eyes stood there simply holding the rapier, to the young man his
stance didn't resemble a swordsman , to the leader's right flank stood a cloaked brown-bearded man
holding an identical weapon with a similar stance. In the middle of the formation stood the young man
next to the elder observing the people around him. Behind them stood the woman who discovered him
unarmed, for someone tasked with protecting the backline she looked the most harmless but the young
man understood that things might not be as they seem. To his sides were two cloaked men armed with
longbows, yet no arrows in sight once again defying the young man's expectations.
As they started descending through the apartment building an eerie quiet filled the surroundings broken
only by the sound of footsteps breathing and the bizarre noises coming from the outside world. This
rhythm continued until the group stood in front of the entrance outside of the apartment building, many
humanoid corpses stood there riddled with sharp wounds and burn marks all over their corpses some
were even penetrated with holes. But what united them was one simple thing, an unshakable, strong
rotting stench emitting off their bodies.
The leader looked around once again and announced"We will be returning using the pathway we came
through. Even if some of the forsaken have wandered close to it, it should still be safer than any other
path."
As the young man listened to the announcement he picked up on something new.
The forsaken? Is this the term they use to describe the monsters outside?
But why would they call them the forsaken?
