1 A New Hope

The Planet Terra. A large, lush planet, with a rather tropical climate except the poles and a few weird spots here and there. There are two major land masses, the Acari continent which was separated into 3 main parts by an expansive mountain range and the Dezmoni Archipelago. With a large sea in the middle, the two land masses seemed to form a large Chinese kou symbol but half was sunk in the sea.

At the southern tip of the Acari continent was the Blacktree Kingdom. It got its namesake from the Blackiron Fir trees that covered the mountains that ran through the kingdom and into the southern sea. Many of the densely packed islands were sunken mountain peaks that still grew Blackiron Firs and housed many beasts and fierce beasts that have since been cleared out of the kingdom.

On an island a few days away from the tip of the kingdom, an earth shaking roar rang into the air.

"FFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!"

The island was fairly desolate, it's only occupants being the birds that just got shouted away. It was shaped like a perfect circle, its shoreline with not a bump out of place. In the middle of the

island was a ravine akin to a large sword scar. The walls of the ravine, though overgrown with wildlife, were smooth, still resisting the ravages of time. At the bottom of the ravine was a pool of blood red water surrounding a small island. In the middle of the island was a vibrant red flower, giving off a soft red light illuminating the only other object in the cavern.

A blood bag.

'sckretchhhhh'

A squirming blood bag?

"Shit this hurts."

Zeke opened his eyes and tried to get his bearings. Due to the red light he thought he was in Hell for a minute, but he quickly ruled that out. The reason being he could still feel... everything. Then he tried to remember how he got in this place. As soon as he tried, however, Zeke felt as if an icy spike smashed into his mind and he collapsed, squealing like a slaughtered pig again. Before Zeke passed out, he felt the soft red light grow in intensity.

"How warm."

That was his last thought before he went under. What he didn't see was the red flower had combusted into a blood flame that grew till it sealed the top of the cavern. As the flame roiled, releasing a thick sanguine aura, a change started to occur in the red water. Given the state of Zeke's mangled body and the small size of the island, a trail of blood ran from him to the shoreline. When blood touched the water, it formed a string of esoteric runes that circled around the island before piercing through Zeke and rising into the flame. As the runes made their circuit, they absorbed the red light from the water. While passing though Zeke, the runes turned illusory, causing him to release a soft red light and an aura similar to the blood flower. He burst into a blood flame, and his body began to mend itself.

After the last rune left Zeke's body and entered the blaze, a soft 'pop' could be heard all the sound in the area was sucked in. The previously red water started to exude a sliver-white glow and began to churn, generating a powerful whirlpool as it started to surge up the island, covering everything it touched with an odd black ice. At the same time, the blood blaze turned in to a fire twister and began to descend onto Zeke's body.

The blaze Zeke's body intensified as the blood fire refined his body and accelerated his healing. It also provided the added benefit of combating and balancing out the powerful energy coming of the silver-white water which nourished his soul.

The cleansing lasted a few days. In the end, the blood flame died out first allowing the whirlpool to shoot Zeke out of the ravine and in to the sea.

Although he looked like a dead log floating in the dark water, his mind was very active, taking in all the phenomenal events of the past few days.

"So first things first... I died and crossed to a different world. Well that's not quite right. I guess its more accurate to say "we" died."

The first thing Zeke thought after regaining consciousness, besides discovering the fact the he didn't have the energy to blink his eyes, was about the conditions of the end of his last life.

Zeke had been on and international school trip to Japan. he and his class had been doing a temple run during the New Year, and, with the weibos Zeke had for friends, they decided to get their fortunes told. They enjoyed the sights and sounds of the New Year's festival, before making their way to the shrine to pray. By the time Zeke got to the front, he cast in his 500 yen coin in the offering box, rang the bell, and made his wish.

As Zeke recounted this part of his last life, his blackened.

"I just want something interesting to happen. Mom and dad get to see all sorts of crazy things working for Nat Geo. I want an adventure that would blow them away."

His prayer done, he headed to area with the fortunes to join his friends. He was the last to pray and the last to get his fortune, so all eyes were on him. As soon as he drew the fortune, he frowned.

"Ah, I'm sure this is wrong," as he held up the paper to his friends.

It read [Very very good luck, Very very bad luck]

All of his friends burst in laughter!

"Oh God Zee, only you could get a fortune like that"

"Man I'm dying over here. Very very good and very very bad? Isn't that no luck at all?"

Before Zeke could tell the last member of the peanut gallery, who was literally rolling on the ground crying, to go shove it, a giant light diagram lit up the sky, covering the whole city. The light was blinding, but all Zeke could think about was his fortune.

[Very very good luck, very very bad luck]

Next thing he saw was the red flower.

"Hell? I'm not that bad a guy. Lets try to get out of here."

With just a thought of trying to move, Zeke felt waves upon waves of fiery pain coursing from every inch of his body. Every bone his body was broken, with fragments piercing into his organs. His limbs were mangled, every inch of his skin was split, his meridians were shattered...

"Meridians? What the hell is that?"

Trying to recall this information that popped into his head, memories from pile of meat he was laying in rushed into his soul like a bitter, winter wind whipping against someone's nude body. Zeke grit his teeth as knowledge forced its way into his head.

"Zeke Solgod. That's my name here. Okay, so how did I get down here?"

As he tried to interpret these new memories, he became blanketed with rage and tried to stand up. This new exertion with his terrible body coupled with his soul being buffeted and his extreme rage caused him to directly passed out.

This brought him to present.

Zeke floated face up on the sea, bearing a ferocious expression. He was boiling mad. Like, literally boiling, as seawater started to bubble and his clothes, already little more than rags, turned to sparks of flame.

"Ao Feng, Markis Tidewater... wait for your deaths."