Chapter 1: Red Sun

The Burning Sun went falling-

it fell into the sea

-Patrick Dumas

'It is said, by the Great Beginning, that the Saviour talked about in prophecy would arrive on the backs of dragons, commanding a gargantuan army, here to herald the Age of Hope.

Of course, this has been recorded in the holy books, and for thousands of years-thousands of periods, the priests and holy men and women have stressed that civilization should be ready for the liberation He would bring.

Yet, that did not happen.

The Worlds fell, and the Saviour was not there to stop it.

Maybe, destruction is all that life deserves.

Subjugation of the highest level....'

Borj woke up, the burning rays of sunlight prying open his eyes, as if to remind him that this world was not his home. It was not as if he would admit to remembering his home, as it carried too much uncertainty.

He tried to turn so as to lie on his stomach, but the rough and splintering branches of the tree he was lying on stopped him.

Grumbling audibly, he got up and leaped to the ground, a good thirteen feet down. Normally, such a fall would leave him jarred, but he did not care.

He could not even remember how he got to this place several days ago. All that came to mind was distant bits about the embrace of his mother; chasing wild hares with his brothers and sisters; fooling around with his friends. That seemed like it was years past, and they came in disjointed memories, as if someone had churned his mind and took out the important parts.

He simply could not remember.

He landed on to the ground, giving a disgraceful yelp as his legs gave way, leaving him an embarrassing heap of flesh and life on the ground.

When he woke up several days ago from his distant dream, he had been found by a group of hunters, and was being treated in one of their homes. He had almost ran away, never to return, but he noticed that they meant no harm.

They were just people struggling to make a living, struggling to find food and to survive to the next day.

Thinking back at that, he smiled.

He had seen the red tinge that the light from the sun gave off, making the world look bloody and raw.

He had been asked where he came from, but he did not know himself.

Luckily, he knew the language these kind people spoke, otherwise he would have struggled immensely.

After recovering quite a bit, he had requested to hunt, so that he could help them find the scarce food available.

At first, they disagreed, but after realizing his sharpness and willingness to try, they reluctantly conceded.

Now, he had been hunting, often sleeping in the wild looking for food.

Yesterday had been unlucky. He had hunted since dusk without any luck. Empty-handed, he decided to go back home.

Dusting himself and standing up, he quickly found his bearing and began heading to the place he had learned to call home, the camp of 6 people who were very kind and agreeable.

As he walked, he stared in shameless awe at the redness of everything. From the trees, to the grass, to the insects and birds, even to the light from the sun, coloring everything in his sight, even the clouds, red.

Everything had a rustic, bloody feeling to it.

Even though he had seen this sight lots of times, he had never quite gotten accustomed to it, looking at everything in childish novelty, savouring the plants that seemed to thrive even though they were crimson and of course, looking for wild beasts with red spots on their coats together with red berries.

Everything was saturated with red.

As he possessed no offensive power, save for his above-average physique and athleticism, he was given a gun of sorts to help with his hunting. The gun had interesting engravings on the metallic handle, with a thick barrel made of slightly iridescent metal, which played tricks on the eyes as it changed colour depending on which angle one looked at it from. Of course, the gun mainly stood out to him as it seemed to defy the very essence of the world, at least in terms of colour schemes. Apart from the barrel, the handle was a dark blue, a colour that he had yet to see naturally on this planet. Maybe he would find it when he explored more, but for now, that gun was a freak of nature.

His shooting had been average, but after several days of practice and having gained experience, he was barely decent. Maybe if he improved himself physically, then he could be called a true hunter.

His mind wandered as he walked, seemingly oblivious to his surroundings, thinking about the various things that came to him in his dreams while he slept.

Various dreams of saviours and gods, and having the power to change fate itself.

This was all very amusing for Borj, as he could not fathom how someone could change fate or save the world.

Save the world from what?

Maybe hunger and poverty. That would be remarkable.

Yes, and dragons too. Though he had never seen one, he had been told by his companions that they were a very real threat, a danger that could not be avoided.

Luckily, the place they were staying in was devoid of them.

He had never seen a dragon, but rather, had seen signs of them.

During night-time when the moon gave off a red sheen, if one looked at it over the course of several days as it rotated on its own axis, they would notice a gigantic footprint left on its surface. It seemed to cover a large part of the moon's surface, and when he first asked about it, he had been told it was a dragon's footprint, a testament to how terrifying dragons were.

He kept walking, his mind occupied by vivid images of dragons which threatened to burn down mountains down if threatened.

A familiar voice brought him back to reality.

"Hey! There you are... I thought you had been eaten by some wild animal."

"Why, so you could finally take my very good shoes?-don't roll your eyes, I see you sneaking glances at them everytime we're together," Borj quipped.

This remark earned him a thump on the shoulder, to which he laughed heartily.

He was in low spirits due to spending a night in absolute hunger, but seeing his friend made him happy again.

"Hello to you too Lucien. Found any wild animals? I couldn't even get any bloody berries, imagine that. I'd have to eat six meals to feel my feet again."

"Heh, who was the best hunter again?"

Lucien said, pumping out his chest. He stopped and started squirming in pain and yelling profanities when Borj started twisting his ears.

"Okay, okay! It was Cal who hunted! I just carried the poor beast.

"Oh, and we found two," Lucien finished, rubbing the red spot where Borj had pinched him.

"Lovely stuff, hopefully I'll find something today." Borj said, looking forward to the meal with hope.

Lucien had been looking for him to ensure his safety, and now that he had ensured that Borj was safe, they could go home together and eat.

On the way, they joked and played around, paying attention to their surroundings, lest a dangerous animal showed itself and posed a problem to the two.

They soon reached the encampment, and found some people busy cutting up a carcass of a deer with horns made of solid lava, putting different parts of its body in different containers, while a girl was busy tending to a fire, occasionally feeding it with her powers.

"Hey Cal, I found him!" Beamed Lucian, oblivious to the suspicious stare given to him by Borj.

Cal replied, unperturbed.

"Hey you. Hey Borj. Found anything?"

Borj then shuffled awkwardly and replied in the negative.

"Well, no worries, at least there's food for the next few days, go on and shower, we'll talk."

Cal, finished, indicating that the conversation was over.

Borj left and went straight to his room, a distant tent that was made of animal hide. Of course, it had red spots.

Cal watched him as he left, sighing softly. Only when the first batch of meat to be roasted was brought to her did she put his matter at the back of her mind, seemingly forgetting about it.

As Borj lay down on the rough skin that served as a bed, he cursed. That Cal, or as he preferred calling her, Calidi, had a very sharp intuition. She knew he had found something, and when he failed to mention it to the rest, she acutely noticed it.

Frankly, he was scared of her. This lady was very intuitive and strong, and even though she was just a little older than him, he felt as if she had lived for hundreds of years.

Of course, that would be realistically impossible. She was just under 23, so he knew there was no way she could have lived that long.

Calidi's intuition had been right. He had found the entrance to a mysterious temple, but he did not enter, as he was not confident in his strength.

He did not want to die that badly.

Seconds turned to minutes, and eventually, Calidi entered his tent.

Borj sat up, flustered, scrambling to look dignified.

Calidi looked at him with her deep eyes, eyes that were golden, seeming like they were forged by the gods.

"What did you find?" She did not beat around the bush.

"A temple. It was inverted, and I sensed great danger within. I didn't tell you because I don't want you guys to explore it. It's very dangerous.

"Please."

Borj met her gaze when he said this, before breaking his eyes away.

"There's no need to be so worried. If it's what I think it is, then you're right. It is dangerous. Do not go there.

"I'll tell the others." She acknowledged, turning to leave.

She then stopped and suddenly looked back at Borj. This made him tense up involuntarily.

"Next time, try not to keep this to yourself. Okay?"

"Alright. I'm really sorry." Borj said, head hung in shame and submission.

"No need." She tersely acknowledged, quickly leaving his tent.

After she left, Borj heaved a sigh of relief. The worst part was over. He was happy she didn't notice that he had gained some memories.

That he could remember just a little about his past.