Prologue

//Relatively new author. My work is decent at best but it'll get better as it goes. 4 chaps a day, 2 here 2 on Pąťreøn. 2k or more words per chapter.

The plot will obviously be explained as it goes. Main love interest is Tiona, though it'll likely be a slow burn given the personality of the two, and I don't like to rush things.

Join the discord and Pątřeøn and I'll never drop the story, of which will most likely last only 600- 1000 chapters. It should be finished within a year. The goal is $400 a month before the end of June, so I'll be working like crazy on those chapters.

Help a man pay his rent.

Pa treon:

Pãtřęøn.com/ShadowDrev

Discord:

https://discord.gg/uQUcWbm

_____________________________

Tap! Tap!

"Hello? Is anyone in there?"

Tap! Tap! Tap!

"Don't tell me you up and died. That would be a buzzkill."

It was hard to say what woke the young man from his deep slumber, the rapid tapping of his cheek or the incessant chatter coming from seemingly multiple individuals. Whichever the case, Aamon eventually opened his eyes, neon purple hues greeting the world as he slowly regained some semblance of consciousness. One by one, his senses returned. The feeling of the hard dirt floor beneath him, the smell of trees and various vegetation, the sound of screeching and wailing from unknown sources, and the sight of two individuals he had never seen before, gazing at him with a mixture of both curiosity and immense concern.

"Oh, he's alive," one of the figures exclaimed in surprise, a young girl of around 15 or 16. "That's a relief."

"Lucky we came around when we did," the other woman beside her said, crossing her arms over her bossom. "You were nearly torn apart. How'd you even get down here? Where's your party?"

Aamon didn't answer right away, mainly in part of the fact he had no idea what the woman was droning on about. Well, it was easier to say that he had no idea about anything, including as to where he was or how he had wound up in that given environment. His mind felt muggy and clouded, as if someone had smushed and suppressed all smidges of memories and logic from its recesses. His body moved as it was meant to, Aamon being able to freely sit up and move his appendages appropriately, but his thought processes were hindered, limited to thinking and analyzing. Anytime he tried to recall things about himself, about who he was or where he came from, he was introduced to a metaphorical wall that would slap him backward like a mere fly.

For the time being, all Aamon could do was ride along with what he had. At the very least, he didn't feel any particular emotions about the predicament such as panic or anxiety, though he didn't really feel anything at all if he was being honest with himself, which was concerning in and of itself.

"Are you okay? Can you understand us?"

Aamon shifted his focus from his inner contemplations to the ones who had woken him up, purple hues sizing them up.

Standing in front of him was a slender female, a tad taller than he himself was, around 165cm or so. She had medium length black hair, dark green eyes, and a color of skin that the young man had never seen on someone before, a shade not quite brown but also not exactly tan. She wore nothing but a tight, white piece of fabric around her modest breasts, and for the bottom, she donned a light brown pareo with a darker brown piece of cloth extending down the middle. The last thing that Aamon noticed was that the young girl was also barefoot, just like he himself was. From first glance, she appeared to be around 15 or 16, maybe around the same age as him, though he had no way of knowing.

As for the second individual, she was the exact opposite both in age and aesthetic.

She was a woman with jade colored eyes and hair, her skin being rather fair without any significant marks or scarring, even going as far as to be flawless. She was about 170cm in height and extremely pleasing to look at. She wore a green outfit with yellow borders, a white cloak over it, a black belt, a yellow sash, black leggings, and long brown boots. Pointing out to the sides of her head were a long pair of pointy ears, like the kind one would see on an elf. She might have been around the age of 30 or mid 20s, though once again it was difficult to fully be sure since the woman looked simultaneously youthful and mature.

"I can....understand," Aamon replied, though intially very softly as he wasn't completely aware if his vocal cords worked. Thankfully, he was still able to process words and respond in kind. Otherwise, it would have made things difficult. "Not sure if I'm okay, though."

The jade haired female let out a sigh, clearly relieved that Aamon could speak freely. The thought of conversing with a mute had probably also crossed her mind similar to the young man's, at least that's what was presumed.

"Well, you're alive, so it's a start, I suppose." The older female turned around and began to walk away. "If you can walk, follow along. If not, Tiona will carry you."

"Tiona?" Aamon questioned, immediately glancing towards the younger individual, assuming that's whom she meant.

"That's me," the girl confirmed enthusiastically, leaning forward with a smile. "Tiona Hiryute, but you can call me Tiona."

"Okay," Aamon answered. "Aamon Belphegor is my name...I think."

"Belphy....gore?" She questioned, tilting her head slightly, finger on her lower lip.

Aamon didn't answer, just staring at her instead with a blank expression. At the very least, he was able to understand that she was confused but he didn't feel inclined to correct her nor restate his own name.

If she got it wrong, she got it wrong.

"Well, it's fine. Let's go." Tiona gestured for Aamon to follow her as she spun on her heels. "You can walk right, Belph?"

"Yeah, I can walk." Aamon took a few test steps before quickly falling in line behind the energetic stranger. "Where're we going?"

"Back to the surface," Tiona said matter of factly, as if it was obvious. "Though we might stop by Rivira first to rest before heading the rest of the way up."

Aamon only heard half of what the tanned girl was saying to him, the name Rivira and the topic of resting up registering faintly within his consciousness. In truth, he was far more focused on his surroundings than anything the girl was telling him, especially since he still had no idea as to where he was.

Deep in the pit of his gut, a feeling was stirring, one that he hadn't felt when he had initially awoken, one that he somehow knew without being told or having proper memory.

A sense of danger.

His palm was itchy, his blood was pumping, his senses were heightened to the point where he could hear the heartbeats of the two ahead of him. The stronger the feeling of danger became, the more he could feel around him, the vibrations from something shifting in the distance, the foul smells emanating from beings just out of sight, the unwanted howls and screams piercing the air.

Aamon was surrounded by trees on all sides, meaning there were plenty of spaces to hide. Though Tiona had said something about heading to the surface, they looked to be in a forest of some kind, an enormous region that should have only been possible where sunlight was present. The trees looked rather odd, their vines extending and curling in odd formations and the shrubbery around them looking more trampled than upright, but they were definitely trees nonetheless. Aamon wasn't sure where he was as of yet but he already knew from the jump that it was bad news, his hand jumping to his back as if on instinct.

Surprisingly, instead of connecting with nothing but air, the youths hand actually wrapped around something. A large pole seemed to be situated on his back, hovering in the air as if it was magnetized.

Forgetting about his predicament for a few moments, Aamon pulled the staff from its place and carefully observed it.

All black with intricate designs and a metallic end to it. It felt perfectly balanced and twisted nicely.

Spinning it in his hands, Aamon flicked the end downwards, moving entirely on preprogrammed movements, things his body had most likely learned that he no longer remembered. As soon as the end of the staff hit the bottom of its flick, a sharp midnight colored blade phased into being, a color so dark it was as if it was absorbing the very light itself.

"Wow." Aamon said, surveying the weapon carefully. "That's interesting."

"What is?" Tiona asked, drawing the youths attention. Somehow, even with the young man's senses picking up everything near him due to the potential danger, he hadn't been able to detect her approach.

There she was, leaning over the naginata as Aamon inspected it, curiosity written all over her face. Though she knew nothing about him, the tanned girl clearly didn't have an aversion to personal space since she had no problem invading his.

"Ooh, thats a cool looking weapon you got there." Tiona took a close look at the blade, tapping it's surface with an inquisitive look. "A naginata."

GRRRROOOAAAAHHH!!!

A series of unearthly cries echoed around them, causing Aamon to immediately go on high alert, taking a fighting stance. The trees in the distance began to shake as an unknown force headed their way. Whatever entity the young man had sensed before was now making its presence known.