Exodus

As with all great tales of legends and myth, it is known that for it to excite and inspire, one's hero must start from nothing. A canvas for the reader to paint themselves onto. A dark horse to root for.

Because to achieve something, one must gain something, and to gain something, one must first lack.

And Vann knew more than most about lacking.

His family, a drunkard father and a mother with a poisonous tongue, were his first indication that the world wasn't fair. Those around him gifted with little more than a normal family, may as well have been born in an elevator to stability that sat so far out of his reach.

It would be easy to think, and maybe even understandable from the outside, that Vann could easily fall into a life of despair and crime, and perhaps it was expected. After all, are we not more than the sum of our circumstances?

"But," the young man once said to his class amidst a speech. "While birth determines where you start, your actions determine where you end up. I know that my today was formed by the stones I placed yesterday, and my future will be laid out by the stones I place today."

And so, from a young age, Vann continued forwards, determined to grasp more than his given lot.

He attended a public school, made friends, fell in love, had his heart broken, and - to the observer - did well for himself on all accounts. But his path was tiresome. Every step he took was like that of hiking on a cliff's edge. One mistake, one failure, would be all that was needed for Vann to plummet, crashing against rock bottom.

So to keep his feet planted firmly on that cliff's edge, and his gaze trained ever toward the horizon, he moved forward driven only by hope.

And with a fire lit in his amber eyes, Vann saw his future clearly.

That was until the storm arrived.

.

.

.

Vann's head pounded and his stomach churned. He lay on a gritty stone and pebbled ground while a midday sun beat down overhead.

His vision, blurred from shock, began to refocus as the sounds of nature rang in his ears. After a moment of calming his sharp and shallow breaths, he began to take in his surroundings.

Wide fields of wheat stretched out before him, while people in the distance toiled away chipping at the ground without respite. Even further away, behind a pinewood forest, a huge stone wall stretched along the horizon. With his breath steadied he watched the stalks flow with the light breeze, like a sea of golden waves.

Where… am I? He thought.

Then, the pungent odour of animal droppings overwhelmed his city senses, and a bout of nausea hit him.

Shit… How did I get here?

A sharp pain took away his breath and cut through his thoughts. Head pounding, teeth clenched, beads of sweat dripped down his brow.

Memories of the storm resurfaced, returning like a scalpel being run across his mind.

A flash of green, the sensation of being tossed into a sea of darkness, blind, cold, unable to breathe.

Vann felt panic set in as his eyes darted around. This wasn't a place he knew. The bile in his stomach rumbled and he could feel the first taste of vomit rise up into his mouth.

"Hey, hey," a voice came from nearby. Vann jumped to standing and turned towards the voice. A pale young man leaned out from behind the corner of the house, his shoulder-length blonde hair waving gently in the wind. "Take it easy, man! Don't worry, don't worry, you're safe. First, take a nice deep breath, okay? You must have a lot of questions, I'm sure, but take a breath first."

Vann's gaze remained fixed and unblinking on the face of the newcomer. His body was tense and on alert.

"Where… where the hell am I?" Van stammered out. "Who are you? Did you kidnap me?"

"No, no, no, no, no!" The young man jumped out into the open, arms wide and with a smile curved into a bright grin. "Well, not me at least. No, no, you'll see. I'll explain everything soon, but first, we need to get you to the embassy."

"Embassy?" Vaan said. "What embassy? Where… where am I? And who are you?"

"The embassy," the young man said. "Is where all summoned need to go to get their citizenship."

With a skip, the young man made his way toward Vann and wrapped his arm around Vann's shoulders. "Look," he continued. "This'll all make sense soon. Well, some sense. Not complete sense. Actually, scratch that - don't want to get your hopes up. At the least, this'll all be less confusing soon. So, first off, we need to get you to the embassy and we'll talk more after that."

Vann tried to shake the young man off, but despite his small frame, the arm refused to budge.

He's strong, Vann thought.

"I… I want to know where the hell I am," Vann said. "I need to get back. I have work tomorrow and I can't afford to skip it. No, no, no. Definitely can't afford to skip it. If I don't get the scholarship, then…"

"Shh, shh," the young man pressed his finger against Vann's lips. "Don't worry. It'll all be okay, all right? You're doing well, believe me." He glanced around and in a whisper, he said: "Between you and me? I heard that some people actually shit and pissed themselves when they woke up. By all accounts, you're a real gem."

Then, he slapped Vann's back and laughed. The hit took all the wind from Vann's lungs. "Come on," he said reaching out his hand. "I'm Alexander. Alex, to my acquaintances. O' captain, my captain, to friends."

"Vann," he said, coughing. "Vann Lee. Uh, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Vann the man!" Alex beamed. "Love the energy. Nice to meetcha, too. Hey, let's get going, shall we? I'll explain a little more on the way."

Alex guided Vann to the edge of the building and spun to meet him face-to-face. "Oh, I forgot to say: welcome to Adler City! And welcome to Haven!"