Sage sat up. He was on a bed in a small, barren room. He checked his wrist; Ayrelle's signature remained. To his disappointment, he had not been dreaming. He grabbed his bow off the ground and hopped of the bed.
"Anyone there?" he asked. "This is the regeneration center, right?"
He opened the door, revealing a forest illuminated by moonlight. Lavenders covered the ground, scenting the air with their rich aroma. Sage stepped outside and turned around. It was a simple wooden cabin, not a sleek regeneration center.
After heaving a sigh, he drifted through the forest. He admired the lavenders at his feet. Stepping on them felt wrong, so he stopped. He climbed the nearest tree, reclined on a branch, and procured a sketchbook along with a pen from his pocket.
"Here I am, supposedly Ayrelle's appointed hero, dallying on some branch." He opened his sketchbook. "If you can hear me, goddess, know I have nothing better to do. What am I supposed to save the world from, anyway?"
He sketched the trees and lavenders with the precision of an archer. When his picture was done, he pocketed his sketchbook and closed his eyes. He imagined himself at the edge of the floating island, under the clouds, gazing at the spectacular view of the earth. A smile blossomed on his face. Sketching that sight would be exhilarating.
"Attack! Eliminate those Carnatians!"
Sage startled and opened his eyes. A swarm of people dashed through the faraway trees. They were wielding axes and swords. Flames blazed around their bodies, setting the forest alight. They eventually left his vision. Clashing metal, shouts, and the shrills of barriers receiving lethal damage filled the forest.
Sage jumped to the ground. He scurried towards the commotion and hid behind a tree. In a meadow ahead, a mob of nobly dressed people hacked each other with their weapons. Many were already disintegrating on the ground.
Birthright auras indicated the opposing sides. Flames surrounded most of them, as Sage had seen. Leaves and petals levitated around the others; like Sage, they possessed the birthright of nature manipulation. Their ranks dwindled as the fire people eliminated them. They conjured overgrowth to hinder their enemies, but flurries of fireballs incinerated it.
"Return our queen, cursed Magmelians!" A handsome guy, the apparent leader of those with nature birthrights, waved a rapier in the air. "We will eliminate you all!"
"Half of your forces are gone. You've lost, pretty boy." A burly man bellowed with laughter before hurling fireballs at him. The leader leapt to ground; the fireballs narrowly missed his body.
"We'll come back, and we'll win!" He rose and pointed his rapier at the burly man. "Just wait."
"You've made this speech dozens of time, my friend. Or have you so cluelessly forgotten?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
The burly man huffed. "Ignorant. Keep on coming—we will keep on melting!"
He stomped. The earth underneath the Carnatians broke and sputtered magma. Before they could leap away, geysers of lava instantly vaporized them. Blazes sped through the meadow's grass, reducing it to black crisps. The man turned his back on the destruction. No Carnatians emerged from the fiery frenzy.
"We return to Magmelia," the man said to his company. "Go."
They marched towards the trees, leaving the wasted meadow to sizzle. Irritated at their careless destruction, Sage turned one of the arrows turquoise like tropical water. He yanked it to full draw, aimed it at the man's head, and deadened his gaze. The man was a distant, moving target. A difficult shot. Sage took a deep breath, waiting for the scene to fall into place.
His heart bounded; he fired. His arrow nicked leaves, branches, and marching Magmelians before planting itself into the man's head. He fell on his stomach and disintegrated. The arrow sprayed water in all directions, extinguishing the flaming auras of nearby Magmelians.
"Archer! Take cover!" among their ranks, a teenage boy called. "They eliminated my dad—I mean, Chief Vesuvius!"
Sage smirked. He fired a blue arrow into the midst of Magmelians. As the default arrow, it pierced through a few of the Magmelians' heads with above average speed, eliminating them. The rest scattered and fled deep into the forest, shouting and covering their vital points.
Sage nocked another arrow, but someone shoved his back. He landed on his stomach and turned around. Standing over him, the teenaged boy readied a flaming sword.
"Die, archer!" The boy thrust his sword at Sage's heart. A vine wrapped around the weapon, stopping the thrust, and yanked it out of the boy's grip. The blade of a rapier erupted from his chest. Then it jerked out.
The boy disintegrated before he could hit the ground, revealing the Carnatian leader behind him. Up close, Sage could clearly see his verdant cape and regal uniform. His eyes shone with an encouraging light, but the dark circles underneath cast their own bleak flavor. A carnation rested in his lime hair (a natural color, though exceptionally rare), which had swept bangs that could completely hide his eyes.
Despite the other soft qualities of his appearance, he didn't have a build to laugh at—he was taller than most men, with impressively broad shoulders and chest. His uniform bulged at the biceps. If he didn't have such a delicate face, Sage would find him evolutionarily frightening. He didn't seem any older than 20.
"You're lucky I didn't mess up." The leader extended a hand. "The Magmelians are retreating. They must think Carnatian reinforcements arrived. What's your name, archer?"
"Sage." He got up with his help. "How did that boy get behind me?"
"Teleportation."
"A teleporting swordsman. Scary." He exhaled. "Who are you?"
The leader raised a finger. "Give me a second. I need to remember."
"You have to remember your name?"
"My mind scatters, especially after combat. It's a condition." He rubbed his temples. "Fynn."
Sage narrowed his eyes. "Fynn, what?"
"My name is Fynn, I mean." He sighed. "Fynn Aria. I'm a royal guardian of Queen Selena, the ruler of Carnatia."
"Well Fynn, I'm surprised you escaped the hellfire."
"I ran as soon as the earth broke." Fynn chuckled. "Escape is my only forte. My peers can confirm that."
"Can you tell me the location of the nearest city? If I reach civilization, perhaps I can discover a way home."
"Where are you from?" Fynn pointed at Sage's t-shirt. "You wear simple clothes, so you're not from Othia."
"I'm from Old Promise of the Promise region."
"What brings you to Othia?"
"Goddess Ayrelle sent me." He showed Ayrelle's signature. "Apparently, I'm the appointed hero destined to save the world."
"Are you jesting?"
"I wish. Really, I could care less about Ayrelle's appointment of me. I just want to get home."
"I'm not sure it's a good idea to help Ayrelle's hero desert such a grand cause." Fynn rubbed his chin. "But the Promise region is a few regions north of Othia. The teleportation centers in Othia City could send you there."
"Where's Othia City?"
Fynn gestured behind him. "A day's travel to the east."
"Goodbye, then." Sage strolled in that direction.
"You're leaving?" Fynn hurried in front of him, palms raised. "At least tell me why you attacked the Magmelians. Do you hold bad blood with them?"
"I didn't know they existed until a few minutes ago, but seeing them burn the forest down left a bad taste in my mouth."
"Is it because you find the forest beautiful? Did you feel a call to protect its delicate elegance from the fiery brutality of the Magmelians?"
"On a much less dramatic level, yes."
Fynn nodded. "Our birthright of nature unites us in that resolve. You should come with me to Carnatia, my home domain. It's a beautiful place. You would appreciate it."
He crossed his arms. "I'd rather not find myself entangled in any conflicts, now that I know where a city is."
"We will give you no obligation to fight for us. Besides, aren't you the appointed hero? Shouldn't you desire to resolve this conflict?"
"I'm the appointed hero, but that doesn't mean I'm heroic."
"Would Ayrelle agree?"
He paused. "Probably not. Does it matter?"
"I'm sure Ayrelle monitors the actions of her appointed hero. If you shirk your duty to be heroic, she'll punish you in horrible ways. Everyone knows she detests disobedience."
He groaned. "Take me to Carnatia. I'd rather not have Ayrelle eliminate my consciousness."
"Follow me." Fynn scurried through the trees. Shaking his head, Sage followed him. He was exasperated. He still didn't know what Ayrelle wanted him to do. He couldn't stop thinking about his cozy mansion, either. Closing his eyes, he hoped Carnatia would provide him a purpose in his forced journey.