Darkness.
That was all he could see. It made no difference if he opened or shut his eyes . The same scene met him ….. It was vast and endless, stumping his speech just by thinking of it.
He had no idea how long he had been there—minutes, hours, days, maybe even months.This space had no regard for time.
The voices that lived in his head had grown louder over time, almost as if people were actually speaking to him. Maybe he was hallucinating or perhaps others were inside this space – same as him . However, their presences remained unreachable—just voices without bodies. He could only hear them– they overlapped each other, spiralling into an endless nightmare .
They said things he didn't understand.
Sometimes they cursed at him, sometimes they cried out for help. But he had grown used to them strangely enough. They were just voices . They couldn't harm him.
"Am I in hell ?"
He asked the question again—for what felt like the hundredth time—expecting the same silence and of course, overlapping voices threatening to rip his ears to shreds.
But this time, something shifted.
The space around him trembled. The voices disappeared in an instant. It felt like a huge relief. Somehow related to a heavy load leaving his chest.
A load he never knew he had .
It seemed like something had finally occurred within .
Slivers of light pierced the black void, forcing a groan from his lips. After so long in the dark, the light felt foreign—harsh, even painful. The void had become familiar, strangely comforting in its stillness.
The brightness intensified, overwhelming his senses until, for a moment, he was completely blinded. He couldn't even make sense if he was still existing or preharps the light from before had eliminated him . Leaving his consciousness drifting .
When he opened his eyes , shock took hold.
The suffocating darkness was gone.
In its place stretched an endless blue sky, clear and cloudless.Streaks of white light almost invisible to the eyes ran past it towards a sun that sat high above, its golden rays warming his skin while collecting the lights and reflecting it back – illuminating the world around him .
It was a cycle – the streaks of white light and the oval shaped sun that is . Truly breathtaking .
He allowed his gaze to rest solemnly on it . A warm fuzzy feeling settling in his stomach .
He inhaled deeply.
The crisp scent of trees and earth flooded his senses—a stark contrast to the nothingness and madness he'd known before.
With a grunt, he pushed himself into a sitting position, barely missing a strange bug that flew shyly across his face.His hands caressing the green colored blades of grass underneath him. The touch felt real enough .
A vast forest stood before him. Green and brown . Towering trees loomed overhead, so large they made him feel small—insignificant. Small Shadows cast over him briefly , most likely the birds in the sky .
They were creatures up ahead , swinging on the trunks of gigantic trees, He didn't know what they were and yet he could vaguely call out their names if he focused hard enough .
The bushes and grasses around , swarmed with all kinds of little creatures– from strange looking butterflies to bees and caterpillars .
"Mars."
The word echoed in his mind like a whisper. Oddly familiar.
"Mars?" he repeated aloud, testing the name on his tongue.
"Is that... my name?" The thought lingered, unanswered.
He couldn't remember anything .He had lost his memories , that part was obvious . However there should have been a reason why he lost them in the first place . Punishments ? , Favor ? . But no doubt the dark space was responsible for it .
Suddenly a voice called from above.
"You're a strange one."
Mars' head snapped up. He squinted, trying to make out the figure perched above the trees, but the sunlight made it hard to see clearly. The silhouette blurred at the edges—human, perhaps. Or not.
Before he could react, the figure leapt down and landed gracefully in front of him.
She was, without question, the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on—though he couldn't actually recall seeing anyone before. Long golden hair flowed down to her waist, unnaturally perfect and untouched by the wind. Her sharp blue eyes seemed like they could pierce the world itself . She must have disguised herself amongst the swinging monkeys from earlier as a disguise to watch him closely . Smart .
Without thinking, Mars blurted out, "Wow."
His face flushed. Embarrassed, he turned away.
"Who are you?" she asked coolly.
Her face was unreadable, emotionless despite her striking beauty.
Mars let out a quiet sigh, then forced himself to meet her gaze.
"I don't know," he said evenly, a wistful expression scattered across his face .
Aside from his name , he didn't really know . At least he knew how to speak . That counted for something .
Furthermore they both spoke the same language, so communication should be fairly easy .
She didn't seem too surprised about his reply . Instead, she simply shook her head.
Her outfit was unlike anything Mars had ever seen—if his memory could be trusted. She wore a white leather cloth covering her entire body , form-fitting and sleek, accentuating her figure. It looked functional, not decorative, but still elegant in its simplicity.
"You're most likely an otherworlder" she said, folding her hands. "Then again... you could be a spy from Nuran."
She mumbled the last part under her breath, but Mars caught it.
His brow furrowed. Nuran? That sounded more like a street name than anything official. He wished he had more than fragments of his past to work with. Still, he remembered some basic things—Earth, cities, vague concepts. That had to count for something.
"What's an... otherworlder?" Mars asked, not even bothering to hide the confusion on his face.
The woman stared at him for a long moment before answering.
"Otherworlder is the term we use for people who aren't from this world."
Mars felt dumb. The word really did explain itself.
Why didn't I figure that out?.
With a long, tired sigh, the woman turned and began walking away, brushing past him like he wasn't even there.
Mars hesitated.
Should he call after her? Ask for help? She seemed nice enough to offer him those things .
He wasn't sure.
But standing there alone, under an unfamiliar sun in a world that didn't feel like his own, he knew one thing for certain.
He couldn't stay here forever. If he wanted to act , it had to be now .
Springing to his feet, Mars quickly followed after the woman.
There was always the chance she might stop him—maybe even attack him—but at this point, he was just being paranoid . He refused to believe a woman of her nature would engage in such brutality . She seemed too pure and beautiful for that . Plus when she was up ahead she had all the chances in the world to attack , but decided against it . Maybe she was truly nice or just like him — wary .
He was stranded in an unfamiliar world, and the useful parts of his memory were missing. Perhaps that was part of the process for so-called "otherworlders"—to arrive with their minds blank.
Others.
The thought struck him suddenly. He hadn't even considered the possibility that there might be others like him. Were they lost too? Were they dangerous? How did the people of this world see them—threats, allies, or perhaps even saviors?
Did their own formal world abandon them ?
Was I always this paranoid?
Mars thought to himself .
It was hard to tell. Memory loss had stripped away more than just facts—it had taken his sense of self. He didn't even know the kind of person he used to be.
With a long sigh, Mars tried to calm his racing thoughts.
"If they really saw us as threats," he muttered to himself, "There would have been a change in her approach towards me ."
But again , the beautiful woman seemed almost carefree. She was either extremely capable... or incredibly foolish.
Mars leaned toward the former. He couldn't quite explain it, but there was something about her—an aura of confidence so absolute, it left no room for doubt.
The animals and creatures they had come across so far seemed to agree with his reasoning , each one of them watched both duos with caution .Especially the beautiful lady .
Their heads turned at every move she made. That answered his previous question , she had and could most likely engage in any kind of brutal action .
They walked in silence, and although it only lasted a few minutes, to Mars, it felt like an eternity.
On their way there Mars had encountered strange creatures . Most of them were tied down to their respective habitats , posing no danger to them . However, Mars was curious; they seemed like creatures he had never seen before .
Well he was sure he had seen a few like them , but his memories weren't reliable anymore .
He did however remember some of their names . Bunnies , toads , birds , deers ... they went on .
Finally, they arrived at an odd sight—a wooden cabin standing alone in the middle of the forest.Covered completely by the towering trees around it . It was somewhat weird to see a change to the terrain around them . The towering trees made every turn they took seem the same . He wondered how the beautiful lady knew her way around . A question tha would have to wait .
He frowned. The cabin's presence felt out of place, like it had been plucked from a home and dropped here without purpose or reason.
Aside from its strange location, it looked mostly ordinary.
Well… except for the window.
Its single pane of glass was shrouded in darkness, reflecting nothing—not Mars, not the woman standing beside him.
He stared at the black glass, unnerved.
"This cabin belongs to Zain," the woman said at last, her voice calm. "Often referred to as the Master of Secrets."
Mars raised an eyebrow. "Master of Secrets, huh? Now that's the kind of nickname I'd love to have."
She ignored his comment, and continued with her explanation.
"You see Zain was a man of many secrets , and secrets equals information . Which is why I must decipher the codes binding this cabinet and unravel the secrets laid within it" .
She sank into a seated position on the grass across from the cabinet and closed her eyes.
Mars watched her for a moment, still puzzled.
She was strange. Not just because she didn't mind him following her, but because she didn't seem to view him as a threat at all.
That was the strangest part.
Sure, he had no memories—no clue who he was or what he was capable of. Maybe she could somehow sense that. But still... wasn't it dangerous to take that chance?
Then again, he wasn't even sure if he had ever fought before, let alone been strong. Maybe he wasn't a threat. Maybe he was just a blank slate. However from what he noticed his body felt extremely light – which meant he was somewhat a speedster.
And if that was the case... What purpose did he serve in this world?
Too many questions. Too few answers.
"You're probably wondering what exactly I want from you, Otherworlder," the woman said, eyes still closed.
Mars took a second before replying.
"If it's not too complicated or exhausting, sure. I can help"
She lingered for a minute or two , happily taking her time .
Then opened one eye.
"I need you to find the key to this cabin."