This is chapter 1 of what will hopefully be a mini-novella. I focus on character development so if you are reading for a quick fix, this is not the chapter for you. Subsequent chapters with the steamy stuff will be labeled as Explicit in the title so you can just skip to it if you are inclined.
Additionally, this world is based off of a combination of settings from the various Dungeons and Dragons worlds. I'm not trying to claim anything as my own as far as that goes, so please take it as fan fiction and nothing more. If you are familiar with those settings, a lot of things will make sense here, but I've provided enough information for you to figure it out even if you aren't.
Thanks and enjoy!
~Ana~
*****
Hell. It was the only word really to describe what occurred. Unbriled, unexpected hell. Throughout the Universe, on every planet boasting sentient life forms, the attack occurred simultaneously and without warning. Portals opened and great demons of unimaginable strength and power flooded through, destroying everything in their path. There were some, of course, who fought. There were those who made great sacrifices and others who exacted amazing feats of heroism in order to stop the invaders, but in the end, no one survived.
This was why those who awoke on the strange world were initially so disoriented. Of course they had believed they had died, and this was in fact the truth. In the final breath of each person who awoke in the circle in the glade, the realization of their fate had become all too real. Death had been upon them and soon they would each be with their maker.
Confused and disoriented eyes blinked as rivulets of pure sunlight spackled across their faces. There were 18 people in total and they were all resting on the soft grass, their bodies arranged such that they formed a circle around a central blue orb which hovered passively before their feet. Among the 18 were nine men and nine women, all of whom appeared from different portions of their world.
Certainly few recognized the styles of the garments of the others. The unfamiliarity of their mutual companions only served to further the confusion. As they awoke, some responded by dashing instantly to their feet, quickly eyeing their surroundings as if prepared for a demon to jump out at any moment.
Others were more cautious in their movements. Nearly all of them wore the under garments to plate or other armor and while their garments were clean, it was what they had been wearing when they had died. Those who were cautious seemed to make this discovery first, noting that their armor and weapons had been removed, leaving them with only their persons for company.
Though the circle had no direction of preference, there was among them a young woman clad in a strange but lovely dress. She couldn't have been more than her late twenties in age and unlike many of the others, the woman continued to lay in her spot. Her eyes gazed upward to the sky, as though she weren't certain it was real. Eventually, she raised a hand upward and then, upon catching sight of her hand, she began to search over her arm and hand, seemingly very interested, if not surprised, to see it.
Very slowly, the young woman sat up, still making a study of the integrity of her body. Her hands ran over her head and then pushed through long brown locks, again very surprised to have made the discovery.
If nothing else, while she registered that there were others around her, she seemed wildly uninterested in anyone else, presuming they didn't get too close, of course.
Unlike many of the others, who were dressed in various degrees of armor, the woman was wearing a rather elegant gown. The style of the gown certainly did not seem like anything traditional but then, there were a plethora of lands and cultures and who knew what nobles in other parts would wear.
"Are... Are we dead?" Asked a young man immediately to her right. He wore a simple grey tunic and seemed disappointed, as if he had expected more to cover it. The question was innocent and raw and the noblewoman to his left seemed to register that words had been spoken.
She almost gasped at the terror of the surprise, apparently only just now realizing that others were there. Her grey green eyes scanned the rest of the circle, taking in each of the new faces like a cornered cat assessing and opponent with wild eyes.
"I was about to ask the same myself," replied an elderly man to the young man's right. Unlike those who were more youthful, he seemed to have difficulty in propping himself up with such ease. "Is this place familiar to you... friend?" He inquired in a friendly tone, unsure of how to address the young man who spoke.
"R-Robin. Robin Tenderfoot," the younger man answered as if not totally sure of himself. Robin, like the noblewoman, couldn't have been older than 30. His hair was cut short, save for a small braided lock at the nape of his neck and his eyes were a mix of silver and green. "I am a cleric of the honorable Heironeous," he added, this time with more surity. "I have seen many places, but this is unfamiliar to me...?" The statement trailed into a question as Robin found himself hoping the man would similarly introduce himself.
"Albus Zediferous," the older man replied with the sort of smile only age could season. "I am familiar with Heironeous," he added, seeming to be more at ease by the introduction. "Delleb bids his followers to cooperate with your following. The pleasure is mine, good priest."
As the two hesitantly made their exchanges, others took note. A rather handsome man with defined features slowly pushed himself up. At first, he made to defend himself from an unseen foe, but when an attack never transpired, he simply took to staring in a bewildered haze around him. The transition between such violence and such peace was profound and had left many reeling from the emotions.
Though the man heard the exchange, his eyes shifted to the noblewoman to his right. If he had read her expression well enough, and he usually did, she was not at all familiar with Delleb or Heironeous, only furthering her personal confusion. That seemed intriguing to him, but it was not pronounced enough to capture his attention at the moment.
"My Lady, pardon my...forgive me bold demeanor; but could you tell me? Is this the Seven Heavens, home to Rao and the place of judgment for our souls in the afterlife?", he spoke roughly at first, his tone seeming to smooth as if he remembered a manner forgotten initially but recalled as if he was born to it.
The woman did not seem to pay much attention to the questions and the more she examined herself, the more emotionally distraught she became, though, not to the point of histrionics. The only evidence she lent to her internal turmoil was a mild glassiness to her eyes and the rapid rising and falling of her chest as she struggled to keep her calm. She had the look of someone who did not believe that what she was experiencing was real; It was a look that marked a contrast. Where ever she had been prior to waking in this paradise (by comparison), it was a stark enough difference to prompt the psychological response of denial.
It was only when the apparent nobleman spoke to her that her gaze finally fixed on something other than her own physical integrity. Her bright grey green eyes flickered up to the deep green of the nobleman, settling upon him a gaze so intense and filled with such a commanding presence, that most would be compelled to look away.
She said nothing, and yet, multitudes. The expression embodied the very confusion and hesitation felt by all the others. The woman opened her mouth as if to answer, unsure of herself and hesitant, and it was in that pause that others started to stir and speak as well Several of the women stood together, all seeming to take a curiousity in the orb at the center of the circle.
"What tha fook are ya talk'n 'bout?" Came a rather lyrical voice from a man dressed in attire that seemed foreign to most everyone there. "Thar ain't but one heaven. An' ain't ther suppose' ta be a pearly gate or some such? Saint Peter and all da angels?" The man's brow frowned from confusion as he responded to the rather handsome man on behalf of the noblewoman.
The young noblewoman turned to look at the man as he spoke, her eyes watching his mannerisms with a keen discernment, as though she were studying him like a specimen.
Before anyone could speak further, the blue orb erupted into a pure white light which shot up into the heavens. Those who had gathered near it gasped and recoiled with the unexpected surprise. The orb did not seem malicious. In fact, it had a feel to it that was actually rather comforting, though no one had stopped to consider this.
"Greetings, our beloved," a tranquil voice boomed from the light that now flooded the area. "Do not be afraid for a great gift has been bestowed upon you. The battle has ended but not all has been lost. Collected from among our faithful, it is you who represent the future, our beloved. You have been taken from a place of evil and death and brought here, to a world of perfection. Here you will receive the reward you have earned for your valiant efforts to save that which was tainted. Here you will give life to a world untouched by evil. Here you will find salvation."
"Live in peace, our beloved, and be fruitful so that blessed goodness can reign freely and without fear. Beyond this glade is a city which is built for you. All which you could require is provided and for each we have designed a home. Live in peace, our beloved, and make this place a world of goodness untouched by evil. Live in peace."
As quickly as the orb had released the warm, white light, it ceased, falling lifeless to the ground. Momentarily, the people were too stunned to speak, everyone staring in awe at the now motionless orb which had dropped carelessly to the grass.
Wide eyes slowly started to connect with one another as everyone began searching for answers among everyone else. The noblewoman's eyes rested on a man who wore a simple black robe with a white rectangle affixed on the throat of his collar. Understanding swept over her features and in an instant, she had darted to her feet, only to collapse at his. "F-father?" She inquired, much to the interest of the others there. They hadn't recognized anyone and to learn that there were family members present was intrigueing.
The man with the strange, fey-like accent had a similar expression and he walked over to the pair as well. "Fater," the man said reverently. "Are we... Is this heaven, fater?"
As the three apparent family members began speaking softly to one another, the handsome man turned his attention to Robin. His expression was painted with confusion and the tinges of hope. "You are a cleric of Heronious," he commented softly as means of a segway into an introduction. "I am Istvan, loyal servant of Rao. It pains me to ask... you seem as one who would have knowledge to share with others? Please, good sir. What do you make of this?"
"I don't know what to think," the man answered. "I am Robin," he added, extending his hand toward Istvan's in order to help him to his feet. Several people were already heading toward the aforementioned village and Robin made to walk that way, with Istvan following uncertainly.
Robin frowned slightly. "I believe our answers will be in the village, Istvan. It is not in the nature of Heironeous to be dishonest so I must believe that we all were placed here for the purpose that he expressed; salvation. The battle against the demons certainly was not boding well," he added with a sense of humiliation.
There was a brief pause. "I believe our first course of action, after our investigation of this village, will be to ensure that the women are safe. This could be a deception by the demons and I shall not dishonor my lord with further failure."
