Memory Disorientation

Drowning in water while breathing can be traumatic for most people.

But for him, he was so used to drowning that he forgot how to breathe sometimes.

Vastarael sank underwater, the sensation of cold liquid pressing against his skin. His chest rose and fell with steady breaths, but the air—if it could be called air—felt thick and sluggish. Each inhale was heavier than the last, like he was breathing in something denser than mere air.

His limbs felt sluggish, thick, unresponsive, weighed down as if the water itself was wrapping around him, making movement difficult. He reached out, but his arm barely moved. The water resisted him, pressing against him like a wall.

There was no panic, no choking, just an overwhelming sensation of being submerged, being... surrounded. The liquid pressed in around him and for a moment, it felt like there was nothing but water, an endless stretch of it.

It didn't feel like he was drowning. It felt like something inside of him was dissolving into the water itself, as if his body was becoming one with it.

He gasped, but the sensation wasn't a gasp for air. It was as if his lungs were filled with this heavy, suffocating liquid. He exhaled, but it didn't feel like release. Instead, it was just more water, swirling around, pressing deeper.

His thoughts began to cloud, sluggish like his movements. He couldn't remember if he had been still for minutes or hours, but it didn't matter. There was no escape. The water was everywhere. It was inside him, surrounding him, pulling at him.

With each breath, he felt a little more distant from himself, like something was slowly being pulled away. The water wasn't choking him, but it was erasing him, piece by piece.

And then, he finally felt free.

He didn't feel like he was underwater anymore. However...

"He's alive! Thank the gods!"

"Quick, let's take him to camp! It's freezing out here!"

"He is handsome... is he a fallen god?"

"Wow... you are right. He must be a god. I have not met anyone with white hair before. He must be an Immortal."

"Like the snow. But his skin is... not pale like ours. Is he an outsider?"

"Doesn't matter. Let's take him back to the camp. He'll get better over there."

He heard three voices. One was male, almost like a mature adult. The other two were feminine, younger, almost like teenagers.

He couldn't move. He couldn't speak. He was paralysed. At least he could breathe...

But why is the air so cold?!

The last thing he heard was the repeated splashing of water before he lost consciousness.

°°°°°°°

After losing consciousness, Vastarael's world fell into a blur of disjointed fragments. The voices faded, leaving only the lingering sensation of cold air on his skin, the numbness creeping over him, and the sensation of warmth slowly invading his limbs.

When he awoke again, it was a slow, gradual return to his body. His senses were dulled, his muscles stiff and unresponsive, like a puppet left untouched for too long. The cold that had once plagued him now felt more like a distant memory, replaced by a faint warmth from a nearby fire.

He lay still for a moment, trying to gather his bearings. The first thing he felt was the sharp contrast between the cold air against his skin and the warmth surrounding his body. His limbs refused to cooperate as he tried to sit up. He could hear the crackling of a fire nearby, and the faint murmur of voices.

They were the same voices that had called out to him earlier.

A slight pressure on his chest stirred him further and his body finally responded, albeit sluggishly. His senses slowly sharpened. He could feel rough fabric beneath him, the smell of smoke and wood in the air.

A soft voice spoke from beside him.

"He's awake. About time."

Vastarael's eyes flickered open, though everything was blurred at first. He blinked rapidly, clearing the fog from his mind. The figures above him were still shadows, but gradually, their features began to sharpen.

A young woman, her face filled with concern, was kneeling beside him, her eyes wide as she took in his condition. She looked almost as if she were expecting him to vanish or collapse back into unconsciousness at any moment.

Another voice, a little younger and more exuberant, piped up.

"He has bronze skin… almost like armor itself."

He tried to speak, but his mouth felt dry, his voice nothing more than a faint rasp.

"Where… am I?"

The older, male voice answered.

"You're safe. You were pulled from the water. You nearly drowned out there. We brought you to camp. You've been unconscious for… quite a while."

Vastarael tried to process the words. He could remember the feeling of drowning, the cold water, the suffocating pressure, but it was a fading memory now. What he felt now was… different.

The isolation was gone, replaced by an odd peace. Yet, there was something unsettling about it. He couldn't remember how he'd gotten here. His mind was hazy and fragmented.

"How long have I been out?"

The older male spoke again, his voice carrying a hint of wonder.

"Three days. But you're lucky we found you when we did."

Vastarael frowned, his mind racing as the pieces clicked together. The water, the drowning, the strange sensation of being erased... It hadn't felt like an accident. The whole experience had been unnatural. As if he had been pulled from one place and thrown into another. His gaze flickered to the young woman beside him.

"Who… are you?"

"Rienne," she said softly, her expression filled with a curiosity and wariness. "We were out fishing and, we found you washed up near the shore. You didn't have any identification, no clues to where you came from. Are you—?"

Her words trailed off, the question hanging in the air, too delicate to be spoken outright. Are you a god? An Immortal? Some foreign being that had appeared out of nowhere?

Vastarael's thoughts scattered. He wasn't sure who or what he was anymore. The memory of the Eclipse, the Epoch Cycle, all of it felt so distant, like a dream fading with the first rays of sunlight. What had happened to him? Why had he ended up here?

'Calm down, Veneri. What do you remember? Epoch Cycle... Minafallen... Orchestral Vialex...'

His eyes widened.

"I'm Vastarael..."

His voice echoed through the tent, as if he was saying it to himself.

"Rienne, he's awake," the other young voice called, and Vastarael turned his head to see a second girl approach, her features sharper than the first.

This one, with fire in her eyes and a quick smile, looked at him with something akin to awe.

"You really are different. You don't look like anyone we've seen before."

"Yes, he's not from around here," Rienne added, her tone quieter. "But maybe he's here for a reason."

Vastarael's mind flashed with an unbidden thought. He wasn't supposed to be here. He didn't belong here. The feeling of being out of place gnawed at him and despite the warmth, despite the safety, something deep inside him churned with the sensation of being… lost.

"Where am I really?" He asked again, this time with more urgency, his voice steadying despite the heaviness in his chest.

The older male finally answered.

"You're on the Erna Isles. We live here, near the water, away from the threats. It's a place for those who've lost everything, or… who are searching for something."

"Erna Isles?" Vastarael repeated, though the name meant nothing to him. A place, yes, but a place he couldn't recall ever hearing of before. His confusion deepened. His thoughts swirled like the water he'd nearly drowned in.

He did see the name before he was glitched into water...

He tried to sit up again, pushing himself against the ground. His muscles ached, stiff from the cold, but something told him he had to move. He had to find answers. But as his hand pressed against the ground, he froze.

The ground beneath him shifted, giving way in an unnatural way, as though the earth itself was shifting. He blinked, his mind grasping at the fragments. Had it been an illusion?

Had the water distorted his perception, or was something else happening?

"Don't push yourself too hard," Rienne cautioned, her hand on his shoulder, gently urging him back down. "You've been through a lot. You'll recover soon. Just rest."

But Vastarael couldn't shake the sensation. The water. The suffocation. The endless sinking. It had all felt too familiar, like something he couldn't escape from, something that had been a part of him for far too long.

Even though he couldn't gather his thoughts straight, he understood one thing.

He was undergoing Memory Disorientation. The feeling where you are half asleep half awake, aware of your surroundings but not at the same time. It was a strange feeling.

Also, he was already on the First Epoch Cycle. But he only had one solution for it.

"I'll rest for a bit..."

________

And we are back!

Seriously, it's been a long month. Sorry that the chapter isn't appealing so don't worry about it at all. Anyways, I'm going to post one chapter for now and two tomorrow. Alright?

Have fun!