Gharst-84

"Two days after reawakening, Vance prepared for his departure to a warp gate , a magical construct permitting instantaneous interstellar travel. after he'd already been confronted by his hosts if he wanted to leave with them.like he had a choice.

It was during this time that he also gained a deeper understanding of these people:Astre, the incessant chatterbox; Balgur, the stoic giant; and Cecilia, the sharp-tongued one.

Even now, a sardonic smile tugged at his lips as he recalled those initial interactions.As for his location?It was denoted Gharst-84, a resource planet currently under the dominion of Genivan a Interstellar Human Civilization among many other space faring civilizations both.A reality just as teeming with supernatural giants and eldritch horrors,as the absurd science fiction novels his late comrade from Earth used to rave about while they were on enemy grounds. This reality, so starkly different from his mundane existence back on Earth, the final moments of which he constantly replayed, served as a harsh reminder of the reality of his current state.

A melancholy smile crept over his face as he thought of his past. Exiting the flimsy tent, he eyed the "inhumans"—the term he'd begrudgingly adopted for the trio, after witnessing the extent of their abilities.

He still remembered vividly the first time he'd witnessed Astre, deceptively frail-looking, effortlessly manipulate a massive log with a flick of his wrist. It was after countless displays of such feats of strength, and magic, that he finally confronted them, his initial trepidation slowly yielding to a fascination.

After painstakingly examining their personalities, he decided to approach the most talkative of the group—Astre. Unlike the reserved Cecilia, who spent most of her waking hours in sword practice, and Balgur, who seemed permanently preoccupied with hunting, Astre was the most loquacious and, oddly, the most relatable.

He approached the waiting cohort, leaving behind the crude tent he'd surprisingly grown fond of, and the silent remains of the forgotten city. Memories of their previous conversation played in his mind, as sharp and clear as the evening it occurred as one of such conversations flashed across his mental sphere.

.....

Approaching Astre, who was occupied with meticulously sharpening his shortsword outside his makeshift shelter, Vance cautiously took a seat beside the blond figure. He then delicately initiated his information gathering, steering the conversation to a subject of his choosing.

"Where are Cecilia and Balgur? I don't see them."

Astre's face immediately soured upon hearing Vance's question, a clear sign of recent friction between them. Vance inwardly chuckled; the answer he anticipated was not surprising.

"Balgur? Probably off hunting something. That's all he ever does. And Cecilia? Honestly, who cares? Probably off somewhere brooding. She could be dead for all I know, and I wouldn't lose any sleep over it," Astre muttered, his tone laced with disdain when speaking of Cecilia.

But he continued his rant – something Vance was becoming accustomed to. "Vance, isn't it? Me and my companions have always been curious, though, the others not as much as me, but how do you recover so fast? You haven't even gone through any ascensions, have you?"

Vance took a moment to consider the question, allowing the silence to hang in the air for a beat before responding, he knew Astre wasn't as disintersted as he made out to be, and knew he was merely trying to probe.

"Ascension?" Vance mused aloud.

Astre furrowed his brow, looking up from his blade. "You're kidding, right? You don't know about ascension?" It wasn't exactly classified information.

"You really don't know?" Astre glanced at him, brows furrowed. "Figures. Must be weird, coming from a place where it's not so common." He exhaled sharply through his nose. "It's not something we study, Vance. It's just... something that happens. One second you're normal, and then—" He snapped his fingers. "Something inside you breaks, or shifts, and suddenly you're not."

Vance narrowed his eyes. "Breaks?".

"Yeah," Astre muttered, turning back to his blade. "A moment of clarity. Or a moment of madness. No one really knows what triggers it. Sometimes, it's fear. Sometimes, it's desperation. And sometimes—" He chuckled dryly. "Sometimes it's just dumb luck."

"Hah!" Vance let out a short, dry laugh.

"Let me let you in on a little secret about the captain." Astre lowered his voice, glancing around before continuing, "Actually, Balgur is, uh, different from me and Cecilia. Matter of fact, just sending him alone would have been enough to take out all the orcs. While me and Cecilia are still within the realm of the superhuman, Balgur... well, he's gone way beyond that."

From the strained breath that Astre took when discussing Balgur to the bright gleam that ignited in his eyes as he described Balgur's power,.

From the imperceptable twitch and slightly ragged breath as he talked about baldur Vance gained a slightly deeper understanding of Astre's nature. This chatterbox both admired and, possibly, desired such power.

"Is this Ascension common?" Vance inquired, his eyes fixed on Astre who, even at this point, was still meticulously polishing his blade.

"Very much so," Astre muttered, the words almost a dismissive afterthought. He turned slightly, eyeing the distant, ruined city. His body language gained a touch of violence mixed with regret. "It's not like we can just sit around and, you know, watch it happen."

"Anyways, if you're really interested in the process, you can ask Cecilia when she returns in a few hours. She's much more knowledgeable than I am about this stuff."astre muttered after quietly turning to more deeply polish his blade

Marking this as his cue to leave, Vance lingered for a moment, allowing the silence to stretch before he replied, "thanks" returning shortly after to allow some small talk where he could piece together some more parts of this puzzle that was now going to be his new reality.

"This place couldn't be any stranger," Vance murmured, a slight smile playing on his lips. However, his eyes gained a tint of pain, as he knew this place was not sunshine and rainbows. It was reminiscent of a place he both hated and loved, places where wars were fought. War was simple, lacking the complexity of human interactions and relationships that they bore.War was much better, more thrilling and simple.It was kill or be killed, nothing more, nothing less.

However, even as he tried to forcibly bury the memory that haunted him, the figure of a child, plagued his vision.As his various scenes flashed across his mind.His breath gained an uneven quality as his chest contracted and retracted rapidly, inviting a concerned inquiry from Astre outside.

"Vance?" Astre's voice cut through the night. "You good?"

"Yes," answering barely audible, Vance quickly shuffled into the tent before laying down and closing his eyes. He never wanted to experience such feelings again. Not here. Not ever. He would make sure of it! Amidst the glow of his pale brown eyes and messy black hair, he once more swore this oath, something extremely recurring, as he did it at least three times every week.

"Anker."

For now, he would rest. They were leaving tomorrow, after all.

....

"are you ready Vance?"curiously observing the teenager deep in thought balgur briskley decided to interrupt his thought process as he was ready to begin their journey towards a warp gate 9 miles south where they had initially arrived from.

"yes,i'm ready" Vance muttered as he started approaching the three patiently waiting a few steps ahead.

"Good,You should also take this time to say goodbye to your home planet forever,unless of course you decide to return in the future" Balgur muttered after nodding."now lets depart"

"towards the gate"

...