Chapter 1: Bad Dreams

OTWOL

Fire. Everywhere. No…not fire. The flames didn't dance as they should, and the color was a bright blue like the soft, azure noon skies of the Urugari desert. This was witchcraft, I realized.

The heat was extremely unbearable. Even with my proficiency in using magic to strengthen my body, amplify my senses, and nullify pain, it was still almost impossible to even breathe in whatever hell hole this was.

"Where am I? Why am I here? And why…why the fuck am I naked!"

Deciding to find out where I was first, I took my first step into the broad expanse of nothingness for the first time since I woke up here. Breathing was difficult, but moving against the abrasive winds was impossible. I suddenly noticed the scalding pain in my feet from standing too long in the white-hot soil. Then followed what felt like a million needles prickling my skin as the hot corrosive air ate away at my defensive barrier of mana.

"I'm … running out … of … mana…"

The single step I had taken had drained away my mana reserves, leaving me with no protection against the harsh climate. All my mana had suddenly been yanked free of my grasp, and my mind was shrouded by the sudden strain of fighting to stay in control.

Unbearable pain filled in my chest as the air burned my lungs. The smell of my own hair and flesh burning wasn't nearly as horrifying as watching my skin melt off my body. Was this the end for me?

"Aaah…I really am in the desert, aren't I," I thought as I fell to the ground and accepted my fate.

"Well done! I didn't think you'd actually figure it out. Not with how hot it was."

Suddenly losing balance, I found myself immersed in some sort of in-between space filled with a thick liquid. Reflexively, I held my breath as an overwhelming, nauseating feeling crept up my throat, and I found myself unable to tell up from down. But this was heaven compared to the mind-blowing pain I had just experienced.

Somehow, my skin was intact and the pain in my chest and all over my body seemed nothing but a distant memory now. Disbelievingly, I turned and twisted as I examined my body for any evidence to prove that I hadn't been dreaming.

It took a minute to register what had just happened.

"Who's there!" I gasped, then suddenly realized I hadn't gagged on the liquid I was immersed in. I was just as surprised to find out I could breathe as I was by how heavy my voice had sounded.

"My God, you're slow!"

The voice came from everywhere all at once, yet it was also somehow inside my own mind. I was caught off guard by the uneasy sensation and flailed my arms around, wanting to touch whatever the source of the voice was.

"I said… who's there!"

"Relax, boy…"

It felt as though the liquid was the one talking.

"You try relaxing after having your skin burned off… what the fuck was that anyway!? Was that your doing?" I asked, getting annoyed by the sick prank. "And I'm a man, you effete!"

"So I have a womanly voice - big deal! I could say the same thing about your -"

"Who the fuck are you! I'm getting sick of this," I hissed. "Oh wait…I know! It's that old hag, isn't it? Of course, it is. She's the only one in the entire kingdom who would dare use witchcraft despite knowing the consequences. Is this her newest trick? Did she put you up to this? Or is it actually you talking, Ngina?"

"hahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahhahahaahhahhahaahhahahhahaaahahha…!"

I was practically boiling over with rage at this point. Deciding to bring this pathetic bickering to an end, I gathered all the mana I had managed to gather from the rich mana pool of the in-between space into my core and prepared to unleash the deadly aura I was dreaded for back at home. I embraced the warm, familiar feeling as the mana from the surrounding atmosphere turned to fire mana - my birth mana attribute - and traced its way through my mana channels, up my limbs, and into my core.

Then suddenly and without warning, I pushed it all out with a swiftness that had been ingrained into my body from all my years as a warrior. The liquid around me suddenly jolted to life as the heat from my body vaporized it instantly, while the force from the burst forced the liquid back and created a partial vacuum that was filled with the choking vapor almost immediately after.

The sudden burst of powerful mana - dubbed the kifo aura - was powerful enough to incapacitate even the most skilled warriors in Magra, the home continent of us humans. If a warrior could perfectly hone their kifo aura technique, they could, theoretically, defeat a whole army of 3 tier morans by simply incapacitating them before sliting their throats. Such a technique was what separated your average warrior from skilled talents such as myself.

"Whoa… cool party trick. You're glowing! The kids must love you."

"Answer me, you pillock! Who are you, and what kind of tricks are you playing?" I asked, trying desperately to hide my surprise when my powerful aura had no effect on the perpetrator.

"Don't be so wary, Otwol. I'm simply a messenger. Now, I admit that my methods are a bit suspicious, but please understand that we of the deva race are often bored. It was simply a way for me to amuse myself… and to test your limitations."

It was my turn to laugh now.

"Deva? Like the supreme beings? You!?" I laughed out loud. "Not with that voice. You'll have to come up with a better lie."

"Trust me, boy… I have no reason to lie to you. And I thought you'd be more surprised I know your name."

"I'm quite popular with the ladies," I answered back, trying to hold back my laughter.

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"You still insult me even now that you know my true nature. Bold and witty, I like it. Be glad it is I, Shriva, the all-kind and merciful deva you are insulting and not some other deity."

"Never heard of you."

"My kindness has limits, boy."

"My apologies, oh mighty deva! To what do I owe this sudden visit? Surely, a member of the supreme races such as yourself didn't come all the way down to this Godforsaken continent to relay a message to this lesser being. I am unworthy of your great sacrifice."

"I do not appreciate the sarcasm either. But seeing as there is no way you will believe me, and I have no interest in revealing myself to you, I might as well just get on with it," slight pause.  "Despite your great success on the battlefield, your bedroom accomplishments are…mediocre. And that's being polite."

"Hey….I didn't get personal with my jibes, you know."

"Six wives, two daughters, and no sons. And that's in the harsh patriarchal society you humans so absent-mindedly lead. We've decided to gift you two sons and a daughter. That should compensate for your inadequacy."

"Pass! I'm more than happy with my daughters. Thank you!"

"You should be overjoyed."

"Why!? I have no interest in carrying the burden of another man's loins. I raise my own children."

"These ones are different."

"Oh, so it's a deva's loins then?"

"Would that make a difference?"

"Yeah…it'd be an even bigger no."

"Thought so. But think of this as a favor to the Mighty Shriva…"

"Still never heard of you."

"You'll find them in the desert in your little adventure tomorrow…"

"I'm not agreeing to this."

"Would you stop interrupting me already? You're annoying."

"And would you please stop trying to shove kids down my throat!?" I smirked at my clever joke. "That desert is no place for children. If you left them there…they're already dead. Baked. Or torn to shreds by that cursed wind."

"Don't worry about that. You will find them, it's set in stone. Now, I have to go… you're a headache to deal with."

"This one does not deserve the compliments, Great One! And like I said, I'm not taking any children…"

...

I woke up with a start and took a minute to register my bearings. The room was a mess. I was on the floor, beads of sweat drenching my entire body and the schenti loincloth wrapped around my waist. My blankets were scattered across the room, the bed was broken, and my first wife, Aisha, was crouched in fear in the corner. The room looked like it'd been torn apart in a battle.

The door burst open, and in rushed my younger brother, spear in hand and with his mana flaring aggressively in an attempt to appear intimidating. He scanned the room quickly before noticing Aisha and me on the floor, then he came rushing to my side.

"Brother! What happened here? Were you attacked? By whom? Where are they?" he prodded as he paced around the room, looking for any signs of foreign mana.

"Relax Musa, nothing happened here. I had a bad dream, that's all," I replied.

"A bad dream!? I could feel your aura from my side of the compound. You basically knocked out all the guards and everyone within range, and you're telling me you had a bad dream?" he had stopped pacing and was now studying my face, looking for answers.

"We all have our fair share of nightmares, brother. It was nothing, no need for concern. Go back to your house, tend to your wives and children," I dismissed. He didn't need an explanation. Heck, I didn't even know how to explain what had happened. "It won't happen again."

"Tsk! A bad dream!" he scolded as he walked out into the night. I could tell he was annoyed.

I stood up and walked up to my discombobulated wife.

"Hey, Aisha...are you okay? Wake up."

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