Somewhere on the outskirts of the Eurasia Prefecture, a girl was finally waking up. Her brown eyes snapped open as a groan drew from her plump lips. Where was she? Why did her head hurt so much? As she tried to remember what was going on she glanced around the room she was in. It was dark down here, a single overhead light illuminating the area and casting everything in harsh shadows. It made it all more haunting when she realised she was in some type of lab. Shelves lined the wall adjacent to her, filled to the brim with either medical or science equipment. There were copious amounts of beakers with mysterious substances in them as well as other items she couldn't even imagine their usage. The walls and ceiling were concrete so she assumed she was underground. That made her heart beat even louder in her ears. What the hell was going on?
Looking down, she was lying on a metal operating table, a thin blanket draped over her form. She quickly sat up, gasping at the fact that she was naked. She snatched up the blanket and covered her chest with it, glancing around the room once more just in case someone was there. She was alone, thankfully, but that only gave her more questions. Why was she here? It made her start to shake in fear, her heart started racing as her mind conjured up ideas of what was to come. "Where am I?" her voice rasped. It had been a long time since it had been used.
She widened her eyes suddenly, remembering something. She should still have her Tōqen with her, unless someone removed it from her in her sleep. She quickly imagined the green item in her mind, visualizing herself holding it. Once she opened her eyes, the Tōqen was in her hands staring back at her with its beady brown eye. With a relieved sigh, she held the spiritual item close to her chest, happy that she had something of her past with her.
The girl's Tōqen was a mossy green, her favourite colour, and about the size of her head. It had bottom wings, its eye was the same dark brown as its owner, sporting long mascara-coated eyelashes. The Tōqen also had horns, two large things that resembled ram horns on either side.
As soon as she calmed herself down enough to release the Tōqen from her hold, she opened the top compact to reveal the mirror as well as the makeup palette inside. She ignored the makeup, more focused on the image reflected back to her through the mirror.
She looked wild. Worse for wear. Her hair was a tangled matted mess, flat at the back due to her lying on her back in her slumber. Her skin looked sallow, dark bags under her eyes that reflected how deep her slumber was. Finding the image in front of her distasteful, she quickly shut the compact, closing off the mirror and being met yet again with the beady black eye.
Before she could even get up to investigate her surroundings, she heard the sound of a door opening. She flinched, her hand holding her Tōqen clenched tightly in fear. She looked towards the sound to find a man walking into the room with eyes focused on her, moving with a purpose in her direction. He was an Imp, striking red-purple hair fluffed up around his head, the signature noseless face with golden eyes. He was slightly short for an Imp, though his posture and stride made up for it. He wore a white lab coat, draped over a tan croptop, green bell bottoms, and brown wedges in stark contrast.
“I’m glad to see you’ve woken up, Ferrow.” He cooed, standing next to the metal table she was sitting on with mirthful eyes. The girl furrowed her brows, confused at his familiarity with her as well as the name he called her. Was that her name?
“W-What?” She croaked, covering her mouth when a cough rattled her throat. He was quick to pat her back, slender fingers stroking her bare skin. She inched away from him, bringing her Tōqen up in front of her, the beady black eye narrowed at him in challenge. He backed up slightly, hand still outstretched in the air with a confused and slightly hurt look on his face. “Who’s Ferrow?” She finally asked, scooting closer to the wall behind her to widen the distance between her and him.
“W-What do you mean, dear? That’s you.” He smiled, trying to reach out for her again only for her to cry out, her distress causing her Tōqen to glow a bright green before shifting into a pair of leather gauntlets that transitioned into 5-inch metal claws at her fingers. She bared her claws at him, threatening him to stay back. The man gasped, stepping back even further until he stood in the middle of the room, his own Tōqen flickering into view due to his sudden shock. It was a rusted copper in colour, about the length of his forearm with bottom wings and ram horns similar to the girl’s. “Ferrow?!” He raised his hands up in surrender, eyes moving from the sharp weapons on her hands to the fearful glare in her eyes. “What are you doing?” The golden eye on the Tōqen narrowed, locked onto the girl’s form.
‘Ferrow’ slashed wildly at him in fear, trying to keep him away from her. The man jumped back at her display, his Tōqen shifting in a burst of orange light into a giant staff with a circle at the end, a thick pane of glass in the centre of it. It was a microscope. “What the hell is going on?!” She felt the tears running down her cheeks but did nothing to stop them, she couldn’t with the gauntlets on anyways.
Why was this strange man calling her Ferrow? Why was she trapped in what she assumed was his laboratory? So many questions flashed in her brain, quickening her racing heart even more. Everything was too much. Too much happening all at once. Not only had she woken up with no prior memories, she'd woken up naked in a strange place with a random man trying to talk to her.
I should've known you would've lost your memory..” He grumbled, looking over at his newly transformed weapon before flicking his hand at it and dismissing it. In a flash of orange light, it shifted back to Tōqen form. “Stupid!” He slammed the same hand into his forehead twice before looking at Ferrow with a well-practised smile. “I’m Jackii Lois Taylor,” He bowed dramatically, his hair falling into his face once he righted himself, causing him to brush it back with a big grandiose motion. “I’m your boyfriend and you're Ferrow Green, my girlfriend.” He made finger guns at her, gracing her with a lop-sided cheesy grin.
She furrowed her brows in slight confusion, dropping her claws down onto the table. As soon as they made contact with the metal they shifted back into her Tōqen, it landing on the table beside her palms with a clatter.
“You.. I’m your girlfriend?” She asked, so confused at what was going on. Mere seconds ago she was convinced she was going to have to fight for her life against this random man and now he just dropped this knowledge bomb on her. “Ho-What happened to me?” She grabbed onto her Tōqen and clutched it to her chest, trying to comfort herself.
“You went to buy groceries when you went missing, I searched for you for two days until I found you dead in some alley.” He took a step closer and when he saw she didn't flinch, he continued until he stood before her once more. This time he didn't touch her.
“Dead?” She squeaked, looking down at her body as if to check if she was actually dead somehow. Ferrow remembered when her eyes scanned her bare body that she was naked. With a flushed face she brought the blanket, which had slipped off of her chest during her struggle, and covered her chest. Even though Jackii was her boyfriend that didn't mean she was ok with him seeing her naked at the moment.
“You’re an Aavan, I thought you’d realise by now.” He motioned to her, “Short stature, dark skin, dark eye colour and hair colour.. Is this ringing any bells?” Jackii didn't acknowledge her sudden blush or the fact that she was covering up her body, thankfully. Merely continued on with the conversation.
Ferrow opened the compact on her Tōqen and stared at herself in the mirror. The features Jackii spoke of checked out.
“You don't remember why that's important?” He quizzed, almost sounding like a teacher leading a student to the right answer. She shook her head hesitantly. “Aavan’s are one of the only Red-Bloods that can be revived, doll.” He revealed, smiling at her shocked expression.
Ferrow looked down at the metal table beneath her, her warped reflection staring back at her. She apparently was an Aavan, and she could be revived..? How did she not remember that? She was able to remember what Imps were, she even profiled Jackii as one. So how did she not know her own species?
Ferrow snapped her head up to look at him, her brows furrowed suspiciously as she suddenly realised something. “Everything else sorta makes sense except for the fact that I'm naked and kept in this lab,” She narrowed her eyes at him, urging him to respond.
“You were sweating like crazy and I was scared you were going to pass away from heat stroke during the process of you reviving so I stripped you to prevent that.,” He explained, hesitantly resting his hand on her shoulder. She flinched but didn't move away. “The reason I kept you in the lab is so I could monitor you better. There's cameras in here,” he motioned to the camera in the corner of the room that was pointed right at them. He jokingly waved at it.
“O-ok..” She muttered, looking down at her lap in thought. She wanted to believe him, mainly because she was stressed out enough as it is trying to figure out what's going on but also because she didn't want to deal with any more confrontations. But there was something nagging in her mind, “Couldn't you just revive me again, though?” She asked, tilting her head at him in confusion.
“No. If you died during the process you’d be dead for good.” He glumly explained, making the vibe between the two of them sullen.
The two were silent for a few seconds, merely staring at each other before Ferrow broke the silence. “Um.. Can you get me something to put on?” She asked, looking up at him through dark lashes. He blushed a little, eyes widened a hair before he nodded. Jackii gave her shoulder a subtle squeeze before he sped out of the laboratory, leaving the door cracked open.
Ferrow sighed, closing her eyes for a few seconds to just take everything in. She was an Aavan, whatever that was, and she could be revived. Hell, she just was. She has a boyfriend named Jackii and her name is Ferrow. All of this information made her head hurt. She couldn't even remember a single thing before she woke up here. It was like her existence started the second she woke up, yet Jackii apparently knew her before then. She had even more questions though, most of them unimportant. What year was it, how old am I? Things like that.
She didn't notice Jackii had come back until she heard the door slam shut and she jumped at the sound. “Sorry! That door is way too loud,” Jackii apologised, walking over to her with a handful of clothes. Ferrow took them from him, looking them over to see what he’d brought her. It was a simple red shirt, white lace underwear, and black shorts. She blushed at the sight of the underwear but didn't comment on it, assuming he grabbed the first article of clothing he could find for her.
“Uh.. Can you turn around?” She asked meekly, noticing how Jackii was still staring at her as if he expected her to start changing in front of him. His eyes widened before he facepalmed, turning around quickly.
Ferrow sighed, quickly pulling the clothes on her body. She didn't like the feeling of being naked in front of a man she didn't know, even if he was her boyfriend, she remembered nothing from her past. “I-Im done!” She said when she was done, noticing how quickly Jackii turned back around.
“Great! Now do you have any questions about anything, it doesn't matter what it is, I'll answer them all.” He asked, giving her a gentle smile. She gave him a shy smile in return, finding his openness to answer her questions comforting.
“Oof.. I have a lot of questions.” She scooted off of the metal table, keeping her Tōqen clutched in her left hand.
“Fire away!” He joked, looking slightly down at her due to their height difference. She was a few inches shorter than him, her head coming up to where his nose would be if he had one.
“What year is it?” Ferrow settled on a basic question first, trying to clear her head and articulate a way to ask her more important questions afterwards.
“Oh, it's uh..” Jackii scratched his head, eyes narrowing as he tried to recall the year. “It's like 8304 if my memory is correct.” He answered, noticing the suspicious look she gave him and quickly explained, “No one really keeps track of the years like that. People just live life in the present.” His explanation only brought Ferrow more questions but she held her tongue on them, focusing on more important ones.
“How old am I?” She asked, idly fidgeting with the horns on her Tōqen.
“17.” He answered that one quickly, at least he was confident in her age. It soothed Ferrow’s suspicion about whether he was truly her boyfriend. A fake boyfriend wouldn't know her age like that, nor answer as quickly. “Your birthday is Frostfall 20, if you were also wondering.” He said smugly, giving her a smirk.
“Which world are we in?” She asked, causing him to widen his eyes in shock.
“I didn't expect you to remember anything about the different worlds.” He explained his shock, looking deeply into her eyes as if searching for something.
“I don't really remember names, I just remember that there are different ones.. I don't know how to explain it.” She furrowed her brows, her head began hurting the more she tried to look back into her mind.
“Well we live in the Main Hub, but sometimes I go visit Igbra to see family.” He said this as if she would know what he was talking about. When he noticed her confused expression he continued explaining. “Igbra is my home world, where the Imps live. The Main Hub is.. Well, the main world. It used to be called.. Um,” He tapped his chin with his finger in thought, “Earth! It used to be called Earth but then the Rapture happened and it was called Hell for a while but then the Gold Rush happened and now it's the Main Hub!” He smiled, proud of himself for remembering that.
“I don't remember what the Rapture or the Gold Rush is.” Ferrow frowned, looking down at her feet. He said it as if it was common knowledge as if everyone knew what it was. But she didn't remember. Her dumb brain chose to remember what her Tōqen was and what Imps were but not this?
“It's fine, Ferrow! Hell, some people don't know what they are and they have their memories!” He chuckled, patting her on the back. Ferrow gave him a weak smile before looking down at the Tōqen in her hands. She idly spun it in her hand, the black eye on it staring up at her blankly. She gave it a slight squeeze before she focused back on Jackii who was looking at her with a slight smile.
“W-What was I like before I.. died?” She inquired in almost a whisper, hands shaking slightly. Ferrow didn't know what was going on and it was frightening her. Even though Jackii was trying to comfort her and release the tension with silly jokes it wasn't helping. She had basically been thrust into a new life with no recollection of anything from before and was expected to just cope. How could she do that when in the few minutes she had consciousness she was just told of her own death? She didn't notice the tears dripping down her cheeks until she felt Jackii’s thumbs wipe them away.
“Ferrow, it's okay if you don't act like the woman you were before. I love you for you and if it comes down to it and you act like a new person I’d just fall in love with you again.” He said with a charming smile that was supposed to be calming but it only made Ferrow even more stressed.
“That's not the point! How could you still love m-Ferrow if I’m not her? Why would you?” She found herself yelling, eyes clenched as she screamed her feelings out. “What’s stopping me from just leaving, huh?! If I’m not the Ferrow you knew and if I don't act like the woman you’d want me to, would you let me leave?” She didn't know where these questions were coming from but they were spilling from her lips at a rate she couldn't stop them. He looked at her with wide eyes, shocked at her sudden outburst. “What if I don't fall in love with you, what then? Will you let me go or will you try to keep me here?”
“Woah woah! Ferrow what are you saying? Please calm down, you're gonna give yourself a headache.” He reached for her, trying to comfort her only for her to shove his hands away.
“Quit moving from the topic! Will you let me leave if I’m not the Ferrow you were expecting to wake up?” She looked him dead in the eyes, a spark burning in her eyes that Jackii had never seen before in his life. It excited him and scared him. The implications of it were frightening, imagining what it would grow into was a horrifying beautiful thought that had him hesitating his response.
“F-Ferrow I don't care if you came back as a mass murdering cannibal, as long as I’m in your life is all that matters.” He said with a shy smile, reaching out for her again. His hand cupped her chin, not knowing what to do with itself when he realised she was allowing him to touch her.
She sighed, closing her eyes and letting him cup her chin. She didn't want to fight him, he was the first person she had spoken to since she had woken up. If she made him hate her and he kicked her out where else would she go? From her scattered memory life nowadays was not a forgiving place. If you weren't strong or intimidating you were swallowed up and spit out an entirely different person, scarred from the horrors you experienced. Ferrow was not a scary-looking girl nor was she strong, she noticed. From flexing her muscles she noticed there was barely anything there, a little more than the average girl but nothing when compared to the monsters that would surely roam the streets. Imps and Aavans aren't the only species in existence, there are hundreds of them, each more dangerous and stronger than the next. Ferrow resembled a Half-Wit, the most basic Red-Blood if her memory served her correctly. Aside from her ability to be revived, she was as weak as the weakest species. A dark thought filled her head, one that had her snapping her eyes open and staring up at the yellow-eyed man in front of her. Although Imps weren't the strongest Black-Bloods, they were stronger than an average Red-Blood. Jackii would be able to overpower her with ease.
She shook her head, willing herself to remove those dark thoughts from her head. The action shook his hand from her face, “I don't think I have any questions left.” She spoke softly, looking down at her Tōqen in her hands, it was staring back at her with its impartial eye. She had way more questions but chose to save them for later, not wanting to overwhelm him. It had nothing to do with her sudden realisation of the difference in their strengths.
“Ah, ok. How about I show you around, and help you get settled in?” He smiled boyishly, hands on his hips in an open stance. “It’ll have to be quick though, I have a project I’m working on that needs me.”
From his mention of a project, Ferrow took in the view of the laboratory again and said the first thing that came to mind. “I always heard Imps were dumb, I guess you're not since you're a scientist.” As soon as she finished her sentence she slapped her hands over her mouth, staring up at him with wide eyes. Why the hell would she say that? Also where in the hell did she know that from? God, her spotty memory will be the death of her.
Thankfully her rude comment was met with laughter, “Ha! I find it so funny which things you remember,” He was holding his sides, clearly taking what she said as a joke, “To think one of the only things you’d remember is a silly Imp stereotype!” The tone he said that in was off but Ferrow couldn't decipher why when he covered it up with more boisterous laughter.
“I-I’m so sorry! That was insensitive of me.” She wanted to curl up into a ball and hide, wanting nothing to do with her comment. From what little her idiot brain remembered of Imps, it was mainly stereotypes for some reason, was that they were stupid and hotheaded.
“Oh my lord, you're such a doormat!” He suddenly exclaimed, laughing like a hyena as he said it. Ferrow’s eyes widened, not knowing how to take that statement. “Very Aavan of you, Ferrow!” He lightly punched her shoulder, revealing he was joking with her.
“I deserved that,” She sighed, smiling slightly at the bubbly air between the two of them. The score was set, now that Jackii had mentioned one of her stereotypical qualities and she had his. She would later brood over the implications of Aavans being seen as doormats later, now she was focused on the tour she was promised.
Chapter 2.