Trudging through what felt to him like an unending ashen path in a gloomy forest, the alien bipedal creature’s breath slowly became increasingly laborious. He had been walking for days, now, leaving him dangerously exhausted… And yet, he refused to stop even for a moment, especially now. From what he had been able to gather from the few ruins he came across, he was just about to reach a settlement. Despite him not knowing whether or not he would find any living soul there, he hoped to at least pilfer some food and a bed, or a mattress, or anything more comfortable than the rocky soil he had to rest on during his sleep.
Looking upward, he saw the same, strange scenery in the sky. There was no sun, nor was there any moon. Instead, a gray blanket of clouds completely covered the sky above, diffusing a weak light across the land underneath. This scene had remained unchanging ever since he woke up in these strange lands where concepts such as days and nights were replaced by a liminal limbo. And as much as he found this sight worrying, the creature couldn’t help but feel a certain fascination, the scenery both inspiring awe and dread.
Focusing back on the winding path ahead, he sighed. Nothing about this world made sense to him, countless questions constantly dancing around in his mind. Where was he? Why did he wake up in this place? Where was everyone?
And why couldn’t he remember his own name?
His ruminations were cut short by the sudden, familiar feeling of rain beginning to pour. The cold drizzle slowly hitting his coat, he sighed before pulling his hood over his head. His traveling clothes, while admittedly useful against the elements, were oddly old. Countless marks and tiny tears indicated that his coat was old, but his memories did not allow him to know exactly how old it was, or if it even belonged to him. Instinctively placing a hand onto his chest, he lightly touched the only symbol that adorned his attire, a small six-pointed star with even smaller stars around it.
As the ground underneath his worn-out boots became increasingly muddy, the stranger decided to quicken his pace. Ignoring the low growling in his stomach and the burning pain across his exhausted body, his sight was locked onto the path.
Minutes turned to hours as the settlement he believed to be close appeared itself as much further away than what the few signs he had found indicated. Unsure whether he accidentally made a wrong turn some place along the way, or if the land itself was playing a trick on his mind, the creature eventually became unable to ignore his body’s cry for sustenance and rest. Resigned, he stumbled against one of the many stone-like trees before sitting down, his joints crying in relief for this much-deserved break.
Silently watching the raindrops pierce through the few remaining leaves above him, he mechanically reached into his bag. Rummaging through its meager contents, he pulled out a handful of varied berries he harvested along the way. Looking at the fruits in the palm of his hand, his eyes lingered on the unusually pale colors, as if the berries themselves were partially drained of their life. When he first arrived into this world, he was initially wary of the food these strange lands provided.
The growing hunger was quick to make him abandon these reservations. And so, with one last glance, he ate his meager meal, the taste as bleak and bland as the world around him.