The darkness around us vanished, changing into a corridor with red carpet and doors every few yards. It was completely silent apart from the soft rustling coming from his clothes as Salas moved. Looking towards him I saw him in front of a door, knocking at it.

“It is open.”

A subdued voice came from inside. Shortly afterwards Salas opened the door, standing still beside it as he held it open for me. Stepping inside the voice resounded once more, coming from a row of chairs pointed towards an opening in the room.

“Thank you.”

In response to his words Salas bowed, closing the door behind me, and leaving me alone with the unknown person. As if he was waiting for it he stood up at the clicking of the door. He walked past the chairs towards me, bowing towards me as a greeting.

“Good evening, Mr. Devil. While we have meet once before you were, sadly, unconscious at that time. Therefore, please allow me to introduce myself. I am Safrone Meccart, the current master of the arena.” He held out his hand towards me.

Even the subdued light allowed me to clearly see him now that he was near me. A purplish humanoid, his skin completely devoid of any blemished and hair. If not for his sharp facial features forming distinct traits or small red, barely visible veins pulsating underneath the skin one could have thought about him as nothing more than a well-sculptured statue.

“Good evening.” I took his hand, only for a cold shudder to run through my entire body. Forcing a fake smile, I continued. “While I would’ve liked to introduce myself, I’m unable to do so as I lost my memories.”

He gave me a pitiable look, his voice filled with sadness as he answered. “I heard about that. Even Dr. Mopheus, despite his status as a leading medic for uncommon species, was unable to help you with it.” He turned around, gesturing towards the seats. “For now, we should sit down, the show should begin any moment.”

Following his lead, I sat down in the front, a large hall in front us, all seats pointed towards a stage in the distance.

“I hope you like the theatre, it is one of my few passions. Todays piece is called ‘Forgotten worlds’. I meant to invite you, the last high-elemental, at the day of your release from hospital, but work has kept me from doing so.”

Our surroundings dimmed before a quiet composition of strings began.

“It has begun.” With the resounding music Safrone lost any notice of me, concentrating fully on the show before him. Creatures I have never seen before, appeared one after another, telling their stories of life. Hope and despair. Love and hatred. None knew how important these feelings were for them, living their life while taking things as they were, all until one thing appeared. The system.

Then, even though he didn’t take his eyes off the stage, Safrone started to speak once more.

“You should know, I have been in this position for centuries. These species you are seeing down there, all of them were once included into the system. I have seen heroes, villains, those fighting for their families, for their friends, and those who searched for power strong enough to take everything that they want.

And each one managed to make their way towards Aeus, be it through surviving the fall of their worlds, being born in this place, or maybe even accepting an invitation after defending their home. And as my duty as the master of the arena I looked into each one.

There was Athras, a mighty giant, said to be carrying the weight of the world, fighting until his body gave out and the world along it. Ira, a woman who in her desire for revenge destroyed her whole nation, making her powerful enough to bring down anything else that stood in her way. Varus, the one they called ‘seeker’, looking for the truth hidden behind everything, only to have his heart broken by despair.”

As he went along, I recognized them as the ones from the play before us, but the stories he told me differed slightly from what they showed. Then he paused for a moment, taking in another supposed victory inside the play.

As the actor left the stage it once again started to change rapidly. But opposed to the delicate structures, the illusory landscapes, it turned barren, wind rustling over sand. Opposed to the earlier acts no one came out this time as the stage began to move by itself.

Sand rose upwards to form a creature, an irregular shape. As it started to move the scenery change but everywhere it went it only met with other shapes, forming into whatever felt right. Earth, water, wind, fire. Even light and darkness. They were everything on this otherwise lifeless planet. At least until the system came. And just like those before our sandy protagonist grew stronger, turning into a sandstorm that covered the world.

But when he saw that his power grew strong enough that his sheer existence was enough to hurt his kind, he stopped his own life, leaving behind a world covered in sand, shapes rising from beneath it. And as the stage turned silent once more Safrone’s voice rang out once more.

“The one you saw right now was called Gaius, an irregular earth high-elemental. Just like those before him he got a title depicting his efforts, a special one no one would ever get thereafter. ‘The loving Sand’.

But his love for his kind doomed them, as he took them any chance to grow, only to leave them afterwards, the few survivors sent towards this world when the remaining participants of the tournament banded together to defeat them. Only for them to give up afterwards as nothing else could survive at the planet, leaving no winner at the end.

As they lost their world, the place where they were born from natural mana, their number fades over time, until about two-hundred years ago the last one died. And that’s how the high-elementals ended. Until you came along.”

For the first time he lost focus of the play, turning towards me.

“A small flame, barely snuffed out, which appeared in the starting round alongside the original participants, throwing it in utter chaos in his attempt to survive. For what happened afterwards I have to apologize as I analyzed you without even asking.”

Hearing his words, I was guarded, but he just continued ignoring my change in mood.

“While your sudden appearance is cryptic in itself, the result of analyze was something even more of a mystery.”