The silence of the Beast Forest was broken only by the faint hum of the damaged spaceship. Ravihiro stood over the unconscious man, his sword still unsheathed, its blade glinting ominously in the dim light. His thoughts were racing.
"This shouldn't be possible," he muttered, staring at the flag on the ship. The tricolor symbol of his homeland fluttered faintly in the heatwaves rising from the crash site.
Ravihiro crouched beside the man, inspecting his injuries. The stranger was young, probably in his mid-twenties, with dark hair matted to his forehead by sweat and blood. His clothes were unlike anything Ravihiro had seen in this world—a combination of synthetic materials and advanced stitching that screamed of a technological age far removed from this ancient land.
A Glimpse of the Unknown
Ravihiro noticed something strange on the man's wrist: a metallic device emitting faint blinking lights. It was partially crushed, but its design was intricate and advanced. He touched it cautiously, only to pull his hand back when it emitted a faint shock.
"What kind of device is this?" Ravihiro murmured, his brow furrowing. His spirit within the ring chimed in, its voice cautious.
"This energy… it's foreign. I've never felt anything like it, not even in the highest planes of cultivation."
Ravihiro's unease deepened. Whatever this man was, he wasn't just another cultivator or wanderer. He was from somewhere far beyond.
The Beast Forest Stirs
The air around them began to shift. Ravihiro's sharp senses picked up on movement in the shadows of the trees. The spaceship's crash had disturbed the natural order of the forest, and the beasts were growing restless.
A low growl echoed from the darkness, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps. Ravihiro stood, his gaze snapping toward the treeline.
"Trouble," he muttered, adjusting his stance.
From the underbrush emerged three shadow wolves, their fur bristling and their glowing eyes locked onto the injured man. They were drawn to the scent of blood and the strange energy radiating from the crash.
"Figures," Ravihiro said with a sigh, his voice tinged with irritation. "You creatures have no sense of timing."
A Display of Power
The first wolf lunged, its claws outstretched and its fangs glinting in the faint light. Ravihiro sidestepped effortlessly, his sword slicing through the air. The beast fell in two before it even realized it had been struck.
The remaining wolves hesitated, their instincts screaming at them to retreat. But the unnatural energy from the ship seemed to drive them into a frenzy.
Ravihiro's movements were fluid and precise, each strike of his sword a masterpiece of control and power. Within moments, the wolves lay defeated, their bodies strewn across the forest floor.
He turned back to the man, who remained unconscious. "If more come, this will get complicated."
The Weight of the Past
Ravihiro hoisted the man onto his back, careful not to aggravate his injuries. As he moved deeper into the forest, his thoughts wandered to the ship and the flag.
"This isn't just coincidence," he thought. "The ship, the flag… it's all connected to my past. But how?"
A Safe Haven
Ravihiro finally reached a secluded cave he had used before as a resting spot. The entrance was hidden by thick vines, and a small stream nearby provided fresh water. He laid the man down gently and began to tend to his wounds.
As he worked, he couldn't shake the nagging feeling that this was just the beginning of something far greater.
"This man… he's not supposed to be here," Ravihiro murmured to himself. "And neither am I."
The stranger stirred slightly, mumbling incoherent words. Ravihiro leaned in, trying to catch what he was saying.
"Earth… mission… failed…"
Ravihiro's eyes narrowed. The word Earth sent a chill down his spine. It was a name he hadn't spoken or heard in years, a relic of the life he had thought he'd left behind.
A New Mystery
As the night deepened, the spaceship in the forest emitted a faint pulse of energy, its lights flickering ominously. Deep within its broken hull, something stirred—a signal sent into the void, reaching out to an unknown destination.
Ravihiro stared into the fire he had lit, his expression unreadable. The man's presence, the ship, and the flag were threads in a web of mystery that threatened to pull Ravihiro back into a past he had fought to forget.