I have finally decided to return to this story after a long departure from my writing. This was my first real foray into beginning a fanfiction, or a story for that matter, and the fact that I hadn't been truly able to commit to it has bothered me for the longest time. So, here begins a re-write to the introductory chapters of this story based on a beloved game and hopefully the start of a new adventure.

Prologue

A lush, moonlit landscape extended in all directions. There was little sound and little to see, only the occasional gust; lifeless, yet the tall grass rolled and churned with every breath of wind that swam through it and made it seem like the earth itself had sprung to life. The twinkling night sky was clear and the air hovered at the perfect balance of warmth and chill.

Zeig had never once seen or visited a place such as this, but lying in the soft embrace of the grass, he knew that this was home. Here, the warrior felt every scar of battle fade away, his armor and sword melted into nothing, for there was no need for such things here. Here was absolute peace and he never wanted to leave its embrace.

As his mind turned to this flight of fancy, his gaze turned to the stars above. The sky had turned a dark shade of blue and the fires in the sky seemed to blaze a little brighter than usual. They were but a small distraction from what truly dominated the sky: the brilliant celestial body of the moon as it slowly drifted towards one side of the sky. It's majesty never ceased to amaze Zieg and it was the one thing in this foreign yet comforting landscape that was familiar to him.

The thing that had slowly begun to reveal itself from behind it struck sheer terror into the warrior.

It was a deep red moon, rhythmically pulsating and growing in size with every throb. The sky quickly began to turn a sickly crimson and the warrior found himself at his feet, wrapped in a cloak of fire and clutching a flaming blade. A massive, formless shadow had manifested in the field that he was lying in and was growing in tandem with the pulses of the moon. Zeig threw himself at the demon and plunged deep within the shadow. What followed was only absolute black and excruciating pain across his entire body.

As one, you will fall. Unite as seven, and the heavens shall bend to you. Now awake.

"Wake up! Zeig, did you pass out? Damn it, wake up!"

The voice of Vincent was barely discernable over the roars of the crowd, but it was just enough to draw Zeig back to the waking world. Everything regained focus slowly; first, the dirt floor spattered with blood beneath him, then the towering stone walls of the arena, and finally the cheering crowds that lined the seats above and the giant white beast that stood snarling before him. Using what little remained of his strength, he hoisted himself onto his feet using his sword as a crutch.

"Incredible! Ladies and gentleman, Viepel the Crimson has miraculously survived the brutal attack from the dire wolf! This man truly lives up to his reputation!" the announcer roared through a device in the walls. The crowd went ballistic in response to this and cheered even louder than before. This sudden surge in the audience's energy filled Zeig with a newfound will to win. Spitting a large scarlet glob directly at the great wolf, Zeig began to walk forward slowly, blade raised and aimed directly at the beast.

Livid in response to this act of disrespect, the wolf roared and leapt into the air directly towards the warrior. The creatures incredible size belied its impressive speed that would have been far too quick for an average human to compete with; indeed, when the creature first used this maneuver on Zeig, it had been enough to send him violently crashing into the arena walls and severely injure him. But the decision to attack the same way twice would be the creature's downfall.

Zeig deftly dodged to one side of the beast seconds before impact and plunged his blade deep within the side of the dire wolf's neck in one swift counterattack. Hanging on tightly even as the beast shook and bled wildly, Zeig forced his sword downwards until the wound had become a gaping gash. The two, locked onto one another, tumbled and rolled across the arena in a bloody mess of tangled fur and steel. In immense pain and in a last ditch effort for survival, the wolf flung itself against the side of the arena in hopes of crushing the warrior, but this proved to be a dire mistake; Zeig had broken away in the confusion, and all the beast had managed to do was lodge the sword deeper within its neck and sever several nerves that rendered it unable to move any further. The crowd had become ecstatic in this incredible display of man overcoming beast.

"Viepel the Crimson is victorious once again! Is there none in all of Nissel who can face his mighty blade?" the announcer's excitement carried throughout the crowd. "Let's show our appreciation to the greatest warrior in Nissel! Zeig Viepel the Crimson!"

Gold showered the blood spattered arena as Zeig made his way to retrieve his blade from the body of the creature. He noticed that its eyes were still moving; even in utter defeat and in the face of death, it still clung to life.

In a show of respect, Zeig completely beheaded the beast as quickly and cleanly as possible before leaving the ring and the roar of the fans.

Zeig was lying in the soft moonlight of the outdoor clinic adjacent to the coliseum with Vincent at his side. The crowds had gone several hours ago and an air of calm had settled onto the normally raucous city of Karas. The soothing effects of the clinic's healing rays had almost entirely healed Zeig; the only trace that he had been severely injured was a newly formed scar that ran across his upper chest. He absentmindedly ran his finger across it as he contemplated the bizarre vision that he had experienced during the battle.

"For a second there, I thought you had died for sure," Vincent said as he was counting out a large pouch of gold coins on the side table. "Had to have been one of the most brutal thrashings I've ever seen a dire wolf give someone!"

"How long was I out for?" Zeig asked, turning to face the old man.

"You weren't moving for maybe ten seconds."

"Ten seconds? Are you sure? It felt a lot longer than that."

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Well, when I got hit, I felt like I blacked out for a long while," Zieg began as he sat up in the bed. "And I dreamt that I was in this big field…"

"Come on, not this stuff again, Zeig," Vincent rolled his eyes. "As much as I'd love to hear about one of your 'revelations' again, I think its high time that you get some sleep. You've got a big journey ahead of you."

"Yeah, but…"

"It's time to sleep, Zeig," Vincent insisted, stuffing all of the gold back into the bag as he rose from his seat. He retrieved his cane that had fallen to the floor. "You can have the whole cut this time, son. I'll have a new set of clothes and armor for you in the morning and I'll sharpen up your blade too. You'll have plenty of time to tell me about your little dream when you get back, alright?"

The old man didn't say anything else as he shuffled out of the clinic. Zeig sighed and turned to face the stars again. All the stars were twinkling in their places around the moon. The one and only moon in the sky, Zeig reaffirmed.

He continued to stare into the blue cosmos until he drifted off into a thankfully dreamless sleep.