At the center of the Kiivofen desert, a crimson pillar marked the binding site of an dangerous entity. Kii, the blood djinn that legend attributed the desert's red sand to, had been sealed there during the lumena-vesera wars in eons past.
In recent centuries, however, the people of the Kiivofen noticed an alarming anomaly: the local wildlife was mutating. Their very lifeblood was slowly transmuting into raw keirsi and warping their physical bodies into pale, mindless monstrosities.
These creatures, dubbed the viendol, sought only to prey on healthy creatures, manipulating their minds into offering themselves up for slaughter. As a result, hunting had become difficult, travel had become deadly, and the infestation of viendol seemed only to worsen as time passed.
As countless people continued to die, desperation was mounting in the hearts of the Kiivos people. At their wits' end, they continuously pleaded with their patron god, Onnvuset, for a champion to deliver them from this plight.
And so it happened that one day, an aging priestess named Kalpori finally heard the great god's answer. While engaged in a sermon during a particularly dire season, it was said by onlookers that a flock of innumerable birds descended from the heavens and consumed her body, leaving only a curious infant with the same blue eyes as her where she once stood. This infant, of course, was Allen.
From a young age, he had the title of "hero" and "chosen one" thrust upon him. And he lived up to it without an issue. Instructed by the greatest minds of his generation within the capital city, he quickly became the vigilant protector they had prayed for all this time.
Aside from his evident talents, due to his natural ability to overcome the viendol's enticing call, a feat even most seasoned hunters struggled with, Allen's capabilities were unmatched.
Well, almost unmatched.
Allen had grown up under the care of various mentors. His tutors in the capital sought to turn him into a fine young man, one that lived as a chosen champion of the gods should. They were quick to realise, though, that Allen didn't need their instruction for long.
History, religion, sciences, strategy they were all effortless to learn. Rote memorisation was nothing short of insultingly simple.
Debate, diplomacy, public speaking, these things came naturally to him and were of little interest, seeing as most people were too dim-witted to actually converse with.
Law, logistics, administration, and trade were subjects that took little time to master, but they thoroughly bored him. He existed above those things. The rules didn't apply to an extraordinary individual like him. And lowering himself to play by the rules was a waste of time.
Those who tried to teach him found him unruly and disrespectful, but also a genius through and through. They had nothing more to say or teach him. Truly, it seemed there wasn't anything he couldn't eclipse others in.
And then there was his combat mentor, Amul.
Amul was a seasoned warrior who had set aside his life of combat and chose to train the next generation of hunters. At first, Allen felt disdain for the man. He had the capabilities to fight; why didn't he? Was he just complacent in his comfort? Was he happy to waste away his days in the capital, sending others to fight in his stead?
But soon enough, he realised that Amul had knowledge and experience beyond what even Allen could comprehend. Combat was different from everything else he had been taught. Combat was a real threat, one he could not ignore the rules of. There was no "trick", no straightforward answer. And the punishments for failing were brutal and unforgiving.
The risk to his life, the difficulty and the uncertainty, it absolutely thrilled Allen.
From the moment Amul defeated him in a training match, beating him bloody and telling Allen he would've died against a real opponent in this same situation, Allen felt ecstatic. He felt alive.
Seeing this as a challenge, Allen personally took it upon himself to understand Amul. That would be the first step to surpassing him.
And to Allen's delight, Amul wouldn't back down. Allen was a tenacious, prideful charge, and the unique circumstances of his existence tested Amul's abilities in ways they never had been before. It invigorated him, a new experience to add to his own understanding of the world.
So like Amul, whom he viewed as a father, Allen was trained in the art of the spear. The two would constantly find that the other tested their skills and very perception of the world, and both their lives became all the richer for it.
They eventually went on many missions together as hunters, facing near-death situations in their day to day lives until Allen was well into his twenties and by all respects, a formidable young man. At this point, he couldn't help but feel that he was on the precipice of surpassing Amul.
That was the same year Amul fell ill with a strange disease that began to rob him of his senses and memories. Though Allen knew how to heal others, this was something beyond his knowledge.
As a fenvasi, Allen did not get sick. He did not experience mortal concerns the way others around him did. And even if he had the capabilities to learn how to do so, how could he? Nobody had ever seen an illness like this before. There was no information to draw from, no clear point to even start learning.
Determined to cure him, Allen embarked on a journey to Resonivasis, the realm of the divine, in search of someone who could do what he could not.
Here, he would meet Dmitri Obekot, a fenvasi regarded as a rising star in the world of medicine and alchemy. The only individual who would sympathise with Allen's odd plight, Dmitri accompanied him back to the Kiivofen and attempted to treat Amul. But all he could do was ease the man's fits of rage and pain before he passed away weeks later.
During this time, Dmitri and Allen became unlikely close friends: though their backgrounds and lives couldn't be more different, they had both become familiar with the pain that came through the loss of family and brotherhood. Dmitri, being an outsider, had none of the preconceptions of what Allen was supposed to be. It was strangely refreshing.
For once, despite the enormous gap between their strength, Allen felt like it wasn't dull to talk to another person. And when it came for Dmitri to return to Resonivasis, Allen swore that he'd repay the man for his help one day.
But before that, there was something else he had to.
From then on, Allen would grow to become the deadliest hunter of the Kiivofen, a folk hero that singlehandedly culled the viendol numbers to extinction and brought peace back to the region.
That was who he was, at least, to the people who didn't know him. The masses praised his name and showered him with accolades and riches.
Yet to the hunters who worked alongside him, he was regarded as an insufferable egomaniac, a man that adamantly refused the notion anyone could ever take a place at his side.
There would never be someone who was his equal. There would never be another Amul. And common people, as predictable and bland as they were, would never be worth his time.
Their ordinary lives were nothing short of unsightly. And like how ordinary people looked at insects crawling through the floorboard, Allen looked at them the same, completely repulsed by their existence.
Once the were viendol gone, ennui started to settle in. Gradually, Allen began to feel as if he no longer had a reason to exist.
He had been created for one purpose, and that was to save his people. Now that they were saved, how would he spend the rest of his days? The thought of complacency and idle luxury disgusted him to the core. There had to be something else worth doing. Something else that made him feel alive.
For better or worse, Allen was never the type to take "no" for an answer. With nothing to challenge him, it became evident that he would have to find the challenges himself.
Perhaps the true path left over was to seek out the strongest of foes. When he finally towered above every other challenger in sight, it could be there that he would find the fulfillment he desired. At that point, he would have his place among the gods. Sounded interesting enough.
The conclusion following that was also straightforward. He would have to seek out nothing less than the fabled blood djinn himself. If he could defeat Kii, he would easily surpass the gods themselves. After all, the gods, in all their power and wisdom, merely succeeded in imprisoning the beast, unable to completely destroy it.
By triumphing over Kii, he would go where no man, arva or otherwise, had ever dreamed of reaching.
And if he truly couldn't best such a foe?
Then he would die in trying, devoting his existence to that lofty ideal and serving as an inspiration for the eons to come.
He would never settle for anything other than extraordinary; such an unsightly fate was much worse than death.
And so he fought and fought, scouting out dangerous ordeals one after the other with no regard for his life. He had to overcome everything there was in order to sharpen his skills for his final fight. The fight that would define his life. With unwavering focus and precision, he fought the days away, determined to take on every fearsome beast in the desert to better himself to new heights.
Yet before he could encounter an enemy that would ultimately kill him, Allen dug up an old leather bag one night while emptying out Amul's old home. It was Dmitri's.
Seeing it in that moment prompted Allen to consider something that he had casually brushed off before: leaving the Kiivofen.
He had considered it for a brief moment many years ago. But at the time, the viendol were still a persistent threat. There was still a goal for him, and beyond that, there were many loose ends to tie up. Besides, throughout the majority of his life, everything he desired to live and die by was already at his disposal within the Kiivofen. The answer had always been exceedingly obvious.
Now, listless and without purpose, he saw few drawbacks to travelling. He had long considered the wider world to be a distraction from his goals.
But perhaps, in this instance, it could serve as a new opportunity. Maybe there was something worthy of challenge out there. He would return the bag to Dmitri, breathe in some new sights, and take it from there.
In an unexpected turn of events, Allen found himself settling into Resovinasis instead.
There, with no shortage of people to duel and learn from, Allen felt reignited with purpose. He threw himself headfirst into this new life, honing his skills at anything and everything that caught his eye. He had only intended a short stay, just a few days to learn more about Dmitri's secluded habits.
But a few days turned into a few weeks, a few weeks into months, and the rest was history. Eventually, he fought his way into a public position, becoming the youngest Officer of Resolution in the history of fenvasi and making himself widely (and loudly) known for his skill.
It was there he remained to this day, romping around the lumenoluun and challenging both friend and foe alike to all manners of brazen competition. Until boredom overtook him once more, he supposed it would be a good use of his time to fight some new adversaries.
If anyone, it was going to be him who showed enemies of the lumena the misfortune of standing in his way.