Hot. That was Alex’s first impression of the planet. That, and the fact that he could taste the iron in the air.

No way that’s good for the lungs, he mused.

He stepped off the ramp leading out of the ship onto the landing pad. The port they landed in was a small compound surrounded by six large pads, from his position he could see one other ship, this one a massive, blocky, black behemoth that somehow dwarfed their ship. It lacked the elegant curves and sharp points their ship had, but at least it wasn’t the same gold that everything branded by the Roc Empire was. Alex really needed to ask about that. He couldn’t be the only one that thought it was tacky and ugly.

In the distance Alex could see the sprawling outline of a city in the distance. From a distance the buildings seemed squat, all a drab reddish hue.

“Alright, everyone form up,” Torval shouted to their group, “Lieutenant Basti has issued the request for supplies, he assigned second squad to work with the docks. Due to some administrative delays, your leave is extended to three hours.”

That got cheers from the five person squad.

“Quiet down,” Torval shouted, though she, too, was smiling. “As of now, we are switching back to common. No one is to speak English, or any other language from Earth, including you Alex. Is that understood?”

Everyone nodded to the sergeant.

“Good, let’s head out.” At least Alex thought that's what she said, the only words he recognized were 'good' and 'out.' Despite his improved memory, there was a lot of Common he still had to learn.

Alex and the group of six soldiers clambered up onto an open topped, six wheeled vehicle they had requisitioned for the trip. The vehicle buzzed to life with a low whine, and they shot off, racing across barren red lands towards the silhouette of a city in the distance.

As they got closer, Alex found he had been mistaken. Rather than a drab red coloring, every building was a different color, giving the city a vibrant rainbow appearance. The red appearance must have been from all the dust in the air. That being said, the buildings were short and wide. Alex decided that made a certain amount of sense though. According to Vill, mining colonies tended to have relatively small populations, so when you have a whole planet’s worth of space, why build up when you can build out?

A wall surrounded the city, standing roughly twenty meters high. Alex wanted to ask Vill about it, but didn’t know the word for wall. The soldiers, meanwhile, chatted and joked in Common, and he was unable to catch most of what was said. He smiled despite this, he was on an alien planet!

They drove through a wide open gate in the wall, and were soon cruising between the colorful buildings. The streets were relatively empty, with only the occasional civilian walking around.

"Where… people?" Alex asked in Common.

Vill responded, but Alex stared at her in confusion, not understanding anything she said. She stared back for a moment before saying, "Work."

That made sense.

"Where go?" Alex asked next.

"Market," she said. He smiled at that, marketplaces were where cultivators always found cheat treasures in stories, although he had a feeling he wouldn't be so lucky. Maybe he should have wished for luck instead of comprehension.

He sat back and enjoyed the sights of foreign architecture flowing by. After a few more minutes, they entered a crowded square. Found the people, Alex thought to himself.

The marketplace was awash in color and noise. Clothing and weapon merchants shouted out in their foreign tongue. Food vendors grilled meat and waved towards fresh breads and varied produce. The smell of the food reminded Alex somewhat of Indian cuisine.

The marines all hopped out of the vehicle, and Vill pulled Alex along with her.

"Food," she said. Alex nodded. He was a big fan of food.

She spent the next hour leading him from vendor to vendor, stuffing him with skewers loaded with roast meat and vegetables. They ate some sort of noodle covered in a spicy and sweet sauce. A candied nut that left his stomach tingling was one of his favorites. They reminded him a bit of peanuts, but with a hint of cherry flavoring.

They were in line for what looked like a dumpling stall, when Alex heard shouting behind him.

Alex turned around to find people screaming and running from a man dressed in silver robes who was yelling something in Common. His arms were spread out, one hand holding some sort of strange object.

Vill shoved him towards the vendor while reaching for the pistol at her side. She drew it in one smooth motion, aiming directly at the man.

Alex watched as her trigger started to move, but then the world turned white.

---

Alex gasped awake. His ears were ringing, and his body burned with pain. The telltale sign of his healing factor, intense itching, could be felt all over his body. He tried to sit up, but his body wouldn't respond to his mental commands.

He tried to open his eyes, and the left one opened. His right eye just itched. Madly.

Alex was greeted with the sight of hell. No, wait, that's just the red sky of this planet, Alex thought. He chuckled at that, but laughing hurt and when he tried to breathe in, fluid filled his lungs. He started to choke and cough.

Eventually his coughing fit passed. With a great deal of effort, Alex managed to turn his head. All he saw was desolation. What was once a bustling market was now a mess of broken stalls and flaming debris. He did his best to ignore what was left of the bodies of civilians.

Where the man in silver once stood, only a blackened crater remained.

The ringing in his ears finally started to fade, along with a bit of the itching.

"-lex! Alex! Where are you?"

That sounded like Vill. How was she still alive?

"Hey, who the fuck are-"

A low, piercing whine sounded out. Vill didn't speak again.

Alex renewed his struggle to move. No dice. He tried thinking of something else he could do, but his mind felt muddled. Why was he trying to move again?

Alex heard new voices, this time in a strange language. He recognized the language though. Common, right? How did he-

Vill! He renewed his struggle to move, and finally succeeded, sending an agonizing wave of pain through his body. He moaned in anguish and consciousness faded.

---

He woke to more voices, this time even closer. The itching had reduced, so he assumed he'd healed significantly more while he was out this time. He sat up, trying to ignore the pain his movement induced.

Alex looked around, he saw groups of people in brown clothes scurrying around picking up any survivors they could find.

"Hey, I could use some help," he called out weakly, voice hoarse from the pain.

A pair of men rushed towards him, they said something he didn't understand and Alex shook his head, unsure how to respond.

One of them laughed, then reached into his pocket. He pulled out a silver collar. Alex looked at it in confusion.

"What's that for?" He asked in confusion. Was it something to help heal people?

His naivety was proven when the collar snapped shut around his neck. The cold chill of metal contrasted with the heat of the world.

The two men spoke to each other briefly, then one of them hoisted Alex up and dragged him towards a large covered truck. He was tossed into the back and landed in a heap on the floor. Several scared looking people huddled at the back of the truck, each of them wearing a silver collar.

Alex couldn't help but curse. He barely survived some sort of terrorist attack, only to get kidnapped by slavers. How terrible was his luck?

"Screw this," he said. He tried to stand, and failed miserably. So he tried again. And again.

After over a dozen attempts, he gave up and decided to crawl towards the exit of the truck. It was slow, painful progress but he eventually made it, only for the door of the truck to slam shut. Alex screamed in frustration.

---

The truck shuddered and rumbled for the next few hours. At least it felt like hours, Alex was having trouble keeping track of time. The itching of his healing body was driving him mad.

When the vehicle finally stopped, he was glad for the distraction. The back of the truck squealed open and a bright light shone into its interior.

The huddled mass of people behind him shrunk back, but Alex just glared at the light. He felt uncharacteristically angry about the whole situation. Maybe he was starting to lose it with how bizarre his life had become,, or maybe it was the pain still radiating throughout his body. Either way, who the hell were these people to abduct a bunch of victims of a suicide bomber?

With a snarl he leapt towards the light, only to get struck in the face by a club.

---

He woke up once more, this time in a dimly lit cage, surrounded by dirty, smelly people. They appeared to be in a large stone cavern, surrounded by the red iron ore that composed most of the planet. Everyone in the cage wore a collar. One of the prisoners was gently kicking Alex in the side, whispering at him. He assumed that is what woke him up.

"Up… up…" Alex only understood one of the words out of the man's mouth, but it was enough. Alex quickly stood up, and noticed a surprising lack of pain from the movement. The man smiled sadly at him and nodded.

Before Alex could attempt to ask why he needed to be up, a man came up to the cage and started rattling the bars with a black club.

The man, Alex assumed he was one of the slavers, started barking out words in a harsh tone.

"...mine ... eat… better." He glared at everyone in the cage, then proceeded to unlock it.

Alex and the rest of the prisoners, or slaves he guessed, were quickly herded out of the cage and led towards a pile of pickaxes. Alex could guess what he was supposed to do from here, no translation necessary.

He stuck close to the man that had woken him up, assuming he was probably a pretty decent person. Once everyone had a pick, they were led through a series of tunnels. Eventually they stopped, though Alex had no idea why, and everyone started swinging their pickaxes.

He looked around, uncertain how exactly to go about this, but the slaver didn't seem to appreciate that and viciously kicked Alex in the back. The man shouted at him.

"Fuck you too," Alex muttered back. That earned him a kick to the face. At least the man tried to kick him in the face, Alex caught his foot and pulled the man to the ground.

The man fell with a yelp, clearly panicking at the being pulled down. Alex didn't care, his hand grabbed at the man's club, and they struggled for control over the weapon. Alex was a bit stronger, but couldn't get a good grasp on it, so he headbutted the man.

As the slaver's grasp loosened, Alex lifted the club and started slamming it into the man's head. He stopped when the dull thudding impacts became wet squelches.

All the other slaves around him stared at him with looks of shock and horror. The man who'd woken him up stared at him impassively.

"Big mistake," the man said simply. Alex wished he hadn't understood that.

Rapid footsteps echoed through the mine, and Alex looked behind himself to see three new slavers in brown robes approaching. He quickly turned and rushed towards them, not willing to go down without a fight.

The lead slaver held up a hand, and a burst of white lightning cracked outward. It connected with Alex's chest and his body seized up. He tumbled to the ground at their feet.

The lead slaver sneered down at him, his face twisted by an ugly scar that trailed from his left eye to his lips.

His hand pointed at Alex again. This time red lightning shot forth, and Alex was consumed with pain.