This fanfic is was strongly inspired by "The Zerg Swarm" by East Bridge. It will probably have similarities to the other story because of this. However, I still intend to have my own spin on things.

Disclaimer: I do not own Starcraft or Starcraft II. They are owned by Blizzard.

Chapter 1: Awakening

The only thing the boy thought when he regained consciousness was that he had a splitting headache. The last thing he remembered was falling from a high place… a… a catwalk in the downtown theater? Or was it from high up in a tree?

He was suddenly very confused. He tried to remember. His name. Jacob. He grew up in Pennsylvania…

No, wait.

His name was Jeros. He was born here on Morsalus, a world with a larger sun and brilliant star clouds (nebulae, he realized; a word he recognized from… somewhere) brightening the night sky…

Okay, now he was really confused. He wasn't exactly sure how or why, but somehow he had two sets of memories: One of a boy name Jacob who lived on Earth, and another of Jeros, who lived on Morsalus. Squinting at the intruding light, he opened his eyes to the worn thatched roof of… the serf barracks.

He groaned softly and rolled onto his side, memories slowly filtering through his over-stuffed mind. He remembered moving to and growing up in a suburb in Pennsylvania with his mom, Rebecca, and his dad, Phillip. He remembered volunteering at his school's theater production to work the lights. And he remembered the catwalk creaking ominously for a moment before one of the cables holding it snapped and the catwalk tilted, knocking Jacob off. He remembered a moment of awful pain as he hit the ground and then…

Nothing. Waking up here. And yet…

He also remembered growing up here on Morsalus as a serf under Duke Farien, who was the lord of this land and a vassal to King Darius. His mother, Anna, had begun life as a serf, but she and his father Thomas, a Manus-wielding knight, had fallen in love and married, raising her to the middle class. Unfortunately, Thomas had been killed defending the Duke's holdings, and with his death, Anna, who had been pregnant with Jeros at the time, was cast back down the class ladder, and became a serf once more. It was only thanks to the money Thomas had left them that she had been able to raise Jeros until he could begin working as well.

Morsalus. The world he was on was much like, and yet also very different from, the Earth Jacob grew up on. This world was populated by humans much the same as Earth, but rather than using science and technology, they wielded Magic, and Manus, a sort of physical energy which was used to augment the wielder's body. The technological state of the world was much the same as what Jacob knew as Medieval Europe, with the High King Darius (the strongest Manus-wielder on the planet) appointing vassal lords to govern his vast territories. The duke who more or less owned Jeros and his mother was a mid-level Magic-wielder, specializing in Ice Magic, a variant of Water Magic. Magic-wielders were able to manipulate the elements, while Manus-wielders possessed the ability to enforce and enhance their physical might and, at higher levels, project it.

Slowly, as Jeros' mind calmed, he became aware of a… presence, of sorts, in the back of his mind. A soft… calling, almost. He had a faint idea that he should be… well, he wasn't sure where, but somewhere else. He needed to find a proper place for something called a nexus.

Before he could contemplate that further, the door of the cottage opened and his mother entered, carrying a small bundle of herbs. She looked over at him with concern, which quickly melted into relief when she saw that he was awake.

"Oh, thank goodness," she said, walking over to the cot Jeros was lying on, "I was beginning to get worried you wouldn't wake up."

Jeros smiled weakly. "What happened?" he asked.

His mother frowned slightly. "You were harvesting in the orchard yesterday morning," she answered, "when the branch you were on fell out from under you. Ryan carried you back here."

Jeros nodded, rolling onto his back, staring at the ceiling. Ryan was another serf who lived in their small community under the duke. Jeros would have to thank him somehow later…

Jeros frowned, noticing something. By the light streaming through the window, he guessed that it was mid-afternoon. If he'd been out for almost a day and a half, shouldn't he be at least a little bit hungry, if not starving? And yet, he wasn't. If anything he felt full, almost too full. Like he needed to expel… something from his being.

Psionic Energy, a voice whispered in his head.

Jeros blinked. He wondered for a brief instant what the voice was, but as his thoughts strayed to the phrase Psionic Energy, the voice spoke again.

Stored Psionic Energy: 0 units

Hierarch Psionic Energy: 100/100 units

Psionic Matrix Coverage: Hierarch

Psionic Matrix at maximum capacity.

He blinked again, confused. He hadn't realized until now, but he recognized those words from Jacob's set of memories. The problem was, the only placed he'd heard them used in that way was in a video game Jacob had enjoyed playing, Starcraft. But… did that mean he was supposed to build a Protoss nexus? How was he going to do that? The voice spoke again.

Nexus: Primary Protoss Structure. Produces probe units. Unlocks Pylon. Psionic Energy cost: 100 units.

From what Jeros could tell he was supposed to build this Nexus, but first, he somehow knew that he had to find a proper place for it.

He glanced over at his mother. He wanted to tell her about the voice, and about his new memories, his new mission, but…

He needed to figure this out for himself first. He sat back, and waited.

Jeros waited until that night to sneak out. His mother hadn't left his side since he'd woken up, and even if she had, he didn't want anyone to know about what he was trying to do. Not yet, at least. Quietly and thankfully without incident, he was able to sneak out of the serfs' compound, which was situated just outside of the castle walls and fenced in by a wood-stick wall and gate. Even if he had been spotted, he doubted the guards would even raise the alarm. Chasing after someone, especially during the night, was a great undertaking. The pine forests around village were filled with Demonians, monstrous creatures of every shape and size that covered nearly all of the uncivilized portions of Morsalus. The further one went out from the castle, the fiercer they became. Some of the more dangerous ones could even practice a lower form of magic. The amount of manpower required to mount a rescue effort was not worth the life of a single serf.

Jeros knew he should have been terrified as he trekked through the forest. He had no ability with Magic or Manus, no weapons or training with them, and even the lowest of level one Demonians could probably rip him to shreds. And yet, as he walked along the barely visible trail through forest, he never saw a single Demonian. He heard occasional scuffling in the underbrush as he passed, but always in the distance good ways away from him, rather than nearby and moving in for the kill.

Jeros walked for several hours, breaking into a run when the thick trees permitted it, making his way through the trees toward the mountainous valley to the north, just visible on the horizon from the castle walls. Any normal person would have had to stop for rest, but whatever had been done to him had drastically extended his endurance. He had not even broken a sweat.

Eventually, he came to the valley. Perhaps a mile long and little less wide, the valley was sequestered in the center of four mountains that began a long mountain range stretching off to the east. The pass he entered from was at the southern end of the valley, and was the only entrance, high cliffs rising in a ring around the depression. The central area of the valley was mostly flat, and a small lake sat off to the left at the far end of the valley, fed by a small waterfall. Short grasses grew around the lake, thinning out the further one drew back from the water. A barren hill rose up at the other end of the valley, set against the cliffs. Anyone standing on the hill would have a clear view of the whole valley.

There, Jeros thought, that's where it has to go.

He walked down the rocky slope and into the valley, slowly making his way across the plain and up to the crest of the hill. There, he paused to consider what to do. A single phrase came to his mind, which he spoke aloud.

"Warp in Nexus."

With a great shuddering rush, Jeros felt the psionic energy within him drain out, and directly in front of him, a massive glowing ball of blue light flashed into existence, glowing energy flickering erratically. The voice spoke once again in his head.

Warping Nexus. Approximate warp time: 5 hours.

Stored Psionic Energy: 0 units

Hierarch Psionic Energy: 0 units

Psionic Matrix Coverage: Pending

Then, in a sudden rush, exhaustion filled him, and Jeros collapsed unconscious.