Daniel admitted to himself, "I've never made a splint before, but I know the concept of it." He gathered grass and small planks of wood conveniently buried nearby. Contemplating the first step, he muttered, "Okay. So, the first step is to twist my ankle... back in the right direction." Staring at his ankle, his heart raced at the thought of having to twist it again.
"Shit... I don't even know if I can do this!" Daniel's inner monologue persisted as he sat there with a blank stare. Trying to muster courage, he told himself, "Just do it. Don't be a little bitch. Think of it like this... umm, ripping a Band-Aid! Yeah, that's a good thought. Like ripping a band-aid off!" Gathering his whimsical courage, he began to count. "Alright. 1... 2... Okay, maybe I shouldn't... no-no. I got this. Aaaaaaaaand. 3‽"
*SNAP*
"Ahhhhhhh!!!!" Daniel screamed, attempting to dispel all the fear and pain that flared at that moment. He panted while staring at his foot, as he realized he had accomplished his task. "Shit... At least my foot is facing in the right direction now... Hehe... Right direction... Right foot..." Daniel chuckled at his unintentional pun.
He quickly placed the wood planks at the bottom and sides of his foot and then proceeded to wrap them in place with the dead grass. He hopped over to a fallen palm tree and grabbed a big leaf, splitting it so he could tie everything in place. After finishing the makeshift splint, he laid down on the sand...
*Sigh*
'I'm really confused..' Daniel thought to himself.
'This sky... It doesn't feel like home at all. But I'm not uncomfortable here, which makes me curious.' Daniel felt and looked rather lonely.
As he lay there, a memory surged from within the confines of his mind.
...
"Bro, come on let's go. Just one raid! We gotta defeat that raid boss, and I can't do it without you!" Daniel's brother spoke with a cracking voice.
Daniel finally turned around and looked at him, putting down his book.
"Alright, alright. I'll join you. Hop on now and invite me to a party." Daniel gave in; the puppy eyes his brother gave him were too effective.
"Less gooo!!" Daniel's brother ran to his room and turned on his gaming console, quickly followed up by inserting his favorite game in excitement.
Daniel got up and turned on his console as well.
Soon, they were a few hours into the raid, with a couple of friends and two blueberries.
"Last phase y'all, we've almost got this!" One of the blueberries that joined encouraged the six-man team.
Under their intense firepower and half-assed coordination, they finally depleted the raid boss's last bit of HP.
*Squelch*
The raid boss died, its head exploding into a gory mess of pieces that littered their screens.
"Finally!!"
"Woooooooo!!!"
"That was intense!"
"Not bad for our first time!"
"Thank God! I almost pissed myself! Brb!"
"Haha, his small bladder is acting up, guys! Cloudy can never catch a break, what a little bitch!"
"We did it! Bro, you're the best!" Daniel's brother spoke up, his eyes glittering as he looked at Daniel's character in-game.
"Shh. I know haha. There's a cut scene guys, cloudy is gonna miss it haha, poor bastard."
Everyone quieted down as they watched the scene.
"For defeating my champion in battle, you have my blessing. Reap your rewards and flourish in your glory! Everyone will know your name. I hope you all grow fat with strength!" A deep and sonorous voice echoed throughout as the Emperor toasted to their victory.
"I'm back! Ah, shit. I missed the first part!!"
The whole group laughed and yelled into their mics with delirium, except for Cloudy.
The phrase "Grow fat with strength!" echoed in the party chat, distorted by the digital medium they communicated through.
Years of gaming together unfolded, and their motto was derived from their initial triumph.
...
Daniel couldn't help but smile at the memory. Suddenly, an intense pang of hunger hit him. His heartbeat surged, adrenaline pumping, and he felt a bit cranky. Prompting him to abruptly stand up.
'Woah... My foot! It's okay now?' Daniel untied his makeshift splint & low & behold. His foot was perfectly fine. The previous mobility & dexterity were even better than before!
'Weird! Usually, the human body doesn't repair itself as it should; like there should be some cracking when I roll my ankle.'
*Proceeds to roll ankle*
'But there isn't.' Daniel was genuinely captivated by his recovery.
Daniel soon lost himself to the thought of human anatomy.
'How in the hell is the human body able to grow a fully functioning human in roughly nine months, but fail to repair itself properly in a few weeks?' Daniel pondered the intricacies of human healing, recalling all the past times someone would get hurt, and their body would never be the same! It was a shame!
A shame I tell you!
This is the world's 8th wonder!
"Ugh," Daniel audibly groaned as his hunger intensified.
Soon, he spotted a lizard. As he slowly started walking towards it, he realized he didn't have a weapon.
'I'm not a brutal murderer; I've never killed anything before, so how the heck am I supposed to do so without a weapon?'
Considering the option of double-fisting, he quickly dismissed it, anticipating the inevitable puke fest.
Searching the surroundings, he soon found a thick piece of wood.
Upon grabbing it, he noticed its stark contrast to the palm trees, resembling more the color of ash, and it carried a considerable weight. Its shape bore a striking resemblance to that of a club.
One side of the wood was noticeably thicker, while the other end was slimmer.
'How convenient, I'll just use this. Hopefully, it dies with one hit.'
With that thought in mind, Daniel crouched and cautiously approached the lone lizard, which bore a striking resemblance to a Komodo dragon. It was relatively large, moving with a slow, waddling gait.
As Daniel got closer his scalp tingled & his skin got goosebumps. He really didn't want to kill anything, and while he was a bit numb to violence because of all the games he's played in the past, reality, in the end, is still reality.
A deep pang of hunger reverberated within Daniel as he braced himself mentally.