Dejected from having the jackpot ripped from his grasp, Terran cheerlessly turned to the brown bag, which had appeared out of thin air and was now lying on his stomach. Sitting up, he fumbled around with the sack and found about two dozen brown fruits.
Immediately a deep rumbling noise echoed off of the mountain peaks. Looking around, Terran half expected to see the ground shaking from an earthquake. However, after looking down, he realized that this noise was coming from his stomach. Although Sophie had shared things she called nutrient fluids with him during their short time together, rations were spread thin. After all, she had initially only packed food for herself. As she was on her way back to the city, her supplies had already been dwindling.
Terran had already run out of his jackalope meat before running into Sophie. Suffice to say, his stomach was completely empty.
After his long run and his ascent up the mountain, his mouth was constantly cracking from a lack of water.
With his earlier desire outweighing his hunger irrelevant, his body screamed for food and water. Seeing the two-dozen small juicy fruits sitting before him, his previous dissatisfaction was immediately void.
Without waiting for another second, he grabbed the nearest fruit and used his thumbs to punch a hole through the skin before tearing it in two halves. Then, holding it above his head, he let the juices drip into his mouth before biting into the beautiful green fruit dotted with an abundance of black seeds.
Compared to all of the unseasoned raw meat he had eaten before, this kiwi tasted like a true blessing from the gods. Unshackled, he quickly grabbed the next fruit and did not stop until he felt satisfied.
Three minutes and seven-teen kiwis later and Terran finally stopped. His hands and face were utterly sticky, but he could care less. For the first time in his memories, his body was not demanding something of him. Instead, he felt unshackled, and at this moment he had more ideas about his future than ever before. He was no longer secluded and lost in an endless wasteland. There was a city to explore, people to meet, and information to learn.
One could make the case that his life was only starting now, but at the end of the day, it was his past and present that would define his future.
Looking into the sack, Terran noticed six kiwis remaining.
"I should really give these fruits to Miss Sophie the next time I see her as a thankyou gift! The last 24 hours would have been 24 more hours of hell without her company." With excitement written all over his face, Terran continued towards the city. For the first time ever, he was looking forward to his future.
The path ahead was littered with trees and shrubs in an abundance that Terran had never even dared to imagine. He also noticed several species he had never come across. It was as if he was exploring a planet different from the one he had been wandering about for the past two years. Anyone would assume the lush pathway was in a different world than the red wasteland.
It had been no more than twenty meters when the dense fog started to clear. From there, it was only a matter of steps until Terran was met with a view unlike any other. In front of him was a lush metropolis that went as far as the eye could see.
He had always dreamed of finding a settlement, but in his imagination, there would be huts carved into the rock and shacks thrown together with whatever could be found. He had never dared to think of the futuristic city that now sat in front of him.
The sight would leave anyone stunned as the city's beauty was something even gods would marvel at. Yet, for Terran, someone whose eyes had only been familiar with endless red rocks, words could not describe how breathless he currently felt. It was not until two minutes later that he remembered to breathe again.
The city held an uncountable number of skyscrapers that surpassed the valley's mountains in height and elegance and pierced into the fluffy clouds above. Only the vibrant blue barrier stood above such buildings. Meanwhile, the mysterious clouds sticking to the surrounding mountains blocked the view of the glorious skyline from the outside.
On the ground, filling in the cracks between buildings, were trees growing in a density that even surpassed the unbeaten path Terran was currently standing on. Underneath the canopy of trees, one would think that the ground was moving. However, if they looked closely, they would notice that it was just the myriad of people crowding the streets below.
Everything the eye could see greatly contrasted all of what Terran had come to know about this world. It was simply unbelievable. However, none of this could compare to what lay at the city's center.
A chill ran down Terran's spine as he felt the urge that had been driving him as he looked at the center of the city. Thankfully, he was quickly able to suppress it. If before it had been his lifeline, it was now just a temptation. Rather than water to someone dying of dehydration, it was more like a lottery ticket to someone with a gambling addiction.
Laying in what Terran could only assume was the city's center was actually a lack of anything. The buildings consistently got taller the closer to the center they were built and yet passed a point there were no buildings.
Despite standing at a relatively high height, he was having trouble seeing past the buildings at that point. There was a dense haze unlike the white fluffy clouds creating a wall that blocked the view.
Such a mind-blowing metropolis begged a very important question: Where did all the resources to build and maintain it originate from? This thought crossed Terran's mind, but he did not linger on it for long. The serotonin running through his brain would not allow it.
Excited, Terran slid down the steep cliff overlooking the city, catching himself every few meters on a rock or tree. Before he knew it, he was surrounded by a bustling crowd going through their daily routines.
LED signs directed the crowds into the various shops lining the street, small stalls exhibited a large assortment of pottery and artwork, and street performers serenaded the streets with music.
Terran could not stop staring as his eyes absorbed his surroundings. Every little detail intrigued him and pulled his attention in a different direction. Although a few merchants tried to sell to him, something more interesting would always catch his eye and draw his train of thought elsewhere.
Despite all the little things directing his mind in different directions, as he walked, his body ended up taking him to the heart of the city; the place he could not make out from atop the mountain.
Terran wandered throughout the city for hours, but after a while, he started feeling a bit overwhelmed. The whole metropolis was a bit too much to take in all at once. While he had gained freedom and opportunity, he had lost his purpose.
What did other people around his age do? His mind told him that they would most likely be attending school, but how would one with no background go about joining? How would he afford food and housing? He wanted to fit into this civilization, but it felt alien to him, and he didn't know how to go about it. All these thoughts were giving him a headache, and currently, he was wishing he was still with Miss Sophie. He was sure she would help him figure these things out, yet he had already botched this avenue.
While these questions plagued his mind, the change in his surroundings was placed in the back of his head. As Terran wandered, pondering his situation, the streets became less crowded, and the pathways and buildings became noticeably cleaner and fancier.
On a backstreet, Terran came to find his path blocked by a tall metallic wall, but it was clear that the jungle of buildings continued past this point. Not once had he ever let a barrier stop him from his destination, and he was not going to stop now. To add to his reasoning, the biggest mystery that had been eating away at him lay in the middle of the metropolis, which just so happened to be in the same direction.
Without a second thought, Terran began to scale the side of the building. Luckily the wall had small indents in-between the black granite blocks that made up the section. However, before he could make it halfway up the wall, he felt something poke him from behind. Immediately, a tenacious electric current ran rampant throughout his body, causing him to lose his grip and fall. Before he hit the ground, his eyes blacked out as he lost consciousness.