Walking on a black asphalt Road was a man with thin black hair and a sickly pale face.
He had a name. But that's not important. He will be known as The Evaluator.
The Evaluator was walking because he had somewhere to be.
That place was a small town that was many miles away from all civilization. It was very isolated. Meaning it was a perfect target for the Trolls.
They had sent a would-be-warrior to try and protect this town.
And he had completed his task in a day. Or at least that's what he said. The Evaluator was here to check if that was true. And see if he passed.
Okay. This should be it.
The Evaluator crested a hill before him. Revealed in front of him was a town. No, that wasn't right.
I couldn't be called a town. A town that had once been a town. No. That would mean it's still a town. It was a spot of ash that had once been a town.
What is this?
With his usual slow stalk, The Evaluator walked into the town.
The sight revealed before him was grim. There was death and destruction in every direction, there were charred corpses and piles of ash in the place of buildings. Everything was destroyed. It looked like some kind of fighter jet had flown through the town and pumped it full of fire.
Woman. Men. Children.
It didn't matter who. They were all dead now.
Jesus. This must be from the system.
The system. A power that even the best scientists have only begun to understand. It was a mechanism that could be blamed for every unknown factor in the world.
And clearly, John had used it to the best of his abilities.
This is madness. He was supposed to defend the town. Not destroy it.
But he'd displayed power that was more than uncanny for a newb-level hunter. He would probably be fired if he failed him.
C- -
That would be his grade.
The world's gone mad.
...…
Food. Oh, food. Oh, magnificent food. Let me speak to you! Let be be with you! Let me know you! Let me show you who to love. Spoiler. IT'S ME! Food. Oh, food. Oh, magnificent food. I love you more than the sky. More than the shimmering lie that his bad pie. I love you more than any girl or any guy. Food. Oh, food. I love only you.
John walked through the warriors' testing compound with a dazed look.
He went to the cafeteria to search for food, but he wasn't able to find anything. He had eaten it all. There was none left.
On an unrelated point. For some reason, any stray human that John saw walked by seemed to smell much better than the average.
John couldn't think of a reason why. He could think of only a single thing.
FOOD! Oh, magnificent food! FOOD! Oh, FOOD! I! LOVE! YOU!
It was his soul's song. One he couldn't stop signing.
"Why are you drooling?"
John's head snapped in the direction of the voice.
it's another Troll.
John hammered his foot forward and pulled his fist back.
Then, he promptly collapsed on the ground. His hands were wrapped around his stomach.
"Hey scum drinker. Don't try me."
John looked up at the voice.
A skinny man with a shining bald scalp and deep blue eyes looked down at him.
"YIP!"
Fire and ice shot towards his man.
John expected that after the veil of ice and fire vanished, a frosted and scorched face would be revealed to him. But instead, as the veil vanished, all that was revealed was a man with a refreshed smile on his face.
He looked like the happiest man alive.
"Damn. That's more refreshing than an ice bath. You know. If you want, I could buy those things from you. How about ten million?"
John just looked at him.
"I'd rather die." He said.
The man frowned.
"Too bad. Anyways. My name's Robert. Nice to meet you."
He extended his hand down for John to shake. John simply looked at the hand with an expression that was one-half bafflement and one-half hatred.
You don't offer to shake a man's hand after knocking him onto the ground. By the point when you've knocked him over, you've already given enough of an introduction.
"No, thank you. I've already met you." Said John
"When? You don't look familiar. And I happen to have a bit of a kink for faces."
I met you about thirty seconds ago.
"Well, I remember you." Said John
"Okay, then, buddy. Anyways. I was sent to tell you that you'll be moved out of the compound tomorrow. You've just been evaluated, and you've passed your test. You did badly but you did it fast. So they're putting you into a midlevel team. Make sure to keep your face intact if you die. There's only so many faces, and it would suck to lose one." Said the man.
John could only look at him with a look of irritation.
Maybe there will be food there?
That was all John could think on that subject. Maybe there will be food.
Food.
That's all John ever cared about.
The bald man left after that. And John continued on with his day.
{1,000 Calories consumed}
He found two rats and three mice. He ate them but they didn't completely fill him up.
After that he returned to his room and settled into his bed.
With a serene expression on his face, he fell asleep.
...
A little girl with a cruel smile on her face sat in a dark room. She sat on no discernable chair, but it still appeared as if she was sitting on something. It was like she was sitting on the air.
In her lap, she cradled a trumpet that was soaked deep red with blood.
"You know. You can only deny who you are for so long. What you did, John... It defines you."
John could only watch on in this dark room. His face was pale, and his eyes were filled with fear.
The little girl brought her Trumpet to her lips.
She began to play a song.
NONONONONONONO
And then the dream was crushed by a green light.
The envelope swelled.