The village lay in ruins, engulfed in a sea of flames and the stench of death. Corpses littered the ground, their blood mixing with the molten rubble.
Above it all, the colossal red dragon roared, its fiery breath scorching everything in its path. Amidst the chaos, a lone warrior appeared, clad in shimmering silver armor and wielding a massive greatsword.
With unwavering resolve, he sprinted towards the monstrous creature, his sword raised high as he aimed for its exposed head.
Before he could strike, the dragon lashed out with its massive tail, sending him flying across the village and slamming into the nearby wall with bone-crushing force.
The knight's head throbbed as he struggled to stand upright, his vision blurred and limbs trembling.
He reached for a glowing vial of healing potion, but a sudden explosion engulfed him in flames before he could take a sip. With a final scream, his body was reduced to charred remains on the battlefield.
YOU DIED
"NOOOO! Damn it." A teenage boy's voice echoed through his mic as he yelled in frustration at his game.
"I can't dodge during the animation of the stupid healing, what a stupid game." The bright red words on his screen announced yet another defeat.
"Come on, Jason! Are you still struggling with the first boss?" A man's voice could be heard from the speakers of the computer.
"I've already reached 70% completion of the game. Do you need help? I can guide you through it. Just use the summoning totem and call me during the boss battle."
"There is no way I am going to improve at this game," Jason exclaimed, "Just tell me his weakness, Adam."
Adam replied, "Well, first you should go outside and touch grass. Take a shower and maybe even get a haircut for once."
"F*ck off, man," Jason retorted.
"I'm headed to the Fnisa area in hopes of finding someone who can help me, or maybe even a girl to support me. Hehehe," Jason excitedly declared with a perverted expression.
Adam let out a heavy sigh, stating, "I better go shut off my computer before the thunderstorm ruins it for sure."
"Yeah, until tomorrow, brother," Jason said, turning his mic off.
Jason grabbed a can of soda from the mini fridge and took a large gulp as he glanced at the clock on the wall.
It was already 3 am, and the rain was pounding against the windows. He suddenly remembered that it was Choko's birthday, and guilt washed over him.
"I need to come up with a good apology," he thought, taking another sip of his drink.
"But maybe I can play it off as being sick."
"Oh shiiiiit," Jason said as he stared at the screen. "Save corrupted how!!"
He became angry at the game and let out a yell before throwing his soda can against the wall. The drink splashed all over, reaching the PC plug-in.
Out of nowhere, a strong bolt of lightning fell.
Sparks of electricity filled the air. The monitor was electrocuted.
A second later, the room was empty.
...
A wagon...was barreling down the road, the driver relentlessly whipping the horses in an effort to outrun their pursuers.
The soldiers chasing them were decked out in brown leather and Roman garb, one of them even threw a spear at the wagon's wheel in an attempt to stop it.
The wheel shattered, causing the wagon to crash and bring their pursuit to a halt.
They surrounded the wagon, with the driver lying dead on the ground with a hole in his chest and the horse tied up behind the wagon, missing a leg.
The soldiers looked around, but there was no sign of the people they were inside.
"Sonder, no one is here," a soldier examined the wagon's interior, finding no one within.
"They must have tricked us," another commented. "Search the area and be on the lookout for any clues."
The soldiers split up, and one of them noticed a crumpled piece of paper on the ground.
He reached down to pick it up, but suddenly a sharp pain erupted from his throat as blood gushed out.
"I won't let you take our sun princess," a deep voice growled, and the soldier fell to the ground, lifeless.
"Who was that?" Another soldier cried out, turning to look. "It's Alunard," a third soldier replied in a terrified tone.
Alunard was a giant of a man, every inch of his body bulging with muscle as he stood in his armor, arms hidden to reveal massive biceps. Behind him was a woman with green hair, holding a flintlock gun and protecting a young child.
"Good job, Alunard," she mocked. "You didn't have to draw attention - the paper was already poisoned."
Alunard simply grunted in response and charged forward to fight the soldiers.
With a mighty swing of his sword, Alunard shattered the first skull and snapped the neck of the second.
His muscles rippled as he moved swiftly through the remaining foes, their bodies falling to the ground with sickening thuds.
But just when it seemed like victory was within reach, a lone survivor emerged in a different uniform.
The man screamed "For Sparta!" as he summoned an army of 500 clones wielding spears.
Meanwhile, the green-haired woman began firing her gun at the clones, trying to hold them off while Alunard continued fighting against overwhelming odds.
The air was thick with the sounds of swords clashing and bullets whizzing by, creating a chaotic scene of battle.
Without warning, a rip in the sky opened up and a figure came tumbling down, arms flailing and screaming.
The Spartan below was caught off guard and was knocked to the ground as the figure crashed on top of him.
"Wait, I'm alive!" the figure exclaimed, looking around in surprise. "Thanks for breaking my fall, man."
Alunard saw an opportunity and snatched the little girl and woman before trying to escape on a stolen horse. However, the little girl whispered urgently, "Please help that strange man, I need him."
Alunard was bewildered, but he had no other option than to obey.
He grabbed a rope and tossed it at the strange figure, quickly tying and dragging them while he rode off on his horse.
"What hi hol....."
"Shut up, I'm rescuing you," Alunard grunted.
"But..."
"I said shut up!"
They slipped back into the cover of the forest and dove behind a thick tree. "It's safe now, Alunard," the woman with green hair said in a hushed tone.
"What a day, Olena. Tell me, is our princess safe?"
"Yes, Alunard, thanks to this strange fella."
The mysterious stranger's gaze fixated on his surroundings. "Where am I? Who are you? And, most importantly, why did you take me with you?"
Olena quickly filled him in on the situation. "This is Alunard, a knight from Marbaine Kingdom.
We have been tasked with protecting the princess during her journey."
"The princess here ordered me to save you," Alunard chimed in.
"Now that you know who I am, perhaps you could share your name and story with us."
"I'm Jason, and I'm from Chicago," he said in disbelief.
"How did I end up here, and who is this little girl claiming to be a princess? I always imagined princesses to be taller with more curves, like you," Jason teased as he moved closer to Olena with a smirk.
"Oh, you mean me? Well, I'm flattered, but actually, I'm a boy," Olena replied playfully. "Here, feel for yourself."
She grabbed his hand and placed it between her legs. Jason let out a high-pitched scream: "Oh my God! You have an anaconda down there! Why are you doing this to me, god?"