The place in which Marty and the group was currently in was called the Murkwood Peninsula. A landform surrounded by water on three sides, connected to the mainland by a narrow strip of land.
In the middle was a vast mystical forest, considered to be a forbidden region by the locals. Infested with countless mutated animals, living trees that would choke you to death, creatures of myths, and so much more.
Unfortunately, one of the inhabitants of the said forest was the group of cannibals. As their name suggested, they eat humans. And Marty's unsuspecting group just happened to be a perfect meal.
The wood they used for making the campfire releases a chemical that would even bring down an adult elephant. The effect usually lasts somewhere from thirty minutes to an hour.
Meanwhile, some of the cannibals were preparing a smoke pit, some chopping vegetables, some making a long spit for roasting, and overseeing these all was the leader who was carrying a staff made of human bones.
"Guys, hurry!" Marty half whispered, half yelled to the others as he tried to squirm and twist to loosen up the ropes tying his hands and feet to no avail.The cannibals had tied them up like pigs with thick, rough hemp ropes. If they didn't do anything, they would really end up in their bellies.
As he continued to wriggle and twist in his hogtied position, he suddenly saw his opportunity to kick Eli, who was lying right beside him and was just about to wake up. With a determined look, Marty contorted his body into a human pretzel, his face turning red as he aimed his bound legs towards Eli.
"Eli, brace yourself," he grunted through gritted teeth, his legs bouncing awkwardly as he tried to line up the perfect kick.
Just as he was about to execute his plan, he lost his balance and toppled over, landing with a thud in the dirt face first.
Eli stirred and, as if on cue, his eyes flickered open to see Marty tangled like a wriggling fish out of water.
"Sorry. Gotta wake you up," said Marty in a muffled voice.
"I… I didn't realize you were into knots!" Eli then exclaimed. His expression was genuine shock and amusement. Obviously misunderstanding Marty's current situation, oblivious that he too, was bound. Having only just woken up, his mind was still fuzzy. But when he finally realized just how f*cked their situation was, like Marty, he also started waking up the others but as he did this, one of the cannibals noticed and grabbed them both.
They were taken away from the rest of the group and were brought to the leader who prodded and poked them.
"This one's not good for roasting. Too little meat," said the leader. Finding Marty too thin to his liking.
He then went ahead and started to poke and squeeze Eli's arms and legs and started to smile. "Good! This one's not too thin and not too fat. Good amount of muscle too. Perfect for roasting. Start removing all the hairs on this one."
Having heard this, Marty exchanged a wide-eyed look with Eli and his mind started to churn while Eli was being dragged away to be roasted.
'Damn! What should I do?' he thought. And that was when he thought of an idea.
The leader ordered for Marty to be turned into a jerky and anyone who woke up next be turned into stew.
As he was dragged and was placed atop a chopping board meant for humans, he said in his smallest voice, "Andrea? Can you hear me?"
A clear, robotic female voice then echoed in his mind. "Hello, Marty! Is there anything I can assist you with?"
Marty didn't waste any time. "Yes. Can you tell me the situation? And if possible, d'you have any ability to help me escape?"
"Got it! June, Lilia, and Linda are starting to wake up. The tribe leader is talking to his wife. Also, there's a creature checking you out as I relay this information. Unfortunately, I do not possess any other abilities to offer you. Anything else I can help you with?"
Marty sighed, having already expected this. "No. And please shut up for a moment. I am trying to use precognition."
And like he just said, System Andrea didn't utter any more words.
The cannibal assigned to turning him into a jerky was already sharpening his machete. He didn't have much time so he took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and for the next ten seconds, he didn't blink nor breath.
His question was which of the two choices would lead to his escape without being eaten by the cannibals: To break free from his restraints and make a run for it, or to try to reason out with them.
In an instant, the world around him faded into a haze. He could feel an energy coursing through him. Then an otherworldly sensation washed over him.
A kid's hum bounced back and forth between his ears as the explosion of red flooded his vision.
He then saw an image of himself taking out the knife from his inventory as he proceeded to painstakingly slice through the thick rope, only for his knife to be taken away after being found out. After that, he yelled to Linda to bind them all and to June to Lift them up the air as far as she could but then exactly after that, he could see their bodies being ravaged by these huge, mutated flock of birds.
The vision was then replaced with him saying something to the leader and was later saved by something.
Seeing all these, there was no need for further hesitation.
Meanwhile, a little boy was innocently biting into a snake's head as he watched Marty from afar. A seemingly innocent boy with black wings jolting out of his back. His large, brown eyes squinted as he thought of something fun.