Ethan Cross sniffed a whiff of damp earth and the tang of metal in through his nostrils. First thought: he overslept again, and this was yet another deadline that he was running terribly behind on, and his boss would be more than eager to remind him of it. His second thought was that the floor beneath him felt an awful lot like grass and dirt, not a lumpy mattress in his one-bedroom apartment.
His eyes shot open.
The sky overhead churned and boiled in deep blues and purples, an approximate replica of the brief style of a hasty artist who believed he had no use for subtlety. The sun-or at least what Ethan thought was the sun-hung low in the horizon, a faint, pulsating orb of white light. Ethan sat up, feeling his heart jump to a galloping pace as he took in his surroundings.
He was in an open space surrounded by huge trees with their leaves sparkling like gleaming emeralds. Air hummed faintly, like videogame background noise. It was surreal and unsettlingly silent, and Ethan's instincts screamed at him that something was off.
"Where… am I?" he whispered, voice cracking.
And then he saw the floating text.
"What the—" Ethan sprang to his feet, his lungs unable to take in much air. This was impossible. This had to be some sort of dream. Or a prank. Or. something. He stretched out a hand to touch the words, but his hand went right through them, like smoke.
The text disappeared, and a pulsating icon materialized in the corner of his vision.
---
Tutorial Quest: Survive the Wilds
To complete this quest: Gather raw materials to craft a weapon.
Reward: Starting Weapon, 50 XP.
"This's gotta be some kind of joke," Ethan said, but his voice didn't sound like he believed it at all. His heart was pounding painfully in his chest as he turned to gaze around. "Okay, okay. Think, Ethan. You are a game designer. This is… what? Some kind of VR simulation? A lucid dream?"
He said the words, but they felt hollow as he spoke them. The cool breeze across his skin, the earthy scent of the forest-it was too vivid. Too real.
He shook his head and rolled with it. Had to be a dream; eventually, he'd wake up. If it wasn't. well, panicking wasn't going to do any good.
---
New Tutorial Hint:
Invenorty [+]: Press this button to access your starting items.
---
"Right," Ethan muttered. "Inventory."
Before him came a transparent grid with empty slots. In the upper, left corner of the grid was one thing: Starter Kit. He focused on it, and the description would appear.
---
Starter Kit
Basic survival tools. Use to unpack.
---
Ethan blinked once, twice. He willed the thing to "use". The kit dissolved in front of him, resolving into a small pile of goods: a flint knife, a length of rope, a waterskin, and some dried strips of meat.
Well, just peachy," he said, taking the knife. It was small, not much longer than his hand, and the blade was not at all refined. He looked at the quest objective once more. "Gather materials, huh? Fine. Let's get this over with."
The following hour was a blur of sticks, rocks, and anything remotely useful. As he labored, he couldn't help but feel that everything just felt so naturally done. The weight of the sticks in his arms, the faint scratch of bark against his skin—it all screamed reality.
When he had enough materials, another notification appeared.
---
Crafting Available!
Do you want to craft a [Crude Spear]?
Materials Required:
Long Stick (1)
Sharp Rock (1)
Rope (1)
-------------------------------
"Yeah," Ethan grumbled. The supplies disappeared from his grasp, and a spear materialized in front of him, leaving a faint glow behind as it coalesced. He grasped it to feel the weight of it. It was little, but it was better than his bare hands.
"Alright, I have a weapon. Now what?"
-------------------------------
Tutorial Quest Complete!
Reward Collected: Starting Weapon. Blunt Spear, 50 XP.
-----------------------------------
New Quest Unlocked:
Find Shelter.
Reward: Basic Map, 100 XP.
Ethan let out a deep sigh and ran a hand through his hair. He was beginning to feel like a rat in the maze: he hardly had a chance to think about it when there was a rustling sound catching his ear. It froze him, tightening his fingers around the spear as he scanned the tree line.
"Hello?" he called out, his voice echoing faintly.
The bushes parted, and a creature emerged—a wolf, but unlike any Ethan had ever seen. Its fur was a deep, shadowy black, and its eyes glowed a faint red. The creature growled, baring unnaturally sharp teeth.
"Oh, come on," Ethan said, taking a step back.
---
Hostile Entity Detected!
Level: 2
Health: 100/100
---The wolf lunged.
Ethan had barely time to even react when, spear thrusting forward. The point hit the side of the wolf, and the beast let out a yelp of pain but did not stop. It snapped at him, sending him leaping back.
He was beating his heart in his chest as he swung the spear again. This time, it caught the wolf in the shoulder. A notification flickered in his field of vision.
-----
Wolf - HP: 75/100
-----
Ethan gritted his teeth. "Right. No time to panic."
The wolf attacked again, its claws raking across his arm. Pain flared up, sharp and undeniable. Ethan yelped, stumbling, but forced himself to plunge the spear into the wolf's chest.
The creature let out a strangled howl before collapsing, its body dissolving into a shower of faint light. Ethan sank to his knees, clutching his arm as his breath came in ragged gasps.
--- Victory!
+25 XP
Loot: Wolf Fang (x1).
.............
"Loot?" Ethan muttered. A small fang appeared in his inventory, and he couldn't help but laugh, the sound tinged with hysteria. "Great. I'm a walking RPG protagonist."
Shaking, he pulled himself to his feet and looked at the new quest.
"Find shelter," he read aloud. "Yeah, good idea."
---
The sun—or whatever it was—wasn't set yet, but it was beginning to when Ethan stumbled onto a small cave. It wasn't much, but it would have to do for the night. Ethan scoured some loose branches to block the entrance and lit a small fire using the flint knife and some dried leaves.
As he sat there, in front of the fluttering flames, his mind was racing.
"Okay, Ethan," he said out loud. "Let's recap. Woke up in a forest, tutorial quest, fought a wolf, and now you're sitting in a cave. This is either the most elaborate VR experience ever made or."
He just managed to contain his afterthought. A thought he had been keeping buried finally came to him.
"Maybe this isn't a game?"
That idea left him colder than the air in that cold night.