Ray stepped once again into the vast, quiet grasslands of the portal. The wind had a strange weight to it, as if carrying secrets from a distant time. The tall grass swayed gently, brushing against his legs, hiding the true nature of the terrain. He was alone, and yet, the feeling of being watched was constant.
"I didn't dream this..." Ray muttered, his voice barely a whisper in the breeze. His heart still raced with the surreal weight of what he had experienced. The more he tried to convince himself it was a nightmare, the more real everything felt.
It was clear that this wasn't just some random dream or hallucination. The atmosphere, the air, even the very ground beneath his feet—everything seemed different, unnatural, yet undeniably real. And the monsters... he couldn't ignore that part either.
Ray walked slowly, scanning his surroundings. He was determined to understand this dimension, to find something familiar, to control his fear. As he ventured deeper, a noise in the distance caught his attention.
Through the waving grass, Ray spotted movement. His heart skipped a beat as he crouched low, his breath hitching in his throat. A group of rats—black-furred, sleek, and disturbingly large—moved through the grass, their eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. They were hunched, scavenging for something, their sharp claws scraping across the earth.
Ray's pulse quickened. These weren't the same type of creatures he had seen earlier. These were more organized, more dangerous. There were five of them, and they moved in sync, like a pack of predators.
Can I take them out? he wondered, gripping a sharp stone in his hand. The stone felt strangely comforting, the cool surface grounding him, even if it was barely a weapon. His instincts told him to act quickly.
He crept closer, inching through the grass. The rats didn't notice him at first, and with a burst of movement, Ray leaped toward the closest one, aiming for its back. The stone pierced the rat's flesh, and it let out a high-pitched squeal.
But that's when things went wrong.
Ray felt a sudden pressure in his skull, as though invisible claws were digging into his mind. His vision blurred, and his head spun as an unnatural wave of force slammed into him, causing him to stumble. The rats' eyes locked onto him, glowing brighter.
Before he could react, the pain intensified, and it was as though his very thoughts were being ripped apart. What is this?! Ray's hands went to his head, trying to stave off the unbearable pressure. His body felt paralyzed, as if the rats' very presence had sapped all his strength.
Then, the rats surged forward in unison, their jaws snapping, and he knew he was about to die.
But not before the rat he targeted fell to the ground lifeless.
The air around the fallen creature shimmered, and Ray could see a faint golden glow forming just above the body. His eyes widened as the shimmer solidified into a small orb, hovering gently in the air. He couldn't explain it, but something inside him urged him to reach for it.
Ray extended his hand, trembling slightly, and the orb moved toward him, drawn into his grasp. It felt warm, pulsing with a strange energy, and as he held it, a rush of information flooded his mind. He didn't understand it completely, but he felt the orb's power, a raw potential within it.
Before he could even process what had just happened, the other rats advanced toward him, and the mental pressure grew heavier. His body went numb as the rats prepared to finish what they had started.
But as the rats drew nearer, everything went black.