Mason's eyes fluttered open. His head felt heavy, as if he had been asleep for ages. The first thing he noticed was the dense jungle around him. But this wasn't an ordinary jungle—something about it felt unsettlingly different. He stood up, his legs slightly trembling, as he scanned his surroundings. The trees were towering and ancient, their twisted branches reaching out like skeletal fingers.
"This isn't the jungle from my dream," Mason muttered to himself. It was supposed to be eerie, but this… this was something else entirely.
In his dream, the jungle had been dark and quiet, but it had still resembled something earthly. The only unnatural element had been the two moons. But now, as he looked up, he was taken aback—there were no moons. The sky, instead of being pitch black and sprinkled with stars, was veiled by thick, restless clouds. An eerie silence hung in the air, making the place feel abandoned.
As he took cautious steps forward, he noticed something else—bioluminescent plants glowing faintly in the distance, their neon hues casting a ghostly light. They reminded him of scenes from sci-fi movies. But the strangest part? No birds. No animals. Not even insects. The jungle was completely void of life.
"How is this even possible?" he whispered. A part of him was relieved—at least there were no predators lurking in the shadows. But another part of him felt uneasy. A jungle without life was unnatural.
His fingers instinctively reached into his pocket, pulling out a small card. His name was engraved at the top, followed by a list of words:
"The Silver Knight, Teleport, Blink Speed."
"What… does this even mean?" Mason mumbled, his heart pounding. Before he could think further, a sudden realization hit him—his friends!
Where were Owen, Luna, Lian, and Sophie? If he had woken up here, then they must be around somewhere. But in a place like this, they would surely panic. He needed to find them before fear took over. Sliding the card back into his pocket, Mason took off in search of them.
Owen's Awakening
After walking for what felt like forever—his best guess was about a kilometer—Mason spotted something ahead. A figure was lying motionless on the ground.
"Owen!" Mason ran forward and knelt beside him.
He shook Owen's shoulders. "Owen! Wake up!"
Owen stirred, his eyelids flickering open. For a moment, his expression was blank, but then his face twisted in shock. He sat up abruptly, his eyes darting around.
"Mason…? Where the hell are we?" His voice was shaky.
Mason quickly explained everything he had observed so far. But instead of panicking, Owen's face lit up with excitement.
"Wait, wait, wait. You said you got powers?!" Owen practically shouted.
Mason sighed. "Really, Owen? Out of everything I just said, that's what you focus on?"
Owen grinned. "Come on, dude. This is insane! What did you get?"
Mason pulled out his card and showed him. "The Silver Knight, Blink Speed, and Teleport. Whatever that means."
Owen's excitement grew. "Dude, that's awesome! Let me check mine." He scrambled to pull out his own card. His eyes scanned the words carefully.
"Knife Master."
His excitement faltered. "Uh… that's it? Just one?"
Mason rolled his eyes. "Is this really the time to complain about who got how many powers? We need to find the others!"
Owen sighed, tucking his card away. "Fine, fine. Let's go."
Luna, Lian, and Sophie
Meanwhile, on the other side of the jungle, Luna had already woken up. Unlike the others, she had some understanding of what might be happening—she had read Suzan, a book that described a similar situation.
She quickly pulled out her card. A robotic voice echoed in her head as she read her ability.
"Telepathy."
"Huh. That could be useful," she murmured.
Determined, she started searching for her friends. Soon, she found Lian and Sophie, who were both still in shock.
Lian was the first to snap out of it. "Luna, what the hell is going on?"
She explained everything, then suggested they check their cards. Lian pulled his out and read the words aloud.
"Arjuna's Bow."
His eyes widened. "Wait… Arjuna? As in the great warrior from Indian mythology?"
Luna shrugged. "Maybe. We'll have to figure it out later. Right now, we need to find Mason and Owen."
Sophie, meanwhile, was still sitting on the ground, tears brimming in her eyes. "I don't like this. This isn't normal."
Luna knelt beside her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I know it's scary, but we'll figure it out together."
After a few moments, Sophie took a deep breath and pulled out her card. "1-Minute Freeze?" she read aloud, confused. "What does that even mean?"
Before they could discuss further, rustling sounds caught their attention. Moments later, Mason and Owen emerged from the darkness.
Relief flooded over them as they reunited. After a quick exchange, Mason asked, "Alright, everyone. What abilities do you have?"
Each person shared their powers, and Mason took a deep breath. "We don't know why we're here, but it looks like we've been given these abilities for a reason. We need to stick together and figure this out."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
The Voice
Just then, an eerie robotic voice echoed through the jungle.
"Welcome, players. You are not alone. There are 25 players in total, all participating in this game. Hope you have checked your abilities. We will notify you when Level 1 begins. Until then, take your time to understand your powers. Good luck."
Mason's blood ran cold. "Twenty-five players? Who are they?"
Owen smirked. "This just got even crazier."
Mason clenched his fists. "We need to be ready for whatever comes next."
To be continued…