What the hell? Surviving for one day is a [Quest]? And why does it give out death so freely? That’s concerning. Also, we just have to leave the island? Why?
I wish this goddamned [System] would tell me anything.
“This is… worrying. At least we know we are on an island now. Have you ever heard of First Landing?” I ask Daniel.
He shakes his head at me. His face looks tired and dejected.
I can’t even blame him. This whole situation is insane.
“No. But I think you’re right, though. About us not being on Earth, I mean.”
Yeah, no shit.
“What do we do? Try to make it out of this forest? Maybe there is a city or something here?”
“Maybe, but for now we need to stay alive. I was thinking about trying to find some water. I took a rough stock of what we have, and it doesn’t look good. We have maybe a day of food, and a few people have water bottles.”
Oh, great. Let me guess, we have to go into that scary-ass forest to find it?
I give Daniel a skeptical look, holding it for a few seconds before asking.
“Are you sure? There very well could be even bigger and scarier things in the woods.”
I’m almost certain there are bigger beasts in the woods, namely that bear.
The secondary [Quest] also leads me to believe that whatever brought us here is testing us. It seems like just a taste or something to get us used to this place.
“Yes,” he responds, “we need to find water at least. And I’d rather die to a beast than dehydration.”
I agree, for the most part. But that would probably change if faced with a scary enough beast.
“I’m in, I guess.”
“Good, we are leaving in just a few minutes. Meet me in front of the bus when you are ready.”
I watch Daniel turn around and walk off the bus, leaving me sitting on the back seat.
I sit up and put on my bag, grabbing my spear in my right hand as I leave.
Most people are in the bus right now, sitting and talking to each other.
After I leave the bus, I spot someone sitting in a blue foldable lawn chair near the back of the bus. It's Jared.
He is sitting with his back to me, getting his arm bandaged by the nurse from earlier, who has the bus first aid kit.
Her name starts with an S, I’m sure of it, but I can’t for the life of me remember it. I know she told me that time she sat next to me, but it was too long ago.
The high school students are sitting in front of him, intently listening to him tell the story of the goblin ambush.
“So there I am, watching over Ray, who is trying to get magic from the dead body or something.” Jared says as the nurse finishes bandaging his arm. “When suddenly, I feel my [Danger Sense] warn me that something is going to pierce my chest in a few moments.”
He pauses for dramatic effect, causing those listening to lean in further.
“With no time to dodge, I turn my chest out of the way, and the arrow only hits my arm.”
The storyteller mimics the way he moved, using his hand to show the trajectory of the arrow and where it hit him.
“I barely even react to it. I don’t have time. A goblin is charging at me. A real, small, green goblin. It’s holding a spear and screaming, charging straight for me. I act before I realize that I’m moving.”
He stands up, picking up the stick he used as a weapon off the ground. He starts to swing the stick in a wide arc with his right hand.
“I hit the little fucker right on the side of the head. It drops like a sack of shit, and I don’t let it get up. I keep hitting the thing until it stops moving.”
He pauses, taking on a serious expression.
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“That was when I remembered that Ray was on the ground, checking the body from earlier. So I whip my head around to look at him, and what I see still shocks me.”
He looks each kid in the eyes before speaking again.
The kids are listening intently, eyes wide as I walk up and stand behind Jared.
Oh god, what is this guy telling them? This story is already much manlier than what really happened. He screamed like a girl when he got shot, not that I would be any different.
“He was standing over a kneeling goblin, not a hair out of place on his head, his spear stuck in its throat. He had this look in his eyes, a look of… disappointment. Like the goblin couldn’t provide more than a few seconds of entertainment.”
Why is he making me sound like some psychopath? All I did was stab a goblin that fell over. But it’s too good of an opportunity to pass up on, so I play into the part he’s making for me.
I try to look as menacing as I can, standing behind him with my spear in hand.
The kids see me and shy back a little bit. One gives me an awkward smile.
I put my hand on Jared’s shoulder, squeezing it a little bit.
He turns around when he feels my hand on him, and when he sees me, he gets a huge smile on his face.
“The goblin slayer himself! How can I help you?” He asks in a sarcastic tone, shooing off the crowd of kids with his hand.
“Daniel wants to go check the forest for food and water. I was going to invite you, if you wanted.”
He looks thoughtful for a moment before responding.
“Sure, I want to level up my [Danger Sense] more. Have you seen the [Quest]s yet?”
He makes me out to be some goblin boogeyman one second and is all buddy-buddy the next?
I can’t understand extroverts.
“Yes, Daniel told me about them a few minutes ago. I don’t even know what to think. They seem pretty severe.”
“Right? Who gives out ‘Instant Death’ as a punishment? Anyway, lead on.”
“Let’s go meet Daniel at the front of the bus, then.”
We both walk to the front of the bus together, and I ask Jared a question.
“What’s up with that story? I’m pretty sure you changed like half of it. The only reason I killed that goblin so easily was that it tripped over itself when it was charging me. I think the gunshots scaring it did more than me, to be honest.”
The man walking with me just shrugs, saying.
“I dunno, it was funny? Plus, it's better to sound like a badass, right? And I didn’t change that much. You did spear that goblin right in the throat.”
“I guess. Well, whatever. Let’s just join the group.”
We walk up to where Daniel is standing. He is talking with Clark, whose brother is standing behind him.
They all look nervous, me included, as we are wary of going back into that forest.
Daniel looks at me and then at Jared’s bandaged arm, a questioning look in his eyes before speaking.
“Do you want to join, Jared? I was going to leave you out because of your arm wound. But if you think you can do it, I’d really appreciate the help.”
“Yeah, it’s fine. Better than fine, actually. Whatever passive skill Stella has, it definitely helps with healing wounds. It barely bled any when she removed the arrow, and it hurt less after she was done. It’s weird. I feel like getting shot with an arrow should put me out for longer.”
Stella, that was her name. I knew it started with an S.
“It should, but nothing in this place acts like it should. So just be happy that one thing is going well, at least.”
Daniel turns to face the whole group, all four of us, and starts telling us his plan for the forest mission.
“We need food, and more importantly, water. I propose that three of us go into the forest to look around the area and see if we can’t find something useful. The other two should stay here and watch the forest, making sure nothing can sneak up on the bus.”
All of us nod as he says this, accepting our new reality for what it is.
Apparently we are living in this forest, for now at least.
“Who will stay behind?” Clark asks first.
“Whoever wants to. I won’t force anyone into that forest.”
Duncan raised his hand, stepping forward.
“I’ll stay. With my [Keen Sense] skill, I can keep watch from the top of the bus.”
Stella, the nurse from earlier, joins the group, speaking up as she walks in.
“I can help too, if you need. I don’t want to just sit around and do nothing while people are getting hurt. Let me know what I can do.”
Yes, Stella! Good shit, we need more people willing to help. This group can’t pull the weight of the entire bus.
The whole group turns to look at her, with Daniel speaking.
“Thank you, and we can use all the help we can get. Would you be willing to keep watch on the clearing from the top of the bus? It would be you and Duncan?”
“Yes, I can do that.” She responds.
“Good, then Ray, Clark, Jared, and I will go look for food and water in the forest.”
Stella and Duncan walk towards the bus, probably to get onto the roof and start their watch.
Daniel groups the rest of us together, the ones who are going into the forest.
“Are you guys ready? I see that you all have your weapons.”
I look around at what each person is wielding.
Daniel still has his gun, but I’m not sure how many bullets he has left. Jared has his stick from earlier, more like a club than anything. Clark has a blue metal baseball bat resting on his shoulder. He has a worried expression on his face and keeps glancing toward where his brother walked off to.
He’s a good older brother.
I wonder if my family is worried about me. They probably aren’t, as we have only been here about an hour. But I hope I get to see them again. And that they haven't been sent here as well, if that's even possible.
Daniel breaks my train of thought, asking me a question.
“Ray, are you ready?”
“Yes, let’s get this over with.”
Daniel nods and leads us towards the dark forest.