It was a landmark and it was quite possibly the most horrifying thing Marcus had ever seen. It had been a town, population of about thirty thousand people according to the half demolished sign marking where the devastation began. Actually devastation was an understatement by Marcus’ standards, was there a word worse than devastation he pondered as he surveyed the landscape.

The town very much looked as though a giant monster had decided to play lego with an entire town. Right up to the crater sized footprints scattered about. Another interesting fact was the surprising amount of springtime plant growth… in the middle of winter. It was scattered about like a child with their first open top drink had run through spilling flowers and greenery as they went.

Not long after entering the town proper Marcus began to realize how recently the event had happened. Many of the buildings didn’t even have snow in them yet, in some cases sidewalks had even been cleared recently. There were also bodies, not a lot, but a few, and not the zombies either.

Here and there Marcus the bodies of ordinary people, in various states of dress and injury, appeared to have been running from the whatever it was that caused all the damage and impact craters. Closer to the center of town things got even stranger, he started seeing people in outlandish outfits and with weapons nearby.

Interestingly they weren’t all firearms, which Marcus figured made sense in a zombie apocalypse, though he was starting to wonder if it was just a zombie apocalypse. Never one to turn down a little light looting and some further investigation Marcus brought the Jeep to a stop and killed the engine.

Once the engine was silent Marcus grabbed his sword from the back seat and stepped out in the cold yet oddly fragrant air. It smelled of spring and flowers despite the frigid temperatures, and dead bodies everywhere. It was also deathly quiet, even the wind not wanting anything to do with the warzone of a town.

The nearest body to the Jeep was a man slightly above average height dressed in green robes of all things. His body was face down in the snow, the robe covering everything from his feet to his head like an accidental funeral shroud. Marcus knelt down and flipped the body over.

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Two things were immediately apparent as Marcus took a step back. The first being the man had died when something had crushed his chest, it looked like a mac truck had hit the man but only from the waist to the neck. The second being, the man wasn’t human.

He was very human looking, two arms, two legs, two eyes, two ears, two nipples… Actually judging by the state of his torso he might not have any nipples. He was tall, slender, pale, extremely attractive, and delicate looking. He also had pointed ears, “That’s a goddamn Elf, this just keeps getting worse.” Marcus sighed and went to check the other bodies.

There were two bodies that were well below average height, one being a surprisingly stocky woman and the other being a man with no shoes. “I’m in a damn fantasy universe.”

Marcus went back to his Jeep and sat on the tailgate, Peyton the Corgi trotting over, something hanging from the dog’s mouth. On closer inspection it was a necklace, more specifically a ring of dull grey metal on a leather cord. Marcus took the necklace from the dog who immediately started barking. “Oh, hell no! I am not putting on the chosen one necklace and getting all mixed up in whatever fucked this place up.”

It was at this very moment Marcus realized if he had been in a Ford Explorer with a glass on the dash, that glass would be vibrating in a very ominous way. “To hell with this, I’m out. Come on Peyton, time to get in the Jeep.” Marcus had moved to the front of the Gladiator and motioned towards the open door.

The dog made no move to get in, choosing instead to begin barking even louder than before. This had the effect of causing the ominous vibrations to increase to pants shitting vibrations. Marcus looked from the barking dog, to the direction of the now audible foot falls, to the necklace in his hand, and to the Jeep’s driver seat.

Marcus tried very hard to convince himself to jump in the Jeep and just leave the dog and drive as far as he could, even considering throwing the necklace away. Unfortunately for him, the counter argument part of his brain brought its A game today and pointed out two things. First, everything else seemed to be just as fucked as here and this might get him some answers, and second, he really liked animals.

So against his better judgement Marcus pulled the leather cord up and over his head. A move he immediately regretted as the necklace melted through his clothes and into his chest. This proved to be surprisingly painful as the necklace burned into his chest, starting where the ring had gone through his clothes and expanding outwards rapidly. When it reached his head he started to scream.

When it reached his unmentionables he passed out.