Third had trouble finding joy in his day to day. This wasn’t a particularly new trend, but even still he had at least hoped in another world he could experience excitement. Perhaps it’s the life of ease he’d lived that caused his general malaise towards existence.

He’d tried all the methods, therapy and antidepressants, sex drugs and alcohol, even extreme sports for a time. Still none really set his heart racing quite like true danger.

Not that he actively seeked out danger, but as a threat so far removed from his life, the arrival of it was always like the meeting of a reclusive celebrity.

A knotted stomach while veering around a steep mountain pass.

The thoughts while staring over the tallest tower, not that you’d fall, but that you’d jump.

Those were the moments where we feel most alive; when our aliveness is challenged internally. So, what is life to be when trapped in a plush office day after day? Some paradoxical balance between being alive, and not living?

Third had grown philosophical the longer he stayed cooped up in his office and penthouse, so he inevitably began asking himself these things.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

‘Perhaps in another lifetime, I would have read more books,’ Third thought to himself as he gave up on another and returned it to the packed shelves.

Returning to his chair he spun aimlessly for a moment before plucking his phone from his pocket and tapping the bird on his home screen.

The userbase was still limited so the platform was heavily dominated by those who had the loudest voice. Still occasionally as he scrolled, he would spot an interesting image taken while exploring, or an intelligent observation regarding rumored political intrigue.

Apparently the Irias Gala was a hot topic on social media for a few days after the event. There’d even been people speculating about why Third had been called into a private booth by Gaurdia’s Queen, but most were far from the truth.

“Ooh, that would be so cool.” Third mouthed quietly as a blurry image of a tan landscape enlarged at his press.

The post had read, [When mountains meet dunes, the perfect #BMXpark forms 🔥] but Third had been more curious how it’d be with a dirt bike. The small rocky outcroppings that pierced the sand looked like perfect sized jumps for a medium-sized bike like the one he’d grown up riding.

Looking back to the picture, Third penned down the series of numbers watermarking it, then flipped to the web browser in order to find out more about the place.

Typing the numbers and pressing go, the browser immediately began zooming into the patchwork map towards a tan section of land beyond a range of mountains south of the wasteland.

Simultaneously, unbeknownst to Third as he browsed, both the image and caption quietly vanished as if they’d never existed at all.