[Name] Blackwood
[Race] Human (Basic)
[Class] -
[Level] 1
[Strength] 4
[Dexterity]2
[Endurance] 5
[Intelligence] 1
[Charisma] 3
[Luck] 5
The air was damp and heavy, carrying the faint metallic tang of blood. If this was hell, at least the Devil Child had a sense of humor. Buck’s vision was filled with an old-school ’90s video game interface, showcasing a series of stats that resembled something ripped from a tabletop RPG. Were these attributes meant to represent him? If so, he found it hard to hide his irritation at being assigned a mere 1 in intelligence. This had to be some cosmic joke right? He may have not been the sharpest tool in the shed, but he had gone to college.
"Congratulations, Buck! All that hard work on literary analysis and critical theory has really paid off! Now, welcome to your new life where you’re dumber than a rock." He thought bitterly. “Fuck, at this point I should have just majored in ‘dying in a cave”
That being said, his attempt to get a degree had proved to be ultimately pointless. Buck had spent his college years like most anti-social kids did: sitting in his dorm room, getting violently high, and playing video games until his eyes bled. Well, not literally, but the sentiment stood. After finishing his Education Degree, he went on to teach high school English for two years before he realized he hated the bureaucracy of it.
From there he became a low-level people manager at a local distribution company. Did the Devil Child think he had wasted his potential by not becoming a teacher? No way.
Perhaps it had something to do with the chaotic manner in which he had plunged into the so-called ‘Cracked Kingdoms.’ He certainly hadn’t exactly strolled in with elegance and poise. He had truly gone through the wringer—almost dying and now finding himself alive yet far from unharmed in this cave. He envisioned that Devil Child sitting around a table, sipping his little orange juice while reviewing his entrance. “How should we rate him? Heroically battling the elements? Or flailing around like a chicken on fire?”
Oh well. None of this mattered much to Buck; he wasn't going anywhere soon, incapacitated and blind. If he ever regained the ability to move, he could delve into the rules of this twisted game.
For now, all Buck could do was lie there and think. He thought about what his last hours of life might entail. Would the pain intensify? Or would he gradually slip away as his body became numb, blood draining from him like a leaky pipe, growing colder until he simply fell asleep? Jesus, he was having some dark thoughts.
A sudden and sobering realization struck him like a punch to the gut: his wife might be in this game too. In the midst of all the chaos that was swirling around him, he had forgotten her. He’d left her and their dog with his mother when he visited his father one last time. Straining, Buck shifted the fingers of his left hand, feeling for where his wedding ring should be. With a relief he felt the simple gold band he had worn for almost a decade, but that didn’t answer the most pressing question.
What had happened to them? That sun; he had barely survived by diving into the water—what fate had befallen his family? Was there any chance they had survived? A house wouldn't have offered any protection, trees had been bursting into flame all around him. Emily. Buck could only hope that somehow that they had survived whatever apocalypse could have befallen the Earth. Had the Devil Child spoken to them too? Buck felt his chest tighten, his resolve hardening. He wouldn't die here. Not like this. Emily was out there somewhere, and he’d find her—no matter what it took.
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With renewed determination, Buck attempted to get up again. He had to know if they were safe. He wouldn’t lie in this cave, biding his time for the Reaper to claim him. If he couldn’t see? He would navigate by feeling the walls for an escape. If he couldn’t walk? He would crawl. However, as he placed his hands on the cold stone floor, trying to push his battered body into a sitting position, his entire being was consumed by a blinding flash of white light. He had smashed his forehead against the cavern ceiling.
“What a fool,” he thought, chastising himself “hands first next time, step by step.”
A deep sigh escaped Buck’s throat, his momentary strength waning. A sigh... it didn’t sting to let out a sigh. Buck drew in a tentative breath, filling his lungs and, in a soft whisper, spoke: “Hello? Devil Child?” The words emerged, raspy but distinct, breaking through the oppressive silence of the cave. His voice worked! And just moments ago, he thought he could have been hired to be a voice actor for some demon from hell.
The child's voice echoed in his mind once more, "Oh thank the gods. I was worried there for a moment."
Buck spoke again “What's happening, why can I speak? Devil Child?”
The voice replied, "As I mentioned before, I can’t provide answers. You missed the Tutorial by jumping into that river, although I assure you, I am no devil child. Your will to live is impressive, but it doesn’t matter right now. You are a Peasant, and Peasants have a certain degree of regeneration—yours is slightly higher due to your Endurance being 5. That’s all I can disclose. From now on, I am required to merely observe you Peasants. You won’t be able to summon me at will.
“For the duration of your stay in the Cracked Kingdoms, you’ll be monitored and assisted by an AI of my own design. I’m quite happy with it if I may say so myself. It will provide you with Quests as well as any rewards that you earn. I will now begin the implementation process. If you manage to survive, please remember to leave a good review—it really helps! Oh! And my name is Ash’rati Mortanre, but you may call me Ash. Remember: Strive for Greatness and Greatness will Find You. Be good for the Viewers! Goodbye!”
With those final words, Buck was flooded with a new prompt—a simple loading bar slowly progressing across his vision. What on Earth had he gotten himself into? He couldn’t shake the feeling of being utterly lost. Quests? Had he been sucked into a new reality by leaping into the Sinks? No. The Devil Child... Ash had mentioned that his high Endurance was a result of how he entered the Cracked Kingdoms; at least he had that right.
Did that mean he would have experienced a different start had he not jumped into the water? Ash had referred to a Tutorial he had missed. Perhaps Emily and his mother had made it through to that Tutorial? Buck’s heart surged with hope—surely they were safe, experiencing something similar to what he faced, but without the life-or-death struggle that his reckless leap had triggered.
Ash had said it was an “impeccable will to live.” Buck couldn’t help but feel stupid. No wonder the AI had rated him with a 1 in intelligence. As Buck refocused on the prompt, he noticed the loading bar nearing completion. He shifted on the cave floor, realizing that the skin covering his body had begun to regenerate; he even found he could blink again, though that didn’t conceal the new prompt that filled his vision.
[Hello Peasant Blackwood, I am Bev, Your Personalized AI Assistant that will Guide you through the World of the Cracked Kingdoms!]
[You Find Yourself in a Precarious Situation, Primarily due to your Own Stupidity and Impatience!]
[Don’t worry though, I’m here to help. Well, mostly to Judge you. But hey, at least you’re not Dead yet!]
“Rude” Buck thought
[New Quest]
Escape the Popo Agia Caverns: Reward: Ownership of the Popo Agie Kingdom!
{Optional} - Complete within 72 Hours
[72:00]
Reward: New Citizen and New Building Assigned
[Remember Peasant Blackwood, YOU ARE BEING WATCHED, Perform at an Exceptional Level and the Viewers will BE HAPPY. Happy Viewers mean More Rewards. Strive for Greatness and Greatness will Find You. Good Luck]
Silence enveloped the Sinks Canyon Caverns, where Buck found himself lost. In a span of three hours, he had nearly burned alive, awakened skinned in a cavern of indeterminate size, and was thrust into what felt like a game show led by an eight-year-old Devil Child named Ash.
And what the hell did it mean to gain Ownership of the Popo Agie Kingdom? This so-called AI Assistant didn’t seem to be super helpful, but as the time passed, one thing had turned out to be true: his Endurance of 5 had provided him with a near superhuman healing speed. After the mere 15-minute exchange with Ash and the AI Bev, he felt that he was strong enough to at least move his arms around.
Buck took a deep breath, inhaling the musty scent of the cave with renewed purpose he stretched his hands above him and in front of him, feeling around in the oppressive blackness. He was determined to fight his way out of this dark nightmare, he would find out what had happened to his family.