The pair set up a small tent on the limb. The limb had enough room for four people to lay down side by side, so there was not much of a worry about rolling off in the middle of the night.

Both people had been relatively silent besides a few directions back and forth to set the tent up. The cold-hearted response from the woman had left the man a bit freaked out. An awkward silence filled the tent as both looked at opposite ends of the tent while laying down.

“....”

“So how do you determine if a person is not fit for life in the Abyss?” The man asked after what felt like an eternity of silence.

“Finally spoke up huh? Well typically crazies, non-cooperatives, and the like are culled. Otherwise what little morals we have would disappear for good.”

The man turned to look at the ceiling of the tent, “You keep on saying we, who exactly is ‘we’?” The toss and turning of the woman caught the man’s attention.

“I was gonna wait till we got there, but I guess I’ll spoil the surprise. We’re heading to one of the five bastions of humans here in this personal hell, the place is called ‘Poplis’.”

The man’s eyes opened wide, “There’s actually a city here?”

“Hold your horses, first of all it’s not exactly a city, more like a fortress. There’s a constant political feud over the five bastions. I’m in a, let’s say, friendly relationship with Poplis. They feed me and give me resources, and in exchange I find potential citizens, such as yourself.”

The man narrowed his eyes, “I’m not gonna have to pledge my soul or anything, am I? I don’t like the thought of being tied down.” He was hesitant to trust anyone in this place, much less a group of people.

“No no, nothing like that. Most of the time Poplis is looking for associates if anything. Craftsman, soldiers, farmers, scouts, there are plenty of opportunities. They typically don’t overstep their bounds, and merely collect a tax to upkeep the bastion and feed its people.”

“Where exactly are nameless people like me coming from? No matter what I try to imagine, nothing makes sense. Plus, I understand language, how to do basic things, but as soon as I try to recall my past or name nothing pops up. Like it was wiped…”

The woman finally turned to look at the man, the piercing blue eyes staring at him, displaying empathy. “That’s how everyone is when they first get here, even me. No one really knows why we are here or how, but one thing’s for certain, this place is beyond comprehension.”

“So you don’t know your name either?” The man turned to meet her blue eyes.

“Well, that’s another thing. After meeting certain… prerequisites you become what people here call ‘Named’. As a reward for establishing your ‘identity’ the Abyss itself rewards you your own unique name. Most people don’t reveal their full name, as it can be a hint into what they are capable of.”

“So what’s your name? At least the non-revealing part?” The man finally asked. It was frustrating to travel with someone without at least knowing their name.

“Fine, fine. Since you’re practically begging me… I was bestowed the name ‘Lilith’. But don’t you dare ask for my full name!”

The man chuckled, “Alright, alright, Lilith huh. Wish I had my name. Going without one makes me feel empty strangely enough.”

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“All in due time, newbie. Don’t worry about it, soon enough you’ll get your name… careful what you wish for though…”

The man scrunched his eyes, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing, just get some sleep. We’ll get to Poplis near nighttime tomorrow if we manage to make good time.” Lilith waved her hand as she turned back over bringing the makeshift blanket over her.

“Yeah goodnight”, The man had to digest a lot of information that Lilith dumped on him. He decided to push it off for the trek tomorrow. Slowly, he nodded off to sleep

That night the man saw many things in his dream. Mysterious markings, monsters, people, even a unique landscape made of smooth marble. All this eventually faded away, before an image of a yellow room came about. A regal throne with a figure sat upon it. The figure was hooded, hiding his face. Yet in an eerie silence, the being rose a bony hand and pointed straight at the nameless man. Then static noise filled the man’s ear before everything went black.

“... wa- wake up!”. The man was roused from his dream,”Huh?”

“I SAID WAKE UP YOU NINCOMPOOP!!!”

“Wha- nincompoop?”

SMACK

“HOLY HELL!!!” A sharp pain that felt like pins and needles on his jaw quickly woke the man up. “What was that for!”

“Sorry princess, got a bigger problem than your beauty sleep! So wake the hell up we’re leaving NOW!”

The man quickly got up understanding the urgency of the situation, not even bothering to gather up his bag. The man quickly got out of the tent to survey the situation. What met his view was bone chilling.

Holding onto the tree eerily quietly, was a monster about two times the size of a human. It’s head looked like the skull of a buck, with its milky white eyes staring the man down. It had the torso of an anorexic human, with its ribs nearly poking through, and its disproportionately long arms looked like nothing but bones. The monster’s backwards knees displayed its prowess in jumping and agility, and its long claws looked deadly sharp. Last but not least, it had a mouth with only an upper jaw, making for a disturbing image.

The man stood still for a bit, too afraid to make any sudden movement. Every few seconds a white breath would escape the creature’s mouth, and along with a shallow breath that rattled the soul.

“Of course it had to be wendigos!” Lilith was biting her nails, trying to think up a plan. “Hey nameless, you wouldn’t happen to be able to fight, would you?”

“I mean I got here two days ago! All I’ve fought so far was a glorified ant!”

“Dammit. If it was just one or two we would be fine!” Lilith voiced out. The man quickly drew in his breath. [One or two?] Looking around more carefully the man finally saw it. On nearby trees and bushes, those putrid eyes stared at him, not blinking once. A shiver ran up the man’s spine.

“That’s gotta be at least five! Lilith, what the hell do we do?” Lilith Glanced around and finally shook her head, “Only one thing we can do newbie, we fight.” Lilith’s eyes lit up with determination.

“What am I supposed to do? Those things look a little out of my league!” Lilith quickly fished through her bag. All of a sudden a bright flash emitted from it as she pulled something way too large for the bag out. “Here, this should be better for you than that utility knife.” She tossed him the wooden item and the man caught it.

It looked primitive with a shaft of wood about 30 cm larger than him. Tied to the shaft with sinew and rope was a piece of obsidian. “It looks brittle, but it also looks sharp as hell.” The man remarked as he gave it a few thrusts and slashes. The weight felt nice, and surprisingly, it felt more natural in his hands than the knife. Still, his spearmanship left a bit to be desired.

“Look newbie, these are monster level abyssals, a rank above you. I can handle about four of them at once, but I’ll need you to at least delay the fifth. Just play it smart. Wendigos have shit vision but an acute sense of sound. Also be on your toes, they’re fast as hell and will claw into pieces within seconds if you’re not careful.”

The man let out a sigh and closed his eyes. The man thought for a few seconds before resolutely opening his eyes. “It’s do or die”. Quickly tying the spear to his back and picking up his trusty knife and pick, he got ready to get off the tree. Meanwhile, Lilith simply jumped off, defying human limits as she landed on her feet with a thud. This quickly attracted the wendigos’ attention and all five quickly dashed at her while letting out clicks and screeches.

“Now that’s just not fair”, the man said aloud as he admired Lilith’s superhuman performance. The man decided to hug the tree, and slide down it. Once he gained enough speed he planted his knife and pick into the tree ensuring he wouldn’t plummet to a serious injury. Repeating this process two times he reached the bottom of the tree in about 30 seconds.

“Ahhh, that did not feel good!” The man’s hands were scraped to hell, and his shoulders were killing him. Unfortunately he had little time to whine about the pain. Looking towards Lilith he saw all five Wendigos pushing her back. Utilizing two serrated and curved daggers she was fighting them to the best of her abilities. The man had to turn the tides. Slowly moving towards the one furthest from her, he readied the handheld pick. Stretching his arm back till it was taut, he threw the pick with every bit of force he could. The pick flew at a remarkable speed before slamming into the wendigo! Unfortunately, it was the handle of the climbing pick that hit the monster. Low clicks filled the air as its white milky eyes turned to look at the man.

It almost looked like the thing was saying “really?”. The man stood awkwardly before pulling the spear off his back. An inhuman screech rang through the forest. “Yeah, looks like I just pissed that thing off…”