“Ughh…” Cassius groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. A gentle breeze touched his face and the leaves above him. The green and yellow leaves danced in the cool air, and beams of light peered through them. Upon gazing down a mesmerizing sight of light and shadows moved along the dirt and grass. Beautiful flowers of red, blue, and yellow swayed back and forth emitting pleasant smells.

“Is this real?” Perhaps he had died at the peak of the mountains and this was his afterlife. However, upon close looking no sky greeted him, except for a gray ceiling with various sharp stalactites. “Guess it was too good to be true…”

Cassius got up and dusted himself off. Upon looking around he noticed several abnormalities. First of all, his entire group was gone, like they were never there. Secondly, he had somehow ended up in this forest. Last he knew he was at the peak of one of the Aeolus Mountains. Lastly, the rope which he had tied himself to everyone with had a clean cut. It was such a clean cut in fact it looked alien.

While he had these thoughts a nearby shrub rustled. Cassius quickly reached for his axe on his back. “Huh?” He quickly patted down his back to confirm. “You’ve got to be kidding me…” His axe was nowhere to be found.

In fact, his bag which contained all of his gear was gone as well. It looked like all he had on him was the clothes on his back. He narrowed his eyes as he focused on the rustling. Out of the bushes a striking red fur emerged.

“A fox?” However upon closer inspection it had a few peculiarities. It had droopy ears and reptilian eyes. Its snout also seemed unnaturally elongated with teeth jutting out everywhere. “Ugh, that does not look cute at all.”

The creature let out a noise akin to a guttural growl and hoarse cough combined. It looked cautious of this new intruder as its eyes darted side to side. “Look buddy, I don’t want any trouble, let’s just both go about our day. How about that?”

Cassius didn’t know why he was talking to this thing but he hoped his sincerity would transcend the language barrier. Surprisingly, it seemed to work as the fox-like creature backed off slowly into the shrubbery of the forest. Cassius could finally let out a sigh of relief as it disappeared. “Looks like he knew I wouldn’t be an easy target…” That was the first abyssal that seemed capable of rational thought.

“I need to understand where I’m at first of all.” He climbed a nearby tree fairly easily. His physical improvement has seen leaps and bounds since he first arrived in the abyss. Upon reaching the top of the tree he took a look around.

A multitude of trees was the first thing he noticed. They formed a thick canopy in this area. However a few kilometers away it seemed to thin out, there even appeared to be a lake in that direction.

The most noticeable feature though was the vastly large mountains surrounding him. In fact, they were the Aeolus mountains he had just been scaling prior. “How in the world did I get down here?” No traces of movement were near where he had awoken. Like he had fallen out of the sky to that spot.

Cassius wanted to know what had happened but decided on not thinking about it too hard. For now he had to do his best to survive in this new environment without any of his equipment, as well as find his missing group. “To think those mountains were hiding such a beautiful valley.” This valley was almost dreamlike in nature, and was the most peaceful place he had seen in the abyss.

He climbed down the tree, with the direction of the lake kept in his mind. It was best to secure a water source first of all, and perhaps he could find food near the lake. Afterall, even abyssals needed water.

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Without wasting any time he started walking towards the lake. Occasionally he would stop and focus on noises he had heard. There were so many places for abyssals to hide, and one wrong step could spell Cassius’s end. However, each time he stopped the faint noise would disappear without a trace.

He didn’t like the idea of something following him, but at least it was something that lacked the confidence to attack him. Along the way he managed to find a fairly sharp stone, and was able to fashion a primitive wooden spear. It would do nothing against a monster, but it could at least pierce a creature.

After what felt like hours of walking he began to hear the familiar sound of trickling water. Following the sound he discovered a creek with a turquoise hue. “Finally some water!” Cassius made sure to check the source of the water in case there were any corpses. With nothing of note he went to a small fall and drank some.

He failed to notice how dry his mouth and throat were, but the crisp water refreshed him immediately. “Ahh, this fresh mountain water hits the spot!” He sat near the bank for a while to get a bit of rest before setting off once again, following the stream.

“This is the most relaxed I have ever felt in the abyss…” The calming water, the faint breeze moving the trees back and forth. The smell of pine and flowers filled the forest. Cassius couldn’t understand why so many refused to come to the mountains. Sure the wind was horrible, but a named could surely withstand it.

With these thoughts ruminating he arrived at a hill overlooking the lake. Much like the stream the lake glowed with a blue and green light. The breeze along it created occasional whitecaps that crashed back into the lake.

The bank of the lake was barren of trees and instead had a gray silt material along the beach. Long grass was dotted across the beach, yellow in color. The place looked like a miracle brought to life. Although a bright blue sky would make the scene better, it was still incredibly beautiful.

Cassius searched near the beach for dry sticks and pine needles. He wanted to make a fire as soon as possible. One for cooking food that he would soon collect, as well as create smoke for his group to hopefully find. However, he wasn’t terribly hopeful. Besides the large lake in the center of the valley the rest of the surrounding area consisted of densely packed forest. Not to mention that this forest extended tens of kilometers in every direction. Cassius was probably lucky that he ended up so centrally located.

After a while he managed to find a decent amount of tinder to make a fire. Skillfully he put together a teepee of dry sticks above the tinder. Using another part of tinder and a stick he used friction to try and start the fire.

“If only I had my damn knife!” He began sweating as he repeated the arduous process of rubbing the stick between his hands. Luckily with his above average human status he possessed enough stamina and strength to get a spark after a few minutes of trying.

He desperately kept the small spark alive by burning some tinder and blowing on it before lighting the rest of the tinder underneath the teepee. Pretty soon he had a proper fire going, he just needed some larger bits of wood. Luckily there was a tree that had fallen over nearby. Though it required quite a bit of effort he managed to carve out some large pieces of wood using a stone and brute strength.

Smoke began to plume upwards as the crackle of the fire rang out. “Hah, guess it’s time to gather some food”. Cassius had seen what looked like edible fruits and nuts on his way to the lakeshore. Retracing his steps he found a shrub with a multitude of green fruits, each characterized by a spiky exterior. According to the book he had read back in Poplis this was a fruit called a ‘prasino’. It had a tart and citrus flavor, with a gooey texture. The rind was not edible, but the inside was a delicacy in Poplis.

Next he collected some nuts and seeds on the forest floor. The seeds were flat with a yellow hue. The nuts on the other hand had a hard brown exterior with a white and softer flesh on the inside. Both had mellow flavors, but seemed to work somewhat as a stimulant if enough was consumed. The seeds were called peprichis, and the nuts were known as malaka.

He ate these and although they somewhat satiated his hunger it was nowhere near enough. Unfortunately the abyss was becoming ever more dark as the crystal dimmed. “Looks like I’ll be going hungry tonight.” Cassius laid down near the fire with nothing to cushion him. A sore back would be sure to greet him tomorrow morning.

As he laid there various thoughts ran through his head. How he had ended up here, where had his group gone, and most importantly how would he get out of here? All these thoughts came to a head as his eyes slowly closed.

…

Sniff, sniff.

Outside of a small shrub a long snout emerged. The nose on the end smelled the air eagerly. After a few seconds the beast fully emerged. It was the fox Cassius had met in the forest.

Long drops of saliva fell to the ground as it looked on at the defenseless creature lying near the mysterious orange heat. The creature was a bit scared of that heat, but it wouldn’t deter it from such an easy meal.

It carefully walked forward, making sure not to alert its prey. With every step the eyes of the fox seemed to dilate further. It had been days since it last ate, and this new intruder came in at the perfect time. When the thing came within ten meters of the sleeping Cassius it finally gave in to its greed as it bounded full speed towards him! It wasn’t long until its snout full of jagged teeth was wide open, ready to rip Cassius’s throat apart!