James sighed.

It had been another long day working on his project for one of his clients. He really didn’t know why they needed it done by the end of the week. His team would have to work overtime to get it done.

James was an average guy. Nothing really special with his brown hair, brown eyes and 6’ tall height. He majored in accounting and did an MBA to get up the ranks in his profession. Only by doing a really difficult project before the due date.

It was raining on the street to his apartment. He made decent money as a consultant, but he still couldn’t afford a new place to live. Some days just felt like repetitions of the previous one. With all the work for different clients, life just got a bit dull.

As he was walking down the street, it started to rain. He didn’t mind the rain. He was watching the ground and wishing the world wasn’t so dull. He let out his anger at how life treated him like just another guy by stomping on a puddle.

Splash!

The world disappeared and was replaced by a blank gray horizon.

‘What the hell?’

James’ head swam in confusion at what just happened.

Right at that moment, a shining blue orb appeared.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

You think life is dull? Try this then…

Suddenly James was falling into darkness and was swallowed by it. He fell for what felt like hours, until the fall slowed and he was gently left to stand on a raised stone platform with markings on it.

‘Where am I?’

As his eyes were adjusting, he was approached by a figure in a cloak. The figure removed the hood and revealed an aged man with a tattoo of a sun on his forehead.

The man raised his arms to the ceiling and shouted, “Behold the ones who will venture into the dungeon for all of the light!”

James now realized that next to him were two other people who were similarly dazed. There was one girl and one other guy.

“What the f*ck?!?!” the other guy said. “I knew I shouldn’t have been drinking…”

The girl just sat there lamenting something. Meanwhile, the guy seemed to have cooled down a bit.

“Where are we?”

The man voiced the same question James had in his head.

“You are in Teniu, a world at risk of being taken by the darkness that lies below. We have summoned you to fight it, and you must save us!”

“What the hell? I ain’t doing anything!”

The old man ignores him.

“Now, let us escort you down to the entrance to the dungeon!”

Men in shining armor take my arms and hoist me up, along with the other two and bring us along dark corridors to a chamber with markings like the platform we were ‘summoned’ on.

“Now, unfortunately we cannot give you anything to aid you against the dungeon. We have tried before and the unfortunate souls were turned into undead. We wish not to repeat that, so good luck! And banish the evil that lies beneath!”

The man places his hand on a sigil and suddenly a black veil drapes over a doorway set in the stone that James hadn’t noticed before. Then the men in armor start pushing the guy towards the veil.

“The ****!? STOP DAMMIT!”

He pushes against them to no avail. He is roughly shoved in the portal.

The girl, who has been silent this whole time, is next. Surprisingly, she doesn’t flinch and walks in herself.

Now it’s me.

I walk slowly towards the inky black curtain. I take a deep breath and-

I get shoved in from behind.

Now I am falling once more.