I awoke quickly, panic rushing forth as memories pushed away the nightmares and I was reminded of my situation. However, my fear only rose as I tried to open my eyes and found I couldn’t. The stink of blood filled the air, the rank taste of it making me gag. My eyelids were sealed by the viscera I had fallen unconscious within. I tried to claw at the unwanted mask but the pain was staggering.

It felt as though I had been run over by a truck and then beaten up some more for good measure. Every muscle felt torn or otherwise displaced. Those terrible minutes without control were haunting me mentally and physically, and I chose pain over fear. My back began to spasm painfully, but I let that suffering fuel me. With a violent shout, I tried to reach for my eyes but only managed to slap my hand against my face. It hurt, but this was a sharper pain. It focused me.

With nothing but the darkness and discomfort, I could do nothing but confront what had occurred. My mind was my own now, but the spasm in my back became a body-wide shiver as I relived those awful minutes again. Heavy thuds with no feedback. It wasn’t possible to pretend I didn’t understand what had happened. Burning bile coughed into my mouth, thick with unconsciously swallowed blood. Another round of evacuating my stomach later, and I was certain that death was inbound.

Everything just hurt too much. The pain had let me get into a seated position, my back against a wall. In the darkness, two burning purple orbs glared at me, accusing me. “You did this to me,” I whimpered. “It’s not my fault.” Even as the words left my lips, the hollowness of them rang out to me. I brought my hand to my eyes, ready to rip the bloody gunk away and look upon the room.

Except, I wasn’t.

Ready, that is. Even as my hand clenched into an angry fist, tearing away the mess of dried blood, my eyes were scrunched shut. I couldn’t bring myself to look upon the scene, knowing it had been my hands which caused it, though I couldn’t even begin to understand what had happened. I could blame Mrs Naebol, but I would never forget the pain searing my body.

I kicked out with a foot, a sticky splash following the movement and causing me to grimace. Deep, racking sobs started to take over me, each one a wave of pain which released some of the tension. I suddenly felt like I understood flagellation, just a little. In the pain, I could forgive myself, knowing the act had harmed me, too. It was a petty forgiveness, but one I clutched desperately. “It’s not my fault,” I repeated.

I took a deep breath, allowing the foetid stench to wash through me. Every portion of penance mattered. Exhaling slowly, I forced myself to look upon the massacre in Clive’s Café. For all my high falutin’ ideas that I could handle the scene, I certainly could not. A small flash of the gore was enough to slam my eyes shut once more. “I’m so sorry,” I began to cry, “Sandra… Helpful Man… Glasses Woman…”

I almost gagged on my own pathetic words. Without knowing the names of these people, my apology was flimsy and insulting. It almost felt cruel in its disingenuity but what else could I do? Hitting the back of my head against the wall in anger, I sat in the silence and shouted angrily. Cursing the world which had just gone mad, I screamed expletives and begged for help and wept. It took a while to compose myself, but releasing all of the confusing emotions inside left me hollow enough that I could face the truth.

The scene was both worse than I could have imagined and yet, somehow, easier to look upon now. There was a coldness growing in my chest which I encouraged, allowing me to analyse the destruction with an impassivity. Dwelling wasn’t the point, but I did not look away from the faces of those on the ground. I would never forget a single one of these scared, unfortunate people. However, I was looking for one in particular.

“You. You did this.” I pushed myself to my feet, anger a much better fuel than fear for forming action. My vitriol was directed at the body of Mrs Naebol. “You crazy fucking bitch. You made me kill them all.” Unable to help myself, I kicked the body in frustration. It was hardly desecration considering I was the one who killed her. My agonised muscles weren’t thankful, but it made me feel better overall. That is, until I yelped and jumped back, the motion starting fires all through my muscles once more.

To my amazement, a flat sign began to float out of her body. Clear, legible writing was displayed in white text on a black box. The word behind it was obscured completely, causing me to panic. The moment I wanted to see through the box, however, it became transparent. Focusing on the words again, I blinked in confusion. Two words, and only one I recognised.

Naeboroseax - Dead

“Nay… boar-oh-sea-axe?” I sounded the word out. The word seemed to float in my mind for a moment. “Haven’t I heard that before?” I struggled to remember the chaotic cacophony of alerts that seemed to assault me before I had blacked out the second time. Feeling silly, I said into the air, “L-... Level up?”

It was like I had been connected to some ultra-intuitive augmented reality program, I thought, as multiple text boxes appeared in the air around me all saying the same thing. I counted seven in total, each reaching Level Up! As though I was accessing memories which had always been there, I knew that if I focused on the text box, I would get more information.

Level Up! - +5 Attribute Points

That was all the extended prompt said, written seven times around me. With a thought and a blink, I closed all of them at once. Attributes? I wondered, not enjoying all of the new information coming at me while I was in this place. I could feel a tug in my mind, like thinking of attributes had opened another pathway but I wasn’t interested yet. I recognised enough of these words together that an idea was forming, but I didn’t want to get ahead of myself.

Nor did I want to spend another second in this building. The pain hadn’t changed at all, agony still brushing my skin with every movement, but I was no longer revelling it. Now, it was just something to get over as I made my way to the front door. The journey was arduous even before I remembered the issues I had trying to leave before. The claustrophobic feeling returned and I found even more energy to get to the exit.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

I threw myself at the door, expecting resistance. Of course, I should have known not to expect anything and I tumbled from the gory café with a yelp and a faceplant. Things weren’t starting strong, but I needed to know what I was dealing with. The countdown had been for everyone, it hadn’t just been to announce my own personal nightmare. Something huge had happened to the world, and as I blinked away the harsh sunlight, the proof was evident.

Before me was, ostensibly, a park. The playground equipment which surrounded Clive’s Café was still there. The concrete paths which lead to the small business and out of the park were also present, but about one hundred yards in all directions, the layout had shifted. I circled the building, taking care to look outwards at all times and confirmed it was in all directions. The paths leading away stopped at a harsh cut, jagged cracks at the edge of the paving.

Beyond that, another fifty feet or so, was the treeline. Impenetrable gloom and thick cover as far as the eye could see in every direction. A rising sense of dread was growing in my throat. “What the fuck is going on?” I asked, ignoring that it was becoming a bit of a catchphrase. That tugging appeared again, from somewhere within myself, and I didn’t fight it at all. A text box appeared and I wasn’t sure whether to be surprised I had received an answer or terrified at what it implied.

Dungeon Entered!

Due to the special nature of your presence in this dungeon, this instance has been designated as a Solo Dungeon. The surroundings have been balanced to your current level upon entering the dungeon (Level 7).

Okay, all of the keywords were piling up to an explanation at this point. Level ups, attributes and now dungeons? “What’s next, quests?”

Quest Received!

Dungeon Quest - Aspiring Claims

Due to the special nature of the Solo Dungeon, you are its Keystone. Until the first of the three Aspirants are defeated, entry to the dungeon from outside is locked. Only when all three Aspirants are defeated will the Keystone be free to leave, returning the Solo Dungeon to its initial state.

Current Claimants - 3

Reward: ???

“Well, that’s what I get for being glib.” I looked at the pair of announcements with impotence. I hoped that it wasn’t my asking which had created the quest, and therefore locked me into the dungeon. I couldn’t put that evil on myself right now, so I just blamed the strange text boxes. I wasn’t a massive fan of the obscured reward, but I was at least thankful for being given a goal.

“What the System does to people is cruel. Good people don’t survive long.”

Although I didn’t want to think about her words, they came to my mind all the same. “The System?” I asked the air. It was as good a name for the text boxes and weirdness as anything. The System had come to Earth. There was so much I didn’t know, and the temptation to obsess and jump to conclusions was fierce but I focused on the important things for now. Such as surviving.

The System seemed to have set me up against these “Aspirants.” If the video-game-like patterns continued then these would basically be boss monsters. The thought alone had me taking dry, uncomfortable gulps of the air. I had never been much of a fighter. I was more of a punching bag growing up, and I had just been about to receive a diploma in Psychology. All the conversations about trying out for rugby came back to me and I wanted to kick younger Me in the shin. Having muscles like my older brothers would have been a confidence boost at least. How could I defeat anyone?

I looked at my hands and the blood which was stained onto them. I… already had, hadn’t I? It might not have been my choice, but it was my body that tore those people apart. I pushed my large shoulders back and rose to my full height. At just under six foot, I wasn’t imposing, but I had long arms and legs. Hands with enough power to-

Tearing myself away from that line of thinking, I supposed it was time to delve into the options before me. Pulling up one of the prompts again, I nodded. “Plus five attribute points,” I read aloud. The pull of the System came again and a true page of information appeared before me. “Ah fuck,” I cursed as I took it all in. The first page wasn’t too bad, but once I saw the attributes I was overwhelmed immediately.

That was… a lot of numbers without much explanation.

Character Window

Name

Grant Kaeron

Race

Earth Human

Title

Dragon Slayer

Level

7

Health

5/20

Mana

0

Attribute Window

FP:35

Strength

3

Recovery

1

Resilience

1

Dexterity

4

Agility

3

Perception

3

Power

0

Regeneration

0

Command

0