I felt the damp soil beneath me as I groggily opened my eyes to find that I was in a middle of a clearing surrounded by trees. It looks like the figure had dumped me in the middle of a forest.

As I stood up, I patted the dirt off my clothes and looked around to survey my surroundings.

The wind gently blowing by and the clean scent of the air freshened my cloudy mind, superior to the atmosphere on Earth.

As I relaxed and closed my eyes, I smelled the aroma of honey wafting in the air.

Noticing the smell came from a tiny blue-ish plant, I curiously walked over and examined it. There were several decomposing rodents surrounding the flower, each looking as if it died peacefully.

As I wondered what could have caused that, I picked the flower, placed it in my mouth, and started chewing. A flavor similar to honey, albeit with a tiny hint of spice, exploded in my mouth.

The liquid that seeped out of the plant was refreshing and not overly sweet.

Swallowing the flower sent a numbing tingling feeling throughout my whole body, although it soon faded.

I burped and continued looking for a way out of the forest.

As I continued walking, I heard a rustling noise coming from the bushes next to me.

When I stepped closer to inspect the source of the noise, a blue, jiggling, round ball jumped out.

I looked at the creature in wonder, remarking to myself how cute it looked.

And how deliciously sweet it smelled.

As I walked forward to grab at the creature, it suddenly hopped up onto my face, covering my entire head with its body.

The blue ball deprived me of oxygen, attempting to suffocate me.

However, I just opened my mouth and started sucking its body into my mouth and swallowing.

Its liquidy flesh had a taste surprisingly similar to grape soda, quenching my thirst.

Soon, its entire body disappeared into my stomach, leaving only a solid red core that fell to the ground.

Of course, I picked it up and bit into it, giving off a satisfying crunching sound.

It tasted like strawberry wafers, the pieces melting in my mouth and down my throat as I swallowed.

As I threw the final piece of the red core into my mouth, I heard the bushes behind me rustle again and I turned around pleasantly surprised as I expected to see another one of those creatures appearing.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

However, it was merely a man adorned in dirty leather armor staring at me in surprise.

He had messy dark brown hair, sunburnt tan skin, a body full of muscles, and dark gray eyes filled with confusion as he did not expect to see another person there.

Thinking to myself that there was obviously going to be a language barrier between us, I started waving my hands and gesturing to him that I meant no harm.

"The fuck?" the man suddenly said as he watched me.

I immediately stopped waving as I cleared my throat and replied, "Oh, there was a mosquito, sorry."

"What are you doing alone in here?" the man asked. "Where's your party?"

"I'm alone and I got lost in here," I said as I awkwardly laughed.

"How brave of you to enter the Forest of the Damned alone and without equipment."

"Don't worry, I'm trying to find a way out," I answered. "Do you have a map or something I can borrow?"

"My team was just on the way out of the forest. We can bring you along if you want," the man replied as he reached out for a handshake. "My name's Kolyer."

"I'll gladly tag along," I said as I shook his hand. "If it isn't too much trouble."

"It's not," Kolyer answered as he gave a big smile. "Follow me."

I followed Koyler and watched as he expertly maneuvered his way through the forest.

We soon reached a camp filled with around a dozen people eating, chatting, or playing cards.

One or two of them looked up and gave me a curious glance but soon returned to what they were doing.

There were also a few large wooden wagons covered with cloth and when I asked Kolyer about them, he told me that they contained the captured animals that they were going to sell back in the city.

"Wait here for a second," Kolyer said before walking to a woman, long scars covering her entire face, standing next to a cooking pot. He whispered a few words into her ear and then walked back toward me.

"Andrea over there," Kolyer began as he nodded in the direction of the woman. "Will get you something to eat. We're going to pack up camp soon and leave."

"Alright, thanks."

Soon after, Andrea walked over to me with a steaming bowl of soup filled with chunks of meat and a few vegetables floating inside.

"Enjoy yer meal," she said with a bright smile as she handed me a wooden spoon and the bowl.

"Thanks," I replied as I breathed in the wonderful aroma drifting off of the soup.

As Andrea nodded and walked away, I took a sip of the soup.

Swallowing the soup gave me a warm and comforting feeling, filling my mouth with a deep, rich flavor.

The meat tasted gamey, the flavor similar to venison. The vegetables were crunchy and provided a refreshing contrast to the rest of the soup.

As I finished up the soup, Kolyer walked over to me and asked, "Done?"

"Yeah," I replied. "It was delicious."

As he looked at my face for a few more seconds, he suddenly called out to Andrea, "Bring him another bowl. And make sure to give him extra this time."

"Did I look that hungry?" I laughed. "But I won't refuse if you insist."

Kolyer simply smiled and walked away again as Andrea brought me another bowl of soup.

After I finished the soup, Kolyer walked over again, but this time with a frown on his face.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I replied. "Why?"

Kolyer then turned toward Andrea and gave her a questioning look. She simply shrugged and said, "I put enough in there to knock out three grown men."

Hearing that, I stood up and asked, "Wha-"

"Screw this," Kolyer said as he suddenly disappeared from my field of vision.

I then felt a harsh impact on the back of my neck, causing everything to turn dark.

----------------------------------------

When I awoke, I felt the floor beneath me rumbling and my hands chained up.

Surrounding me in the dark were several other people, filthy in their ragged clothes, their eyes lifeless, also chained.

I was probably in one of those wagons containing the "captured animals" Kolyer was talking about.

"I guess I've been kidnapped," I sighed. "Shit."