CHAPTER 1:  Is this real?

                Everything was dark.  I reached into my bag to find my flashlight.  Wait I can move again.  Turning on the light I could see rock walls all around me.  It was a cave.  How in the hell did I get here?  Alright, let’s break this down logically.  There are three possibilities here.  Number one I am part of the greatest prank of all time and someone will jump out soon and say “gotcha”.  OK that is probably not going to happen, I really do not have anyone in my life who knows me well enough to pull this elaborate of a prank except my daughter, and she does not have the resources or funds to do it.

                Number two I am hallucinating or in some sort of coma and this is all a dream.  If that is true then I might as well go with the flow, because there is not much else I can do.  Number three this is really happening and I need to survive for 72 hours.  The message said survive which means that there is something or some situation I need to overcome.  I think I will go with option three.  Even if this is all just a dream it won’t hurt to be a little cautious.  All right, number three it is, I need to check out my surroundings and try to figure out where I am.  Shining my flashlight around I take a close look at the cave I was transported to.

                The cave looks natural with a few stone formations scattered around. It reminds me a little of Mammoth caves in Kentucky where my daughter and I went on vacation.  It looks like there is only one passage out of here.  As I get closer to the opening I note a sign posted next to the cave opening.

“Welcome to the GREAT GAME beta testing dungeon.  Your task is to reach the end of the dungeon alive within 72 hours.  If you are killed or do not reach the exit in time you will be respawned where you came from.  You will not remember any of this unless you complete the dungeon.  Do your best and remember to HAVE FUN!“

                Well OK, at least now I know what I have to do.  Wait a second, all those mysterious disappearances and people with no memory.  They must have been Beta testers also.  I guess they did not pass the test since they lost their memory.  I hope I can do better, but let’s be realistic.  The chances of an overweight and out of shape middle school science teacher finishing what so many others failed at is not likely.  I mean the spirit is willing but the flesh is fat.  I have a huge wealth of game, novel, and science knowledge locked up in my head, but the ability to do physical feats left me sometime after high school.  Too many years of sitting behind my teacher’s desk and eating too much does not an athlete make.

Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

                Well let’s give this my best effort.  First I better check my supplies and repack.  I have always had what we zombie apocalypse guys call a bug out bag, just in case.  It was pretty standard.  One change of clothes, one liter of water, compass, three MRE’s, an emergency blanket, dust mask, matches, lighter, pocket knife, water purifying tablets, rope, candles, and a basic first aid kit.  In addition to my bag I grabbed 12 random canned food items and a box of crackers, so I won’t go hungry in the 72 hours.  I also managed to grab one of my machetes.

                Alright if I can find a source of water I will be just fine.  Even if I don’t find one I should be able to survive 72 hours on just 1 liter of water.  It won’t be pleasant, and I might get dehydrated, but it should be possible.  Since I have seen game screens maybe I can find out more about what is going on.  OK how does this always work in the books.  I yell out loud, “STATS!”

“Stats are not available during the beta testing dungeon.”

Well that is disappointing, but at least I now that there will be stats eventually.  How about, “SKILLS!”

"Skills are not available during the beta testing dungeon.”

Is this going to happen for everything?  “HELP!”

“Help is not available during the beta testing dungeon.”

                This sucks.  I get transported to a game world and remember everything the main character usually forgets and none of it is working.  So frustrating!  Alright let’s just get on with it.  It is time to conquer a dungeon.  Man that sounded cheesy even in my head.