Nick woke up every few hours to add more wood to the fire.

Each time, he took a quick listen to his surroundings and went right back to sleep, warm at night for the first time since arriving on the isle. He met the dawn feeling better than he had in days, although his stomach informed him that it would appreciate breakfast sometime soon.

While he took in a magnificent sunrise on one side and the flowing field of lava on the other, Nick went to work, planning out his day. He spotted some dark green clouds strung out along the southern horizon. But with any luck, they weren’t heading his way. With his survey of the shoreline complete, he decided that he needed to head back to the spring right away, unless he found more coconuts on his journey south. After that, he should have half of the day free to further his objectives.

Although he wanted to return to the obelisk to check for any updates to his profile, making the trip to the western shore wouldn’t be an efficient use of his time until he was ready to make camp. Instead, he would head north from the spring, beginning his first foray into the forest, not counting the brief incursion he had made to climb the giant tree.

He intended to investigate and determine what manner of beasts inhabited the region, then forage for food and uncover any other resources that might prove useful. He would keep an eye out for more Exploration Reward Chests, although he had a working theory that the crates on the beach were easier to find than those placed along the interior of the island. He had only spotted the cache secured at the top of the great tree through a stroke of luck.

Once Nick had a better idea of what he was dealing with, he would come up with a concrete plan of action and decide how to go about exploring the rest of the island over the weeks ahead. While it was tempting to stay holed up on the beach until the end of the tutorial, he knew that it would be a losing proposition in the long run.

For one thing, the resources along the coast were gradually dwindling. The coconuts grew slowly and were already becoming scarce. He couldn’t count on finding any after a few more days of harvesting. The berries growing near the border of the beach had been scoured clean by the tribe, at least over on the western shore of the island. He needed to find another source of forageable food. One that would last until he devised a means of hunting the swordclaws or discovered a place to spearfish.

That being said, he held little hope that the situation on the island would remain stable for much longer. The phases mentioned in the quest’s description implied escalating challenges, and the first phase would end in another two days. The dynamics of the Searing Isle would change at that point, and he would have to scramble to adapt.

Nick still had no idea what to expect. As he gathered more data, he hoped to form a theory regarding the logic governing the tutorial so that he could thoroughly prepare before the final phase began. Regardless, he was certain that he would be forced deeper into the island sooner rather than later. This scenario was too much like a game for the System to leave so much prime real estate untouched.

At one point or another, he would have to enter the forest and the highlands beyond, and he intended to do so on his own terms. More than anything, he needed to avoid the predatory beasts roaming the isle. At least until he gained a few levels, acquired a proper weapon, and trained himself to basic competency in its use. He prayed that he wouldn’t run into the lurk again. These incremental increases to his inventory and attributes meant nothing in the face of that living mountain of muscle and ill-will.

Before he broke camp, Nick shoved the most usable bits of claw into the pocket of his robe and stored his razor in his toolbelt. He spent a few minutes drawing a map of the island in the sand, to solidify his observations with a tangible representation. Finally, he reached into the firepit and filled several empty pouches with charcoal, in case he wanted to mask his scent again or found a reason to write or draw, adding a few rocks for good measure.

His preparations complete, he began the long hike back around the shoreline. To his delight, he spotted another ripe coconut along the way. He decided to hold onto it without breaking it open, using the method he had worked out earlier to tie it to his belt. The durable fruit would serve him best as an emergency source of food and water, assuming that he could find something else to eat later in the day. He needed to build up as big of a buffer between himself and starvation as he could.

While he walked, Nick began incorporating brief wind sprints into his daily routine. He was hoping to improve the capacity of his lungs, as well as the strength of his legs and heart. He wondered idly if the attribute increases he received due to conditioning applied themselves generally or were slanted toward developing the specific muscles he used.

If he did pushups until his Strength hit 10, would he look relatively normal, or wind up with massive biceps out of scale to the rest of his body? He laughed at the image conjured by his daydreams. Then he stopped fucking around, although he was glad for a momentary diversion to break up the tension of his prolonged ordeal.

He had to circumvent several roving bands of swordclaws. The beasts seemed more agitated than usual, less willing to suffer Nick’s presence in their domain. He wondered what had the crabs on edge, hoping that it wasn’t anything he needed to worry about, although he suspected that it was.

There’s a storm brewing along the horizon, he decided as he caught sight of another thick pack of clouds far to the south, tinged green like the ones he had seen from the treetop. Maybe it’s headed our way after all.

Nick was glad to have discovered the room at the top of the shipwreck. Unless the waves rose high enough to reclaim the remnants of the vessel, it would be a perfect place to ride out the storm. If I get caught in the rain, I’ll just skip the obelisk until it passes, eat my emergency coconut, and refill my canteen with rainwater. I’ll decide once I’m back in the area, based on the movement of the stormfront.

The system had only blown a little closer three hours later when he caught sight of the wreckage in the distance. As he was growing thirsty and had no guarantee that the rain would arrive anytime soon, he decided to head for the spring as planned. Then he would revise his itinerary based on the progression of the clouds.

He made surprisingly good time. Nick didn’t spot a single swordclaw or komo between the shipwreck and the spring. On his way around the bay, he stopped to ponder the doorway leading to the dungeon. Now that he’d had time to think it through, he was planning to head inside a few days before the tutorial entered its final phase. Hopefully, I’ll be a few levels above the recommended minimum by then.

The grove surrounding the spring was free of beasts too. He drank his fill and topped off his canteen, enjoying what had been his most relaxing day on the island to date. He was debating whether he should wash off the grime he had rubbed into his clothing the night before when a vibrant vermillion butterfly landed on his forearm.

Nick had just enough time to feel a faint pulse of danger from Size Up before the elegant little shit stung him. It hurt like hell—more than a bee sting—but didn’t seem to be too venomous. It was a timely reminder that while the beasts were the most pressing threat on the island, regular animals could be dangerous too. He would keep an eye out for strange insects going forward

In case his assailant was still fluttering somewhere nearby, he darted over to the opposite side of the grove before dunking his arm beneath the brisk spring water. He was waiting until the throbbing pain subsided before heading deeper into the woods.

Due to the distraction of being stung, he was slow to notice the electric tension that had risen to fill the air. The series of gigantic talon marks pressed into the mud. The silence that had descended as the animals living in the woodlands went to ground. A steaming pile of bone-studded shit topping off near the level of his knees.

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The lurk gazed down at Nick from the concealment of the branches.

Despite his fervent prayers to the contrary, the creature did not confine itself to the northern shore of the island. To the shaggy apex predator, every biome on the isle was part of its domain. Grounds to hunt at its leisure.

While the massive beast didn’t range this far south often, it had decided to make the trip today, following that strange scent it had noticed before. It tensed its powerful legs, took aim, and then struck in a blinding flash.

Although his instincts had been screaming to get his attention for the last few seconds, Nick had just processed the fact that something was terribly wrong when the foliage erupted in a blizzard of shorn leaves and vines.

Accompanied by the crackle of shattered branches, the lurk emerged from the tree line with a savage growl. To his abject horror, the hulking brute gathered its strength and pounced, furry body streaking straight for where Nick stood.

He looked up, taking in the sight of ivory talons flashing in the sunlight. Sunlight that was extinguished a heartbeat later as a solid wall of green clouds passed in front of the sun, the boom of thunder echoing in the distance.

He would have died then and there if his body hadn’t responded without waiting for a conscious command. Nick turned to run, slipped in the mud, and fell flat on his back, just as the lurk soared through the space that his chest had occupied half a heartbeat prior.

The impact of the multi-ton predator slamming into the earth reverberated through his bones, as a tsunami of adrenaline flooded every artery and vein. He scrambled back onto his feet, anticipating a fatal strike, just in time to watch the lurk slide across the muck before toppling into the spring with an enormous splash.

He prayed that, with its heavy body and short arms, the creature would be unable to swim. Those hopes were dashed three seconds later, when the beast’s head resurfaced, unleashing a deafening roar of rage.

The lurk did have a hard time navigating the terrain along the edge of the spring, slipping in the mud bordering the shore as it fought to regain its footing. Nick knew this obstacle would only delay the agile beast for a matter of seconds. He had mere heartbeats to make his escape before the colossal predator caught up with him.

It can swim, but it’s not good at it. His brain latched onto any detail that might boost his odds of living through this colossal blunder, which at the moment sat just a hair above zero. If he survived, this would be an invaluable lesson. In addition to letting a trivial injury distract him, he realized with cold clarity that he had grown overconfident after learning how to avoid the lesser beasts on the island.

Now Nick’s hubris might cost him his life.

He ran south along the stream. Despite pushing his body to the limit, the lurk would catch him within another minute at most. Rather than chancing the mud a second time, the beast had decided to circle around to avoid the streambed. While his life was still in imminent danger, Nick had bought himself enough time to come up with a desperate plan.

He could feel the impact of its footfalls, although he couldn’t see the beast while it was moving through the forest. Though he would have a hard time maintaining his lead long enough to get there, his only chance was to dive into the depths of the bay. Hopefully, the sheer walls and the powerful waves breaking against them would discourage the lurk from jumping in after him.

Now he needed to come up with a way to widen his lead before he was caught from behind. He was tempted to run into the ocean, but he knew it would never work. While he doubted that the lurk would be willing to dive into the tumultuous waters of the bay, anywhere else along the shoreline was too shallow. The colossal creature would catch up and pluck him from the sea, well before the floor grew deep enough for Nick to dive below the reach of its jaws.

Although he could see the dynamics of his dilemma with stark clarity, after his original burst of inspiration, he was drawing a blank as to how he might outwit the apex predator.

The cacophony of pursuit was growing closer by the heartbeat as the lurk snapped branches off the trees in passing. The rhythmic pounding of its feet slamming into the earth grew closer and then closer still.

Although he continued to sprint with everything he had, Nick already knew that it wouldn’t be enough. Before he made it halfway to the bay, the creature would catch him, and there wasn’t anything he could do to stop it. Not that he wasn’t going to try his best regardless. He didn’t have time to look over his shoulder; every scrap of focus was devoted to picking out his path.

As he burst out of the brush and began running along the shore, the sound of the hunt cut off abruptly.

A visceral tide of relief flooded through every cell of Nick’s body, along with a fair amount of confusion. In defiance of the odds, the lurk had abandoned the chase mere moments before its climax. Maybe I lucked out and it came across a juicier meal.

Ten seconds later, the rising flame of his hope was extinguished like a snuffed candle. Because that was when Nick looked up—to where an army of angry green clouds was marching across the sky, conquering the heavens from horizon to horizon.

Fey bolts of purple lightning danced throughout the nebulous host, and he could feel the pressure dropping deep within his bones. During his brief venture into the spring, the storm had changed course, and now it was looming over his head.

He had just decided to head back to the shipwreck, then process his close brush with death, when the wind shifted, blowing hot and moist like the breath of a titanic beast. The scorching air stung his skin, and looking up at the sky, Nick understood that the searing breeze heralded worse to come.

The main body of clouds was fast approaching. Their texture and color were wrong, making the phenomenon unlike any storm on Earth. Layers of emerald and cerulean were banded around their dark bellies, swollen with the promise of rain. The few animals that he could spot along the shore were scrambling madly for cover. Even the predators were ignoring potential prey in their all-consuming flight.

Something is terribly wrong. This must be a significantly greater threat than a regular storm. I need to make it back to the ship and take shelter before the stormfront breaks over the island.

That was the moment when the rain began to fall.

A fat raindrop struck Nick’s elbow, and pain exploded across the surface of his skin. The water was scalding hot. In the heart of that terrible moment, he came to understand the origin of the Searing Isle’s name. It wasn’t the volcano after all.

Internalizing this revelation, he understood that he didn’t have time to make it back to the spring or over to the shipwreck. He had mere seconds to find shelter, or he was going to be boiled alive when the full fury of the storm descended upon him.

Nick pulled his bathrobe tight around his body to protect his skin, knowing that this feeble shield would only endure for the handful of seconds it took for the superheated liquid to saturate the cloth. He would have already been blinded if not for his hat.

The cover of the canopy would do nothing to protect him from the superheated air generated by the storm. The only thing he could do was continue running and dive into the bay after all, gambling that the deep water would be sufficient to insulate him from the searing storm’s wrath.

He sprinted across the dunes, now engaged in a race for his life against a very different opponent. The unbridled ferocity of nature herself. The scalding rain intensified with every step he took, searing his arms and back, although his sunhat kept it from blistering his face.

Wisps of steam rose from the sand like ethereal serpents. Soon, they would grow too thick to see the path ahead. The temperature was still climbing by the footfall. He knew that instead of inflicting superficial injuries, the sweltering downpour would raise his body temperature enough that he would pass out before much longer, sealing his fate.

But Nick just had to hold on for a few final seconds. Long enough to dive into the chill water of the bay, then find a spot beneath the rocky ledge where he wouldn’t be cooked by the rain or drowned by the surging currents.

Moving so fast that the world was reduced to a liquid blur of color and motion, he streaked across the final stretch of beach and set foot on the sand bordering the bay. His body was coated in a sheen of boiling water, creating a living latticework of agony all along his skin. A few more steps would see him to the water’s edge.

Just as Nick was about to dive in, he saw a komo perform the same leap that he intended to take. The instant the reptile plunged below the surface, a set of massive jaws rose from the murky depths as a gigantic shark devoured the unlucky reptile in a single bite.

All along the shoreline, scores of the bulky lizards, who must have had the same idea as Nick, were being consumed in a gore-studded feeding frenzy. His mind recoiled on spotting dozens of black fins cutting through the froth-capped waves.

The sharks must be native to this planet and tough enough to withstand the heat. They knew the storm was coming and that it would drive prey into the water. The bay is just as much of a deathtrap as getting caught out in the storm.

In the depths of that black moment, Nick knew that he only had one chance of living through the day. The dungeon—it’s just around the bend. I can still make it in time.

He put everything that he had left into sprinting down the interior of the cove, skidding to a stop in front of the metal door. His hands were covered in blisters, and each breath pulled searing air into his lungs. With no time left to ponder the implications of his decision, he flung it open and leapt through the portal inside.

Half a heartbeat later, Nick was standing below the surface of another planet.