Strange symbols glow on my chainmail and on my shield, and then, just like the incredible hulk, my body starts to swell. I grow taller, stronger, and larger. My armor, sword, and shield grow with me, nearly doubling in size. My feet stomp along the ground.

I'm a giant!

The spider looks less intimidating, now that it's about my same size. It turns its eight eyes on me and tenses up.

With a shout, I swing my sword. One die, followed by two dice appear above my forehead, but I don't care. I focus on the spider as my blade cuts through four of its legs like butter. The monster shrieks in pain, curling its feet in on itself.

Laura, still in pain, scowls at the monster, and thrusts her curved sword into the spider's abdomen. It recoils and, in a last-ditch effort, takes another bite at Laura, piercing her neck.

Laura's eyes go wide, staring up at me, full of fear and dread. And then they roll back, and her body goes limp.

"NOOOO!" I raise my sword and thrust it down onto the spider's back. The blade sinks through the spider's exoskeleton, emerges through its sternum, and plunges several feet into the earth.

The spider spasms in pain, its remaining four legs squirming frantically for a moment, and then it falls still. Dead.

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Silence.

"Laura!" I bellow, my voice much louder and deeper than normal. With barely a conscious thought, my body and armor return to their normal size, and I kneel next to Laura. I don't stop to wonder what happened to me... not now... all that matters is Laura.

She lies on her back, not moving. Blood oozes out of her neck and shoulder, forming a small puddle.

A red die appears above her forehead, saying, "Death Saving Throw. 9. Fail." I don't know how this game world works, but that roll doesn't sound good.

My fingers shake, as I observe her wounds. I need to stop the bleeding. Or give her CPR. Or call 911.

I reach for my phone in my left pocket and realize it’s not there. That's right. I'm in a different world. I don't have a phone. And there's no 911 to call. What do I do?

A die appears above my head. "Medicine Check. 5. Fail."

"No, Laura!" I put one hand underneath her head, and the other over her neck wound, trying to stop the bleeding.

The red die appears again. "Death Saving Throw. 2. Fail."

Her skin grows cold and pale. She's barely breathing. She has lost a lot of blood.

Tears form in my eyes. I don't even know Laura very well, but she is so kind, and I care for her more than I knew. I've never seen someone die in my arms. And it shakes my very soul to think that's what's happening now.

"Recover!" a voice says.

I look up through teary eyes and see Malcolm, on the other side of the fissure--two spider corpses behind him--an arm extended toward Laura.

A white light brings my attention back to Laura. Her whole body glows as the wounds on her neck and shoulder instantly seal up. Her chest fills with air and her eyes flutter open.

"What happened?" she asks.

My mouth hangs open, struggling to comprehend what I just saw. Laura was on deaths door, and then Malcolm, with a single word, brought her back to life. "It's a miracle!" I say and embrace Laura. She hugs me back, though weakly, apparently not completely healed.

"No," Jesse says, as she leaps over the fissure. "It's magic."