Darian sat dying in his hospital bed, vaguely aware of the people around him. They existed as blurred shapes and distant voices, lost behind the beeping and churning of machines. He was tired, more tired than he’d ever been. He’d been battling leukemia for ten of his twenty-two years, and it seemed his time fighting was at an end. A part of him despaired at his fate, to die so young, having never seen the world. His illness kept him indoors most of his life, his days spent gaming away the time. Girlfriends, parties, friends—these were all things he missed out on. Things he would never see.
When his eyes shut for the last time, it was as if a warm blanket had been wrapped around him. He could hear his mother’s worried voice, his father’s stern commands for calm. Is this death? Darian reached out to them, but his hands wouldn’t follow his commands. He was floating, the hospital room shrinking into the blackness below him. A churning swirl of colors hung overhead, but he stopped just before he reached it.
“What is it that you desire?” A voice asked, muffled and distorted as if it was reaching across a great distance.
To not be sick. Darian thought in response. Many late nights had been spent in prayer for that very same wish. To never be sick again. To be strong. To have blood that isn’t poison.
“Very well.” The voice was closer now. “By blood you were undone and by blood you will be remade.” An orb of white light hovered near him, vibrating with power. “Blood will be your weapon. Your power. Blood will be your dominion.”
Darian fell away from the light, the orb floating down with him. He raised his arm and saw that it was a congealed mass of small lights, moving and pulsing, shining like stars in the night sky.
Where am I? Darian tried to ask, but he had no mouth to speak from. The orb seemed to hear his question, for it pulsated in response.
“You have been chosen, Darian. You will be reborn.”
Reborn? Darian would have laughed if his new form allowed it. Something like that was too good for him. Maybe this whole thing was his mind’s last burst of imagination before oblivion? Either way, he would play along for now.
“Yes, you will be reborn. You are the last of the Aspirants. Fate has decreed it.”
Darian floated in silence, his mind racing. Thoughts came at him too fast to comprehend, and he was somewhat aware that his body had started hardening, forming into something new.
What is happening? Darian tried to thrash about, but his body was condensed, writhing and flowing like waves in high tide.
“Do not panic. You are being remade. Let your soul rest. A new world awaits.”
***
Darian opened his eyes. The moon hung high above him, glowing brightly in the night sky. With a throbbing head, he sat up. Trees flanked him on all sides, their bright green leaves tussled by a soft breeze.
“Where…am I?” Darian’s limbs protested, but he forced himself to stand.
It was as he stood, and a new gust of wind blew in, that he realized he was naked. Instinctively he covered himself with his hands and glanced about, half expecting to see someone watching nearby. After his moment of panic passed, he relaxed and peered between the trees, his vision surprisingly great in the moonlit night.
“Hello!” he called, his hands cupped around his mouth. “Is anyone there!”
Suddenly, he remembered the orb, remembered floating. Remembered dying.
“Hello…” he mumbled, his hands flopping down to his sides. “This isn’t real, is it?” He slapped his face, the sound almost deafening in the silence.
Okay this is real. Or at least this pain is. He walked over to a nearby rock and sat down, thoughts swirling. Resting his head in his hands, he did his best to rationalize the situation. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t quite believe what was happening.
“Am I really in a new world?” Darian inspected the pine trees, the lush grass, the gray rock he sat upon. All were unremarkable. He might not have been outside much in the last ten years, but it all seemed like the kind of thing he could have seen back home in Vermont.
If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
Home. Darian’s gut twisted at the thought. He saw his mother’s sad face, his father’s best attempts at comforting her. They would both be in a lot of pain now. Probably planning a funeral for him. I’m sorry that I wasn’t strong enough. Darian sucked back the tears forming in his eyes and stood. “I can worry about all that later.” He tried to relax, pushing his mounting panic back the best he could.
But first things first. Darian spun around, each direction nothing but endless forest. “Where the hell am I?”
Memories of watching survival shows late into the night passed through his mind. I need to find the three essentials: Food, water, and shelter. His stomach groaned. I guess this new body came with an empty stomach. Great. He shook his head. “But seriously, where the hell am I? Where should I go?”
A strange, translucent box appeared to his right, with “???” centered at its top border. It took Darian a moment to realize it was a map.
The immediate area around him was clear, visible as if he was being watched from high above. But the surrounding forest was blacked out. Not very helpful. On instinct, Darian flicked his wrist and dismissed the map. He stared down at his oddly pale hand. How did I know how to do that?
Now curious, he flicked his wrist again and brought the map back up. I wonder if that’s the only thing I can do? Letting his instincts guide him, he brought up his right hand and swiped to the left. Another box appeared, this one with various sub menus.
----------------------------------------
Menu
* [Map]
* [Quests]
* [Inventory]
* [Class Sheet] (Locked. Class Lv.1 Required)
* [Character Sheet]
* [Mythic Ascension] (Locked. Lv. 100 required)
----------------------------------------
Oh! An inventory! Maybe there are clothes in it? Darian touched the inventory button with enthusiasm, only to be met with a blank, empty screen comprised of small squares within a grid. Wonderful. Trying not to dwell on his disappointment, his eyes were drawn to [Mythic Ascension] and his locked class sheet. His character sheet was also curious to him, but these were all things he could explore later when he wasn’t standing naked in the middle of a forest. He dismissed the map and other menu and looked for signs of civilization in the surrounding woodland. When he found none, he had to make a very important decision. Which direction should he go?
Through a break in the trees, he could just make out the vague shape of a mountain in the distance. Mountains would mean rivers, which could mean people. Even if this was some kind of advanced civilization like Earth's, rivers would still be something people used. Assuming I’ve been reborn in a world that has people.
Doing his best not to let his thoughts run rampant, Darian set off for the mountain. It was far, but it was the only landmark he could see. If he was lucky, he would find helpful people and avoid starvation. If he wasn’t lucky…well that didn’t bear thinking about.
I would have already been tired in my old body. Darian hadn’t moved far, but he could already tell his new body was much sturdier than his last. Not a very difficult feat, but it brought a weak smile to his face. Wishing to test his limits, he broke into a sprint and was impressed by his own speed and agility. He vaulted over felled trees, dashed across rocks and nimbly swerved around densely packed pines. Wow, I’m not even breathing heavy! It was then that a realization struck him. He wasn’t not only breathing heavily. He wasn’t breathing at all.
Grinding to a halt, Darian brought the back of his hand up to his mouth. He waited for warmth to spread across his knuckles. It never did. Am I dead? He looked down. His body was milk pale, but his legs, arms, and hands were all vaguely the same shape they had been in his previous life. The next thing he checked was his pulse, which thankfully was strong. Feeling relieved, he decided to take a break and collect his thoughts by a small pond off to his left.
Upon approaching it, a strange smell invaded his nostrils. It smells delicious, whatever it is. The closer he got to the pond, the stronger the smell became. His mouth watered, the coppery scent quickening his pace. Soon his thoughts were consumed with the intoxicating aroma. He licked his lips, careful not to cut himself on the fangs now protruding from his mouth.
A small cave yawned in a rock face by the pond’s edge, the succulent odor emanating from its entrance. Darian approached sluggishly now, his senses overwhelmed. Other smells mingled with the first—decay, wet fur, and something else. The snarl is what finally brought him to his senses.
Inside the shallow cave was a large, dark furred wolf, its right leg cut open, blood oozing from the gash. It gnawed on a long dead rabbit, the crunching echoing off the cavern walls. Upon noticing Darian, it rose to its feet, its hackles raised. Darian, his mind still in a half fog, tried to back away, but the blood oozing from the wolf’s wounds kept his attention. This close, the smell was almost overpowering.
Get a hold of yourself! Darian shook his head, finally focused on the approaching threat. The wolf was only a few steps away, its gums pulled back to show rows of thick, sharp teeth.
“Easy now,” Darian said with his palms facing out. “I’ll just be going…”
Darian glanced at the mountain and the hair on the back of his neck shot up. Just barely over the rim of the distant peaks, a pinkish light grew. The sun. A jolt ran through Darian, a desperate rush of adrenaline and primal fear. For reasons he couldn’t quite place, he knew he couldn’t let the light touch him. He started to run, but where could he go? The canopy was thick, but not thick enough to blot out the sun. No, he had only one choice.
He would have to take the cave.