Callum was already running late for work. He sprinted through the house, double-checking that he had everything. “Wallet, phone, keys check. Wait, my bag.” He sprinted back through his cramped apartment, grabbed his bag, and booked it down the stairs to his car.
Huffing with exertion as he made it down to the sidewalk, he missed something flashing before his eyes.
[The apocalypse has arrived. You have 24 hours to prepare.]
With making it to work on time at the forefront of his mind, he paid no attention to the warning. That’s when he realized he was missing something crucial. Something that could spell disaster for him right now.
“Where the fuck is my car?”
Turning every which way he could, he saw no car in sight. Fearing the worst he ran up and down the block, at first wondering if he just forgot where he parked. The next conclusion he came to was that someone had stolen his car.
I know it's not a great neighborhood, but there’s just no way someone stole my car, he thought. Bet that dumbass probably doesn’t even know how to drive a stick shift anyways.
The conclusion, though it was logical, was a sad one. That car had been the one thing his father had left him before he died.
Callum reached for his phone to call his boss to let him know he would be late when he realized that was missing as well. I swear I had my phone on me when I left. I can’t have lost that as well. Feeling rather defeated already, he slowly made the climb back to his apartment.
Checking first by his bed, Callum slowly retraced his steps through his apartment, looking for his phone. With no luck in finding it, he went through his steps of the previous night, not that he had gone very far. When he got to his desk, he realized his desktop and monitor were missing as well.
“Okay, what the hell is going on? Can’t find my car or my phone, and now my computer is just straight up missing. Oh, this has got to be some pre-first-day nightmare.” Releasing a little pent-up aggression at the series of misfortune, Callum smacked himself in the face.
“Owww. Okay not a dream,” he said, massaging the spot on his face where he slapped himself. “Well, if its not a dream, what is going on?”
Still worried about being late for work, Callum ventured out into the hallway of his apartment. The eerie quiet of the morning started worrying Callum. It was not any different than any other morning, noise-wise at least, but the sudden disappearance of items changed everything.
Wandering back out to the sidewalk, he was suddenly aware of the lack of cars. He peered down the street either way and couldn’t see any cars either way. Finding no one, he returned to his apartment building.
On the walk back to his apartment, he found his neighbor from two doors down, Ryan, peering his head out of his apartment door.
Callum rushed over to him calling out, “Hey, Ryan, what’s going on?”
Ryan’s response was a hushed whisper, “Quick, inside.”
Once Callum reached the door, Ryan grabbed his arm and yanked him inside, shutting the door behind him.
“Didn’t you see. It’s the fucking apocalypse,” Ryan said as he began pacing the small living room.
“What do you mean the apocalypse?” Callum had never taken Ryan for the conspiracy theory type, but the shorter man was clearly shaken, his face taking a white shade Callum had never seen before.
“The words, appearing in front of you, all freaky style.”
Recalling his rushed events of the morning, Callum vaguely remembered something of the sort, but in his rush must have brushed past it.
“You saw it too, right?” The possibility that he was going insane seemed to be almost too much for him to process.
“Yeah I saw it. Did all your stuff disappear too?”
Ryan breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank God, I’m not going crazy. Yeah, my phone is gone, along with all my other electronics. What do you think we need to do to prepare? Is fire gonna rain from the sky? And what does it mean prepare? Do we need to seek shelter?”
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
The rapid-fire questions caught Callum off guard. Taking a moment to process everything Ryan asked, he answered honestly, “I can’t answer any of that. I know as much as you.” Callum spread his hands in a placating manner.
“Should we go get guns? Maybe stockpile food . . .” Ryan started mumbling as he rambled off possibilities.
Callum sunk into a nearby chair as he began to process the startling possibility that they were experiencing the apocalypse. If it truly was the apocalypse, it started in such a weird way. All electronics and cars disappearing. He quickly realized trying to puzzle out why would do no good. For some reason, the ramblings of Ryan seemed to calm him. When one person was losing their head, it was up to the other to keep theirs on straight.
Seeing that Ryan was deep in thought, Callum slipped out of Ryan’s apartment and back to his own. If it was the apocalypse, it was probably best to take stock of what he did have.
Back in his own apartment, Callum noticed his fridge, along with his stove and microwave were gone as well. This is bad. I have no clue how to cook anything outside of ramen and prepackaged dinners. The contents of his fridge appeared to be gone as well, not that there was much in it.
Fortunate for him, the cabinets had remained untouched, though the prospects there weren’t much better. There was a box of ramen along with four cans of beans. It figured it wouldn’t last him a week. That was when the panic set in.
“A week, if that. That’s how long I have until I die of starvation. Great.” Callum slumped down against the wall and started hyperventilating. He had just gotten his first job out of college. It had taken him way too long to finish, but he had made it. Getting the apartment had been hard enough. He had been nearly broke when he found this apartment, as small as it was. His life was just starting to turn around and the freaking apocalypse decided to kick off. He wallowed in despair for a good half hour before he finally pulled himself together and started thinking rationally.
Okay, the nearest store is 6 miles from here. That’s walkable. I have a little cash so I can buy some food there. Maybe they’ll let me work there since I know my other job is out. No way I can walk 30 miles a day back and forth. Plus if all the electronics are out, then my computer science degree is useless. Okay, I have a plan, let's put it in action.
Gathering his strength, Callum stood up from his pit of despair on the ground and went to get some more appropriate clothes than his dress slacks and collared shirt. He walked over to his closet and started rummaging through his belongings to find something he could walk the twelve miles back and forth to the convenience store.
As he was going through old clothes, he found a sword his friend Aaron had made him. Aaron had taken some blacksmithing electives in the college they went to, but the two had lost touch when Aaron graduated the year before Callum. Aaron had styled it after a rapier, but he wasn’t an expert, so the sword was a little thicker and a little longer than a rapier should be. Callum hadn’t minded though, as it was a great memento of their friendship as Callum had played a duellist in the tabletop RPG where they first met.
Remembering fond times, Callum grabbed the sword to move it out of the way, when words flashed in front of his eyes.
[Weapon Acquired. Class Selection Unlocked]
Callum went through a range of emotions at seeing the text but mainly was confused. This was the same way the announcement of the apocalypse had appeared.
[Proceed to Class Selection Y/N]
Callum glanced around, worried not for the first time that day someone was playing an elaborate prank on him. Quickly convinced someone wasn’t, he cautiously responded, “Uh, yes?”
[Please Select a Class]
[Warrior (Common)] At home in the fray of battle and familiar with most weapons, the warrior class fights strong and hard, felling foes from within arms reach. +2 Strength +2 Endurance, +1 Dexterity, +1 Resolve per level (The warrior class serves as the basis for most melee weapon-focused classes.)
[Ranger (Common)] Whether taking long shots from the shadows or unleashing a flurry of arrows in combat, rangers make use of any number of ranged weapons to slay their foes. +1 Strength, +2 Endurance, +2 Dexterity, +1 Wits per level (The ranger class serves as the basis for most ranged weapon-focused classes.)
[Rogue (Common)] Sticking to the shadows and familiar with a variety of talents, rogues tend towards stealth. +1 Strength +2 Dexterity, +1 Endurance, +2 Wits per level (The rogue class serves as a basis for most stealth-focused classes.)
[Mage (Common)] Eschewing physical attacks and preferring to wield magic instead, mages are gifted with an innate understanding of magic. +1 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, +2 Wits, +1 Resolve per level (The mage class serves as a basis for most magic-focused classes.)
[Duellist (Uncommon)] A specialist in one-on-one combat, duellists wield one-handed blades with expertise. +1 Strength, +3 Dexterity, +1 Intelligence, +2 Wits per level (The duellist class is an advanced form of the warrior. Unlocked by acquiring an appropriate weapon within the grace period.)
The long list surprised Callum, causing him to recoil some before reading through everything in front of him. Stats and classes? This is getting weirder by the hour. The idea that the apocalypse was a video game somehow seemed more ridiculous than all of his stuff disappearing.
Reviewing his options, he tried to piece together what was going on.
So it looks like there are six stats. Strength, Dexterity, Endurance, Intelligence, Wits, and Resolve.
Nothing seemed to explain what any of them meant, but Strength, Dexterity, and Intelligence were straightforward. Somewhat confusing were Endurance and Resolve. Two separate stats that seemed like they meant the same thing.
Well, Endurance seems like it would be physical, but resolve would be more mental.
Since staring at the words hanging in the air would get him nowhere, he simply decided on the duellist class. It was what led to him getting the sword anyway, and gave more stats than the others, but not by that much.
[Duellist Class Selected]