Rumbleeeeee! Screeeeech!

A long gray train squealed to a halt in the gloomy, smelly subways of New York City. The platform of the station was fairly large, longer even than the train itself. There were large pillars every 30 feet or so with dozens of fluorescent lights and long metal heaters between each one. Even so, the entirety of the subway seemed cold and dark..

*DING* a voice spoke over large speakers from somewhere within the station. “Attention passengers. The doors are now opening. For your safety please remain clear. Have a pleasant day.”

For those who don't know about subway trains in big cities, one has to move with a sense of urgency and purpose. The doors of a subway train close very quickly and are often crowded at times. Most subway doors are installed with what is known as ‘sensitive edges’ a mechanism which prevents the doors from closing with more than 45 pounds of force. Unfortunately this complicated system is not entirely immune to malfunction nor does every train have this feature. If a train seems too packed or the path is unclear, consider being patient and waiting for the next.

The doors of the train opened with a steaming hiss. A short young man stepped hurriedly off the train and onto a dirty platform where he began fumbling with his Suit and tie with his right hand. The white knuckles of his left hand gripped a large, black suitcase that looked nearly too large for the small fellow to hold. He stumbled when he was suddenly bumped from behind, apparently not moving quickly enough for the crowd. “Oh I'm so sorr-“ The dark haired man made to turn around and apologize but it was for naught as any number of the dozens of people behind him could have been the culprit. His face flushed red and he turned back around, putting his head down as he proceeded across the platform.

It was about 3 months ago when the 21 year old man decided he was going to change his life around for the better. His current situation was not quite what he had in mind..

With a heavy suitcase in one hand and his phone in the other, the man was aimlessly traversing the subway. He heaved a sigh and let his shoulders fall. The fellow had dealt with bouts of anxiety and depression all his life but he handled it easier as an adult than he had as a teen.. Even still there were some situations that triggered him, and being lost in a noisy crowd was a damn good way to do it. Plus this place was uncomfortably damp, and it stank. Many homeless used the subway as a temporary shelter and sometimes.. a toilet.

He stomped his foot, and buried his nose in his phone’s GPS trying his best to block out the noise of the crowd around him. ‘Sometimes.. I wish everyone would just.. go the hell away just for a while so I could concentrate damn it!’ He thought to himself frustratingly. After 15 minutes of walking, the gentleman felt like he was finally beginning to understand the layout of the underground subway station a bit, when he slowly came to a stop in the middle of yet another platform. His stomach sank when he looked up, eyes widening. Ever since arriving in New York three weeks ago, the two constants in his life were noise and people. Now, here in this dank, dark station he was surrounded by neither.

If anything the quietness and seclusion seemed to be even more suffocsting and deafening, increase his anxiety. He began to sweat a bit despite the chilly evening air. His own heartbeat echoed loudly in his ear drums. His palms began to sweat. The smell of the tunnel began to make him nauseous in a way it hadn't since he'd first arrived. Looking rapidly left and right he couldn't help himself but to call out, “H..Hey! Anyone there?..” He was answered by the yearning whistle of the wind. He looked again once to his left and then to the right listening closely in both directions, but not hearing a single sound...

*DING*

“Ah!” The black haired man jumped, startled by the sudden and loud sound in the previously silent tunnel. Huh, it was strange. For a second it was almost as if the sound was in his head... What happened next would change his life forever.

With a deafening pop everything went black. The man made to scream but no sound came out. It suddenly felt as if his entire body had been stuffed in an extremely tiny tube. It wasn't painful per say but it was exceedingly uncomfortable. Fortunately the feeling didn't last long and in the next moment he felt completely weightless. Breathing heavily he began to panic once more when suddenly he heard noise. Voices perhaps, and there was no doubt this time, that it was in his head. In a manner not unlike an RPG at the exact same time as he heard the words in his head they appeared in front of his very eyes on.. a blue window?..

CONGRATU-

ERROR... EROrror.. Erorr

Recalculating.. synchronizing..

Congratulations!

Your home world has been successfully integrated into the nexus.

Current world level: UNKNOWN.

Current location: UNKNOWN.

Congratulations and welcome to the Nexus. Due to unusual circumstances current status is unknown please consult the nearest system HUB or one of your home world’s Tavern Owners. Good luck!

There was a second, equally loud pop, and light was restored to the world again. Only.. the man had to blink rapidly because he was no longer in the subway stations of New York. Now he was in a large clearing of tall grass. He was facing a massive, expansive jungle that stretched as far as the eye could see in either direction. The air here was heavy and felt somehow oppressive and hostile. It made his skin crawl if he were being honest.

The jungle was approximately 100 feet in front of him and directly behind him was an insurmountable mountain that also stretched seemingly infinitely in all directions. Scanning the base of the mountain he noticed an opening. This particular opening seemed peculiar, as if it were man made. The rest of the mountain was jagged and uneven yet the triangle shaped opening was perfectly symmetrical and smooth. There seemed to be a strange.. pressure coming off of the mouth of the cave and almost golden/black speckles drifting within but that could have been the heat playing tricks on him.

As he began to calm down he tried to make sense of what happened. The Nexus? Hubs? Taverns? What the heck was going on. And what did it mean by 'home world'? Was he no longer on earth? His suitcase and phone had fallen out of his hands during the commotion so he bent down to pick them up. No signal of course so he stuffed the phone in his pocket.

The man sighed in frustration. During his observations of the surrounding areas he couldn't help but notice the blue window remaining within his range of vision. He couldn't get rid of the damn thing even while his eyes were closed so he figured he might as well sit down and try to figure it out. After several minutes of experimenting the black haired man had more or less figured the window out. It seemed to respond to simple thoughts; if you wanted it to open you simply think open, if you wanted it to close simply think close.

‘So.. he thought to himself. What next?” He wondered. As if the window understood his dilemma it began to prompt him for a name. ‘Just like a game.. huh.. is this real?’ The man asked himself for what felt like the tenth time. He began to type his real name. However, halfway through he paused. With a hum he began to backspace. “you know what? I came to this city.. if I'm still in this city.. to try a new start at life. Maybe a change of name is exactly what I need.” He sighed. After several minutes of contemplating and tapping his chin he decided to imitate the name of his favorite video game characters.

Welcome: Vincent.

Race: human

Level: 1

XP needed 0/1000 (0%)

Class: N/A

Health: 200/200

Mana: 1000/1000

Stats:

Strength: 2

Endurance: 2

Vitality: 1

Intelligence: 10

Perception: 5

Agility: 2

The blue eyed man, who chose to call himself Vincent, studied the screen for a few moments. The stats.. well they all seemed a bit.. low.. but at least they were balanced!.. right? He sighed dejectedly before choosing to focus on strength in more detail. As he did so an explanation popped up and he couldn't help but grin. ‘I'm beginning to understand the deal here. The blue window starts off blank and then I think it carefully enough and it happens. As long as my intentions are transparent..’ He thought. The explanation for strength read: determines overall physical power and defense.

Vincent raised an eyebrow. Strength determines both strength and defense? In most RPG’s he was used to playing in the old world, strength and defense were separate stats. He didn't mind though, it kept things simple. He supposed most adults in his situation would probably be freaking out but honestly? he'd always wanted to live in a fantasy world. Besides what were the chances all of this wasn't some kind of twisted hyper-realistic dream? Obviously he had too much coffee before getting on the train this afternoon.. Right?

Next he looked at Endurance, naturally. Endurance read: Governs overall health and stamina and how quickly it is consumed. "Nothing too special there.." He mumbled. Next he looked at vitality which read: Determines how quickly health, magic and stamina regenerate. ‘Hmm.. interesting that Vitality actually increases recovery and not my health..’ He re-read the description again.

Vincent paused. “Wait a second..?” He noticed something odd. Twice now stamina had been mentioned yet he didn't see it in his stats by his health and mana. Maybe it was a hidden stat if such a thing existed or maybe he would unlock it later, he figured. Deciding it was unproductive to focus on the matter, he continued on. As he inspected Intelligence it read: determines overall magic as well as how quickly you learn and understand things.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Seems simple enough.

He chuckled. This explained why his magic was so much higher than his health. It seemed most of his questions would be answered by the system itself in time, if he was patient. Though he did wonder why itthat stat was so much higher than the rest and how he would even go about using it. Overall he felt exactly the same as he did before he arrived at this strange place if only a little uncomfortable due to the heat and heavy air.

Without much thought he moved on. Perception was pretty straight forward, it read: Determines how well you comprehend the environment and energies around you as well as the distance of all your senses. He was sure that would be a very valuable Stat in the future. Last but not least was Agility which read: determines how much speed you have, how swiftly and accurately you move, and balance when traversing your physical environment.

It all seemed a bit.. overwhelming. ‘This is.. a lot.’ He thought to himself. ‘but also.. I wanted something new and this is as far from my old life as I could possibly get so.. maybe I'm a bit excited?’ He had never really belonged in the old world. He always felt lost and misunderstood. Maybe here in this new world he'd find a place where he belonged. Rubbing sweat off his forehead he decided, “it can't be worse than the world I left behind.” Why did a city as large as New York ever have homeless to begin with..?

He clenched his fist with determination and willed himself to walk with trembling knees toward the looming Forrest ahead. He decided the ominous cave was just too suspicious right now. The chest-high grass was thick, and wet with humidity. It felt like wading through unreasonably heavy shower curtains. He had trudged his way forward for nearly half the distance to the forest when he stopped, heaving for breath.

"What in the… damn… can't breathe.. it's literally as if.. the gravity and air here are.. 10 times heavier than earth's.." He panted out between heavy breaths. Confusion etched itself into his brow, his face contorting as if he tasted something sour. "Maybe that's not right. Maybe this IS Earth only.. this.. 'system' or 'blue window' or whatever changed my home the same way it had changed me..?" He began to breathe at a more steady pace and decided that he would walk slowly and more deliberately from now on rather than trudging through the uneven terrain with excess force. Even though he cound't see his stamina he was sure it was low. It was apparent he was going to need to conserve as much energy as possible.

Pacing himself it took Vincent nearly ten minutes to reach the place where the clearing ended and the jungle began. He was drenched in sweat and at this point he was severely regretting having brought his suitcase. It would be tedious and frustrating but at least he could get around better without it, he figured. He knew soon he would need to find some food and water though, and when he did he'd need a place to put them. He stood at the entrance, hesitating. Vincent heard a myriad of loud, aggressive noises from beyond the jungle's threshold. His pulse pounded in his ears. He couldn't help but wonder, 'What's in there..? Will they be regular animals like in the Amazon or will they be.. monsters like in the movies.. guess there's only one way to find out."

As if on cue his stomach began to rumble and he sighed knowing that he no longer had a choice. He had to move forward, there was no turning back and no waiting, at least not forever. It was possible other people may stumble upon him and rescue him but it was equally possible that they wouldn't and he couldn't take that chance. Besides, he was never really the patient type. He gripped his suitcase and stalked slowly into the heavily shaded forest.

The first thing he noticed was the immediate change in the environment upon entering the shaded region. The temperature had dropped, no longer being overly hot nor stuffy, but a crisp cool feeling. A stiff breeze blew steadily through the canvas of the jungle. There was no pause in the wind, as if a world size fan had been aimed directly at the trees and permanently set to on. Unfortunately, the gravity still seemed much stronger than the pre-system earth his body was accustomed to, so he was far from comfortable. Not only that but he would now have to step over thick roots and vines as he hiked through the jungle.

Looking around it seemed as if paths branched endlessly, like a maze, in all directions of the jungle. Nothing in his immediate surroundings seemed overly aggressive or dangerous as far as he could tell, so he decided to keep it simple and continue straight. While walking he brought up the blue window, which appeared to slide over the world like a transparent bubble. He could focus both on the window and the world as needed so as not to trip on any of the low-hanging branches or roots. God forbid he run into any thorny bushes. He tried focusing and thinking about things like map, location, Ect but apparently the system had no such feature or else he didn't know how to activate it.

After another half an hour of walking, exhaustion was beginning to overtake the young man. The endless cycles of trekking through the perilous terrain and resting were beginning to wear away at his mind as well. If he didn't find something soon… As if God himself answered his prayer he suddenly noticed the sound of running water. Pure excitement and joy overcame his exhaustion and he ran towards the source of the sound. His steps were awkward and off-balance due to the gravity but in a few moments he broke a small clearing with a sapphire blue crick running through it.

The small clearing contained the first signs of wildlife he had seen since being transported to this new place. Across the 20 foot crick stood one loan deer with long chipped antlers. Clearly they had known years of conflict. It sipped peacefully from the water barely looking up as Vincent approached. The water was cleaner than any he had ever seen and the sound of the gently flowing substance soothed his mind. As he bent down and cupped the ice cold liquid in his hands he couldn't help but notice the amount of birds gathering around the clearing. Nearly 1000 had appeared just since he'd arrived.

He didn't think too much of it however, as he was thirsty and the crick was more than large enough for even ten thousand birds. He briefly wondered if this water was safe or if he was about to get deathly sick but the dryness in his mouth quickly made him realize he didn't really care. Upon drinking the soul refreshing water he instantly felt better and strangely enough the system pulsed with a message.

Gaia's blood consumed! All stamina restored! A small amount of health restored! Some mana restored! Doubles all regenerations for the next 10 minutes!

Tip: healing from any food or drink item has an hour long cooldown! There is no cool down for status effects such as doubling regenerations.

Vincent blinked several times. "Gaia's blood..?" He wondered. "It was literally just water.. granted it was a very deep blue and the cleanest best tasting damn water I've ever had but.. Gaia's blood seems a bit.. dramatic, doesn't it?" He thought out loud. Vincent bent down and unzipped his suitcase for the first time since having arrived in this place. He pulled out several large plastic containers with lids. He was thanking God right now for his obsession with carrying spare tupperware. After filling the containers with the godly azure liquid he scratched his chin.

"Now where the hell do I put this shit?" As if on cue the system prompted his attention once more.

Congratulations! Due to unusual circumstances you have been given one free trial reward! You have been awarded with the 'inventory' page. Spacial storage is limitless and automatically organizes itself according to the wishes of its user. Enjoy!

'Well.. that's convenient.' He thought. "But what exactly is a trial..?" He spent a few minutes learning the ins and outs of the inventory page. Essesnially it took the appearence of a shimmering purple vortex from within which he could place or remove objects.

It wasn't difficult at all. After storing his luggage and containers now filled with water (Or what the system recognized as a titan's blood or some shit) he sat back and breathed a sigh of relief. It was a strange process, watching the items disappear into a portal that comes and goes with no evidence of it having ever been there the moment it swirled out of existence. He felt like he was in a damn video game.

Suddenly the air shifted. An ominous energy filled the surroundings. The deer at the other end of the crick stiffened and looked up. Vincent mirrored the creature and noticed the amount of birds had multiplied to nearly ten times its original number. It seemed his theory on whether or not the river could accommodate ten thousand birds was about to be tested. But why did he have such a terrible feeling in his gut? The man, newly renamed as Vincent began to tremble…

Congratulations! Skill: Predatory instincts (common) achieved! Allows the user to sense danger and determine how best to avoid it. Also allows the user to determine the weakness of foes weaker than him/her. Due to the 'common' rarity, range and clarity of detection gain an Inferior boost with each skill level. Perception grants a minor boost to this skill. (Passive skill)

'What!?.. what in the hell was that??' He wondered. The description seemed suspiciously like Spider-Man's spider-sense from Earth's comic books. He didn't have time to contemplate much on this new development however, as it quickly became apparent that something was wrong. The birds' intended target was never the water to begin with… It was the deer. Within seconds the massive army of avian creatures swarmed the deer, sending chunks of gore flying through the air. They left nothing but bones behind in their wake as they retreated just as quickly as they came. It was all over in less than five seconds.

Vincent resisted the urge to vomit and watched with growing horror as they returned to the trees. Each of the countless birds turned their starving gazes toward him. His breathing was erratic and he swallowed several times but he dared not move. His new and improved instincts told him not to. His limbs were frozen in shock and fear. His mind was jumbled and he couldn't gather his thoughts. He merely stood there, helpless and shaking, waiting for the moment the birds would grow bored of toying with their prey and descend.

But it never came. Minutes passed and then an hour. More and more birds grew disinterested and flew off until finally there were less than a hundred. He had been getting a few system messages but had ignored them in lieu of paying close attention to the birds. Now that he felt he could breathe more steadily he opened the system window.

Congratulations! Skill: predatory instincts has increased

Congratulations! Skill: predatory instincts has increased

Congratulations! Skill: predatory instincts has increased…..

Congratulations! Skill: predatory instincts has increased to level 7!

Vincent shook his head. Just by staying alive in a dangerous situation he had gained a skill and began to level it.. what kind of monstrous system had sunk it's claws into his life? He knew instinctively, probably courtesy of his new skill no doubt, that as soon as he moved the remaining birds would attack him. The good news is.. they'd dwindled down to 10. How dangerous could ten birds be?.. right?

Congratulations! Skill: predatory instincts has increased to level 8!

That confirmed it. He knew at that moment the rest of the birds would not go away. He would have to run, or die trying. He immediately decided the clearing where he first began would be his best bet. Hopefully that mysterious cave would hold some sort of key to his survival. He began to slowly back up, retracing his steps. Most of the birds cocked their heads and squaked in aggressive, threatening tones but that was it. He had crawled at a snail's pace for nearly 100 feet and was long out of sight of the river due to the thick trunks of the innumerable trees and brush that comprised the jungle.

He breathed in deeply and exhaled for several long moments. Seeing that deer ripped apart in seconds had been absolutely terrifying and he wondered how he could have ever thought this new life was somehow going to be better for him just because he couldn't get along with people in his old one?

He began walking at a steady pace checking back over his shoulder every few seconds to make sure the birds weren't following. After about another 5 minutes he stepped on a small twig that created an echoing crunch seeming much too loud in the otherwise silent wood. He hadn't thought much of it and continued walking. In a matter of seconds, his predatory instincts flared and without fully understanding what was going on he began running for the clearing from which he had originally begun his journey.

How long had it taken him to walk this far at a slow and steady pace? At least 10 minutes.. as far as he figured if he ran at max speed he might possibly be able to get back to the clearing within a few minutes but even then.. Somehow even without being able to see them he could tell the birds from way back at the Creek were hot on his trail and they'd reach him long before he reached the clearing. Plus, could he even run that far with the extra heavy air and generally perilous terrain? He reckoned by no other choice than necessity he was about to find out.

It was another full minute of running non-stop as best he could before he made contact with the first bird. The small black beast was difficult to keep track of as it bounded from tree to tree using its wings to propel itself in-between jumps. It certainly didn't act like any bird he'd ever seen. That didn't change the fact that it's movements were effective. It massively cut the distance between them with each hop. He knew based on the thing's speed and unpredictable movement patterns he'd never be able to dodge it. The first impact was like a speeding bullet. The creature hit him in the left shoulder tearing out a large chunk of flesh causing him to gasp in pain and shock. He stumbled, blood spraying everywhere, but quickly continued running. His new skill was working on its own to keep his legs moving. He lost sight of the bird after the first impact but had no doubt it was nearby.

He turned around briefly and saw nothing. So he turned his numb, dazed attention foward and kept running with all his might.

A little more than a minute later the birds had re-grouped and were upon him again. Perhaps the one before was simply a scout but now it had brought It's friends. He was almost to the clearing.. if he could just hold out a few more minutes.. but he couldn't take many more of those birds dive bombing him, especially if they hit him somewhere like his knee or head.. he was screwed. He had been walking at this point, too exhausted to continue his half trot half stumble. For whatever reason, maybe because he was no longer running, the birds seemed to observe and follow him for a few moments. Unfortunately his reprieve couldn't last forever as the birds cawed loudly and began to dash at him in pairs of two, not quite as fast as before but still faster than he could comprehend.

7 damage received!

3 damage received!

11…

Warning! Your health is below 75%!

In some passes the man received only minor cuts and bruises, in others he lost inch long chunks of flesh and muscle. He knew something was inherently wrong. First off, regular birds didn't have this kind of strength; there's no way they could cause the types of wounds he was sustaining. Secondly they were nowhere near this aggressive, even when defending their nests. He briefly wondered what that poor deer must have gone through, being attacked by nearly a thousand times more birds than he was currently. It never stood a chance.

The dazed line of thought couldn't continue long, as at the moment he was merely trying to survive. He was screaming out and crying with each blow. There was more blood than skin about his body at this point. Waving his arms and running like a frantic lunatic, he was sure he looked undignified as all hell but in this situation did it really even matter? Pecked to death by a bunch of damn birds. What a way to go. And of course his underwhelming death would happen right after he decided to change his life around for the better and truly live.

Between the uneven terrain and constant, excruciating attacks from the birds, he simply couldn't keep his balance. He stumbled and crawled just as much as he ran. Blood covered his eyes and the man could no longer see where he was running. At this point he really didn't care. He hoped he was still making his way back toward the clearing, toward the cave, toward anything but these damn birds!

Not long after having such a thought the man broke the clearing of the jungle. He would have yelled for joy but he could barely move and could hardly make more than a whimper at this point. The sun appeared to still be high in the sky and as soon as it hit his raw bloody flesh it was uncomfortably warm. The birds watched as he stumbled and crawled through the chest high grass, leaving a crimson trail in his wake. They waited just at the line where the shade and sun met. The man, delirious as he was, prayed to some form of God that the birds couldn't stand the unnatural heat without the aid of the shade.

He had made it nearly halfway to the mouth of the cave and his spirits were beginning to rise. Even his levels of adrenaline couldn't fight off most of the pain but it kept his legs moving, despite how exhausted and wounded he was. It was all he could dp. He would not die here. Not like this!

The man stopped dead. His heart sank. He couldn't help but turn slowly around as he heard the squawks of now not ten, but hundreds of birds once more. Fresh tears began to streak down his blood and dirt crusted cheeks. The birds were jumping, some diving in circles. They looked akin to excited children about to rip into a birthday cake. Unfortunately Vincent was the cake in this situation. The base of the trees looked more black than green. Dozens more birds piled up every second.

He was beginning to feel cold, despite the blistering heat of the unnaturally potent sun. How could this happen? This wasn't fair.. The birds descended. Within seconds they caught up to the short, black-haired man. If you could call him a man. At 21 had he even really lived? He only wanted to get away from the drag of his daily routine life… to wake up one day and not feel the crushing weight of depression at all his loss and failures. A pity party till the very end. No one had ever cared.. no one would notice if he was gone.. the world would keep turning. It didn't matter.. He closed his eyes as indiscernible noise and darkness overtook him.

End of chapter 2