The sun blazed mercilessly overhead as midday approached, turning the air heavy and oppressive. Sweat slicked Michael's skin, and the group huddled near the thin shade of the campsite's border, wary of stepping too far. The looming unknown beyond the boundary felt like a living thing, watching, waiting. They didn't dare risk it—not with the next fight approaching
Michael sometimes heard rustles in the dense trees—probably just a rabbit or possum. Or so he hoped.
Michael and Joseph reached a consensus on two choices—Joseph arguing for the expensive one, while Michael took the conservative approach.
"So, just so we're clear—you don't need a better bow, just a better quiver and arrows." Michael said, crossing his arms. "Then this is the best choice."
[Large Quiver (trash)]
A 16 arrows made of lackluster quality, mostly used by amateurish apprentices, failed attempts. Cost 5 TP.
"This makes it so we can use some of the arrows you don't use as weapons for the upcoming fight" Michael argues, miming the practicality of this with his hands.
"Also I think that the trash aspect of their rarity is there to trick us. Because I'm sure a superpower entity like this System would consider something trash while it may be gold to us." Michael adds "Even if they are terrible we could fashion the weak arrows into traps at the bottom of a pitfall.
They had been going over this for a while, causing them both to stand up, pacing around each other. Neither truly listened to the other, as their eyes remained unfocused trying to figure out a counter argument.
"I get that, I do," Joseph said, rubbing his temples. "But what happens when those cheap arrows snap mid-fight? You think the monsters will wait for us to reload? We barely survived last time, Michael. I'm not dying because we got stingy with our gear.
[Touched Quiver (common)]
A superior being—now a legend among the stars—once stood upon the very materials that forged this quiver. It grants a slow yet steady repair ability, mending up to six arrows per day. Cost 9 TP.
"This will allow us to not have to refuel arrows after each wave and make it so we can make better choices for everyone else later" adds Joseph sighing, resting on the ground. it says it repairs them… but who knows if that's true either. Huhhhh. Clearly this argument isn't going anywhere, how about someone chooses for us?"
"Let's find Alex—he's not too busy right now," Michael said, wincing as he extended a hand to Joseph, pulling him up onto his shoulder.. Together, they walked towards Alex, who sat knitting Michael worn torn battle shirts.
Telling Alex each side's arguments, he falls quiet for a minute, resting the sharpened knitting utensils Christopher has sharpened onto his lap.
"There's too much we don't know about this" Alex raises his hands towards the whole campsite "And we barely understand how this system works. What if 'Trash' means exactly that—useless? We don't have points to waste gambling. We go with the safer bet." Alex questions.
"While your choice has merits Michael it has too much what if's that we cannot risk right now. I'm not just saying this because I'm biased, this is what I really believe and also I'm sorry Michael for being a dick" Alex apologizes, while lowering his head.
Joseph, still supporting Michael's weight, turned to stare at him in surprise; they hadn't expected such a well thought out response, especially an apology of all things. They had prepared to take his advice with a grain of salt and expected some jab at Michael.
I didn't know him for long-but i don't think this was how he usually acted. Michael sighs mentally, clenching his muscles jeez that fight changed him so much, made him take this stupid life and death game. "No worries you're just a kid, mate, I think we will listen to Joseph's choice" Michael says.
Wincing slightly, Michael loosened his muscles as Alex handed him the hastily stitched-up shirt. He pulled it over his head, exhaling as his lingering pain dulled further. Huh I mean I don't think I will be much help in the next fight but I may be able to move around a bit and be supported.
Calling Christopher over to join them, so they could see what happens when they buy objects. "Ok, so I'm going to buy the [Novice Bow (common)] which is 5 TP and with the extra 10 TP everyone else got I will buy the [Touched Quiver (common)] which is 9 TP". Michael said as he purchased the objects.
[Touched Quiver (common)]
A superior being—now a legend among the stars—once stood upon the very materials that forged this quiver. It grants a slow yet steady repair ability, mending up to six arrows per day. Cost 9 TP.
[Novice bow (common)]
The harsh tutorial is many things, cruel, unloving but it is fair to those worthy. This average bow will last to the end of the tutorial before being destroyed. Cost 5 TP.
"How did-"
"Why is that?-"
No warning. One moment, the space was empty—the next, the bow and quiver simply existed, as if they had always been there. No light, no sound. Just reality shifting, seamless and absolute.
Michael had expected something more like an airdrop or a teleportation of some sought. Or maybe it would be something like appearing in a System storage not something that just was there after you blinked
The bow stood a meter and a half long, its freshly cut wooden frame still bearing the natural bend of a living branch. The taut string shimmered in the sunlight, its gleaming fibers humming with quiet tension, ready to unleash power at a moment's notice.
Beside it, the quiver rested in an elegant coil of pearly-white silk, its surface smooth to the touch yet surprisingly sturdy. Six pristine arrows nestled inside, their twin red and blue fletching's fluttering slightly in the breeze. The arrowheads gleamed with a silvery sheen, honed to a razor's edge, promising precision.
Joseph reaches down cradling the bow as he slings the bow carefully over his shoulder, letting out an excited breath "Let me set up some targets. I'm going to try this out… I'll be back an hour before the next wave".
"Weirdo"
"Loser"
"I heard that-so shut up and let me have some fun" remarks Joseph as he raises the middle finger behind him towards the three as he runs off.
Michael smiled ruefully, then glanced up at his Status.
[05:12:13 REMAINING.]
"Hey Chris, I'm going to try out this skill ok?" States Michael as he turned towards the secluded part of the campsite, only hearing a grunt in reply as he helped the brothers cook the meat before battle, "Don't you dare rip my shirt," Alex yelled back…
***
Michael watched from afar as the group slumped around the fire, the two brothers quietly preparing what could be their last meal
Sophie and Alex sat around the kids, distracting and playing with them hoping their innocent smiles and laughs will continue tomorrow.
Resisting the temptation to scratch his ear, Michael looked towards the silent wood beyond, the stillness of the shadow creeping closer towards him as the sun slowly fell behind the tree lines.
I guess we will be fighting at night this time.
Looking towards the mystical blue screen in the center of his eyes, Michael pauses taking a breath in as he presses the screen, attempting to activate his recent skill.
"Woosh" a strong brush of wind flows past ruffling Michael's hair before settling down into a soft constant blow.
"WHY in the HELL nothing happened? How do I do this? Why can't there be a guide…Damn System." Michael huffs, sitting up and pacing across the grass.
"What do I do now? Do I have to say it out loud, that's so…?" Michael mutters, his hands buried in his face.
"Please kill me now" Michael groans.
"Royal Stealth." Whispers Michael, while stepping into the shadows.
Level 1 [Royal Stealth] achieved*
A tickle of thought crept into his mind as he moved closer to the ground, strands of knowledge flow through his head as he feels certain movements while slinking across the shadows. Each movement accompanied by the subtle instinctive tingle as his body flowed into better positions.
His body darkened, a soft darkish tan spread across his body, even dyeing his brunette hair to better hide. His body hung low as he blended pathetically in the shadows, his white and blood covered clothes dangled in the wind.
Sitting there quietly Michael looked around.
God he looked stupid, nothing about him was hidden, his body crouched against the tree line of shadows just looked more awkward then and actually hidden. What stealth-he was just sitting in the shadows, slightly more hidden than if he was standing up flailing his arms about grabbing everyone's attention.
He could barely stand the weird looks that Joseph and Michael were sending him while they cut open the wolves corpses.
Michael didn't even know what he did to get the first level in his skill? Is he mean to follow that weird instinct flowing around in his head? Did he just get a level for learning how to activate it? So does he need to better use this skill effectively to gain more levels, and what do these levels even do?
Breathing deeply Michael follows the trinkle of information flowing through his body as the skill reactivates, his mind slowly accepting and adapting to the changes as he steps towards the innermost darkness of the shadow, crouching down to a low sprawl and releasing his breath at slower intervals, keeping it so light it wouldn't ruffled the ground beneath..
A few seconds pass as Michael experiences the changes of this ability not just the magical aspect but the feelings that run through his body.
Michael traced his fingers across his face, his movements slowed and close to his body as he noticed how the darkness seemingly clinged to his body like living ink. But then… something changed.
His vision flickered—edges darkening, the world narrowing, fading—as if the night itself was swallowing him whole. His chest tightened.
Then, a sudden pull, like a vacuum yanking the shadows from his body. His heartbeat hammered in his ears. The weight of unseen eyes bore down on him. Exposed. Vulnerable.
The moment shattered—his hidden spot ripped away, leaving him breathless.
A low, thrumming pressure built in his chest. The shadows pulsed. Then—
Level 1—>5 [Royal Stealth] achieved*
"What happened? Did the skill deactivate on its own?" Michael says as he gasps for breath. His body braced against the floor, as his blurred vision slowly comes back into focus again.
Had he made a mistake somewhere? Or was there a limit to this power? Could this be because of those locked attributes Ki and Soul?
Michael had a feeling it was one of those. But how do you improve a power you can't even control? Especially when you need it just to survive. One thing was for certain these skills will be vital for his and everyone's survival so he needed to learn how to properly control anything and everything he can to survive.
"It seems i can only hold stealth for a minute, before whatever energy it uses runs out…" mumbled Michael to himself "Is there some way to replenish this energy? And to figure out whether this is Ki or soul?"
Taking a deep breath in, Michael sits down relaxing in the shade between the trees, his thoughts drifting, as he wonders if they were going to survive the night in day two of this hell. And if there would be anything left of him by then.
So far he had come to this Tutorial and gotten his ear chomped in half, a wolf the size of a baby elephant and with a claw the size of a basketball, claw my chest from my right shoulder down to my kidney. Making Sophie stitch it back together using string that risks breaking at every movement as he suffers such silent pain that he could not tell anyone, making him want to scream.
And to recover from these wounds he put almost all his stat points into recovery, which causes his skin to itch like a bunch of fire ants are crawling over his skin. His body now seemed to have used all its energy and nutrients to recover even this much, making him starving.
So starving.
Also to top it off, the one point he didn't put into recovery was put into perception causing his body to not just feel the world better but to better feel the ravaging pain that flashes across his body as he twitches his muscles even slightly.
Yay for him, that was most likely the dumbest option he could've done.
But hell, maybe putting the other point into recovery would make him actually starve or putting it into strength might've made him flex his muscles or make them bigger causing him to faint from blood loss again.
He definitely did not know, because he knew nothing about this System! He was completely doing this blind. And he needed to survive this for those two. God he hopes they don't have the same challengers as him. Hopefully the tutorial there is easier or there with people that are strong and caring and could really survive this.
Not like him.
***
Michael wipes the tears from his shirt, controlling his emotions again as he puts on a calm exterior on, it had felt good to finally let go, but not really because he was stronger than them. No. it was because he didn't want them to see him cry.
So he kept it mostly together since the start of the tutorial, mostly hiding it away in the few seconds he got, like the sunrise.
Michael was surprised that he had kept himself together that long. Maybe, despite this all this horror and tragedy of Julie and Josh dying-the child getting killed. He might be suited for this place. More than he realized.
And he wasn't sure how he felt about that.
Michael walked across the campsite, feeling his shoulders looser than before, maybe from finally having some time to himself or from the recovery stat finally doing its work. Either way he was not too excited at what he was seeing.
Christopher and Joseph had finally finished carving the wolves, holding two plastic bottles of blood towards him and an uneven cut meat on top of the hides with thick long bones beside them.
He was not looking forward to this…test.
He really hoped that it was his recovery stat that loosened up his shoulders, otherwise this was going to hurt a lot more.
"Michael, are you ready? If you're not up for it tell us ok?" Joseph says, handing the spare plastic bottle of blood over that someone had been carrying when they were transferred here.
"Let's just get this over with." Michael remarks, twisting open the bottle only to retch at the smell. It smelled like old coins dipped in sour milk, overripe and putrid.
Lifting it to his lips, Michael drinks a small mouth full leaving it resting in his mouth before swirling it around, though the metallic blood tastes awful, it lay in his mouth in case he felt that it was poisonous or harmful ready to spit it out at the slightest feeling.
But Michael felt no true danger from it, as he swallowed it completely. The blood sliding down his throat, just a bit smoother than honey but definitely as nice tasting. Before stifling a vomit as the taste pushes itself back up his throat before he swallows it back down.
The duo both looked worried at Michael, unsure what to do if anything goes wrong. Both sat there waiting for a response from him, as they scanned him for signs of danger.
Michael rests his hand on his stomach, feeling the scar across his chest itch more. His body screams for more as he feels his wounds tighten and heal faster.
Michael looks on his right to Christopher as he stands next to him, with his diary at the ready eager to take notes, as he stands expectantly for answers. But his eyes held a small amount of concern for his friend.
Joseph stood on his left, his hand rested on Michael's shoulder as he watched his friends expressions for any sought of trouble.
"The blood seems alright-I mean i would not recommend having it if we didn't have to. But It might actually help with my wounds and I think we can have it. But! We should not overdo it. Ultimately we do not have enough information." Michael reported, taking another sip. Feeling his body eagerly devour its nutrients.
"Hm ok. Do you feel sick at all, and why do you think it heals your wounds? And if you have anything else you feel or think you feel please tell me" Christopher questions, noting down in his diary.
As he took more sips, Michael described the changes he felt—the way the blood interacted with his recovery stat, the faint lessening of pain, and the hunger that flared stronger with every swallow.
The trio eventually decided to give the blood in small doses to everyone without a level and people that have gained 1 or more levels get an extra drink per level. There were also some rules of the distance of time between each sip and they decided with a sip Christopher and Sophie should be there supervising and observing.
"Do we have to drink it?" asks one of the children, as Sophie slowly tries to coax them into having it.
Michael decided to help Christopher and Joseph with the rest of the meat as Christopher gathers the firewood Alex had prepared and uses the flint on the bear Grylls knife to attempt to light the fire. While Joseph gathered sticks to cook the meat over the booming fire at the center.
"Sorry to ask this, but could I just rest my head while you guys make the food?: as his body slightly relaxes and demands rest from the nutrients of the blood.
"No, worries mate. Just don't miss out on dinner, "Joseph replied.
The world faded around him. The guys kept talking, but all he heard was the rustle of the leaves and the sharp call of a bird—too sharp, maybe. The jungle breathed around him, quiet and alive.
Michael's head dipped once, too tired to speak. He curled into himself beside the fire, the crackle of flames fading as darkness tugged him under.
***
"Gurgle" A low rumbling noise came from below as Michael swam his head towards the distant aroma of cooked meat, his body slowly waking up to see the rest of the sitting over the fire salivating like a pack of wolves.
Leaping to his feet, Michael stifled a groan, feeling his wounds stretch as he walked toward the group, his body was better but not by much as his body screamed for more nutrients.
Michael looked to the campfire hearing the end of Joseph's story.
"And so the terrifying Alpha fell to the ground becoming meat for our bellies" Valiantly depicting the fight, Joseph's smirks as he saw Michael "felled by our champion Michaeeeeeeel Ashford! Everyone lets Michael clap guys" as he claps at Michael's arrival.
Sophie laughs as she joins in bringing everyone else into the clap until and full on applause as Michael walks next to Joseph with his head down blushing as he gives his mate a punch to the side.
"Thank you, guys" says Michael as he smiles widely. If he was being honest with himself like what man doesn't like a little credit?
They sat around the fire in silence, no one speaking, not even the children's usual chatter. Each person stared blissfully into the warm heat of the fire, hoping not for solace or comfort but for peaceful understanding of why… Each one had different questions and ideas but none had answers.
But they did know this, if whatever this doesn't change soon, or they don't become better then these trials…Then no memory or thought would be left behind for the world was too strong for them or they were too weak to be born here.
They didn't know if death here meant death-death, but no one was willing to test it. That was for sure.
Michael accepted the burnt piece of meat, lost in thought. The first bite sent warmth shivering through his body—not just from the heat, but something deeper. His wounds didn't vanish, but there was a slow, steady relief, like a fire rekindling in his veins.
This was better than the blood, he felt more filled. By his third bite he felt like he had a proper meal as he looked in wonder towards the meat the size of his head. Looking around Michael noticed even the children finishing more than it looked could fit in their stomachs. Grinning wolfishly, unlucky for these beasts they fought and lost and if one thing was true.
Everyone was hungry.
And so was he, as he gauged back into his meal. Looking deeply into the fire as he eats.
The flickering flames cast shifting shadows, twisting and curling as if whispering secrets. His mind drifted, pulled between the mysteries of the System and the question that lingered, unspoken.
Why had he felt so calm since the start? He was not a calm man.
Not under pressure. Not in survival.
And yet… Maybe it wasn't calm at all. Maybe it was happiness.
But why?