Chương 7: Chapter 6: Highs and Lows

Gideon woke to the pale morning light filtering through the cave mouth, and to the forest beyond the barrier alive with sound. Birds called out in layered patterns, leaves whispered in the breeze, and the sounds of life filled the air. He lay still for a few breaths, listening, letting the noise remind him of where he was, and of what he was now. Then he pushed himself up, gathered his things, and drifted toward the mouth of the cave.

He stood just inside the opening, close enough to see out, close enough to feel the air change, and close enough to catch the faint blue shimmer in his peripheral vision. From this height the world looked deceptively peaceful. The forest canopy rippled in the wind like a living sea, leaves swaying in soft waves. Just beyond the cave, the ground sloped sharply downward from the mountain's rocky base, thinning into scrub, then giving way to the dense woodland he would eventually need to enter.

He stared silently at the expanse of trees before him, a frown pulling at his brow. A part of him had still expected to wake up under cheap bedsheets in the dim apartment he'd shared with Max. He could almost hear the hum of their rattling AC unit, the distant noise of the Campanile's belltower carillon, the lazy footsteps of students in the hallway. His mother's voice echoed unbidden in his thoughts." Gideon, remember to call us more often. We worry." She'd always fretted.

Always feared he'd push himself too hard, or forget to eat, or get distracted and lose something important. He wondered how she had reacted when she heard the news. His father would have tried to stay composed, but his voice always cracked when he was upset. And his mother. God, she'd destroy her room in a fit before breaking down crying. They'd eventually learn what happened. They'd know he didn't suffer. They'd know he died saving children.

He hoped it was enough to give them some semblance of comfort, knowing he died doing a good deed. His throat tightened. He swallowed hard.

"To them, I'm gone forever," he whispered. He doubted there was a way back to Earth, and if there was, he wouldn't find it in this cave. Then, his thoughts turned to Max. To their final moments, both curled protectively over the little girl. His chest ached at the memory of his best friend. Max had always been his anchor. Steady, strong, awkward but loyal in a way most people weren't. Gideon could picture him standing somewhere, clad in armor, sword in hand, jaw clenched, eyes stormy.

He wondered if the System had taken Max too. If Max was in another cave somewhere, waking up as something impossible. If he was alive. If he was dead. If their paths would ever cross again. The damn Adjudicator hadn't given him anything when he had asked.

"I hope you're out there, man," Gideon murmured to himself.

"And I hope you're okay, wherever you are." He shut his eyes for a long moment, then forced himself to breathe, slow and steady. Daydreaming wouldn't solve anything. Grief wouldn't keep him alive. He needed to move. He couldn't hide in this cave forever. The dwindling supply of dried meat the System had so graciously bestowed upon him spoke to that with brutal clarity. He rose to his feet. The faint blue shimmer of the barrier wavered across the cave mouth's opening, thin and translucent and still impossibly solid.

One step. That was all it would take to leave the cave and truly start his new life. He hesitated a heartbeat. Just one. Then he stepped forward, out into the world. As soon as he passed through it, the barrier collapsed with a sharp crackle and a flash of blue light, dissolving into the air like smoke. Gideon whirled around at the sound, looking at the cave mouth he'd just walked out of. The empty air where the barrier had been made his stomach drop. It was a one-time use. A one-way exit. No reset button.

No safe zone to scuttle back into when he made a mistake.

"Well," Gideon muttered.

"No do-overs now." He turned and started down the slope toward the forest waiting below. The descent was rough. The terrain was a lot steeper than it looked from above. Loose stones slid under his feet, sending him stumbling more than once. His instincts still treated him like a human with human proportions, and too many of his steps landed awkwardly. More than once he flailed his arms to regain his balance before catching himself. He probably made a ridiculous sight.

He forced himself to slow down and let the instincts of his new body take over. His balance wasn't top heavy the way he was used to. His goblin body was compact and quick, and his center of gravity sat lower. When he experimented with placing his weight differently, leaning forward more, and stepping softer, his movement smoothed out.

"That's it," he murmured, adjusting the way he moved.

"Less of a stride and more of a hop." When he got closer to the bottom, and the sparse trees began to gather in denser clumps, he stopped to think for a moment. He couldn't just waltz through the forest like he owned it, making noise and attracting predators. He'd have to move quietly and carefully.

"Okay," he whispered.

"Stealth is a must. If I get jumped out here, I'm probably dead." He descended the last stretch in a slow crouch and finally reached the forest floor proper. The canopy swallowed most of the light, bathing the ground in shifting shadows. The air was heavy with the scents of damp soil and moss. Distant animal calls rose and fell like a natural chorus. Gideon scanned the surroundings carefully.

"It's probably safer in here than out on the mountain," he mused.

"There are a lot more places to hide, at least." He entered the forest, moving cautiously through the woods, following faint animal paths and doubling back often. Whenever he heard a rustle or an unfamiliar sound, he dropped low, let Stealth guide his body into stillness, and waited. When nothing emerged, he continued onward. Hours later, when he finally found a thin creek winding its way through the undergrowth, the relief he felt loosened something tight in his chest.

It wasn't a miracle, but it was water, and water was the first step in his admittedly sparse survival plan. He knelt at the edge and drank deeply. Cold, clean water rushed down his throat, and he felt his body unclench. He filled his waterskin, then sat back, studying the stream. He followed it for a while, moving upstream and then back down, watching how the trees grew, where the underbrush thickened, where the banks dipped low enough to approach without leaving obvious tracks.

He found a stretch where the water curved around a cluster of roots and stones, where the ground rose slightly on one side, and where a fallen log created a natural break in sightlines. It was not perfect, but it had cover, it had visibility in the right directions, and it had escape routes. He thought of the survival camps he and Max had gone to as kids, the parts that had felt like games back then.

The instructors talking about water access, visibility, and not sleeping in the lowest spot because cold air pooled there. The basics. He had rolled his eyes at some of it at the time, and remembered it anyway.

"This will be my home base," he decided.

"For now." He grinned.

"Water? Check. Shelter? Sorta check. Off to a decent start, I'd say." He spent the rest of the day slowly exploring the surrounding area in ever widening circles. He didn't find anything of note, and returned to his base before the darkness made him lose his bearings. That night, hunger gnawed at him. The dried meat the System had provided was nearly gone. He needed food. He glanced down at the small dagger on his hip, and grimaced slightly.

"I'll try hunting tomorrow," he decided. Gideon climbed up into a tree and secured himself as well as he could to a thick branch to sleep. He slept fitfully that night, and more than once woke from a dream that had his mind playing tricks on him, telling him he was falling to the forest floor. He climbed down the next morning, still feeling tired. He walked carefully around the creek once more in widening loops.

At one point, rustling brush sent him scrambling up a tree, clinging to its bark as a pack of wolves passed below. Sleek, silent shadows. Too many. Too dangerous. He narrowed his eyes and focused hard on the wolves below. Eventually, it clicked, and he managed to Identify one of them. A System window popped into his vision. [Wolf - Level?] Health:?? /?? | Stamina:?? /?? | Mana:?? /?? He swallowed nervously. He wouldn't be fighting any wolves any time soon, that much was clear.

He waited in the tree long after they vanished, his heart nearly beating out of his chest.

"I'm not the apex predator here," he reminded himself as he climbed back down and resumed his careful scouting.

"Not even close." He had no luck finding anything to hunt that day, and by the time the light began to fade he returned to the small campsite he had chosen along the creek. He ate the last pieces of dried meat he had left, though it did little to dull the ache in his stomach. Hunger followed him as he settled in for the night, a constant, gnawing presence that made his sleep restless and shallow. By the morning of the third day, the hunger had built into an ache that never fully faded.

If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. He resolved to find something to eat today. He crept through the brush along the creek bank for what felt like hours, before he finally caught sight of a rabbit nibbling at grass in the clearing before him. Gideon's heart pounded." Alright," he thought to himself.

"Let's see this master plan of mine in action." He kept low and moved slowly, letting Stealth guide his movements. He took his time closing distance, not wanting to spook the animal. A chime echoed in his head, which he ignored. He paused when he reached what felt like the closest safe spot, half-hidden behind brush with a clear line to the rabbit. He focused hard on the small creature, willing Identify to activate. The System window appeared, just as it had the previous day with the wolves.

[Rabbit - Level 1] Health: 10/10 | Stamina: 20/20 | Mana: 0/0"Killable," he thought.

"If I don't manage to fuck it up somehow." He picked up a small pebble and prepared to cast Pebble Toss. He kept his eyes open this time, breathing slow, and stirred his Mana the way he'd learned in the cave. The first attempt fizzled. The second sparked, but failed. The third built pressure, then collapsed in a way that made his fingers tingle with useless effort. He forced himself not to swear out loud or move. Then he forced himself to try again without giving the rabbit a reason to bolt.

"Come on," he hissed under his breath, barely louder than a breath.

"Work, you useless fuck." On the next try, the pebble snapped forward and struck the rabbit squarely in the head with a crack that seemed far too loud. It dropped and twitched slightly, and it was immediately obvious that it wasn't dead yet. Gideon lunged out from his hiding place, activating Quick Feet and darting forward to the stunned rabbit. His dagger flashed, and before he could think too deeply about it, the small creature was dead. He heard a faint chime in his head, before all was still again.

He froze, staring down at the animal. His breath came fast and uneven. He had killed something, and there was no undoing that. Gideon swallowed hard, nausea churning in his stomach.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, as he stared down at the corpse, now lying in a rapidly expanding pool of blood.

"I really am. But I'm more hungry than sorry." He felt guilty. He'd never personally killed something before. But beneath the guilt was something else, an ugly flicker of relief and something like pride was building. He had hunted. He had provided for himself. He had survived. He gripped his dagger harder, and swallowed.

"Here goes… well, something." He bent down and got to work removing the fur as carefully as he could. He butchered the rabbit clumsily, making a horrific mess of the hide, but eventually removed enough fur to expose the edible meat. Another chime sounded. He looked around this time, checking if he was safe before he turned his attention to the slightly pulsing notification in the corner of his vision.

"At least it's unobtrusive," he muttered. Gideon focused on the notification, and the System came into view once more. He saw three lines of text on the screen. [Congratulations! Stealth has reached Level 2.] [You have slain Rabbit - Level 1. Experience earned.] [New Skill Acquired: Skinning – Level 1]"Thanks, System," he muttered as a small grin crept across his face.

"Could've used this a few minutes ago." Gideon focused on the final line, and a description window helpfully appeared. Skinning (Level 1): You have the basic knowledge required to strip hide and fur from slain creatures. Efficiency and yield increase based on Skill level. Gideon nodded with satisfaction, and thought back once again to the fantasy camps from Earth. He remembered the survival skills they had taught him, and smiled to himself.

"I knew that was going to come in handy at some point." He looked around, then back down at the rabbit.

"Not quite how I imagined I'd use those skills." He shrugged, and got to work building a small fire using dry moss, sticks, and his dagger to strike sparks. After several attempts, the tinder caught. He cooked the meat on sharpened sticks, burning it slightly but not enough for him to care. Another chime echoed, and he opened the notification immediately this time. [New Skill Acquired: Cooking - Level 1] He quickly opened the new Skill description.

Cooking (Level 1): You can prepare raw food over fire or heat sources. Higher levels improve taste, nutrition, and reduce risk of illness.

"Nice. This could just maybe work out," he said with a small smile on his face as he sat down and began to eat the meat. It was the best thing he'd ever tasted. Gideon lost track of time as he sat there, slowly chewed, and listened to the forest. He became lost in his thoughts as he enjoyed the peaceful tranquility around him. He barely had time to chew the last bite before pain exploded across his back.

Something had launched onto him from behind, and it was busy using its razor-sharp teeth and claws to tear into his flesh. Gideon screamed in pain, and rolled onto the ground. A high-pitched yelp burst from the attacker as his weight crushed it for a heartbeat, and the pressure on his back loosened enough for him to keep rolling. He rolled twice more and forced himself up, shaking, pain pulsing through him. A very pissed off looking fox stood just a few feet away.

It growled at him, surprising Gideon with its ferocity. He quickly drew and gripped his dagger, brandishing it at the fox. It wasn't deterred. It lunged forward, fangs bared. The next moments were a blur of pain and panic. Throwing the fox off, flinging fistfuls of rocks in desperation, fumbling to swing his dagger, then the surprising weight of the fox knocking him to the ground and pinning him down on his back as it scratched and bit at him.

He stabbed upward wildly, again and again, until the movements finally stopped. Another chime echoed in his head. The fox slumped motionless atop him, its hot blood spilling across his chest. Gideon shoved it aside with a gasp, staggered to his feet, and immediately ran to the creek and plunged in, scrubbing himself clean as frantically as he could manage. The icy water stung like crazy as it washed across his wounds. He gritted his teeth and watched as his blood flowed downstream.

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck. I gotta get away from here." He knew that the sound of their battle, and the smell of the blood would work to draw in predators and scavengers alike from nearby. He needed to get the scent off of him. He needed to leave the clearing as fast as he could. Adrenaline was pumping hard through his veins, and when he was satisfied with his quick rinse, he jumped back out of the stream. Rushing back to where he had left his pouch, Gideon grabbed his things and ran.

Quick Feet flared again and again, burning through his precious Stamina as he fled. He didn't know where he was going, he only knew he needed to get away as quickly as possible. He stumbled as he sprinted through the woods, blood still steadily leaking from his wounds until he spotted a foxhole beneath a massive tree's roots.

"Good enough," he gasped, as he activated the Skill again to give him a final burst of speed. Another chime echoed. He slowly and painfully dragged himself inside, then somehow managed to focus his mind enough to use weak casts of Grain Shift to help him pull dirt in front of the entrance. Gideon groaned as he used his hands to swipe more dirt into place, finishing the job that his magic couldn't. When he was satisfied that he was reasonably well hidden, he sat back.

The world narrowed around him until pain, fear, and the dagger clutched in his white-knuckled grip was all he knew. He waited. And waited. And waited. Only when the panic dulled enough for his eyes to refocus did he notice the blinking System notification. He opened it with a thought. [You have slain Fox - Level 3. Experience earned.] [Congratulations! Quick Feet has reached Level 2.] Gideon waved the notification away, and decided now was as good a time as any to see what sort of shape he was in.

He focused, and his Status floated before him. The wall of text made his eyes hurt to look at, so he spent a minute searching around until he found an option to show a condensed version. He activated it, and watched the letters on the screen pulse and shift into something much more manageable.

[Status] Name: Gideon Race: Goblin Level: 1 Resource Pools: Health: 4/30 | Stamina: 6/20 (+2/10 mins) | Mana: 9/40 (+2/10 mins) Stats: Strength: 2 | Constitution: 3 | Dexterity: 3 | Intelligence: 4 | Wisdom: 2 Skills: Quick Feet (Level 2) Climbing (Level 1) Stealth (Level 2) Dagger Proficiency (Level 2) Identify (Level 1) Mana Manipulation (Passive) Earth Affinity (Passive) Skinning (Level 1) Cooking (Level 1) Spells: Pebble Toss [Tier 1 – Level 1 – 8%] Stone Chip [Tier 1 – Level 1 – 1%] Stone Tap [Tier 1 – Level 1 – 1%] Grain Shift [Tier 1 – Level 1 – 21%] He stared in horror at the 4 Health.

As he was looking at it, it ticked up to 5, and he clung to that small reassurance like it meant more than it did. The reality still hit him like a gut punch. He should be dead. He very nearly was. Gideon thanked himself for the unintended foresight that had prompted him to place two points into Constitution back in the cave. Without that, his new life would've been very short indeed. The hours slowly passed as his Health crawled upward. At fifteen, the bleeding finally stopped. At nineteen, the pain dulled.

And when he finally reached twenty, the adrenaline drained from his body. And Gideon broke. He curled into himself and sobbed, shaking uncontrollably. The fear. The pain. The closeness and reality of his death. It all crashed down on him at once. He had been treating this new life like a game. He had been caught up in the Stats, the Skills and Spells, and the rush of his first successful hunt. He had let down his guard, thinking he had it all figured out, and he had nearly died for it. What was he even doing here?

He shouldn't be here. He should be back in Berkeley, writing his next paper, working his stupid graveyard shift at the gas station, and playing games with Max, not bleeding, cold, and afraid in a stinking foxhole. Max. That thought broke him out of his misery. He wiped at his eyes, sniffled, and began to calm down. He thought of his parents' faces. He thought of Max's steady, protective presence, a constant in his life for 12 long years. He took a deep shuddering breath. He wasn't in a game. He wasn't safe.

He wasn't clever or invincible. He could die. For real. Forever this time. Slowly, a feeling of determination began to replace the fear. He wouldn't allow himself to die this easily. He had to survive. Had to find out if Max was here in this world. He had to take this far more seriously than he had.

And, even if the Adjudicator had told him the door back to Earth was closed forever, he still couldn't stop the desperate, stubborn part of himself from hoping there was some loophole, some exception, some future choice he hadn't been shown yet. He had to search high and low to find out if the System was capable of mercy, or if it only pretended to be. And the only way to do that was if he stayed alive. Eventually the sobs faded completely, leaving a tear streaked face, and exhaustion.

He wiped at his face, took another shuddering breath, and whispered into the darkness:"I will survive. Whatever it takes. There is no other choice." The exhaustion gnawed at his vision. Sleep dragged him under at last. The forest waited silently outside.