“Get him!”

“Tear him apart!”

“Kill that monster!”

A young man dashed through the woods. He was sweaty and breathing heavily. Close behind him followed another 50 or so people, all holding torches, pitchforks, and daggers. The chase had started at a small village, about two miles away.

--Damn farmers…. they have such ridiculous stamina!

The young man continued to run, dodging tree limbs and jumping over large logs. All to no avail. The crowd behind him continued to yell and scream, all the while staying close on his tail.

--How did it come to this?

The young man thought to himself, contemplating how he came to such a situation.

……….

“Did you hear? There’s some boy who apparently lost his ability to access the system!”

“What! That’s blasphemy!”

“It’s true! I heard it from the priest himself!”

Talk rained over the town like a thick storm. The story came out of a young man who could no longer access the system, a heathen who had no place in the Church of the Path. Such an existence was unheard of. To live without the system was to go against God, or maybe even God casted him out. Either way, people were scared, and that fear quickly led to anger. One such person was a priest, who went around the town gathering people. All of them determined to solve everything tonight. The young man they talked about was, however, oblivious to the spreading rumor.

--Maybe some carrots? Or potatoes? Carrots.... But Mom used to make great potato soup…I don’t know...

“Hmm...I’ll take 3 potatoes please.” The young man said as he walked up to a street vendor, basket in hand.

“Ahh, Agis! Still as handsome as ever I see. Three potatoes right here for you dear.”

“Thanks Mrs. P.” He took the potatoes and placed them in his basket. Then passed her some coin.

“You treating yourself well hun? How longs it been now since you moved in, about 2 years now right? Find a woman yet?”

“Yes ma’am, two years now. And no, I haven't really been looking for one.”

“Nonsense! Not looking for a woman? At your age? How old will you be this year? Twenty or so right? Now you listen, my granddaughter would be perfect for you, why don’t you come on by tomorrow, I can introduce you two. She’s pretty you know, real popular too. You two would go together perfectly!”

“...I don’t know Mrs. P.” Agis began to scratch his head, trying to think of a way out.

“I won't take no for an answer! Come by tomorrow, I’ll see you then!” Just like that, Mrs. P. turned to the other side and began talking to another customer, leaving Agis there with a dumbfounded expression.

--Well...I guess it won't hurt.

Laughing to himself about getting dragged into a date, Agis walked off. Night was starting to set in and the smell of fresh crops filled the air, only to serve to anger Agis’s empty stomach. He wanted to get back home and start up a nice fresh pot of soup and get some good rest in. He’d need it for his ‘date’ tomorrow.

However, as he got closer to home, the air started to give way to a new scent. Smoke trickled into Agis’s nose and he could feel the night getting hotter. A memory raced into Agis mind and he sped up his pace. Right as he rounded the corner, he saw a mob of people outside. They were in the process of burning down a home, Agis’s home. Near the crowd was a man standing on a wooden box, shouting above all others. He wore clean white robes, and was very obviously a priest.

“Down with the paegan! He is nothing but a monster! He is a plague to us all! If we allow him to live, he will either eat us, kill us, or turn us into monsters as well!”

--Fuck…not again...

Agis turned and spotted an alleyway across the street. He slowly made his way over there, weaving through the gathering crowd of people. Though, just before he could make it to the alleyway, someone spotted him.

“There he is!” A woman holding a pitchfork yelled. “I’ve seen him help farm the fields! That’s him! I know it!”

Someone else spotted him as well. “That’s right! He just moved in here, it has to be him!”

Soon enough the whole crowd turned to Agis, and just for a split second, he felt as if he met the eyes of everyone in front of him. The color drained from his body, as anger built into the faces of the crowd. They gave a look of disgust, a look that screamed out ‘I'm going to kill you’.

--Double fuck…

Agis dropped the basket and dashed into the alleyway. He kept running, pushing people out of the way. He didn’t care, he needed to move, therefore they needed to move. He soon made his way to the edge of the town. Then pushing his way through the corn, Agis made fast progress getting to the forest, located just on the outskirts of the farms. The lights of the small village began to grow farther and farther away, but the light of torches kept bobbing threw the night not far from behind. While he had lost most of the crowd, there were still many there behind him, giving pursuit. Each and every one of them ready to kill.

……….

Agis ducked under another low hanging branch and spotted a hole not far away. The crowd was gaining ground and it wouldn’t be long till he was caught, he needed to do something drastic. Determined not to die as a skewer on a pitchfork, Agis swiftly made his way to the hole.

--It probably isn’t too deep, it doesn't look to be all that big. I can survive that...right?

Reassuring himself, Agis took the dive and fell in. The lights from the mob couldn't be seen, and as the feeling of freedom came to Agis, his head smashed against a rock on the way down. The world turned black.