Eric found himself in the deep forest. The trees obscured the sky and the shadows were deep. Eric wanted to say "We're not in Kansas anymore". but such a cliché deserved flying monkeys to carry him away. Don't borrow trouble. Eric started to think about all the Isekai stories he had read, but he didn't remember being hit by a truck, and while he loved to game, his current fare was Kerbal, Shipbreaker, and Hearts of Iron 4 (OWB Fallout Mod), not the latest JRPG, MMO, or VR game.

"Status", Eric shamefully mumbled. No blue screen appeared. Nope, Isekai definitely wasn't in the cards here.

Eric recognized that the jokes and clichés were his internal attempt to deal with a strange and scary situation. Being lost in a forest with strange creatures was no joke. Eric found a stout stick and carved a point with his knife to make a rudimentary spear. Having done something in response to his fear, Eric's heart started to calm. Rather than venturing deeper into the forect, he started to retrace his way out. Thankfully, his panic fueled steps had blazed a trail that was easy to make out.

As Eric walked, he noticed some webs in the trees above that he had been too scared to notice before. As he retraced his steps, the webs got denser, virtually blanketing the up limbs of the trees. "Yeah, I don't want to see what is making these webs." Making an immediate detour, Eric angled away from the webs, hoping to avoid giant Spider Monsters or darker creatures.

Further along, the trees started to become less dense, and the sun, still high in the sky, shined through. With the return of the sun, Eric's heart also felt restored. With these happy feelings, Eric stumbled upon another pond in a natural fold in the hills. This one had numerous reeds and animal tracks around it. Eric approached cautiously, using his spear to beat the brush and scare away any creatures.

Suddenly, two rabbits appeared in the brush. Unlike normal rabbits, who would naturally run and hide from a predictor, these rabbits boldly accosted Eric. Brown with white spots, each rabbit looked to be a good 10lbs, kind an oversized swamp rabbit. Each rabbit had a spur of bone sticking out of it's forehead, making a sharp point. Each rabbit stood on it's hind legs and bared it's teeth, ready to attack.