12 Hours later..

As I settled down for the night and added a few bits of wood to the log burner, I sighed and looked back at what had happened since I found myself in a distant land, and I felt a little bit ashamed of my initial reaction when I realised I was in another country.

I must have spent a good 30 minutes cursing and crying before I had managed to pull myself together enough to firstly attempt to simply Slipfold back home, with zero joy of course.

From there it was just a case of looking around and trying to figure out where the heck I was and how I was going to get back home. My landing zone was rocky with huge hills covered in trees and bushes, but I was luckily at a high vantage point and I was relieved to see multiple villages that were easily within a few hours walking distance.

The only downside was that most of the villages had ruined buildings and to top it off, the hills were dotted with huge nasty looking cows that were grazing on trees or just chewing on them for fun.

I’d spent most of the day making my way towards the closest village that didn’t look demolished, and when I’d arrived, I'd received my first hint as to where I was. This came in the form of a sign that read “Trizzino, de reggio calabria” and on the horizon I just about spotted what looked like a coastal city.

After I’d gotten over the fact I’d warped somewhere most certainly Italian, I’d spent a few hours looking around the deserted trashed village. The streets were full of signs of fighting, which were things like scorch marks, chunks of tarmac or concrete missing, dried bloodstains and other weird stain marks. Most buildings had their doors smashed in but a few were okay and I happened to find some travel brochures with maps that confirmed that I was in the boot of Italy, near a coastal city called Reggio Calabria.

The story in the village matched the narrative back home, with anything electrical gutted or missing specialised components, leaving only the casings behind. Cars were completely non-existent although that could have been the case before the shitstorm as this place was very rural, however conversely one would expect cars to be important to travel these small windy roads.

There had been no sign of people around but there had been plenty of inhuman screams which told me that I needed to find a safe place to rest for the night. After sneaking around and checking a few places, I settled in a place that was next to a shop called Gigachad or something. I had hit the jackpot here, because inside was pretty much the definition of a preppers house; the owner was nowhere to be seen.

And now I was using the log burner to warm up as it was getting cold but mainly I was hoping to heat up some tinned food as I was starving and the previous occupant had plenty to spare along with copious amounts of dried pasta.

The dark windowless room I was in was filled with oak units containing cupboards and shelves just stocked full of long lasting food. The walls had floral wallpaper with 60s looking hanging lights and a two seater sofa opposite the log burner located in the middle of the wall.

I poured some water into the pot and snapped the whole 500g pack of spaghetti in half and chucked it in, along with a whole two tins of chopped tomatoes and four tins of canned tuna. I was probably breaking several pasta related laws but I was too miserable and hungry to give a single shit.

Staring at all the food flickering in the flame light, I solemnly thought about how this would have been a treasure trove if found back at home… I hope everyone made it. I hope Marri and Lone stay safe.

I hope I can make it home..One day..

Tears dropped to the floor as my stomach turned in knots thinking of never seeing Little Lone’s grinning face or feeling Marri’s warmth ever again.

I missed them dearly already.

It was one thing somewhat risking my life everyday, not knowing if I’d come back. But it was an entirely different feeling knowing that I just simply wouldn’t be back for a long time, if not, ever

Ugh! Come on man! Get a grip!

I gave myself some light slaps on the cheeks and wiped my eyes.

It’s not as bad as you think! You can do this. People have trekked longer distances before!

I’d actually known a friend, Flip, who had cycled from the UK all the way to Rome in under 2 weeks and that had been at a leisurely pace including sightseeing stops and stopping to eat.

The lucky bastard has been everywhere… hope he's doing ok.

Granted it was doubtful I’d be able to travel as easily, but I don't need to worry about food as much as a normal human and thinking about it, I could even investigate using Slipfold to take a few shortcuts!

Doesn’t sound that bad to be fair!

It sucks balls, sure, and I’m going to get an absolute bollocking when I do return, but this isn’t the end of the line!

It may take more than a few weeks, maybe even a month and a bit...

..but..

I can do this.

…

I have to.

With a newfound resolve and courage, I spent a bit of time barricading the two doorways in the room and then settled down with my huge meal. I’d found a stash of hard grated cheese and groaned in ecstasy after I applied it liberally and tucked in.

After eating, I double checked to make sure everything was as safe as it could be and, ignoring the few screeches and distant rumbles, I activated my Config:Exo to see if it would be able to provide some protection whilst I was asleep - it felt comforting after all - and with that, I quickly drifted off.

…

..

.

Opening my eyes I awoke in the garden of growth and bolted up.

Glancing around, I realised I was alone. The realisation filled me with a sickly cold feeling in the pit of my stomach.

She was nowhere to be seen.

“Hello?” My voice echoed out.

Silence responded.

“H-hello!...HELLO!!?” I hopped up and checked all the nooks and crannies. Investigating the maelstrom which was the controls for increasing my attributes and skills, the strange message desk which gave me random bits of information, the square tall monolith that showed logs of my experiences and the galaxy bed that was there for comfort.

Everything was silent and I was alone.

I sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the ground, processing complex emotions from the whole situation. It felt like a part of me had died or been removed…

I am truly, well and completely, isolated and alone.

“Huuuufffff…” I let out a sigh and as my mind puzzled over everything. If there was one thing I hated the most, it was not being able to find answers.

I clicked my tongue.

“Fuck it. Nothing I can do right now except press on.”

I’d just survived nearly being eaten, I think I could handle a little trek and a bit of alone time.

And just like that, I shrugged off the weight of isolation, dread and crippling anxiety, and pressed on.

Alright maelstrom..What have you got for me today.

GODUYNE

STRY.KYR - MAGN.25.292

HP 299 / 323

MP 286 / 345

EP 100%

DS 100%

SWRD 28

SHLD 29

FTHR 39

GLYP 38

1 Attribute Points Available.

1 Skill Points Available.

1 Syphoned GLYP point - allocating.

1 Syphoned SWRD point - allocating.

24>25..and two of my first bonus points! Sweet.

Although I am Surprised that my MAGN didn’t increase much, I would have thought the big fucker was worth more... hope it actually was killed. I mean, I took part of its spine, throat and heart, surely that must have done it?...yeeeah I'm sure it's toast.

Assigning my available point to SWRD, the maelstrom swirled into skill tablets.

Skills

III Shoulder Rush -> IV Null Surge [5]

Evolves skill into Null Surge. Inherits Shoulder rush and upgrades. Allows you to drag targets when in use and you gain 5% surge of SWRD and SHLD for 5 seconds.

IV SMDS - Majiglyph -> V SMDS - Majiglyph [10]

Shields detach to create a Daemon construct controlled by Seren.

II OMDC -> III OMDC [6] (3+3)

Nervous System (NS) long latency reduced by maximum amount. Near zero-latency reaction speeds.

II ANALYSE -> III ANALYSE [50]

Vastly Expands data retrievable.

I Slipfold -> II Slipfold [2]

Significantly reduce time for anchor placement and fold activation.

I NEC -> II NEC [5]

Share this skill with others. Note: They will need to expend SP to enable. Skill will be Tier I.

I Phase Dash -> II Phase Dash [2]

Whilst in a phase state, you are immune to all Majik based attacks.

I EXP Well -> II Exp Well [2]

You can now deploy [2] units.

New! Cartography [1]

New! Cooking [1]

New! Italian [1]

Seren? Who is that?

My focus lingered on that name, searching my memories for any hint as to what it was, but nothing came back.

Hmm that’s going to bother me until I get it. 10 points though..Will be some time.

Null Surge sounds very interesting. I hadn’t even thought about if I could drag a target with me when using shoulder rush. I’ll have to try it out when I can.

Not even going to talk about Analyse or EXP well and NEC is my anti corruption skill, which is only useful if I intend to kill other humans. Actually on that note, I hope people out here are friendly otherwise I might have to get some use out of that skill.

The thought made my metaphorical stomach churn.

OMDC I’ve seen before and Slipfold upgrade doesn’t seem like it will help me right now.

Phase dash seems extremely powerful, so much so that I’m most likely going to save up for that.

What's the new ones…

Cartography - Unlocks NVD minimap of surroundings. Local/Regional Maps upgrade detail and distance.

Cooking - Your cooking was a sin and has been noted… but it worked surprisingly well. You will learn the basics of cooking.

Italian - Learn how to communicate basic concepts in Lang:Italian.

Bastards!

I took great personal offence at the cooking skill… the other two looked rather useful.

Having a minimap or map would be amazing, especially if I could use it to navigate home. GPS bitches!

I snorted at the juvenile reference.

It felt a tad bit convenient that I got the offer for it now, but then again I had studied the map I’d found so that most likely had something to do with it.

Learning the Italian language sounded great, almost essential, but I wasn’t planning on sticking around for long at all and right now I didn’t even think anyone was even alive judging by the state of things outside.

The real questions were: could I get by on just maps I’d pick up, should I learn basic Italian in case I come across natives, or, should I save up for the capability to be invulnerable to Majik attacks.

My gut told me that I needed that invulnerability as soon as possible, which would require one more point.

And the gut is king.

Firm on my decision, I skipped spending any points and moved back over to the bed as I wanted to make sure I was well rested before heading off early in the morning.

…

..

.

There were no vivid dreams this time and it was still very dark in the room when I opened my eyes since there were no windows. With only a few slivers of dark blue light seeping through gaps in the door frames, I quickly lit a candle and checked around me, noticing that my shields in Config:Exo were still active but it had also passively consumed around 60MP which was rather acceptable and quite a bargain in my eyes.

That amount would regenerate to full after either eating or after a few minutes of rest.

I’ll definitely be doing that more often.

Though I wouldn't be walking around all in Exo, as it would waste my EP.

It didn’t look like anything had tried to break in as I removed the blockades, checked the house and looked outside via the windows.

It was early morning with the sun not up yet and the sky was full of thick fluffy clouds with a fairly thick mist coating the streets, hills and mountain areas, reducing visibility quite a bit.

After gathering my things and hastily stepping outside, I felt comforted by the blanket of mist. Until I remembered a certain horror game where the mist was a prevalent camouflage for the monsters that hid in them.

Oh the joy of all my childhood fears having a very real chance of actually existing..

The brochure and map I had, showed me a fairly straightforward route to the coast, I just needed to find the right road. I walked through the battered streets, passing damaged houses and walls, and it only took me an hour to find my way on the outskirts of the village and onto the correct long road that would take me to the coastal town of Reggio Calabria.

A few times I heard the sounds of crashing and screeching coming from a few of the larger villa estates, so I hastily jogged past those each time and so far my luck was going well in avoiding any fighting. It felt horrible being alone as I was extremely vulnerable and it reminded me of back when I was creeping around the hospital, absolutely bricking it.

Of course, my luck was bound to run out, and, after 30-45 minutes of walking anxiously, I came to a sharp bend past a large patch of cacti growing out of the steep side verge.

There was a tall breeze block wall covering the inner part of the bend and as I followed it around I could suddenly hear wet crunching and low growling noises which made me freeze on the spot.

I peeked around the corner and smack bang in the middle of the road there was a pretty horrific creature munching on a messy pile of what I suspected would be another horrifying creature.

Label: Skinraw Lupo

MAGN: 30.546

HP: 289/300

MP: 10/10

EP: 80%

Notes: Jerry, che diavolo è quello.

The thing had no skin at all, with thick hairs growing out of the uncovered muscle tissue that was plain oozing blood. Haunched on thick jackal hind legs with slightly thinner front legs, it held itself steady, as it crunched on a corpse with an eyeless hyena-like maw. A skinless human torso had grown out of the things back, tilting lifelessly, like a puppet stuck on a pole. The whole thing was the size of a donkey.

Skinraw, jesus that's fucking ugly! And who the piss-shit is Jerry??

Label: Crawler

MAGN: 23.564

HP: -40 / 230

MP: 0/100

EP: 0%

Notes: Mio Dio. Avere pietà.

Thing number two, was definitely dead. But from what remained, it had four thick insect legs, a thin torso with a big red bulbous abdomen that looked like it was made of whale blubber, and a woman's head that had black greasy hair with fully black lifeless eyes.

It wasn't any bigger than the Skinraw.

The Skinraw was going to town, tearing at the red blubber sack and there was just flesh and so, so much blood spilling out from it.

I quickly pulled back around and deployed my shields into Config:Ribbon. Wincing as the metallic glass rain noise threatened to give my position away. I wanted to end this all in one hit.

Okay. Hooooooo. I can do this, no big deal, I've been swallowed by a demon, this is minor compared to that.

Charging my javelin shard attack, I waited a few seconds and then swiftly hopped round the corner, braced against the floor and railed off a half power shot, blasting dust away from me as the javelin whistled through the air.

It slammed home with a squelch and shattered into a small explosion as it hit the tarmac.

Problem was, it slammed into the corpse.

The Skinraw was nowhere in sight.

"W-woa what the fuc-" I whispered but stopped dead as I looked up at the wall to my left and nearly shat myself at the sight of the thing silently stalking along it with the human torso on its back pointing at me, with wide terror filled eyes just glaring and its mouth was stretched open like it was screaming.

Which is exactly what the bastard my gaze made contact with it.

The scream made my vision shake as the maw snarled and pounced towards me, its whole body glowed in a red hue.

I phase dashed forward and spun around, the ribbon locking in on my enemy at the ready to strike or intercept.

The monster, failing to hit me, clacked down on the tarmac with its thick claws and didn't miss a beat as it skidded round to face me and charged forward, glowing in a red hue again.

Shoulder rushing to intercept, the bastard was fast and it jumped impossibly quickly to the side, and I watched it run by horizontally on the wall to dodge me.

Unfortunately for the monster, my config:Ribbon was quick to strike out with the pincers open, stabbing deep into the rear leg muscle and ripping a huge gash of flesh out as it yanked the monster into the ground.

"RAAEEE" it screeched.

“wOA-ELP!” I yelped.

As I was thrown down off balance by the ribbon shield's manoeuvre, the ribbon seemed to be aware of this and, without my input, it blurred with extreme precision to correct my trajectory, coiling back to prop me up onto my feet and, within a split second I was steadily facing the screaming monster dragging itself away, with the ribbon hovering over my right shoulder locked back on once again.

Label: Skinraw Lupo

MAGN: 30.546

HP: 219/300

Breathing heavily, I felt mild pity for the thing as it squealed whilst trying to put weight on its leg. The torso on top of it was using its skinless bleeding arms to shield its face as if I was the bad one in the situation.

Well…actually, I did attack first. Fuck. Maybe it would have been neutral towards me?

I glanced briefly around and the human torso screamed as the Lupo suddenly leaped up towards me, thick black veins pulsing and bulging over the entire thing.

It had been faking the severity of the wound, pretending to try and escape and the second I dropped eye contact..

The ribbon shot forward and clamped around the neck of the eyeless maw and I skidded on the floor as it struggled to hold back the chomping clacking fangs coming at my face. I could feel the ribbon pincers were squeezing hard to try and cut into the neck, but either the skin was too thick, or the pincers were too weak to cut through.

It was like a reverse tug of war and I was losing, being pushed towards the wall.

So when I got close enough, I hopped back and stepped off up the wall, with the jackal maw slamming into the wall with a crunch, cracking it, and controlled my movement using the ribbon to sail over the top and land a falling kick into the face of the screaming skinless torso.

The head flashed a bright white hue outline that stayed and I felt the pulse of haptic feedback from landing an attack on a high value area, or in other words a critical hit. The torso immediately stopped screaming as it violently snapped back, but I grabbed a hold on one of the arms to stabilise myself and watched its wide open eyes roll around as the jackal maw went ballistic and started to twist and turn to snap at me crouching on its back.

My shield was holding it back from catching me as I pulled back a fist and repeatedly slammed it home into the skinless torso’s head, with each strike hitting harder than the previous, jolting the jackal part of the monster into spasms until after the fourth strike it stumbled, and, with a whine it slumped to its side.

The black pulsing veins faded away and suddenly my pincers snipped through the throat of the jackal maw like it was made of jelly and then swung up to violently decapitate the skinless torso part.

Label: Skinraw Lupo

MAGN: 30.546

HP: -100/300

MP: 0/10

EP: 0%

Notes: Jerry, che diavolo è quello. Two organisms that share the same body. The weak torso will scream to confuse and alert the stronger main body. The head of the torso is an HVA critical point and it has an ability to increase its natural defences immensely, but only for a short period, which is identified via the appearance of thick black veins.

Do not be fooled, the torso is always watching and on high alert.

Bloody bastard. Good to know AFTER the fight… and I still don’t know who the hell Jerry is!

Annoyance aside, it was quite handy to have the notes since I figured it would remind me if I saw another one. It was interesting to see the notes change after fighting with it and yet it still had something prior to the fight.

Gives weight to that theory of Majik and EXP being able to store information.

Quickly catching my breath as I collected the mist of EXP, I swiftly moved on.

It was getting lighter and if I had to guess, it was probably around 8am and while the mist was slowly clearing up, it was still reducing visibility a fair amount.

After around 30 minutes, I was walking through another village whose name I didn’t see any signs for, but what I did know was that it had seen some extreme levels of fighting.

Everything was completely trashed and there was not a single window or door that wasn’t damaged or completely missing. A few buildings were demolished, with the streets filled with craters, cracks and gauges but interestingly, I even saw a few broken weapons lying around such as bent swords, snapped shields, snapped spears and something that looked like a 3D printed circular power-saw that had a broken blade.

Basically, all signs that humanity had not coped very well in this area, but the density of monsters was very sparse compared to back home, I had only seen two more large shapes passing in the mist, both looking similar to the Skinraw Lupo.

They hadn't spotted me but it was creepy as hell, and part of me felt like it'd just be less stressful not having the mist and rather fighting them now that I knew the weak point and capabilities.

Suspense is a killer.

After a few hours of carefully treading through and getting lost a few times - fucking buy some street signs Italy! - I found the right road that wound down the hill into the coastal city. The mist had really cleared as I approached the edge of a sharp bend, and, in typical fashion, I didn’t know what I had until it was gone.

Fuck. Me. Sideways.

With the mist cleared, I stared wide-eyed at the fantastic view of the city and all its current inhabitants, swarming the streets, jumping from windows, attacking each other… You know, usual city stuff.

It was absolute chaos.

There were thousands of them. Possibly tens of thousands of black dots and shapes swarming around in various parts like insects. Violent clashes broke out when groups met up with each other, creating clouds of dust

It was hard to make out details from this distance, but the bigger ones were definitely easier to make out, spread out, they slowly plodded between the tall buildings; grabbing things from the ground and windows, eating them alive.

What the hell-

One of the tall ones caught my eye as it threw a small black shape towards its mouth, but promptly had its head completely obliterated by a big purple plasma-like ‘X’ projectile that exploded on contact, sounding out a muffled boom.

The black shape slid down the monster's timbering corpse and disappeared between the buildings, with the huge corpse smashing into the side of an apartment and gouging out a big hole.

Uhh-

A swarm of roughly adult-sized flying somethings emerged from the gash, flocking out over rooftops and buildings. Other dots could be seen jumping from the rooftops, mostly missing and plunging down into the streets below, but a few managed to catch one, triggering a faint pained scream that lasted mere seconds.

That is a literal warzone. What the fuck!

There were no words to truly describe it, only that it was graphically fascinating.

Just one big violent death festival.