Merlin stared at the screen.
[Welcome, Merlin Maxim.]
He looked around him.
He was standing in an open field covered in tall, yellow grass. The wind moved through it in slow waves, brushing against his legs.
Merlin turned around.
There was nothing else.
No building.
No chamber.
No walls.
He remembered stepping inside the strange compartment.
This is all in my head.
Merlin looked back at the screen.
After all, he hadn't told anyone his last name.
The screen remained suspended.
[Generating biome...]
Instantly, Merlin's surroundings began to change.
Trees started materializing from the ground up. In the far distance, mountains began forming along the horizon. Even the grass beneath his feet changed.
It became darker.
Moist.
The wind grew heavier, carrying the smell of vegetation with it. It blew so hard that Merlin could barely keep his eyes open.
He raised an arm to shield his face and looked around, searching for somewhere with less wind.
He began walking.
It felt like hours had passed, but he still hadn't found anywhere suitable to take shelter.
Then, suddenly—
A strange humming sound filled his head.
Merlin froze.
The sound shook his senses so violently that his legs gave out beneath him.
He fell to his knees.
What the hell was that?
For a moment, he wondered if it had something to do with the system.
But the system had remained silent throughout.
Merlin forced himself back onto his feet and looked ahead.
The wind made it difficult to see.
Through the haze, however, he noticed a small yellow light in the distance.
Something was moving beside it.
Someone.
The figure appeared to be jumping and waving at him.
But judging by the frantic movements, they weren't trying to greet him.
They looked distressed.
That's when Merlin heard it.
A loud groaning sound came from behind him.
He turned.
Something was standing roughly two dozen meters away.
It was massive.
At least twice the size of a bull.
And it was running straight toward him.
The wind made it difficult to make out its features.
Merlin didn't have time to try.
He turned and sprinted toward the person waving at him.
The thing behind him roared.
Merlin ran faster.
To his surprise, he was outrunning the beast—not because it was slower. In fact, it was at least as fast as a car, yet it fell farther and farther behind.
Before Merlin knew it, he had run past the person waving at him.
He didn't run? Merlin thought to himself.
He turned back and saw six people engaging the beast in battle.
Now he got a good look at it.
It was a four-legged beast. It had two enormous horns, spikes running down the large hump on its back, and hammers for hooves.
Its entire body was covered in thick, coarse brown fur, with darker fur around its face, limbs, and underside. Its frame was enormous, heavily built, and covered in thick muscle.
Its horns curved outward before sweeping slightly upward, while its broad face carried a pair of glowing orange eyes beneath a heavy brow. Sharp fangs protruded from its large muzzle.
Rows of thick, dark spikes covered its body, running from its head and shoulders down its back, hips, and limbs. More spikes lined its long, upward-curving tail.
Its four legs were thick enough to resemble tree trunks, each ending in massive split hooves that looked more like stone than bone.
The beast charged toward three members of the crew.
It was too fast for it's size.
Two of them were women, standing close together beside a man wearing a large robe.
As it closed the distance, the beast suddenly twisted around with astonishing speed, sending its spiked tail sweeping toward them.
The attack looked unavoidable.
The robed man suddenly spread his large robe, throwing it over all three of them.
The tail tore through the fabric.
Merlin's eyes widened.
But there was no impact.
The robe fluttered empty for a brief moment before the man emerged from beneath it several meters away, the two women right beside him.
Merlin stared.
He hadn't seen them move.
The man's movements beneath the robe were so fast that Merlin couldn't tell when they had changed positions.
It looked like a magic trick.
Merlin turned back to see a thick, bright chain wrapped around the beast's neck. The chain sparkled as though it were covered in lava.
A large man pulled on it with one hand. His other hand was held wide open, as if he were controlling the massive burning chain.
Just as the monster twisted its body again, a spear shot straight through its lower back, piercing it as though its flesh were rubber.
Its hind legs immediately went numb, and the beast collapsed to the ground.
Merlin stared in disbelief.
It's just in my head, he reassured himself.
After a bit of struggling, the beast finally choked on the chains wrapped around its neck.
The man with the ridiculously large cloak walked toward Merlin, the two young women following behind him.
"Hey! What are you doing here?"
He stopped a few steps away.
"Being alone in the wild is highly dangerous this time of year."
Merlin looked up at him, then at the two women behind him.
Neither seemed particularly interested in him.
One casually rolled a strand of her long blonde hair around her finger, her eyes closed.
The other was genuinely blind.
Merlin looked back up at the man with the cloak. He was waiting for a reply.
"He must be a fettered man," Merlin heard a voice from behind him.
It must have been the one who threw the spear.
Merlin turned around.
It was a man wearing a sleeveless tunic, with a spear hanging from his back. There were scars all over his body, from his face down to his muscular arms.
Merlin thought they looked like modern-day tattoos.
He realized something else.
Their clothes all looked old-fashioned.
Merlin looked down at his own clothes. He wore a robe that didn't look too different from his kaftan, so he had only just noticed.
"Don't jump to conclusions," said the man in the cloak.
"You must be lost," he continued.
Merlin shook his head in agreement.
The man behind him scoffed before walking over to the beast and pulling out his second spear.
"Hey, Captain!" the cloaked man called out to the one who had taken down the beast.
He was the biggest of them all.
He knelt in front of the beast and put his palms together.
He was offering a prayer.
The rest of them stood and watched for a minute or two, until he was done with the prayer. He then got up to his knees. "It's a lost kid I think he needs our help", the cloaked man continued. The captain only walked past and said give him the extra load. The man with scars happily dropped several pounds worth of load in Merlin's arms. And followed the captain. I'm Harvey, said the cloaked man, this is Kate, he pointed at the blonde woman,and that's luna, he pointed the other. What's your name? Asked the blind girl. She had just been behind Harvey some time ago, Merlin didn't notice when she got so close to him. I, I'm Merlin, he stuttered. I'm sure you know Brody, harvey continued as he pointed out the tattooed Man. We're heading to Lilith, are you from there? Harvey asked. No Merlin shook his head. Don't fall behind Harvey said as he followed the rest of the crew. As Merlin turned to follow the system appeared again.
[Mission: protect Harvey and the crew.]
[Attempt quest to awaken]
Protect? How absurd!
Merlin said to himself.