When Camilla entered the game, she stumbled on her non-existent feet and breathed in the smoke-infested air. Her lungs choked on the dirty air as she fell to her knees.

Clutching her throat, she wildly whipped her head around to try and figure out the chaos that was going on around her. The sky was blocked by thick, black clouds, and even the ground below her feet seemed tainted with the inky color. People in armor surrounded her, some of them were wearing sparkling white suits, but most of them were black and decorated with intimidating red spikes.

Time seemed to have slowed down as Camilla realized that an entire army of eyes was pinned solely on her. The sudden quiet calmed down her pounding heart, and she was finally able to see the scene in front of her clearly. In the corner of her eyes, she spotted a tall man kneeling on the ground, relying on his sword to keep himself from collapsing completely. His white suit of armor was dented and appeared to be covered in black tar; even his brilliant blond hair was matted with it. Camilla unconsciously turned her body towards the man, her long dress rustling against the muddy ground, and his head snapped up at the sound.

Camilla gasped and covered her mouth in horror at the sight.

The man's handsome face was coated in mud and grime, marring his striking features. The same black tar that marked his armor was smeared across his eyes and hid them entirely from view.

Camilla's compassion overcame her shock, and without thinking, she reached her hands out to help.

At that moment, time returned to normal, and the spell over the armies was broken. A white-suited soldier made the first move to continue the assault. His brothers in arms quickly followed his example. Meanwhile, the black-suited army still stood staring at the pair before being shaken back to reality. It clear to any outsider that they were already starting to lose their previous advantage.

Camilla almost drew her hands back in fear, but the way the man flinched at her sudden proximity made her devote her attention back to him.

"I'm sorry," she said, hesitating for a brief second before leaning in closer. "I just-Please let me help you." The man clenched his teeth and lowed his head but did not resist her reaching hands.

With one hand, Camilla lifted his chin up to get a better look at the damage as she used her sleeve to try and wipe away the mysterious substance from his eyes.

The man let out a shaky breath as her skin touched his. If Camilla was so focused on her task, she might've noticed the way her fingertip softly glowed, the weak light spreading to the rest of his pale face.

She opened her mouth to say something light and comforting before an invisible force pulled her away and pushed her back into darkness.

***

Camilla's second landing was a lot less chaotic but a lot more painful.

She fell flat on her back; the cold and cracked stone tile knocked the air out her lungs.

[ah f***, I think I heard something snap.] She let out a loud groan of pain and was very content to just lie on the ground forever. Camilla's toes curled against the soft moss as she drew her legs up and-

Wait, Toes!?

She forced herself to sit up, her backbone cracking back in place, and stared down at her reappeared feet in wonder. She brushed her fingertips against the arch of her right foot and sighed out in relief.

Camilla, tired and overwhelmed by this world's fast pace, lazily looked around and was surprised by her peaceful surroundings.

The altar she spawned on was cracked to its foundation and covered in moss and little blooming dandelions. Light poured in through the small cracks in the crumbling ceilings, and Camilla used the small amount of light to spy at the rest of her surroundings. She guessed she was inside some sort of abandoned temple. Her biggest clue was the large golden banners with symbols of sun and stars intertwined on them. They were used to block out the light threatening to pour through the large open windows in this crumbling temple hall.

Camilla's eyes were starting to adjust to the darkness around her and, after some wincing and groaning, she managed to hop off the altar. As she wondered where the exist was, she thought she heard a pair of light footsteps approaching her. By the time she could react, it was already too late, and she was dragged back onto the altar by her hair.

A scream of pain tore through her lips as she looked behind her and saw a drooling mouth stare back at her. The man's disgusting grey skin looked to be molting as he tightens his grip on her curls and drags her against his cold, fat body. He seemed to be only wearing some sort of furry loincloth, which added to his overall disgusting appearance. Camilla's back was pushed up against his chest while her feet frailing uselessly against the aliter's surface. The man loosened his hold on her hair, and Camilla tried to use this quick second to escape, but it was all in vain. Instead, he used that same arm to force her into a chokehold.

Camilla let out another choked scream of pain as she spotted the club that the man waved menacingly in his left hand. The sight pushed her out of flight mode and straight into her fight one. Memories of her self-defense classes flashed through her eyes, and Camilla quickly reached towards the soft underarm tendon near the armpit of his right arm. Her attacker let out sharp grunts and groans of pain, but when he still held on, Camilla decided on a more violent approach. She dug her nails into the soft flesh and pulled down with all her might, effectively ripping the weak tendon from the muscle.

Her attacker squealed like a pig, and Camilla took advantage of his loosened grip to turn around and continue her attack. Arming herself with her nails, she let out a primal scream and lunged forward to dig them into his eyes. A combo like this would've been enough to incapacitate any attack and give her an opening to escape.

...If the man had any eyes in the first place.

Her eyes widen in shock, and ma-Creature knocked her off of its face using the side of its club. Camilla flew off the alter, her head colliding painfully against the cold stone floor. As the creature staked closer, she got a fuller picture of her attacker in between the black spots overtaking her vision.

The creature had the form and figure of a man, a fat and vomit-inducing man but a man nonetheless. However, its skin was definitely an ashy grey, and its long pale hair laid dead and limp on its shoulders. Its long yellow nails matched whatever few teeth it still had left, and there was a lump of grey flesh where its eyes should have been.

Camilla used the last of her strength to turn over and crawl away as the creature stood over her. It raised the club high over its head and crashed it down on the young woman's head.