After eight hours of dreamless sleep, Stevo had woken up feeling well rested and determined to make the most of whatever the opportunity was he'd been given. He figured that someone (or something) had chosen him, and if they thought he could do this, then he'd at least try. After a mug of coffee and a fried egg sandwich (with Brown Sauce), he sat on the sofa and brought up his status screen. He felt good, and this was reflected in the fact his health was back to 100%.

Stevo, or Stephen, as only his parents insisted on calling him, had decided the best course of action was do do a couple of low-risk missions. He would earn a little money and XP (experience), upgrade his stats and equipment, then try a more risky assignment. The delivery mission to Drebun was still available. He took a deep breath and selected it.

After a brief sensation that felt like falling, Stevo found himself in a small copse of trees. Behind him was a shimmering disc, which he assumed was the door or portal that brought him here. He was dressed in his simple beige clothes, his backpack on his back, and his right hand gripping the disappointing club he'd been given. There was something in his pack, and Stevo knew this was the package he was supposed to deliver. In the corner of his vision was a mini-map with a yellow point selected about a kilometre away. As he looked around, there was a yellow waypoint marker hovering in the distance, obviously showing him the way to go. There was also a timer, that appeared to be counting down from 3 hours.

He cautiously began walking towards the marker, pausing every few steps to listen and look around. The trees were pretty similar to the ones found around Stevo's home in England. Perhaps slightly taller than you'd expect. He'd seen an unusual mushroom, with a cone-shaped cap and deep burgundy splotches on a cream background. It's appearance screamed “toxic”, and he'd left it undisturbed. The wood was eerily quiet, with only the gentle rustling of the leaves in the breeze, and the occasional broken twig thanks to Stevo's carelessness, breaking the silence. He could tell he was approaching the edge of the wooded area when his HUD (heads up display) was telling him he was 400m out. Suddenly there was a loud noise from ahead of him, a sound of something crashing through the vegetation. There was a shrieking sound, some gurgling, crunching noises, then silence with just an occasional crunch.

Stevo crouched down and half walked, half crawled towards the last large tree before the cover ended.

The sight before him was enough to make even those of an iron constitution vomit, but somehow Stevo was able to hang on to his breakfast. On the blood-splattered ground lay the mutilated remains of a wild boar, which was being devoured by the strangest creature he’d ever laid eyes on. The size of a Great Dane, the monster closely resembled a preying mantis on steroids, and was a deep purple colour. Stevo backed slowly away into the copse of deciduous trees behind him, and retraced his steps until he reached the portal. He was fortunate that the mantis-beast was too distracted by it's meal to give chase. Stevo stepped through the shimmering disc and was back on his sofa.

Shit! The voices didn't say anything about giant carnivorous insects! Stevo knew that his club would provide little protection if that thing, or one of it's buddies, decided he'd make a nice snack! At the same time though, the gamer in Steve refused to be beaten by the very first challenge. There was still about 2 and a half hours on the timer. He could do this!

Stevo knew that the boundary of the woods was about four hundred meters from his destination. There would likely be civilization a little closer than that, a homestead, cottage, something. He'd seen nothing big actually in the woods, so he assumed those mantis-beasts hunted in the grassland beyond. So Stevo actually just had to cross between maybe two hundred and four hundred metres of open ground. His plan would be to get to the edge of the woodland, check to see that the coast was clear, then make a break for the waypoint marker, running as fast as he could manage. He was quite quick on his feet, this was a good plan. He went back through the portal to try again.

Showing noticeably less caution this time, Stevo made his way to the edge of the woods. He again saw nothing of interest, except a caterpillar the size of his middle finger, deep green and pulsing as it climbed a twig heading for a large flat leaf.

Crouching behind the rotting trunk of a fallen tree, his eyes swept from left to right, looking for signs of danger in the ankle-high grass. The feeding mantis-beast was gone, as indeed was the carcass of the boar. A patch of flattened grass, bloodied in places, and some drag marks running away from Stevo, but parallel with the edge of the copse, were all the evidence of the struggle that remained.

There appeared to be a cluster of buildings in the distance, perhaps half a dozen? It was hard to tell at this distance. They looked sturdy, with sloping thatched roofs. Stevo's waypoint was hanging directly above them. They didn't look to be that far away, a couple of hundred metres? Maybe a little more? Stevo tightened the leather straps on his backpack, took a deep breath, and sprinted flat-out.

As he pumped his legs like pistons and powered towards the buildings, the long dry grass gripped at his feet and ankles. Once he'd closed the distance a little, he could see a man, apparently in some sort of uniform, standing outside the closest building. Stevo's heart was pounding in his chest and his lungs were burning as he drove himself forward. He thought he heard something behind him, a clicking sound and a thumping of several feet. The man (a guard of some sort?) started waving at him, shouting something unintelligible, before lifting a crossbow into firing position. At that moment three things happened. First, the guard fired his crossbow, second Stevo lost his footing in the long grass and fell headlong onto the ground, and thirdly, the crossbow bolt, magical in nature, flew over the prone Stevo before embedding itself in an enraged Mantisbeast, engulfing it in magical flames.

As the beast slumped to its fiery death, just metres behind Stevo, the guard approached.

“How are you doing stranger? You dived at exactly the right moment!”

Dived? Thought Stevo, but actually replied, “Thank you for your good shooting!”

“Are you injured? What is the reason for your visit young man?”

“I'm here to deliver a package to the owner of that building behind you.” Stevo responded.

“You are in luck! That's my Father in Law's home, you will find him inside.” exclaimed the guard, whilst offering Stevo his hand and pulling him to his feet.

Stevo approached the house, and knocked on the rustic wooden door. It was made of heavy, thick planks, and would be better suited to a castle or fort of some kind than a small homestead like this, he thought.

“Come in” came a strong, unwavering voice.

“Hello, I'm Stevo, I have a package for you.”

The brief moment of “falling” returned, and a bewildered Stevo was back on his sofa.

Mission Complete! +20xp +1 silver

Skill Unlocked: Flee Danger! Gives a 10 second speed boost when escaping dangerous situations. Can be leveled up.

Well, he thought to himself, that wasn't so bad!

Stevo wasn't so sure how heroic he should feel about the first skill he unlocked being something to help him run away! He chuckled, alone in his living room. He checked his status screen:

Stevo. (Citizen)

Level 0

Experience (xp) 20/50

Intelligence 12

Strength 12

Stamina 10

Agility / Dexterity 11

Health 49/50

Skills: Flee Danger level 1.

Stevo noticed a slight scratch on the palm of his hand from his fall, which would explain his less than perfect health. More importantly, it confirmed that injuries from the other world would be brought back to this one. As he got ready to take a shower, he pondered whether skills gained on missions would work here. Then he remembered “The Voice”.

“Earn the skills to build a society.”

Hmm...