“Gigigiggi,”[Celia]

I barreled forward as I heard those inhumane screeches coming from behind me.

“Oh yeah, Calling me giggle, huh?”[Celia]

I spat, frustration visible on my face as I saw my doom closing over me.

Behind me, a horde of gorillas, each one a mountain of muscle dwarfing even the biggest human, continued chasing after me with terrifying zeal, jumping from one branch to another.

“Oh, for God’s sake,”[Celia]

I cursed in my heart as I dodged a boulder launched towards me from an impossible distance, Its speed-defying logic, easily capable of splattering me into oblivion, had it connected.

Their precision was uncanny. From seven kilometres away, it targeted the exact spot I had occupied a mere second ago.

Witnessing these inhuman feats, these steroid-fueled monsters, I couldn’t help but believe that I had been transported to another world, where losing your life to some gorillas on steroids is not very rare.

Sweat drenched every inch of my body with every step a battle against tiredness, I continued my daring escape from death as the regret of choosing random transfer filled my mind.

Just why did I put all of my remaining points in,

“Seriously, how many boulders do you guys even have?”[Celia]

I snarled as another boulder whizzed past my shoulder, missing me by a hair as I twisted my body just in time.
The boulder collided against a tree with a loud noise, creating smoke. 

Surprisingly the tree remained standing even after the collision.

Amidst the haze, a sudden movement caught my eye. From the dissipating smoke emerged a massive form. 

It was a gorilla, a little smaller than the one following me with a newly made scar on his cheek dying his white fur in red.

The sight of the scar on its cheeks triggered a rush of memories inside my brain, reminding me of how I had gotten myself into this chaotic situation in the first place.

It all started around four hours ago when after painstakingly choosing all my skills with totally good reasoning behind choosing each one (definitely not swayed by their cool names, nope!), I got ready for teleportation with excitement in my heart and a smile on my face.

Aegis, seeing my enthusiasm, gave me two options either by spending 20 points I transferred to a predetermined safe area or I could choose a random transfer to transfer me anywhere in the Eight Realms
with the help of a game of darts.

Seeing how many points I had initially left (Again definitely not zero), I opted for the gamble. (Aegis was a big reason for this decision. Don’t ask me how.).

 Aegis provided me with a dart and asked me to throw it at a space right in front of me where many images were revolving at a speed no human eye could catch up with.
With a prayer to God in my mind, As I mustered up my courage and shot the dart at the pictures, It hitted at some spot covered in green and then next moment I was continue falling through a black space, suddenly a portal opened in front of me. 

Falling through that portal I founded myself in the middle of a Jungle.

The moment I landed in this vibrant yet menacing jungle, it was like stepping into a whole new world, my heart continued beating so hard that I started feeling pain in my chest.

On surveying the area in one head turn, It was clear that the entire area was covered with gigantic trees, impossible to find normally on earth.

As far as my eyes could see, the area was covered with trees, flowers, weird squirrels, and colourful birds. I even saw a butterfly the size of a human.

With the transfer complete, I had many things to do for my survival. Finding a river for drinkable water and a place to sleep was my top priority, followed by finding a town and finding something safe to eat.

But I had something even more important to do–I had to check my status first. Finding water, food, and a place to sleep at night, I can do them later.

With that goal in my mind, I slowly whispered Status in my mind, and suddenly in the air a transparent screen appeared,

Status Check:

Name: Celia

Occupation: none

Skills:

Versatile Skill Enhancements (VSE):

1. Arcane Prowess: (0/20) -  Level 1 - Mystic Attunement - Tier 1: Arcane Sensing - “Develop a basic awareness of magical energies in the surroundings.”

2. Martial Prowess: LOCK (NEED 5 ESSENCE POINTS TO UNLOCK)

Individual Mastery Skills (IMS):

3. Phoenix’s Rejuvenation: LOCK (NEED 10 ESSENCE POINTS TO UNLOCK)

4. Nature’s Bounty: (0/40) - Level 1 - Floral Harmony - Tier 1: Botanic Sensing - “Gain basic awareness of nearby flora and their conditions.”

Tactical Deployment Abilities (TDA):

5. “**###@&-#@@@” LOCK (NEED ALL THE SKILLS TO BE MAX LEVELED TO UNLOCK)

After checking my status like a responsible adventurer I am. Now, reality hits–I need food, water, and a safe place to rest.

In childhood, Mrs Anderson used to take me on trips in the jungle and taught me many survival skills.

So it was not like I had no idea about how to survive, but Mrs Anderson was not with me this time and this was not earth.

As the Survival mode kicked in, I first used my skill to find out the nearest water source with the help of flora around me.

With the excitement of using a skill for the first time in my life, I whispered the name in my mind.

“Floral Harmony”[Celia]

As I whispered it in my mind, I started feeling a warmth inside my body and with the warmth came the information about the condition of the flora near me, like their origin, age, or are they consumables. 

A good amount of information flowed into my brain about the flora around me, from that information, I could also feel the root of a water plant near me (it was not so near).

As I continued using the skill, tiredness started taking over me slowly and slowly.

But with the tiredness, I also felt that I was getting better at using this skill and little by little more information was flowing into my mind.

Following my skill, I kept walking north towards the nearest water body, while on the way I also started collecting different types of eatables with the help of my skill, selecting which could be eaten or which could not when suddenly a voice rang in my mind.

“Nature’s Bounty:(01/40)”[Aegis]

On hearing the voice, I felt a warm sensation in my body. On seeing my status I found out that Nature's bounty's proficiency had increased after using it so much.

Excitement filled my heart but I kept on walking toward the water body with my bag filled to the brim with the eatables I found along the way.

After walking for two hours straight, I finally found it.
It was a pond containing water that neither I could follow to a city nor I could drink.

The thought of walking for two hours straight for this pool of contaminated water while feeling hungry and thirsty, my mind got filled with anger and sadness, and in that anger, I took out my guns and fired them at the pond and its marine life( I don't know myself why I did that.)

Well, in my anger, I also fired at a tree and just my luck, There was a gorilla on the tree and the bullet hit exactly where he was, casting a red line of blood on his cheek as the bullet passed him.

And so began the chase for my life, one normal gorilla turned into a gorilla on steroids, one gorilla on steroids turned into ten and their numbers kept on increasing and now one of them was just inches away from me, preparing to end my life like I had done something to him, Oh wait I did.

No seeing Death just inches away I was only surprised on my bad luck, who I didn't thought could be so bad, “They can teleport too. Just what I needed, another existential crisis on top of being chased through Jurassic Park 2.0.”[Celia]

I quipped, dodging a haymaker that would’ve rearranged my face like a puzzle gone wrong.
My leg, however, wasn’t as lucky. A stray vine sent me sprawling, the taste of dirt filling my mouth as curses tumbled out like angry bees.

“Seriously, Zynx? You’re outdoing yourself today.”[Celia]

With my mouth filled with blood and curses, I stood up once more to regain the momentum I had lost by falling, to escape with my life from this gorilla and its horde.

So, I did what any sane (questionable) person would do–I grabbed my two trusty pistols( I just got them today) and, with a prayer to whatever deity was on lunch break, aimed at the smirking gorilla leading the charge.

I aimed the gun at his forehead. My finger tightened on the trigger, fear prickling my skin like ice, but resolved to harden my spine.

The bullet left the barrel in a whisper, its trajectory a silent promise of the safety of my life.
And then… it missed.

“Seriously!”[Celia]

The bullet missed by an inch, hitting his other cheek and the gorilla continued walking toward me like nothing happened to it at all.

“If it doesn’t really bother you, why are you chasing me this far?”[Celia]

I questioned the gorilla as I turned back to escape my impending death once more, but alas! The mistress of luck was not on my side today and I found myself covered from all sides with no escape route.

Faced with the crushing realization that all hope of surviving was gone, I resolutely reloaded my gun, determined to make one final stand and fight for my life with every ounce of strength I had left( Not much was left).

Seeing me standing at my place with both guns aimed at it, the gorilla’s eyes widened, not in fear, but in amusement like it is saying to me that these toys won’t work on me.

My breath hitched. Was this it? Was my epic saga going to end with a whimper, eaten by angry monkeys on steroids in some alternate-reality jungle?

But maybe there really was a god on lunch break because Just when I lost all hope of survival, a sound pierced through the air, cutting through the sound of growls and snarls, making even the gorillas freeze in their place.

It was a hoot, a loud, echoing hoot that sent shivers down my spine. Not the terrified kind, but the kind that gives the feeling of relief like maybe I will survive today.

As the sound of hooting died down, a man emerged from the thick forest, an owl sitting on his shoulder.

The man kept walking toward me with an air of comfort surrounding him. His each step, filled my heart with happiness and relief while my mind with fear and confusion as I continued fighting against the unconsciousness trying to take over my body.The man reached toward and put his hand on my shoulder and told me some things.

As he did that, all tension left my body, and I fell down on the ground while continuosly praying that he may be a ally and not someone trying to take advantage of my situation because I will not be able to refuse as now I will owe him my life.

Third person’s POV

Celia’s Consciousness Teetered on the Edge.

The relentless pursuit of gorilla-like creatures had taken its toll on her body, and unconsciousness threatened to claim her as the adrenaline rush died down.

A soft hoot resonated again through the air, harmonizing with the rhythmic footsteps of the approaching man.

The owl, perched regally on the stranger’s shoulder, observed the unfolding scene with unblinking eyes.

With a calm and deliberate gesture, The man slowly reached toward Celia, as if signalling a truce between them and the encroaching danger.

The man stood beside her, offering a comforting pat on her shoulder.

As the mysterious figure with the owl whispered to Caelia, the surrounding jungle held its breath.

With a sigh leaking from her mouth, Celia handed over the gun to the man, with the look of a gambler who has played a gamble with its life on the line on her face.

The monkeys, charging with ferocity, paused momentarily in response to the stranger’s silent whisper to his companion.

The owl, with a hoot, flew off the man’s shoulder and sat near Celia, who was lying on the ground like someone had cut her strings, which were keeping her standing till now.

With the man readying himself for combat, the gorillas abandoned their previous hesitation and moved towards them, as if a spell had been lifted.

Amidst the encroaching darkness, the echoes of shots fired by the man shattered the uneasy silence.

The rapid shots of bullets tore through the jungle, echoing the chaos of the chase. 

Each gunshot reverberated an attempt to fend off the relentless pursuit of the gorillas, but then from behind the noise of gun firing, a frustrated voice grumbled.

“Really!”[Unknown]

And then all became silent as unconsciousness claimed Caelia’s senses.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

So no new chapter in last few days due to family reasons(not like anyone read them anyway), Sorry. Gonna post two more chapters this week as my apology but after that one to two chapters every week.
With that happy new year for those reading my novel or those who will read it and a great day to you all too. So let's end this note with a beautiful quote from me, your very handsome author himself,
,

"In the wild unknown, where dangers are thrown, Celia dances, while surviving on her own." [Tridev301]

Oh and also If you people can, please read it on zetro translation.com as doing so will support me a little more. I will continue posting the chapter here anyways so it's all upto your choice but if you can please do.