Chapter 2: Naked and Afraid pt.2

“Oh fuck, is he bleeding?” I rush over to him just to have Chris shove his muddy foot into my side, slamming me onto my ass.

“Fucker,” escapes my mouth at the shock of being kicked. My body slams into the dirt.

“What the fuck Chris?!”

“Shut it,” he demands before putting the whimpering guy on the ground. The man groans as Chris turns him over and reveals several large gashes from his lower back down to his calves. Both Chris and him are covered in fresh blood. That can’t be real. My stomach roils. As I watch, blood pools under the wounded man, soaking into the dirt.

“Is that…? Is that a dinosaur?!” Trevor shouts towards the back of the clearing. Immediately getting everyone’s attention. What on earth is he on about?

“No shit,” David says, while Cody, the Watcher, keeps an eye on the blood-covered boy and Chris. The goth jumps to his feet, double-checks his leafy skirt, and moves towards the group of three entering the clearing.

The muscular man has a huge smile on his face as he spreads his arms out with a wide stance.

“Of course it’s a dinosaur, look at the claws, the scales, the feathers!” His voice booms, it’s deep like Chris’ but lighter in tone.

I’m not sure if it's a dinosaur but I don’t know what else to call it. It’s maybe waist-high with quite a bit of plumage and scales. It doesn’t have a beak but definitely has some sharp teeth and talons. Finger-length talons. A thick tail extends from the end of it with a few feathers sticking out from the scaly appendage.

One of the other guys in the group steps up, he’s practically panting from the exertion of dragging the creature back here. The man is heavy set, with light brown curling hair that stops just above his eyes. The entire look elicits an image of a mop.

“You should have seen it. We come across this beautiful beach with a bunch of these things around it…..” he motions to the beast. “Now I’m prepared to run for my life, but big Mike here says: No, that beast will be my supper. Then charges the monster, he whips up a stone the size of a watermelon and chucks it at the creature. I swear, I can still see the rage in the monster's eyes. It chased us deeper into the wood, Oscar over there stepped up and held the line as Mike grabbed another boulder and smashed the Dino’s skull in. It was hands down the coolest thing I’ve ever seen! Oscar might have been clawed a bit, but I’ve never felt so alive!” The chubby guy near the dinosaur practically screams the story as he’s telling it.

After the excitement dies down, I approach the group. Since Chris obviously doesn’t want help with Oscar, the wounded man. The final guy has this downcast expression, but there doesn’t seem to be a scratch on anyone other than Oscar.

“Big Mike, is it?” I ask the buff guy, who looks like some kind of bodybuilder. I’ve seen a few on TV or online but it isn’t something I’m super familiar with.

“That’s me, and who might you be?” He asks with that huge grin still on his face.

“I’m Elizabeth… have you ever skinned something?” I ask, focusing on the dinosaur to keep myself distracted.

“Nope, but I’m not worried, I’ll tear the hide right off this monster.” He lets out a good laugh as he pats his biceps.

“How about I give you a hand, I’ve skinned a few deer with my father when I was young,” I tell him as I look over the Dino.

“Certainly little miss, anyone else done this before?” Big Mike asks, Cody steps forward while Trevor skulks off with the downcast guy.

“Looks like we have a team, now show me how it’s done!” Mike yells and pats a heavy hand on both my and Cody’s shoulders.

Cody and I step up to the beast to look it over, I test the claws on my forearm and knick myself. Definitely sharp Lizzy. I try looking around for a stone when I hear a solid thump next to me. Looking over, Cody has a decent-sized rock he’s crushing the dino’s wrist with. After a few attempts, he extends a hand towards me.

“Umm.. oh!” I hand him the other arm and he starts slicing at the crushed joint. After twenty minutes or so he rips the forearm apart. He then signals for Big Mike who’s been talking with the chubby storyteller from earlier.

“Yeah, I can deadlift almost 450 lbs. I was still working…” he trails off as Cody grabs his attention, pointing at the rock, then the beast's hand.

“You want me to smash the hand?” He asks Cody as he picks up the rock. Cody, the watcher, simply nods and backs away.

“Here goes nothing,” Mike says and smashes the hand. The dirt underneath doesn’t so much as shift despite the sheer force he put into it. When he pulls the rock away the Dino hand is practically obliterated. The bones are shattered and one of the claws broke off, while the skin is torn in spots.

“How’s that?” He says with a satisfied grin and Cody gives him a thumbs up before grabbing the broken claw, he starts cutting into the taloned hand, and a few minutes later passes me one of the claws. The claw is about the length of my finger, with a slight curve but straighter than I thought it’d be. Cody continues working on the claws and I start cutting into the chest of the beast. I have to puncture some holes first and my cut is kinda jagged but I manage to slice through the hide. Just as I look up to grab Cody’s help with pulling the guts out I hear a commotion.

“Why would you do that?! Oh my god, why would you do that?! He would've been fine!” Trevor, the skinny man, is practically pleading the words as he kneels next to Oscar. Chris is now standing and Mike is rushing over. Next thing I know, Mike is slamming his meaty fist into Chris’ head and pinning him to the ground.

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A roar of rage comes from Mike as he forces Chris against the dirt, practically crushing the man beneath him.

“Are you some kind of psycho!?! Oscar saved our lives and you did that to him?!”

“Mike stop! Stop!” David, the goth, pulls at Mike but fails to budge the bigger man.

“He was putting him out of his misery!”

“No,” Mike’s voice carries a weight with it and he slams Chris against a tree.

“That’s not good enough.”

Chris spits blood on the big man’s face. A shadow hides his expression, but I catch a sneer across Chris’s face before David steps in,

“Just stop, please. Oscar was dying, we didn’t have the means to save him.”

Big Mike glares at Chris before glancing at David. He pauses,

“No one gets to make a decision like that,” Mike states firmly. He pulls Chris close, whispers something in his ear, and shoves him away. Then stomps deep into the forest. After a moment the storyteller chases after him.

David helps Chris sit back against the tree. Trevor’s on his knees with tears streaming down his face, and Cody is sitting next to him with an arm around his shoulder. The sleeper is still sleeping and the downcast guy is as white as a sheet, looking back at the scene. I finally look at Oscar to see dark bruises across his neck.

I throw up, the man with the downcast expression throws up, Trevor cries.

——

“This sucks,” I say to Cody, as we bury Oscar. My fingers ache. Dirt coats my palm. No matter how much we tried we couldn’t seem to shift the dirt in the clearing at all. It’s like a solid surface. Just outside of its bounds, we scratch into the ground. We take some reeds and sticks and put a rather poor headstone together for Oscar. Overall, it doesn’t feel like we did enough for the dead man. I just can’t do anymore.

Even as the hour grows late, Mike and the Storyteller fail to return. In an effort to distract the guys, I convince Jamie, the man with the downcast expression, and Trevor to start a fire with some driftwood from the river. It took them the whole two hours to start one, but it’s done. At least it gave the two of them something to do. Jamie’s sullen expression is echoed across the camp. Sleeper still hasn’t woken up, which is starting to get pretty worrying, and the sun is well past the start of its descent.

We managed to finish dressing the dinosaur, but without storage, we’re forced to pile the meat on a platter of bark. I look over at Cody.

“I’m going to take a nap, will you keep an eye out for me?” I ask, and get a concise nod in return. I make my way to a turned-over trunk near the side of the clearing and try to gather up some vegetation for cover and a bed. It’s not comfortable, but it’s better than lying totally exposed. Cody brings the hide over and starts working it nearby, and I slowly drift off while listening to the rhythmic sounds of scraping flesh.

——-

Flashes of forest pass my vision. Views of hiking up a trail with my brother. I reach for my water bottle to find it gone. I’m naked. Alone in a forest. My vision’s black and I hear only whimpering. I look up to see Oscar, his entrails ripped out and splayed in the dirt. Above the body is a grinning Chris, his smile stretching too far across his face. The blonde man reaches down and digs into Oscar, he pulls and tears and then rips a beating heart from the man’s chest. Chris’ grin grows wider. His mouth opens. Sharp teeth. Blood drips from his chin. I run, trying to take off into the forest to escape the monster, leaving Oscar behind. The whimpering becomes omnipresent and then all at once, it stops.

I’m in a bed. Candlelight shining through a room. A room I’ve never seen. Cabin walls with thatched roofing. I look around and see a small cupboard, a nightstand, and a few shuttered windows spread around the room. At the wall near the end of the bed is a large standing mirror. It has circular motifs wrapped around a white frame, coated in an eye-catching gold.

It’s weird, this place, it feels familiar yet foreign at the same time. I'm lucid, but I know this isn’t the real world; it’s like this place wants me to know this isn’t the real thing. Standing up, I look around in confusion. There’s furniture but the place is otherwise barren, other than some mammal hides on the bed and the candle, nothing of note seems to be here. I notice a trunk at the base of the bed, and across from there towards the front of the cabin rests a fireplace, some kind of empty half-closet next to it, and a chair, table, and bookshelf on the other side near a closed door.

I try the door to no avail, it doesn’t so much as pretend to turn despite the chain lock being detached. The windows won’t budge, and both the bookshelf and cupboard are empty. The only other things are the mirror and trunk. I open the trunk first.

Inside, I find a thin notebook, it has a brown leather cover and a small band keeping it shut with a latch. Opening the notebook reveals a blank page. The only thing in here and it’s a notebook with nothing in it. I toss the notebook on the bed and check the mirror.

“Welp, that’s me in all my glory.” Naked once again, I see my brunette hair and green eyes have survived whatever this journey is. I’m so glad my hair is silky and doesn’t get tangled easily or this would be even more of a nightmare. Looking at my eyes in the mirror something suddenly shifts. The mirror turns opaque.

-System Scan-

Name: Elizabeth “Lizzy”

Path: N/A

Level: 0

Stats:

Body: 0

Mind: 0

Soul: 0

-Path Selection Available-

Then the mirror turns reflective once again.

“I think I’m going to be sick.” I make my way back to the bed and sit down. After some time just trying to get my thoughts together I stand back up and press on to the mirror.

“Paths….. Status….. System….. anything?!” Nothing, nothing happens. I keep trying different phrases and even try swiping down on it like it’s a phone, all to no avail. Finally letting out a breath I go and sit down in the chair next to the fire.

“Wait… since when is there a fire in the fireplace?! There’s no way I missed that right?” I look around and immediately notice a few small books on the bookshelf, each slimmer than the notebook from the trunk, and all 3 of them in different colors.

The first one is a hay-like yellow-gold, the second is a deep crimson, and the final one is a forest green.

Pulling them from left to right I open the yellow-gold one to the first and apparently only page. It simply says:

Weaver: Seeks the Basics of Weaving

Placing the book back I grab the crimson one:

Butcher: Seeks the Basics of Butchery

And finally the forest green:

Survivalist: Seeks the Basics of Survival

“Well, when you put it like that.” I put the other books back and grab the Path of Survival.

“Okay now what?” I head back to the mirror but nothings changed. When I turn back around the fire is gone, only half burnt logs left in its place. I make my way to the shelf and don’t see the other books any longer. Finally filled with frustration I try the doors and windows and they’re all still locked. Sitting back on the bed with a huff I open the brown notebook, and nothing. Nada, no changes.

With a sigh, I set both books on the night table and sit back against the wall. After a moment I move to grab the books yet only find one, the forest green one, only now it’s slightly thicker. I open it to the first page and it just says the same thing with a few extra pages. I check the mirror and finally:

Name: Elizabeth “Lizzy”

Path: Survivalist

Level: 0

Stats:

Body: 0

Mind: 0

Soul: 0

“So that’s different. Anything else?” The bookshelf now sports a one page empty brown notebook. But nothing else seems to have changed. I double check the forest one, the trunk, and the cupboard with no changes. Trying the door for the third time…

-jiggle jiggle-

“No way, it opened.” The door swings open revealing a forest just a step from the door. I cross through the threshold. My sight vanishes. I’m suddenly on my back, covered in leaves, and it’s dark.