They were three nineteen-year-olds thrown into a world they didn't understand—different personalities, different instincts, but tied together by survival.
Jason moved first, always.
Cocky grin, butter-brown skin catching the dim forest light, long singles swaying behind him like he owned whatever ground he stepped on. Even here—lost, tired, bleeding—he kept that same reckless confidence. His bangs hid one eye, but somehow he still managed to look arrogant.
Lilya was the opposite kind of storm.
Graceful, composed, her long dark hair falling in a curtain that hid one eye. She carried herself like someone already three steps ahead of everyone else. Her purple-themed clothes looked more like fashion than armor, soft and flowing when she moved. At her side, the violet orb hummed quietly, shifting its glow as if waiting for her command.
Valocity—Val—walked a little behind them.
Calm. Steady. Butter-brown skin lined with faint glowing streaks that pulsed gently when he moved. His loose dreads framed a face that barely changed expression, even when everything around him wanted to tear them apart. His clothes were light, flexible, improved for battle without looking like armor. Val didn't panic. Didn't rush. He fought and thought like someone who'd lived a hundred fights already.
Together… they didn't look like heroes.
They looked like three people who weren't supposed to be here—
but were ready to turn this strange new world on its head anyway.
An hour after the fight, as they moved deeper into the forest, Jason finally broke the silence.
"Why the fuck are we here? We get pulled into some portal in the sky and suddenly we're just… here?"
Lilya didn't answer. She just stared forward, chewing the inside of her cheek.
Because she remembered.
It happened the day they were walking home from college. Jason had his backpack slung halfway off his shoulder, earbuds in, music loud enough Val could hear it from three feet away. They reached the bridge near their rented house. Lilya, like always, paused to look over the railing like she hadn't already stared at that river a hundred times.
But today felt different.
The air was heavier.
Too quiet.
No cars. No people. No city noise.
"Val, you good back there?" Lilya had called, noticing him lagging behind like he expected something to jump out.
Then the breeze came.
Small.
Normal.
Then suddenly—not normal.
Trees bent. Leaves ripped off branches. The air twisted into something loud and violent.
"What the fuck is going on!?" Jason yelled, grabbing onto the railing.
"No idea!" Lilya shouted back.
The clouds above them split open like glass cracking.
Wind roared upward.
Loose trees spun around them fast enough to blur.
"Wait—this is a tornado!?" Val shouted.
"RIGHT NOW?!" Jason snapped.
Before anyone could run, a glowing circle tore open in the sky—
a portal sucking everything upward.
Jason looked up, earbuds popping out.
His bag fell.
He didn't even reach for it before a sonic boom ripped through the air.
"What—WAIT, I'M NOT READY TO D—"
The world cut off mid-thought.
Then—impact.
They hit the ground hard enough to knock the wind out of all three of them.
Jason blinked up at a strange sky.
Blue trees.
Bent, crooked branches.
A faint heartbeat… coming from the ground.
"Where the hell…" he whispered.
They stood and looked around, unsure whether to panic or run or both.
Jason thought, I've never traveled anywhere, but this is… this is unreal.
Lilya was thinking something entirely different.
She stood. Then froze.
Her hand shook violently.
Her chest tightened.
Her vision pulsed.
She didn't even realize she dropped to her knees.
Her hair covered half her face, but the parts visible twisted in panic.
"Lilya—hey, hey, you good?" Val rushed to her.
Jason hurried over too, grabbing her shoulders as she struggled to breathe.
"Look at me," Val said quietly, steady. "You're fine. Just breathe."
Lilya finally forced out, "Y… yeah. I'm good."
But her voice trembled, her breath uneven as she tried to calm herself.
They sat for a moment, letting her breathing settle.
Jason eventually exhaled loudly. "So… we're actually not on Earth. Like, legit."
Val looked around slowly. "The ground's alive. And the trees look… wrong."
"No shit," Jason muttered. "Even the air tastes weird."
Lilya wiped her forehead. "We need to figure out where we are. Anything could be watching us."
Jason groaned. "Bro, don't say that—"
A deep boom echoed across the forest.
They all froze.
Lilya whispered, "What was that?"
Val's eyes narrowed. "Something big."
Then, through the trees, torches appeared—
slowly at first, then multiplying.
Figures in dark armor marched between the crooked trees, helmets shaped like animal skulls, their armor covered in glowing red runes. Their banners dragged across the ground, marking the dirt with symbols the three of them couldn't read.
Jason swallowed. "Who the fuck are they?"
Lilya instinctively moved closer to Val.
Val's hand twitched, ready to move, ready to fight if needed.
A voice boomed out from the line of soldiers:
"Search the area. The portal residue is fresh. The Empire wants the outsiders ALIVE."
Jason's eyes widened.
"Bro—BRO—did he mean us!?"
The soldiers stopped.
All their helmets turned toward the exact patch of forest Jason whispered from.
Lilya whispered, "We need to run."
Val inhaled slowly.
"Yeah… now."
The soldiers raised their weapons—
runes glowing—
and the forest lit with red light.
And the three of them bolted as the Empire gave chase.