"We have been running for half an hour now, why are these things still chasing us?!!" Angela screamed, a raw, desperate sound that ripped through the stale forest air. Hot tears carved clean streaks through the grime on her cheeks.
"I am so tired! I can't run anymore." Miranda gasped, her breath coming in ragged, painful tears. Her movement was slowing, her legs screaming protest.
'I can't believe I'm going to die by oversized rat.' A small, horrified part of her thought.
"You can do it!!" Alice slowed down, bracing herself. She hooked her arm beneath Miranda's shoulder, pulling her friend's weight against her. The sudden, shared burden jolted her own exhaustion.
"You can't die here! Not after everything we went through to get into that university!" Alice yelled.
"Yes!! I am too beautiful to die here," Miranda choked out, a flicker of her usual vanity—and resilience—flaring up. She nodded sharply, regaining a painful second wind.
SQUEAK!!!
The sound was closer, sharper. The two-foot-long, fur-matted horror, increased their speed, their small, dark eyes reflecting a terrifying, unfeeling hunger. They chased the four high school students through the dense, unfamiliar forest without a shred of exhaustion.
"Huh?!"
After what felt like an eternity, Ethan's eyes, sharp even through his panic, widened. Ahead, moving towards the danger, were figures—dozens of them, rushing forward, their movements coordinated and precise. They were all armed.
"Ah!! We are saved!!" Ethan yelled, his voice cracking with a mixture of disbelief and joy.
"Move! Clear the line!"
The command was barked through a helmet speaker, precise and cold. Men and women in desert-camouflaged military uniforms, bearing the faded patch of the US 101st Airborne Division, streamed past the exhausted students. Without pausing, they dropped to one knee, formed a tactical semicircle, and opened fire.
RA-TA-TA-TA-TA TA-TA!!
The rhythmic, tearing sound of automatic fire replaced the squeaking. Chaos instantly fell upon the Rats. Each bullet was lethal, each Rat dropping dead before it could register the threat.
SCREECH!!!!!
The sudden, piercing shriek from the deeper, shadowy woods sent a chill down Ethan's spine, a sound that transcended mere fear. Instantly, all the surviving Rats halted, spun around, and fled, melting back into the undergrowth.
The soldiers maintained their barrage for ten more seconds of suppression fire, before the Captain gave a hand signal and the guns went silent.
"Phew!" Miranda collapsed onto the mossy ground, the fear and exhaustion erasing any concern for her ruined clothes or dirt-caked face.
"We… we are alive," Angela whispered, staring at her shaking hands, trying to reconcile the sight of the dead monsters with the reality of her survival.
Ethan, slowly recovering his composure, stared at the girls, then at the soldiers, his mind already calculating:
'Fifty personnel, total. Not a rescue team, but a fighting force.' He focused on the insignia. "American forces, specifically the 101st. And they fought these things like it was a routine drill."
"Indeed, we are."
The four wheeled around. The soldiers parted, creating a path through the formation. A woman with long, vibrant red hair and striking blue eyes walked towards them. She looked to be in her late 20s, but her posture was that of someone who had commanded thousands.
"You… you are the youngest soldier who got promoted to a General after destroying two hundred terrorist hideouts and suffering only 10% losses!" Alice exclaimed, her awe overcoming her exhaustion. She scrambled to her feet.
"General Jessica!!" Her eyes were bright, recognizing the viral legend.
Jessica chuckled, a sound surprisingly light against the backdrop of carnage. "It seems you know me. That saves me the trouble of an introduction." She let her gaze sweep over their soiled uniforms, and their wide, traumatized eyes.
"You all were still in school when the Fall happened, weren't you? Were you the only survivors from your group?" she asked, her voice softening slightly.
"No," Angela replied, the memory a fresh wound. "We lost two."
"At least you four survived the initial chaos." Jessica gestured vaguely at the strange color sky above the canopy.
"This is no longer Earth. We are currently in another world, known as Galaxy Fall. You must have realized that by now."
The four nodded, their shared terror confirming the impossible.
"Good. The rules are simple. We have three days to reach a sanctioned safe zone, the nearest being Galaxy City. Fail to make it, and we are violently rejected back to Earth—weak and vulnerable. To survive, we need strength." Jessica moved her finger, pointing at the Rats' carcasses.
Ethan, Angela, Miranda, and Alice watched, stunned, as the soldiers tapped their bracelets and faint, golden glow emanated from it. The grotesque Rats shimmered, dematerializing into wisps of green light that condensed into rectangular, laminated objects: Monster Cards, bearing the image of the slain Rat.
"These are Monster Cards. They are the power-source of this world," Jessica explained. "Thanks to the GF Bracelet, we can absorb these Cards to gain experience—that's what makes us stronger. But that is only the first step. Once we get to Galaxy City, we can exchange these Cards for Skill Scrolls, gold or Technique Manuals, which will unlock our true powers. Until we reach the City, all you have is your basic physical strength and Earthly weapons."
"General Jessica," Ethan said, stepping forward, his curiosity overriding his fear. "How do you know all this?"
Jessica's eyes narrowed slightly, a spark of pride in their depths. "My team and I eliminated a high-level Boss Monster. It didn't just drop Cards; it dropped a Divination Gemstone. I can ask it specific, mission-critical questions." She tilted her head, a confident smirk playing on her lips.
"Not only do I know the rules and the way to the city, but I know the fastest, safest path through this forest. You should be grateful your panic led you into our range."
The four looked at one another, a silent agreement passing between them. They quickly stood up and bowed deeply, their desperate gratitude genuine.
"Please guide us, General!" they said in unison.
"Hold on there." Jessica raised a hand.
"I can ensure your survival to the City gates. But you will be traveling on foot, not in armored transport, and you will follow my orders absolutely. From the moment we step off the beaten path, you will learn to control your fear. Don't go screaming like you were doing. There are monsters in these woods that a hundred men with automatic weapons won't stop." Her expression was serious, conveying the deadly cost of a simple mistake.
The four nodded vigorously, their renewed terror tempered by a newfound hope.
"General, we got something unusual here."
Jessica turned back to her soldiers, who were diligently tapping the Rat Cards. Captain Miller, a burly man with a weathered face, stood holding an object.
"What did you find, Captain?" she asked, walking towards the object—an ancient-looking, tightly bound scroll of parchment, oddly untouched by the forest moisture.
"I don't know, ma'am. It was amongst the Rat Cards." Miller passed the heavy scroll to her.
Jessica tapped her GF Bracelet, and the golden, multifaceted Divination Gemstone materialized in front of her, suspended by a weak, humming light. She held the scroll aloft.
"Gemstone: Identify the properties and value of this object," she commanded.
A blinding, ethereal light shone from the Gem. For a moment, it pulsed, struggling to process the information, before a list of glowing, floating text appeared only before Jessica's eyes.
"Huh?" Jessica whispered, stunned.
She read the description twice, a slow smile spreading across her face. She lowered the scroll. "It's a Low-Class Skill Scroll," she murmured in disbelief.
"A direct skill drop, although it's a low-class. This is beyond rare."
She looked back at the four students, her eyes sparkling with renewed determination:
"It seems the Galaxy Fall is rewarding our efforts already. Now, get ready. We move in five minutes."