Day 1, 1:15 PM
I approached slowly.
She still hadn't noticed me. Sitting on the ground, she looked like she had just woken from a long sleep, palms flat on the moss, head slightly lowered. Her long leather boots were dusted from the place, and her beige coat, falling to her knees, oddly matched the shadowy, green atmosphere. Under the coat, a light skirt covered her hips, and the black scarf wrapped around her neck — the one I'd noticed back in the Block — made her face seem even softer.
Her chestnut hair with orange highlights, hastily tied, let two stubborn strands fall on her cheeks. Her hazel eyes, when she finally looked up, seemed to probe the soul.
I stood there, wordless, unable to look away.
— Have you been staring at me for five minutes?
Her voice was sharp, clear, a brutal reminder of reality. She had caught me effortlessly.
— Ah, sorry. I was… trying to understand the situation. I wasn't really looking at you.
A blatant lie. Her gaze slid over me, half wary, half annoyed, as if she knew exactly what I was thinking.
I straightened up and scanned our surroundings. The ground was covered in moss, and around us stretched immense shadows — trees, maybe, or something else. Nothing moved. The silence, broken only by our breaths, hung heavy.
— I don't see anyone else. I guess we really have been separated from everyone else.
I said it mostly to steer the conversation. She, still seated, seemed to think aloud.
— Looks like you're right. It's just the two of us here, lost in the middle of nowhere.
No sound, no sign of life — just this vast, indefinable space. The place was far bigger than Point A. Impossible to see the edges, as if the world itself had stretched infinitely.
Then, a sound.
Beep.
The sharp noise of an electronic device broke the silence.
— Am I dreaming, or did that come from my arm?
— Yeah… me too.
I looked down and felt a slight vibration against my skin. In an instant, an object appeared on my forearm, as if it had materialized there. A watch.
— Why do I have a watch on my forearm?
The black surface seemed almost alive. I had the strange feeling it was watching me back.
— It's not a regular watch. You can tell it was made by that organization. And there's no way to remove it.
Her tone changed: more serious, more focused. She seemed to know more than I did about all this, or at least was thinking faster.
— Do you know how to turn it on?
— No. I can't find any button.
She moved her arm in every direction, ran her fingers over the smooth surface with no result. I tried as well, a bit randomly. Nothing. Just a black, silent surface.
I started tapping everywhere, frustrated. And suddenly, the screen lit up.
— Look! I did it!
— How did you…?
— I don't know. I just tapped everywhere.
She stared at me. Her gaze alone made me understand what she thought of my intellectual level.
I shrugged with a dumb smile at the corner of my lips.
— At least I succeeded. That's what matters.
— You didn't need to tap like an idiot. You just needed to put your face in front of the screen. Face ID.
I let out an awkward laugh. Of course. Face ID. Logical.
On my watch, two indicators appeared: a counter showing "100" and a simplified map I didn't understand yet.
— The counter says a hundred people, and the other… I don't know what it is.
— Looks like a map.
— Must be the one 404 mentioned. Look… Champi-Fog. That's the name of the territory we landed in.
I squinted, trying to decipher the symbols.
— If I understand correctly, it shows our location with the territory name. We're in one of the so-called territories. Point A is also indicated — southwest of here.
I slowly grasped the map's function: visited territories appeared with a geometric shape, color, and name. Others remained completely black — either forbidden zones or unexplored areas.
I lifted my eyes from the watch.
The scenery around us seemed to come alive in minutes. Mist slowly rose from the ground, giving the forest an almost surreal look. Giant mushrooms with violet hues popped up everywhere, their caps glowing faintly, as if the light sought to pierce their translucent flesh.
— Look! On the map, Champi-Fog is shown as a mushroom!
She had that childlike, awed look of someone discovering something for the first time. I couldn't help smiling.
— I'm not really surprised. It says "Champi" in the name, and indeed… it's full of mushrooms here.
She lifted her eyes, glanced around, and let out a soft laugh — as if trying to lighten the tension lingering between us.
— And Point A is represented by a square!
I let her do it. I had the feeling she was trying to reassure herself, to give meaning to this absurd world we had fallen into. I understood. I needed it too.
But soon, her smile faded. Her gaze hardened.
— So. How do we get out of here, and where do we need to go?
I lowered my head, thoughtful.
— We could go back to Point A. See if there's anything to do there.
She stared at me silently, then sighed slightly before nodding.
— Alright. I'll follow you.
She extended her hand toward me. Her arm straight, confident gaze, almost warm. It wasn't just a sign of agreement — it was a sort of pact.
— My name's Aria. Let's stick together until we get out of this place.
I held out my hand in return, with a slightly nervous smile.
— I'm Casimir.
The contact was brief, but enough to remind me I wasn't alone.
We began to walk. The giant mushrooms towered around us, some so tall they seemed to touch an invisible ceiling. Spores fell slowly, like strange golden snow. Every step made the damp earth crunch under our soles.
Minutes stretched. Silence returned, broken only by our footsteps and the distant rustle of leaves.
Aria stopped abruptly.
— What's that in the distance?
I squinted. A vague shadow appeared at the end of the path.
— That… isn't a mushroom.
My heart began to beat faster.
— But… it looks like a village, right?
— A village here? We're not alone, after all!
A flicker of hope crossed her eyes. I couldn't share it so easily. Something felt too quiet, too clean.
— Let's wait. Move carefully. I don't think they're like us.
— But we can't stay here either. No supplies, nowhere to sleep. Maybe we'll find something there.
I looked at the ground, then the sky — if it really was a sky — and nodded slowly. She was right. We didn't know if there was a day/night cycle here, and hunger was already reminding me.
We resumed walking, more cautiously this time.
The place slowly revealed itself. Simple wooden houses, packed-earth ground, lamps hanging from thick branches. The atmosphere reminded me of old tales where heroes get lost in a forest before stumbling on a village that shouldn't exist.
— Looks like a village from a fairy tale.
I smelled wood smoke, sap, damp earth. Figures moved in the distance. Men.
Aria, without hesitation, stepped forward.
— Hello. Sorry to bother you. We'd like to know where we are.
I hung back, wary. The men stared at her. Four approached. Shirtless, skin marked by labor, each with a thick beard. Lumberjacks, it seemed. But none wore a watch. No signs of technology.
— Are you strangers to our lands?
A deep voice echoed in the clearing. Aria hesitated.
— I think so. We woke up a bit farther away, over there.
She pointed to where we had arrived. They exchanged glances, then one stepped forward.
— Strangers like you… we were expecting.
Outsiders. What did that mean exactly?
I decided to speak.
— I'm Casimir, and the person speaking with you is Aria. Someone forced us, along with others, to come here against our will. But I see you're not one of them. Can you tell us who you are, and your role in this place?
A massive man spoke.
— Excuse our rudeness. We are Brad, Ben, Bucodu, and Born. We were born here.
Their welcome felt too warm. As if they had been waiting a long time for someone like us.
— Our chief… he's no longer really one of us, one of them whispered. He disappeared, taken by something none of us understand. Some say he was infected by a fungus. Others say he simply stopped being human. Since then, we've been trying to find him… but those who leave never return.
A knot tightened in my throat. Infected. Disappeared. It all sounded very bad.
Another member spoke, voice heavy with sorrow.
— Last week, one of our brothers, Bikao, went to look for our chief. He never came back.
Brad, Ben, Bucodu, Born, Bikao… I looked at the men one by one. I couldn't help it.
— If you don't mind… your chief's name starts with a B too?
Aria nudged me discreetly.
— Casimir, please, she whispered in annoyance.
— No, replied the man simply. His name is Abb.
Of course. The exception that proves the rule.
I met Aria's eyes. She understood, just like me: something far deeper was hidden behind this story.
— We'd like to help, I said carefully, but we're not exactly… specialists in this kind of situation.
— I beg you. We can only rely on outsiders.
Those words echoed in my mind.
404's words returned, sharp and cold: in each territory, an enemy will challenge you. If you defeat it, the territory is secured, and you can complete quests, build a camp or a village. Quests are given based on territory progression — each territory has them, before and after defeating the enemy.
I looked at the villagers. Their chief missing for fifteen years. Men who left and never returned.
This was it. The first territory. The first test.
And if we did nothing, we'd go nowhere.
The villagers' words continued ringing in my head. Fifteen years of searching with no results. And today, two strangers from nowhere would have to intervene. I didn't know exactly what I felt — something between apprehension and curiosity I couldn't quench. Aria remained cautious, eyes alert, but I saw in her gaze a touch of compassion for these lost men.
— Alright. If we have something to neutralize him from afar, it could work, I said to the villager.
Aria turned to me, astonished.
— Are you sure? That's way too risky. We've just arrived, we know nothing yet, she whispered.
I took a slow breath. She was right. But I felt we wouldn't get out of here doing nothing.
— If it's the only way to move forward, then that's what we'll do.
Brad, the one who seemed to lead the group, nodded.
— You need to see Briana. The house at the end of the path. She makes our tools.
We followed them through the village. The ground grew drier, the mist thinner. At the top of a small hill, a lone house stood before us, surrounded by stacked logs and worn planks. Light filtered through the shutters, revealing a moving figure inside.
Brad knocked on the door.
— I hope you don't mind, sis. These two will need tools to search for Chief Abb.
A firm but calm female voice answered from inside.
— Strangers offering help… it's been decades since that happened. Alright. But beware: these tools are single-use. You must return them after your expedition.
Aria and I exchanged a look and replied almost in unison:
— Understood, ma'am.
The interior was surprising. Unlike the rest of the village, Briana's house was organized, alive. Tools hung on walls, bows lined up neatly, a large workbench covered with gears, ropes, and polished wood fragments.
Briana was far from rustic. Tall, straight, hair in a thick braid, hands marked by work, but her gaze was sharp, precise. She observed us — our clothes, watches, gestures — and instantly understood we weren't from this world.
She explained the situation without beating around the bush: how to find Abb, how to defeat him. We had to act from a distance — direct contact was deadly. A simple scratch could spread the infection. To locate him, we had to follow traces of bleached mushrooms, subtle signs of his passage, nearly invisible to the untrained eye.
I listened closely. Aria too.
The danger now felt real. Tangible.
Briana approached her workshop and laid a hand on a bow.
— Choose what suits you. Take what you can handle.
Aria stepped forward immediately, eyes shining at the sight of the suspended bows.
— I'd like to take one of those, if possible.
— Yes, that's actually a very good choice, Briana replied with a slight smile.
I looked around. Axes, picks, rudimentary spears. Nothing I was used to wielding. Then, at the side, I spotted a pair of thick rubber gloves.
I approached.
— I think I'll go with these.
Briana raised an eyebrow.
— You plan to fight bare-handed?
I shrugged.
— If Aria can hit from afar, someone has to be on the front line to draw its attention.
Aria's eyes widened.
— She just told you not to get close! Are you serious?
— Not a bad plan, Briana intervened. I have a suit that could protect him. He draws the creature's attention while you shoot from afar.
I shot Aria a quietly triumphant look.
She crossed her arms, feigning superiority.
— Don't get too cocky.
Briana, amused by our exchange, regained seriousness.
— Brad and Born will come for you tomorrow morning to train and strategize. I'll be there too.
She scrutinized us one last time, as if to ensure we understood the weight of what we were getting into.
— You must be exhausted, both of you. I'll take you to your room.
We followed her without a word.
Outside, the air was bathed in diffuse twilight. Spores continued falling like golden rain, and the wind carried the smell of burning wood. Fatigue slowly crept over me.
Aria walked beside me, silent. After a while, without looking at me, she murmured:
— You could've asked my opinion before agreeing, you know.
— I know.
— Yet you didn't.
— I know that too.
Silence. Then, almost despite herself, a breath resembling a laugh.
— You're really an idiot, Casimir.
I smiled into the dark.
Tomorrow, everything would truly begin.