Regaining his balance, Bob walked over to the railing to stand next to Kent.
They sat in silence, comfort found more in presence than words.
Finally Kent turned to look at Bob. It was obvious that he had been crying. “It was awful. I couldn’t move or do anything. I think my mind is broken.” He trailed off, new tears running down his cheeks.
Bob continued looking at the view. “What color did you see?”
Kent’s eyes widened. “You saw it too? Mine was… red.”
Bob just sat waiting, knowing more questions were coming.
“Was yours different?.. Of course, it was.” Kent turned back to the view. “You talked to the others and they had a different color than yours.”
Sometimes people said Kent was dumb because he talked through things out loud, expressing his thoughts as he went. Bob knew he wasn’t dumb. He just worked things out differently. You just had to give Kent time.
“White. White so bright I thought I had died and was in heaven until it never changed. “ Bob fell silent, then after a few minutes asked, “Do you think it means anything that we saw different colors?”
Kent thought about the question while staring out over the view before them. “It probably does but we don’t know enough to know or do anything about it.”
The silence stretched until Bob finally broke it. “Have you seen the words since you woke up?”
“Yes, twice. Just barely my intelligence increased while talking to you.” Kent swept his hand out at the view before them. “Then while I was looking over the landscape that had changed and thinking about what it meant. My wisdom increased.” Turning to face Bob. “That is why I was thinking that my mind was broken.”
“Your mind isn’t any more broken than mine. I also saw the words this morning.”
Kent said quietly. “I’m scared... and I’m afraid for my family. If my mom is going through the same thing—she’ll be a total disaster.”
Bob thought about Kent’s parents and silently agreed. Kent’s mom had always been a worrier, constantly anxious about everything they did growing up. If she was caught in this, her anxiety would be in overdrive.
Then Bob’s thoughts drifted to his own family, he realized he hadn’t even considered them. He’d worried about his friends but not his parents. And while he knew he be more concerned, the truth was… he wasn’t. Not really.
His relationship with his family had always been strained, if not entirely absent. In contrast, he’d felt closer to his friends’ parents—his “other” parents—than his own.
Their group had always called each other’s moms and dads “Mom” and “Dad.” It wasn’t just a friend group; it was a brotherhood.
George had even started calling them “The Brotherhood.”
Right now, Bob’s concern was firmly rooted on his , not on his blood relatives.
“She’ll be okay,” Bob said, trying to reassure Kent. “We’re headed to the campground this morning. We will find a way home.”
He could tell the words didn’t help.
Kent still looked unsettled. Trying a different approach, Bob added, “Let’s go get some breakfast and stop staring at this confusing view.”
The longer he looked out at it, the less it felt like home. Something about it chipped away at his composure, and he knew that if he lingered much longer, he’d be crying right alongside Kent.
Just as Bob turned to head inside, Kent grabbed his arm. “I’ve been thinking,” he said. “It seems like what we keep seeing—these messages—they’re like video game notifications.”
Bob stopped. Kent’s words reflected his own while he was in the white void. “What are you thinking?”
Kent hesitated, then his eyes went wide. “I just mentally asked to see my stats—and I got a stat sheet.”
Bob blinked. “You didn’t get to see your stats in the red space?”
“You got to see your stats before you chose a class?” Kent practically screamed. “I just went with what I always pick in role playing games.”
Kent’s shout got the attention of the others still inside the cabin. They rushed out to see what was going on. Coming through the door George looked at Bob and Kent. “If I heard you right, Kent, you picked Warrior?”
Kent nodded. “I almost picked Mage but couldn’t bring myself to believe that there really was magic.”
After a few minutes of conversation out on the deck, during which the group shared what they had been through that morning and discussed any messages they had received, it became clear that others had also gotten skill messages. George and Jill had both received notifications about a cooking skill while they were making breakfast.
The semi-normal feeling had been driven away by worry as the conversation had turned toward home and families.
George joked about all the experience he had earned by cooking for everyone. A few of them laughed, but it didn’t do much to ease the overall tension. Everyone was anxious.
Trying to emulate George’s humor, Bob quipped, “Everyone make sure you stumble as you go down the stairs and you might get some stats like me.” The joke didn’t land—no one even gave a courtesy laugh.
George gave Bob a pat on the back as he walked by. “You tried too hard with that one. Just let it happen.”
Emotions were high that morning—some of the group had been crying. Tami and Jill had needed nearly an hour to pull themself together before they left for the campground.
While waiting for the others to get ready to head to the campground, George, Kent, and Bob stood near the deck talking. Quietly they discussed the strange elements listed in their stat screens—Titles and Quests.
Bob sat on the edge of the porch, mentally scrolling through the interface again. The blank ‘Titles’ and ‘Quests’ sections stared back at him like unopened letters.
“Do either of you have anything under these yet?” he asked, his voice a little too tight. “Titles? Quests?”
George plopped down beside him, legs stretched out. “Nada. Zilch. My ‘Titles’ tab might as well be labeled ‘You’ve Done Nothing of Value.’”
“Maybe I’ll unlock one called .” He smirked. “I was kind of hoping you’d get something cool like ‘First to Fall Down the Stairs.’”
Bob just glared. Totally not in the mood for George’s jokes.
Bob gave a forced chuckle, eyes flicking back to the interface. “Yeah, that makes sense. I guess.” He scratched his neck. “But what if... what if it’s not just achievements? What if it’s us? Judging us?”
George let out a low whistle. “Whoa, slow down there, Bob. You’re making it sound like we’re in a morality test from hell.” He nudged him. “Relax. We’ll probably just get some early tutorial type stuff. Like get a ‘Gather Wood’ quest or something. Baby steps.”
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Kent didn’t look convinced. “This doesn’t feel like a tutorial to me.” He looked out over the trees. “And if the system waiting for something major to trigger quests or titles… it might mean we’re not out of the woods. Literally or figuratively.”
Bob exhaled through his nose, drumming his fingers on his leg. “Right. Cool. Totally fine. Mystery sections. Totally normal thing. Definitely not spiraling.” He stood up abruptly, pacing the porch boards. “I mean, hey—blank quests. That’s good, right? No danger. No monsters. No epic moral choices about who lives or dies yet. Right?”
George raised an eyebrow. “You okay?”
“Yep!” Bob lied too quickly. “Totally fine. Just… mentally preparing.”
His mind snagged on that last phrase—Almost involuntarily, a memory surged: hyenas marching in sync, singing from . He started mumbling the tune under his breath, barely noticing.
Kent gave him a look. “Did you just sing ?”
Bob froze. “No.”
George smiled. “Dude. You totally did. You’re freaking out.”
“What? I am not!...” Bob pressed his hands to his face. “Maybe a .”
Kent’s tone softened. “You’re allowed to be nervous. We all are.”
“Yup. So nervous that Disney songs are your coping mechanism,” George said, cracking up.
His laughter quickly spiraled out of control—loud, tear-filled, borderline wheezing.
Kent tried to comfort Bob as George couldn’t control himself.
A few others stepped out from the cabin to see what was going on, drawn by the noise.
They found George doubled over in laughter, and Bob standing, clearly unimpressed.
Bob noticed the way the group looked—worried, tense, searching his face for answers. They glanced at George, whose actions didn’t match the mood. Confusion set in.
He considered saying nothing. He wasn’t about to admit he’d been singing a Disney song because he was scared.
George didn’t give him that option.
“He was singing songs because he was scared!” George gasped, doubling over again.
Tami raised an eyebrow and a smile on her lips. “I can keep you safe. No need to resort to children's cartoons.” She tried to keep a straight face but soon broke into laughter alongside George.
Bob stood there, stunned and slightly irritated. He couldn’t believe they were making fun of him , of all times.
He was about to snap when a hand landed gently on his shoulder. Turning, he saw Kent beside him. The look in Kent’s eyes said it all—
Bob opened his mouth, ready to protest, but then George, still chuckling, managed to speak through his laughter.
“Thanks for the laugh,” he said. “I really needed that. I think I was about to crack from the stress. It’s good to see you’re still you. Just don’t start singing when we hit the campground. I’m not emotionally ready for that.”
That stopped Bob cold. The anger drained out of him like air from a balloon. Kent had been right. They were all just trying to hold it together.
He leaned slightly toward Kent and whispered, “Thanks. I almost made things worse. I really don’t know why I got the Leadership skill. I can’t lead us. I can’t even keep myself under control.”
Kent whispered back, voice calm and reassuring. “You always held us together when we were kids. You can be that glue. You be.”
“I don’t know how,” Bob whispered, his voice laced with doubt.
“You didn’t know how back then either,” Kent replied, smiling gently. “Just be yourself. That’ll be enough.”
Bob blinked, genuinely surprised. “When did you get so wise?”
Kent grinned. “Must be all those Wisdom stats I’m getting. I just got two more while we were talking.”
Thinking it was a joke Bob stared at him, until he realized Kent meant it literally.
Before Bob could respond, George, finally regaining his composure, called out, “Hey! What are you two whispering about over there? Should we get you guys a room?”
Bob gave a weak laugh and shook his head. “No. We were discussing a duet to sing but let’s just get moving before I start humming too.”
LEADERSHIP RANK +1
As they all gathered together Bob explained. “George, Kent, and I were talking, and we think we need to prepare for something dangerous before we head to the campground.” Bob made eye contact with everyone. “We all got a message saying protections were lifted so I think there’s going to be something that could actually kill us.”
He paused, letting the weight of that settle over the group.
“We should arm ourselves. There are a couple of axes in the garage, knives in the kitchen, and a bunch of other things we can find that might help us defend ourselves.”
Bob waited for any reactions. George was the first to speak.
“I’ll grab the axes and see if there’s anything else in the garage we can use.”
Tami and Alice volunteered to gather knives from the kitchen, and several others headed off to search the cabin for anything that could serve as a weapon.
Bob followed George to the garage, but he couldn’t shake the feeling of being out of his depth. The worst threats this place had ever seen were bees, wasps, and the occasional poison ivy. But his feelings were telling him that this wasn’t going to be about bees or ivy. Whatever was coming—it would be worse. worse.
Soon, everyone gathered around a table on the front porch. Spread across its surface was a chaotic assortment of makeshift weapons: knives, a rolling pin, fire pokers, axes, hiking poles, a sledgehammer, a broom, and a mop. Some items were obviously better than others. But they’d grabbed whatever they could.
They laid the scavenged items on the front deck table. Everyone was looking at Bob not knowing how to proceed. Just as Bob was about to start going over the items a screen appeared.
GRACE PERIOD ENDED
TUTORIAL STARTED
OBJECTIVE: SECTOR CONTROL OR SURVIVE 6 MONTHS
REWARDS BASED ON GROWTH, PROFORMANCE, AND RANKINGS
DUNGEONS ACTIVATED
GAIN POWER AND WEALTH. PLAN, PREPARE, ENTER, AND CONQUER.
SECTOR TRAVEL RESTRICTED
SECTOR GUARDIAN DESIGNATED
The group was glassy eyed as they all focused on the notifications they were getting. The last message was unique to each of them.
QUESTS RECEIVED:
- TUTORIAL
- THE LEADER
Bob finished reading his notifications. It seemed to him ironic that they had just been discussing quests and now they had been given them.
“I got two quests,” Bob looked around at the others. “Tutorial and The Leader. Did anyone else get them?”
There were a few murmurs. Kent responded first. “I got the first one, but my second one was called .”
Jill stared at the quest message like it had insulted her mother. ‘Of course,’ she muttered. ‘Apparently I’m just here to make pancakes for the .’ She shoved her chair back and stormed around the side of the cabin.
Bob just stood there. What kind of quest had she gotten to make her that mad? He looked around and made eye contact with Tami. “Do you know what is going on?”
“No.” Tami shook her head. “I will go talk with her. Alice, do you want to come?”
Tami and Alice went to check on Jill.
The rest talked about the quests and Kent found a way to get a description of each quest. It soon became clear that everyone had received the first quest. Everyone had a second, a few got a third.
George, to Bob’s dismay, got three. and .
They sat in silence, processing what the quests might mean. The girls returned and Jill apologized. “Sorry guys. I got the quest I just freaked out that the system was trying to make me everyone’s cook.”
Trying to change the topic, Bob said it was time to head to the campground.
He made sure everyone had some kind of weapon. Jill was still clearly upset about the cooking quest and refused to take anything from the kitchen, instead demanding the smaller axe. No one argued.
Kent took the other axe. “What do you suppose a Sector Guardian is?”
Bob grabbed the sledgehammer—mostly because no one else would. “Nothing good I am sure.”
George grabbed both fire pokers as he thought about Kent’s question. The rest took whatever was left, each person arming themselves with at least something.
They didn’t know what they were protecting themselves from, but hoped the answer was .
They joked, but no one was really laughing—not deep down.
They had packed some food and water. A few backpacks that would be shared so no one had to carry them the whole time. The campground was only about a mile away, but it was nearing lunchtime and the heat was rising. Still, they could refill bottles at the campground—and maybe, if they were lucky, find some to help them.
“Is everyone ready to go?” he asked.
Everyone was unusually quiet. The silence felt eerie. Just yesterday, the group hike to look for the other cabins was filled with banter, teasing, the guys showing off for the girls—George and Bob especially.
Now, there was only tension, nerves, and fear.
As Bob stepped down from the deck, everyone looked at him. Expecting something.
“Let’s go find some help,” he said, heading over to where he’d left the sledgehammer.
Turning back to the group, he added, “Let’s stick together. With our quest saying we need to survive for 6 months there could be anything out there. Safety in numbers.”
“Real encouraging,” Alice muttered.
Bob met her eyes. She stared back, her fear just barely contained.
Bob felt that this was a spot his supposed Leadership skill should help him deal with people. He waited for another message. Nothing. Of course not.
Tami and Jill moved to stand beside Alice. All of them looking at Bob.
“Maybe you should just start walking,” Tami said, pointing down the road. “This isn’t helping anyone.”
Before Bob could respond, George jumped in. “I know the way. I’ll take the lead. Kent, you want to come with me?”
“Sure,” Kent replied, chuckling. “Someone’s gotta keep you out of trouble.”
The two of them started down the dirt road. Dust rising with each step.
The others followed. Bob stood back for a moment, watching them go. He had a sinking feeling that this wasn’t going to be as simple as he’d told everyone.
Tami stepped beside him. They stood quietly for a few moments.
“We should get going,” Bob finally said.
Tami nodded, and the two of them walked after the others. The silence of the forest engulfed them as they walked away from the cabin.