So, we set off along the path, amidst thousands of acres of forest. After about a half-hour of walking, oddly enough without any sightings of beasts or monsters, or even any other people, Jake, who had the best Perception of everyone in our group, made an announcement.


    “Guys!” He exclaimed. “I think I can see an opening in the trees ahead.”


    As the rest of our group caught up to him and then got closer to the supposed clearing, the rest of us saw it. After another 5 minutes of walking in silence, we arrived at the clearing. In the clearing, there lay a small town.


    “Okay, this is a bit odd,” Thomas said, “The town seems to be completely and utterly deserted.”


    And it was, with no beasts, monsters, or humans.


    Maria wondered, “Maybe the rest of the people have not gotten here yet? We left fairly quickly, and maybe most people didn’t trust the pathway?”


    “I mean, it makes sense. We were teleported to a random forest, with no apparent civilization, and told that we were allowed to kill each other.” Jake said, “I was nervous too.”


    I agreed outwardly, but inwardly, I doubted that that was the only reason.


    “Well, I mean, it doesn’t really matter a whole lot, right?” I asked myself.


    Later, it turned out that it did actually matter quite a bit.


    As we approached and entered the town, a System message appeared.


    Welcome to Tutorial Town A-0001. As the 1st group to enter a Tutorial Town on your planet, you are granted the Title: Adaptive (All stats + 10%). Congratulations! Your adaptability will be observed. Always Struggle For Supremacy!


    As the System message faded, I couldn’t help but feel that something—or someone—was watching. The words ‘Always Struggle For Supremacy’ echoed in my head, the weight behind them far heavier than simple encouragement. They didn’t feel like a cheerleading slogan, but more like a command—unyielding, absolute, and far beyond our comprehension.


    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    I glanced around at the others, half expecting to see similar reactions, but they were still chattering excitedly about the stats boost. Maybe I was just imagining it. Still, the unease gnawed at me, lingering like a shadow just out of sight.


    After this message came another:


    You may now designate your group. What do you wish to designate your group?


    Immediately, chaos ensued. But not about the title we just got. Oh, no.


    “We’ve got to name it the Night Raiders!” Maria shouted.


    “Nooooooo! The Sentinels is just a better name!” Jake argued.


    “Come on, Dragon’s Bane is waaaaay better!” I tried.


    Thomas settled our escalating argument by saying, “Y’all, why not just Originalus? After all, we are the first.”


    “Fiiiiiine,” Maria relented.


    “Sure,” Jake agreed.


    I then decided, why not, and said, “Okay.”


    Confirm name: Originalus


    Y/N


    “Yes.”


    Welcome to the Multiverse, Originalus. Proceed to the Civilization Shard to enter your first mission.


    “Well, looks like we got that settled,” Thomas said, “Now we’ve got to find this ‘Civilization Shard’.”


    Maria pointed out, “I bet it’s in the centre of town, or whatever that is here.”


    As we walked around the town, looking for the Civilization Shard, Jake remarked, “It’s eerie how quiet it is here. I mean, it makes sense that there are no people here, but shouldn’t there be some kind of creatures, like raccoons, or mice?”


    He was right. The silence was oppressive, broken only by the faint sound of our footsteps on the cobblestone streets. Windows stared down at us like empty eyes, and every shadow seemed to move just at the edges of my vision.


    “I bet that it has something to do with the System,” Maria said, “Like magic bug repellent.”


    I wondered, “Maybe it’s the Civilization Shard that does it?”


    “Well, it doesn’t really matter,” Thomas said, “I bet we will find out later, either way.”


    Just as he said that, Leah, who was looking around for the Civilization Shard, suddenly exclaimed, “Look! Down that side street! There’s a blue glow!”


    As we went through the side street, which opened up into a large square, we immediately saw what took up the majority of the square, and were speechless.


    “Wow. It’s huge.” Jake muttered.


    He was right. In front of us stood a massive, 25 meter tall, glowing blue crystal. On it, swirled yet again those strange geometrical symbols, pulsing to some unknown beat.


    “Well, should we touch it?” Thomas asked.


    “Don’t look at me,” I said, “I don’t have a great record of touching weird things. But like, I’m sure it’s fine to touch a huge, glowing blue, totally not radioactive thing from a being billions upon billions times stronger than us, right? What could possibly go wrong?”


    “Well, I mean, what else are we supposed to do.” Maria pointed out. “Sit here and wait?”


    “Better now than never,” Thomas said, as a bad feeling washed over me, and then we reached for  the crystal.


    As the others reached for the crystal, the bad feeling twisted into something sharper, a sudden pull low in my gut—like the crystal itself was reaching for me. My fingers hovered just shy of its surface, the air thrumming with energy. Then, we touched it together.