Day IV: First Contact

The Sphere appeared before me, its light flickering like a dying ember. It pulsed weakly thirteen times.

[1,300 points]

I scowled. "Why not more? Those last five goblins had weapons and actual teamwork."

The Tome surfaced again in my mind.

[1,000,000 points]

I rolled my eyes. Frustrating. At this rate, I'd be an old man before I could afford that thing.

I sighed and bought 'Essential Nutrition' to curb my hunger, then hesitated. Should I save for a Sphere upgrade? See what it could really do?

No. I gave in to greed. If I wanted to survive, I needed power.

I dumped everything into my stats:

Strength: +10

Dexterity: +10

Constitution: +10

Stamina: +6

A total of 1,080 points, leaving me with a measly 20.

The most I'd upgraded at once. Would I feel the difference? I'd find out when I woke up.

I closed my eyes.

________________________________________

"Sleepyhead, wake up."

The voice jolted me awake. My fingers clenched around my sword and shield as my eyes shot open.

Two men stood in front of me.

The one who spoke was African American, tall and lean, wearing only a pair of PT shorts. The other, a blond-haired, green-eyed guy who looked Swedish, wore the same type of shorts and a black T-shirt. Like me, they weren't dressed for the cold.

I stared at them, still gripping my weapons.

"Who are you?"

The African guy grinned. "This is William, and I'm Samuel."

I hesitated before shaking his outstretched hand. "Jack."

It was the first time I'd spoken my name in days.

This marked my first contact with other transmigrators—a term I would come to loathe.

Samuel studied me. "How long have you been here? You're crazy to sleep out in the open."

"A few days. Went to sleep in my bed and woke up here."

"Do you know where we are? Do you think we're on Earth?" William's English was broken, his accent thick.

I scoffed. "Have you seen the goblins yet?"

Samuel nodded, rubbing his chin. "So you also call them that. I woke up two days ago. William woke up yesterday. We've been roaming ever since."

That meant I had been here the longest. Were there others who arrived even earlier?

I pointed east. "Don't go that way. Bigger goblins. Bows and swords."

Samuel frowned. "Then north?"

William stayed silent, but Samuel glanced at him as if waiting for his input.

I shrugged. "Sure."

As we walked, my paranoia crept up. My body tensed every time they moved behind me. I kept expecting a knife in the back. But they hadn't attacked me when I was asleep. That counted for something.

"We confirmed it this morning," Samuel said. "The giant ball of light when we sleep. Did you see it?"

I feigned ignorance. "Hallucinating now?"

"Yeah. Too bad it's not a hot woman."

I nearly choked, suppressing a laugh.

William rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I saw it," I admitted. I didn't say more. I didn't know what kind of people they were yet.

We kept walking. Then, goblins. Three of them. About sixty meters away.

I didn't think—I just ran with a terrible limp.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Samuel shouted behind me.

Too late. Adrenaline took over.

The first two goblins jumped at me simultaneously. At the back, the third had a wooden club.

I swept my shield sideways, slamming one goblin away while stabbing the second through the throat. My sword hit deep, warm blood splattering my forearm.

The third swung at me. I blocked with my shield, then stepped forward, slashing. The blade bit deep into his shoulder, cutting into his neck.

The goblin I knocked down grabbed my leg. I pressed my shield down on him and stabbed—once, twice, three times—until he stopped moving.

Panting, I looked up.

Samuel and William stood behind me, stunned.

"What the fuck?!" Samuel's voice cracked.

I exhaled, shaking the blood off my sword. "We should keep moving."

The silence between us was heavy. As we walked, they kept glancing at me.

"Did you learn to fight like that on Earth?" William finally asked.

"No. I've been fighting since I got here." I flexed my knee slightly, still sore. "Almost died my first night. Got ambushed. Now I kill them first."

Samuel nodded slowly. "So you really hate them. That how you hurt your knee?"

I just shot him a glare. He took the hint and backed off with a smile.

We kept moving. Another goblin group. Three more.

This time, Samuel and William fought too. I killed two, while they ganged up on one.

William was ruthless. He bashed the goblin's head with a rock like he'd done it before. Samuel used the club of the goblin I killed before and finished him off. He bashed the goblin's head like a pinata.

We continued walking for an hour or so, never really talking. 

Then we met more survivors. Five of them.

Two muscular British guys in ripped clothing, holding clubs. Three women behind them.

They were wary of me. Probably because I was the only one with real weapons, while being covered in dried blood and piss.

Samuel and one of the Brits—Carl—talked. I mostly listened. I forgot the names of the rest, they would all die later anyway. Everyone had weird clothing. Some had hoodies and some had pajama pants. Almost everyone was barefoot. Some had socks.

Carl was a natural born leader, and quickly took responsibility and gave good advice. It turns out that he was part of a larger group who was just as confused as us. Only he and a few others are scouting and looking for more people who appeared in the woods.

He led us all west. I learned that he found the other British guy and the three girls that same day. I was impressed.

During the walk, we crossed several groups of dead goblins. Carl said it was his group hunting for points. That also caused Samuel and William to eye me, since I didn't explain the point system.

According to him, goblin bodies disappear after 24 hours.

Eventually, we decided to rest and sleep since it became dark. We were slower because of the injured girls. Also because of my limp. Carl told us that we should reach the camp by tomorrow late morning.

I layed down at the edge of the group. I was afraid that they'll try to take my sword and shield. Carl said he will keep watch for the night. 

He approached me later that night while we slept between the trees.

"I can tell you've been here longer than a few days," he whispered. "I woke up a week ago."

That meant he'd seen more than I had. It also meant he was stronger than me. Also, he wasn't injured at all.

My eyes snapped to him.

"And yet," he continued, his voice steady, "No one has found a sword and shield like yours."

I could've lied.

But something about him—the calm way he spoke, the way he didn't try to intimidate me—made me trust him.

Maybe it was the exhaustion. Maybe I just needed one person I didn't have to watch my back against.

Or maybe, Carl was just a good guy.

For the first time since arriving, I let my guard down.

"A few days east, I seemed to enter a new forest area that doesn't look as fake as this one. A group of five goblins roamed there and they had weapons like bows."

He looked me in the eyes, not that I could see his face much in the darkness. He was quiet for a few seconds.

"I believe you"

When he said that, I instinctively believed in what he said. Thinking back, he was incredibly full of himself too.

"I won't let anyone take your stuff. You've earned it. So get some rest."

I didn't trust anyone here yet, but something about Carl gave me hope. The way he moved, the way he talked. It felt like I could depend on him.

That did it for me, and I did pass out even when I tried to stay awake. The constant paranoia with meeting these new strangers made me more tired.

The day came to an end with 5 goblin kills.