the journey begins

Chapter 3: The journey begins

"The power of cloning, super speed, weapon mastery, time manipulation, and lasers... wait, aren't these all ridiculously overpowered in video games?" Sato questioned, his curiosity evident.

Kurou, his face serious, glanced at his friends and answered, "They might be, but after everything that just happened, we don't fully understand the scope of what's to come. These abilities are powerful, but how we use them could be more important than the powers themselves."

"You might be right, but what exactly are we supposed to do with them? And don't forget about these particles in our nerves..." Lisa's voice trailed off as she glanced at her hands, a mixture of concern and confusion in her eyes.

Kurou nodded grimly. "Those particles… they're likely the source of our powers. Kaito shot a laser just by focusing them into his hands, remember?"

Sato's eyes lit up with excitement. "So, how do I use mine? This could be amazing!"

Before anyone could respond, a high-pitched screech echoed from behind them.

Kurou froze, a cold sweat beading down his cheek. His finger trembled as he pointed nervously towards the sound.

"That… wasn't there before, was it?"

The others turned in unison, eyes widening in shock. Behind them stood a dense jungle of towering trees and thick vines.

Maria gasped, her voice trembling. "How is this possible? Wasn't this a city? How did we end up in a forest?"

Kaito looked around in disbelief. "This was a destroyed city… right? Even after the light beam hit, we were still in the city, but this…"

Kurou's mind raced. "The river that suddenly burst up from the ground... maybe it did something. Wasn't the terrain completely flat before? Could the forest have... grown over the city?"

Lisa shook her head in disbelief. "But how? There were no tremors, no sign of anything changing. How could we have missed this?"

Kurou lifted his gaze to the sky. "Maybe the terrain didn't change. Maybe it transformed. The buildings could've turned into trees… just like that."

Lisa's face twisted in frustration. "But how is that possible?"

We've seen lasers falling from the sky, people dying from the strangest causes… why would turning a city into a forest be any stranger?"

Maria swallowed, her voice barely above a whisper. "You're right. This… this world is breaking all the rules."

Kurou exhaled, trying to steady his thoughts. "For now, we focus on surviving. The particles inside us don't seem to be causing any immediate harm, so we'll deal with that later. We need supplies, and we need to figure out what's happening here."

Lisa nodded, her expression serious. "We stick together. We don't know what this world has in store for us."

Kaito looked around, uncertainty in his voice. "Where do we go from here?"

Kurou scanned the horizon. To the north, the forest seemed to stretch on forever, thick with trees and vines. To the east, a clear path wound through open plains. Behind them, large birds soared through the sky, heading south.

He smiled faintly as recognition sparked in his eyes. "Those are black-tailed godwits," he said, his tone lighter. "Migratory birds. They tend to follow shorelines."

Sato squinted at the birds, a confused expression crossing his face. "Black-tailed what? And gods?"

"Black-tailed godwits," Kurou repeated, shaking his head in amusement. "They're shorebirds. If they're flying south, it probably means there's water nearby."

Maria's eyes brightened. "A river? That would be perfect!"

Kurou nodded. "Exactly. Let's head west, towards where they're flying. If they're going that way, there's a good chance we'll find a water source."

As they journeyed together westward, the weight of their exhaustion bore down on them. Six long hours had passed, and the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the world in shadows. "I'm exhausted! It's night!" Kaito gasped, his voice trembling with fatigue.

"We don't know what the night holds," Kurou said, his voice steady but cautious. He wiped sweat from his brow, his eyes scanning the surroundings. "We need to stay alert. Let's camp here, by that tree." He pointed toward a large, ancient tree to the northwest, its twisted branches looming against the darkening sky.

"Agreed," Lisa replied with a serious expression, her gaze hard and focused. She wasn't one to take chances, especially not now.

They quickly gathered dried leaves and sticks, assembling a crude shelter beneath the gnarled trunk. Two sturdy wooden logs held it upright, and Kurou tossed a rope up to a low branch above them. "This will give us a higher ground, a place to stay safer for a little while," he muttered, his brow furrowed.

Under the eerie reflection of the moonlight filtering through the leaves, they huddled together. But Kurou's eyes kept darting into the distance, his instincts screaming that something was wrong.

Suddenly, his voice broke the silence. "Sato, come with me. There's something I need to check."

Sato, noticing the change in Kurou's demeanor—his tense posture, the glisten of sweat on his forehead—nodded grimly. Something was definitely off. "Right behind you."

Lisa shot them both a sharp look. "What's going on?"

"Stay here," Kurou replied quickly. "You're in charge until we get back. Think of a way you could use your powers. We might need them."

Lisa didn't argue, though her face remained tight with concern. "Be careful."

Kurou and Sato walked away from the shelter, their feet crunching the dry leaves beneath them. But after walking in circles for several minutes, Sato's patience wore thin. "We're just going in circles! What the hell is going on, Kurou?"

Kurou remained quiet for a moment, then spoke, his voice low. "Focus. I need you to concentrate and move the particles inside your body... to your legs. Trust me, it's important."

Sato, confused but trusting Kurou's judgment, took a deep breath and did as he was told. His mind focused on the strange, glowing particles inside his body. Slowly, the sensation of weightlessness spread, and within ten minutes, he felt... different.

"What the hell? I feel... light, like a feather!" Sato gasped, his voice tinged with disbelief.

Kurou's eyes narrowed. "Good. Now, try running. With your legs, use that lightness. Let's see how fast you can go."

Without waiting for more explanation, Sato's body shot forward in an explosion of speed. Within moments, he was out of sight. The wind rushed past him as his feet barely touched the ground. The ground beneath him seemed to blur as his speed increased—faster than he'd ever thought possible.

Moments later, he skidded to a halt and returned to Kurou, his breath heavy but his eyes wide with excitement. "This is... incredible! How did you know how to activate my powers?"

Kurou didn't seem as impressed. His face was still tight, his eyes distant. "We can figure that out later. Right now, I need you to do something important. Run around the tree. Go in circles. Count how many of them there are... and make it quick."

Sato blinked. "Wait, why? Are we looking for... poop or something?"

Kurou's face darkened, and Sato immediately regretted the joke. "Just do it."

Without another word, Sato sped off once more, circling the large tree with dizzying speed. The seconds felt like hours as he focused on his task. Finally, he returned, his voice tinged with urgency. "There are... around 24 of them. At least."

Kurou's expression faltered, a deep concern etched on his face. "We might be in serious trouble..."

"What do you mean? They're just... poop, right?" Sato asked, clearly confused.

Kurou's eyes locked with his. "No. It's not just that. There's something much worse going on here. Quick! We need to leave—now!"

Sato's heart began to race. Kurou's fear was palpable, and his usually steady composure was cracking. Something wasn't right. Without a second thought, Sato scooped Kurou up and ran, the ground blurring beneath them as they raced back to the shelter.

Kurou scrambled off Sato's back the moment they reached the camp. He wasted no time, urgency clawing at his every movement. "Everyone, we have to go. Now."

Maria looked up, concern etching her face. "What's going on? Why the rush?"

"We've made a terrible mistake..." Kurou breathed, his voice taut with dread. He took a moment to catch his breath, the weight of the situation settling on him like a dark cloud. "We've unknowingly trespassed into someone else's territory."

Lisa's eyes went wide, the color draining from her face as the realization hit. "Who... who are they?"

The moon above seemed to grow dimder as the tension hung in the air. Time was running out. They had to act—before it was too late