First blood

Wu Hei's legs pumped furiously on the pedals, the whir of his makeshift bike blending with the cacophony of battle behind him. His eyes, however, were fixed ahead as he darted through the dense treeline, branches whipping at his face and arms. Suddenly, the ground disappeared beneath him, and a lurch in his stomach told him he was no longer on solid earth.

He was floating.

The bike spun uselessly in the air, and Wu Hei kicked it away, his heart hammering against his chest. With wide eyes, he took in the spectacle around him: a myriad of small islands hovered in the sky, each one a lonely rock formation adrift in this impossible archipelago. Gusts of wind buffeted him from all directions, their force erratic yet powerful. For a moment, he flailed, feeling like a leaf caught in a storm.

Then, his gamer instincts kicked in. Wu Hei remembered a similar level from an old platformer he'd mastered during his NEET days. Timing. It was all about timing. As he observed the rhythm of the winds, he began to align his body with their push and pull, using their momentum to guide him towards a larger island some distance away.

It took every ounce of his concentration, but finally, his feet touched down on solid ground—or rather, solid rock—with a thud, sending a jolt up through his legs. He stumbled before righting himself, then bent over, hands on knees, gasping for breath. This place was like nothing on Earth, not even in the games he played. It was exhilarating and terrifying all at once.

"Lost, are we?"

The voice came from everywhere and nowhere, echoing lightly across the winds. Wu Hei straightened up, searching for the source. His gaze landed on a puddle nestled among the tufts of grass, where the reflection of a familiar figure shimmered. He didn't need to get any closer to recognize the visage of a young girl—the very same who had given him a shard back in the lobby.

With a ripple of the puddle, she emerged, standing now before Wu Hei, her form flickering like a mirage. She laughed softly as she half walked half floated her way to Wu Hei.

"Quite the detour you've taken," she teased, circling Wu Hei who could only muster a sheepish grin. In truth, he didn't mind being lost here; it beat the relentless pursuit and bloodshed of the previous place he had to cross.

"Did you think I wouldn't keep an eye on my little test subjects?" she teased, her eyes swirling with mirth. "This game grows ever more interesting with each choice you make."

Wu Hei rose to his feet, brushing damp grass from his clothes. His mind raced, seeking the right words, the correct strategy in the face of this enigmatic entity.

"Your guidance is... unexpected," he replied, the understatement hanging awkwardly in the air between them.

"Unexpected perhaps, but not unwarranted." the girl's smile held a depth of secrets untold.

Wu Hei steadied himself on the floating grassy knoll, his heart racing as the breeze tousled his unkempt hair. The girl's reflection shimmered in the puddle, her voice echoing with a weight that belied her ethereal presence.

"Strength grows, but so do challenges," she said, her eyes sharp with seriousness. "Near here, a shard dwells, one to command the air itself. Seek it swiftly, Wu Hei, for time is a luxury you do not possess."

Understanding flickered within Wu Hei's mind, and as the reflection faded, he sprang into action. With the winds as his guide, he launched off the rock, body adrift among the currents of power that buoyed him towards his destination.

Wu Hei dashed through the plain to his new objective. With this new information, he would be able to gain a new upper edge against the other player, which could mean a way to survive here longer.

Dazed in his thoughts, Wu Hei did not realise he was almost through the plain, suddenly meeting with the edge of a ravine.

Below him, a fight seems to be going on. Lights were flashing among metallic ruckus. Amid the chaos, Wu Hei came to realise he knew some of the fighters. The catgirl and the blond man he met in the lobby appeared like specters from an otherworldly storm. The man, a tempest personified, whirled amid a vortex of jagged stones that orbited him with lethal intent. Wu Hei's gaze narrowed; this was no mere display of force—it was a warning to all who dared approach.

A sudden surge of primal cries pierced the air, drawing Wu Hei's attention downward. From the shadows of the island's underbelly, a swarm of flying mantas erupted, their graceful forms contorted into weapons of nature. They shrieked their fury, unleashing bolts of searing acid that streaked towards the pair.

Wu Hei held his breath as the mantas assaulted the blond man. With a roar, the whirlwind around him swelled, transforming into an impenetrable barrier. Each acid bolt met its demise upon the rocks, dissolving harmlessly into smoke.

Caught in the maelstrom of conflict below, Wu Hei hesitated. Every instinct screamed at him to flee, to seek refuge in the solitude he cherished. But the promise of power, the allure of the air-controlling shard, anchored him to his course.

With a quick glance at the sky, where the winds whispered promises of dominion, Wu Hei braced himself. There was no turning back; the battle arena was a crucible, and he was already within its flames.

He closed his eyes for a split second before letting himself fall.

Wu Hei's feet touched the grassy surface of the island with a soft thud, his heart racing from the flight. The sheer emptiness of the place was disconcerting—the chest that was supposed to be here was nowhere to be seen. Just endless stretches of green swaying gently in the bizarre updrafts of this fragmented world.

"Hey! Get out of here!" The catgirl's voice sliced through the air, her form a blur against the sky as she hovered on the edge of landing. Wu Hei ignored her, scanning the landscape once more, hoping to catch a glint, a shadow—anything.

"Can't you hear? You're clueless!" she taunted, still safe in her aerial vantage point.

Wu Hei offered no reply, his gamer's intuition telling him the prize was close. Pacing the perimeter, he kept his eyes peeled, ignoring the sting of the wind against his face and the catgirl's mocking calls.

Then, she descended, her feet kissing the ground with feline grace before she seemingly folded into the earth itself. Wu Hei bolted towards the spot, skidding to a halt as he discovered the truth—it wasn't just ground she had vanished into; it was a burrow, the entrance to a flying manta nest.

"Wait!" Wu Hei called out, his voice echoing slightly as he peered into the darkness. "We can split it—fifty-fifty!"

Her laughter echoed back, a sound tinged with scorn. "Silly boy, a shard's power isn't for sharing. It's winner takes all. And here, survival is the only rule that matters."

"First come, first served doesn't apply?" Wu Hei quipped, though he felt the weight of her words. In this game of shards and shadows, timing was nothing without strength to claim victory.

"Whoever remains at the end, gets it all," she said, her voice trailing off as she ventured deeper into the manta's lair, leaving Wu Hei with a sinking feeling that the true challenge had only just begun.

With a snarl of frustration, Wu Hei abandoned words for action. His palms ignited with the Shatterweave's energy, casting orbs of flickering flame into the twisting tunnels around him. The fireballs spiraled away, their light briefly illuminating the claustrophobic burrows before extinguishing in a series of muffled thuds.

A cry echoed moments later—a cry that didn't match the timing of his fiery assault. Wu Hei's heart hammered against his ribs as he advanced. Each step was cautious, measured; he knew the pain hadn't been caused by his hand. Unknown dangers lurked within these shadows, and Wu Hei had only his wits and the faint luminescence of his next attack to guide him.

The tunnel widened, revealing a scene etched with violence. There, bathed in the glow of Wu Hei's last fireball, lay the catgirl, her usual agility stolen by a gash seeping crimson. And above her, a figure loomed like a grotesque statue carved from malice—a man, if such a term could apply, with limbs too thick, too short, and fingers that stretched long and metallic, slick with fresh blood.

"Mine," the dwarf-like man growled, pointing one blood-dripping finger at Wu Hei. "This kill is mine."

Wu Hei's throat tightened. Fear clawed at him, but deep within, a spark of defiance flared stronger. This was not the time for hesitation. Battles were won on swift decisions, and his PUBG instincts screamed that the survivor would be the one who acted, not the one who waited.

"Seems you're busy collecting kills," Wu Hei said, his voice steadier than he felt. His eyes darted to the catgirl, noting her slow, dragging movement away from the conflict. "But I'm not so easily claimed."

The man sneered, flexing his unnatural fingers, the threat clear as the dim light glinted off his steely extensions. Wu Hei braced himself. In the Battle Arena, where shards of reality granted power and death came swift, there was no room for mercy—only survival. And Wu Hei was determined to survive.

"Look out, she's slipping away!" Wu Hei's voice sliced through the tension like a blade, his gaze flicking to where the catgirl clawed desperately towards freedom.

The dwarf-like man's head snapped toward the movement, his eyes burning with predatory fixation. With a guttural snarl, he lunged toward her retreating form, steel fingers poised to strike.

Wu Hei's lips curled into a thin smile. This was it—the opening he needed. As the man charged forward, Wu Hei's hand shot up, channeling the smoldering fury within him. A swirling orb of fire erupted from his palm, blazing with untamed energy.

"Take this!" Wu Hei roared, unleashing the inferno.

The tunnel's confines betrayed the man's size; there was no room to dodge. The fireball struck with the force of a meteor, hurling him backward in a blast of heat and light. His silhouette, etched against the flames, twisted grotesquely as he crashed into the hard ground.

Without pausing, Wu Hei hurled another fireball, then another, each one a scorching testament to his resolve. The air itself seemed to ignite, painting the tunnel walls with dancing shadows.

Sweat beaded on his forehead, the intensity of the barrage pushing him to his limits. His vision blurred, the edges of his sight darkening as his aura dwindled dangerously low.

"Enough... I must stop," Wu Hei gasped, his breath ragged.

He staggered, bracing himself against the wall as he fought to regain focus. The smoke stung his eyes, but through the haze, he glimpsed a figure emerging from the carnage.

The man staggered forward, his flesh blackened and peeling, the once fearsome steel augmentations dripping molten tears. Yet, despite the devastation wrought upon him, he advanced, driven by a relentless will that refused to yield.

Wu Hei stood firm, watching the charred husk approach, every muscle tensed for what might come next.

Wu Hei's legs felt like lead, his chest heaved with the effort of drawing breath. The heat from the flames wrapped around him, a suffocating blanket that threatened to consume his consciousness. Escape was a fleeting thought, quickly extinguished by the weight of his exhaustion.

The man, a hulking silhouette against the backdrop of destruction, loomed ever closer, each step a testament to his determination to claim victory even as death clawed at his heels. Wu Hei knew he couldn't outrun him, not in his depleted state.

"Come on..." Wu Hei whispered to himself, summoning the last reserves of his will.

His arm, trembling from the strain, lifted almost of its own accord. With a flicker of focus, a spark ignited at his fingertips, growing into a small orb of dancing flames. It wasn't much, but it was all he had left.

"End this," Wu Hei muttered, and with a final push of his spirit, he propelled the tiny fireball forward.

It cut through the smoke-filled air, a comet trailing embers. The man saw it coming, but his ravaged body was too slow, too damaged to evade the inevitable. The fireball struck him square in the chest, a bright burst of light against the darkened tunnel.

A guttural cry echoed off the walls, the sound of defeat, of finality.

Wu Hei watched, his breaths shallow and sharp, as the man's towering frame shuddered and then crumbled to the ground. The steel fingers, once menacing and slick with blood, now lay still amidst the embers, their threat extinguished. The man's body settled into the flames, which seemed to calm, as if sated by the victory.

Exhaustion washed over Wu Hei in waves, threatening to pull him under. But he remained standing, just barely, supported by the tunnel's scorched wall. The battle was won, but the war within the Battle Arena raged on.

For now, though, he allowed himself a moment to close his eyes, to feel the heat on his skin, to listen to the crackle of the dying fire. There would be time enough for searching chests and claiming shards.

But first, he needed to breathe.