Wild Encounter

The clearing that surrounded the three structures made a perfect circle, depicted by the bright sunlight contrasted by the shade of the trees. While the three buildings were relatively close to each other, there was a lengthy distance between them and the trees that made up the forest.

The clear distinction between the clearing and the rest of the forest drew a boundary, as if marking the exact areas I was supposed to 'defend.'

'So, what am I looking for?'

I strolled around, looking for the problem Arkot had mentioned.

"Calling this the 'Pyramid.' This is the 'Box,' and that's the 'Tower.'" As I walked by the buildings, I gave them names to refer to, based on how they looked from the outside.

I strode pass the Tower, then stopped in my tracks. There was a figure in the distance. It was an animal of some sort, a four legged creature that had stepped into the zone. It stood a few hundred meters away, close to the trees.

I slowly moved across the field, leaving the comfort of the Tower.

It stared straight at me as I cautiously approached the creature.

It had a grey coat, mixed with splashes of black and brown and a white underbelly.

Was that a wolf?

I kept some distance between us, roughly twenty meters.

'What should I do now? It's just standing there, staring at me.'

I thought about this. It didn't seem aggressive or threatening, just curious.

"Hey." I waved at the wolf. I was a great conversation starter.

"Sorry to bother you, but can you please keep out of the clearing?" I asked in my nicest voice.

"The forest and trees are okay, but I can't have anything come inside the area. Hope you understand." I called out to the wolf. Hopefully it would get the message.

It stayed where it was, and kept staring at me.

"Well, I tried."

What did I expect?

I started taking small steps to get closer to the wolf.

Soon, I was right in front of it. If it wanted to, the wolf could probably pounce on me and bite my head off. However, it stood perfectly still, and kept watching me.

I stared right back.

Now that I was up close, I was able to discern some new details about this creature. First, it had bright green eyes. There were faint scars along its mouth, with silver streaks of fur running from the ears down to the belly. It was a large animal, much bigger than a grown man. The most interesting feature, however, was the presence of two dark blue crystalline horns attached to the back of it's neck.

"So. Can I help you?" I asked.

The wolf replied with a loud bark, startling me. It had been quiet the entire time.

"I don't have any food, sorry."

With that, the wolf turned around and left. I watched as it wandered back into the forest, out of view.

I let out a breath of relief. I had no idea what I would have done if the wolf had attacked me or stayed in the same spot. However, I had a feeling that the wolf wasn't a threat. Maybe it was Arkot's reassurance.

Either way, the entire encounter was surprising. Although it was a bit different, the creature definitely resembled a wolf. Previously, I was unsure if this world would have the same creatures as Earth.

I went back inside the building I named the 'Pyramid.' I walked up to the tree, which was the Archive.

'Arkot mentioned he would leave a present? What could it be?' I wondered. Tools of some sort? A weapon for defense?

I touched the glowing symbol, and concentrated, remembering the space I had been transported to previously.

Everything flickered, and I was engulfed in pure blackness.

And then a light above me turned on, shining a white spotlight on me.

I was back.

The wooden table was still present, but there was now a box on top of it. It was presumably the gift from Arkot.

"Is this cardboard? What the f*ck?" I picked it up and inspected it.

"Shipped from Abazon." Seriously? How did Arkot know about this stuff? Was he from Earth?

I opened the box and looked inside. The contents were comprised of three books, which I laid out on the table to examine.

The first book was a paperback, with a bright yellow cover.

The title was "The Heraldic Language for Dummies."

Heraldic? Was that the language people spoke in this world?

The second book was a hardcover, with the large words plastered across the front:

"Guide to Erradell (Arkot Edition)"

The final book was leatherback.

"Rulebook for Archives (Tips and Tricks Included!)"

No doubt about who designed the covers.

I flipped through it, hoping to find some useful information, but was quickly disappointed. There were only two pages with text, the rest all blank.

~~~~~

[Rulebook Page 1]

Archive: Metos

Law: Purification

Runes: ---, ---, ---,

~~~~~

The other page was written in characters I had never seen before, likely a language from this world.

The one page I could read didn't give me any details to work with.

I was about to look through the other books when my stomach made an uncomfortably loud noise.

'I can study later. I should find some food first.' It had been a while since I had last ate. I closed my eyes and returned to the world.

~~~

After spending another hour searching around, I gave up. I couldn't find anything to eat within the area.

I would have to venture out, but where could I get food in this forest?

As I approached the border between the clearing and the trees, I noticed the sky had turned orange. It was getting late. I looked back once more, then ventured into the woods.

Half an hour later, I was resting on a log, exhausted.

"What am I even looking for?"

There were the sounds of rustling behind me, and I jumped to my feet.

"Oh, it's just you." I calmed down after realizing who it was. The wolf from earlier had appeared again. It just stared at me, then looked to my side.

I followed it's gaze, and I saw it's target. In the distance, there was a rabbit. It was peacefully grazing on some grass.

"It's all yours. I doubt I could catch that myself."

The wolf looked back in my direction, then started trotting towards his prey.

"Good luck." I waved it good bye. At least someone would get to eat tonight.

I walked around for a bit more before giving up. I decided to start heading back, carefully retracing my steps.

~~~

"I'm back!" It was beginning to get dark, so I had been worried about getting lost.

I walked back to the Pyramid, and paused at the doors. What was this? There was something laid down in front of me.

"This is..." I knelt down to look. It was a dead rabbit. Could it be?

"Dinner?"

But how was I going to eat this? I thought for a short while, then walked back into the forest.

~~~

Armed with some sticks, a dead rabbit, and knowledge from a forest survival video, I returned to my newfound home, ready to make dinner.

I moved inside the Box.

"Produce flame!" I waved my hand, and the torches were set ablaze.

Of course, saying these words didn't actually do anything, but it felt cool.

I took a torch off the wall and placed it on the floor. It stayed lit.

"Perfect."

I doubted I could properly start a fire myself, so I used the magical torches to set up a small bonfire on the cold stone floor of the Box.

I sat down, prepared to start roasting my next meal. Here, new problems would require new solutions. Magical ones.