Trying to survive

Stark watched as the chaos slowly calmed down, while most continued trembling and crying incessantly.

'Damn, such weaklings...'

"Crying won't get us anywhere." An older man, with the build of a soldier, stood up.

'Looks like some random retired military guy...'

Other young men with the same military appearance gathered around him, all looking ready and capable of facing any challenge, with their short hair or shaved heads, dressed in camouflage green.

'I doubt they held any high ranks, otherwise they wouldn't be taking the train.'

"I need everyone to stay calm. We'll study the vegetation around here to survive for now and try to find a way back to civilization. We're many, so we need to divide the tasks." People finally began to regain consciousness, looking with hope toward a figure of authority. Alone, they couldn't think for themselves, but as long as there was a guiding light, they would follow it.

"The men will go into the woods to search for food and water, and the women will gather sticks and leaves so we can make an improvised shelter." A girl with colorful hair stood up in the crowd, her face full of rage.

"That's completely sexist! Everyone is capable of doing both tasks..." She glanced around a bit.

"Especially considering the weaklings you're calling men." Her voice dripped with disdain and disgust. The men around her, indignant, were ready to snap back, but the retired man interrupted.

"Girl, this isn't your little school where you can do whatever you want and spout some feminist bullshit. We're in a life-or-death situation, and they are far more capable than a brat like you!"

'Structural machismo in a genderless society. That's why I left the house today!' Stark's thoughts didn't stay just in his head as he burst into loud laughter, drawing everyone's attention, who were all enraged.

"What's so funny, idiot?" The girl almost lunged at his throat.

"What's so amusing, boy?" The older man kept his composure but clearly didn't like the gesture.

"Nothing, nothing, I just found the ignorance of both of you amusing. You know so little and still talk so much. You two are like a stand-up comedy duo—I'd definitely pay for a ticket. You could get rich from this!" Unlike the girl, who looked more and more threatening towards him, the older man noticed his choice of words.

"And do you know something?" Stark simply shrugged.

"Nothing important. You'll figure it out soon enough anyway." He nodded in agreement, deciding to ask more later.

"It's a simple way to decide things and guide us, so let's not look for problems. Most need to explore, and only a few are needed to build a basic shelter, which is roughly the same ratio of men to women we have."

He calmed things down and began properly assigning tasks. The truth was that most had no idea how to walk through the forest without getting lost or build shelters, so the situation was still complicated despite the apparent order. They would have to mix experienced and inexperienced people,some men stayed behind.

Stark had been placed in one of the exploration groups. He could have stayed behind if they knew he had been in the army and thus knew how to build shelters and walk through the woods.

Hunger and thirst were currently everyone's biggest enemies. Since entering the new world, no one had eaten or drunk anything, which is why everyone was desperate to find any kind of sustenance.

His current group was led by one of the soldiers. The boy was younger than him, only eighteen, and yet looked at everyone with unprecedented arrogance. A middle-aged man was accompanying them, struggling greatly through the woods, constantly tripping and complaining about the pain.

"That girl was right, some weaklings here shouldn't even be called men" Stark watched eagerly, waiting for the older man's comeback.

'If they start fighting, it'll be more fun!' Unfortunately, the man just ignored it and kept walking.

"Aren't you going to answer him?" Stark questioned, hiding his true intentions. The man looked at him emotionlessly.

"I'm used to this kind of thing..." He was clearly holding back tears.

"My wife and boss used to say the same thing..."

'Oh, this brings a new narrative. Cheated on by his boss.' The young soldier looked at him defiantly.

"These conversations are slowing everyone down. If you want, you can go back to the women and stop being a hindrance!" Stark shrugged while already scheming how to get rid of him.

'Normally I'd let it slide... but new life calls for new attitudes. This kid is fucked in my hands.'

The forest was silent as usual, which made it even clearer that the angels were watching and judging them. His stomach wouldn't stop growling; since yesterday, he had only had a cheap cup of coffee. Things were gradually getting more difficult.

The boy was crossing a giant fallen tree when he stopped for a moment, frozen in place. He put his hands to his ears, trying to amplify the sound.

"There's a river nearby!" They soon arrived at the flowing water, with fish and insects finally in sight, preying on each other.

"We've solved all our problems," the older man said, elated, already running to take a gulp of water, but was grabbed by the young soldier.

"This water must be full of bacteria and microorganisms. We need to boil it first. Gather some dry branches and let's make a fire. And try to find something curved to hold the water!" They dispersed and began collecting, looking for any large, hollow rock.

They gathered the materials, lit the fire, and placed stones near it to heat them up, using a hollow rock to collect the water. Finally, they put the hot stones into the improvised container.

Happy, the middle-aged man was the first to try the freshly purified water. His desperation was evident as he gulped down the still-hot liquid.

"Man, it's been so long since I've been this happy drinking something that wasn't beer." He wiped his mouth, which was dripping with liquid. His expression was completely satisfied when he stood up again.

"You stupid pig, why did you drink it all?" The young man was furious with him, his criticisms becoming more frequent, though this time it was understandable.

"It took so much work, and we didn't even get a drop." Others began to want to fight him too, but he simply ignored them as he went to gather more branches.

Cough cough

He coughed a little as he walked.

"Man, I'm so tired," he bent over, his hands on his knees.

Cough cough

"Damn, my body's way too heavy." He fell to his knees, his expression worsening, and his coughing more frequent. White foam began to form around his mouth until, finally, he collapsed for good. His breathing quickly ceased.

Everyone watched in shock as Stark approached without fear, his fingers going to the man's neck to check his pulse.

"He's dead," he concluded, leaving everyone even more terrified. They immediately turned to the young leader.

"The process should have filtered the water; he must have had some illness. It can't be the water!" he concluded naively, a naivety Stark didn't let slide.

"Then repeat the process and drink. Let's see if it was him or the water." The young man looked around for a moment, redoing the process, his pride preventing him from making any sensible reaction. Stark simply sat and waited for the outcome.

"There are fish and insects living here; it can't be the water!" He took the container full of 'purified' water again. At the last moment, without confidence, his pride had a limit—and that limit was death.

"I'll volunteer." Another man with cracked lips from thirst stepped forward.

"I trust everything is fine. That man was always slowing us down anyway. He must have had some terminal illness." Stark knew that couldn't be the case; their bodies were a magical creation. None of them should have any disease, and despite their differences, their physiques should fundamentally have the same attributes. He didn't stop him, though.

The man brought the sweet liquid to his lips, which seemed like honey to him, flowing smoothly down his throat—the same throat that betrayed him moments later, coughing uncontrollably until he collapsed.

"With this, we conclude that the water must be toxic, possibly containing some heavy metal. Any more idiots want to die?" He looked around in disapproval. He always expected there to be fools among them, and the quicker they died, the fewer resources they'd waste and the less they'd be a hindrance.

"Great. I hope the lesson is clear to everyone: the fish and insects around here must also be contaminated, making them off-limits." He stood up again, wiping the dirt and leaves from his pants. The group leader returned to guide everyone deeper into the forest; they would have to search for another source of supplies. His expression was grim and somber. Two men had died due to his ignorance.

"It's not over yet, folks. There are some rodents over there; they might serve as food, and there are probably fruits they eat, guaranteeing us food and drink." Stark hadn't seen any of this, relying only on what he'd been told.

'What are the chances everything is poisonous?' He preferred to keep that thought to himself.