Chapter 1

Waking up in the middle of a desert, having no idea how he got there, was confusing, to say the least. Having a floating screen, asking him to choose his Siren powers was even beyond that. At first, William thought that was a dream, a nightmare he would shortly wake up from. However, the scorching sun that burned his back said otherwise.

William's situation was bewildering, with him being stranded in an unknown location with weird floating screens, yet... despite all of that, he still felt somewhat calm about it. He wasn't sure why that had been the case until he picked one of the powers offered to him and was shown his 'Status' screen. That also explained his situation to him… somewhat. He still wasn't sure if he was playing some very realistic VR game or if something had dropped him god knows where and given him this gamer ability.

From the seven Siren powers he was offered, all of them seemed to be powerful. Or at least have the potential to be so. However, with his current predicament, there were only a couple that really made sense to him, and only one that could help him survive in this scorching desert. As long as he got to find something to use it on.

Looking up at the sky, William had to quickly cover his eyes. "I'm definitely not imagining this. The sun still hasn't moved! Right? Or am I already going crazy?"

He didn't know for how long he had walked, but the blasted fiery orb hadn't moved an inch from its spot. The sun also looked way bigger than he remembered it, and if that wasn't a dead giveaway that he was no longer on Earth, the massive, high-tech satellite was.

Again, that didn't bother him too much, nor did it sent him into a panic attack. Maybe it would've, but he had more important things on his mind. Like, getting something to eat and drink. His stomach was rumbling and his throat was dry. That had been his situation ever since he woke up lying on the sand.

Everywhere he looked, William saw sand, sand, and you guessed it, more sand. He picked a random direction and just started walking, but things were starting to look grim for him, not that they already weren't to begin with. William might not even get to use his Siren ability as there was nothing around him to use it on.

"Maybe I should've picked a different one? Maybe Phasewalk could've made this easier?" He was starting to question his decision, not like it made a difference. At least it gave him something to think as sand continued to get into places it shouldn't be.

Finally, something happened, and William rubbed his eyes, making sure the dust cloud in the distance wasn't a mirage. A wide smile formed on his face after confirming that it was in fact real. A car was moving at a fast pace through the sandy desert, forming a dust cloud behind it. A vehicle meant that someone was driving it, which implied there was an intelligent being doing it.

"Maybe they could lead me to shelter and provide me with food and water." Was his wishful thinking. He hoped for the best, but his pessimistic side scorned at that. "As if it would be that easy."

When it neared, William got a clearer view of the vehicle. It looked like an army jeep with a turret mounted on top of it. That sight of the weapon got him worried, but there was still faint hope inside him.

"Maybe it's just an army patrol?" Again, his pessimistic side ridiculed that idea. "You better get ready to die." William already knew he wasn't on Earth, so what were the chances people inside it even knew English. And even if they did, how would soldiers react to an unknown individual roaming the desert by himself?

William got his answer soon enough, as the vehicle steered to the right in front of him, the driver hitting the breaks and sending a wave of sand his direction. He covered his eyes and coughed, but didn't miss what the people said.

"Looks like we found our next meal boys!"

"I'm gonna eat you alive!"

"I'll rip your spine and wear it to my funeral!"

William had heard something similar a long time ago when he played a certain game. Borderlands had been one of the funnier games he enjoyed. The craziness of the people, the funny quotes of everyone, including the bandits he got to slaughter, made it very enjoyable. At least he enjoyed it. It was all fun and games as he farmed loot while leveling up. Until it wasn't, and he was staring at real psychos and a midget that saw him as their next meal.

Maybe he should've figured he was in the world of Borderlands when the floating screen offered him to choose his Siren powers, but he mostly played with the sniper dude since he had Skills that gave him more loot. Everyone loves loot after all and more was always better. Otherwise, he played with the berserker since it reminded him of Hulk, and who didn't like some Hulk smash.

Maybe he should've figured it out when he saw his Skill Tree, but lots of games have those. Plus, two of his paths were even locked, so that didn't help him out much. On top of that, he could only see two Skills from his only available path.

Either way, he was in a fucked up situation as the three mask-wearing bandits came at him while explicitly telling him what they would do to him. The only saving grace was that they didn't have guns, and they didn't fire at him using the turret. At least something was going his way.

Nevertheless, that didn't make William feel any better. At the end of the day, he was a random college dude that partied way too much. Though he did have a Siren's power now, which he could use against the axe-wielding bandits. There was just a slight problem with that, however. It was a close-range ability, and he was definitely going to get hurt.

"I'm gonna feast on your inwards!" The bandits had been prowling around him, like predators after their prey. As they were circling him, one of the psychos rushed at him, sprinting as he let out a deranged laugh.

'This is it!' William hyped himself up. This was his time to either make or break. He will either die at the hands of the bandits or come out on top.

The psycho lunged at him, his axe ready to cleave into the male Siren. William watched it closely, nervousness swirling inside his stomach. He wasn't a fighter, never been one. However, he didn't need to be one to know that he was supposed to dodge and do his best to avoid being hit by the axe. Or at the very least, try to mitigate the damage.

In the moment, William decided that the best way to avoid the axe wasn't to be out of its range, but instead to be too close for the psycho to be able to utilize it. Jumping once the bandit got close to him, William barreled into the psycho. His right hand sought out the flesh of his enemy and grasped the bandit's neck.

"Fuck you!" William cursed as the intricate tattoos on the right side of his body – ones he received after choosing his power – lit up in neon blue light. William felt a surge of power as he activated his ability, Phaseleech, and started draining the bandit's life.

"AAGHHH!" The psycho roared in pain, his body starting to convulse as his life force was forcefully taken from him. The process was quick and efficient, and the bandit was left nothing but a dried husk in mere moments. William panted, but not from exhaustion, rather from the high that he got. He wasn't sure if that was from the adrenaline coursing through his body or an aftereffect of his powers.

Such a sight should've terrified anyone that saw it. A living and breathing man was turned into nothing but a dried-up husk. However, the remaining bandits were anything but normal. Fear was not part of their vocabulary – not that it was very extensive, to begin with. If anything, seeing one of their own die made them happier.

"The meat cake is mine!" The psycho roared, rushing at him with no fear.

"I want the sausage!" The midget added, following the actions of his remaining partner.

William had to make a quick decision in that moment as both of them were coming from two different sides. He might've gotten lucky with the first bandit, but there was no way he was getting out of this unscathed. The psycho seemed like the greater threat, so William quickly turned towards him. His strategy worked on the previous one, so he tried doing the same.

Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, it worked. The psycho acted as if his fellow bandit hadn't died to this simple, but seemingly effective strategy of counter-lunging. One would think he would be more cautious after seeing what happened not even a minute ago, but then again, he was a deranged psycho for a reason.

Everything was going smoothly. William got into the bandit's personal space, effectively making his axe worthless, and he grasped the psycho's by the neck. He should've suffered the same fate as his fallen brethren, except William's tattoos didn't light up, and his ability didn't activate.

"The food comes to me!" Screamed the psycho, uncaring that someone held him by his throat. He head-butted William in the face, hearing an oh-so-satisfying crunch as blood started dripping from William's nose. The sound of bones breaking was like music to his ears, and the psycho loved it!

"Fuck!" William cursed. His fight or flight instincts kicking in a blazing glory. William grabbed the bandit's neck with both hands, squeezing it with all of his strength. If he couldn't use his powers, then he had to do it the old-fashioned way.

There was a small problem with that, however. Namely, the midget that reached him. "The sausage is mine!"

William let out a roar of pain, feeling an axe cleave into his side. Despite that, he didn't let go of the bandit's neck, and instead, he tightened his grasp on it. His digits sunk into the psycho's throat, piercing its skin and feeling the fresh blood running through it. Even at death's doorstep, the bandit had no fear in his eyes, only letting out a deranged laugh.

"You little shit!" William roared as he pushed the psycho away and turned towards the midget. His waist was bleeding heavily, and he wanted nothing more than to rip little shit to pieces. Instinctively he felt that his powers were ready to be used now. How he missed this earlier, he didn't know, but he was going to drain the midget dry.

[You have leveled up!]

[+1 Skill Point!]

William quickly decided against that. Instead, he kicked the midget away, flinching at the pain from his waist, but his actions gave him a few seconds he desperately needed. Opening up his Skill Tree, he already knew where he was going to place his new Skill Point.

[Gluttony 0/5: Using Phaseleech on others replenishes your hunger and thirst. In addition, it restores your health by 5%]

[Strength Beyond Measure 0/5: Using Phaseleech you can empower yourself. Turn 5% of the life force you absorb into your strength, increasing your physical abilities. Current modifier: none.]

Both were skills he wanted to get, but one of them he desperately needed at the moment. After picking Gluttony, he rushed the midget just as he was standing up from the sand. William punched it in the face for good measure, still angry how the midget had injured him earlier, before grasping his neck. His tattoos lit up as the bandit started screaming in pain.

William tried ignoring the shrieks and turned his attention to his waist. It was a nasty wound, there was no doubt about it, and he was almost sure he could see his inwards. However, as he drained the midget, it slowly started healing up, his skin reforming itself visibly to the naked eye. The only problem was the wound wasn't even half-closed when he finished leaching the midget. At least, William was no longer hungry or thirsty. One thing was going his way.

Dropping on the sand, William panted heavily as he processed what happened. He killed three people, yet… he felt nothing. He didn't felt bad, nor did he feel satisfied with it. He just didn't care. Maybe it was because a small part of him believed that this was nothing but a very, very, life-like VR game, but he knew that wasn't the case. It was due to the Skill he got alongside Phaseleech.

[Gamer's Mind: Calms your mind and allows you to think like a Gamer.]

William had read The Gamer and knew of this skill, but… this one looked like a weaker version. It didn't make him immune to mental effects, and it didn't give him a peaceful state of mind, but it at least calmed him down. That was something, right?

"But then where's my Gamer's Body?" William complained out loud in exasperation. That one would've been very useful in his situation. With Gamer's Body, he wouldn't be slowly bleeding to his death.

Thinking about that, he was reminded of his current predicament. He was still bleeding from his waist, and it wasn't going to stop anytime soon. William's gaze turned to the only bandit that he had killed without using his ability.

"It never said I can only use it on living beings," William muttered to himself as he slowly stood up, flinching and placing a hand over his wound. He dragged himself over to the bandit's corpse and grasped onto it. Activating Phaseleech, he quickly drained it dry.

William's eyes were locked onto his wound, as he watched close up just a little bit more. It was definitely much better than earlier, but it was still bleeding.

"I have to patch it up," William muttered. Cleaning it was out of the question since there was no water anywhere in sight. "Except maybe in the bandit vehicle?"

William stumbled over to the car and entered inside. After looking around and opening everything he saw, he was left only with disappointment. The only thing he found was trash, bones, remains of what looked to be human skin and more trash, but no food, nor water.

"I should've excepted as much," William dejectedly got out from the vehicle. He looked over at the bandit's corpses, or what remained of them. The bodies of the midget and the second bandit were missing and only their clothes rested on the sand. The first psycho he leeched was still there, however, his body nothing but a dried husk.

"This… makes sense," William uttered as he walked towards the cargo pants on the sand. To satiate his hunger and thirst, he had to get the recourses from somewhere. It seemed his Phaseleech turned his enemies into nothing but dust now.

After picking up the cargo pants, he looked them over for a moment before tossing them away. Dirty couldn't even describe the pants state. If he used them to dress his wound, infection would be the least of his problems. Letting out a dejected sigh, William grasped onto his own black pants. He managed to rip them apart and used one part to cover his wound. His were also dirty due to the sand, but at least they weren't as filthy as the bandits' ones.

"Now what?" William asked after dressing his wound. What was he supposed to do in a world filled with psychotic bandits? Finding shelter, so he could rest and let his wound recover seemed like the obvious thing to do.

"However, I can also find a bunch of bandits and Phaseleech them to recover." After all, that's why he even picked up that Skill, to begin with. He might even level up, allowing him to get the other Skill. Becoming a physical powerhouse sounded very nice. Though, he didn't know how many bandits he would have to drain before becoming one.

"Gamer's Mind does help," William said in a moment. He was just being way too calm about this. Instead of freaking out at the situation he found himself in, he was calming thinking about how to handle it.

The safer option was to find a place to bunker down until he was recovered, but this world was anything but safe. William didn't remember much about the game, only that he enjoyed it when he played it. However, he knew one thing for certain. This world was filled with dangers at every corner, and unless he became strong enough to overcome them all, he won't last long.

With that in mind, William gathered the axes from the bandits and jumped inside their vehicle. It took him a few tries, but he started the engine and drove away. Where he was going, William didn't know. He didn't remember the names of any of the locations from the game, but even if he did, it wouldn't be of much help.

Driving the bandit vehicle was somewhat fun at the start, but it very quickly became boring. No radio to listen to, no person to talk to, and no sight to see, except for sand dunes, sand dunes, and you guessed it, more sand dunes.

During the drive, William swapped the make-shift bandage on his waist, ripping another part of his pants and effectively turning them into shorts. His clothes were the only items left from his home, and he didn't want to part with them, but he had little choice. Home was another subject that had been on his mind as he drove through the desert.

William wished to return back to Earth. The chances of that happening were slim, but they weren't nonexistent. Sirens had incredible powers, he knew that as he was given the option to choose from seven different ones. One of them was called Phasewalk, the ability to enter a pocket dimension.

If a Siren with that power existed somewhere out there, William had to find that person if he wanted to return back to Earth. Since his Phaseleech could increase in power, getting new features as he leveled up, Phasewalk should also be able to do the same. He didn't think others had the same leveling system as him, but that shouldn't stop them from working on their powers, right? If a Phasewalk Siren works on their power, it could maybe become an ability that could traverse dimensions. At least, William hoped so since he didn't wish to live his life on this crazy planet.

William made up his mind. First, become strong enough to at least survive this hellhole. This took priority if he wanted to complete his second objective, which was to find other Sirens.

At least a few hours passed since he started driving through the desert. The sun still hadn't moved from its spot, angrily torching everything on the planet. William wasn't sure if the blazing orb was just stuck in its place, but he was really starting to hate it.

The scenery also hadn't changed, with only sand dunes in his sight. William was really wondering where the bandits had come in the first place. He expected to see an outpost, a location where they had taken over for themselves. However, he hadn't seen a single building in the blasted desert.

"Finally!" William exclaimed after spotting something that wasn't sand. A group of dog-looking creatures were walking around. Skags they were called if he remembered correctly, and they were almost as numerous as the bandits that roamed the planet.

Nearing them, William slowed them as they turned to him, growling at the sight of the vehicle. He wasn't sure if he would get experience if he just drove them over, and he also didn't want to damage the vehicle. Without it, he might end up roaming the desert for the rest of his life, however long it lasted.

William jumped out of the car, staring at the alien dogs. He held one of the axes in his left hand, leaving his right one free to use his Siren ability. After his encounter with the bandits, William was feeling confident. Gamer's Mind was also helping him, but the moment the skags opened their three-jawed mouths, he froze for a second in place, unprepared for that. The sight was both terrifying and disgusting at the same time.

However, the moment the biggest skag ran at him – there were three smaller ones – he prepared himself. This one was the most threatening one due to its size, so he was glad that it came to him on its own, despite the trepidation of what it might do with its three-jawed mouth.

"Die in hell!" William roared, mostly to pump himself up. The skag jumped, lunging towards him, and he threw his axe in return, aiming it at the alien's opened mouth. He wasn't left-handed, nor did he have any practice with throwing weapons, so the result was as expected. The axe hit the skag with its handle, but it did enter its mouth, so he did accomplish something as it couldn't bite into him now.

Swiftly, William's hand flew out like a snake, latching onto the rough skin of the skag. His Siren tattoos lit up as he activated his ability, draining the life force of the skag. He had the smallest of worries that it wouldn't work, and he was more than relieved at his success.

The skag struggled much more than the bandits, but due to the axe in its mouth, it couldn't properly bite onto William. He was overjoyed at his success, feeling his wound closing up. The alien dog seemed to have much more life force compared to the bandits.

William, however, hadn't learned his lesson yet. Just because he was fighting against one of his enemies didn't mean that the others would patiently wait for him to finish. The smaller skags had circled behind him and latched onto his legs. Their three-jawed mouths opening that many wounds as they started biting him hard.

"Fuck!!" William cursed in pain and released the skag he just drained. Thankfully, he had finished the job, else this would've been even more dangerous for him. The drained skag turned into nothing but dust, only leaving two objects behind, the axe he threw in its mouth and a blue pistol with HYPERION written on its side.

William tried kicking out, but the smaller skags remained latched onto him, refusing to let go no matter what. Due to his movements, he stumbled, falling onto the ground. He almost impaled himself on the axe, but avoided it by the skin of his teeth. However, he fell on the gun, though he barely felt it due to the pain coming from his legs.

Grabbing the axe, William started hacking at the skags, opening nasty wounds with each strike. However, they refused to let go of their prey, except for one, which decided to lunge at his face. He barely raised his hands to stop the alien dog.

William struggled with all his might, holding the skag at bay and stopping it from biting down on his head. He might be able to regenerate thanks to Gluttony, however, he didn't think he will survive if it bit his head off. William held the skag for what felt like hours to him but was in fact only about a dozen seconds until he was finally able to use his ability again. Activating Phaseleech, he started draining the alien dog, turning it into a husk much quicker than the bigger one.

Grabbing the axe, which he dropped when he had to defend himself from the skag, William started hacking the two still latched onto his legs. He killed one of them quickly and used his ability on the other once it was up. The wounds on his legs somewhat recovered, but they were still bleeding. However, after he Phaseleeched the dead skag, most of them closed up.

William had gotten more than a few injuries from the scuffle with the alien dogs, but he came out better than before the fight as the wound on his waist had closed up. He even felt rejuvenated in a way, no longer feeling as tired from driving for hours.

Lying on the sand, William let out a tired sight. He felt full of energy, yet he still felt tired. The fight with the skags mentally drained him. It also reminded him that everything in this world was dangerous. At least one good thing came out of the fight, however.

[You have leveled up!]

[+1 Skill Point!]

William got another Skill Point from it. He made the decision on where to place it very quickly. There only two available options, so it wasn't that hard, but he picked Strength Beyond Measure. William needed to be stronger if he wished to survive this world, and the Skill would give him that opportunity. Granted, he will need to fight and drain many enemies, but it's not like he had other options.

"Or maybe I do?" William looked at the gun next to him. Borderlands was a game in which the player used guns as their weapons. Except for Brick, who could punch his enemies, but Brick was Brick.

William wished to use Phaseleech on living enemies as they granted him more life force as he figured out. However, he already learned how dangerous that was from the two close encounters he had. Having a gun could save him a lot of trouble, even if he didn't get to drain living enemies.

After letting out a tired sigh, William got up. The sun was blazing from above, and he really wished to find a place to hide away from it. He jumped in the car, but before he started the engine, he checked the gun. After tinkering with it for a bit, he found out it had a full magazine of 30 bullets.

"It's better than nothing," William muttered, trying to be optimistic about it, but his pessimistic side quickly took over. "Even if there were more, it's not like I would be able to hit anything with it." After all, he had never used a gun in his life. The fact that he managed to take out its magazine and return it was already a big surprise.

William started the engine and drove off in the distance. Searching for any place that wasn't entirely sand. However, midway through his drive, something unexpected happened. The car stopped moving and refused to budge. Obviously, it ran out of fuel.

"You've got to be kidding me!"