Patch 1.04

My breath grew sharper with each breath. Cold air bothered my lungs as I tried to walk. 

There was this instinct in me that was jumping at the slightest startle. My eyes had started to track the shadows of each tree. Making sure that there wasn't another beast tracking me.

Luckily there wasn't but you know what that meant. Exhaustion. A lot of it.

I never really bothered with how much energy it took to maintain this state of focus. Now that I was in the situation, I really felt it creeping up on me.

My eyes were looking at every tree, every bush, every big pile of snow. Then analyzing them for signs.

My god. That took up so much effort.

Efforts that only cumulated in a small clock at the very edge of my vision.

/./

[23:59:59]

/./

The timer was - assumedly - counting down until the end of the beta test. Or the end of my own test.

Which meant I would need to hurry. If I wanted to make any progress, I would have to hurry.

The death of that beast flashed through my mind. The writhing of the beast as it succumbed to its injuries. 

I exhaled a long breath. Excitement welled in my heart.

My eyes were entranced by another sight. Rather than the blood of a beast it was the empty buildings of a ghost town.

I was walking, just making my way in a random direction when I found it.

Snow tipped houses camouflaged into the background. With window panes made of glass and roads paved by some sort of ancient material. Among the ground - when I crouched - lay visible marks.

I crouched down and observed the place for a second. There weren't shadows in the glass. Nor was there any activity.

Confidently, I could say that there shouldn't be any people here. 

There was other things I could gleam from this place though.

The glass was developed, the shape of the houses were even more.

"19th century..." I whispered to myself.

This was most likely a frontier town. 

In those towns there would be something that I really wanted. 

'Guns.'

They would make this test easy. Almost pitifully easy.

It was a given that guns would be here. There were killer beasts skulking about everywhere which meant that the villagers had to defend themselves.

What better way than with guns.

 I hurried into the town and knocked on one of the closest places near me.

It was a little log cabin and inside it looked to be a stockpile of wood and a fireplace that connected to the chimney above.

"Bingo."

Along with everything else there were cans of food. Stuff that I could eat right now, I had lost my first source of food to what I presumed were wolves.

I jiggled with the door and made my way inside, I would come back for the cans, for now I wanted to see what was in the basement.

The door was locked but it was also rusted to hell and back. With one good kick it was open and I made my way into the cellar.

There were rows and rows of frozen meat. This place must have been a butcher.

However in this place was something that I needed even more. A flint and steel.

"Yes!" I yelled to myself.

I made my way back upstairs, took some of the already gathered wood and lit the fire. I warmed my hands then went back outside.

While this place was nice I had another objective.

I looked around the town. There was smoke coming out of the chimney of my - now - house. I took turns and looked at each house until I found one that was different.

It was the county jail. They had a rudimentary lock but like the cellar a good kick let me in. Inside there were several barred areas and skeletons trapped in those prisons.

A shiver ran down my spine.

I hurried around each individual place until I found a room filled with gear. There were some handcuffs - weird - but there was something weirder.

Instead of the squirrel rifle or the flintlock pistol I had expected there was something different. It was like a WWII era bolt action rifle. There were even several cartridges filled with many bullets.

I fiddled with the gun for a moment. The only experience I had was from using a pistol at the local range but that was ages ago.

I was inexperienced but I still found it easy to reload it and fire it. Weirdly enough, there was also a bayonet. I attached that and slung the rifle over my shoulder.

Afterwards I went back to the skeletons. I kicked the locks again and opened their cells.

"There we go."

I checked the bodies, but the only thing I found were ragged clothes and a half-burned cigarette.

My curiosity was sated. And so I closed the door to the cells and went back outside.

Only for my instincts to save me for a second time in the past two days.

I jumped back. Something had followed me and I wasn't able to see it. Even so, in the place I had jumped from was a small crater.

I tried to look through the snow but all I could see was the densely packed ice. I fiddled with the rifle for a second before I pointed it towards where I assumed the projectile came from.

My legs crouched slightly to facilitate my stance. I made sure to hold the rifle tightly and waited for the snow to settle.

I took a deep breath. Before the snow could settle there was a small rift that let me see my adversary.

It was only a moment but I pulled the trigger. The sound deafened me. But my shot rang true.

A sharp bullet that had pierced the eye of my adversary. Straight into the brain only to kill it and bring it tumbling down the second after.

///

[Skill: precision acquired]