Chương 3: Initiation (3)

Taking a deep breath, he made his way towards the group. As he walked, another person appeared at the edge of the cliff, looking around wildly. Rowan watched the man for a moment before turning his attention back towards the people before him. Rowan swallowed, mustered up his courage, and called out, "Hey!" The people paused their conversations and turned towards him. With them all facing him, Rowan was able to get a better look at the group. There were three women and two men.

One of the women was sitting on the ground in a gray hoodie, staring into the distance. The other two were dressed similarly, wearing sweatpants and sweatshirts. As for the men, one of them was wearing a suit similar to the one Rowan was wearing, only of higher quality. The other was big. Very big. Rowan wasn't exactly short, but next to the giant before him, he felt tiny. But other than his size, there wasn't anything else that seemed unique about the man. They all seemed so normal.

In his head, Rowan had expected most, if not all, of the members who were in Apocalypse difficulty to be obviously different. Perhaps this group had been on the brink of death when the System came as well? Shaking his head, he walked up to the group. They exchanged greetings, and the man in the suit offered Rowan a handshake. He took it, but kept his guard up all the while, ready to pull away or fight. After a few moments of awkward silence, one of the women smiled at him.

She had brown hair and skin that was just a shade lighter.

"So, why did you choose Apocalypse difficulty? These bitches," She gestured at the rest of the group, "won't tell me their reasons. I'm Hannah, by the way." Rowan nodded even as he felt what little hope he'd held that these people would be normal slip away.

"Rowan. Nice to meet you."

"Here, what if I tell you why I chose Apocalypse? Will you tell me your reason?" He did his best to keep his face blank, but internally, Rowan was squirming. It wasn't just Hannah's fixation on figuring out why he'd 'chosen' to enter Apocalypse Difficulty. No, it was all of them. The way they were so calm was unsettling.

All five of the people around him wore perfectly serene masks, almost as if they weren't bothered by the fact that some kind of System had teleported them into a tutorial that they knew nothing about. Rowan was doing his best to hide his unrest and anxiety, but he was on the verge of panic. He'd always been good at masking his emotions, but right now, there was just too much for him to push it down. He was jerked out of his thoughts as Hannah started speaking once more.

"Well, I chose Apocalypse because I thought it would be fun! I mean, imagine if we get to fight monsters? The people in easy difficulty will probably be killing mice or something." She snorted.

"I really hope there are monsters. Anyway, your turn!" Rowan took a long moment to consider his response. Maybe Hannah really was unstable, or maybe she was just putting on a mask, pretending to be a cheerful, if strange person, when she was actually cold and calculating. If she was masking her true self, he couldn't blame her; he was doing the same, hiding behind the stern mask he was wearing. Still, no matter what the truth was, something about her was unsettling.

The real question was whether or not he should reveal that he'd been forced into picking Apocalypse Difficulty. In the end, he chose not to. He doubted anyone could use that information against him, but he didn't know that they couldn't. And for that reason, he would keep it to himself. Was he overreacting? Probably. But Rowan didn't care. He'd nearly died. And now, he was stuck in a conversation with someone who chose to be in Apocalypse difficulty because she thought it would be fun.

As much as he didn't want to admit it, he was terrified.

"I'm sorry, but I'd prefer not to share." Rowan did his best to sound firm without being too aggressive. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Aww," Hannah pouted, "You're no fun." She shot him a smile, and without another word, she ran off towards another woman who had just appeared, no doubt to ask the same questions she'd asked him. Taking a step away from the rest of the group, Rowan took a look around. Every once in a while, another person would appear. While most of them quickly formed groups or separated from the rest, a few people had deviated from the others. One man appeared, let out a wild whoop, and then ran full speed into the nearby forest.

Another woman did the same, though in a much calmer and more orderly manner. As Rowan stood there, he nearly fell over in surprise as a woman appeared just feet from him. The calm mask he'd been trying so hard to maintain cracked as he scrambled back. For a moment, they just stared at each other before her eyes went distant as she looked at what he assumed to be the welcoming message from the System.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, she began crying hysterically, yelling about how she never wanted to be here in the first place. After a while, her sobs died down, and Rowan could only hear the occasional muttering about it all being a dream or that it wasn't fair. She wasn't alone, either. As more and more people showed up, every once in a while, they would break down just like the woman before him. It was comforting to know, or at least assume, that there were others here who hadn't chosen Apocalypse.

The simple fact that he wasn't alone nearly made him approach the woman or any of the others who he suspected were in the same situation as he was. But he held off. He didn't know what people acting like that would do—he stopped himself. He was in the same boat as they were. And yet, he wasn't panicking. Why? He'd never been the most level-headed or calm person, but he supposed he'd never seen how he would react in a situation like this. Still, his own actions left him feeling strange. He was judging them.

Judging them for panicking after being teleported from wherever they were to the Tutorial. And, if he was correct, they had been about to die as well before Earth was initiated. Moving to an area that was mostly clear of others, Rowan thought. He chalked up most of what he was doing to shock. He'd always been an analytical person, so it made sense that, combined with being teleported to some mysterious place, he'd been acting so callously and cautiously towards others. But he already knew this.

After all, it was him that he was thinking about. What confused him was how he was acting so calm about it all. He'd expected that if disaster ever struck, he would react well to it, but this? Sure, his heart was pounding against his ribs, and he was barely containing his own panic, but he was doing it. It wasn't just shock and fear in him; there was something else. Then, Rowan felt it. A little, barely noticeable part of himself was excited.

It was so small that he hadn't even noticed his own emotions, but it was growing, overwhelming his fear. And as it grew, he could feel his heart thump a little harder. This time with both terror and anticipation. He was in a new, likely dangerous world. But if he hadn't been brought here, he would've been dead, buried beneath the collapsed scaffolding. He had been given a second chance. A new shot at life in whatever the Tutorial truly was. And the possibilities the System brought with it were endless.

Taking a deep breath, he reigned in his emotions. A little excitement was good; it helped keep him focused and in control of his other emotions. Too much, though, that was just as bad as none at all. With his newfound enthusiasm, Rowan tried to think practically about the situation at hand. Since he'd arrived here, he hadn't done much other than check his Status Screen and have a less-than-productive conversation with Hannah.

So far, there had been no real danger, but with the game-like elements and being in Apocalypse Difficulty, he was sure they were to come. Rowan felt himself calm down as he thought of a list of things to do. The brainstorming helped him forget his worries. First, he would need something to defend himself with. Then, he would try to get a sense of the area. Maybe he could climb one of the trees? Looking around, he found an older woman leaning up against one of the trunks.

At least it didn't seem like he would die from touching them. Figuring he could also get a weapon in the form of a branch from the trees, he began to move towards the treeline. The difficulty selection period has come to an end. Any users who haven't chosen a difficulty will be brought to the one best suited for the user. Layer quests will be assigned. For Easy through Hell Difficulty, the grace period will end in 15 minutes. For all difficulties, weapon selection will begin in 10 minutes.

For Apocalypse Difficulty, the grace period will end now. Starting slightly at the notification, he came to a halt. Reading the first couple of lines, he frowned. If he'd just refused to select a difficulty, would he have been brought somewhere safer? Rowan shook his head. There was no use dwelling on it, and even if he had done that, the System would've probably brought him to Apocalypse anyway. As he read the next two lines, his hope and anticipation grew.

Then, he read the last line, and his excitement was replaced by dread. The grace period that he hadn't even known about was over, and he hadn't even gotten to select a weapon yet. Rowan felt a spike of fear shoot through his body as a mighty roar echoed from the forest.