3 Harsh World

I slowly got up and grabbed the sharp rock in my hand, purely out of instinct. The pair of eyes kept moving closer and the growling got louder. I slowly backed up and realized my back had touched the tree trunk and I had pushed myself to a vulnerable position.

There were only two places left to go, one straight into the forest cover in front of where the monster with two eyes was lurking and the other in the pitch-black forest behind me. Either option didn't seem too appealing but one was obviously better than the other.

The instant I turned my back on the monster and walked into the darkness of the forest I started running and at the same time, I heard a huge roar. In the pitch-black darkness surrounded by all the dead trees, I kept running. I ran harder than I ever have before, tripping and falling, running head-first into the trees but I kept running because if I didn't I knew I would die. The roars kept getting louder and I could hear the ground shaking behind me. If I couldn't hide soon I would be eaten alive.

I covered myself in mud to hide my scent and eventually found a cave even darker than the forest. I was literally blind but it was my only option for safety. I ran into the cave and huddled up in the corner, the rock still in my hand. My hands shaking in fear, my breath shallow and panting. I was powerless to do anything right now and my life was placed entirely in the hands of luck. Suddenly at the entrance of the grave, I heard heavy footsteps, too heavy to be human, it was the monster. with the contrast in the darkness between the cave and the forest, I was barely able to make out the monster's actual shape.

It was huge, larger than any carnivore you could find, with large sabre tooth teeth but bigger than any large cat I had seen. Its four-limbed body was muscular and strong, no amount of physical strength would stop it and you could tell just by looking at its glowing eyes that the darkness was not a problem for it and I was in its playground. All I could do was stay silent and hope that it didn't enter the cave.

I held my breath as it circled around the entrance, praying with all my might that it doesn't enter, after a few seconds I heard an annoyed growl as it turned away and left swiftly back into the forest.

All the strength left my body as I lay down in the cave, gasping for breath and a wave of relief washed over me, I could feel my heart beat all throughout my body as I placed my mud-covered hand on my chest to calm it down.

I had no sense of time but it took about fifteen minutes to finally compose myself and my body to listen as I got up and assessed my situation. First and foremost, I needed water to drink and wash my body, otherwise, the mud on my body would infect my wounds.

I ventured deeper into the cave as I heard droplets of water falling and found a tiny stream running through it, I plunged my face headfirst into the water and the ice-cold water finally brought me back to my senses completely. I took off all my clothes and started washing them before finally washing my body thoroughly. After I was done I sat near the stream, butt naked as the cold enveloped me, wearing my clothes would have been even worse. I needed warmth or else I would succumb to hypothermia.

I ventured just outside the cave and gathered the dead leaves and dry branches scattered all around the canopy of the dead trees, bringing them back to the cave.

I used the leaves as fodder and I smacked the rocks against each other to create a spark, as the fodder lit up I surrounded it with the dry branches as fuel and kept blowing on it. By the time the fire was stable, I had spent a lot of my energy and was completely exhausted. My whole body was in pain but at least I was warm.

I was glad I had a heavy breakfast in the morning in my old world, otherwise, I would have been starving right now and since I was probably at the bottom of the food chain, there was nothing here to eat other than dead leaves.

Once my clothes and my body were dry, I dressed up again and decided to stay the rest of the night in the cave, my intuition suggested that the sun would rise anytime soon and even though it seemed like the dark forest wouldn't be affected, it was always safer in the mornings.

I took a large stick and using a part of my shirt which I had torn, I tied the sharp rock to the stick and made a makeshift spear. I grabbed it tightly and sat down straight keeping my back to the wall, I leaned my head against the handle of the spear and nodded off into my sleep. Heavily debating staying awake but realising that I would be too tired to walk if I did.

I slipped in and out of consciousness the rest of the night, my mind slipping in and out of dreams, some very weird, others making my blood boil, my mind making up intrusive thoughts of what had happened throughout the day, making up scenes and imagery that made me disgusted. My sleep had been broken by the end of it and as I got up and headed to the entrance of the cave with an irritated mind, I looked at the surroundings, Just as dark as before, but ever so slightly illuminated. I looked up into the sky and through the crack of darkness, I could see the sunshine. Just as I figured it was morning.

I went back to the cave and gathered everything, I tried to find a way to collect some water but to no avail. my stomach was starting to protest and I needed to get out of this place as fast as possible. In the complete darkness of the forest, there was no way for me to have a sense of direction so it was impossible to go back through the route I came from.

I went outside the cave, with my battered and bruised body, surrounded by trees all around me, having no clue where to go. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths and as I opened my eyes again I went straight into the forest, hoping that my terrible luck until now had turned in my favor and I hoped to god that I had picked the right direction.

As I took my first step into the darkness again, I looked back at the cave. The only place of safety I had encountered, not knowing whether another safe haven like this would come again, but I knew I had to leave, the only thing I could find in the cave would be death, only slightly postponed as compared to the forest. I took a deep breath and turned back to the forest, taking gentle steps as I continued my journey...