Chapter 1

Luke’s eyes snapped open, and the first thing that filled his vision was the sky—an endless, rich blue stretching far above him, dotted with large, soft clouds that drifted lazily as if they had nowhere important to be. For a few seconds, he didn’t move. He simply stared, his mind blank, as though it hadn’t quite caught up with the fact that he was awake. A gentle breeze passed through the area, cool and refreshing, brushing against him in a way that felt almost deliberate. It slipped through his hair like careful fingers, soothing and familiar, like the comforting touch of someone who cared. The sensation settled something deep within him, a quiet calm that he hadn’t experienced in a very, very long time. It was strange—too peaceful, too gentle—and yet he didn’t want it to stop.

He remained like that for a while, just breathing and staring upward, before finally deciding to move. Slowly, with effort, Luke tried to raise his upper body from the ground. It should have been simple. It was simple—something he had done countless times before without a second thought. But the moment he pushed himself even slightly, a sharp, overwhelming pain shot through him. It was sudden and violent, like a bolt of lightning tearing through his entire body. His breath hitched, and before he could even react, his muscles locked up completely. He froze in place, unable to move, unable to do anything except endure it. The pain lingered for a few agonizing seconds before finally fading, leaving him limp and shaken.

“…What… was that…?” he muttered weakly, his voice barely above a whisper.

After a moment, he tried again, slower this time, more cautious. But as soon as he attempted to move, the pain returned—stronger, sharper, as if punishing him for trying again. It tore through him even worse than before, doubling in intensity and forcing another gasp from his lips. His body seized once more, refusing to obey him. That was enough. Luke gave up and let himself fall back onto the soft grass beneath him, breathing unevenly as he stared back up at the sky.

“Okay… bad idea… definitely a bad idea…”

He stayed still after that, not daring to test his limits again just yet. The grass beneath him was soft, almost unnaturally so, cushioning him in a way that felt more like a bed than the ground. The quiet around him was equally strange. No distant hum of traffic, no faint buzz of electronics—just the sound of wind brushing through leaves and the occasional rustle of something moving far off in the distance. It was peaceful… but unfamiliar.

With nothing else to focus on, his thoughts began to drift.

Memories of his old life slowly resurfaced, filling the silence. Luke had been just an average twenty-five-year-old man, living a life that wasn’t particularly exciting, but not entirely miserable either. He worked long hours for a company he didn’t care much about, pulling twenty-hour shifts that left him drained more often than not. The only way he managed to push through those exhausting days was by downing cup after cup of strong coffee, each one keeping him going just a little longer. It wasn’t a life he had dreamed of, but it was the one he had.

“…Yeah… sounds about right…” he murmured to himself.

Even so, he hadn’t hated it. Not really. There were small things—simple things—that made it bearable. In the little free time he had, which was usually no more than four hours, he found ways to enjoy himself. He would practice his art, lose himself in movies, or sit down and write fan-made stories based on shows he had loved as a child. Those moments, brief as they were, meant something to him. They gave him a sense of freedom, a chance to reconnect with a part of himself that the world often tried to bury.

His dad had been the same way. Back when Luke was younger, he never quite understood why his father would spend time doing things that seemed so… childish. But now, he got it. There was something comforting about those activities—something that made you feel lighter, younger, as if the weight of responsibility didn’t press down quite as hard. It was a small escape from reality, but it was enough.

“There was that one show…” Luke mumbled, his brow furrowing slightly as he tried to recall it. “I was gonna rewatch it…”

He had been looking forward to it, actually. It had been one of the few things he was genuinely excited about. All he had to do was get through his shift, clock out, and finally sit down to watch it again.

But that never happened.

The memory hit him suddenly, like a jolt.

He had been sitting at his desk, staring at his screen, going through the motions of another long shift. And then—pain. A sharp, crushing pain in his chest that came out of nowhere. It had been intense, unbearable, like his heart was being squeezed tighter and tighter with every passing second.

“…Ah,” he whispered, his eyes widening slightly.

That was it.

That was how it ended.

The pain had only gotten worse from there, spreading through his body until it felt like everything inside him was about to burst. He remembered struggling to breathe, his vision blurring, his thoughts scattering. And then… nothing.

Silence.

Darkness.

“…So I died,” Luke said quietly, the words leaving his mouth with an odd sense of acceptance.

It should have been terrifying to admit something like that, but strangely, it wasn’t. He didn’t feel panic or regret. If anything, there was a faint sense of peace. His life hadn’t been perfect, but he had made the most of what he had. In his own way, he had been content.

“…Guess that’s not the worst way to go,” he added with a faint, dry chuckle.

His thoughts slowly faded as his attention returned to the present. Carefully, he began to move again—this time not trying to sit up, but simply turning his head. To his surprise, the pain from earlier was gone. Completely gone. Encouraged by this, he moved a little more, testing his limits, and found that his body responded without resistance.

“…Huh… that’s new.”

With growing curiosity, he began looking around, taking in his surroundings for the first time. What he saw immediately struck him as… different. The world around him was far more vibrant than anything he remembered. The colors were brighter, richer, almost exaggerated. The leaves on the trees were a vivid green, each one standing out clearly, while the bushes seemed fuller and more defined than they should have been. Everything had a kind of smoothness to it, like it had been drawn rather than grown.

“…Why does this look so… weird?” he muttered.

There was something oddly familiar about it, though. Something that tugged at the back of his mind, just out of reach. He couldn’t quite place it, no matter how hard he tried.

As his gaze wandered, something else caught his attention—a small pile of wood lying a short distance away. Next to it was something else… something that didn’t quite look right. It was a shape, a form, but from where he was lying, he couldn’t make out the details clearly.

“…What is that?”

Curiosity pushed him to move again. This time, when he tried to get up, his body responded without pain. Relief washed over him as he slowly lifted himself and began to move forward. At first, everything seemed fine. But as he took a few steps, a strange feeling crept in.

Something was off.

“…Why does this feel so weird?” he said under his breath.

His movements didn’t feel natural—at least, not in the way he remembered. The way his body shifted, the way his weight distributed itself—it all felt… wrong. Even something as basic as walking felt unfamiliar, as if his body wasn’t built for it anymore.

He took a few more steps, frowning as discomfort grew.

“This isn’t right…”

The sensation became more noticeable the longer he continued. Walking on two legs felt awkward, unbalanced, like he was forcing his body into a position it didn’t want to maintain. A faint strain began to build, like a cramp threatening to form.

“…Okay, nope.”

Without thinking, he dropped down onto all fours.

The change was immediate.

“…Oh,” he said, blinking in surprise.

It felt… better.

Not perfect—but better. More stable. More natural.

“…Why does this feel normal?” he questioned, a hint of confusion creeping into his voice.

He didn’t have time to dwell on it, though. As he began moving forward again, it quickly became clear that this wasn’t going to be easy. Each step was clumsy, uncoordinated. His limbs didn’t move the way he expected them to, and more than once, he tripped over himself and stumbled forward into the grass.

“Seriously…?” he groaned after one particularly awkward fall.

There was no one around to witness his struggle, which was the only small comfort he had at the moment. Pushing himself back up, he tried again. And again. Each attempt was just a little better than the last. Slowly, he began to figure it out—how to shift his weight, how to move each limb without throwing himself off balance.

“…Okay… I think I’m getting it…”

It wasn’t graceful. Not even close. But it was progress.

With each shaky step, he inched closer to the pile of wood and the strange shape beside it, his curiosity growing stronger with every passing moment. Whatever was waiting there, he was determined to find out.

Even if everything about this situation felt completely, utterly wrong.

Chapter 2

Luke finally came to an unsteady stop just a few steps short of the large bush that stood in his way, its thick branches and dense leaves forming a natural barrier between him and whatever lay beyond. Up close, the bush seemed even larger than it had from a distance, its greenery vibrant and almost unnaturally full, like something pulled straight from a painting. The leaves rustled softly as the wind passed through them, creating a faint whispering sound that made the quiet forest feel even more alive. Beyond it, partially obscured, he could still make out the scattered shapes of wood and that unmoving figure he had spotted earlier. His curiosity pressed at him, stronger now, urging him forward despite the strange unease settling in his chest.

“…Just a little closer,” he muttered to himself.

Carefully, Luke raised one of his limbs, intending to push aside the branches and force a path through. The motion felt awkward, still unfamiliar, but he managed to guide it toward the bush. The moment his limb made contact with the leaves, however, something felt… wrong. The sensation that traveled back through him was not what he expected—not even close. It lacked the subtle texture he remembered, the light brushing feeling of leaves against skin. Instead, it felt duller, muted in a way that immediately set off alarm bells in his mind.

“…What?”

He froze, his limb still pressed against the bush. That wasn’t right. He had touched plants countless times before. He knew what it should feel like. This… this wasn’t it.

“…Did I mess up my nerves or something…?” he said under his breath, confusion quickly turning into concern.

Trying to make sense of it, Luke focused, attempting to wiggle his fingers—something small, something simple. He waited for the familiar sensation, the subtle movement he had always taken for granted.

Nothing happened.

There was no response.

No feeling.

His breath caught.

“…No… no, no, no…”

A cold wave of dread washed over him as he quickly pulled his limb back, his gaze snapping toward it. What he saw made his heart drop.

“…What… is that…?”

What should have been an arm… wasn’t.

Instead, extending out from his body was something entirely different—something thicker, longer, covered in short fur, and ending not in fingers, but in a solid, rounded shape. A hoof.

His eyes widened in sheer disbelief.

“…That’s not… my arm…”

Panic surged through him as he quickly raised his other limb, only to be met with the same sight. Another hoof. Another limb that didn’t belong to the body he remembered.

“No—no, this isn’t real!”

He flailed both of them wildly in front of him, as if the frantic motion might somehow fix things, might snap everything back to normal. His movements were erratic, uncoordinated, almost desperate. The world around him blurred slightly as his breathing quickened, his chest tightening with every passing second.

“This has to be a dream—there’s no way—there’s no way this is real!”

He kept going for a few more seconds, caught in that rising panic, until the realization slowly began to settle in.

Nothing was changing.

The limbs—his limbs—remained exactly as they were.

The frantic movement slowed, then stopped entirely. Luke stood there, breathing heavily, staring at his own body as if hoping it would suddenly make sense. It didn’t.

“…Okay… okay… calm down…” he whispered, though his voice trembled slightly.

He closed his eyes and took a slow breath in, then another out, forcing himself to steady his racing thoughts. Panicking wasn’t going to help. It wasn’t going to change anything. As much as he wanted to deny it, this was real.

“…This is real…”

Reluctantly, he lowered his gaze, his attention shifting back toward the pile of wood beyond the bush. For a moment, he hesitated, as if unsure whether he even wanted to keep going. But curiosity, stubborn as ever, pushed him forward again.

Carefully, he used his new limb—his hoof—to nudge the branches aside. It was awkward, and the lack of proper grip made it difficult, but after a bit of effort, he managed to create a small opening. Stepping through, he emerged on the other side, the scene now fully visible before him.

Up close, the pile of wood looked even more out of place. The pieces were scattered in a loose heap, some stacked awkwardly atop others, as if something had violently torn them apart. They weren’t just random logs or fallen branches either—these were shaped, carved, crafted. The edges were smooth, the surfaces detailed with intricate designs that hinted at careful workmanship.

“…This definitely wasn’t just lying around out here…” Luke said quietly.

He moved closer, examining the pieces more carefully. The carvings caught his eye first—patterns etched into the wood that suggested it had once been something more than just a simple structure. Something decorative. Something important.

“…A wagon…?” he guessed, his voice thoughtful.

As if to confirm his suspicion, his gaze landed on a broken section of a wheel, half-buried beneath the rest of the debris. The curved wood and spokes were unmistakable.

“…Yeah… definitely a wagon.”

He slowly circled the remains, taking in the damage. Whatever had happened here, it hadn’t been gentle. The wagon hadn’t just broken—it had been destroyed.

With that thought lingering in his mind, Luke turned his attention to the other thing lying beside the wreckage.

The body.

He hesitated.

“I really shouldn’t be doing this…” he muttered, glancing around as if expecting someone to suddenly appear and stop him.

But the forest remained silent.

Swallowing his unease, he approached slowly, his steps cautious and uneven. He kept his distance at first, observing from afar. The figure didn’t move. It didn’t react.

Still, he wasn’t taking any chances.

“…Better safe than sorry.”

Looking around, he spotted a fallen branch nearby and awkwardly picked it up, maneuvering it with his mouth after a couple failed attempts with his hooves.

“…This is already weird enough…”

Holding the stick out in front of him, he leaned forward and gently poked the body.

No response.

He poked it again.

Still nothing.

“…Yeah… not moving…”

After a moment of hesitation, he dropped the stick and stepped closer, his curiosity now outweighing his fear. The first thing that stood out to him was the color. The body was covered in fur—a bright, almost striking orange that stood out vividly against the green grass.

“…That’s… really bright…”

It didn’t take long for him to recognize the shape.

“…A horse…?” he said slowly.

That realization felt strange in itself. Horses didn’t look like this where he came from. They weren’t this colorful, this… stylized.

“…What kind of place is this…?”

He lowered one of his hooves and gently placed it against the body. The moment he made contact, he felt the coldness.

“…Cold…”

It was the kind of cold that told him this body had been here for a while. And yet… something didn’t add up. There were no signs of decay, no smell, nothing that suggested it had been here long enough to match that coldness.

“…That’s weird…”

His gaze slowly moved upward, settling on the face. As he looked at it, an odd feeling crept over him—something he couldn’t quite explain. It felt… familiar. Not in a clear, recognizable way, but in a subtle, lingering sense, like a memory just out of reach.

“…Do I… know you…?”

He frowned, shaking his head slightly.

“No… that doesn’t make sense…”

Pulling his hoof back, he stepped away, trying to shake off the strange feeling. That was when something else caught his eye—a large patch of disturbed dirt near the wreckage.

“…Was that there before…?”

He slowly approached it, his movements still slightly unsteady. The ground looked as though something had impacted it with force, the soil uneven and displaced.

“…Like something fell…”

His thoughts immediately jumped to a possibility. Slowly, he lifted his gaze, scanning the area until it settled on the towering rocky mountain nearby. It loomed over the forest, steep and imposing.

“…Did it fall from up there?”

The idea made sense. A wagon, a fall, a crash—it all lined up neatly. But as he studied the mountain more closely, doubt crept in. He couldn’t spot any clear cliff edge or path that would explain such a fall.

“…I don’t see where it could’ve come from…”

He frowned.

“…Then what happened here…?”

A second possibility formed in his mind, one far less comforting than the first.

“…What if this wasn’t an accident…?”

The thought lingered, heavy and unsettling. He couldn’t prove it, but he couldn’t dismiss it either.

“…This could’ve been… something else…”

The idea of this being a staged scene, something meant to hide a darker truth, made the quiet forest feel far less peaceful.

Luke exhaled slowly, trying to push the thought aside.

“…Whatever this place is… it’s not normal.”

He glanced down at himself again, at his unfamiliar body, and let out a quiet, uneasy breath.

“…And I’m definitely not normal either…”

After a moment, he made a decision. Standing around here wasn’t going to help him. If there were answers, he wasn’t going to find them in this clearing.

“…I need to find people… a village… something.”

The idea brought a small sense of relief. If there were others out there—if there was some kind of civilization—then maybe he could figure things out.

But as soon as that thought settled, another feeling rose to the surface.

Hunger.

It hit him suddenly, sharply, like a reminder he couldn’t ignore. His stomach twisted uncomfortably, and he realized just how empty he felt.

“…Great… perfect timing…”

He glanced around at the surrounding plants, uncertainty written all over his face.

“I don’t even know what I can eat here…”

The last thing he wanted was to accidentally poison himself.

“…Yeah… no. Bad idea.”

He sighed.

“…Guess I’ll just have to deal with it…”

A village would solve that problem too—food, safety, answers. It was his best option.

“…I’ll just get there and figure things out…”

That was when something else caught his eye.

Near the body, partially tucked against its side, was a saddlebag.

Luke stared at it for a moment.

“…Right…”

He didn’t like the idea. Not at all.

“…I shouldn’t…”

But then again…

“…It’s not like they’re going to need it…”

He hesitated, conflicted, before letting out a small sigh.

“…Sorry…”

Slowly, reluctantly, he moved toward the body once more, his gaze fixed on the saddlebag.

“…I’ll make good use of it… I promise…”

Chapter 3

Luke slowly reached one of his forelegs toward the saddlebag lying beside the unmoving body, fully intending to take it with him before leaving the clearing behind. After everything he had discovered over the last hour, he wasn’t foolish enough to walk into an unfamiliar forest with absolutely nothing on him. If there was food, supplies, or even money inside the bag, then he needed it far more than the dead horse did now. Unfortunately, the simple act of picking the bag up proved to be far more difficult than he expected.

His hoof awkwardly bumped against the side of the saddlebag, nudging it slightly across the grass.

“…Come on…”

Luke tried again, pressing the edge of his hoof against the strap in an attempt to hook it somehow, but the bag only tipped over onto its side. He frowned and tried using both forelegs this time, awkwardly attempting to pin the bag down while lifting it at the same time. The result was just as pathetic.

The saddlebag slid a few inches through the grass.

“That’s not helping…”

A small wave of frustration began building inside him. He smacked the side of the bag harder with his hoof, irritation growing with every failed attempt.

“Why is this so difficult?!”

His hoof hit the bag again with a dull thud.

Luke froze.

Slowly, very slowly, he turned his attention downward toward the hoof that rested against the grass.

Right.

He no longer had hands.

The realization hit him again with the same strange heaviness as before. He stared silently at the dark shape of his hoof for several long seconds while the wind gently brushed through the clearing, causing the tall grass around him to sway softly. It was such a simple thing—hands. Something he had relied on every single day without even thinking about it. Typing, opening doors, holding pencils, carrying groceries, drawing, making coffee… all of those little actions had once felt effortless.

Now he couldn’t even pick up a bag.

“…Wow,” he muttered quietly.

A small smile slowly tugged at the corner of his mouth despite himself, followed by a tired chuckle.

“Guess I really took those for granted…”

There was something strangely humbling about it. Back in his old life, he had complained about work, about exhaustion, about long shifts and aching muscles. Yet now, stranded in a bizarre world inside the body of what he could only assume was a horse, he suddenly found himself missing the smallest things imaginable.

Luke exhaled softly before lowering his head toward the saddlebag instead. After a moment of awkward fumbling, he managed to grab one of the straps with his teeth and lift it. The bag was surprisingly heavy, forcing his neck downward slightly from the weight.

“…What do they even have in here… rocks?”

Carefully maneuvering himself, Luke tossed the saddlebag onto his back. It slipped sideways at first, nearly falling off completely, but after several frustrating attempts involving a lot of twisting, hopping, and muttered swearing, he finally managed to secure it well enough that it wouldn’t immediately slide off when he moved.

“There… good enough…”

With the saddlebag resting unevenly against his sides, Luke slowly turned away from the wreckage and the body beside it. His eyes drifted toward the thick forest stretching out ahead of him. The trees towered overhead, their branches weaving together high above to form a shifting canopy of leaves. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in scattered beams, painting patches of gold across the forest floor.

The deeper parts of the woods looked dark.

Uncomfortably dark.

Luke swallowed slightly.

“…Well… no point standing around here forever.”

Taking a cautious breath, he began moving forward into the forest.

The further he traveled, the stranger the world around him became. At first, the plants seemed merely colorful—flowers blooming in vivid pastel shades that almost looked painted rather than natural. Bright pinks, deep blues, glowing yellows. But the longer he traveled, the more unusual things became.

Some of the plants had faces.

Not realistic ones, thankfully, but enough to make Luke stop and stare uneasily whenever he spotted them. Tiny eyes hidden among leaves. Flowers with curved smiles. Bushes whose branches seemed almost shaped like reaching claws.

“…Nope. Nope, nope, nope.”

Luke quickly gave one particularly unsettling flower patch a wide berth.

“Absolutely not touching that.”

Oddly enough, the normal-looking plants worried him more.

There was something about those brightly colored flowers that triggered every survival warning he had ever learned from books or documentaries.

“Bright colors usually mean poison…” he murmured.

Whether that rule applied here or not, he wasn’t interested in testing it personally. His stomach already felt painfully empty, but random foraging in an unknown world sounded like an excellent way to accidentally poison himself to death.

The animals weren’t much less strange. Some resembled creatures from Earth, but only vaguely. He spotted birds with tiny curled cow horns perched atop their heads, rabbits with tails that resembled fluffy feathers, and squirrel-like creatures with oddly long legs that allowed them to leap absurd distances between trees.

“…Okay, that’s definitely not normal either.”

Still, most of them were small.

Manageable.

That changed nearly twenty minutes later.

Luke immediately ducked behind a nearby tree the moment he spotted the massive creature lumbering through the underbrush ahead. It was huge—far larger than him—and moved with the kind of heavy confidence that instantly screamed predator. Its body was bulky and muscular beneath dark fur, and every movement sent smaller animals scattering out of its path.

Luke carefully peeked around the tree.

“…Yeah, no thanks.”

The creature let out a low growl at another nearby animal, causing it to flee immediately.

Luke slowly pulled his head back behind the tree trunk.

“Incredible. First day here and I’m already hiding from forest monsters.”

He stayed perfectly still, waiting patiently for the large creature to disappear deeper into the woods before finally continuing onward. If there was one thing Luke had learned from life, it was that survival often meant avoiding unnecessary risks.

Even if it made him feel cowardly sometimes.

As time passed, Luke gradually became more comfortable moving on all fours. He still stumbled occasionally, especially when terrain changed suddenly beneath him, but it was no longer happening every few seconds. His movements were smoother now. More balanced.

“…Okay,” he admitted quietly while trotting around a fallen log. “I’m actually getting better at this.”

That realization was both satisfying and deeply unsettling.

The longer he moved this way, the more natural it began to feel.

Still, another problem slowly began creeping into his mind.

Everything looked the same.

Every tree blurred together. Every patch of grass and cluster of bushes seemed nearly identical. After what felt like over an hour of wandering, Luke began worrying that he might actually be walking in circles.

“…Please don’t tell me I’m lost already.”

Just as anxiety began tightening in his chest, the sound of rushing water reached his ears.

Luke’s ears twitched instinctively toward the sound before he even realized they had moved.

“…Did I just do that?”

Shaking the thought aside, he pushed through a final row of bushes and emerged beside a massive river.

The sight immediately stopped him in place.

The river was enormous, its powerful current surging rapidly downstream with enough force to carry away entire logs. The water churned violently in some areas, crashing against rocks and creating white foam that drifted along the surface.

“…Yeah, crossing that would kill me.”

He stared at it for a moment before slowly turning his gaze downstream.

Something tugged at his memory then—something he had read years ago.

“Civilizations usually form around water…”

The thought gave him a small spark of hope.

“…Worth a shot.”

And so Luke began following the river.

Nearly half an hour later, however, he encountered something far stranger than colorful birds or creepy flowers.

At first, he thought the pile of wood ahead was just debris scattered across the forest floor.

Then it moved.

The wooden pieces suddenly lifted into the air, twisting together unnaturally until they formed the shape of a massive wolf. Branches became legs. Jagged wood formed teeth. Hollow glowing eyes locked directly onto him.

Luke stared.

“…You know what? At this point, I’m not even surprised anymore.”

Oddly enough, he wasn’t terrified.

Exhausted? Confused? Concerned? Absolutely.

But not terrified.

The moment the wooden wolf stepped toward him, Luke immediately darted beneath a nearby bush. Staying low, he quickly grabbed a small stone with his mouth before tossing it hard into the opposite direction.

The stone crashed loudly through nearby bushes.

The wooden wolf’s head snapped toward the sound.

Without hesitation, the creature charged after it.

The moment it disappeared, Luke burst from hiding and ran.

“Still got it,” he panted between breaths.

He continued following the river for what felt like another two hours. By then, the sky above had begun turning orange as evening slowly settled over the forest. Shadows stretched longer between the trees, and the once colorful woods became darker and far more intimidating.

Luke finally slowed to a stop.

“…Yeah… I’m not traveling at night.”

The idea of wandering through this forest in complete darkness sounded suicidal.

Reluctantly, he decided to camp beside the river.

As the remaining sunlight faded, Luke began preparing as best he could. First, he used his hooves to clear away dry leaves and anything else nearby that looked flammable.

“Last thing I need is accidentally burning down the forest.”

After clearing a small area, he dug through the saddlebag until he found a rope. An idea immediately came to him.

Using his mouth and a lot of awkward maneuvering, Luke tied one end loosely around one of his legs and the other around a nearby tree.

“…There. Can’t get too lost now.”

It felt ridiculous, but practical.

Gathering firewood turned out to be another challenge entirely. Every suitable stick had to be picked up with his mouth before being carried back individually. It took forever.

“This would’ve taken ten minutes with hands…”

Eventually, though, he managed to gather enough dry wood into a pile. Afterward, he searched for stones suitable for creating sparks. The forest had grown considerably darker by then, forcing him to rely heavily on moonlight and careful searching.

When he finally returned to camp, he immediately got to work.

Luke placed dried leaves beneath the wood pile before awkwardly striking two stones together over them. Sparks flew several times before finally—

A tiny ember caught.

Luke’s eyes widened immediately.

“Oh! Oh, come on…”

He carefully lowered his head and gently blew against the tiny flame.

“Don’t die… don’t die…”

The ember glowed brighter.

Then suddenly—

Fwoosh.

The leaves ignited.

“Yes!”

Relieved, Luke carefully nudged the burning leaves beneath the dry sticks. Slowly, steadily, the fire began to grow, its warm orange glow pushing back the darkness surrounding his tiny camp.

For the first time since waking up in this strange world, Luke sat beside the crackling fire and quietly watched the darkness beyond its light, hoping that whatever lurked deeper in the forest would choose to stay far away tonight.