Eric Felix never expected it to happen, one second, he was getting ready to go to bed after he tended to his family's farm. Maybe he would call one of his friends to see if they could schedule a road trip or something. Been awhile since they hanged out like that.
Then he was in a horror movie the next second.
Walking into his house he goes upstairs into his room, checking his phone one last time he couldn't call anyone, in fact he couldn't even use it. 'Okay nothing too weird me, just check your laptop.' Eric thought as he got up from his queen size bed, that couldn't really fit him anymore and went to his laptop.
Grabbing it he logged in, though the same thing happened-he couldn't use it either. When he couldn't use his phone, he probably thought that it was a glitch or internet issue. Now he still thought it was an internet issue or something, but his nerves were tingling, screaming that something was wrong.
His hairs stood straight up, he began to sweat profusely, and now he knew for a fact that something was terribly wrong. Darting out of his rooms into his parents' room he couldn't find them, 'Why aren't they here?! They went to sleep 10 minutes ago... Wait the hell is?' As Eric thought he went to check out the bed.
He noticed that although his parents were gone, they were indents of what seemed to be them resting, the blanket was still covering the spots his parents were supposed to be. It looked like whatever took them did it in an instant without touching anything but them.
"What the hell is going on now?" Eric mainly asked himself that, what he didn't realize however was the creaks that came from the stairs. Eric already on guard went under the bed and hid between the boxes next to him, leaving only a sliver to see what had broken into his home.
'Damn it, why didn't I go to the window when I had the chance? Well, no choice now I've got to hide here.' As Eric was internally panicking the person that had broken into his home revealed itself as they walked through the doorway.
However, that "person" wasn't one, instead of a human being breaking into Eric's home was a black figure that looked starved, its sickly white eyes gazing around looking for something-someone.
Eric was now holding his breath unconsciously; his 6,1 frame now squeezing together to curl into a ball and stay as quiet as possible. While others would say he could hold his own in a fight, he wasn't built to fight supernatural beings.
The entity was now walking and circling around the bed checking the closets, the thing was now looking like it was going to leave the room, giving chance for Eric to escape. Except it stopped at the doorway, then staring straight at Eric's hiding spot-it smiles at him.
Eric felt his heart stop beating for a second, then the shadow entity grabbed the bed and flipped it over making it go through the window.
A crash was heard as it hit the truck that Eric could've used as a getaway vehicle.
Eric immediately pushed himself up and tried to punch the thing, not the smartest thing he did, but he tried it.
His fist phased through the creature as another fist went through his chest piercing his lungs, now feeling a pull in the area of where one of his lungs should be. Looking down at the shadow in his chest pulling out his lung.
It phased through his ribcage and completely pulled out one of his lungs.
The entity now smiling dipping its finger into Eric's puddle of blood and painting a smile on its face, "f-fuck, you... To-o... Bitch." Were the last words of Eric, the only words he could make out while he was choking on his own blood, as well as mustering enough strength to make a middle finger.
With that the end of Eric Felix. Another beginning would happen to him in another world, a second chance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
...
Eric awakes in another world already flinching preparing for death or getting torn apart again. However, he doesn't get met with any of that, instead he's met with dirt straight in his face and clothes that look different than what he was wearing.
"This is so much bullshit, man what the actually hell did I do to deserve this bull?" Saying that out loud he didn't notice what was hiding in the shadows.
Walking through the green lush forest trail with a somewhat nice path, it seems that it was taken care of but by who? Eric dismissed these questions as he pushed his way through the area.
Eventually it was night fall, he still hadn't stopped walking his stamina not even waning at all. It surprised him, sure he was athletic, but he could barely finish a marathon without being exhausted and huffing and puffing.
He decides to set up a campfire next to a river he found a little down to a fork in the road, remembering what his parents taught him he gathered some sticks and branches, then he got the tinder in the form of dried grass and leaves, assembling it in the way required he then need to actually start the fire.
Searching around for his personal lighter and he finds that it has disappeared alongside the rest of his original outfit. "Damn it... time to start rubbing sticks now." As Eric mutters to himself a voice called back to him.
"No need for that kiddo, I got a lighter right here." Immediately upon hearing the voice coming from behind him Eric spins around and nearly sidekicks the being in the ribs.
The old man dodging the kick with ease just gives Eric a sideways glance, "Assuming you didn't come here in a pleasant way huh? Don't worry I'm not a threat or anything, you should be glad that it's me instead of what roams these woods." The old man than puts his hand on Eric's shoulder and makes him sit down, pulling his lighter out the man then begins to pull out what looks like two cups and a couple of tea bag.
"Okay, so what the hell is wandering in the forest?" Eric asks the old man while reluctantly sitting down with him still on guard. "Oh, it's been a while since anybody has said anything about it, but the story changes each time mainly because of how many things are in the woods." The old man pauses for a couple moments scratching his head, "I believe the one that was stalking you was a wendigo-like creature, the Algonquian tribe if I'm correct. This one is a little bit different though, formed from something else unlike the regular wendigos." As the old man began to finish the tea was ready.
Eric still on guard of the old man began to look around his surroundings, 'There's no way me or this scrawny old man can take on a dangerous creature like a wendigo... Why is he so calm?' Looking at the old man more closely his eyes were drawn to the ring on his middle finger.
The old man noticing this chuckled, "This little thing-" the old man raised his hand pointing towards his ring, "is a gear, it's something people can awaken when they come to this place, this world, this entire dimension is wrong. It draws in things that are meant to be fiction, fake, make believe if you will."
Standing up he out stretches his hand and a blade come forth from thin air, reality bends and stretches as a sword is formed, a regular looking sword with a golden cross guard. "How the he.-" Before Eric can finish his question the old man taps his finger and says, "Gear, you should have one as well, considering from what I gleamed about you, you should have a strong enough will." Seeing Eric was still confused he continued, "A gear is something that takes shape in the form of an object that represents something about you or something else that you are involved in. Just imagine summoning a gear and it'll happen."
With that Eric thought about his own gear, his eyes closed, 'A weapon to protect me, a tool to help me, a compass to guide me...' As he finished his thought he felt something weigh in the palm of his hands, opening his eyes it's a wrist band.
"The hell is this?" "Your gear's weak—you just awakened it but even then, you still haven't figured out what it does yet. Give it a chance kid." And after that Eric decides to attempt what the old man did, he felt a pull within him, forming, making a physical object from will, but instead of a sword forming, a black revolver with gold highlights formed instead.
"Maybe I treated it a bit too harsh." Eric says now grinning at his new gun, "You did, now you should probably form some bullets or you'll be useless." Upon hearing the old man say that Eric goes through the same process forming bullets in the palm of his free hand.
"Well, I guess you're ready, I'll lead you to the small town over there down the trail. Come on." The old man getting up gestures Eric to follow him. Eric having lowered his guard down completely follows the old man down the trail.
Eventually after an hour of silence between the two the old man stops, "I have to go now, the trail leads directly to the town gate-you'll be let in after a couple of questions from the guards. Hopefully you survive kiddo." And with that the old man walks off the trail and disappears, dropping a white feather-Eric picks it up and tries to chase after the old man, "Hey old man! You dropped this!" Shouting out into the woods he wasn't given a response.
Checking where the old man prints were supposed to be there were none after he stepped into the forest, as if he wasn't touching the ground anymore.
Eric didn't know how to feel, this stranger that once put him on guard helped him so much and he didn't even figure out the man's name. Moving on whether it was adrenaline or the fact that he's trying to survive it was almost easy.
Eric hearing a shriek come from the woods immediately begins to bolt, after getting into a sprinting pose he ran down the trail towards the town, "Nope, fuck this shit I'm getting the hell out of here, old man you got this you weird ass anomaly." Darting down the trail at speeds he didn't think he could muster even with adrenaline, "Holy shit, I'm faster than Usain Bolt... How far is this town anyway?" As he continued to sprint full speed towards the town, he didn't notice what was going to tackle him...