LIFE ONE: THE DAWN WORLD
You open your eyes.
You are lying on your back, staring up at a sky the color of bruised fruit—deep purples and fading oranges as the sun retreats behind jagged mountains in the distance. The air smells of wet earth, smoke, and something metallic, like iron after rain.
You are cold. Your body aches.
Slowly, you sit up. You're in a shallow cave, its mouth open to a vast grassland. Strange, towering ferns cluster near a slow-moving river below. In the distance, massive creatures—far larger than elephants—move in herds, their low rumbles vibrating in your chest.
Beside you, a fire pit holds glowing embers. A rough animal hide is draped over your shoulders. You are not alone.
An old woman sits near the fire, her face weathered like cracked earth. She is grinding seeds between two stones. She does not look at you, but speaks.
"You slept long. The fever took three others. You are the only one who woke."
She gestures with her chin toward the cave entrance. Outside, a group of maybe a dozen people huddle around a larger fire. Some are tending to crude spears. A child is crying. Two men are arguing in low, harsh tones, pointing at the distant herds.
The old woman finally meets your eyes. Her gaze is ancient, heavy with knowledge of winters and starvation and things that hunt in the dark.
"The mammoths have changed their path. The river is low. And last night..." She pauses. "We heard the drums from the forest. The other tribe is moving closer."
She offers you a handful of the crushed seeds.
"Eat. You are weak. Then decide what you are."
You look at the seeds. They are gritty, bitter-smelling. Your stomach clenches with hunger.