I can do this!

I’m outside.

Finally, outside.

I keep my eyes closed but keep on walking out until I’m feel I’m far enough from the cave entrance and let my eyes get used to it to the brightness.

I open my eyes and for the first time I get a good look at this other world.

I’m in a green forest right now. I can hear birds chirping and the calming sound of the leaves being swayed by a gentle breeze. Warm rays of sunlight piece the treetops and hit my skin.

Only a couple of minutes have passed since I got out of the cave, but everything that happened there already feels like it was all just a bad dream.

But a painful reminder assures me that this is indeed reality.

I suddenly feel extremely dizzy followed by a throbbing pain on my entire body. Especially my right foot and left arm.

It’s not over yet, I’m in the middle of nowhere. If I stop here, I’ll just bleed out and die.

I try to keep going but my body just gives out.

The loss of blood, my adrenaline going down, the exhaustion of walking for so long, it hit me all at once.

I can barely keep myself awake; I just want to close my eyes. I know it is a bad idea, but I don’t care anymore. I just want to rest.

“Someone…” I whisper to myself. I don’t have the strength to scream anymore.

As I close my eyes on the soft grass, I have no idea how much time passed. But soon enough I hear an unfortunately now familiar sound. It immediately wakes me up again.

I hear growling coming from inside the forest.

(Not again.)

I watch as two wolflike creatures with similar white fur come from behind the trees. They resemble the one from inside the cave, covered in injuries, mouth drooling with blood white eyes with no pupils but there’s one notable difference. They are much smaller. Maybe almost half it’s size.

I start to craw backwards, until my back hits a tree trunk and use it to prop myself up.

Although they look similar from that other one, they act somewhat different. They seem more rational. Approaching me slowly, spacing themselves not to allow me the chance to escape.

But I’m not afraid anymore. I mean I am, but that hopelessness from before is gone.

I don’t know how I did it, but that weird arm drove back the one inside the cave. If I can manage to use that power again these two should be an easy fight.

It also healed my wounds. Using it on the rest of my body would give me a chance!

(It’s okay, I can do this) I clench my right fist.

The wolves approach me, baring their fangs.

(I can do this.) I pour all my focus into it, trying to recall that feeling from inside the cave.

They stop. One standing still while the other crouches down. Is preparing to pounce.

(I CAN DO THIS!!!)

He jumps towards me, and I go for it. I open my fist, aiming to hit him with a slash from my nails.

When suddenly I hear loud footsteps coming from behind me. I lose all the focus I was building up.

From outside my field of vision, a hulking humanoid figure shows up hitting the wolf midair with a powerful punch, sending him flying back.

This figure is easily over 2 meters tall, with big muscles. It’s skin, a mix of green and yellow. A head of short and messy black hair with big pointy tusks coming from its mouth.

I played tons of games before so I’m confident I know what it is.

An orc.

The only difference from the games is the clothes and sleeveless coat with an orange and purple color scheme that it’s wearing instead of teared pieces of cloth.

The other wolf goes for a bite. The orc sidesteps the attack and hits a heavy counterattack, also sending him flying back.

But he doesn’t even get to land. Another wolf creature, with dark brown fur and a coat with the similar orange and purple palette to the orc, jumps from the bushes, biting into the white wolf’s neck. It doesn’t even get to fight back before I hear a cracking sound as the dark brown one snaps its neck with his jaw.

The first white one gets up but is too disoriented to do anything. The coated wolf jumps towards it slashing its throat with his claw. Both wolves lay dead on the floor now.

They both look at me and start heading my way.

(Okay, I can’t do this.) All the courage I gathered is gone.

(I was confident against those two wolves, but an orc with its pet?! I got now chance! What do I do now?).

I raise my arm to shield myself and out of desperation let out I final plea.

“Please don’t eat me!!!”

The two of them stop. Then look at one another with confused look on their faces.

“Pffff” The orc lets out a snicker.

“Don’t laugh at him.” The wolf says in a stern voice.

(Wait, what?)

“We’re not gonna eatcha!” The orc says, holding its laughter.

“Oh yeah, sorry bout that! We probably scared ya huh? It’s fine now, let’s take a look at those injuries now!”

Now that they are closer, I can see it. They have a faint purple glow surrounding their bodies.

“We should turn back first thought. These hands are not very delicate and it would a lot easier if you had yer thumbs.”

They close their eyes, and their bodies start to change.

The orc starts to shrink and takes on a human appearance when the glow is over.

In front of me I see this girl that looks about my age with a green and yellow skin tone. A head of short tomboyish black hair and small tusks coming from her smiling mouth. Her body is very muscular and well defined but not overbearing like before. Her chest and thighs are on the bigger side. Her sleeveless orange and purple coat billows with the gentle forest breeze.

(She’s beautiful…)

The wolf stands on his two back feet and takes on a human form.

Next to the orc girl I see this pretty young man with a near flawless face. White skin color and medium dark brown hair that doesn’t go past his shoulders and what looks like dog ears coming from it. Looking down he also has a big dog like tail. He wears a fur coat with the same orange and purple color scheme.

“The ya go. See? We are the same!” The orc girl says in a confident tone.

I’m speechless right now.

What just happened?

They were monsters a second ago. The purple glow vanished just like my arm back there and they got this human appearance. Were they human before this or were they always monsters?

All I know is that we aren’t the same at all.