Isekai? I hardly know thy!

Daffodil woke to the birds chirping, which should have been the first indication that something was horribly wrong. His apartment was in the middle of the city, so the only things he should be hearing were the honking of cars and the indistinguishable chatter of pedestrians. When he finally pried his eyes open he realized what the problem was. He wasn’t in his bed, or even a city at all. He was in the middle of a valley.

Daffodil jumped up and turned in a slow circle, trying to take in his what-should-be-impossible surroundings. The closest valley was like an hour-long train ride from his apartment. How was he here? And the more he saw, the more a pool of dread formed in his stomach, because this wasn’t just any valley. This was his valley.

Which should be impossible because that’s a fictional valley in a video game and Daffodil was a real human being. But that waterfall over there that flowed just right over the hill? He’d been the one to guide its water properly. And the stones he was standing on? He was the one that painstakingly carved designs into each one and laid them down so they fit perfectly against each other. And right in front of him. Those flowers were definitely Starling roses, a made up flower that only existed in WanderQuest.

What was going on?!

The statue! Daffodil thought, trying to remember what happened before he woke up in what was potentially a fictional world. He had been working in the southern quadrant when he’d seen a statue and when he clicked on it…

The god! It had said something about granting Daffodil a blessing? He had no clue what that meant, but it was the only lead he currently had. Daffodil ran towards where the statue was, continuing to look around as he did so. He tilted his head up and gasped a little at the sight of a bright blue sky with fat white clouds floating lazily across. Daffodil had been playing this game for five years, and he had never once looked up at the sky like this. WanderQuest was a third person POV game, which meant Daffodil spent most of the time looking at his avatar’s back. Even with the ability to adjust the camera angle, he’d always used it to get a better look at what he was working on. He’d spent so much time looking at the dirt that he’d never thought to look up.

Stop it! You need to figure out what’s going on! Daffodil thought as he picked up the pace. It took a few minutes and his lungs were burning more than he’d like, but Daffodil finally reached the edge of his valley where the statue sat. It looked the same as it had on his computer monitor but everything else seemed different. Daffodil could smell the grass that surrounded it, a strong earthy scent that made him want to sneeze. He could hear the birds still, but now they were joined by the chittering of squirrels hidden in the trees that protected the shrine. He could even feel the warmth of the sun, small beams filtering through the dense foliage and landing on his exposed neck and arms. It was almost overwhelming to be so physically present in a world he’d only ever seen on a screen before.

“Hey, God!” Daffodil shouted, already forgetting the name the god had told him. He hoped the god could hear him through the statue. With the sound of birds and squirrels scattering, he was sure everything else had.

A moment passed and he was about to shout again when the statue began to glow. It continued to glow brighter until Daffodil was completely blinded. Just as quickly as it appeared, the light vanished and left Daffodil with spots in his eyes. He blinked them away to reveal a very tall, very muscular man standing in front of him. The man—the god—had medium length blond hair and wore a white robe, both of which flowed in some nonexistent breeze. He opened his eyes and Daffodil couldn’t help but gasp at the sight. They seemed to be every color, changing hue when looked at from any different angle. Daffodil knew that under any other circumstance he would be bowing down at the god’s feet in reverence. But right now Daffodil just felt pissed.

“Daffodil!” the god said, his voice reverberating throughout the entire valley. It vibrated in Daffodil’s chest, and he almost shook at the feeling. “I am Ymara, the God of WanderQuest, and I am here to grant you a blessing! You have taken great care of my land and shall be rewarded accordingly.”

He’s just quoting what he said in the game, Daffodil realized. He crossed his arms and leveled one of his most potent scowls at Ymara. He was pleased when he saw the god wilt a little at the sight.

“Why am I here?” Daffodil demanded. “This is my fictional valley in a video game. This shouldn’t be possible.” Then he blanched as a thought crossed his mind. “I’m not dead am I? I know I hit my head pretty hard when I fell out of my chair, but it shouldn’t’ve killed me!”

Ymara laughed again, a loud booming sound that rattled Daffodil’s chest even more. “Do not worry, Daffodil! This is all part of my blessing. You haven’t died. In fact, Daffodil, you have been given a second chance at life.”

Daffodil was really starting to get ticked off, which he knew wasn’t a good thing. He could feel the annoyance building in his chest, the itching feeling in his fingers that usually meant he was about to do something he’d regret. It was the same reason he’d been fired from his past two jobs, when a customer wouldn’t leave him alone no matter how hard he scowled and he had to take another approach.

Daffodil growled. “Stop calling me that! My name isn’t Daffodil,” Daffodil said, “it’s Kyo Handa! Daffodil is my screen name because I couldn’t think of anything better at the time. But it’s not my name!”

Ymara smiled like he was laughing at a joke only he was in on. “I’m afraid you’re wrong, Daffodil.” Daffodil knew he used that name again just to get a rise out of him, but he clenched his fist in response anyway. “Kyo Handa may be who you were in the real world but,” and Daffodil could feel it, knew with a dreadful certainty what Ymara would say next, “now you are Daffodil. Welcome to WanderQuest, your new home!”