章 2: Chapter 2 - Welcome to Settlement

"My name is Ariel, I will be your guide as you experience this new world." - Ariel

Next to Ariel, a full-length mirror appears and I see myself in it. Short straight black hair, a babyface but dead-looking eyes, and skinny arms, and legs. Looking away slightly, as I can't bear to look at myself and what I had become after my parent's death.

"You may change your appearance slightly, up to 15%." - Ariel

Ariel's words bring my attention back to the mirror.

"How do I change my appearance and what can I do?"

"You may change your appearance slightly, up to 15%. You can change your hair, height, body mass and you can do so by imagining yourself in your changed appearance. What you see in the mirror will be how you look in the new world." - Ariel

Thinking for a bit, I close my eyes imagining how I want to look. As I open my eyes I see myself... Me from 4 years ago. I had a similar hairstyle but a brighter face, still a baby face though. My arms and legs are a little bit more muscular and I look like I was happy with where I was in my life.

"Are you happy with these changes?" - Ariel

"Yes, I am happy."

I give Ariel a smile and she returns the favor by smiling back.

"What should I call you human male?" - Ariel

"Ian, my name is Ian." - Ian

"Then Ian, starting from here is where you will create Civilization. I wish you luck." - Ariel

Golden light surrounds Ariel, expanding as it envelops me.

....

After the golden light fades away, I finally get to see the world. Feeling the heat from the sun on my back and the clear blue skies that stretched toward the horizon. Without a hint of pollution or smoke in the air, instead, a soft gentle breeze that brushes against my body. Looking in front of me, I observe the cracked, red chalky ground.

Rock formations of varying sizes, litter the ground with little bits of dry greenery here and there. Occasionally tall desert trees could be seen on the horizon. The arid environment made me a little skeptical about how to create a city in this location but that doesn't mean it hasn't been done before. Many cities have been built in arid environments, utilizing the resources under the ground to their advantage in the process.

Like in every game there must be a status screen so I thought of status, in my head and it appeared. The familiar but not so familiar opaque bluish screen.

Name: Ian

Race: Human

Health Points (HP): 10/10

Mana Points (MP): 0/0

Strength: 5

Vitality: 5

Intelligence: 5

Dexterity: 5

Agility: 5

Luck: 1

Equipment: Torn Shirt, Torn Pants

"Ian, are you ok?"

Stopping me from observing the status screen, the sudden voice, causes me to turn my head. A young lady maybe in her late 20s with a flushed face steps close to me, grabbing the edge of my gray clothes. She was wearing a dirty grayish-brown one-piece dress with the ends ripped and frayed. Next to her, holding her hand, was a boy around 14 or 15 with sharp eyes and a frustrated face.

"Excuse me miss but you are...?" - Ian

A look of confusion could be seen on the young lady's face, facing my own. Tilting her head a bit and squinting her eyes, a face of worry spread across her face.

"Don't worry about him Lucina, it must be the heat. Did you see him stop for a bit? I bet he must be regretting his actions."

A loud, out-of-breath male around 30 years old was behind her. He had short reddish-brown spiky hair and tall stature, carrying two bags over his shoulder. Next to him was an old man with a slightly hunched back.

"Howard I was just worried since he wasn't moving plus he did save us from the encampment. It's the least I can do." - Lucina

"Whatever. Hey, Ian! Come on, take a bag, let's move." - Howard

The loud man, Howard, shoves a bag into my arms and slightly pushes me to the side, as he continues moving. Lucina and the other two people follow behind him slowly, glancing back in my direction.

Is this the backstory of my character? Slinging the bag over my shoulder, following the group of people, I slowly turn to the old man, hoping to start a conversation to gather more information.

"Are you alright there, sir? If you don't mind me asking, how long has it been since we left the encampment?" - Ian

Looking at me curiously for a second, before turning away and looking ahead. The old man let out a small sigh as he tries to recount the previous event.

"I am fine young lad, and as for how long it has been... Since we left last night and the sun is at its peak right now blazing down on us, I would say it's been a little over 12 or so hours. Looks like you have forgotten, but I did tell you to not call me sir. Instead call me, old man Hus. The young lady over there is Lucina, and next to her is a little boy called Luke.

While they are not mother and son, Lucina takes care of him to the best of her ability. As for the tall bloke over there, that is Howard, our protector and the reason we lived until the day we left. Until the day, you helped us escape it is. So, I guess you are our protector now." - Hus

"I see...I am glad you guys are out of the encampment then." - Ian

Looking at old man Hus, I could see a soft smile on his face as he looks forward. I can only guess how happy it would be to leave a place called an encampment.

Though it got me curious, what is an encampment? A place where they were slaves? Or a prison? Looking at their clothing, that isn't impossible... No, not with a child, then it must have been a place where these people were kept as slaves of some sort. Wait... But then that raises the question, who were their masters?

Looking at Howard, he must have been able to resist most people even through armor and weapons. Even with armor, he should have been a threat to people with just his size. Does that mean it was some sort of creature like orcs or kobolds? Should I just ask? Is it appropriate to ask?

"Sister Lucina!"

Luke's shouting snaps me back into the present as I see Lucina collapsing to the ground. Luke hurriedly kneels next to her shouting her name while shaking her shoulders slightly. Howard rushes towards Lucina, touching her forehead with the back of his hand.

"It's burning hot, and she is breathing erratically. Plus she is covered in sweat. Shit, what do we do? We don't have any medicine if...If it is some sort of sickness. We can't- we can't be losing people when we just escaped." - Howard

"I-I-I'm fine. Just-Just a little faint" - Lucina

Responding faintly, Lucina flutters her eyes open, as she grabs weakly onto Howard's arm. Gritting his teeth, Howard racks his brain to figure out a solution, as his eyes dart from side to side, searching, looking, and thinking.

"Wait, wait, Howard calm down. Relax. Panicking won't help. Looking at Lucina she looks like she might just be experiencing heat stroke or something similar. After all, it is hot and the sun is directly over our heads. It isn't uncommon for something like this to happen in this sort of situation.

The first thing we need to do is cool her down and give her plenty of water. Look. See that tree over there, that's the closest place where we can get some sort of shade and shelter. Right now, we must hurry. The faster we bring Lucina over there, the better." - Ian

I calmly diagnosed Lucina's condition, however, I am not a doctor or a nurse so I was not completely sure if the diagnosis was correct. Merely going off the random bits of information that swim around the internet, and on television series, is the best I could do.

"Alright, how are we going to get her there? Do we just lift her?" - Howard

Howard bends down, putting his hands under Lucina as he prepares to lift her up.

"WAIT! Give Lucina some water first. Also, give your bag to Luke, you shouldn't carry more than you need to. Afterward, take off your shirt and cover Lucina's head with it, and wrap it around the top. Then, carry Lucina on your back and run to the tree we will catch up ourselves.

Once you are at the tree be careful, check the area before you place her down. Make sure there are no insects nearby, and no big rocks either. In case something is hiding under it. Make sure to check the tree trunk in case of other insects, only then can you settle her down. Hydrate her, and fan her with your shirt or something." - Ian

"Okay...Okay, I got it." - Howard

Howard got out the water sack in his bag, pouring water into Lucina's mouth slowly. Compared to his attitude towards me earlier, he had a gentler look and a worried expression. After giving Lucina some water Howard passed his bag to Luke while telling him to make sure not to drop the bag. In the meantime, I helped Howard position Lucina on his back. Looking back at us with a face of gratitude, he nods his head as he heads to the shade.

Holding the second bag and making sure Luke and old man Hus was walking with me I spoke to them with a confident tone and a smile.

"Everything will be ok, let's follow them." - Ian