Monster? EXP? Video games.

The elf looked back down at the blob in his hands. He could see it now that the novelty of the yolk had worn: within was a core of a deep color, a nucleus. The center of control of a single-celled organism that had been blown up to the size of a ball. It would be easy. Just drop it and step on it.

He refrained though, as the creature began to rhythmically slap parts of itself together. An attempt at mimicking the movement of lips? Some form of morse code? But if that was the case, how could such movements somehow trigger a complex and complete understanding? How could the slapping of slime become human language?

“Ok.” He turned his gaze towards the ‘influencer’, whose excitement had mixed with anxiety now. “If you want to die, tell him. He'll do it for 'EXP'.”

It was decided, just like that. Silent strides closed the distance with a dancer’s grace, and the blue yolk was thrust into the arms of the blue-haired human. He nodded at his fellow-in-misfortune, turning his gaze to the thread-bare rags that was all that separated the interior of the shack from the exterior. “You seem to know about this situation. Let’s head out and talk about it. What's your name?”

---

---

The Slime looked...droopy? Some parts of it almost sloughed off before it seemed to barely be able to reel them back into its central mass. The elf had asked it if it was human--had been human.

Right, monster reincarnation was a thing too...and, oh God, I hope this is a Dragon Quest ripoff world and not one of those Cultivate-For-Thirty-Millenia worlds... But why was he the only human out of the bunch? And he was still wearing his clothes he'd been in on the flight, whereas this other guy had a whole new wardrobe set and the slime had...

Nothing. Not even eyes or antennae or anything. For a moment Connor's overactive imagination, completely overdosed on all the tropes he mindlessly consumed instead of working on anything productive, managed to activate his dulled sense of empathy. To imagine what it would be like, trapped inside such a body. No limbs, no senses. That creature couldn't even...hold itself together.

When it answered the elf's question, its distorted, wobbling voice was slow, and quiet, and, maybe only in Connor's imagination, afraid.

"W-wait," he said, his own fear and survival instincts trumping any mote of kindness, "M-maybe it's lying!" Maybe the elf is too. Some isekai burn otherworlders like witches, after all... Not too far from him, a board that must've once sealed one of the windows now hung from a single rusty nail. He could probably swing it with both hands if he tried really hard--

The six-and-a-half-plus foot elf, with inhuman grace, covered the distance between them in uncanny steps. The slime was plopped into his chest before he had a chance to refuse. And...

“If you want to die, tell him. He'll do it for 'EXP'.”

Connor looked up at the elf, and down at the slime. Physical contact was not something he was familiar with even among his own kind. It was not any more comfortable holding a...a monster. A monster that used to be his own kind.

The slime was still drooping. Connor bent his knees and carefully deposited it on top of the tarp it had been under before, so that none of its goopy bits would slip away between the floorboards if it couldn't keep them attached. Maybe being able to sit on a solid surface for a bit would...help it?

“You seem to know about this situation. Let’s head out and talk about it. What's your name?”

"W-wait!" He shrank back again, in the process falling onto his butt--though a sidelong glance told him he was still within lunging distance of that dangling board. "U-um, I, I think we should stay here, at least while we, um, get our bearings!" He looked around the shack again, not because he expected to see anything different, but because he didn't want to look the elf in the eyes. He gulped down a breath to try and calm himself but his speech still came out fast and nervous.

"S-survival 101 is shuh-shelter, water, f-fire, th-then f-food!" Or at least, that's what the bushcraft content creators always said. And he doubted they could punch trees to obtain building materials like in his early-access, never-finished, copycat survival crafting games. He pointed outside, where the occasional shadow of movement and the sounds of muted voices could still be perceived. "W-we don't know if NPCs are hostile, either. So, um..." Slowly he got back up, dusting off his knees and glancing at the slime with concern.

"Slime, if, uh...if you can hear me...It's hard to talk to you--for you, right now. If something you, uh, wanna weigh in on comes up...make...a, um, a loud hiss or...fart noise...or something." Then, he finally managed to make eye contact; at least with the elf's pale, smooth forehead.

"Just...call me C, for now." Never give your name to a fae. "I w-was on a plane. My world was called Earth." Some isekai aren't always Modern Earth to Fantasy. Maybe that's why these people aren't Human--the elf might've come from some Crystal Spires and Togas world... "I-if you came from the same world...then, uh...who's the current President of the United States of America?" Just about anyone from a "first world" country would probably know that, given how his nation had an unfortunate penchant over the last...what, hundred years?...of butting their heads into everything everywhere.

When the elf--and maybe the slime--had answered that, Connor nodded...and, despite recoiling at the idea of being grabbed, held out a trembling hand for the other humanoid to shake.

"As f-far as we can tell...we're somewhere that isn't home. I found this, earlier: Status!" He opened the glowing screen again, and using his hand, moved it as if it were a tab on a touch-device. To the elf, "Can you see this? Or open your own?" After receiving the answer he continued,

"From what I can read on mine, "Magic" and "Stats" appear to be...a thing. Considering that two of us are non-humans, I'm gonna assume Monsters--Demons, goblins, dragons, whatever--are also a thing." He jerked his head towards the windows. "And given what I can see outside, I'm assuming this world is gonna be like something out of an LotR fanfiction." He took a high pitched breath and continued, "Usually in this genre, um, those who are transported will have some kind of ability the rest of the world doesn't--and, um, sometimes they've been transported for a reason. L-like, a Ch-chosen Hero k-kind of situation." He started to redden in the face again, because he could just tell the elf probably wasn't a big dumb nerd like him. "We're not standing in front of a King or a Princess or anything, though, so I'm assuming if there's a reason for us b-being here, it's only known by...who, or whatever, put us here."

Lots of times it's a goddess of some sort. But surely they wouldn't just send us in blind? Unless their involvement had to be kept secret? Again he tried to access that...hole...in his memory, and again his head started to hurt. Was he babbling too much? Was the elf going to get angry at him? Or bored enough to abandon him? Was the slime even taking any of this in?

"S-so, um...I th-think it'd be best for us to keep a l-low profile!" He held up a finger, then raised another. "Step two, see if we can find a map, or some roadsigns, or a big building called an Adventurer's Guild, or maybe a, uh, an inn. And step three, um..." He blinked rapidly as he tried to think past the intro chapters of the latest trashy light novel he'd read. "Ask about rumors or news from around the area, maybe? Get an idea of what's going on in this world--like, is the Demon King waging war or something."

Still pink in the face, knees shaking, Connor once again looked between his two erstwhile companions.

"U-um...do-does...does that w-work for y'all?" Shit! Accent slipped!

---

---

“HGAAAAAAAAHHH!” Sora woke suddenly with a shout, heart racing. He sat up quickly, enough to make him dizzy. His head swung from left to right as he looked around wildly. “Wha– Where?” he gasped. Hadn’t he heard a scream, somewhere? A hand grasped at his chest. There were no more sounds, however. If anything, this place was…oddly peaceful.

The lack of imminent apparent danger wasn’t convincing, not with his head full of those godawful last memories. It was imprinted on his mind; the panic as the plane started going down, the loud, rending creaking and wrenching of metal, the sensation of suddenly plummeting, the realization that they were fucked, that they might die.

He’d had that classic life-flashing-before-your eyes – well, frankly, it was terror-fueled pieces of thoughts scattering through his head. There’d been the this can’t be happening, thiscan’tbe– phase. There was hoping and praying that somehow, anyhow they’d be saved, that they’d make it out safely despite being told they’d have to crash-land. There’d been thinking of his family. His heart had twisted into itself at the thought he might not see them again. He’d even though of uni, and how he’d never got to go, after all. There’d also been that the one fucking time I decide to actually travel, this happens bitterness at his utter misfortune.

Then…there’d been some sort of dream or hallucination? Something about whether he’d rather be strong or fast or whatever, and what ‘skill’ he’d like…It’d been weird, and it felt like any other nightly figment of imagination, starting to fade more and more as he came to awareness.

Now, there was this.

He found himself in a poorly maintained room, of the kind that were common in cheap inns and hotels. Except, this one had so much dust everywhere, he didn’t think anyone’d come in here in years. There wasn’t even sign that he’d walked in, or that anyone had carried him; no footprints or trail on the floor, just an even dust cover spread on the wooden boards. There was that musty, damp, slightly irritating scent of mold, though he could see no obvious signs of it on the walls or ceilings. The bed – yes, he was on a bed – was lumpy, the covers threadbare and bearing some suspicious spots of yellowish discoloration.

There were a few pieces of old wooden furniture; a night stand with some antique lamp on it, a closet, a dresser with a small mirror, several shelves, what looked like a chest of all things, and a chair set next to the window. It all had a very old vibe – almost antique. But not antique in the way that it’d be sold or shown off as something special. It was like a painting showing a glimpse into the mundane life of a peasant in…He couldn’t really determine the time period.

The only source of light was the window. Glancing outside revealed an unknown town. It had that same olden vibe about it, like an European city from a few centuries back. The streets were empty, and some buildings had accumulated minor structural damage – paint chipping, broken windows, pieces of roof tiles fallen to the floor.

There were…Armoured people moving about?

“What the hell…” As he watched, it became apparent the armoured folks were slow, practically stumbling or half-dragging themselves around aimlessly. “…Zombies?” He didn’t know what fucking else to call them. Cosplayers, maybe, or actors…None of this made any sense.

Groaning, he stood up. A quick glance down resulted in flinch, and Sora almost stumbled back onto the bed. “Ouch,” he mumbled. What was weird was that he was wearing – armour? Some kind of leather, or sturdy cloth, a kind of fantasy-style adventurer and officer getup. It reinforced the idea of this being a show, or an event, or something – but he didn’t remember signing up for anything like that.

“Don’t tell me this is the afterlife?” He scratched at his head – something felt weird. His hair was way smoother, a bit wavier, and longer too. And red?

“Hie?!” he suddenly let out a startled, yelping sort of noise as brushing through his hair suddenly led to a fleshy obstruction. Cautiously feeling it, it was an ear.

“Oh, what the hell.” Deciding to check out what he felt, he shuffled to the mirror. Blue eyes, an unnatural shade of wine-red hair, elf ears. “Uh. Huh.”

He had no idea what to make out of any of this. Inspecting his room – including opening all drawers, the closet, and even checking under the bed – revealed no obvious clues. He didn’t want to risk opening the window, so he went to the only other option.

The door.

Creeeeeeeeak, it shuddered and shook ominously. A shiver ran up Sora’s back. This was waaaay too like the start of some horror movie set-up for his liking.

The hallway wasn’t anything special; more dust, more wooden floors, more faded wallpaper…More open doors?

Light poured in from the other rooms that had been opened.

Sora looked down one way. Then down the other.

His mouth dropped open.

There was a dragon!

Okay, not really, but a walking, talking, reptile-person. “Is that a costume?!” he whisper-shouted as he approached. Though he saw the hammer-wielding lady, he was too busy being in awe of the reptilian humanoid. There were slitted eyes, a tail, wings, and horns, but barely any scales. “DUDE, can you fly?!” he blurted out. “I soooo need to know about this.”

Usually, he was the type to want to know about things for practical reasons. But this was one of those instances where he wanted to know, just because. He was fascinated, and he literally had to physically shake himself out of it, because he was still in the middle of figuring out some other stuff – like where he was, and why.

“Oh, sorry, my bad…I’m Sora,” he introduced himself to the two. “Where’d you get the hammer?” he asked the blonde lady. She was pretty in that unreal, picturesque way – not that he could say much, though, what with having become an elf.

He looked around the hallway, suddenly remembering something. “Wasn’t someone screaming? Other than me, I mean,” he smiled sheepishly. “And…do you know where this is? Uh…I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty sure last I checked, I was dying, and this–” he gestured to his body, “isn’t really what I looked like? So weird…” Sora padded from door to door, trying to catch hint of any other sounds. “HEY, is anyone else there?” he called out. “If there is, are you OK?”

---

---

@VitaVitaAR @RolePlayerRoxas @Aku the Samurai @PKMNB0Y

Javal

The last thing he could remember played over and over in his head. An explosion. Loss of control. An utter worst-case scenario for an airliner. Hopeless attempts to regain control and stay in the air. A catastrophe the likes of which he had never experienced in all his time in a cockpit. The captain had stepped out a few minutes prior, leaving him alone at the controls when the disaster struck. For all his attempts to regain control, it was all futile- it went further and further down, plummeted into the ground, and then...water struck his face as he found himself on the ground, his face wet. Strange, it wasn't a water landing. Voices, then the feeling of trying to awaken him.

Was it just a dream? A pilot's nightmare of being caught in a terrible airline disaster? If only, but this wasn't his bed, and being awakened by being splashed with water was hardly normal. There were other voices beside him, protests at being splashed. And...was he still wearing a headset? Could he still be dreaming?

Surely this couldn't be the aftermath of the crash. At the speed and angle they hit the ground there was no way it was survivable, and even if it was, he definitely shouldn't feel so...intact. No pain, no numbness of lack of sensation in his limbs, not even any real discomfort aside from the water in his face.

As he opened his eyes and sat up, it was clear this was no crash site. The armored figure over him didn't look like any paramedic or emergency worker he had ever seen. The attire on him was not his uniform. The headgear upon him, it was not his headset. And the screen in front of him was not an airplane's heads-up-display.

Either he had died and gone to...wherever people go when they die, or he was currently dozing at the controls, and in either case his life was well and truly screwed.

He said nothing as he sat up, trying to ignore the status screen which followed where he looked. It looked like a cavern, and there were several others with him. The armored knight, and what appeared to be two...elves? This was neither a crash site nor a hospital. The knight and elves, the glowing fungi, it all looked like inside of a game. And the display, this status screen, it looked just like the menu of a game.

Finally looking over the status screen, he saw it provided a good deal of information. It gave a name- Javal- stats, an inventory consisting of armor and a halberd, and race, listed as "human". Indeed, the outfit he was wearing was armor and a halberd laid next to him.

Huh, it looks like I'm a Dragoon, he surmised as he took a look at his helmet (which, curiously, was not evidently projecting the screen) over his inventory, stats, and the description of the "trajectory control" skill on his status screen. This person before me must be some variety of knight. He had played enough games to be familiar with these archetype. Fitting, in a way, that the crashed pilot become an expert at falling...

As he looked over it, the realization finally dawned on him...in all his life, when dreaming he had never been able to read as cohesively as he was now. The text on the status screen made sense, and it didn't change when he eyes turned away and then back. This right here was something he had never been able to do in a dream.

But if he was dead...where were the passengers and rest of the crew? Be it afterlife or reincarnation, was he still responsible for the passengers' safety? In the very least, after his failure to save the plane, he certainly owed it to them.

Being reminded him of his duties was enough to get him up on his feet, and, with some trouble, figure out how to close the "status window".

"What's going on? Where are we? How did I get here?" he asked the knight.

@Crusader Lord@Thunder999999@Expendable

---

Okay.

Calm.

Calm down. Think rationally.

This is a fantasy world, and it's not a dream. That's obvious. That much is perfectly clear.

So, at this point, I have to assume that I've wound up in some kind of isekai situation. I thought that was pure fiction, but apparently not!

At least, I don't have any other explanation for it. I clearly remember my life. I remember the plane crashing. I can picture the faces of people I know.

But undeniably I'm here. Undeniably this is me. Every move I make, this cute elf girl follows. My facial expressions. My hands. Absolutely everything.

Seriously?!

I was isekai'd and I had to end up a girl!? How tall am I?! Why did it have to be the awkward possible outcome!? The mere fact that this girl, at least when it comes to fiction, is exactly the kind of character design I'd like---

There's someone knocking at the door.

I don't have time to collapse in despair. I don't have time to think about anything else. Worrying about my new form has to wait.

Before I step away from the window, I finally take notice of the street below. It's not lively. It's not bustling. I can see shapes shambling, armored figures slowly staggering based ruined fortifications and smashed storefronts.

I can see bones.

...

This place is a ruin. And I'm pretty sure those shambling figures aren't friendly.

Inhaling deeply, I turn away from the window and approach the door, opening it hesitatingly after a few moments.

The person before me is another elf.

Is he someone else in my predicament? Is he native to this place? I have no idea. I don't know how to ask.

I'm pretty sure I heard other voices outside though. Looking past him briefly, I can see a blonde-haired girl in white robes and armor, with a huge hammer. There's also a dragon man of some sort? He's got scales and horns...

This is seriously a fantasy world. I'm seriously a tiny elf girl.

I can't have a breakdown. I can't freak out. I'd just look insane to these people. It's not like they know what's going on, it's not like I can know if they're in the same situation I am.

"I... I-I'm fine," I manage to stammer, averting my eyes. Ugh, I'm totally freaking out. I can't hide it well at all. My hands are shaking. I'm breathing unevenly. My heartbeat is hammering.

I'm trying and failing not to think about every aspect of my new body, every way it's jarringly different from my old self.

I inhale deeply again and try to clear my head.

"How... how did you get here?"

It's a blunt question asked clumsily. But I can't really see any other way to broach the subject.

If they've also been placed in an isekai situation, then at least I'm not alone, though part of me doubts any of them are in my exact situation in other ways.

If they're native, then maybe they can explain to me where this is and what everyone is doing here.

And why we're all in a place like this.

@RolePlayerRoxas@Aku the Samurai@SilverPaw@PKMNB0Y

And that's the last of them awake, that makes four, a good sized party, it seems planes are just big flying trucks, he looks aroudn and thinks before saying anything.
It's interesting to see what everyone started with, he's got his wizard robes (complete with unnecessary belts and stylish cape) and an odd looking wooden stick which is presumably what passes for a basic Staff, one person has a rather impressive suit of face hiding full plate for level 1 (sure, this could just be one of those odd settings where appearances are meaningless and it's all about arbitrary numbers and item levels, but there's no inventory on his interface or stats for his gear), another with some slightly lighter plate and then there's the guy who looks like a peasant.
Gear to suit our expected builds perhaps, he's got Mag as his best stat and a spellcasting skill, maybe the armoured guys (actually faceless' voice was pretty high pitched, so no jumping to conclusions, could be anyone under there) took high defensive stats, or maybe even defence comes from armour and they got scammed out of their starting stats for something you can buy? What stats could lead to being a peasant with a knife though, 2s across the board, maybe he's going for some sort of sneaky stabby build and those clothes count as urban camouflage. Armoured guys can be the meatshields if this is a dungeon.

Oh he should probably say something.
He shakes the water off his head and gives a confident smile to the group, they don't seem to be taking their get out of death free card nearly as well as he is, but that's no reason not to stay positive, he'll answer the late sleeper first, "Pretty sure that plane crash Isekai-ed us, remember assigning those stats while you napped? Sure beats dieing horribly, doesn't it. We're either in a surprisingly pleasant fantasy cave or a dungeon, if those are part of this world. I'm Vrelenor and I decided to become a mage." He freezes a bit of the moisture in the air at the tip of his staff to punctuate the statement.

@Crusader Lord @Expendable @Crimson Paladin

---

---

"Uh... Well, I'm pretty sure you can't tell elevation apart when everything level, so I guess we'll go... That way?"

"Works for me," Duncan concurred with a shrug and a bit of a snort as he followed after the most-likely younger man, though minding his pace so as not to get too far ahead of Hikari who, by default, had a bit of a shorter gait than either of them to say the least. "All aboard the heel-toe express; next stop... damned if we know."

Honestly, there wasn't much to fault in that logic; any way forward was still progress at this point. And, even if they happened to run into some kind of obstacle along the way, as long as they had the road as a landmark, they could always just... turn around and go back the other way.

All that aside, it was still a damned fine day out. And the simple act of walking— without a cane, his feeble bones or the constant ache from times long past— was... surreal. Pleasant. Something he hadn't up until that very moment realized he'd been missing for decades now. Post-mortem hallucination or otherwise, our armoured old man couldn't find it in himself to protest too much about the hand he'd been dealt since waking in a grassy field in full plate and accompanied by the pair of his fellow survivors who'd apparently been resculpted and clothed by some apparent cosmic plastic surgeon.

That last thought did linger in Duncan's head for a few seconds. And again, his free hand began to travel back up to his helmet to check if anything had changed—

"...There's fighting further down the road, Be careful."

...And down the hand came again.

"What. How—?" He asked flatly, head turning slightly toward the taller man for a half-second before connecting the dots himself.

'Oh, right. Fox Ears. That's pretty handy.'

Instead that free hand found it's way to the hilt of his sword as they continued forward, until the trio came upon the cause of the steadily louder and louder disturbance; a group of apparent bandits attacking what appeared to be...

...A caravan of Knights and Maids.

Quietly, Duncan cast a quick look back Hikari's way, then down at himself before taking a deep breath and uttering a single word;

"Nuts."

And out came the sword with a calm, measured draw. As old and worn-in as his armour looked, but also just as strangely comfortable. in his hand, something he again filed away in the back of his head as he took two paces forward, both taking in a more clinical view of the carnage before him, and began paying more attention to his peripheral vision, casting his visor from one side to the other ever so slightly to not give away that he was checking his flanks.

One last time, he cast a glance down at the weapon in his hands with a narrowed glare.

Duncan was no stranger to hand-to-hand combat; in fact, he'd made a name for himself with it in places like Ortona, Falaise and the Scheldt. It was the whole reason he was handpicked to do the kinds of things he did in Korea.

But...

That was a very long time ago.

Still, his eyes came back upward as he spoke; a cold, surgical calm in his tone.

"Both of you, start backing up. Don't get separated. Steven, get that sword out; whether you use it or not, it's a barrier between you and anyone trying to kill you." He said, checking his shield one last time. "If things start going south, you grab Hikari and you run like hell."

With one last exhale, he raised his weapon.

"Am I understood?"

Sure, he'd mentioned watching eachother's backs earlier. But this was something else entirely from spooking off some wayward predator. And quite frankly, Duncan had already lived his life. He was far less concerned about his than those of his companions.

@PKMNB0Y@Raineh Daze

@VitaVitaAR@SilverPaw@Aku the Samurai

Huh, that was an unexpected sight. Coming out of another room was... a pretty damn buff guy. One with strange accessories? Or it was a costume, perhaps? Despite having realised that her own body was no longer one she recognised, Bianca couldn't help but assume the muscular guy was wearing some sort of half-made costume. Coem to think of it, didn't hotels and the like sometimes host fancy costume parties like this? Maybe that was it.

Funnily enough, her thoughts semed to be echoed by another young man that had just exited a room, too. Bianca watched him excitedly question the larger man, tilting her head in wonder. The red-headed guy had rather pointed ears, much like an elf. Huh. Was it a fantasy convention of some sort? Those had gotten fairly popular at some point, hadn't they?

"...Oh, this?" Bianca lifted the hammer when the elf boy directed a questionto her, "I just found it in there, figured it was complimentary, haha!" she laughed good-heartedly, though the muffled scream drew everyone's attention. The elf, Sora, was the first to reach the door of whoever was in distress, and eventually they emerged. A smaller, super cute elf to contrast the taller, hotter one. Now Bianca was really feeling like she was intruding on a fantasy meetup of some sort, even if her current clothing seemed to fit that kind of world? She overheard the small elf's question, and had to ponder for a bit. How would she be able to answer that, really? Like, sure, she 'flew in', but it's not like she remembered booking into this place, nevermind the no-doubt fiery landing.

Right, that was a whole mystery that should probably be figured out. Eventually.

"It's funny, I can't even remember how I got here," Bianca commented to the dragonman with a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of her head, "preeetty sure I wasn't even drinking or anything, it's just mostly a blank from waking up and... er... going to sleep. Y'know?"

Confusing wording, but it was hard to tactfully refer to the real incident to a total stranger that would no doubt have zero clue of what she was talking about anyway.

In the midst of all their exchange of information, drenched in uncertainty, worry, and excitement in equal measure, one could be led to assume that all was well within the confines of the building. Untouched by the living and dead alike, this old building was in marvelously good condition given the circumstances—a boon unto the stonemasons and carpenters who had built it so long ago.

But sturdiness and stability alone did not a sanctuary make. Though introductions and uncertain probing of the situation might have brought with it some faint sense of camraderie, the sound that seemed to be of the utmost concern seemed to be coming down from the ground level.

That shriek, it seemed, had done more than make the others who had found themselves within this odd building aware of the presence of others. Sound, after all, was indiscriminate, and it seemed like others had been made aware that "something" was in this building that had not been there before. The steady thumping, beating like a steady drum, seemed to echo from outside the front entrance.

It was lucky, in a sense, that whatever awaited the group was attempting to use the door—a memory of ages past, perhaps—but soon that steady pounding found itself joined by another—this one, closer to the back entrance of the building.

Then another. And another still.

The streets had been sparse when the newfound souls had poked their heads out, and were still so, but whether or not this would grow into something beyond what should be handled was a different matter altogether.

@VitaVitaAR@RolePlayerRoxas@Aku the Samurai@SilverPaw

---

Jase frowned. First robes guy complained about a lack of towels, he couldn't wait until robes needed toilet paper. But now he was calling himself a mage? Frosting the knob on the top of his staff was a neat trick, but right now he wanted something a lot stronger than shaved ice. Besides, he'd seen better tricks from street performers.

"Isekai'd?" he asked, wincing when he heard himself squeak instead of his normal deep rumble. He looked at the others gravely. "You were on the plane, too? All of you? From Tokyo to LA?"

"Well, I'm Jason, and I wasn't dressed like this on the plane," he said, balling up his fist and using his thumb to point at himself, "or looked like this, neither. Thought we all bought the farm, so what's this 'isekai' business? Why are we all here in this cave with the radioactive moss? Did we crash land at the Nevada Test Site or something? And why were you all staring off into space after you woke up, like you had an invisible television?"

He didn't normally talk this much in a year, but something strange was going on and he intended to find out just what it was! Not being dead was good, but why the crazy outfits and why were they in some cave?

@Crusader Lord@Thunder999999@Crimson Paladin

---

What was that scream?

Sylva's attention was broken from his thoughts when he heard the sound of footsteps. Turning around, he watched as a red-haired elf—that certainly wasn't something he saw every day—approached him. Before he could say anything, a stream of questions started flying from the elf's mouth and Sylva tilted his head in surprise. The sudden questions didn't bother him much. He could relate to that curiosity.

"Not a costume, but I'm not so sure about the flying part. I mean, my wings feel pretty strong, so I think I probably can. Now that you mention it...." Sylva trailed off, getting lost in his thoughts for a moment. Could he fly? Oddly enough, the thought hadn't crossed his mind yet, probably because he was a bit preoccupied with being an actual dragon person. It hadn't all quite sunken in yet. He had to test that out somehow. Preferably somewhere that wasn't inside of a rickety old building. Sylva mentally made a note to try out flying sometime soon, after he got a better grasp on the current situation.

"Don't worry about it. I had about the same reaction when I woke up," Sylva shrugged off Sora's apology with a grin, "Pleasure to meet you, Sora."

When Sora started mentioning how he remembered dying, Sylva frowned. Yeah, that sounded pretty familiar. He remembered boarding the plane, and everything that came after that. But that now begged the question; was everyone on the plane somehow sent here, or were they the only ones? He had no way of knowing the answer, but that didn't stop him from wondering; quite the opposite. He felt that familiar itch to learn more growing; to solve the mystery he found himself embroiled in. It was exciting, but he squashed his eagerness for now. First, he had to find his bearings. Speculating further would be useless until he knew what to do next.

To the rest of Sora's inquiries, he could only shake his head, "I'm afraid I don't know any more than you do, sorry."

Before he could say anything else, a door creaked open and his gaze shifted towards it curiously. Hm. That was where the scream from earlier came from. He wondered who was in there. The door was open now, but there didn't seem to be anyone there. At first, Sylva was a bit confused, but then he heard a feminine voice talking to Sora and it clicked. His eyes dropped a bit lower and he finally saw her. A small blonde elf-girl dressed like some kind of anime wizard who.... didn't seem to be doing too well, if the way she was shaking was anything to go off of.

.... Whose child was that? Actually, scratch that. If there was one thing he knew about elves, it was that you couldn't tell how old they were just by looking at them. He assumed that was the case here too. Probably.

The question she asked, however, was another thing he didn't know the answer to. He remembered the plane going down; he remembered the screeching sound of metal crumpling; he remembered the screams; he remembered–

.... Nothing? That was odd. His memory was normally perfect, and yet all he could remember was blank, like static. Yet another question he had no answer for. This was starting to get ridiculous. The more he thought about the situation, the more questions arose. Questions without obvious answers; puzzles.

And puzzles were meant to be solved.

A loud bang interrupted his musing, and Sylva's eyes widened in surprise. It didn't stop with just one, though, as a second bang sounded. Then a third. Then a fourth.

That was.... concerning.

"Uh.... I'm not the only one hearing that, am I?"

Sylva didn't know which answer would be worse.

---

@VitaVitaAR @RolePlayerRoxas @SilverPaw @PKMNB0Y

---

---

Sora found the correct door, and a little girl came out of it, clearly scared. He was taken to a few years back, to when his sister was that age, and he was vividly – painfully – reminded of his younger sibling.

He crouched down so she wouldn’t have to look up at him. “Hello, there,” he lowered his tone and made his voice softer. It was easier to sound kinder as an elf; his voice was already different than he was used to. Melodious, warm, and airy all in one. When he was putting in the effort, it was as soothing as a light spring drizzle, as gentle as the warmth of early summer’s morning sun rays.

…

Maybe elves were naturally prone to poetry. Sora didn’t know why else he’d suddenly be thinking about nature like that.

“Ahhh,” he carded a hand through his hair nervously at the little girl’s question. “I was on a plane,” he said, making no mention of the harsh truth to the child. He gave a quick glance at the other two when they answered. It didn’t seem like they knew either. Maybe they were all in the same or in a similar situation?

“I don’t know how I got here. Maybe I got lost?” he joked lightly, smiling at the little elf in a friendly manner. “Did you get lost too? Were you with someone else?” He figured she must have been with her parents, or someone.

Not once did it occur to him that the small, scared girl might not be a child.

“It’ll be alright–” he started saying, but that’s when the pounding started. “Oh, shiiiii–” he bit off the curse on the account of the minor present. His body grew tense however, and his smile slipped.

Don’t panic, easy, think it through, calm breaths, he silently encouraged himself. “Alright, we have to be very, very quiet now, and very brave, alright?” he told the elf child. “We’ll protect you if it comes down to that,” he promised her, then stood up.

“Yeah, you’re not the only one,” he said quietly to the winged man. “When I looked out of the window…I thought I saw zombies.” He inhaled deeply, and exhaled slowly. “If this is all for real, we’re gonna have to be very careful.”

What did he know about zombies? Well, only what he’d seen in games, movies, and other media.

“I’ve seen they’re slow, but I don’t think running out right away is a good idea. They heard us, so maybe a loud noise can distract them. I’ll look around, try to figure out something. Could you two find something to block the doors? Maybe with chairs? Worst case scenario, we could still go out the ground floor windows…” he trailed off.

There wasn’t much time to plan or chat. Sooner or later the undead would burst in, and then they'd be in serious deep shit. In even deeper shit. “Would you like to come with me or with one of the others?” he asked the short elf.

Whatever the girl decided, Sora stood up. First, he headed back to his room. He picked up the mirror, and cautiously moved over to the window. He opened it as carefully as possible, making as little sound as he could. He hurled the mirror out of the window as far as it went. It landed in the distance with a crash. He wasn’t sure if that’d be enough to get the zombies off their backs, however. Either way, he closed the window once that was done.

Next, he went on to explore the rest of the inn. He needed to know what this place looked like. Maybe he’d find something useful, too.

---

---

@VitaVitaAR @RolePlayerRoxas @Aku the Samurai @PKMNB0Y

---

Before I could even think about the answers I was being given, the elf(or rather the other elf I guess, given that's what I am now too) kneels down in front of me.

What is he doing? Why is he talking like that?

It's this sort of pleasant, calming voice. I can't deny it's not a little bit relaxing, kind of like listening to some really easygoing narration or something like that, but what's the deal?

Why would he---

Oh.

Oh no.

As he speaks, the realization hits me square in the chest.

He thinks I'm a child.

Seriously?!

Ah, this body... okay, it's not like this body isn't small and cute and petite but I probably haven't even ended up as a child, right?!

The sudden doubt in my heart of that assertion doesn't make the situation feel any better. Neither does the pounding. I'd already seen the shambling figures outside, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what's going on.

I press my hand to my chest. My heart is pounding, I can feel it through my fingertips.

I take a deep breath.

"Firstly---Do I seriously look like a child to you?!"

It comes out angrier then I'd intended, but I guess it's impossible to hold the indignation back.

I can only imagine this feeling is the very same as the elf mage I adored from my favorite light novel when a similar mistake was made about her age.

"Secondly---I was on a plane too. So I wasn't the only one, then."

I let out another sigh, pressing two fingers to the side of my head as I glance towards the window. The move with the mirror was pretty smart, it seemed like the undead out there were drawn to sound. At least he's not completely dense.

"Then this really is an isekai situation," I continue, taking a step forward, "I'm guessing we all experienced that plane crash, even if some of us were lucky enough to sleep through it."

I glance towards the girl with the hammer and the white robes and armor. I guess if you had to die in a plane crash, sleeping through it successfully was the best way to do it.

Hopefully this didn't mean anything about her usual level of attentiveness.

"We've all been reborn as new people in another world," I add, deciding not to elaborate on the details of my personal situation, "And unfortunately it looks like we're surrounded by undead, because it couldn't just be easy."

It looks like some sort of battle took place here. The barricades, the damage to the surrounding buildings, this isn't just an abandoned town.

Did whatever deity that managed this transition have a sick sense of humor, or are we meant to do something here? Or was it left to chance?

Either way, I know we have to move quickly.

"In any case, we'd be idiots not to stick together, and I certainly hope none of you are that stupid," I say, down at myself briefly again. Hearing myself talk in this cute new voice is awkward, and reminding myself of my new outfit and body is even more so. My hands are just so delicate-looking...

I never thought I'd be thankful for a life or death situation, but it's helping keep my mind off my new form a little.

"You said you found that hammer sitting in your room?" I ask, addressing the girl in the armor with the robe, "Everyone should go back and check their rooms one more time if you haven't already, then. There might be some more supplies there."

If she had a weapon, then maybe---

This is a mage's outfit, right? I was freaking out pretty badly when I first woke up, so I hadn't thought to look around that much.

I turn and step back into my room.

Leaning against the wall near the door is a curved black and gold object, one tip decorated with what almost looked like an abstract horse's head, the other simply terminating in a point.

It's not exactly hard to guess that it's a staff.

I might have no idea how to use it, but---

It's better than nothing.

I always liked playing a mage.

@RolePlayerRoxas@Aku the Samurai@SilverPaw@PKMNB0Y

Well, the man on the ground had seemed to finally rouse from his position lying on the ground at least. Albeit he understandbly seemed to look about the place at first, including somewhat at himself, as well. She avoided speaking to him, however, wanting to let him get some measure of things on his own before anything else. Well, unless the others chimed in with their own bit. It wasn't as if the situation they were in was...ah...anything less than ground-shaking to say the very least. Or so it seemed.

"What's going on? Where are we? How did I get here?"

Nyana began to open her mouth, but soon found another person would beat her to the punch.

"Pretty sure that plane crash Isekai-ed us, remember assigning those stats while you napped? Sure beats dieing horribly, doesn't it. We're either in a surprisingly pleasant fantasy cave or a dungeon, if those are part of this world. I'm Vrelenor and I decided to become a mage."

Really? Really?! That's the first crap you tell a confused someone, and after complaining about a towel in this sort of situation of all things? It was so....ugh. Did she agree they'd been isekai'd somehow? For now, definitely. It was the only obtuse thing that seemed to make sense to her for now, unless they all got hitched to some dystopian machine injecting their brains into some hyper-realistic video game above all others. And that, THAT was absurd-sounding enough on its own!

"Isekai'd? You were on the plane, too? All of you? From Tokyo to LA?"

"Well, I'm Jason, and I wasn't dressed like this on the plane," he said, balling up his fist and using his thumb to point at himself, "or looked like this, neither. Thought we all bought the farm, so what's this 'isekai' business? Why are we all here in this cave with the radioactive moss? Did we crash land at the Nevada Test Site or something? And why were you all staring off into space after you woke up, like you had an invisible television?"

...It was so tempting to throw water in the face of the self-proclaimed 'mage' right now on her part. So very tempting. Now the guy who'd woken them was going off a bit, it seemed, and none of this was going to help them right now save it established at least one other among them had been on the plane as well too. That much was useful to note for a moment if nothing else.

"For the love of-...ok. One thing at a time," the knightess said aloud, tone filled with a bit of exasperation at the whole affair as she looked to the guy she'd been trying to help wake up first, "No idea why we are here or how we got here, and we seem to be inside of some kind of odd cave to say the least."

She then looked to the guy who had woken them all up next. Said his name was Jason?

"I can speak for myself at least in saying I was on that flight as well. No, I didn't look like this on the plane either. Also thought I was dead too, and then cold water got splashed in my face quite to the contrary. Also, the stuff we were staring at is apparently a 'status screen' of some sort. Seems we can't see each other's status screen though.

As for the 'isekai' term used by Mr-Not-Being-Helpful-Right-Now over there? Its a term related to anime and manga, a type of story in which people die and wake up reincarnated or something in another world."

Her voice-affecting and face-hiding helmeted head then swiveled over to look at the final guy. The 'mage' of the group, one who hadn't done really anything to help the initial panic of the situation or seemed to be sensitive to the sort for now. That guy. Seemed to be content enough about things as it was on his end, but it didn't mean everyone was going to just take to this oddity of a situation like a fish to water. It was frustrating. Worrying. Etc.

"Look, its great you seem to be taking to this situation better than the rest of us. But please be more aware that this isn't 'normal' by any stretch of the imagination, and not everyone is going to be familiar with the terms you're using. That and this is all a good bit 'jarring' to say the very least, hmm?"

She'd have run a hand down her face if it was all going to be any more awkward in the moment, but perhaps that'd simply be setting up a self-fulfilling prophecy for the time being as well. Rather, Nyana would turn to address the whole of the group after having tried to address each of the individual men in this cavern with her. Because she had no idea where they were, what time of day it was, or any of that. Chock it up to her parents making her join some form of outdoorsy club in middle school for those few years, or watching a lot of survival shows or something on TV, or whatever slse, but they didn't need to sit around gawking all day if anything. That much even she could fathom, she felt, if nothing else.

"So, everyone, we've no idea how we got here. No idea why we're here. No idea as to how we got to be as we look and are now. Seems at least two of us were on the same crashed light as well, and we can see we're in some kind of strange cave with glowing mushrooms, this strange bit of green in the middle of it, and apparently some fresh cold water of some sort.

For now, I propose we work together on our immediate situation for now and try to keep what level heads we can here. We can take a look around where we've woken up, see if we can get out of this cave, and then go from there hopefully before it gets dark outside of this cave. Then we can run with things from that point.

For now, I'm going to start scouting ahead toward the exit if anyone wants to join me."

Unless they wanted to panic and sit in a cave all day and night until they got hungry, ran into some mythical bear or something in this cave, or the like. In which case she'd try to figure out enough to make her own way out of the cave. Either way, she would move to begin a careful attempt to scout ahead in the direction of the cave exit. Nyana would do her best to keep a careful eye out and look for obstacles, test for slippery surfaces, and the like as she went along. She'd pick half a dozen of the glowing mushrooms if she got the chance too, inspect them, and then if found to not be dangerous to the best of her ability would slip them in some hidey-spot in her armor temporarily to store them away before continuing her scouting effort.

However, part of her simply hoped that the others had level enough heads. The happy elf mage guy notwithstanding.

@Crimson Paladin@Thunder999999@Expendable@PKMNB0Y

He'd though isekai was a pretty mainstream word by now, guess not, then again, that was a plane, guy could be Swedish or something, that's probably not his original accent, random japanese loanwords probably aren't in english second language classes. Huh, wonder if there's some translation magic going on actually, they probably don't speak English here.

"I was trying to be helpful, our situations fits that definition perfectly, we even have a suspiciously gamelike lnterface, which is almost as common as the base idea these days, sure it's fiction, but so are elves, and magic." He points to his ears and staff with those last two points, then continues "Oh and if you're not familiar with the genre, then 'Dungeons' are a common feature ripped right from rpgs alongside the status interface, basically big structures full of hostile monsters and sometimes valuable loot, their existences don't always make a lot of sense narratively, but give the main characters an excuse to fight things, I bring this up because if we're in one, then something is probably going to attack us eventually."

"Oh and I want to check a suspicion, so let me know if you understand this." He then proceeds to say "I don't speak much Spanish" in poorly accented Spanish.

@Crusader Lord @Expendable @Crimson Paladin

Javal

It appeared the others also had been caught in the plane crash. Assuming this was all real, that implied that potentially hundreds of people, both crew and passengers, might been reborn here in new bodies. Or maybe just these four were chosen- they'd have to investigate further.

In the event of a disaster, the crew was trained to take charge. Unfortunately, there was really no way to actually identify the rest of them without them saying it. And Javal was quite hesitant to say anything, lest they might place the (statistically not inaccurate) blame on the pilots for the abrupt end of their lives, and he couldn't blame them if they did. However, he definitely would be keeping an eye out for any reincarnated that might be former crew.

"There's no need to quarrel. I am familiar with the term and the meaning of it," Javal chimed in. "Perhaps it is a bit weird to describe it as our current situation, but...it certainly looks likes it describes the situation well." He had been a casual imbiber of anime and games prior to his death (in hindsight, though, perhaps he should've spent more time on flight sims and less time on JRPGs), and the premise as described by the elf wasn't wholly unfamiliar to him.

"I agree with the knight, through, we should find our way out of here. We'd better be very careful, though."

As he started to follow the knight, he turned back to the second elf-looking fellow. "To answer your question, when I awoke, a HUD appeared in front of me, displaying statuses, inventory, and other important information about the new me. I presume you have one too?" Curious, it sounded like they couldn't see each other's screens. A shame it didn't have a compass or some other indicator of direction.

If this was indeed a dream, this should comfirm or debunk it. If these twisting passages somehow managed to remain consistent when he wasn't looking at them, it'd be another solid piece of evidence that this was somehow real.

@Thunder999999@Expendable@Crusader Lord

Those who chose to exit the cavern first would come to find that the dimly-glowing moss would grow all the more vibrant once the meadow they had awoken upon was wholly out of sight. The absence of sunlight seemed to make this peculiar lichen shine ever so vibrantly, which made navigating the caves all that much easier.

Not that it helped much when the walls all looked much the same to the untrained eye, but that was to be expected.

The cavern seemed to curve and twist the further they proceeded, until finally the path they were on seemed to merge back into another. The route seemed to split somewhere along the line, which at the very least indicated another route that could be travelled upon.

The other branching path would eventually lead to a small alcove—one that appeared to be rather empty at a glance. The main path from which the two diverged, however, seemed to open up into a more spacious area. This new section of the cave seemed a fair deal more barren, but a quick glance around would little more than the presence of a simple wooden chest and a few odd indentations along the stone wall.

@Crusader Lord@Thunder999999@Crimson Paladin@Expendable

---

Jase resisted the urge to respond in Spanish.

It was unfortunate that they didn't have anything to carry some water with them as they left their stony womb. (what else do you call a room that birthed you?) Jase used a rock to try and scrape the walls as they went, but it wasn't much success. And now they found a dimly lit alcove with a chest and weird holes in the wall.

"'Come into my parlor'," Jase intoned, frowning at the setup, "'Said the spider to the fly.'"

Still, the chest offered some hope that food or something else useful could be found inside, so he was loathe to bypass it.

"Unless someone knows how to make a light, I suggest we try gathering some of that moss in the last cave and bring it in here to see if we can find any tripwires. Or don't they have traps in isekais?" he intoned. He'd finally seen his status panel, but this idea that you'd die and be brought to a fantasy world just seem so much wish-fulfillment, like the guys who prepare for attacks from zombies.

Still, it was much more attractive than waiting around on a cloud for eternity.

Without tools, picking the lock wasn't an option, they'd have to force the chest open. And who knows what sort of trap whoever left this chest might have set to protect it?

@Crusader Lord@Thunder999999@Crimson Paladin

@VitaVitaAR@SilverPaw@Aku the Samurai

Bianca had jumped at the sudden noises coming from utside, as if something were attempting to enter the building. Or many somethings, it seemed. It was hard to process everything that was going on at the moment - from the sounds of things, the others had also been on a flight before they ended up here. The little girl mentioned isekai, speaking as if this were a known phenomenon. Being ignorant to the popular fiction of her previous life, the hammer-wielding girl could only stare blankly with a small smile on her face. Maybe it was best not to dwell too deeply on that for now, given what was going on just outside.

"Uh, yeah, I did," Bianmca nodded when she was addressed about her hammer, "but uh... just to make sure, are we dealing with, like, real zombies and stuff? The things that bite you and want brains and all that jazz?"

Maybe a part of her just wasn't believing the fantastical curcumstances, but the idea of being swarmed by ghoulish corpses was... not quite as frightening as it should've been? Perhaps just having this weapon in hand gave her a sense of security, but rather than quake and panic, Bianca took a few steps down the hall, listening to the incessant banging noises from the floor below. Zombies were supposed to be slow anyway, right? Maybe.. maybe she could totally take them on?

...Probably best not to try and find out unless necessary, though.

"I'll go make sure things are secure then. Guess you're on babysitting duty!" Bianca flashed Sylva a grin and thumbs-up, before heading down to assess things. Sora had already gone ahead to check things out, allowing them to cover more ground quickly. She focused mainly on the doors and windows, making sure they were secure. Or at least weren't about to collapse from the pressure of so many undead creatures vying for entry.

As soon as Petra was placed back onto solid ground, her body automatically reformed itself back into its designated shape. Petra couldn’t help but find the fact that her new body acted without her direct input to be somewhat disconcerting, but she tried not to be bothered by it anyway – if she really thought about it, it wasn’t all that different from the way a human body would right itself while standing or walking, even if it was a fair bit less subtle. If anything, it was probably good to see confirmation the ‘instincts’ she’d crafted for her body would continue working even after she stopped focusing on them.

With the imminent risk of falling apart behind her, and her companions seeming to have acknowledged her as a human – or rather, a former human – Petra turned her attention to the people she shared the space with. She was pretty sure there were two of them by now, though she supposed it was possible that there were others nearby that simply hadn’t spoken or moved yet.

Petra wasn’t shy per se, but she was the type to struggle with getting to know people, rarely bothering to interact with people outside of uni or her close friend group. She had no clue how some people were so easily able to form opinions about others; in her experience seemingly nice people could turn out to be shitty once you got to know them, and she knew well enough about fundamental attribution error to realise that judging people on a bad interaction was silly…

Well, she could say all that, but at the same time she certainly didn’t like being picked up so casually, so fallacious or not, her initial opinion of the person that’d done so wasn’t exactly great. As for the one that’d put her back down, she gave them a slightly better judgement – they had suggested that she might be lying, but that was a technically true statement, so whatever. Petra mentally labelled the pair, ‘Up’ and ‘Down’ respectively. Now she just needed to find four more companions to dub Top, Bottom, Charm and Strange, and she’d have a full set…

Personal musings aside, Petra focused on listening to her companions talk. Rather frustratingly, what passed for her current method of hearing wasn’t very good, and Petra found herself unable to parse a lot of what was said, having to painstakingly piece the gaps in what she could make out through context.

From what she was able to gather, Down seemed to be talking about survival strategies, something Petra hadn’t even considered since waking up in her new body. In hindsight, Petra realised that was an incredibly stupid oversight on her part, both in terms of the fact that she’d just been in a plane accident and had no idea where she was, and because she hadn’t yet tried to figure out what she’d need to do to survive in her new body specifically. Beyond survival, Down observed Petra’s difficulties speaking and suggested she try ‘farting’ to communicate; somewhat crude wording aside, that was actually a decent idea – at least assuming she could actually draw safely gas into her body and expel it without popping or something, that might be a more effective means of communicating than repeatedly slapping herself. Petra’s opinion of Down went up a notch.

There was some more conversation that Petra struggled to make much out of beyond, the worlds “plane”, “world”, and something about “America”. Was he trying to confirm that they were all involved in the accident? She really couldn’t tell with how little she’d been able to hear.

Fuck it, losing her sight or hearing would have been bad enough on its own, but losing both at the same time wasn’t something she was prepared or willing to live with. Risks be damned, the moment she got the time, Petra would look for a way to use the strange new power that let her mess with her biology to improve her hearing. It wasn’t like she hadn’t already used it to perform DIY neurosurgery on herself.

Desperate as she was, however, autosurgury something Petra was willing to rush into, so for the time being, Petra settled for cobbling together a ‘hearing program’, slowly extending a pseudopod into the air, before painstakingly trying to force it to mould itself into a shape like a jackrabbits' ear. Just a few seconds of trying and failing to create a shape even remotely convex was all it took for it to become abundantly clear to Petra that doing so was well and truly beyond her current skill level, and she had to settle for simply flattening the pseudopod out as much as she could without collapsing it. Not long after, Petra sported several new, vaguely leaf shaped, ridges atop her body, that while misshapen enough to give a preschooler’s drawings a run for their money, at least let her 'hear' a little better.

"As f-far as we can tell...we're somewhere that isn't home. I found this, earlier: Status!"
"... Can you see this? Or open your own?"

Status? Petra couldn’t see what the guy was talking about, but that wasn’t exactly a surprise since she couldn’t see at all. Tentatively, Petra spoke the word Down had exclaimed – or slapped the word out, rather – and was surprised when a text box appeared within her otherwise empty ‘field of view’.

Despite video games not really being her thing, Petra wasn’t quite so uncultured as not to recognise the gaminess of the status sheet in front of her. Some part of her felt incredulous at the numbers listed on her screen, the idea that a person's capabilities could be abstracted into just a few numbers not sitting right with her. And what the hell was the Luck stat? People could get lucky, sure, but there was a difference between circumstances lining up to make something subjectively good happen and some kind of ontological luckiness trait; if something like that existed, science would have discovered it a long time ago.

Actually, if she thought about it for a moment, Stats were almost certainly something other than straight representations of her physical and ‘metaphysical’ capacity. Luck aside, she couldn’t think of any reasonable way someone would describe her current body as being exactly as dexterous as it was strong or agile. Petra added Stats to the list of things she’d need to figure out, along with levels, and pretty much everything else on her status sheet for that matter.

Thankfully, while Petra felt less than confident with her own knowledge of gaming culture, at least one of her companions seemed to be well versed in the subject. She still wasn’t sure about how much she wanted to believe things ran off video game logic here – the idea of magic, dragons, elves, and whatever other fantasy tropes possibly existing, was discordant with her understanding of the underlying mechanisms of how the universe worked – but, that said, she’d already seen and even performed several things that very much seemed to be supernatual, so she’d have to throw out at least some of her presuppositions regardless.

Speaking of, Down mentioned something about getting a specail ability being normal for the genre? Sure enough, scanning through her status sheet Petra quickly found a section for Skills, empty save for the lone entry of [Biomancy]. Expanding the Skill and reading its description made it immediately clear that this was the ‘magic’ she’d been performing before. That was yet another thing she’d have to do a deep dive into later – but more importantly for the time being, while it was far from conclusive evidence, it certainly lent a degree of credibility to the idea that this world ran on genre tropes and game logic.

If Down’s predictions about dragons, and adventurer guilds, and demon lords, also turn out to be correct, she’d need to seriously evaluate some of her fundamental beliefs about the way the world worked. Either way, for now, he seemed to be her best bet, both for surviving this mess and for testing just what kind of logic this world ran off, so she’d definitely be following him if she could.

Before that though, there was one other thing on her status sheet that had caught her interest – or at least caught it more than everything else – “Contacts”. Did that mean like contacts on a phone? Would she be able to talk through it? Expanding the Contacts list, Petra found it to be just as empty as the 0 next to it had implied, but that was probably fine, she just needed to find a way to add them. Willing it with all her might just as she had with her magic, Petra waited a second as absolutely nothing happened… Damn it!

“Ad̵d… con̴t̸act… ̸a̶dd… D̸ow̸n̵, U̷p̶… ad̸d…”