Life-Like

[1] Awakening

The first thing I noticed was a terrible itch on the tip of my nose. I stirred from my sleep, aggressively scratching it like it was the one thing I was meant to do in life, and felt intense, instant relief. The backs of my eyelids were bright red, and I scrunched up my face as I opened my eyes to the bright blue sky above me. I used my right hand to block the sun as my vision focused, and felt a light breeze tickle the hairs on my arm.

Where am I?

I pushed myself up-right, feeling unusually light, and as though I had just had the best night's sleep of my life, despite coming to the quick realization that I was laying on the grass. My hand slipped on the rock I had apparently used for support, causing me to scrape it, drawing a small amount of blood from it.

Ouch! Did I err...Get too drunk last night?

I wiped my hand off on my jeans, and looked around for a clue of my whereabouts. A broad, open field of green grass and rolling hills stretched in every direction. I was sitting near the top of a particularly steep hill. A large oak tree, which I assumed had been casting a shade on me, protecting me from the sunlight until it had reached about noon, swayed gently with the breeze.

I must have gotten really drunk last night. Where the fuck did I end up?

I hopped to my feet, quite content with the lack of a hangover despite my previous night's endeavors to forget the final shift at my last job, and suddenly noticed a man had been laying next to me. He was face-down on the ground. His bright pink hair, which was cut in a rather boyish fashion to cling to his ear-line, was the first thing that caught my attention. He had a black T-shirt and pair of blue jeans on. The jeans were surprisingly clean, considering what might have led to he and I getting out this far in the first place. Even his black and white converse were in nearly pristine condition.

Come to think about it...My own White T-Shirt and jeans are also extremely clean. Like I just put them on after a wash. Well, minus the blood stain.

"Uh...Hey man, you okay...?" I asked, nudging him lightly with my foot. No response. I knelt down and shook him a little harder, "Hey buddy, wake up. It looks like you and I got into some trouble last night," I half-heartedly laughed. His body shook, but he didn't move. I suddenly noticed that he looked oddly still....

Oh fuck.

I quickly pressed my fingers up to the side of his neck to check for a pulse.

Nothing. But he still felt warm... I grabbed his wrist and started feeling around. Still nothing...

Feeling the panic rising, I took a controlled breath to steel myself. I rolled him over to his back, and immediately noticed two things: He has a small set of black horns protruding from his skull in the front, each at the far corners of his eyebrows, and blood had been trailing slowly from his mouth. His eyes were closed. I put my hands at the bottom of his sternum, and pressed hard inward, starting CPR.

His eyes shot wide open, his arms flailing in confusion and surprise.

"WHOA-WHAT THE HELL?!"

"Oh shit! Sorry, I couldn't find a pulse - I thought you were clocked out of this world, man. Holy fuck. You good?" I felt like I had received about the same shock he had just now, my heart was pounding so hard in my chest.

"WHEEWWW. That's a hell of a way to wake up! Where are we?" This guy wasn't skipping a beat.

I looked him over, peering suspiciously at his horns - And then his eyes. They were a deep, blood-red color, with a bright yellow outline around his irises.

Is this guy like...A cosplayer or something?

He seemed to have already gotten over the fact that I nearly broke some of his ribs, and was already starting to climb to his feet.


"Whoa, take it easy there - You're bleeding-" Almost as though on que, I watched him sway briefly, and then collapse.

I barely caught his head before it whipped against the green grass under us. He was out...Again.

His breathing was unusually shallow, and I couldn't help but wonder if he was on some kind of depressant.

Fuck...

I gently laid his head down on the grass, stood up, and walked to the top of the hill we were on, hoping I could see some indicator of society. Sure enough, reaching the top of the hill revealed a large stone wall, looking almost medieval, castle-style, with a gate large enough for cars to drive through. A dirt road trailed out of it, weaving in-between the hills around us. It was probably a half-mile away, if I had to guess. I looked back at my new friend, who once again had started leaking blood in small drips from the corner of his mouth.

I need to get this guy to a hospital before he really does clock himself out of this world...

I sighed, stretching my shoulders and arm, and then picked him up, slinging him over my shoulder. Luckily for me, we were about the same height, and he was pretty skinny. I took a deep breath, adjusting to the extra weight, and headed over the hill, en route for the walls in the distance.

Two men greeted me at the gate - Both of them must have been standing at nearly 8 feet tall, and mountains of muscle to boot. On top of this, they both had some suspiciously medieval-looking suits of armor on, complete with helmets covering their heads.

Did I like...Stumble my way into some kind of weird LARP town or something?

"Good afternoon guys...I found this guy passed out in the field, and I'm trying to get him to a hospital. Doesn't seem like he's doing well at all. Would either of you have a cell phone I can borrow to call 911? Or maybe an Emergency Room I can take him over to?"

"Cell phone...?" One of them asked with an extremely deep voice.

The other looked at him through his helmet, and shrugged.

Jesus, even with a guy passed out, they're this dedicated?

"Alright guys, can we drop the act for a sec? This guy really needs help here."

"If you walk through the gate here, head straight down the road into the town square. There should be a doctor you can take him to - It'll be the first building on the left. It's called The Clinic, written in big bold letters at the top."

I sighed, wiping the sweat from my brow, "Thank you."

"I would offer to help carry him, but I'm not allowed to leave my post...Sorry," The other one said.

It sounded genuine enough, but considering they're just playing some weird roleplay, I didn't know how much I could really appreciate the gesture.