Codename: Althea

Level Up!

Contemplating the hows and whys of everything right now was going to end up getting me killed. In a world, no, the voice had called it The Island, where dinosaurs were real, I needed to figure out how to use the system I was given and survive. Food. Water. Shelter. After that, I could begin to figure out more about where I was and how to get out of here. I looked at the Engrams screen again and noted the level requirements of the shelter items available. Okay, the first mission was to discover how to earn experience points in order to level up. Finding that note earlier provided me with some experience points, which allowed me to reach level 2. I wondered if discovering locations on the map would also work. 

I made my way down the hill and towards the sound of the rushing waves of the ocean. The scenery was breathtaking. I could smell the salty ocean air, feel the wind on my face, and could even see a few birds flying in the pale blue sky. All in all, it would have been a great vacation place if not for the fact prehistoric monsters were roaming free. No points just from walking but honestly I hadn't made it all that far. I reached down and scooped up some of the ocean water. I knew I could smell the salty air, but the water itself didn't smell salty like the beaches I remembered. I tasted it with the tip of my tongue, expecting to be repulsed, but instead found that the water wasn't salty at all. In fact, it was better than any of the bottled waters I could think of. I took a big gulp and mentally checked 'Water' off my survival list. With an ocean to drink, I would be fine in that regard. 

Next was food. Having walked through a small forested patch I had taken note of the many bushes with brightly colored berries. I wasn't sure what each one was, but I did remember some of my survival courses. Red and sweet meant good to eat. I gathered a bunch of berries and much to my surprise when I thought I had gotten them all the bush I was harvesting them from began to fade into the ground. A small brown package was left where the bush had once been, and inside was a strange-looking mix of seeds. Placing it all in my inventory by waving my arm over it, I returned to gather a few more bushes worth of berries. 

A strange feeling welled up inside me, reminding me of the adrenaline rush I would get before playing a Choir Concert. I took a look at my menu and noted that I had leveled up again. Gathering food meant I was getting experience points which was a great start. The first tool I could craft was a crude-looking pickaxe that looked like it belonged to the Smithsonian Museum. It didn't require much in the way of items and luckily the beach I was on seemed to have quite a bit of it on the ground. Gathering thatch, stone, and wood, all provided me with experience points, and crafting the tool gave me even more.  I did this a few more times, using the Campfire and Hatchet engrams I had unlocked for my first level-up. The daylight was beginning to wane and I knew I needed to have some sort of shelter up if I wanted to survive the night.

Having leveled up quite a bit, I realized my inventory, as convenient as it was, didn't eliminate the weight of the items I was carrying. Once I reached a certain limit, I would feel the full weight of the items and barely be able to walk. I used a lot of my level points in the 'weight' category to try and help lighten my load a bit. I unlocked the thatch shelter engrams and began to craft them. Four foundations, seven walls, a doorframe, a door, and for simple flat roof tiles made for a flimsy shelter, but a shelter nonetheless. As the sunlight began to fade, taking its warmth, I made a small campfire just outside of my highly flammable home. The fire itself has enough space for three stacks of 100 wood each, which I eagerly filled. Since this place was like a virtual reality dream zone, all I had to do in order to light the fire was select the option in the menu. So much for my Fire Badge, which I had earned from Girlscouts as a kid. 

I chuckled to myself. Was I really going to complain about not needing to make a fire? The night was starting, and the warmth of the sand felt good on my toes. As I sat in my rather simplistic shelter, the door kept open so I could enjoy the fire in front of me, as well as keep alert for night-time visitors, I use my remaining engram points to unlock the first set of clothing I could find. It used mostly fiber, which I had obtained from the plants when they disappeared. I was able to craft a simple rag that was used as a hat, a rough-feeling linen shirt, and what felt like itchy cotton pants. The final two items, cloth-style shoes, and wristbands labeled as gloves required an ingredient called hide. I knew it had to come from killing something, but I wasn't sure what I could actually kill. The thought alone made me feel squeamish. 

The berries kept my belly full, so I was hoping I could get through without needing to resort to killing, but it seemed there was more to it than I thought. I searched the engrams list again to find my weapon of choice, a bow. It would take a bit of leveling to unlock the weapon and the arrows to use with it, but I felt that would be my best bet on survival. Maintaining a distance and using my marksman skills to hunt.