CREWSADERS - THE NOVELIZATION OF A GAME THAT DOESN'T EXIST

2-1

https://youtu.be/E8VdqW8lOwU?si=d0sKQih4_4IxE2L7

Footsteps and gasps break through the silence of the night as a young man ran through the bushes of a cluttered forest, holding on to his scarf in a desperate attempt to flee the savage beasts hunting him down.

///////////// JUST A LOST MAN: HARVEY /////////////

One could call the scenery peaceful had it not been for the mutated rocky creatures that dashed through the fields and destroyed anything under the dim moonlight of what felt like an eternal night, forming paths of destruction and mud (wait there was water nearby? Harvey formed a mental note, he was starving) everywhere they went. Regardless, he just wanted to survive. He needed to figure out where the heck he was before Harvey could ever allow himself to be eaten alive (or dead, for the record). He was used to wandering through unknown lands in his pursuits for supplies, but he'd never seen such bizarre "raccoon-rabbit-rock thingies" before. They were relentless in their pursuit and as such he came to realize that his normal dodging and weaving tactics wouldn't work. Harvey would have to get crafty

Hoping the strong scent or glossy packaging would distract the critters, the young man reached into his backpack and pulled out the last package of beef jerky he'd managed to grab before being sucked into one of the few weird portals that had spawned into his village. After briefly saying his goodbyes to it he threw it backwards at full force. The flying bag of dried beef captured the creatures' attention, causing them to change targets and investigate what was dropped.

https://youtu.be/ImHfrmbTSGA?si=jA8Yk1_KoQI0B2jd

After running for another minute (just to make sure) Harvey finally slowed down, panting as he put his hands on his knees to catch himself. That had been a close call, last time he'd managed to get away from them just by throwing a couple of pebbles in the opposite direction. Harvey couldn't keep doing this, otherwise he'd run out of food in no time.

..if he hadn't run out of food already. Which he had just noticed he did.

That was a problem.

Even away from home, Harvey was usually fully prepared with goods and supplies that he could either use for himself or sell to others, making sure the cycle could repeat itself so he could make a living.

What he didn't expect, however, was that one day he'd be magically warped to a forest completely devoid of sentient life.

"Oh man.. what am I going to do now?" he wondered out loud, pacing frantically through the forest, searching for anything that'd be able to get him some food. He looked all around himself, trying not to miss any possible resources..

..but he still somehow missed the big, rectangular object he walked right into, almost causing him to lose his balance

After dusting himself off and giving an annoyed sigh, Harvey realized he was staring at none other than a phone booth - in great shape, no less! That was it! He could just call someone and he'd be rescued in no time! He knew the numbers of all kinds of people after all, surely at least one of them could help!

..if any of the numbers worked. No matter what the young man tried, nothing seemed to connect.

Harvey hoped with all of his might that he had been warped to another location and not another world altogether.

"Well, my luck had to run out eventually," he mumbled as he sat down inside of the booth. "At least I got a pretty good shelter for the time being. Let's see if the old trick still works.."

He reached into his backpack, took out a small book titled "Laws of Aviation" and stared at it for a moment, before immediately falling asleep.

.