It was odd that the quest countdown seemed to correspond to the time that Nick had woken up, but it could be a lucky break. The start of a new round meant that other players might be somewhere nearby. People who could help him get home. As with the main menu, the information on the questing screen was remarkably game-like.

It appeared that he had stumbled across an elaborate prop for some manner of live action role play. He wasn’t sure what the labyrinth was, maybe the setting for their LARP. Thinking about it filled Nick with a vague sense of unease whose origin he couldn’t pin down, so he moved on to the rest of the description. The Searing Isle huh? I don’t recognize the name, but it might be made up for the game. I wonder where it comes from. Probably the volcano.

Although Nick was reasonably certain that this computer wasn’t connected to the internet, and that the information about the game was unlikely to be helpful, he still felt immensely relieved. This wasn’t an uninhabited island after all. People had been here before and were either somewhere in the area or would return relatively soon. The obelisk looked pristine, handmade, and expensive. Not the kind of thing that you would use once and then abandon.

While he doubted that it would reveal anything useful, he went ahead and selected the final option from the main menu. Despite his dire predicament, he found that he was curious about the game these people were playing out in the middle of nowhere. Nick’s predictions were shattered the moment that he began to read. The words that appeared shocked him to his core.

Contestant Profile: Nicholas ‘Nick’ Henry.

Level: 0.

Tier: 1.

Species: Human of Earth (E).

Holy shit. My name is in the database. How is that even possible? Nick took a reflexive step back. As if retreating from the display could shield him from the impact of the words. Was I playing this game before I lost my memories?

No. I couldn't have been playing already if I’m still level zero. And I wouldn’t start a round without shoes or bandaging these injuries properly. Still too stunned to even begin processing what was happening, he ran his eyes across the rest of the screen.

Class: Survivor (basic).

Base attribute points per level: 0. Free attribute points per level: 1.

Attributes

Strength: 3

Dexterity: 5

Toughness: 3

Mind: 7

Creativity: 6

Charisma: 5

Magic: 2

???

???