Louder this time. A sound as clear as the water reflecting off him. Something was moving among the trees.
He stood up slowly, very slowly. His eyes scanning the dense vegetation.
THUMP.
It was footsteps. Footsteps that made the earth vibrate and the ferns sway. It was something big.
And then he saw it.
First it was just a huge shape, moving in heavy steps that made small ripples in the water. Then the details became clear as the thing emerged from among the trees.
Green scales mixed with brown, perfect camouflage. A massive body supported by muscular legs as thick as tree trunks. A long tail swaying for balance. An arched neck ending in an elongated head with a mouth full of teeth.
Many teeth. And very large.
'Dinosaur. That's a hell of a dinosaur.'
It was absurd. Ancient creatures; he knew instinctively they didn't belong where he came from. There was no way these things could coexist with humans.
The creature hadn't seen him yet. It was searching for water.
It lowered its large head and began to take long gulps. With its eyes set on the sides of its skull, the creature only had to tilt its head for one yellow orb to lock onto William.
William remained motionless. Any sudden movement was dangerous at that moment.
And then the head turned towards him.
Yellow eyes fixed on him. Its nostrils twitched, sniffing the scent of that unknown species.
For a second, neither of them moved.
The dinosaur was imposing. A T. rex? Perhaps. Four meters tall, ten meters long including the tail. Hind legs more developed than the front legs. Claws that looked like curved knives.
A predator.
And William was the prey.
"Looks like I'm not the only one looking for food."
GROAAAR.
The dinosaur opened its mouth and roared.
The sound hit him in a shockwave, making the tips of his hairs vibrate. If that sound meant anything, if the dinosaur could tell him anything, it would clearly be: you're screwed.
"Shit."
He didn't think much. He turned and ran.
Behind him, another roar. Then, the sound of something enormous moving fast. As expected.
His legs pumped, bare feet pounding on the damp, slippery earth. He jumped over a low root, passed under a fallen trunk, almost slipped on a carpet of wet leaves.
CRASH.
The sound of something large crashing through the ferns behind him. Very close, it was approaching.
'Don't look back, don't look back, don't look, just run.'
He risked a glance over his shoulder.
The T-Rex's mouth was almost reaching him. He changed course quickly, a sharp feint to the left. It almost didn't work. The dinosaur couldn't make the turn with the same efficiency; it slid off, and crashing into some trees.
William looked ahead again and accelerated. His heart was racing as fast as William ran.
He dodged another log. He jumped into the hollow of a fallen log that slid down like a slide. Ferns whipped against his legs and arms, which shielded his face, as he passed.
The beast's footsteps betrayed that it was catching up again.
'It won't work! It won't work! It's faster!'
The terrain began to change. Fewer trees, more open space. Rocks began to appear on the ground. The vegetation thinned out. Leaving the forest wasn't a good choice; the trees could somehow slow the beast's speed, but he no longer had control of its direction.
And then he saw the end.
The ground simply... ended.
A cliff. A vertical drop.
"No, no, no."
He tried to brake, but the momentum was too much. His feet slipped on the smooth stone, his arms spinning like a windmill trying to balance.
He reached the edge. He managed to regain his balance at the last instant.
He looked down. There was water. A huge lagoon below, blue-green, surrounded by rocks. Distant. Very far. It had to be deep enough so he wouldn't smash in if he jumped.
He looked back.
There was no time to think about whether it was safe to jump from that height.
The dinosaur was coming. Very close, approaching rapidly.
He had no choice.
He jumped.
And then he felt something brush against his back followed by a snap. Teeth clashing. Holy shit, the teeth had almost caught. If he had waited any longer...
His stomach rose to his throat. The wind howled in his ears. The world became a blur of sky, stone, and water.
He heard the roar above, frustrated, furious.
The water hit him like a concrete wall.
The impact squeezed all the air from his lungs. Icy water completely enveloped his body, pulling him down, spinning him around. He almost lost consciousness; it was too risky a jump.
Everything was a confusing blue-green. Bubbles rising. He was sinking.
His arms moved, hitting the water, pulling him upwards. His legs kicked frantically. He needed to get up. What if he didn't know how to swim? He hadn't considered that possibility before.
He needed air.
The surface seemed so far away.
He kept climbing. His lungs burned worse than when he was running. This reminded him of something: the dark tomb he had emerged from. Going through this again. His vision began to narrow at the edges.
'Just a little more.'
He broke the surface with a desperate gasp of air. Violent coughs. Water rushing in and out. Arms thrashing to stay afloat. Luckily, he knew how to swim. William looked up.
At the top of the cliff, the dinosaur stared intently at him, that small prey that had been lost. Its head tilted to look down. It roared one last time, the sound echoing off the stone walls.
Then it disappeared from.
William floated there, breathing heavily, just processing the fact that he was still alive.
"Hah... haha... ha..."
A somewhat hysterical laugh escaped him. It turned into a cough as he swallowed more water.
He swam to what seemed to be the nearest shore. About twenty meters of tired strokes later, his fingers touched stone. He pulled himself out of the water, rolling on his back on the flat, sun-warm rock.
He lay there looking at the blue sky between the distant treetops. almost died. He almost became dinosaur food in the first... how long? Two hours of being alive? Conscious?
"What miserable little world have I ended up in?" he murmured to the sky.
He thought of the interface, and it appeared. The motionless zeros. Useless as always. But he was alive.
For now, that was enough.