fanfiction Florian's Journal Chapter 13 (A Man Named Hulk)

[FlorianWind9]

HI!!!

So.........bit of a devastating chapter last chapter yeah? ......Lost real-life weeks of hard work in a matter of seconds...lost nearly every structure, resource, and piece of gear acquired...lost the two tames we'd managed to get settled out in the middle of the ocean(which was actually the one thing I didn't mind; as with Ark's glitchy water physics and raft mechanics, they were a constant source of anxiety concerning the possibility of logging on one day to find them randomly glitched through the raft's bottom and drowned). Worst of all though, was that now Florian again found himself to be completely alone on this dangerously unpredictable isle... The one companion whom he had found, and who had stuck with him through many real-world weeks of trials and terror, Pqpe had himself succumbed to the unrelenting pressure of The Island's countless hardships and setbacks; preferring to be swallowed by the peaceful emptiness of the void.

(Now, for the record, as stated previously; Pqpe was played by my real life brother. While the misfortunes and difficulties of the game did play a part in his decision to quit; the real reason why he finally came to that conclusion was that, at the time, he only had a laptop to play the game on and while it was a good enough one to play it on minimal settings...Ark was still severely wearing down his computer and causing it to overheat worse and worse every time he logged on. That, combined with losing everything so quickly and suddenly, made quitting the only logical course of action. He couldn't invest the continued and assured deterioration of his only computer into a game like that. He has since then acquired a proper and powerful desktop pc; and has played mmaaannnnyyyyy hours of Ark. Infact, I sometimes think he may be more into the game than I am now. BUT, none of those hours have anything to do with this story; as at the time he left, for lack of a computer that didn't burn his hands every time he logged onto Ark Survival Evolved.)

Getting back to the tale at hand however, Florian wasn't about to give up just yet. It would take far more than losing everything he'd worked so hard on for weeks, and losing his only friend, in a matter of will-crushing minutes to cause him to resign himself to the void. As time and experience would show, for all the abandoned decaying thatch huts on the beach, there are many such individuals who find themselves upon the Arks. In his time upon The Island, Florian would encounter numerous people who chose to persevere against the immense adversity; even if that meant living homeless, isolated, naked, without a single thing to their name.

To Celebrate the Existence of This Game, and to Mourn the approach of its Death, I invite you to become acquainted with A Man Named Hulk.

FIRSTLY: I would like to state that this story is NONFICTION, meaning that every event is completely true and really did happen. wildcard did not provide a nonfiction prefix for me to choose, only a fanfiction one, so I guess that's what I have to go with...

SECONDLY:

IMPORTANT CONTEXT!!

                   The events of this story are Very Heavily based upon the true life events experienced through the perspective of the player character Florian, Nine, Wind. The events are marginally smoothed to convert video game aspects into real life description, and ever so slightly dramatized for entertainment purposes; to make the story more enjoyable.

                   These events occurred within the online video game “Ark Survival Evolved” which is owned by “Studio Wildcard”. So…while the original life events occurred through Florian and the other player characters mentioned within this story; the world scenery and visual assets, as well as the in-game story elements, were created by and are owned by “Studio Wildcard”.

                    These events occurred majoritively upon the “Official The Island Server 39”, with only the very ending occurring upon the “Official The Island Server 2”; and the planned Epilogue on the “Official Ragnarok Server 65”; all of which no longer exist. Server 39 and 2 would be considered "Legacy Servers" if they still existed. Server 65 would be considered a "Modern Server Soon To Be Ended" if it also still existed.

                   The player created events of this story occurred between the time period of the game’s early access launch, on the online video-game hosting service “Steam” owned by “Valve”, which debuted on June 2, 2015; and just slightly beyond the game’s "full 1.0 release" on August 29, 2017. More specifically; the story of Florian’s journey, which would be depicted within the completed version of this book(If I ever manage to fully complete it), transpired approximately between November 28, 2015 and November 4, 2017.

                   I am hoping that this story will be a way for people who love Ark; that have friends that don't like playing video games; or not open world sand box video games; but who may like to read; to show those friends what the game Ark Survival Evolved is really like; or at least what it CAN be. I am also hoping to convey to those who may read it what This Video Game Has Meant To Me Personally.

                So...Without Further ADO...I Hope You Enjoy!  

 

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Chapter 13

A Man Named Hulk

                I was alone……but I was resolved to continue fighting for answers. ‘After everything that had happened…I wouldn’t be content to simply waste away in the void.’

               Having decided that I would need stronger protection, if I was going to live closer to the beach, I had spent the entire previous day hunting up and down the Southern shoreline for Giant Turtles. Using my remaining expedition raft as a temporary living space; I’d placed a bed upon it, as well as a campfire, and spent a day stocking it with strong wooden hunting spears.

                The Giant Turtles had become my chosen target, because; ‘although they were very thick-skinned, they were also slow and clumsy when on land; making them a vulnerable, if still time-consuming, prey to hunt.’ While I could certainly use their hide for crafting…and meat for food…it was their shells I was mainly after. The Giant Turtles’ spikey carapaces were made of a very hard, keratin-like substance…and I had a feeling; ‘that it would be just what I’d need, to increase my personal fortification.’

            Unfortunately…I hadn’t had very good luck in tracking them throughout the day; and had only harvested three Giant Turtles worth of resources, to show for my efforts. I knew that I would need far more for my purposes; and that I needed the material fast!

               Being alone…on an open raft…near the coastline…I was extremely vulnerable; not only to wild beasts, such as Raptors and Carnos, but also to other humans. ‘I didn’t have any time to rest and wait for the much needed defense’; so as the pitch-dark of night had slowly crept in…I’d cautiously lit the campfire on my humble vessel, and continued the hunt deep into the nocturnal hours.

            Slowly prodding along the shallows with an extended wooden staff, I moved the raft along the water’s edge; keeping a sharp lookout for Giant Turtles amidst the eerie darkness.

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                I then saw a sudden flash of movement amongst the trees near the beach; and quickly moved to douse my campfire! ‘The thing had been far too small, and fast, to be something harmless…it moved as though it could have been a Raptor…or perhaps something worse.’

                 Huddled motionless upon my raft in the now complete darkness, I waited…in hopes that whatever it was, would simply pass by unseen. However; as my eyes began to adjust, I noticed what appeared to be the crawling figure of a large human man… …moving along on his stomach…slowly making its way down the beach towards my craft!

                In a panic, I swiftly moved to unfurl the sail; and let a gust of wind send me racing down the beach! Looking back, I saw now what clearly looked to be a six-foot tall human male jump up from the ground; and dive smoothly into the water after me!

            I wasn’t too worried about the potential attacker reaching me; ‘after-all, I’d escaped from a large Sarco on a raft moving at about the same speed…and a human couldn’t possibly swim faster than a giant alligator, right?’ Still, keeping track of his movements, my eyes began to widen with shock as I could see that he was clearly catching up to me…and fast! The man was determined; relentless! He was keeping an even pace that outmatched the speed of my raft; and never slowing down, even for a moment!

             I quickly moved to take hold of the rudder, to steer out towards deeper water, hoping that it would deter him…but just as I grabbed hold of it, the man suddenly grabbed onto the back of my raft; and pulled himself onto it!

               I fell backwards in fear; and sat there gazing up at him…frozen…wondering what he would do…wondering what he wanted...

               For a short while, the man merely stood there on the back of my vessel…dripping naked with long black hair, a large black beard, and deeply tanned skin……staring at me; while breathing heavily from the effort of his intensive swim.

               Without a word of warning, he then tightly gripped the implant below his left wrist with his right hand…and began screaming with intense pain as he pulled on it mercilessly; “AAAAAHHHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRGGGGGG!!!!!”

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             With a squelching pop, and the sound of flesh tearing, he soon held his own implant in his right hand; as a river of blood began to gush from his left wrist!

             His voice soft with fatigue…the man threw his bloody implant into my lap, as he simply uttered; “Remember me.”

              The moment those words had left his lips, he dove back into the water; swimming towards land…after which, he took off down the beach at an unbelievable speed…especially considering all the blood-loss.

              Confused and shaken…I picked up the implant he had thrown to me; and double-tapped its diamond without thinking.

              ‘VROOOM!’ Despite having been separated from his body…the man’s implant still materialized a holographic panel; which detailed his personal statistical information, in English lettering; ‘Specimen Implant; Sample Number: One-Four-Four-Six-Zero-One-Five-Zero-Four, Male; Vernacular ID: Hulk; Species: Homo-Sapiens; Epoch: Seventy-Four; Attributes: Intelligence, Dexterity, Adaptability; Survival Quotient: Eighty-Four; Tribe Affiliation: None; Ark Variant: The Island, Thirty-Nine; Day: Six-Thousand Four-Hundred Seventy-Six; Time: One-Hours and Twenty-Six-Minutes; Temp: Seven Degrees Celsius; Health: Fair; Stamina: Extraordinary; Oxygen: Good; Hunger: Extreme; Thirst: Extreme; Weight: Average; Strength: Excellent; Agility: Extraordinary; Fortitude: Good; Crafting Expertise: Poor; Torpor: None.’

            ‘VRUUP!’ I turned off the hologram…and sat there in perplexed contemplation… …as my heightened adrenaline gradually declined. ‘Hulk…eh? …Yes…a Hulk of a man indeed... What could he possibly have gone through…that would cause him to act in such an irrational manner?’

             After a brief moment of rest to calm my nerves…I resumed the hunt for Giant Turtles; this time keeping my movements concealed by the ever-shifting dark.