Multiverse One Shot Collection - Reader Insert

Baldur's Gate 3 - No Way Home

The night was biting cold, the kind of chill that seeped through even the thickest jackets and clung to the skin like an unwelcome guest. The wet ground glistened under the pale glow of the streetlights, each step splashing through shallow puddles left behind by the earlier downpour. Now, the rain had returned, a light drizzle pattering against the cobblestones and dampening the air with its persistent rhythm.

You and the other SAS lads stumbled down the dimly lit street, voices raised in raucous laughter that echoed against the quiet facades of shuttered shops and silent houses. The alcohol coursing through your veins had dulled the cold's sting, leaving only a pleasant haze and the lingering taste of whiskey and lager on your tongue. You felt the warmth of camaraderie as one of the guys slung an arm around your shoulders, pulling you into a half-drunken jig that sent the group into another round of belly laughs.

"Oi, watch it! Don't take us both down!" you shouted, half-stumbling as your boots slid against the slick ground. But you were grinning, the kind of grin that came from deep in your gut, infectious and unstoppable. The night might have been cold and wet, but with the lads at your side, it felt like nothing in the world could touch you.

Just as you thought the night couldn't get any better—or worse—one of the lads took a sudden tumble. He went down hard, flailing to catch himself on the slippery pavement. Instinctively, you lunged forward to grab him, but the slick ground betrayed you both. While he rolled to a stop by the edge of the sidewalk, you kept going, your momentum carrying you over the embankment.

The world spun in a chaotic blur as you tumbled down the hill. Wet grass and muddy patches alternated with jagged rocks that scraped at your hands and arms. You hit every bump and divot on the way down, the earth seeming to conspire against you in your drunken state. The rain didn't help, turning the slope into a treacherous slide. Finally, with a bone-jarring thud, you landed face-first in a shallow puddle at the bottom, the icy water soaking through your clothes and shocking you out of your haze for a moment.

You groaned, spitting out water and mud as you lay there, limbs sprawled and aching. Above, the muffled laughter and voices of the lads grew fainter as they continued on, completely oblivious to your plight.

"Oi! You wankers!" you called out weakly, but they were already too far to hear. With another groan, you pushed yourself up onto unsteady legs, your head spinning from the fall and the booze.

The woods loomed around you, the shadows deep and uninviting. You stumbled forward, each step a precarious effort as the cold seeped into your bones. Branches snagged at your clothes, and the wet ground squelched under your boots. Somewhere along the way, you tripped over an exposed root and went sprawling again, this time landing flat on your back.

Instead of getting up, you found yourself laughing—a deep, uncontrollable chuckle at the absurdity of it all. The laughter ebbed into a soft sigh as exhaustion took over. The cold, the rain, and the alcohol finally won, and your eyelids grew heavy. With the faint sound of the drizzle around you, you let yourself drift off, sprawled on the forest floor.

—

The world returned with the roaring thunder of a migraine, a relentless pounding that seemed to shake your very skull. Your body felt stiff, the cold of the night lingering in your bones, but the sun's warmth on your face was a small reprieve. Groaning, you sat up slowly, each movement dragging against a tide of soreness. The smell of iron and smoke wafted through the air, mingling with the fresher scent of running water somewhere nearby.

Instinctively, you reached into your pocket, fumbling for your phone. Pulling it out with a grimace, you stared at the blank screen—no reception. With a frustrated sigh, you pushed yourself upright, wobbling on unsteady legs. Standing gave you a better view of your surroundings, but it didn't make things any less disorienting. The woods stretched out in every direction, their shadows long and jagged in the morning light.