Boonie Bears: Another World Fantasy

That familiar feeling came over me again.

It was as if a gentle breeze had brushed against his face, bringing a strange sense of intimacy. Sharp felt a sudden darkness before his eyes, and his consciousness involuntarily drifted into a deep sleep. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself once more in that mysterious yet familiar space.

This place has naturally become his secret communication room with his other self. Strangely, his other self is not here at this moment.

He was met with only darkness. Not a single ray of light. Yet, for Sharp, this darkness felt like a warm embrace, bringing him peace and relaxation.

Having been here for so long, Sharp hadn't even considered seeing a psychiatrist; this sudden connection between his brain and his mind was driving him almost insane. He tried to find answers, but each time to no avail.

He slowly opened his eyes and saw Zhao Lin in the driver's seat trying to suppress a laugh through the rearview mirror.

Sharp glanced at her, thinking to himself, "Is this yet another one of his pranks...?"

"Wipe your drool, uncle," Zhao Lin teased.

"How long have we been walking?" he asked, gazing at the rapidly passing scenery.

"Almost two hours."

"Do we need to change people?" Sharp rubbed his eyes, put his coat back on, and asked.

"It's okay, I'll drive a little further, there's a service area up ahead," Zhao Lin replied.

"Ugh—" Abu, curled up in the passenger seat, groaned, rolled over, covered his ears, and muttered, "Did you guys hear anything strange? It's been buzzing..."

“That’s the sound of an engine running,” Sharp replied irritably.

"Huh... I heard it too, but the engine shouldn't be that loud." Zhao Lin frowned and glanced at the dashboard.

I was surprised to find that the oil pressure reading was alarmingly low, almost reaching the critical value.

"That's not right, I just filled up with gas!" she exclaimed.

Although this vehicle is considered an off-road vehicle, it has only been a little over two hours since we left the town. Logically speaking, it shouldn't be consuming fuel so quickly.

"I suspect there's an oil leak." Sharp pressed his ear to the carpet, listened carefully for a while, and said anxiously, "How far are we to the service area?"

"About five or six minutes."

"I need to find someone else to help me." He glanced at the rear of the car and sure enough, there was a faint trail.

"I knew Salta was unreliable!" Zhao Lin complained as she slowed down.

“It could also be deliberate…” Having experienced so many changes, Sharp’s intuition told him that someone was still watching them from the shadows.

"Don't think like that, I'm begging you." Thinking of this, Zhao Lin swallowed hard, her face pale. She really didn't want to be targeted by those terrifying deer people anymore.

Suddenly, the atmosphere in the car took a sharp turn for the worse.

……

After parking the car at the service area, Sharp quickly jumped out, took a flashlight from the trunk, and then lay down and crawled under the car. Zhao Lin looked at his actions with some confusion, but still followed his instructions and moved away from the vehicle.

Underneath the car, Sharp used a flashlight to illuminate the chassis and saw a murky, pungent liquid slowly seeping out from the gaps in the chassis.

Not good.

He quickly climbed out from under the car, wiped his hands clean, and said to Zhao Lin, "Something's wrong. The gasoline is leaking badly and can't be sealed off. This car can't be driven anymore." His serious tone made Zhao Lin nervous. She looked at the pool of gasoline under the car and felt a surge of worry.

Zhao Lin suggested calling the company to request a car, but Sharp thought that might take too long. He advised Zhao Lin to try contacting the company first, while also checking if there were any other people or resources around who could help them.

Just as Sharp and Zhao Lin were discussing things, Abu finally woke up.

"Mmm—meow, my back aches from sleeping so much." It stretched and made a contented sound. However, Sharp and Zhao Lin were in no mood to pay attention to it; they were more concerned with how to solve their current predicament.

“Mr. Cat, I would be very grateful if you chose to come and help,” Sharp said as he walked.

"Coming!" Abu responded, then landed on all fours and sprinted toward Sharp.

However, as Sharp approached the cars, an ominous premonition suddenly welled up inside him. The cars were eerily quiet, shrouded in a deathly stillness, with no sign of human activity whatsoever.

Sharp cautiously approached one of the cars and peered through the broken window. The sight before him made his heart sink. The interior was a mess; the seats and dashboard were covered in blood, suggesting a fierce struggle had taken place.

"What a strange smell..." Abu also noticed something was wrong. Its fur stood on end, and it looked around warily.

It was then that Sharp realized that there wasn't a single person in the entire service area; the place, which should have been bustling with activity, was now unusually deserted.

"Did you find anything?" Zhao Lin asked anxiously, looking at Sharp jogging over with some worry.

Sharp, panting heavily and frowning, said, "Something's wrong here. Everyone's disappeared!" As he spoke, he grabbed a crowbar from a corner, gripped it tightly in his hand, gestured for Zhao Lin to stay close to him, and then slowly approached the convenience store next door.

"I smell blood..." Abu's voice suddenly rang out, instantly plunging both of them into despair.

"Should I call the police first?" Zhao Lin's voice trembled.

“If it’s that high priestess again, the army won’t help. We’re right in her trap, and she’s probably tampered with the car too,” Sharp analyzed calmly. Although he tried hard to remain calm, his inner tension was hard to hide.

Sharp gently pushed open the glass door, and sure enough, the convenience store was empty. The clerk who should have been at the counter was nowhere to be seen. The goods on the shelves were neatly arranged, but the entire space was filled with an eerie silence.

In an instant, the world seemed to be paused, leaving only Zhao Lin, Sharp, and Abu, along with their cat. They stood in the empty convenience store, like three goldfish trapped in a glass tank.

Sharp walked slowly among the shelves. Looking at this familiar scene, he couldn't help but think of the store where he used to work before he traveled back in time. He felt a sense of warmth, but at the same time, he was also gripped by a strange sense of tension.

However, at that moment, Sharp suddenly noticed that in the storage room at the end of the shelf, under the white porch, some dark red liquid was seeping out and gradually spreading around.

Sharp immediately became alert. He glanced back at Zhao Lin and Abu behind him, telling them to stay put, and then walked towards the door, leaning against the wall.

"Click!" With a sharp sound, the door was pushed open. Sharp, holding a crowbar, stood in the doorway, nervously looking around. His heart was pounding, and his palms were sweaty. However, the small space was not as dangerous as he had imagined. There were only some ordinary daily cleaning supplies neatly arranged on the shelves.

Sharp tiptoed into the room, his gaze falling on the dark red liquid on the floor. He crouched down, gently touched the liquid with his finger, and then brought it close to his nose to smell it. A pungent paint odor assaulted his nostrils, and he immediately realized it was just an overturned paint bucket.

He couldn't help but smile wryly and shake his head: "I was too nervous. There's nothing there at all."

Sharp stood up from the ground, sighed with relief, and then strode outside.

"It's alright now—"

However, when he reached the door, the scene before him made him freeze instantly.

Zhao Lin was seen being lifted into the air by the neck, while the strangely tall man grinned as if he wanted to stuff Zhao Lin into his mouth.

Abu was also held tightly by him, his claws scratching incessantly at his arm.

Upon seeing Sharp, the man laughed even more excitedly, sticking out his tongue, which resembled a snake's forked tongue, and licked Zhao Lin's face.

I've been waiting for you for so long—

"A time traveler."

Nathaniel said to Sharp in a provocative manner.