Hogun adjusted the strap on his custom VR headset, exhaling in satisfaction as the digital world flickered to life. The familiar hum of his custom-built GMOD server greeted him—explosions in the distance, soldiers patrolling makeshift walls, and zombies clawing at steel gates. It was Saturday, his sacred day of creation and controlled chaos.
His "Main World" had grown ridiculous over the years: cities powered by duct-taped generators, flying vending machines that dropped grenades, and armies of SNPCs loyal only to him—their commander, their god. Today, he'd added hover-tanks with flamethrowers and a turret that fired rubber chickens that exploded on impact. Just as he was about to hit "save and exit," something new appeared—something he hadn't made.
A swirling black void shimmered in the sky, silent and uninvited.
"What mod is this?" Hogun muttered, checking his console. No errors. No spawns. No commands triggered it. It simply... was.
He tried to delete it. Nothing happened.
He tried again—still nothing.
As a new zombie horde attacked the southern wall, Hogun sighed, equipped a plasma rifle, and took five minutes to wipe them out solo. Then he returned to the portal, curiosity overtaking caution.
[Hogun Pov]
[Hogun]: Only one way to figure this out,
I muttered, then stepped forward.
The world stretched like rubber. My headset vibrated violently. Lights—white, red, blue—burst across my vision like fireworks gone wrong. Then, everything snapped.
I landed hard.
Dirt. Actual dirt. Damp, gritty, and stinking of ash and blood. I groaned, pushing myself up. This... wasn't my server. No way this was GMOD. But damn—whoever made this map needs to teach me how.
I looked around. A crumbling stone plaza surrounded me, filled with angry-looking NPCs wielding swords. Medieval types. Their clothes were worn, stained with grime, and their eyes, wide with fury and fear, locked onto me like I'd just crashed their event.
They shouted at me in a language I didn't understand.
I reached for my HUD. Nothing. No health bar. No console. No escape button. Just... me.
A masked NPC rushed me, sword raised.
Instinct took over.
I summoned my fire katana—don't ask me how—and slashed low and fast.
It connected.
The sword bit through him from the waist. Sparks and flame flared—but there was no cartoonish ragdoll. No respawn.
Just blood. Guts. A scream cut short.
The body collapsed in two clean halves at my feet, leaking steam and red across the cobblestones.
I froze.
That was... too real.
[Hogun]: What the hell is going on...?
These NPCs—why do they bleed? Why do they look scared? One of them dropped to their knees in terror. I couldn't understand it. I'd seen my creations fall apart, ragdoll and respawn in my world, but this? This was no game.
Who the hell modded this? What kind of sick person would code blood and gore like this into a world? There are kids who play this game, damn it!
The rest of the crowd screamed. Some dropped their weapons. Most ran.
I stood there, still in disbelief, trying to piece together what the hell was going on. My brain couldn't keep up with the sheer absurdity. I barely had time to process before—
A hail of bullets exploded from behind me, cutting through the remaining NPCs in front of me with brutal efficiency. The air rippled with the sound of gunfire, the NPCs falling in a bloody mess. The ones that tried to run didn't make it far.
I spun around, heart racing, hands instinctively reaching for weapons that weren't there. My gaze snapped to the portal. A tear in space that had been following me, and now... it was more than just an anomaly.
Through the tear, I saw them. My SNPCs. The ones I spawned, coded, and crafted from the very chaos of my imagination. And they were coming through the portal, stepping into this world with the same eerie grace they always had—except this time, they weren't just lines of code.
The portal pulsed behind me, and through it stormed my elite: the Captains.
James came first, all authority and menace, his red gas mask glowing faintly beneath the black steel plating of his futuristic armor. His infantry followed behind, precision in motion.
Then came Mastiff—seven feet tall, moving like a war machine, his bulky armor groaning with each step. Blue gas mask hissing with every breath, his modified fists crushed rubble as easily as bone.
Shadowy13 slid out next, barely visible as his adaptive camo shimmered and shifted with the ruined plaza around him. His green mask gleamed, optics switching between thermal and night vision modes. His rifle snapped up, scanning rooftops.
Last was Logan, half-cybernetic and all speed, his yellow gas mask reflecting the fires now crackling through the nearby alleys. His team blurred past, already flanking Reunion soldiers before the rest of us could react.
[James ]: Commander!
James barked, voice distorted by static.
[James ]: We've got unknown hostiles, armed and aggressive.
[Hogun]: I can see that,
I said, then paused.
[Hogun]: Wait, did I actually program voice lines for you guys?
James didn't respond. His troops moved like a real military unit, covering angles, sweeping alleys. Not one ragdoll movement. No janky AI behavior.
Just then, a scream split the air.
I turned. Down the street, civilians—men, women, even kids—were running, chased by more of those masked sword freaks.
Reunion.
I remembered them. Barely. I have only played until Chapter 3 of Arknights. But this—this wasn't some cutscene.
I blinked, swallowed, then something... clicked.
I stepped forward, raising my katana high like I'd done in countless GMOD RP sessions.
[Hogun]: Infantry! Form a line and suppress those hostiles! Logan, get your squad moving, intercept and draw them off the civilians! Mastiff—barrier wall, now! Shadowy13, rooftop cover, now!
The Captains moved without hesitation.
Guns barked. Mastiff tore a chunk of the wrecked wall free and planted it down for cover. Logan's squad zipped forward in a blur, knocking Reunion soldiers off their feet before vanishing again. Shadowy13's rifle thundered, picking off targets with terrifying precision.
I ran through the chaos, cutting down a Reunion swordsman as he lunged for a child. Sparks from my blade lit up his mask before it cracked in half.
I shouted.
[Hogun]: Get them into the portal! James, secure the corridor! I want every civilian out of this hellhole, now!
People hesitated—then obeyed. Maybe it was the uniform. Maybe the glowing katana. Or maybe it was the sight of a giant armored beast throwing a Reunion elite into a wall like a doll.
Whatever the reason, they ran to the portal. My portal.
And I stood in the middle of it all—blood on my blade, sweat on my brow—still half-convinced this was just some elaborate prank mod.
[Hogun]: What kind of psycho makes a GMOD mod like this?"
I muttered, watching one of Logan's squad members get stabbed, only to stagger back up and retaliate.
[Hogun]: Like—props, this is next-level scripting. But man, you could've picked something a little less terrifying.
Still, I grinned.
If they wanted me to play a role, I'd play it.
Straightening, I raised my katana once more and bellowed to my troops
[Hogun]: You want a show?! You've got GeneralHogun! Let's take this damn city back!
And just like that, I stepped deeper into the madness, laughing like I belonged there.
Maybe I did.
[Chapter end]