Ursus Ex Machina

Ozzy was a man of the wild. Raised in a remote village atop the world's mightiest mountain, he'd been taught to respect and revere the natural world. The realm he was born into had been there long before him, and it would remain there long after him. Sure, there was the occasional madman who threatened to destroy it, but such boasts were always empty. No one individual was actually capable of demolishing this beautiful blue-and-green ball Ozzy called home. No matter what terrible magics these villains wielded, they were incapable of causing permanent harm to the environment. Even if the planet was completely devastated, it would recover. Life would find a way to flourish, same as it always had. That was what Ozzy believed from the bottom of his heart, so he never once felt the need to save the world he loved. After all, it was never truly in danger. The world would be fine no matter what. The people were a wee bit endangered, but that was another story altogether. However, what would happen if Ozzy suddenly found himself devoid of his beloved wilds? What would the man do if the realm he knew - one of wonder, magic, and chaos - was replaced with a man-made environment of concrete, industry, and steam? Ozzy could never imagine such a thing happening, and yet that was his new reality. After losing a fateful confrontation with a mad wizard, he and his friends found themselves transported to a strange world so thoroughly alien that every waking moment feels like a fever dream. Separated and scattered to the four corners of this land, each of these adventurers will need to adapt, survive, and overcome if they hope to reunite. They would also need to do so quickly. The sooner they are able to find one another, the sooner they can figure out a way back home and have another crack at putting an end to the villain's plans. Whether such a thing was actually possible in a world with barely any magic in it was a valid concern, but Ozzy had more immediate things to worry about. For instance, why did the air smell like a perpetual forest fire? How did ships sail through the sky as if it were water? And most importantly, was the pavement he was hurtling towards at high speed much softer than it looked? Probably not, but a man could hope.