Mandy and Drake asked him a few more questions, like what he was eating or where the mansion was. He could only answer a few before he started feeling rather tired. Mandy chased Drake out of the room and told Bennie to get some sleep.
He waited a moment before motioning for Alice to come closer.
“Why did you want to stay a secret?” he asked.
She seemed to slightly shimmer, then actually sat down on his bed. “You’ve been asleep for a day, by the way. While you were out, I floated about, heard them all whispering. Just thought it would be better if you didn’t mention a human-shaped ghost.”
He sighed and nodded in agreement, “Yeah, that does seem smart. I got a quest, have I told you about quests?”
She shook her head, and he let out another sigh. He slid down the side of the wall and lay down, his hands under his head. The thatch roof did look interesting; he thought he could stare at it for hours. “The system you talked about, the one Mandy used to show her name, it gives me quests now and then. Sometimes they’re dumb, but other times I accidentally complete them.”
She didn’t say anything, just stared at him.
“When Mandy said humans were made illegal over 10,000 years ago, it gave me a new quest. I have to ‘undo the damage done by my species’. Alice, what did humans do to this world, and why does it feel like we weren’t native?”
“I don’t know. Honestly, I was just as shocked as you were, Bennie. The humans who made the mansion never hinted at anything like this.” She went quiet after that, still sitting on the edge of his bed.
He didn’t know what else to say either, and he could feel sleep approaching. So, he let it be; whatever it was, it could be sorted out later.
The next day, he woke up to find Drake at the door, patiently waiting for him. The big Oni-kin smiled as he opened his eyes, quietly waving. Once Bennie got up and found his shoes, he was led outside. They had been in a small house, with only two other rooms, apparently it belonged to Mandy, as she was the one who volunteered to take care of him, he had to stay with her.
They were now walking down a cobblestone street, and Bennie was doing his utter best not to stare. Starting at the buildings, he was awestruck by the many variations.
“Over there is a water-kin house; they like it a bit more humid than others, so they have no windows,” Drake said. The house he was pointing to looked solid, completely so, with no way for light or fresh air to move through it. “Though they can be perfectly fine without that. Most of them live along rivers or oceans.”
Bennie nodded, “There are so many people here. Are they all some kind of kin?” he asked, as a large man walked past them, giving a friendly wave to Drake. The man stood almost a full chest above even Drake, so simply calling him large felt wrong.
“Oh, no, I guess you wouldn’t know that. Most people in this city, but you can find other countries with complete species or something similar. Mandy can tell you more. But we are a place where a large mix of species is.” He said, staring at a few children running past them.
Bennie nodded, but he had no idea what he meant. He would indeed have to ask Mandy, but that felt like it would be a large exposition dump. He saw Alice at that moment float through another set of walls, going into a different building, and he would have to tell her not to do that.
Drake was leading him to a restaurant to have breakfast, as a sort of way to show Bennie where he was. Apart from the architecture of every house being different and the strange people, it was almost exactly what he imagined any town would look like without electricity. Parts of the city were dedicated to industries, and the jobs considered dirtier were all located outside the city walls.
“No one will try to attack me or something, will they?” he asked.
Drake shook his head, “No, murder is illegal here, and the system regulates most crimes. I doubt most people would even know what you are. Mandy had to explain to me why you were important before I realised.” The man had stopped at a crossroads, allowing a wagon pulled by what Bennie could only describe as an ox the size of an elephant to walk past lazily.
The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
“That’s rather convenient. What do you normally do when you aren’t showing the town to someone?”
They started walking again, and Bennie could smell something delicious in the air. “Normally, I just help where needed. I have an adventurer class, and right now there aren’t any quests to take. Most adventurers in the country are having some downtime.” The atmosphere in the air changed now, there was a low murmur mixed in with hearty laughter.
“Oh, so you get quests and things too?” Bennie asked, not looking at Drake anymore, they had entered a sort of food area, and there were several buildings with restaurants and more.
Drake tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to a building across the road that had outdoor seating. “Oh yes, when you get your class, you get a few quests to start out and then as you explore, the system gives out more. But about three weeks ago, it announced that we would all be getting a vacation.”
They were led to a table right at the edge of the restaurant's seating area, and a tall girl with actual green skin and long auburn hair had introduced herself. She gave them both a sheet of paper with the food options on it, then left, saying she’d bring their drinks shortly. Bennie stared after her, unable to comprehend what she could be kin to.
Drake cleared his throat, and Bennie asked the question he had lined up, “Is that normal? You don’t look worried about it. What are you doing for money? Do you have a currency here?”
Drake chuckled, a noise that was oddly funny to Bennie’s ears, “Oh yeah, we have currencies here, we use what are called Domes, minted in the capital and spread through there. They’re system is recognised here.” He flipped a coin through the air, and Bennie caught it.
It was indeed slightly dome-shaped, but not by much. On one side was a coat of arms he didn’t recognise, and on the other an expertly crafted picture of what looked like a dog, along with the number five.
Five Domes, currency of the world of Clear. Worth around 10 of your old currency. Used to pay for dinners or salaries of day labourers.
“Wow, this looks kind of nice, and it’s worth a fair bit. Are you sure you’re financially stable? I have my food.” Bennie said, holding the Dome out for Drake to take back.
“Keep it, you need some pocket money. Adventurers are usually better off than others. We receive a significant amount of compensation from the system for taking care of monsters and similar creatures.” He said, leaning back in his chair. The waitress was back with two large glass mugs of what Bennie recognised as beer.
The golden yellow liquid looked clear, and she expertly set them down on the table before them. She asked what they wanted, and Drake ordered, not waiting for Bennie to scramble and quickly look at the menu. She smiled, nodded, and turned away, disappearing into the building.
“Trust me, you’ll like what I ordered. Now drink your beer, it should take some of that tension out of your shoulders.” Drake said, right before he gulped down his own.
Bennie picked up the mug and appreciated just how large it was; his entire hand fit through the handle hole. As he lifted it, he saw Alice out of the corner of his eye come floating into the restaurant; she seemed to be quite interested in everything, even more so than he was. He smelled the fruity beer and felt a sense of relief even before the golden liquid hit his tongue.
It was a lighter, similar to the one he liked to drink before, but it was much more fruity, and he felt the fizz fill his mouth, then burn his throat as he swallowed. He gulped two more sips before he almost slammed the mug back down onto the table. It was possible the best beer he had ever tasted, and almost like magic, he felt a tension that was in his shoulders completely fall away.
“Enjoy beer, do you?” Drake asked, laughter in his voice and a wide grin on his face.
Bennie looked at the mug, he had somehow gulped down almost half of it, “I think I used to, but I got so busy. This is amazing.”
Alice came floating over and sniffed the beer, scrunching up her nose as the smell hit her nose. He was staring at her when Drake cleared his throat, “You should tell her not to go into random people’s houses. We may not all be able to see her, but some people can sense her.” In a split second, the tension returned, and Bennie looked at Drake. Alice tensed as well and floated behind Bennie, like he would be able to do something if Drake chose to do anything. “You can see her?”
“Aye! There's no need to be afraid; spirits and ghosts aren’t considered dangerous unless they attack. But I got a skill, ‘ghost eye’ didn’t say anything before because she never seemed to leave your side.”
Alice put her hand on his shoulder again; it felt oddly real. “I’ve got so much to learn about this place, this world.”
Drake nodded, “Don’t worry, we’ll get you up to date, it’s just best to experience most things rather than being told. After we have breakfast we’ll go to one of the libraries, I’m sure one of those old farts would love to meet you. Besides, they have to make a class card for you.”
Bennie was about to ask what a class card was when the waitress appeared through the door, carrying two massive plates, filled with everything Bennie could ever remember being considered as part of ‘breakfast’.
They spent the rest of the morning clearing their plates while Alice hung around closer to him than she had ever been before.
On what turned out to be the eleventh day of his stay in another world, Theodore “Bennie” Poundsworth likes to think that he made his first, non-magic circle, forced friend.
Basic Sock Puppets:
J.R. Timmerman
Christo M
Free Members:
Scarlett Dawn
Lisa M
Author daily question: ....
So if I eventually get comments this is where you all can find answers! Feel free to ask me ANY questions in the comments and I will choose a few to answer...
My favourite colour has become Purple, forest green, and orange-ish
