They made their way to the gate, where the same guards from the previous day—Bunny Guard and Horned Lizard Guard—stood watch. Both guards looked at them, but this time, Mr. Bunny did the talking.

  “Well, look at that—adventurers! It’s been a while since we’ve seen your kind around. That’ll make a lot of folks happy. While most people can handle things around here, it’s good to have adventurers helping out.” He smiled at them—or at least it looked like a smile. Perhaps it was something else. Was he hungry?

  “Thank you, sir. We need to complete some of these quests.” They showed him the quest tokens—each a triangle bearing a symbol representing their individual roles.

  Mr. Bunny nodded. “Polite ones. That’ll make things easier for you. I see. Well, I’m sure you have your maps. The locations are close by, but not all in the same area. We close the gates at dusk and open them at dawn. Just make sure you’re back by then.” With that, he waved them through. Mr. Bunny then turned to the other guard and spoke in an unintelligible language.

  They walked together for a short while before separating.

  “Alright, everyone, let’s make sure we’re back before they close the gate. Manuel, since yours is the farthest, pick up the others on your way back,” Josh, their leader, instructed. The others nodded to him.

  They reached their point of separation. One group took a small road to the left, and Josh and Bobby took one to the right. They waved to each other and continued on to their respective destinations.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Bobby and Josh made their way to the locations indicated on their maps for the Healer and Wizard mentors. The maps showed the two locations were not far apart. Josh arrived at his mentor’s home—a well-kept, two-story house with a white fence surrounding it.

  “Looks like this is my stop. Be careful out there.” They hadn’t encountered anything particularly dangerous so far—just some foot traffic. Most of the people they’d passed had waved and seemed pleased to see them.

  “I will. See you this afternoon.” Bobby continued walking and, five minutes later, arrived at another house. Smaller than Josh’s, it was also surrounded by a fence, this one covered in plants, vines, and flowers. The scent of the flowers was sweet and calming. He walked up the path and saw an older woman tending the plants. She spoke and sang to them, and they seemed to respond to her voice, becoming greener, their flowers more vibrant.

  Without turning, she began to speak. “Has my request been filed? I’m so glad; it has been so long.” She turned, and he saw that she was nearly blind; her eyes were a hazy white color from where he stood. Yet she moved as if her diminished eyesight were no impediment.

  “Yes, ma’am. I’m here to learn the ways of the Healer.” It was likely obvious why he was there.

  “A healer, yes, that is what I am. And I can teach you, young one. Yes, Mother Pearl can teach you.” She made a hand gesture, and he thought he saw something swirl around him. He suddenly felt rejuvenated, as if he had just woken from a refreshing nap.

  “What—what was that?”

  “That, young one, is what we do. We healers are there to ensure our teammates’ health in every situation. There are many spells we can learn and various specializations within the healing arts. But someone like me, who has been around for a while, well, we learn a trick or two.” She smiled, a warm and genuine smile.

  “Thank you. Please teach me. My name is Bobby.” He bowed respectfully.

  “Good, good. It won’t be easy, but I can see you might have what it takes.” She chuckled. “My eyesight might not be what it once was.” He smiled at her gentle joke. “Now, on to the teaching.”

  And so they began. There was much to learn, and he found himself enjoying his time with this unusual woman.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  “Move your feet. Watch your stance. No, no, that’s all wrong! Like this.” The small man assumed a defensive stance, one meant to hold back an attacker. His one arm was raised, holding a small shield, while the other held a short practice sword. “You see how I’m doing it? How many times do I need to show you?”

  Manuel found himself out of breath and sweating. The instructor was a very angry little man. “Yes, Master Corvey,” Manuel replied, trying to mimic the demonstrated position. He had been given a wooden sword, a small shield, and heavy leather armor, which only exacerbated his sweating and shortness of breath.

  “[Taunt] You’re ugly and slow-witted.” For some reason, this taunt enraged Manuel, and he attacked. The small man held his ground, moving in such a way as to block each of Manuel’s wild, uncoordinated swings—hardly what one would call real attacks. “Breathe, young one, breathe,” the instructor said, calming him. Manuel stopped, bending over to catch his breath.

  “What was that, Master? Why did I become so enraged and attack you like that?” Something about the way the master had taunted him had made Manuel see red and act without thinking.

  “That, ragazzo, is part of our special moves. A warrior is the Tank—you know this already. But it’s our special moves that make us that. Anyone can stand there and hold a shield, but that doesn’t make them a Tank.” Master Corvey helped Manuel up and led him to the side for water. “It’s important that you stay hydrated, young one. You lose a lot of energy and water in practice, but with more practice, this will become easier, and you’ll learn how to breathe and conserve that energy. It does no one any good if you pass out in a fight; your party needs you, and you need your party. Rest, and we’ll continue.”

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  “How—how? I had my hand in my pocket; I was even holding my coins!” He hadn’t even taken his coins out. He could still feel them in his hand.

  “This is the Pickpocket skill. It’s not only useful for taking things from where people least expect, but also for putting things there. It’s sleight of hand—this trick is our magic, but without the waste of mana, as we don’t use it.” Mr. Corta showed him the coins Pepe was sure he’d had in his pocket. Pepe opened his hand to find that he no longer held the original coins, but something else entirely.

  “Es maravilloso, Mr. Corta. I still don’t understand it, but I will practice. How do we fight, then?” Pepe hadn’t seen what kind of weapons they’d be using, but he was eager to practice.

  “You think you’re ready for that? So much more to learn, ragazzo. But we can try it out, just so you can see how it’s done. Perhaps tomorrow you’ll get that lesson.” The word “ragazzo” sounded like “little boy” in Spanish, but with a slightly different inflection.

  “You know Spanish, Mr. Corta?” This was unexpected; they were in another world.

  “I don’t know this ‘Spanish’ you speak of, but it sounds like a northern dialect I’ve heard before. It might be this ‘Spanish,’ but I’ve never heard that word before.” Mr. Corta retrieved a pair of daggers, a pair of clubs, and a strange, pointed weapon Pepe couldn’t name. “We can use a variety of weapons, ragazzo. It depends on what we need at the time. If you’re dealing with something that needs to be cut or something that needs to be easily concealed, then daggers are what you want. If you need something with more…um…let’s call it ‘persuasion,’ or if you don’t want to cut things, then clubs are what you need.”

  Mr. Corta demonstrated some moves with the daggers, then the clubs, and finally with the strange weapon he’d brought—a thin, pointed sword.

  The moves were mesmerizing, keeping Pepe on the edge of his seat. Mr. Corta was incredibly fast, each movement like watching a dancer perform a fluid, deadly dance. Each set of weapons shared similar moves, but with variations based on the weapon itself.

  “Impressed yet? You can master each of these, but it will take a long time. It has taken me many levels and years to master each one. I’d recommend concentrating on the daggers. You’re on the smaller side, so I’d suggest leaving the rapier and clubs for later. I was a little bigger than you when I started, and the daggers were what I mastered first.” All the weapons were intimidating. He had a small pocketknife back home, but nothing like these daggers; they were longer and looked dangerous.

  “I see it in your eyes—you’re intimidated. That’s good. You should respect these weapons as you would anything dangerous. As you practice and improve, you’ll become more proficient and confident, but never, ever succumb to overconfidence. They are deadly weapons, and they can hurt you as well as an enemy.” This last statement was delivered in a more serious tone. Mr. Corta then raised his left pant leg to reveal a long scar on his leg. “See that? I was overconfident, and that’s the result. Even now, I respect all weapons. They are not toys.”

  “I will have nothing but respect for them, sir.”

  “As it should be. An old friend of mine lost part of his ear because he forgot this lesson.” Pepe vowed he wouldn’t forget; his ears were too precious to lose.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Erin wasn’t as outgoing as the others; like Bobby, he was more of a follower than a leader, a fact he was comfortable with. His instructor was a lizard person with a long snout and a slender build. Her skin was a lovely light purple with even lighter spots, and she wore leather armor and a small diadem on her head.

  “Master Ildvesi, thank you for your instruction. It has been wonderful.” And it truly had been. He felt he understood so much more now: how to properly draw a bow, nock an arrow, and fire it—even though he couldn’t hit anything yet. Drawing the bow was difficult; his initial attempts had been clumsy, and after a while, his fingers felt raw from pulling the string, and his shoulder ached. He had been improving with practice but was still missing the practice bales.

  “You’re very welcome. It’s wonderful to teach again. It’s been many years. My former students visit, but they don’t stay long. Being a Ranger is a fun and essential role in any party. You’ve been practicing from a stationary position, which is fine for now, but sometimes you must move. Moving and shooting becomes much harder—not only when you’re moving, but also when the target is moving. And shooting from a fast mount is something we can also work toward.” There was so much to learn. He was glad they could support their party from behind the front lines.

  “What else can Rangers do?” He had read books and seen the movies everyone talked about, so he was eager to learn about the full range of Ranger abilities.

  “There are so many things, young Erin. We excel at long range and can use our environment to our advantage—a wooded forest being much better than a city, though even in a city, we are superb. We’re also proficient in close combat, though some of us are better than others. We can use short swords and other melee weapons. While I’m comfortable with a sword, I prefer ranged weapons. There’s so much I could teach you, but not everything. For that, you’ll need to seek out others who can guide you.” The Ranger’s skillset was so varied—so many choices. Erin was glad he had chosen this path.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Time had passed, and it was now late afternoon. Each of their respective masters had called a halt to training, instructing them to return to town before sunset.

  Manuel, being the farthest away, was joined by the others, and they walked back together. They had all learned a little about their various roles, but there was much more to learn. They agreed to pick up some basic supplies before nightfall and be ready for the next day of training.

  At the gate, the usual pair of guards had been replaced. A small woman of the same race as the innkeeper stood watch; the top of her head was covered by brown feathers longer than the innkeeper’s. Her features were leaner but still strong, and she held a spear. Her partner was a large, intimidating figure with gray skin and pronounced muscles. He held a large war hammer that stood as tall as Manuel, the tallest of the group.

  “Good, you made it just in time. You’re the new adventurers everyone’s been talking about. Let’s have a look at you. What do you think, Rotgert?” she said, looking at her partner.

  “Small,” Rotgert replied. His voice had a surprisingly high pitch and was quiet. It was somewhat amusing to see such a large figure with such a small voice, but none of the boys dared laugh.

  “Hey, hey, no ‘small’ jokes from you!” Liadris chided. “You must excuse Rotgert; he has a terrible sense of humor.” Rotgert responded with a high-pitched laugh that ended in a snort. “Don’t listen to her,” he squeaked. “I may be small, but I can put Rotgert on the ground easily.” The boys were unsure how to respond. They didn’t yet understand the dynamics of this place, so it wouldn’t have surprised them if the small guard could indeed defeat the behemoth. “I am Liadris, and this is my fellow guard, Rotgert. We have a request pending with the guild, so if you could ask Ms. Hoysver about it when you have a chance, we would appreciate it. Oh, and there seem to be others of your kind in town.” They nodded in acknowledgment of the request and entered the town.

  Others of their kind? What did that mean? More humans? More teenagers? They made a quick stop at the inn to clean up. After asking Mr. Rowen where they could buy gear, they planned to go to the store. When they entered the inn, they were surprised to find other teenagers. A pair was talking to the innkeeper; they looked very similar—perhaps twins, a boy and a girl.

  Other patrons occupied some of the tables as well, all of them of varying ages, some even younger than Josh and the others, and some older. Both boys and girls were present within the groups. Their clothing was also similar to what they’d been wearing—even a girl in a cheerleader outfit. At least they weren’t the only ones caught up in this madness.

  They walked around, noticing that the groups were speaking different languages. This phenomenon wasn’t limited to the U.S. but seemed to be happening worldwide. There were representatives from all over the globe. They finally made their way back to Mr. Rowen.

  “Welcome back! It’s so exciting to see all these people. This is going to be such a great season for us! I’ll probably hire some extra help as well. Any of you interested before I send the request off to the guild? How can I help?”

  They asked about the store, and he gave them directions. As they walked over, they wondered about the new arrivals and then entered the store. It wasn’t large but had a good inventory: weapons, armor for different classes, robes, and potions. They even had a souvenir area with the usual souvenir fare: shirts, cups, and various other items with the Starter Town logo. It seemed souvenir stores existed regardless of whether you were on Earth or in another dimension.

  The store owner was a humanoid with the head of a ferret. He looked at the new arrivals. “Ooh, the adventurers are in my store! How can I help you? I can give you a twenty percent discount on your starter pack. Oh, and if you let the other newcomers know to come see me, I might just give you another five percent off.”

  “Starter pack? What’s that?” Pepe asked, having been looking at small daggers, as his master had suggested he start with those.

  “Yes, for three easy payments of twenty-five Hartguar Silver Coins, I can set you up with the Starter Pack. Along with the Starter Pack, you get six potions of your choosing—but wait, there’s more! Not only do you get your class starter pack and the potions, but you also get this souvenir hat and this nifty multi-tool.” The hat had the store logo and “Starter Town” written on it. The multi-tool didn’t appear to be anything special.

  Another customer entered the store while he was giving his sales pitch. “Did I hear you right? You’re charging how much for the starter pack?”

  “Ah, um, Ms. Hoysver! What are you doing here?”

  “What am I doing here? Well, let me explain what I’m doing here. As a representative of the Adventurers Guild, I have to ensure our members are getting the best deals and that they aren’t being ripped off.” She was clearly unhappy.

  “I was just trying to make a sale, not trying to rip anyone off. It’s a good deal. Have you even seen this multi-tool?” She continued to stare him down. He put the multi-tool away and looked down. “I’m sorry, Ms. Hoysver. So, young adventurers, what can I help you with?”

  Each of them told him what they needed. While they wouldn’t be getting the multi-tool, they left with starter gear and the supplies they needed to continue their training. Ms. Hoysver had informed them that the guild would cover the cost of the starter packs. They returned to the inn, where they had dinner and cleaned up before calling it a night. Back in their rooms, they talked about the other newcomers they’d seen. They felt a little better about being there. While they missed their families and homes, they knew they weren’t alone. They slept better that night.