Luke’s heart raced. Teleportation! He was actually going to teleport to another world!
The room looked ordinary enough, with some weird drawings on the floor. The markings formed a wide circle in the center of the room, with smaller symbols packed along its edges.
Luke had expected a glowing portal, perhaps with a glimpse of an alien landscape on the other side. Instead, there was a bored attendant behind a desk and a sign asking visitors to keep their belongings inside the circle.
Still, he was about to travel between worlds. They could have put him in a broom cupboard, and he would have been impressed.
Helena shared their destination with the attendant, who checked something on his interface before waving them forward.
"South Stronghold. Four travelers."
Garrick stepped into the circle first. Luke followed with Emma, carefully avoiding the markings until he noticed everyone else standing directly on them.
"Closer to the center," Helena said.
Luke shuffled inward. He looked down at his boots. Beneath them, one of the symbols began to glow.
Light spread along the floor, filling the grooves until the entire circle shone blue. Luke felt the hairs on his arms rise. Beside him, Emma caught his sleeve, and he reached down to take her hand without looking away from the markings.
Luke had just enough time to wonder whether closing his eyes would be sensible before the room vanished.
His stomach lurched. For one unpleasant instant, he couldn’t tell whether he was standing, falling, or hanging upside down. Then his knees buckled, and Emma tightened her grip on his hand.
They were still standing in a circle.
But the walls were different.
Luke blinked at the rough stone pillars surrounding them. The small room was gone, replaced by a broad hall with open arches along one side. Sunlight fell across the floor, and a breeze carried the smell of smoke and cooking meat.
He turned around.
A different attendant sat behind a different desk, barely bothering to look at them.
That was it. They had crossed into another world.
"Move," Garrick said, stepping off the platform. "Unless you want to go straight back."
Luke followed, craning his neck toward the open arches. Beyond them, people crowded a sunlit street beneath colorful awnings. Something enormous moved past, briefly blocking the view.
He caught a glimpse of scales, a leather harness, and a rider perched several feet above the crowd.
"Was that a lizard?"
"A pack drake," Helena said. "You’ll see plenty of them."
Luke quickened his pace toward the sunlight. The drake was still passing when he reached the steps. It was longer than the hired car they had taken to the guild, with thick gray scales and bulging saddlebags strapped along its sides. Its rider sat near the base of its neck, arguing with a merchant while the creature helped itself to a mouthful of leaves from a roadside tree.
Luke watched its jaws work. A few leaves seemed like a remarkably modest breakfast for something that could probably swallow him.
"Keep clear of its tail," Helena said.
He stepped back just as the heavy tail swept across the bottom of the stairs.
Right. Sightseeing with three points in agility required some caution.
Beyond the drake, a wide street led into the stronghold. Shops occupied the lower floors of stone buildings, their signs advertising equipment repairs, potions, lodging, and fresh monster meat. People moved between them carrying swords, bows, and weapons Luke couldn’t name. One woman had a shield floating behind her back, turning neatly whenever someone tried to squeeze past.
He wanted to ask about all of it. Then he looked above the rooftops and forgot his questions.
An enormous pale moon hung in the daylight sky. A second, smaller one sat near its edge, faint enough that he almost missed it. Beneath them, mountains stretched across the horizon, their upper slopes hidden by clouds.
He had seen pictures during his research. Standing here made them seem hopelessly inadequate.
"How are you feeling, young master?" Emma asked.
"I think I am fine?" Luke smiled. "What about you?"
"I feel..." She hesitated, searching for the words. "Warmer, I think. But it’s pleasant."
Helena led them down the steps. "Your accommodation is two streets over. We’ll go there first."
Luke followed, although his attention kept wandering toward the stalls. A weapons merchant was demonstrating a dagger by cutting through an iron bar. Across from him, an old woman scooped wriggling roots into a paper bag and folded the top shut before they could escape.
He slowed beside a stall displaying rows of glass jars.
Inside one, a tiny cloud drifted above a layer of dark soil. Rain fell steadily from it, watering a single blue flower.
Luke leaned closer. The next second, the flower turned towards him. Immediately, Luke backed away. "What the fuck!"
"Interested?" the seller asked. "Sixty credits. Seventy with the jar."
Luke looked at the little cloud again. "What does it do?"
"Grows."
"Does it have any medicinal properties?"
"Not unless being pretty counts."
Behind him, Garrick snorted.
Luke straightened, feeling slightly foolish. Apparently, even in another world, some flowers were just flowers. Still, he could think of several people from his old life who would have happily bankrupted themselves for a houseplant that watered itself.
"Maybe later," he said.
The seller nodded and returned to arranging her jars. As they continued down the street, Luke glanced back once more. Someone else had already stopped at the stall, and the flower was turning to face its newest admirer.
They soon arrived at the guild’s guesthouse, a broad stone building with wooden balconies overlooking the street. The Stormbreakers’ emblem hung above its entrance, and a pair of pack drakes dozed beneath an awning beside it.
Inside, the noise of the market faded. A woman behind the reception desk looked up as Helena approached.
"Mr. Ashford’s suite is ready," she said. "Second floor, at the end of the hall."
She shared the access permissions with Luke and Emma, then handed Helena a small crystal. Helena examined it before returning it to her.
"The mana isolation array?"
"Checked this morning."
"Have someone check it again while we’re here."
Their suite had a sitting room, two bedrooms, and a narrow balcony overlooking an enclosed garden. A tray of fruit waited on a low table beside a pitcher of water.
"Everything provided here is suitable for unawakened guests," Helena said.
Once the worker confirmed everything was functioning, Luke took off his coat and settled into an armchair. Emma remained standing until he gestured toward the seat beside him.
"We’re allowed to sit down, Emma. It’s part of the accommodation."
She sat, smoothing her skirt over her knees. Her gaze briefly lost focus, and a smile began forming before she noticed him watching.
"Checking your class again?"
Her cheeks reddened. "Just the skills."
Luke leaned toward her. "You got more than one?"
"One active skill and a passive."
"What do they do?"
Before she could answer, Garrick sighed from beside the doorway. "Are we staying here all morning?"
Luke looked up. The man hadn’t even bothered to sit. "We just arrived."
"And you wanted to look around. So pick somewhere. You have limited time here, so don’t waste it. Then later on we will hear complaints about how we didn’t treat the Ashford young master well. Hmph."
Helena opened her interface and shared a map of the stronghold. Several locations glowed along its streets.
"The main market is here. The exhibition hall is farther north, near the guild offices. There are also public training facilities, although you’ll need to reserve a private room if you want to practice a new skill. You don’t have to rush. Take a look and then decide."
Luke glanced at Emma. She was still holding her hands together in her lap, but her attention had sharpened at the mention of practice.
"Heh. You know what." Garrick suddenly spoke up, also looking at Emma. "Why do these boring things? I am sure the Ashford young master is craving for some adventure! We can take your girl out for a spin. I am sure she will be happy to gain a level or two with our help."
Emma looked up. "Outside the stronghold?"
"Where else?" Garrick said. "There are plenty of weak monsters near the walls. We hold one down, you burn it, and you get experience. Simple enough even for an F-rank."
Luke watched him for a moment. The man had spent the morning complaining about babysitting them, and now he was volunteering to drag them out among monsters. He did not like it.
He looked at Helena, but she did not seem to particularly mind it. "Hunting weaker monsters under our supervision should be perfectly safe," she said. "There are cleared hunting areas near the southern gate. We wouldn’t need to go far."
Luke glanced at the map still open in front of him. A stretch of land beyond the walls was shaded green, with several trails marked through it.
"What does cleared mean?"
"Anything dangerous enough to threaten beginners is removed during patrols. The weaker monsters are left for training."
Luke turned towards Emma. "Do you want to go?"
She hesitated. "Would I really be able to gain a level?"
"If you contribute to the kill," Helena said. "Yes. How quickly depends on what you fight and how much assistance you receive."
Emma hesitated again, looking reluctant to ask for anything.
Luke smiled and held her hand. "Alright. We are going then. Let’s get you some levels today." He was also excited to finally see some magic action right up close and personal. This was going to be an amazing day.