《Shadow Lord: The Strongest Legendary Hero is a NEET》 Prologue ¡°Jay, when¡¯s the last time you put on deodorant? You smell like sweat.¡± My 11-year-old niece Gigi asked me with a look of disgust. Gigi is a short, pasty-skinned brunette with insatiable energy. She always liked to play, but she could also control herself and was pretty smart. ¡°I haven¡¯t gone outside so I don¡¯t need it!¡± I replied, shrinking a little. I lifted my arms and took a whiff. ¡°That¡¯s why no girl is ever going to come to your room.¡± she hummed in a warm tone. She bouncily slunk back to the living room. My name is Jay. At the time, I am currently a NEET. For those of you not familiar with the culture, I was what you call unemployed and not in training or education. The opposite of that was the successful guys who made lots of money, got all the girls and had loads of friends. Jeez. When did little girls become so hurtful? I thought, stung by what she said. I sat up straight and stretched my back in my chair. I was typing away at the computer, looking through some articles on cyber security. I did, after all, want to be a software engineer. It seemed like a cushy job. But these days my motivation didn¡¯t last. I¡¯d probably end up clicking away from the page soon. I gotta remember to put my hygiene first. It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve gone out. I should probably order one of those beeswax deodorants on Amacron. Those are good for long-lasting scent relief. I had a basic plan for my life, a goal, if you would. To live as comfortably as possible. I was 25 years old. I had dropped out of a computer engineering degree after a bunch of sleepless nights filled with pizza and video games. After investing my life savings into getting that piece of paper, I was flat broke. Okay, there might be about $50 left in my bank account. But I was saving that for a few light novels with my favorite waifu. Shia-tannnn!! I had an idea to strike it rich after I dropped out of school: my own social media site where other NEETs would hang out. Strength in numbers, right? And the best part was: no normies allowed. For a whole year, the vision of having it become hugely popular all over the internet sustained me as I put in 8-10 hour coding days, learning all kinds of things from scratch like managing servers and getting a website up and running. All the while, ignoring my dad and brother who thought I should at least apply for the local burger joint down the street. A bunch of energy drinks and all-nighters later, the project was live! I put it all over social media. It got a few likes and comments! A few people joined to complain about the normies in their life. It was starting to feel like a little community! But on to the important part¡­ money. ¡°Okay, if I get 100,000 daily visitors to the website and I have 6 ads running on each of the important pages, I¡¯ll make enough to not need a real job!¡± I yelled proudly, doing some number crunching on a calculator. Soon after, I ended up with close to 100 users, but without me creating fake accounts the website was going nowhere, really fast. And so the dreaded reality started to hit me. I wasn¡¯t going to make it as an entrepreneur, and I might have just wasted a year of my life to even try. Why can so many people do it, but not me? I let myself sink into my chair, feeling dejected. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to work my life away after all¡­¡± It was 11:54 PM. I clicked the X in the web page and switched to doing my usual Raddit rounds. Looking at memes and popular content that people shared on the web. Scrolling through endless pages and upvoting a few that I liked. I was content doing just that. I mean I had a roof over my head, good food, a mom that would cook for me, and a fast PC. That¡¯s all I felt like I really needed. I got bored of Raddit and opened up one of my favorite RPGs, ChromeE3x. A very popular self-starter survival game. I looked around my room. Two cans on my desk, still half-full of cola. A bag of chips I¡¯d stolen from my brother¡¯s room but hadn¡¯t bothered to eat. My PC, Posters of my favorite animes on the wall. Even cutouts of manga pages on a bulletin board. And an empty canvas with some paint tubes littered the floor. I wanted to try my hand at painting. Maybe people would buy an art piece of mine. Maybe. And my calendar was there too. August 14, 2021, it read. My eyes were fatigued from looking at the monitor of my computer for hours. For a minute, I had a nostalgic daydream about my university life. I shuddered. My time at school sucked, since I was always alone. I decided to fantasize about being rich and popular instead. I felt myself relax. My gaze became heavy and I started to sink deeper into my chair. And that¡¯s when the first sign of it hit me. A vision so powerful it looked like a memory took over my eyes. It was me and I was in my house. But there was a blinding white light on one of the walls in the living room, shaped like a door. And outside I heard the sound of deep thunder in the sky. Then I saw myself extend my hand towards it and finally place my hand on it. The walls of my house began to crumble. The rumbling was powerful and I could hear the glass ornaments my mom had on display clash in place, ready to fall and break at any moment. Paintings fell from the wall. I grabbed onto the couch to keep my balance and not fall as well. It all happened in a flash. I immediately stood up in my chair. All traces of fatigue gone and my heart was beating so fast I felt as though I had somehow narrowly avoided death. But none of it was real. My vision had suddenly become much clearer too, as adrenaline coursed through my veins. ¡°Was that really just a daydream?¡± I whispered aloud. I saw my hands shaking slightly and I tried to calm myself down by breathing mechanically. It¡¯s late. Maybe this is my body¡¯s way of telling me to hit the sack. I soon thought nothing of it and carried on browsing the internet. The next day my brother Mario asked me if we wanted to go fishing. Mario was a 26-year-old muscular guy with black hair, who was slightly shorter than me. Very creative, outgoing, and fairly intelligent. He had always told me it¡¯s best to go in the morning because that¡¯s when fish like to eat, so we¡¯d be more likely to get a bite on the rod. ¡°Let¡¯s go, bro. I¡¯m really feeling like fishing. I found the best spot too. We can stop by Wallshop and get a box of worms.¡± my brother Mario said. I gave in. We got in his car. We stopped by Wallshop to restock on lures and sinking weights to make sure our hooks would reach deep enough in the water. And we grabbed one of the last few boxes. I opened the lid to make sure and a pink wiggly worm popped its head out of the dirt. An hour later we were at the stream, the only ones here. We each had our own rod, and my brother had set the hooks for us, since he was the expert. Mine was a regular ¡°J¡± shape and his was a fake fish. My hook kept getting stuck on the nearby tall grass and plants and moss. Meanwhile my brother was flawlessly throwing the hook back and forth, reeling it back slowly back as he did so that the lure would appear to be swimming. I felt bored. All we talked about was the old MMORPG we both used to play, ScapeRunes. That¡¯s pretty much all we had in common. Our rods were as gentle as the water rocking the line. Finally, a tug on the line. ¡°What¡¯s it looking like, master fisherman?¡± ¡°Could be a monkfish¡­ hmm, a swordie!¡± he said, referencing the virtual fish we used to catch. It caught him off guard and he immediately steadied himself so as not to lean too far forward. The tug bent his rod so much he could tell the approximate size of the fish he was contending with as he yelled, ¡°it¡¯s a big one, dude!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you have the fishing level required! Better release it before it pulls you in!¡± I joked. Both hunter and prey struggled hard. The fish shot up and quickly slammed itself back, taunting us. Mario released the line to let the fish think it would escape and then locking it again to pull it even more towards our side. Finally, a weird flat fish emerged out of the water, gasping for air, and my brother lowered it on the grass. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. After our initial excitement died down, my brother started feeling philosophical. ¡°How do you think the fish feels?¡± he asked, trying to get the hook out of its mouth. ¡°You know, being taken out of its home and feeling like it will never go back. Not to mention, suffocating.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what it gets for being a fish.¡± I said, shrugging. ¡°But yeah, I honestly can¡¯t imagine what that must be like.¡± We spent around one more hour there, unaware that this fish would be the last one we caught and then finally called it a day. ¡°I didn¡¯t catch anything.¡± I sulked, walking back to the car. ¡°But at least you were there to witness my greatness.¡± my brother coyly reminded me, winking. I asked him what about him could possibly be so great, and he tried to trip me as we were walking. We were almost home again. I was in the car staring out the window as the trees flew past me. ¡°Hey bro, do you have work tomorrow? If not, mind stopping by a Gameshop with me and getting something?¡± ¡°Of course I have work¡­it¡¯s gonna be just another Monday.¡± he said. I sighed. Yeah¡­ just another Monday. Monday came around. I was at my chair typing away. I was in a heated online argument with a random person on Raddit about an anime. My brother was in the room next door in his fancy work-from-home job. I listened in, hearing his boss yelling and wanting him to finish something by Friday of that week. ¡°Awful. Simply awful.¡± I thought, shaking my head. I would hate to have deadlines again. In university, it was one deadline after another. But this was different. This was a power from on high dictating that you had to have something done by a certain time or your paycheck would be gone forever¡­ that¡¯s way more important than school. My brother took his hour lunch break. He popped out of his room and into mine for a chat. ¡°Yo.¡± He said. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± I replied half-heartedly, still staring at my monitor. ¡°Don¡¯t forget me!¡± My niece Gigi popped in as well, hearing my brother was on his break. ¡°I heard you guys were on break, so I thought I¡¯d do my niece-ly duties.¡± she said, sticking out her tongue. That could only mean she meant to annoy us. I ignored her and turned to face my brother. ¡°You really gotta stop working extra hours for them, bro. You¡¯re supposed to be done by 5:30 aren¡¯t you?¡± I asked Mario. ¡°Why are you agreeing to work until 8 pm today if you¡¯re not getting overtime?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll understand when you get a job.¡± He retorted. ¡°It¡¯s not like I want to do this.¡± ¡°But you have to lay down your boundaries or you¡¯ll always be taken advantage of.¡± I explained, munching on some Dritos chips. I felt very wise. He should listen to me. ¡°Why should I listen to a NEET?¡± he scoffed. Just then my mother and sister knocked on the house door. My niece got up to open it for them. My sister Flo was the oldest one out of all of us siblings, at 28 years old. She looked like an older version of my niece, taller with semi-long reddish-orange hair. ¡°We went shopping!¡± Flo exclaimed. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t believe all the beautiful jewelry we saw today!¡± By the way, my sister¡¯s job had gone remote. So she was living here, too. Yay¡­ ¡°Jay, Mario, Gigi. Help out with the bags.¡± She said, setting down the groceries on the table. My mom was a brunette who looked very good for her age. She was shorter than my sister, but slightly thicker from age. ¡°Mom, what¡¯s on the menu tonight?¡± I asked excitedly. ¡°You¡¯ll see. But it¡¯s going to be very yummy, that¡¯s all I can say.¡± She replied. ¡°Hell yeah, sounds good.¡± I added. ¡°Aw, no! Tell us now!¡± Gigi exclaimed impatiently. She was a really picky eater. She probably wanted to make sure it was going to be something she liked, so she could whine ahead of time if it wasn¡¯t. After unloading all the groceries from the car on the table, I helped put some of them in the fridge. My brother returned to working. My sister and mom were chatting away, and my niece was on her phone playing a game. We had a habit of eating separately. It¡¯s not that we weren¡¯t close as a family, but each of us liked to watch our own show. I enjoyed anime, especially the isekai genre. Those were shows about a character, sometimes dying or by some turn of fate, being transported to another world. My brother enjoyed action shows. He loved the type of movies where things are getting blown up, and some secret agent is trying to solve a crime. My mom, sister and niece come in a set. They all got together and watch historical Chinese dramas. That night my mother made a nice dinner. The definition of home cooking. I remember it so well because it was the last time I¡¯d eat it again. Slow-cooked beer chicken with seasoning, baked potato with sour cream, and some veggies. I also ate a ton of nuts as part of my fitness regimen. Everything was normal up until this point. Unfortunately, everything I knew to be normal would soon come to an end. It started to rain. At first a light drizzle, that we could faintly hear rolling along the windows and walls of the house. But soon, it began to pick up. Within a few minutes, the drizzle turned into crashing waves that hit the house with great force. The howling of the wind was easily heard. ¡°Turn off the A/C, quick.¡± my brother shouted from his room, not wanting our newly fixed air conditioning unit to be short circuited in a power outage. Lightning flashed. A thunderous crackle exploded in the sky. Gigi let out a scream. I ran to turn off the A/C. After receiving the confirmation beep from the thermostat, my family and I huddled together in the living room. Intense storms were not unusual in Florida, especially if a tropical storm or hurricane was expected, so we were not worried. Instead, we pondered if the storm would knock off the electricity for the night. More than anything, I desperately hoped it wouldn¡¯t knock out our internet connection. Another thunderclap, this time gentler and deeper. The rain began to settle down, reduced to a relaxing sprinkle. We all let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Looks like we were worried for nothing¡±, I said, probably feeling the most relieved out of all of them. ¡°Dude you looked like you were gonna piss yourself¡±, my brother said, reaching for a cup to fill with water. ¡°Shut up. It¡¯s just that a few days ago, I¡­ had this bad feeling, and this storm just reminded me of it. That¡¯s all.¡± I was referring to the vision I had at the computer. But in that vision, I had been alone and there was a brilliant white light on one of the living room walls. For some reason, I couldn¡¯t stop shaking. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with me?¡± I grumbled to myself, trying to regain my composure. Then as if wanting to get away from the scene to convince myself of its absurdity, I turned towards the hallway to my room¡­ when I saw it. My eyes turned to meet a white light shaped like a door on one of the walls. I felt all the color drain from my face. My body went numb and I suddenly felt weak, so much so that I nearly tumbled. It was just like the vision. No, it couldn¡¯t be, I thought. It can¡¯t be. ¡°What is that?! It looks like a door.¡± Gigi pondered aloud. ¡°It¡¯s not that bright. But where is the light coming from?¡± Flo asked. My body suddenly felt ill. The dizziness became nausea, and I threw up a little out of fear. Struggling to hold myself up, I fell to my knees with a hand pressed against the floor to keep myself from falling completely. My mom rushed to me, asking what was wrong. My brother also picked up the slack, looking for a bucket in the laundry room for me to use. I didn¡¯t care that this was happening to me. I only felt one thing. A gripping fear. A need to keep everyone away from the weird light. Gigi got curious and went to touch it, perhaps as if to see if it would go away. I quickly regained slight composure for a second and warned them. ¡°Don¡¯t touch it!¡± I managed. ¡°It¡¯s going to destroy the house!¡± ¡°Jay, maybe you should see a doctor or something.¡± Flo said, with a look suggesting I was out of my mind. I took a deep breath. My nausea was starting to subside. The white light wasn¡¯t showing any signs of disappearing. It just stood there motionless. At first, it didn¡¯t seem like a big deal to anyone but me, but Flo and Mario started getting curious too. They all tried to look for a source of the light. It had to be coming from through the window facing it. From our neighbor¡¯s house¡­ somewhere. But there was nothing to find. No source. Finally, my brother turned to me. ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s going to destroy the house?¡± he asked, nervously. His eyes were glued to the light, as if he was afraid to look away. Still on the floor, I explained to them the vision I had two days ago. How in my vision, after reaching for it, the house began to crumble from its structure and there was intense shaking in the ground, like an earthquake. My brother was not amused. ¡°Jay I swear if this is your idea of a joke it¡¯s not funny.¡± he said very menacingly. When my brother was scared, he would turn to anger toward those around him. ¡°You think I would joke about this? Just when we paid off the house?¡± I barked back. ¡°All we need to do is not touch it, then. Right, Jay? Let¡¯s all try to relax.¡± my sister said, negotiating peace. We all agreed and stood silent for a while. Each of us tried to piece together what this meant. They seemed to believe me at least a little. It was clear this white light was not coming from anywhere. But it wasn¡¯t before long before Gigi pointed something out. ¡°The light got brighter!¡± she called out. It didn¡¯t seem that way to me, but the more I stared at it, the more I tried to believe what she was seeing. Were her eyes just more sensitive because she was still a child? I pondered. But within moments, the truth became apparent. It was getting brighter. The light was accruing luminosity at a rising pace. Silently, it was going from a faint shadowy light to something straight out of an industrial head light. ¡°What do we do? Jay, is this still like in your vision?¡± Mario demanded, with a fearful look. ¡°The vision didn¡¯t last for very long, but I do remember it being really bright.¡± I replied. ¡°But still, nothing happened until I actually touched it.¡± We couldn¡¯t ignore it. A light that had come out of nowhere, sustained by nothing, was becoming so bright, it was hard to look at. The light soon extended to parts of the living room, making the entire room much brighter. What do I do? ¡°If we don¡¯t do something we¡¯re going to become blind soon. It¡¯s too bright to even look in that direction.¡± Mario said, cupping his hand over his eyes. Finally, we agreed to leave the house. We started scrambling to get our valuables, our wallets, the car keys and anything light to save that we could take with us. And just as soon as we did that, the light disappeared. The ambient light of the house returned to normal, and it only took a second for our eyes to adjust. Then we felt it. Shaking from underneath the subfloor of our house. Powerful vibration that shook the entire house. Objects toppled over and made a mess. Paintings fell and broke their glass frames, scattering all over the floor. The blender, the microwave, all fell from the kitchen countertops. We all screamed. ¡°Everybody get outside!¡± Mario urged. And then the walls started to crack. A crack I will never forget. The ceiling was looking to topple over. There was no escaping; we were too far from the front door. There were too many of us. And then again there was that door-shaped white light on the wall. A white light that grew rapidly. And engulfed the entire living room. Chapter 1: A Strange Place I had a nice dream. I felt very peaceful, as though I was on some kind of slow and gentle rollercoaster. There were ups and there were downs. But I could see nothing. It was all black. Still, I felt as though I were gliding gently along a smooth surface, pushed along by something. It felt like I was wading along. Just wading along. For hours, endlessly. I felt like I was actually there. I had never had a lucid dream before or anything close. In fact, most of my dreams felt like they were just a series of pictures that my mind tried to convince me were real, but that I quickly distinguished from reality as soon as I woke up. But this, I could actually think through. But for some reason, my mind wanted nothing more than to enjoy the black, empty ride. When it was over, I saw again a white light and woke up. Still feeling at peace from the dream, I looked at my hands and around all the trees that surrounded me. It seems I was the first one awake from that whole ordeal. And the rest of my family was still sleeping. Wow, I thought to myself with a yawn, nature is pretty. And like the bumbling idiot I was, my first thought was to turn on my computer and check my messages. Then the house of cards fell and it finally dawned on me. I was in a forest. No, my whole family was in a forest. Where the hell was our house?! I started to silently panic, hoping not to wake anyone else. I couldn''t handle everyone panicking at once. But wait, just what on Earth is going on? It was all starting to come back to me. Just last night, we were caught in a loud thunderstorm. And then there was a white light shaped like a door. Then an earthquake, in Florida of all places, a US state that¡¯s probably never had a real earthquake. And now we¡¯re in a forest? None of this was making any sense. My head was beginning to ache, from all the possibilities of what this meant. It¡¯s like we teleported¡­ We had no doubt been in our house, and now all five of us were in a forest. And we had been sleeping. So whatever that light was had knocked us out cold and transported us here. Ridiculous. No way we teleported. That¡¯s impossible. They must have rescued our bodies trapped under the rubble. ¡°Okay, stay calm. Analyze your surroundings.¡± I took a deep breath and began to jot down mental notes. ¡°There¡¯s branches everywhere, fallen from all these trees. It¡¯s possible we¡¯re in the middle of a forest in the dry parts of the Everglades swamp, or another forest close to our house.¡± I whispered aloud, stepping on some branches underneath me. But there wasn¡¯t any marshland at all. So the Everglades theory was starting to appear unlikely And why would whoever saved us just dump us here? And there were no forests near our house for miles. And we would surely be in a hospital bed and we¡¯d have bruises on us, right? Hadn¡¯t the roof caved in on us? When I took a further look, I saw small woodland creatures. A few squirrels up trees. Butterflies flapping their wings. Colorful birds, too. ¡°Okay, first of all, when my brother was shouting to leave the house, I was still carrying my cell phone. But now it¡¯s gone.¡± I whispered to myself, puzzled. I didn¡¯t know if any of them had let go of anything during the flash, but I was sure I was holding on to my phone. Where had it gone? I looked down at my clothes and verified that I was still wearing the same ones I was yesterday. But my clothes are still here at least¡­ Just then, it occurred to me that I was carrying something in my right hand. It was some kind of stick. How long had I been holding this? Why hadn¡¯t I noticed it before? I started getting excited. I had watched movies and shows where someone gets powers and they¡¯re channeled through some little wand. It was mostly straight and smooth, but slightly twisted especially towards the farther edge from my hand. But the bottom of it made me think it was custom-made: it was completely rounded out, like if an artisan had personally finished it. It was also very shiny and reflective. It appeared to be made of a dark wood, maybe mahogany. But I wasn¡¯t someone who actually knew. I was just basing it off the color I had seen in ScapeRunes, which had in-game mahogany wood. Okay, how does this stuff go? A flick of the wand and a bit of imagination? A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I tried waving the stick and imagining a ball of fire launching out of the twisted edge. Nothing happened. I then proceeded to wave it furiously and shout ¡°fire!¡± Nothing. I wished for some kind of smoke to come out to tell me that it had at least tried. I tried similar things, shouting the four elements of the old world. I also tried to imagine teleportation since we already possibly had proof of it. Again, all efforts that made me look like some weirdo waving a stick. I thought that it couldn¡¯t be a coincidence that I arrived here carrying a stick. I started thinking about the conditions we had left the house. I silently tiptoed back to the little spot I had awoken on. I must be going crazy. Teleportation¡­ but what else could it be? Is someone going to pop out of the bushes and surprise us? ¡°¡­uuughhh.¡± Gigi yawned, stretching her arms. I guess she was the next one awake. I started to panic a little again. How am I going to explain to them what¡¯s going on? I took a glance at Gigi¡¯s body and noticed that she wasn¡¯t carrying a stick like me. ¡°Jay, where are we?¡± she asked. ¡°¡­we¡¯re in¡­ a forest.¡± I muttered. ¡°I know what you¡¯re going to say, how did we get here? I don¡¯t know.¡± I motioned her to stay calm. Even though teleportation was seeming more and more a fitting explanation, I didn¡¯t want to scare her. ¡°We were probably rescued by someone, because I don¡¯t know if you remember, but we were all in the house last night.¡± I explained. ¡°Yeah¡­ I do remember.¡± She started looking around, trying to make sense of her surroundings. She started crying. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± she sobbed. I could tell she was scared and wanted to go home. But where was home? I moved closer and gave her a hug. ¡°I don¡¯t know but we¡¯ll figure it out, okay? We¡¯re all here and safe.¡± I put my hand on her head. That seemed to calm her a little. She looked at my right hand. ¡°What is that stick?¡± she asked, in a slightly better mood. ¡°It¡¯s kind of shiny.¡± For a second, I was scared and wanted to hide it but that would be foolish. She had already seen it. ¡°I just woke up carrying it. I didn¡¯t even notice I had it until like 10 minutes after I woke up.¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯s weird. Hey let¡¯s wake everyone up.¡± She said a little more spirited. She moved to try to wake up my mom. ¡°No!¡± I whispered aloud. ¡°Don¡¯t wake them. We don¡¯t know if their bodies still need some rest after what happened. Just let them wake up on their own.¡± About 15 minutes passed. But I couldn¡¯t be sure since neither of us had a way to tell time. In that time, I had walked with Gigi to all the places I had walked to, and told her about the animals I saw. By the time we got back, the rest of my family was awake. ¡°Where were you?!¡± Flo gasped, out of breath, clearly worried about her daughter. ¡°We were the first ones awake, so I took Gigi for a walk.¡± I tried calming her down. ¡°Jay, do you know what we¡¯re doing here?¡± mom asked, very concerned. ¡°Why are we in a forest?¡± ¡°Everyone relax.¡± I said. ¡°Like I said, I woke up earlier than you guys so I had time to think.¡± Now that they were awake, my analyzing instincts kicked in. All of them were wearing the clothes they had on last night. No one seemed to be carrying anything else. But my brother was the exception. He was carrying a stick in his right hand too. ¡°Jay, did you see anyone? Who rescued us?¡± mom asked impatiently. I explained everything I thought of since I woke up about our situation. Everyone took the news surprisingly well. Probably a side effect of really good sleep. But soon I realized I was wrong. The looks on their faces weren¡¯t of calm understanding. They were making fun of me. Mom didn¡¯t believe my teleportation theory. She started wandering around a bit, looking for someone. Flo and Gigi also started giggling. ¡°So you¡¯re saying we might have teleported? Did you see that in an anime, Mr. NEET?¡± Mario looked at me funny, holding back laughter at my idiocy. Why does everyone think this is so funny? ¡°If someone rescued us, they wouldn¡¯t have dumped us here. It makes no sense. We live in an urban area, with neighbors! And why don¡¯t we have bruises on us? The roof of our house collapsed!¡± I reasoned. ¡°That¡¯s true, I¡ªI don¡¯t know.¡± he said, examining his body for any marks. ¡°But teleportation is impossible. Are you sure we¡¯re not in the Everglades? Maybe crooks rescued us and stole all our stuff.¡± I shook my head. ¡°And healed our wounds somehow?¡± Finally, I pointed to my brother¡¯s stick. ¡°Also we woke up carrying a stick like this, Mario.¡± I said. ¡°It was like 10 minutes after I woke up that I actually noticed it I had it too.¡± ¡°Huh? When did this get in my hand?¡± he inquired, eyeing his right hand. ¡°I didn¡¯t even feel myself holding it. You know, I can almost see my reflection on it.¡± My brother had had the same thoughts I did. After all, we had both been gamers and the stick probably reminded him of some kind of wand. He started waving it and shouting some nonsense. I laughed. Of course nothing happened. Then in a bout of frustration he threw it about 15 feet away. ¡°Dude, pick it up. We need to hold on to it. We were both carrying a stick. This thing could mean something. Besides they look custom-made¡­ somehow.¡± I insisted. He shrugged and went to retrieve it. I didn¡¯t want to face the truth. That our house had probably been destroyed and that this wasn¡¯t a dream. And that we literally had no idea how we got here. For now, I just thought about trying to stay busy and move a little closer to some kind of goal, a destination. I looked at everyone. My mom was pinching herself, to make sure she wasn¡¯t dreaming. There was a sense of unease. The remnants of a possible supernatural event weighing on us. ¡°Let¡¯s try to get out of this forest so we can figure out where we are.¡± I suggested. It would be nice if we had woken up with some kind of map. But we really seemed to be on our own in this one. Whatever put us here just dumped us with no guide or free stuff, except a stick that does nothing. I said that we should pick the direction where the sun was coming from and just walk straight until we¡¯re out of here. We marched on in silence, with Mario leading the way. Along the way we passed bushes with berries, mushrooms of all varieties, hill peaks and troughs, and furry creatures. ¡°It feels like we¡¯re hiking.¡± I said, lightening the mood. It felt pretty good to crush some of the leaves on the ground. Wherever we were was probably in the spring season, maybe close to summer, just like back home. But I was a NEET and barely went outside, so what did I know. We kept going. I had this uneasy feeling that we weren¡¯t going to be home for a long time. We walked straight along, dodging trees but mostly staying on course. At last, we made it out of the forest. There was a small road made out of smooth, flat cobblestone. It looked like we were pretty far from any buildings. The forest we had just come out of was to the left of the road, and to the right was more forest. We decided to take the road and see where it led. Chapter 2: The First People We trotted along the edge of the road. We thought it was weird that the road was so long and was made out of something other than asphalt or concrete like I was used to seeing. If we were this far from any roads that cars took, How are we going to get home? What if I don¡¯t get to use my PC for a long time? I shuddered at the prospect. After what seemed like an eternity of walking, mom suggested we find some shade in the forest edge and rest. By that point we had about 5 miles under our belt. I wanted to find some food and water for us, but I had no idea how to hunt or forage. I mean how could you tell what¡¯s not poisonous unless you could look it up in a search engine or been the victim of something before? We walked to the edge of the forest past the main road to the left and rested under the shade of a large oak tree. Still none of us felt like talking much. Our feet hurt and I was starting to get anxious about having to sleep in the forest tonight if we didn¡¯t find civilization. As I sat, my eyes were glued to the main road. I wanted something to come on it. Someone to tell us that we¡¯re not alone and that we would find help soon. And very shortly after, I started hearing footsteps from a bit further back on the road. They were faint but getting louder. Someone was coming this way! No, it sounded like more than one pair of footsteps. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. At last the two travelers came into view. They were wearing tattered clothing and seemed poor. A man and a woman, both quite pale and short and carrying a few sacks of something. Probably potatoes. We were overjoyed at seeing other humans for the first time since we woke up hours ago. Mario and I got up and started jogging up to them at a moderate pace. We were careful to not look like we were running so as to not give them the spooks. When we caught up to them, however, something was off. They gave us strange looks and immediately seemed on guard. I put my hands up like when someone is pointing a gun at you and tried to alleviate their suspicion. ¡°Please, we¡¯re lost. We have women and children with us. Could you tell us where we are?¡± I asked. I lowered my hands and put them together as if I was praying. They looked at us puzzled. They started whispering to each other. ¡°¡­speak our language¡­ seem lost¡­¡± a few hushed words. ¡°¡­but we can¡¯t trust them.¡± He pointed to the stick I was carrying. Finally the man stood in front of the woman, as if to protect her, and faced us. ¡°You get away from here now. Your kind isn¡¯t welcome here. If you keep walking down this road, there¡¯s going to be trouble. Stay away from us.¡± he barked softly. They started picking the pace to try and get away from us. ¡°Wait, please! We¡¯re friendly, I swear!¡± I shouted. ¡°We only need to know where we are! Please say something.¡± Mario shouted. Finally the man looked back and said: ¡°You¡¯re on the road to a town. If they find out what you are there¡¯s no telling what they¡¯ll do to you. Turn back.¡± He shouted back. Mario and I looked at each other, unsure of what had just happened. Chapter 3: Fancy Sticks We ran back to the rest of the family. They had heard the man¡¯s last words. ¡°What happened?¡± mom asked. ¡°They said we can¡¯t keep going down the road because we might be in danger and something about our kind not being accepted.¡± Mario said. ¡°But I just don¡¯t get what he meant. What is ¡®our kind¡¯?¡± I pondered. As they were talking, I stopped listening to focus on my internal thoughts. He pointed at my stick. That¡¯s when he said we can¡¯t trust them. ¡°Mario. He was pointing to our sticks. Something about them made them hostile to us.¡± I said. ¡°Yeah he did. But why would they be mad at us for holding sticks? Wouldn¡¯t it make more sense for them to be racist or something?¡± he asked. I couldn¡¯t argue with that logic. Our skin colors weren¡¯t much different, we were probably slightly darker than their totally pale skin. Or maybe it was our facial features. Or our clothes? It¡¯s true they looked kind of poor and the clothes we were wearing were at least decent. ¡°They looked poor and they¡¯re clearly weirdos. We may have woken up on grass, but we don¡¯t look dirty like they do. Hunger must have driven them insane.¡± I said, shaking my head with pity. ¡°Well those are fancy-looking sticks. Maybe people here don¡¯t like those.¡± Gigi said, annoyed, putting her hand on her waist. ¡°That¡¯s ridiculous. They¡¯re just sticks. And frankly I like mine.¡± I replied, holding mine up. ¡°They have a nice design, but what¡¯s the point in holding on to these? Here give me yours too, Jay. I¡¯ll give ¡®em a good toss.¡± he said, looking like he was going to grab my stick. ¡°No, come on¡­ I want to keep them. They look really nice.¡± I pleaded. No sooner had he reached to try and grab my stick that something miraculous happened. As soon as it was nearly there, his hand was stopped short by a large visible spark of static electricity. ¡°Ow! What the hell?!¡± Mario pulled back quickly, looking like he was holding back tears. The women in my family gasped, my mouth was wide open. I couldn¡¯t stop staring at the stick. I started moving it and put my own hand on the edge that seemed to have shocked my brother. Nothing happened when I touched it. I felt every part of it against my skin, against my clothes. I wanted to test out and recreate what had just happened. Had a lot of static charge accumulated on it and been released when my brother held out his hand? If so, then if he touched it again, it wouldn¡¯t shock him anymore. I decided to test my hypothesis. ¡°Mario put your hand on it again.¡± I ordered. He shrank back. ¡°Are you crazy? That hurt 10x worse than those bubble gum shockers Gigi used to have.¡± he said. He was referring to an old prank that was a hand shocker disguised as a gum container. ¡°But it was static electricity. All the charge that had gotten on the tip should have gone neutral when it touched your hand.¡± I pressed. ¡°No means no, dude.¡± He said, pissed. He started massaging his hand. ¡°Please!¡± I said, touching the tip that had shocked him. ¡°Look, nothing happened. Gigi you touch it then.¡± ¡°No stay away from me!¡± she jumped back. I laughed maniacally and started chasing her with the stick playfully and she started screaming. Then I stopped in my tracks. I got the sudden urge to see if the same thing would happen if I touched Mario¡¯s stick. After all, if electricity had accumulated on mine maybe it would happen on his since we had both been sleeping for hours, walking, and basically doing the same things. I reached out to touch his, bracing myself for the shock. But nothing interesting happened. Then Mario composed himself and reached out to touch the stick. He paused for a second before making it to the tip and readied himself for pain. Nothing. We soon lost our curiosity on the sticks and focused on the real problem. ¡°Okay, it looks like they were just ordinary sticks.¡± I said, a little dejected. Weird though, for the spark to be visible and that huge, the voltage must have been enormous. How could normal friction have caused this? If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. ¡°For now, let¡¯s just hide them inside our shirts and keep going. I¡¯m getting hungry.¡± he said. I beamed. I was happy he had decided not to throw them away. Logically I knew these were just pieces of wood, but I wanted to believe there was more to them than that. ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s keep walking so we can find some place with food.¡± Flo said, with a hand on her stomach. I knew we couldn¡¯t stay here. We¡¯re an indoors family. If we had to start hunting to survive we might not last. My brother was pretty good at fishing, but without a rod and materials, he¡¯s useless. We needed to take our chances and go to the town the man and woman were walking about and see if we could at least blend in somehow. And if they really were upset about a piece of wood then we¡¯d get rid of them. We collected ourselves mentally and got ready to start walking again. Mario turned to me and whispered, ¡°Jay, when it comes down to it, I¡¯ll be going in alone to make sure it¡¯s safe. If I don¡¯t make it back, then take everyone and go somewhere else.¡± I nodded in agreement. ¡°Alright.¡± The cobblestone felt rough on our feet as we continued down the path. I started to lose track of the time. My body felt like it was sagging. I couldn¡¯t tell how far we had walked anymore, but some time along the way the forest to the left and right of us had disappeared from view, replaced by fields of empty farmland. We could see the trails of plowing and some crops growing, but no one was tending to them. Seeing a change of scenery lifted our spirits and I mentioned that we must be close. ¡°I¡¯m really thirsty. I need waaaater.¡± Gigi complained, making a fuss with her hands. ¡°We¡¯ll get you some inside.¡± Flo told her. The sun had been beating down our necks and I could feel the sweat start to trickle by the drop. ¡°Not a cloud in the sky today. Just our shitty luck!¡± I let out a curse out of frustration and mom got angry. A few minutes of walking later, we saw a large gate system with a few people that looked like guards taking in a small line of travelers. There were boxes of something and a table where an important looking person was writing something down. The boxes looked like cargo. But they could also be things that were confiscated from people. It appeared to me that guy sitting down was the person who decided who got into the town or not. My brother stopped us from going any further. He told the girls what he had whispered to me earlier about him going in alone. I told him that I would hold on to his stick and he agreed. His was a shade of light brown whereas mine was darker, so we could easily tell them apart. He jogged a bit to get his place in line, while we waited a safe distance away close to the fields, about 15 feet from the line. One by one the line grew shorter as people were either turned away or welcomed inside. ¡°Please let us inside.¡± A man holding a young boy about 7 said, both looking impoverished. He was so skinny, like a skeleton being covered in a thin layer of flesh. They looked like they were inches from death. There was a sign posted that said ¡®1 silver entry¡¯. ¡°Great another one. I¡¯m tired of his kind showing up here and thinking this is a free meal ticket.¡± The man writing down on table stopped for a moment and looked up at him fiercely. ¡°Unless you got proof of business or a pass from Lord Sylvian, you¡¯re not getting in. It¡¯s blistering hot and I have to deal with more beggars.¡± he said in a scruffy voice, loudly enough to be heard from much further than we were standing. New information. A whole string of new questions danced in my head. Who¡¯s Lord Sylvian? ¡°Please sir, I know we¡¯re poor but I can work. I¡¯m a hard worker, you see. The hardest worker you will find. I will take care of your fields and earn you lots. I will earn my keep. My boy¡­ we need this.¡± the man with the boy said in desperation. Poor guy is just looking for a better life for him and his son. He¡¯s worked harder than I have for sure. What hope do we have of getting inside if he¡¯s getting turned away? The scruffy guard shooed him away, and the beggar placed a hand on the guard¡¯s arm, pleading for him to reconsider. ¡°Take your filthy hands off me. Now shoo before I lose my patience.¡± A guard whistled and someone from beyond the gate came out. It was another guard, carrying food ¡°Sir, I¡¯m back from the market. I¡¯ve got some fresh meat sticks for us.¡± The scruffy guard sitting down immediately perked up. ¡°Hope you scored some wine with that, boy!¡± ¡°Nothing that fancy to drink, I¡¯m afraid, sir.¡± The subordinate guard set the food down on the scruffy guard¡¯s table. The line got shorter. Some got welcomed in, while others were turned away. Finally it was my brother¡¯s turn to face the man. My brother straightened his shirt collar and huffed out his shoulders. ¡°Ahh finally, someone that looks like the least bit respectable.¡± The scruffy guard said. He started moving his hands up and down as if to show off my brother. ¡°With clothes like that, you must be at least a knight¡¯s son. No, a baron¡¯s.¡± the guard proclaimed. I stared at my brother and wondered just how he was going to win over that pushy guard. Finally he started to speak. ¡°Sir, I see you have a good judge of character. You are right, I¡¯m not just any traveler. I am a merchant with a certain trading company to the west. I was visiting the town with my family on important business¡­¡±, he said pointing to us. ¡°¡­when we were attacked on our way here. They stole our stuff, but at least not the clothes on our backs.¡± he said. Nice. Surprised he came up with that on the spot. ¡°I see. And I¡¯m assuming they conveniently stole your identification card as well, am I mistaken?¡± he asked suspiciously. It looked to me that he was not buying Mario¡¯s story at all. I looked around the fields. The crops on the one I was standing next to looked to be in poor shape. They were growing tomatoes, but they looked a sickly brownish color. And there were some weird spots on the leaves. I had read about this before when we planted a vegetable garden in the backyard. And by sheer luck, I got a stroke of inspiration. For a story that he might buy. It was a scenario that was just like an RPG I had played. I quickly ran up to the man and my brother. ¡°Forgive me for the late introduction, sir. I am a representative of the Scholars Association of Farmers. My brother is our merchant in title, more like a salesman.¡± I eagerly explained. I pointed to the crops. ¡°With all due respect, we came because of reports of the crops being lost, to disease or otherwise. The leaves on that tomato plant have brown splotches, and many are wilting. Those are the early signs of a diseased plant, namely Septoria leaf spots. We offer solutions for these types of problems at cost, which would be best discussed with the right people inside. Though our carriage was lost, it¡¯s only a minor setback and has no bearing on our intentions here.¡± I said firmly. I wanted to convince him that for us losing a carriage wouldn¡¯t be a big deal to us. Maybe it would make us seem rich. ¡°Eron. Go check out that plant and see if what he says is true.¡± the scruffy guard said. At once, one of the guards standing next to him went to inspect the plant I had been pointing to. He got near my mom and bent over next to her. Even from this far, I could see that he was trying to flex in front of her as he bent. I got angry. He hurried back and confirmed what I said. ¡°Very well. Normally we would do a more thorough inspection, but you¡¯re lucky it¡¯s hot and I have my favorite meat kabobs.¡± the scruffy guard said. ¡°Besides, those clothes don¡¯t lie.¡± Chapter 4: A misunderstanding We were in. The guards drew the big gate open for us and we were guided inside. ¡°Welcome to Meade. Hope ya do figure something about the crops here.¡± the scruffy guard said as we were going in. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s hurry along.¡± mom said, trying to sound important. The town at first glance seemed to be lively. Beyond was a massive city that seemed part medieval with a hint of modern architecture. Lines of stalls littered the streets. It seemed like a bustling medieval marketplace. Vendors were shouting the latest deals on their wares. ¡°New shipment on squid and octopus. 10 copper a pound!¡± one burly fisherman was calling out to a passing family. ¡°Fine silverware, 1 silver per set, haha! Get an extra half off!¡± shouted a female vendor. ¡°Hey did you hear that?¡± I asked. ¡°He said 10 copper a pound! Isn¡¯t the US the only country that uses the pound? Or maybe the UK?¡± ¡°Hey yeah.¡± joined Mario. ¡°Good catch. Okay so it looks like we might still be in the US. But copper? Sounds like some kind of game money. We need to ask somebody.¡± We dodged a ton of people in the crowded market, nearly got separated, and then had to hold hands just to make it to the quieter market area. I stopped to catch my breath. My sister though, running on a kind of energy I didn¡¯t have, went straight up to a jewelry vendor and said, ¡°oooh, can I see this piece?¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°You have a lovely taste, young lady.¡± a smooth-talking man with a full face of makeup like a clown dressed in a colorful woolen tunic said to Flo, pointing to the silver moon-shaped necklace she was holding. ¡°They would look divine on you.¡± ¡°We¡¯re new to this town.¡± she said. ¡°Would you mind telling us where we are? A nice man at the Gate this was the town of Meade, but I¡¯m afraid we lost our map on the way.¡± ¡°Oh my!¡± the colorful man exclaimed. ¡°How irresponsible of your suitors to mislead such a fine lady.¡±, he said pointing to Mario and I. Flo blushed and moved her hand femininely. She sure could play the part. Sigh, just get on with it. What an annoying manner of speaking this guy has. ¡°Damsel, we are none other than in the illustrious town of Meade, one of the most important trade cities in the Kingdom of Renshire.¡± My heart sank. I felt a freezing chill down my back despite how hot it was. What did he say? Kingdom of Renshire? What the hell is he talking about? There¡¯s no place on Earth by that name, as far as I know. I stepped up to intervene. My nerves got the best of me. ¡°Please sir tell us you¡¯re joking. You use the Imperial system of Units here. Only two countries on Earth do that: the United States or the United Kingdom. But I¡¯ve never heard of the kingdom of Renshire.¡± I felt my tone get too rough, but I couldn¡¯t hide a hint of desperation. ¡°Dear sir, you¡¯re near the very center of the Kingdom and yet you do not know where you are? One might inquire if you¡¯re castaways from an unknown land.¡± he said with a sly grin and a wink. Then he got a bit more serious. I suppose it seemed to him we were not going to buy anything. ¡°But yes,¡± he continued, ¡°we are neighbors with the United States to the south. We share many cultural similarities. Now my wonderful patrons, I do have a business to run.¡± he motioned his hands, as if to shoo us. ¡°Forgive us sir, we will repay the kindness once we are more established.¡± Mario bowed and took Flo by the hand so she wouldn¡¯t be distracted by any more jewelry. We hurried out of there. I looked back to see the colorful man eyeing us suspiciously, the high spirits he had displayed gone from his face, and an eyebrow arced. A rich-looking, fat man in a robe walked up to his stand as we were leaving. His gleeful look returned. ¡°Are we looking for something specific, good sir?¡± he chatted up. ¡°Just browsing.¡± the fat man grumbled. Chapter 5: A Mistaken Geopolitical Location I told my brother to slow down. Hurrying out of there would only make us seem suspicious. We left the marketplace that seemed to stretch for almost a mile and arrived at a very desolate area of town. We need to find a map. I can¡¯t believe what that fruit fly said until I can confirm it myself. Gigi stopped us and said, ¡°South of the US is Mexico. So we have to be in Mexico, right?¡± I wasn¡¯t sure what to tell her. Not only that, but this wasn¡¯t anything like how I thought Mexico would be, though I¡¯d never gone there. For one the people looked to be a melting pot of different races. The darker skinned people were a minority here! It was far more common to see pale skinned people, followed by what I thought might be people of African descent. I was incredibly confused. Mexico as far as I remembered had a pretty homogeneous Spanish speaking culture. But people here speak English. And what¡¯s more, they¡¯re referring to the land as the Kingdom of Renshire. Is there a hidden kingdom in Mexico that I had neglected to learn about in school? Maybe a remnant of British colonialization? In Mexico? Gah, this is all so confusing. Where is a damn map? ¡°Yeah, this has to be Mexico,¡± Mario said. ¡°Well south of the United States could be anywhere in Central America.¡± mom interjected. ¡°Guys start looking for a map. Let¡¯s go back to the market and look for any stalls that might have one.¡± I ordered. Just then a person interrupted us. ¡°Forgive me for prying, but if you¡¯re looking for maps, there¡¯s a nice shop in the Royal Shopping District I hear has some nice ones.¡± a blonde man with kind eyes looking to be in his 50¡¯s said. He was dressed in white scholarly robes. Royal Shopping District. Another term we¡¯re unfamiliar with. ¡°I hope you¡¯re prepared to spend a few silver at least however.¡± he continued. ¡°The items in the district are imported directly from the capital and are usually priced for only institutions or noblemen to afford. But I can¡¯t imagine they would turn you away for browsing¡­ especially with fine clothes like those. You should hurry before sunset.¡± The man studied us with a careful eye. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Before any of us could say anything, he continued his chatter. ¡°By the way, I am professor Truestar at the Count Sylvian University of Meade.¡± the professor said in a friendly demeanor. Not wasting a moment, Mario engaged the professor. ¡°Professor, we¡¯re new to this entire area. We¡¯ve been in search of information that would tell us more about where we are. We are from the United States.¡± Mario said. Upon hearing United States, the professor¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Why you¡¯re in the Kingdom of Renshire, city of Meade, the biggest metropolitan area for commerce in the land! You know, if you¡¯re curious to learn more about our world, we offer free courses on geography and world politics. Well I do, and it would make my day if you bought my book which goes along with the course.¡± he said with a shiny look in his eyes. ¡°We might take you up on that Professor. But is this kingdom a part of Mexico?¡± I pressed, wanting answers. The professor looked puzzled. ¡°Mexico? What is that?¡± he asked sincerely. I started to feel uneasy again. ¡°Mexico. The country directly south of the United States¡­ the one that shares a border with Texas and a few other states.¡± I said, adding unnecessary details. Is this a senile old man? ¡°There is no Mexico, lad. I¡¯ve been teaching geography for over 20 years and never have I heard a country by that name.¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be.¡±, Mario chimed in. ¡°That is a joke, right professor?¡± mom asked with a grave look on her face. ¡°I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s no joke, madam. I¡¯ve heard our great kingdom called by many names; let¡¯s see: there¡¯s the Rising Land of the West. Oh and Alseecra. But never a Mexico.¡± the professor explained. At this point, I was ready to throw up. Just where on Earth are we? ¡°Then what about the United States? Why hasn¡¯t its name been changed too?¡± Gigi demanded. The professor turned to face Gigi, crouching so as to try to match her height. ¡°I do not understand what you mean, little girl. But the country you¡¯re from is the United States of Ulseex.¡± he said. No. No no no no no. That can¡¯t be. He¡¯s lying. They¡¯re all lying. I felt a compelling urge to run away. My legs started moving on their own and soon I was running. ¡°I¡¯m going to go look for a map! Wait for me!¡± I yelled, looking back at everyone. ¡°Jay! Stop--!¡± I heard trailing voices call out to me. Run. Find a map. Now. I was sprinting, completely fueled by adrenaline, making turns in random corners and running towards whatever caught my eye at the moment. A nervous sweat ran down my back. I fought the feeling to throw up. Before I had realized that I had run away from my family in an unfamiliar land, I had already gone too far to see them anymore. No, what have I done? I can¡¯t get separated from them now. Should I turn back? I glanced around frantically for anything helpful to figure out where I was and then something caught my eye. I saw a large wooden sign hanging off a street lamp with big scarlet letters that said, ¡°ROYAL SHOPPING DISTRICT¡±. I¡¯ll just get a map first and then go back. Chapter 6: The Royal Shopping District There was a gentle breeze in the air now. The temperature was still hot even though the sun was going down. But the breeze felt like an icy wind against my skin. I gathered my strength for a moment and ran past the entry sign. Even though it was almost sun down I was surprised by the number of people. There were people robed in fine tunic, materials that looked very expensive. Some people even had large garments, bracelets, necklaces, encrusted in bright colorful jewels. But upon closer inspection, the jewels looked fake. Is that gold on that guy¡¯s head piece? Whatever. I was running sloppily, nearly bumping into many people. ¡°Sorry!¡± I shouted dodging an elderly woman. Where is it? The professor said it would be here. I passed by many shops. The architecture was clearly on a different scale here than places I had passed previously. The buildings seemed very sturdy and were much bigger. The displays on the glass windows also boasted higher prices. Clothes shops with life sized mannequins wore the latest trends. Jewelry shops with giant necklaces on display. It felt like wandering a big shopping mall. Peter Cross¡¯s Fine Clothes. No. Eleanor¡¯s Imported Faux Jewels & Crystals. Useless. I was speeding past name shops left and right, trying to find something that maybe had the word ¡®map¡¯ in it. Then I was yelled at by what seemed to be a patrol guard walking in the opposite direction. He had a gun in a holster around his belt, and was carrying an iron halberd as well. What¡¯s the point of a halberd if you got a gun? I wondered if that was just the fashion for guards to seem imposing. ¡°Boy, don¡¯t you know you¡¯re not supposed to be running?¡± he shouted. I got caught like a deer in a car¡¯s headlights for a second and then started walking at a normal pace. Boy? I¡¯m 25 years old buddy. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m looking for a shop and it¡¯s urgent!¡± I said loudly. He sighed and continued his patrol. Once his gaze was distracted, I tried to camouflage with a few trees next to the shops and then resumed running. Several hundred feet later, I had entered what was like a cul-de-sac of stores. There was a sign that read, ¡°ACADEMIA & HOBBIES¡±. This seems promising. I must be close. Finally I caught wind of a store that had a few model boats on the window display. There seemed to be a pirate hat and a pair of skull & bones too. Pirates use maps! This must be it. I should have taken a moment to read the sign that was outside that read, ¡°Bobby¡¯s Costume Goods¡±, but I just waltzed right in. There were a few people browsing inside and a ton of different costumes available for purchase. And a small line to the try-on closet. I was surprised by the variety: anything from clown makeup and attire, to animal costumes, to pirate gear and props, to theater clothes. Growing exasperated from my search, I made my way to the counter way in the back and was looked at with curious eyes by a woman who seemed to be in her 20¡¯s and quite attractive. ¡°Are you looking for something specific, sir?¡± she said in an inquisitive voice. ¡°I¡¯m this shop¡¯s owner. Well the owner¡¯s daughter. I can find whatever you need.¡± Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Yes, I noticed you had pirate gear on display in the window. Well I¡¯m really looking for a map to complete my set. But I¡¯d prefer a real one.¡± I said. ¡°Hmm, we have fake maps with the big red X¡¯s on them. You might want to try the store next door,¡± she giggled, pointing to the big sign that said ¡®ACADEMIA EMPORIUM¡¯. ¡°You can¡¯t miss it.¡± I squinted my eyes into the window display of the store she was pointing to from where we were standing. And wouldn¡¯t you know it, alongside a suit of armor, a few textbooks and tools, I saw a scroll that was expanded and looked like a map. I felt relieved. I might have shed a tear if this lady wasn¡¯t looking at me so intently. ¡°Thank you.¡± I grabbed her hand. She was caught by surprise. I quickly bolted out of there. The Academia Emporium was vast. It looked to have entire sections dedicated to books in a mini library, materials, research materials like rock samples carefully labeled, tools like magnifying glass. I walked past a bunch of stuff, some of which I don¡¯t even know what was for. I¡¯m a map. I¡¯m a map. I¡¯m a map. I¡¯m a map. I¡¯m a MAP. I started humming along to the Doris the Explorer¡¯s little map friend, trying to stay calm. Finally, I arrived at a section with a sign that said ¡°Geography¡±. And then finally, a plastic globe with all the countries of the world. What I saw horrified me. I saw the outlines of all the countries in the world. You could clearly see North America, Central America, South America on one side and then Europe separated by the Atlantic Ocean and then Asia. All of the world¡¯s countries were there. But everything was mislabeled. What¡¯s more, the countries¡¯ boundaries were all wrong. The United States seemed to have lost a third of its size. And the country underneath it is.. I gasped. Kingdom of Brittle. The United States of Ulseex. Kingdom of Renshire. The Central Federation of Nations. All names completely foreign to me. And they all formed the continent called ¡°Calas¡±. I quickly reached for a geography textbook that was on another shelf. I flipped through a lot of pages with pictures of people, towns, and other things. The photos looked to be in either black and white and some were in color. The photos appeared to have been taken by camera. ¡­Brittle, Ulseex, here it is! Renshire! The page containing the information I was looking for was very detailed. It began with a summary of the nation. It read: ¡°The Kingdom of Renshire was established in 1503, the result of a 50 year war between a tribe of native inhabitants and a settlement of explorers and people appointed by the king of the former nation Crystalis. This war was one of the first turning points in history when military technology and weaponry proved effective against unorganized magic.¡± Unorganized magic? They must mean the weird voodoo stuff African cultures would do right? Were the troops afraid of that stuff because they thought they would be cursed or something? The books were very nice quality. I was being careful not to rip any pages, but I couldn¡¯t stop myself from turning the pages crudely. Nothing made any sense. Then in a moment of lucidity, everything became clear, like pieces falling into the slots on a child¡¯s puzzle. I thought of everything I had read and heard that didn¡¯t make sense. The country names, the people, the strange things I had seen. My head felt like it was just hit by a nasty curveball. We¡¯re not on Earth anymore. It really did happen. The teleportation took us. Somewhere far away. Another dimension. A different plane of existence that looks like our Earth, but is home to completely different people who made completely different choices and on a totally separate timeline than our Earth. My hands started feeling heavy. The rest of my body followed. I sat down on the floor and put my face in the palm of my right hand. But¡­why does everyone speak English? I sat for what seemed like an eternity, unable to move from the weight of the realization that had hit me. Still and motionless. I felt like if I tried to speak the words might not have come out. I heard a soft spoken voice call out to me. ¡°Are you alright, mister?¡± a little girl who looked to be around 10 years old called out to me. She was short with long dark blonde hair and dressed well. Still on the floor, I shook my head. I couldn¡¯t find the energy to give her a real response. ¡°What¡¯s wrong then, mister?¡± she pressed. I took my face out of my palm to look her in the eyes. I managed a small grin. This girl is worried about me, a total stranger. This place might not be so bad¡­ I thought, getting a little bit of energy back. Then an adult lady dressed in fine clothes showed up and grabbed her forcefully by the hand. She gave me a cold look. ¡°Don¡¯t go near strangers, Clarice. Especially men.¡± she cautioned the girl. I turned my head and looked out the window. The sun was setting. I had no idea how to get back to my family to tell them what I had learned. I was alone and afraid. I had no clue what to do for food or where I was going to sleep. But I sat on the ground motionless, without the energy to get up. It was getting harder to care at all. Chapter 7: All Alone The sun went down. I had lost track of how much time I spent on the floor. Apparently enough for the store manager to come up to me and give me a piece of his mind. ¡°Sir, what are you doing? You¡¯re disturbing our clientele.¡± he said pompously. I noticed that other people were giving me dirty looks. I didn¡¯t know how long that had been going on. I gave him a nasty look and said, ¡°I¡¯m just sitting here.¡± my voice was hoarse. ¡°That won¡¯t do! Out with you! This is a proper establishment.¡± he scowled and shooed me with his hands. Just leave me alone, man. I¡¯m not bothering anybody. ¡°Sir, please I¡­ just want to sit. I have nowhere else to go.¡± I pleaded. When I said the last part, it sent him fuming. I guess he knows I¡¯m broke now. ¡°You have 10 seconds to vacate the premises or you will be removed. By force.¡± he said loudly. I don¡¯t have a choice then. I got up slowly, with the help of a nearby table. I nearly knocked over a few books on it. ¡°You clumsy oaf! Hurry it up.¡± he said. I shrank away from the looks I was getting and held my head down. I tried to find the exit and when I did I proceeded towards it. It was then that my stick fell out from under my shirt. It made a clear thud on the floor. The store manager looked at what had dropped and gasped. ¡°Wizard!¡± he gasped flamboyantly, pointing at me. Soon others began to join in the frenzy. ¡°What, a wizard? Here?¡± shouted a man in a business suit. ¡°Darla, where are you sweetie?¡± yelled a lady. ¡°Where are the guards?¡± shouted another man who looked like a university scholar. In a nervous bout, I reached for my stick. My energy had forcefully come back to me and I bolted. On the way, I bumped into someone. ¡°Eeeeeehh, stay away from me!¡± I heard a young woman exclaim. I heard the words Stop him! but they were getting further away. I pushed open the exit doors and just ran in whatever direction first caught my eye. I had no time to think. Wizard? I thought as I ran, gasping for air. Wizard implies magic, right? Me? Because of this stick? But it doesn¡¯t do anything! I ran until I found a small group of trees planted for scenery. They were large enough to hide under, especially in the darkening evening. I stayed under the lowest hanging branches, on the side facing away from the stores. The long shadow they cast was sure to conceal me. I held my mahogany colored stick firmly in my hand. Though I never did have a surgeon¡¯s hand. It was shaking so much, I¡¯d be removed from any operating room. There must be something it can do. ¡°Maximize magic!¡± I said under my breath. Nothing. To be fair, that was from a popular anime I had watched. I guess I was trying to cheer myself up. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s try¡­ conceal!¡± I said, a little quieter. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. I was hoping I might turn invisible so I could get away from the guards that were sure to be looking for me. Nothing. People undergo extensive training in magic in the shows I watched¡­ so without someone to tell me what to do, I¡¯m useless right? If I even am a ¡°wizard¡±. I thought. I gave up on expecting anything out of this stick. I¡¯m running on pure adrenaline right now. I¡¯m starving, but who cares about that right now. I¡¯m going to find everyone even if it takes me all night. I got back to what I was doing earlier: getting the hell away from the Academia Emporium. Shops started blending together as I stopped caring what the fancy letters said. My legs thankfully weren¡¯t giving out on me. After several minutes, I was back at the original place with the big sign that said ¡°ROYAL SHOPPING DISTRICT.¡± My adrenaline had worn off. I was back to feeling like a slumpy moose. I was sure I wasn¡¯t being followed by guards. Then again I wasn¡¯t sure what the guards would look like since I ran off before I could. Maybe they¡¯d look like the guy from the gate who let us in, or the guy carrying the halberd. Who knows. It was surprisingly cold at night. I was angry because I wish the temperature had been like this when we were walking under the sun towards the city. And I was starting to shiver. I rubbed my hands together. Maybe if I rub my stick and my brother¡¯s together it¡¯ll make a fire. That sounds like about all the magic I can do. I needed to get my head straight. Complaining about everything wasn¡¯t going to solve my problems. I didn¡¯t want to start running and have to inhale cold air and out all the time, so I just walked with my hands in my pocket. Let¡¯s figure this out. I started laying out all the cards before me and trying to come up with a solution. I¡¯m in another world. No one knows me here. The people that find out I¡¯m carrying one of these wizard sticks start seeing me as an enemy. My family is here, somewhere. I left them with the professor, but that was hours ago and I have no idea where they went. I want to find them. It¡¯s possible that mom or maybe Flo shared that they had nowhere to go and that he gave them a place to stay. He seemed like a nice guy. But then again he tried selling one of his books to us, so if we broke the fa?ade that we had money, he must just have found an excuse to leave. It¡¯s also possible they might have started looking for me, probably starting in the direction I went. Maybe I can start asking anyone left if they¡¯ve seen four people in nice but strange clothes. Clothes that might have looked like a noble person¡¯s. That¡¯s what they were compared to anyway. Okay, let¡¯s go with that. So I began my search for my missing family members. I stopped anyone I met and asked the same question, while also keeping an eye out for any patrol guards that might have heard about a ¡®wizard¡¯ on the loose. I don¡¯t know what they expect from me anyway. It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve seen any real magic since I got here. I must have asked about 4 older men, 7 women, 2 younger women maybe in their teens, hell I even asked a few kids that were playing on the street. That was my estimate. I had lost count. Exhausted, and frankly tired of talking to people, I gave up my search and focused on finding a comfortable place where I could sleep. To think that just a few days ago, I would have been sleeping soundly on a bed. Now I¡¯m in a world where computers probably don¡¯t exist. I genuinely started questioning how I was going to survive without the internet. It had been my close companion for so long. I had grown up with it and it had brought me some of my fondest memories. The thought of having to become a normie in this world when I¡¯d started to accept my nice quiet life at home was enough to get me breathing heavily. I started getting angry. I reached into my pockets and pulled out my stick. This piece of trash has gotten me into so much trouble. I should just get rid of it. I made up my mind. I would throw both mine and my brother¡¯s stick as hard as I could. Just as I thought that and prepared to throw them, a faint voice called out to me in my head. ¡°Don¡¯t.¡± It sounded far away, almost ethereal. What¡­ was that? Did something¡­speak just now? For some reason, all desire to get rid of them vanished. And now I¡¯m cold and alone. Who knows when I¡¯m gonna eat anything. At least the streets are clean. I guess they didn¡¯t call it royal for nothing. I left the Royal Shopping District. With a lot of panting and a growling stomach, I had made it to a smaller plaza with two story buildings, the kind that had dormitories and living quarters on the top floor and shops on the bottom. I stopped and gazed up at a building. I wished I could get inside. Must be warm in there. Then I saw the side of the buildings and there was an alley that connected a few of them together. I am really doing the dark alley thing? That¡¯s where bad people show up. But where else do I go? For the first time since I got to this new world, I started to cry. Why? I sobbed. Why did this happen to me? The dark alley had a few trash cans open. Flies were gathered around the ones that were almost full. There were a few doors, which were probably used for quick access to dump garbage. I wanted to disappear. The thought of having to sleep next to this stench was making me sick, but my body had reached its limit. I lined up two trash cans and sandwiched myself in the middle of them. I didn¡¯t have a blanket, so I put my arms inside my shirt. I started stuffing the side of my shirt where I was hiding the sticks with some trash I dug up beside me to pad them and make sure they didn¡¯t fall again. I was probably going to be smelling horrible for the next couple of days, but I didn¡¯t care. Then I drifted to sleep. Just¡­ just be left alone¡­ for one night. Tomorrow I¡¯ll¡­ find them.