《Elemental school》 Humble beginnings Carl woke up and began to smile. It was the first day of summer! No school for three glorious months and then his first year of high school would start. Carl checked his phone and was unsurprised when he found no new texts or messages. Carl played video games and found that he enjoyed solitude, so he didn¡¯t have many friends. He sat up and looked around his small room, every section of wall was covered in video game, sci fi or fantasy posters. Every piece of furniture that had a flat surface had some kind of cool action figure or model on it, Sure most had a fine layer of dust on them but they were still loved. He threw off his buster sword comforter and rolled out of his memory foam bed. Carl walked over to the mirror. A stocky boy of fourteen (soon to be fifteen) wearing boxers with rocket ships and an oversized, and faded the last Starfighter shirt looked back at him. His eyes were green and his hair was dark brown. He was also short, about five feet one inch tall and about one hundred pounds. He really hoped he would get a growth spurt this year, as most of his classmates had theirs last year and being the short kid sucked. Carl heard his mother¡¯s angry voice rising from downstairs, ¡°Carl what are you doing? You know your father and I have a plane to catch!¡± He jumped and threw his door open and ran out into the hall, He was greeted by the cold and sterile modern style and modern ¡°art¡± that plagued the house. He was not fond of the modern style, he preferred the warmth of wood and earth colors. Carl slipped into the bathroom and hopped into the shower and hurriedly scrubbed up. As he jumped out of the shower and grabbed his towel, Carl heard his mother¡¯s voice shrieking that they were going to be late. He threw on a pair of cargo shorts and a Mario T-shirt. He then threw his favorite book ¡°Monster hunters International¡± in his neon blue suitcase and ran downstairs lugging said suitcase with him. Carl stepped down from the stairs and landed in a living room that held a miasma of grumpiness. His father was standing by the cold gray front door staring at his watch while his left eye lid twitched with irritation, his mother was making small circuits around her husband while waving their tickets and passports erratically. When his mother noticed him standing at the foot of the stairs she let out a ¡°finally!¡± and barged out the front door. His father looked up from his watch and rushed over to give Carl an angry look and to yank the suitcase from carl¡¯s limp fingers. He then zoomed out the front door without so much as a look back at his only child. Carl¡¯s parents had never really cared about Carl, sure they kept him clean, healthy and fed but to them having a child was a status thing just like the new gray bmw SUV Carl was climbing into, however; Carl was being driven to the people whom loved him. The house was fairly large and had far more wacky decorations then his parents would allow at their house (none). There were the usual lawn gnomes however these lawn gnomes held firearms keeping the plastic pink flamingos at bay. In the flag holder by the front door sat a festive summer flag, Mario in his famous cap and a swimsuit sitting on a beach. The house, belonged to his amazing grandparents who were more parents to him then his status driven parents. Carl¡¯s father stopped the suv and dropped Carl¡¯s luggage on the lawn and was already back in the car by the time Carl had emerged into the summer heat. He had just enough time to close the door before his father drove off. For the first time in weeks Carl felt a weight lifted from his shoulders, no more parent¡¯s who cared nothing for him, just amazing grandparents that loved him. Carl walked up the brick path, past the gnome/flamingo battle and to the red door. He then pressed the doorbell with a smile of knowing what would come next. The doorbell chime was actually a voice it could be heard singing ¡°ding dong, the witch is dead!¡± The door opened and a little old man scowled at him from the doorway only to cannonballed into by an equally small old lady. The old lady had a huge smile on her face but then the old man bounced back and yelled, ¡°get back witch!¡± To which the old lady replied, ¡°I¡¯m not a witch I¡¯m your wife!¡± The old man and old lady then began laughing while Carl beamed at his awesome grandparents. He was smooshed in a hug by both of them, after they stepped back he announced with a smile, ¡°I¡¯m guessing The princess bride is tonight¡¯s movie?¡± ¡°As you wish my boy and your darn tootin¡¯ right it is!¡± his grandfather replied. Grandpa Jack stepped back and let Carl step through the doorway only to stop a foot inside the house with a big grin said, ¡°Well, that¡¯s new!¡± He was referring to the life-sized master chief statue staring down at him from his lofty just over seven-foot height. ¡°Do you like it? I adore him, he¡¯s much more handsome and tall then grandpa Jack.¡± His grandma Deb snickered. ¡°I heard that old lady! I traded you in for a younger model a while ago!¡± Carl knew Grandpa Jack was talking about his larger than life model of Cortana. Carl interrupted their playful banter with a loud throat clearing and announced ¡°If you kids are done arguing I¡¯d love to put my luggage in my room.¡± Carl¡¯s parents had left him at his grandparents¡¯ house while they travelled over summer vacation. Carl really didn¡¯t mind, in fact he was excited to spend a couple weeks with his grandparents. You see Carl¡¯s grandparents were avid gamers and had a vast video game and system collection. From Ataris to the new virtual reality systems, his grandparents had them all. As Carl went to open the front door he heard his grandma playing Overwatch, ¡°Die you freaking noobz! Oh you got pwned son!¡± Carl smiled to himself, ¡°yep this summer is going to be awesome.¡± The game box had fallen out of a box of dusty video games his grandparents had purchased at a garage sale. They belonged to a teenage girl who disappeared months ago. The mother of the girl couldn¡¯t stand the constant reminder of her missing daughter and had sold the box of games. Call of Hearth was the title on the game box. Carl had never heard of the game before but he was excited about playing a rare game! What if I told you there existed a place where people could control the elements? Wind, fire, earth, water and spirit, this place exists people. Now what if I did one better and told you, that you may have what it takes to learn this skill? There is a school in this land that will teach you how to use this magic. You may even be one of the extremely rare few that can control more than one element. The land of Hearth has fallen under attack by a dark power and Hearth calls for a hero to save it. Do you accept the challenge? Well that¡¯s what was written on the box anyway. Carl took the game out of its dusty case and plugged in into the Playstation 2. The Playstation whined a bit as it fired up but it became a steady hum as the old machine awakened from its long slumber. The title screen opened up to beautiful music and letters looking like elements spelling out Call of Hearth. The background was of a forest and far past the trees a large white building stood upon a hill and still farther back in the distance darkness spread across the lands. For some reason Carl felt trepidation as he hit the start button. Suddenly his hands felt like they were burning, the heat spread up his arms and his entire body felt like it was in an oven! Then a light engulfed him and Carl felt nothing more. With a start Carl bolted upright, ¡°oh my aching head, what happened?¡± For a couple seconds Carl noticed the world was a dark shade of green. As he looked around, the words ¡°what the heck¡± tumbled from his mouth. Carl found himself sitting on a dirt path deep in an ancient forest. Birds chirped and bugs buzzed around and Carl sat bewildered, ¡°Shnikees! How did I get here?¡± Carl got to his feet and dusted himself off. He then looked around trying to figure out where the heck he was?! ¡°Ok I was playing a game and now I¡¯m in a forest.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not how this works. That¡¯s not how any of this works! You don¡¯t start a video game and wake up in the forest! Wait, what was that glow and heat that engulfed me? This is all weird, I should try to figure out where I am before it gets dark.¡± Seeing no other real option, Carl decided to follow the path he had woke up on. As Carl started walking he noticed that all of the trees along the path were huge and old. The sunlight filtering through the canopy painted the world a soft green. Putting one foot in front of another, Carl soon found himself standing next to a gentle burbling creek. Being an out of shape gamer, and having walked miles for the first time in, well, ever, he was quite tired and thirsty. Seeing the cool, clear creek Carl rushed to it and quickly gulped the sweet water down. As Carl drank his fill he felt a creeping feeling crawling up between his shoulder blades. Carl looked up from his drinking and about fifty feet up the creek a pair of golden, glowing eyes watched him from the shadows of the forest. Knowing it had been seen the creature with the golden eyes stepped silently out of the deep shadow. The creature was a black wolf, the biggest freaking wolf Carl had ever seen!A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. The wolf took a step forward and barked at its prey. Carl took an involuntary step back. Seeing the prey show fear, the wolf snarled. Carl said, ¡°Oh fucklesticks¡± and ran. If Carl had stood his ground the wolf would have backed down, but once Carl started running, the wolf¡¯s prey instinct kicked in and it gave chase. Crashing through the forest, Carl ran, he could feel how out of shape he was as his fat jiggled with each frantic step. Carl tripped; his out of shape body had betrayed him. With wind milling arms Carl smashed into a large oak tree. Carl turned to see the wolf leap at him, with a move born of fear and desperation and wishing with all his heart to repel the giant wolf, he threw out his hands in front of him. With the sound of a thunderclap an invisible force grabbed the wolf and hurled it into a tree. The wolf hit the tree and fell still. The giant wolf lay still under the mighty oak tree. Carl fell over and landed on his butt stunned at the outcome of the wolf attack. Carl looked franticly around searching for the person that must have shot the wolf and saved him. No gun-wielding savior appeared, Carl was still alone in this strange place. Having no idea if the wolf was alive or dead, Carl climbed to his feet and crept quietly towards the large creature. Carl picked up a large rock and prepared to make sure the wolf never attacked him again. As he got closer Carl could see the wolf was a beautiful creature. It¡¯s jet black fur was smooth and glossy. No mange existed on this majestic creature. As Carl stepped up right next to the wolf he could see the wolf was alive, the massive chest slowly rose and fell with each breath. Carl¡¯s hand seemingly on its own accord stretched out and touched the wolf. As his hand touched the dark fur a warm red light spread between Carl and the wolf. Carl felt nothing but kindness towards the wolf, the rock fell from his hand that wasn¡¯t touching the wolf. Carl pulled his hand from the wolf and smiled to himself, Carl felt peace at leaving the wolf alive, even if it might come back and bite him in the butt¡­.literally. Carl turned a quietly started back down the path. He had been walking for about an hour when he felt the prickly feeling between his shoulder blades again. Carl turned and found the wolf staring at him and only about twenty feet separated them this time. The wolf didn¡¯t snarl or bark this time it just watched him; curiosity gleamed in those intelligent eyes. Carl stared at the wolf and the wolf stared right back. Carl took a step towards the wolf and the wolf just watched. Standing and staring at each other for what to Carl felt like forever the wolf finally seemed to make up its mind. With a large huff that shook its body the wolf slowly walked towards Carl and stopped right in front of him and lowered its massive head. Feeling brave and stupid Carl slowly reached with a closed fist. He stopped his fist a few inches from the wolf¡¯s nose. The wolf gently snuffled Carl¡¯s fist and then slid his head under and lifted Carl¡¯s hand. Carl, in the most inopportune time ever sneezed and the wolf jumped backwards, the wolf watched Carl warily. Once again Carl found himself in a staring match with the dark wolf. This time was different though. Carl felt no hostility from the wolf only peace. Taking a educated guess, Carl walked bravely towards the wolf, then extended his hand palm up. The wolf calmly placed its chin in his hand and Carl gently scratched it. The wolf¡¯s head was at Carl¡¯s chest level, standing 5 foot 9 inches Carl knew the wolf was a BIG animal. The wolf came up and nuzzled Carl¡¯s chest, ¡°it seems I¡¯ve made a new friend.¡± The wolf was jet black except a bit of white on its toes. The fur was soft and dense, ¡°Well, I think I¡¯ll call you Jet. That makes sense, right?¡± Jet whacked Carl with a plate sized paw and huffed. Carl smiled down at Jet, ¡°From enemies to friends, okay Jet lets get moving.¡± Carl started walking towards the quickly falling sun peaking through the trees. He had made it about one hundred feet when he realized that Jet was still standing in the same spot. Carl looked at giant underbred dog and walked back to Jet. ¡° Hey, why you standing there boy? The sun is getting low and we need to get out of these woods.¡± The wolf looked at Carl and started walking off the path towards the thicket. Jet would take a few steps and stop and look back at Carl, finally he stopped right at the end of the wide path and sat and stared at Carl. ¡°Ok message received pup, you want me to follow you. I¡¯ll follow you, just don¡¯t lead me into a trap and eat me okay?¡± Jet¡¯s tongue lolled out in what Carl interpreted as a smile and slowly made his way into the thick stuff. Carl almost needed a machete to carve a path. Jet may be a large animal but he moved through the thicket like smoke through fingers. Every time Carl would lose sight of Jet, the wolf would stop and wait patiently for the clumsy chubby human to catch up. On about the fourth time this happened Jet walked towards a giant pine tree whose branches touched the ground and slipped inside. Filled with curiosity Carl cautiously followed Jet. Carl swept a large pine bough out of the way and laughed in delight at what he found. Inside the sheltering arms of the tree was a small opening. ¡°It¡¯s a natural tent!¡± exclaimed Carl. Carl could have sworn he saw Jet roll his eyes like ¡° duh, puny human.¡± The area was large enough for both Jet and Carl to lie out or sit up in. Inside were dead pine needles, which Carl quickly added more pine needles to in order to make a nice bed for him and Jet. After the long walk and the terror of meeting Jet for the first time, Carl was asleep in seconds flat. During the night Carl awoke and found Jet had left him. Groggy from sleep he figured the wolf must have repaid him for his mercy and left. Carl rolled over and went back to sleep. When Carl woke, he wondered why his bed was so lumpy and what his grandma was making for breakfast and why his blanket smelled. With a start he realized that he was not in his bed but lying in a pine tree and his stinky blanket was actually Jet pressed up against his back. With his movement Jet jumped up and started to walk out of the tree tent, ¡°Aww are you embarrassed I caught you snuggling like a big puppy?¡± Jet gave him a grumpy look, snorted with disgust and walked out of the tree-tent. After Jet had walked out, Carl found that Jet had brought him a present. A large rabbit laid by the door of the tree-tent, ¡°Oh boy! Thank you jet! I guess breakfast is roast rabbit!¡± After prepping the rabbit for cooking, Carl started gathering kindling and wood to make a fire. After that task was completed, Carl looked around and realized that starting a fire in the thicket might not be the brightest of ideas and moved his project to a small clearing near the tree. With the rabbit ready to cook Carl made a fire pit and a passable cooking spit. Thankfully Carl was a large survivorman fan and always had a leatherman and a fire starter on his person. After a few false starts he had a fire going, the warmth and light filled his heart with joy. The thing that made him smile though was when he heard the soft footsteps of Jet approaching. With a loud grunt Jet laid himself up against Carl. Carl sat watching the rabbit roast, he had one hand on Jet¡¯s back and was slowly admiring the beauty of the clearing. Carl looked up in the sky and noticed something strange. There were no contrails from jets. No matter where he had been, whether the middle of the ocean or in the middle of the Wyoming wilderness he had always seen contrails from passenger jets traveling overhead. There were no contrails and the air was so clean! Carl looked at Jet and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯re in Kansas anymore Toto.¡± Carl didn¡¯t think he was on Earth anymore, ¡°getting sucked into a video game has that effect I guess.¡± He ran his hand through the Jet¡¯s thick black hair, ¡°well, if I have to be stuck on a different planet or whatever this is, at least I have a dog.¡± Jet growled at him obviously offended at being called a dog, ¡°Sorry buddy.¡± The rabbit finally finished cooking, Carl tried not to drool as his mouth filled with saliva. The smell was amazing, Carl pulled the rabbit from the spit and immediately tried to tear off a piece and just as quickly spit it out because it was way hot! ¡°Ahh the flesh it burns!¡± The wolf huffed twice and Carl realized that Jet was laughing at him, ¡°You jerk, just how intelligent are you?¡± Jet just laughed again and snatched up the piece of rabbit Carl had spit out, ¡°butthead.¡± Carl leaned back against a tree and burped contently, the rabbit had been delicious, then again hunger is the best seasoning. Jet crunched happily on the bones, Carl smiled at the giant wolf, ¡°enjoy your treat buddy, you earned it.¡± Carl noticed that the sun was climbing pretty high in the sky and that it was time for action! ¡°Well, I guess we should get back on the road eh?¡± Jet hopped to his feet and started following Carl as he walked towards the path winding through the woods. Once again the dirt path crunched under Carl¡¯s feet as he walked along. Jet padded along silently next to him, eyes constantly surveying everything around them. Once while walking down the path Jet¡¯s ears perked up and he turned towards the thicket beside the path and let out a terrifying growl, his teeth showed and Carl looked wearily at what the wolf was focused on. A pair of red eyes glared balefully at Carl and Jet, then they slowly melted into the bushes. Carl patted Jet on the back, he was grateful for the wolf¡¯s protection and keen senses. Carl and Jet had been walking for hours when Jet¡¯s ears perked up. He then turned and looked back the way they had come. Jet bit Carl¡¯s shirt and started to pull Carl off the trail. Carl looked quizzically at Jet, and then he heard thunder rolling towards him. The thunder was the running of horses. A large horse-drawn carriage and twenty mounted guards came flying around a corner and into view. Jet flew off the path and into the underbrush, Carl stood dumbfounded as he stared at the carriage and riders swiftly approaching him. All he could think was ¡°where the fook am I?¡± The guards on the horses were in medieval armor. All the knights wore swords some also carried lances, while a few had bows and arrows. The knights were amazing but the thing that made Carl¡¯s chin drop was the carriage. Pulled by six white horses, the carriage was white with soft pink accents around the roof and door. A large crest of a golden crown was emblazoned on the door. The knights and the carriage came to a stop in front of Carl who suddenly found himself surrounded by the knights and a plethora of swords and lances pointed at his throat like some messed up necklace. An angry voice flew out of the carriage, ¡°Driver, why have we stopped! I demand you get us to Ludum. My test to enter Magicae is today!¡± A head followed the voice out of the window and what a head! Beautiful golden hair cascaded down around a face men would kill for. Pale blue eyes shot to the poor driver and then drifted down to Carl. ¡°You, peasant, were dropped on your head as a baby? Move out of the way!¡± The beautiful woman glared at him and then stuck her head back into the carriage. Some of the knights nudged Carl out of the way with their horses and with a crack of the whip, the carriage trundled on down the road with knights once again providing escort. ¡°Do you need a ride kid?¡± Carl jumped and turned to find a man on a horse chuckling to himself. The man was sitting on a black horse wearing black leather armor. He had a large bow on his back, a short sword on his hip and a smile on his lips. ¡°I did not mean to frighten you son, but I have to ask, what are you doing unarmed and alone in the Nigh forest?¡± Carl looked up at the friendly but well armed man, ¡°well sir, I woke up in the forest, I have no clue how I got here or where here, even is.¡± The man looked on Carl with pity and held out his hand. ¡°Climb up son and I¡¯ll give you ride into town.¡± as Carl reached for the man¡¯s hand, he heard a growl from behind him. The man¡¯s eyes widened, he slowly reached for his sword and he whispered, ¡°don¡¯t move son, there is a giant wolf behind you.¡± Carl jumped and hollered ¡°wait, he¡¯s my friend!¡± Carl ran back and put his hand on Jet¡¯s back. The man looked down from his horse at the strange pair. The boy and the wolf looked equally willing to defend each other. The man snorted and with a smile said ¡°well, if he¡¯s your friend, I will not harm the hairball.¡± Carl patted Jet on the back and said to the wolf ¡°don¡¯t worry Jet this man -?¡± The man smiled again and said ¡°Zeke.¡± ¡°This man Zeke will not harm us okay?¡± Carl said to the giant wolf. Zeke chuckled and once again held his hand out to the boy ¡°you coming son? Actually first, what is your name? I can¡¯t keep calling you Son or Boy.¡± Carl smiled and took Zeke¡¯s hand, ¡°my name is Carl. A taste of Hearth "Carl eh? That¡¯s a good strong name.¡± Zeke pulled Carl up behind him on the horse. ¡°Those are some strange clothes Carl, where are you from?¡± Carl decided Zeke seemed trustworthy and decided to be honest. ¡°I am not from this world Zeke.¡± Zeke looked over his shoulder back at Carl ¡°What do you mean not of this world?¡± Carl shrugged, ¡°I was at my Grandparents house playing a game, when there was a bright flash of light and I found myself lying in the forest. I¡¯m from a world called Earth.¡± Zeke didn¡¯t seem that perturbed by the fact he was talking to an alien ¡°well, that would explain the strange clothes and boots. I¡¯ve never seen their like before.¡± Carl laughed and said ¡°yeah I¡¯m guessing Kohl¡¯s hasn¡¯t made it¡¯s way to Hearth yet.¡± ¡°Who is this Master Kohl? His work is incredible, I would love some clothing from him.¡± This sentence had the effect of making Carl chuckle before replying, ¡°As far as I know there is no master Kohl, it¡¯s just a store on earth where you can buy clothes.¡± ¡°hmm¡± grunted Zeke, ¡°Well, there are plenty of shops in town, we should see if we can find you something. You don¡¯t want to stand out too much.¡± As the horse walked, its gentle swaying put Carl in a light doze. Sights seemed to flash and fade as the horse made its way through the forest guided by Zeke¡¯s hand. *flash* Jet walking sedately next to the horse. *flash* a pond in a field of green surrounded by trees. *flash* deep dark forest with the wide path leading through. ¡°wake up Carl, get your first view of the city of Ludum.¡± Carl opened his eyes and wiped the crust from them, his jaw dropped as he caught his first sight of Ludum. The city was wrapped by a giant white wall, pennants of every color draped from the walls. The wall must have been forty feet tall and ran for miles. From the hill the horse stood on, Carl could see over the walls and into the city itself. Streets of what Carl assumed were cobble stone ran through the city in an orderly fashion. Upon either side of the streets ran shops or houses. In the center of the city sat a large white building with other matching white buildings sprawling out from the main building. ¡°Carl, the white buildings in the center is the Magicae, the school of elements. As you can see it is surrounded by the wealthy in their mansions the farther from the center of the city the poorer it gets, with the poorest living next to the walls. A convenient shield for the elite of the city.¡± ¡°huh, that kinda strange¡± proclaimed Carl, ¡° I mean do they learn about minerals and stuff?¡±This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Zeke let out a small chuckle ¡°no, Carl they don¡¯t learn about minerals. They learn to harness the power of the elements. A fire soul may ignite fires, a water soul may produce water, an air soul may use wind, an earth soul can use the earth and a spirit soul may influence people and animals.¡± Carl looked over at Jet who was sitting near them and the edge of the forest. ¡°Yep, I figure with how you tamed Jet you must be a spirit soul Carl, did you check your stats screen?¡± Carl looked at Zeke confused, ¡°what are you talking about?¡± ¡°think stats screen Carl.¡± Carl did as he was told and a see-through blue screen popped up about a foot in front of him. ****STAT SCREEN**** Name: Carl Age: 14 Strength: 10 Intelligence: 15 Agility: 18 Hardiness: 1 **** ELEMENTS**** WIND WATER EARTH FIRE SPIRIT UNKNOWN ***PERKS*** NONE **** TITLES**** NONE ¡°Well my stats officially suck, no titles, no perks and it looks like I have the spirit elemental unlocked.¡± ¡°Aww don¡¯t be too upset Carl, think of it this way, you are basically a baby in this world, you just arrived. For a newborn, those stats are pretty good! Well we definitely want to up that hardiness stat, especially now-a-days.¡± Carl looked startled as he said ¡°What the heck does that mean!¡± ¡°The Dark king to the south. An evil man who rules the southern lands, but as long as you stay north of the border, you¡¯ll be fine. Let¡¯s not talk of him.¡± Zeke, can we go check the city out? I¡¯m exhausted and need to find a place to stay.¡± ¡°Do you have any money?¡± ¡°ugh no, I just got here remember?¡± ¡°Well, I live a bit outside of town with my wife, she too is an adventurer and would have been with me today, but she had things to do in town. Why don¡¯t you come stay with us until you can get settled and on your feet?¡± ¡°Awesome, thank you so much Zeke!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t thank me yet, Carl my wife will put you to work earning your stay.¡± Carl was unsure about the evil grin on Zeke¡¯s face. As Zeke and Carl got closer to Ludum, the large swaths of farmland gave way to hamlets. The path they were following grew from a dirt road to a wide cobblestone road and as the road changed it became noticeably more crowded on the road. About a mile from the gates of Ludum Zeke suddenly turned his horse right, down a narrow path between small rustic houses. The pathway was almost like a tunnel the houses were so close. Carl could see a bright light at the end up the ¡°tunnel¡± between houses but could not see past the end of the ¡°tunnel¡± as it was too much a difference in lighting. Finally, as they reached the opening between houses Carl could see what lay ahead and it stunned him. ¡°It looks like a dang Kinkade painting¡± he thought to himself. Out in front of him spread a beautiful prairie filled with wildflowers. A crystal clear flowed down the prairie and small wooden bridge spanned it. A short about a quarter mile from the bridge sat a small but cozy house ringed by a copse of flowering trees. Zekes place As they got near the house, Carl realized the trees surrounding the house were all fruit trees. The smell of ripe fruit wafted through the air. Near the front porch was a garden probably around fifty feet by fifty feet. He could see corn and potatoes among many other veggies and herbs growing. Bean vines climbed trestles and birds chirped. The warm earthy smell mixed in with various spices and flowers was intoxicating. A large porch wrapped around the house, it¡¯s thick white pillars beautifying the house. As Carl stepped onto the porch, he could see the door was a dark green, he thought it looked very nice against the white paint of the house itself. With a smirk Zeke turned the brass knob and let the door silently swing open. ¡°Honey, I¡¯m home!¡± he hollered. An Amazon came around the corner yes, a real live amazon. Brown hair with fierce green eyes and about six feet tall as well as very well-muscled. She swaggered with confidence and tossed a wet towel right into Zeke¡¯s face. ¡°Hi husband, did a lost pup follow you home?¡± she nodded her head over at Carl. ¡°No hon, I found Carl wondering around lost in the Nigh woods.¡± ¡°Hi Carl, my name is Bridgette it¡¯s very nice to meet you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s very nice to meet you too Bridgette, without Zeke, I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯d have ever found my way out of those woods.¡± Bridgette took a step back from the doorway and said. ¡°Well don¡¯t just stand on the porch come on in and sit with us.¡± As he stepped through the door Carl almost felt he had stepped back into the nigh woods. Dark wood wainscoting ran the along the walls above the wood wainscoting the walls were painted a dark green. Bridgette led Carl and Zeke to small sitting area cluttered with maps and weapons, Carl thought it was strange they had weapons for decorations but hey, to each their own. A soft brown couch sat on a bright red Persian style rug, across from the chairs sat two overstuffed light brown chairs. Zeke gestured for Carl to sit on the couch while he and Bridgette sat in what was obviously their usual chairs. Carl sat and sunk into the soft leather couch and his aching feet and legs thanked him. Zeke smiled down at Carl ¡°Lad, I could eat a horse, I¡¯m betting you are mighty hungry too.¡± ¡°Yes, Zeke I¡¯m starving the only thing I¡¯ve eaten in the past two days is a Rabbit but the thing was pure muscle and no tasty fat.¡± ¡°Haha yes, that sounds like a rabbit! Well, I¡¯ll fix us up something to eat please rest where you are.¡± He looked over at his wife who smiled but shook her head. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you back so soon, I¡¯ve already eaten.¡± She said. Zeke glided smoothly towards the kitchen and shortly after, Carl could here pots and pans banging around. Bridgette made polite small talk with Carl until Zeke appeared carrying a cup of water and a plate with chicken and vegetables and set them down in front of Carl. Carl struggled to wait for Zeke to return with his own food and to take his first bite, before he inhaled, what had to have been the best meal he¡¯d ever tasted. After having waited patiently for Carl and her husband to finish eating Bridgette asked. ¡°Carl how did you come to find yourself lost in the nigh woods?¡± Asked Bridgette.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. Carl told his tale while Bridgette and Zeke listened carefully. After he had finished his story Bridget was frowning lost in thought. Zeke looked over at Carl and winked. ¡°I think we should take Carl to see the Council of elements.¡± Said Bridgette after some thought. ¡°I concur.¡± Zeke said agreeing with his wife. Seeing the confused look on Carl¡¯s face, Bridgette explained. ¡°The council of elements are the leaders of Magicae the school of elements. They are some of the most powerful and wise elementalists in all the land.¡± ¡°I agree, however¡± he pointed over to where Carl was sitting while fighting to stay awake. ¡°I think Carl needs a good night¡¯s sleep before we see the council.¡± ¡°I second the motion¡± said a sleepy Carl. ¡°Sorry guys where I come from, we barely ever walk, and I¡¯ve done more walking in the past two days than I¡¯ve probably done in my life.¡± Bridgette laughed ¡°Well you should get some rest then. Come, I will show you to the guest quarters.¡± Bridgette stood from the couch and motioned Carl to follow her, He stood and sleepily shuffled after Bridgette. Past the Kitchen and entryway was a short hallway with two doors across from each other and one door at the end of the hallway. Bridgette pointed to the door which had a small placard hanging form the knob that said ¡°guest.¡± ¡°This is your room Carl, the bed is fresh and if you need to use to loo it¡¯s at the end of the hallway.¡± Thoughts of a board with a hole above a bucket sprung to Carl¡¯s mind. Carl hoped he could avoid using the medieval ¡°toilet.¡± Carl opened the door to his room, not quite sure what to expect. Inside the room was cozy. The wood floor was covered in several thick, soft rugs which upon a closer look looked like sheepskin. The bedroom was painted in a softer light green and made Carl feel relaxed. The bed was what they would call a full size back on Earth, All Carl knew as he stripped off his clothes and climbed in was, that it was soft and warm. Carl thought of his grandparents and wondered if he would ever make it back to home to them. Carl¡¯s chest felt heavy but exhaustion soon turned the lights off on his consciousness. Carl¡¯s bladder rudely awoke him just as light had begun to steadily stream in through the small window in his room. He rubbed his gummy eyes and toddled towards the bathroom, the feeling of dread growing with each step towards the probable smelly hole. He was utterly amazed when he walked into an old timey style bathroom. The toilet (for it was most definitely a real live toilet!) looked like it had been taken from an early 1900s bathroom, the tank sat high above the bowl. He shrugged figuring it used gravity to move the toilet¡¯s umm¡­ contents out. After using said toilet he found the bathroom had a shower too! There was a bath towel with a small note on top that said ¡°Carl.¡± He quickly figured out the controls for the shower and enjoyed a nice hot shower. Carl returned to his room and dressed he walked out to the living room to find Zeke and Bridgette in quiet conversation. He walked noisily in so they would hear him and they both turned and smiled as he approached. Zeke said ¡°we need to work on your stealth abilities¡± to which Bridgette replied, ¡°ugh, you and your stealth, you don¡¯t need to be quiet to smash heads.¡± ¡°True dear wife but you do to slip behind and slide a knife between ribs.¡± They both chuckled at that, until they saw the look of horror on Carl¡¯s face. Carl it¡¯s a long-standing joke between Bridgette and I, she has always been the smash into the bad guy straight on type, while I¡¯ve always been the sneaky stab ¡®em while they aren¡¯t looking type.¡± Zeke explained. ¡°No, it¡¯s not that it¡¯s just the casual talk of killing people that I¡¯m surprised at.¡± Zeke and Bridgette both looked confused before Bridgette asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you have bad guys who would rape and murder as easily as steal back on earth Carl?¡± Carl replied, ¡°Yes we do, but we have the police whom deal with criminals and they mostly throw them in jail.¡± ¡°That sounds interesting Carl, but here on Hearth we don¡¯t have these police so one must learn to defend one self, by weapon or an elemental attack.¡± Zeke must have snuck off at some point in the conversation because he slid a bowl of what looked like oatmeal to Carl. Carl gratefully wolfed it down and as he finished Zeke announced, ¡°we need to get ourselves over to the council and see what they think of Carl.¡± Bridgette nodded, stood and held a hand out to Carl to help him out of the squishy couch. Carl said ¡° thanks¡± and they headed for the door.