“Yes. You’ve been so very sweet and helpful, but I still don’t know your name.”
“Ahh, is that all? You can just call me Ella.”
“Ella? Would you be the same Ella the Curate spoke of earlier?”
I thought I caught a pained expression on her face, but it was gone before I could be certain. Dropping a quick curtsy, Ella responded. “Herself! Although, sometimes I wish people would stop telling that tale. It’s a little embarrassing being known as the poor little girl lost in the woods.” She chuckled at that, although it sounded a bit forced. I assumed she was just tired of constantly being reminded of the experience.
I joined in her laughter. “Thank you, Ella. Please, call me Dreya.”
9
After lunch, I returned to my room and organized all of my equipment. Once I had my armor on, I adjusted my gear until it felt comfortable. Perfect—I was ready for my adventure tomorrow. Or, at least I was as ready as I was going to be. It was time to go see Georl again.
With a slight sense of apprehension and fearing the potential for amorous advances from the half-orc, I made my way downstairs and then outside. Georl’s shop was not far, and before I could back out, I forced myself through the front door and inside the smithy shop. Georl was there behind the counter and greeted me immediately.
“Welcome back, Dreya! So good to see you again. Did Marli give you my message?”
He managed to maintain almost perfect eye contact, his eyes only slid down once for a quick glance around my waistline. Odd, I thought, that was not the usual spot I caught the men of this world staring at when they looked at me. Maybe it was an orc thing.
“Yes, she did,” I replied, ignoring the furtive glance.
“Good, good,” he replied somewhat nervously.
“Dreya, I haven’t quite finished the blades yet, but I was hoping to ask a favor of you.”
Oh no, here it comes. Is this how women felt when they knew some guy they weren’t interested in was about to ask them out? It really did suck.
“You see,” he continued, hesitantly. “The people of this town have been very good to me. But, as you might imagine, as a half-orc it has been difficult to become truly accepted.”
Hmm, that certainly was not where I thought he was going to go.
“My people, both full and half-orc, have something of a brutish nature in general. Particularly so when it comes to women.”
That last bit brought me immediately back to yellow alert.
“So, it is somewhat understandable that while the town has been generally tolerant of me, I have not been truly embraced here. The people conduct business with me, that is true, but are otherwise not very friendly. No one ever invites me to their homes, and they are certainly not open to the possibility of any... romantic engagements.”
Shields up! Red alert!
Something in my expression must have betrayed my concern.
“Please, do not get the wrong idea! I realize you likely have no interest in one such as myself, and I did not intend to give you the wrong impression. I only ask the courtesy of a little of your time. Just long enough to share a meal together at the tavern—at my expense, of course. After that, I will simply escort you back to the inn and leave you safely at the front door. I won’t even attempt to enter the inn with you. In fact, doing so would probably be counterproductive for me.”
I suddenly understood exactly what he really wanted from me. He needed to show publicly that he could conduct himself as a gentleman in the company of a woman. Leaving me at the door to the inn was also a really nice touch—it would be clear that he had not taken advantage of the situation, having left me at the end of the evening perfectly safe, and in plain view for anyone to see.
Pretty slick.
I instantly re-evaluated my impression of him. Aside from the single glance earlier, he had been nothing but perfectly decent with me. Since I could see no downside to his proposal, I accepted.
“Thank you!” Georl said with an obvious sense of relief. “I feared that my idea might offend you. I’m so grateful you accepted—I promise you a wonderful dinner, again, at my expense. Thank you so much!”
His effusive and genuine appreciation reassured me that I had made the correct choice in aiding him. He seemed like a truly decent man, despite whatever impression his ancestry might lead people to believe. I sincerely hoped that our little charade would improve his social standing with the townsfolk.
My plan for tomorrow was to be off on an early start, so we agreed to meet at the tavern for dinner later that evening. I had not been to the tavern yet, but Marli had told me it was one of the places I could purchase some trail rations. Although the food at the inn was quite tasty, I looked forward to the opportunity for some comparison. After trying both, I could purchase a supply of rations from whichever location I preferred. It seemed like there might be a little something in this arrangement for me as well.
Returning to the inn, I made my way upstairs to my room, offering Ella a quick wave as I passed through the dining room while she hurriedly worked serving tables. Even though her hands were full, she still managed to offer me a broad smile in return.
Stripping off my weapons, armor, and backpack, I prepared myself for the evening with Georl. My simple clothes should be fine for dinner at the tavern; there would be no need for adventuring gear. I decided to keep my belt and coin purse, just in case I needed a little money. Having a few hours before I was to meet Georl at the tavern, I took the opportunity to familiarize myself with the map of Lorida I had gotten from Marli.
The Kingdom was located on a roughly circular peninsula and was connected to the mainland of the continent, known as Arrika, by a narrow strip of land dominated by impassable mountains. The thin band of passable land that allowed access to the Kingdom was protected by the fortified capital city of Orlan. The isolation of Lorida, as Zander had relayed amongst his drunken ramblings, was what made this Kingdom ideal as a starter area. The more powerful threats located on the mainland simply could not cross over into the Kingdom’s protected lands.
The larger towns of the Kingdom were mostly dispersed around the perimeter of the circular peninsula. Alone in the center of the peninsula was the largest town, Hasse. Practically a city itself, Hasse was the trading hub for all, with the Kingdom’s roads radiating out from it like the spokes of a wagon wheel. Numerous other small towns and villages existed throughout the Kingdom, all of them too tiny to be included on my rough map. The town I was in was one of those smaller settlements.
To aid me in my quest on her behalf, Marli had marked my map with the town’s location. She also noted the quickest and, therefore, safest path from town to her farmer friend. At a straight walk, it would be no more than a couple hours away. However, I intended to use the opportunity to practice my Stealth and Perception, so it would take me quite a bit longer than that.
Having nothing left to do for a while, my mind began to wander idly. I wondered what sort of beast might be plaguing the farmer. Had I forgotten anything I might need for my trip? I thought about anything save the one question I was still trying to avoid. Was this truly real? Had I actually been transported to an entirely different world? Or was this just some elaborate glitch in the game?
Thankfully, before I could ponder the thought too much, it came time for me to head over to the tavern and meet up with Georl. I fled the room quickly, grateful for the opportunity to leave my worries behind for a while.
10
The tavern was rather nice—much like the dining room of the inn, only slightly larger in both tables and bar space. I spotted Georl easily, and he was already seated at a strategically located table in the corner. Not too isolated, so we could be seen, but secluded enough to imply what he wanted. Well done, Georl. As I approached, Georl pointedly rose and pulled out a chair for me to sit on. Playing my role, I smiled at him graciously and took the offered seat.
“Going all out tonight, aren’t you, Georl?” I teased him.
The hal
f-orc’s cheeks blushed a deeper green.
“Just doing as my father taught me,” he replied.
We talked for a while. He told me of his youth, growing up the son of a human father and orc mother. It was an odd union he said, brought together by even odder circumstances. I inquired as to the particulars, but he declined to elaborate, saying only that they loved each other, and that the union was by mutual consent. Apparently, consensual relationships were an uncommon thing between orcs and humans. I thought that might explain why he was so different from the stereotypical half-orcs he had spoken of.
Dinner was served, and our small talk continued as we enjoyed the excellent meal. Georl proved to be surprisingly pleasant once you got past his appearance, and I found that I truly enjoyed his company. The pretend smiles I had been giving him quickly turned quite genuine as the night wore on.
When he offered, I declined a second glass of wine. Georl tried to assure me that the added expense was no bother, but then I told him why I had done so.
“All of this,” I gestured to us and around the table, implying our scheme, “would be undermined if people thought you just might only be trying to get me drunk.”
Georl looked at me, stunned.
“I had not even considered that,” he replied, somewhat defensively.
“I know you didn’t,” I assured him. “Because you’re a decent person.”
Realizing that I had not been making an accusation, but rather, was looking out for his best interests, Georl smiled broadly at me. But when he did, his large canines protruded from his lips in a somewhat disconcerting fashion. I would have to find a way to delicately tell him not to do that.
“Thank you,” he said. “I am unused to having people think the better of me. I find it… quite pleasing for a change.”
The rest of our night continued to be equally pleasant. The lone blemish was a rather unsavory looking man who sat alone in a back corner, drinking heavily throughout the night. I found him repeatedly staring in our direction, with a foul smirk plastered on his greasy face. After a while, I dismissed him as the ignorant bigot that he clearly was and simply ignored the drunken fool. I was having an entertaining evening, and I wasn’t going to let some idiot ruin it for me.
When our meal was over, Georl paid the bill as he had promised, tipping the waiter generously. We walked out, not arm-in-arm or anything, but still close together. There was absolutely no chance that any hanky-panky was going to happen, but I was going to let Georl make the best impression on the townsfolk as possible.
Georl, as I now expected, was a man of his word. He walked me to the front door of the inn but refused to follow any further. We said our polite goodbyes out in the open, where anyone could see, and I departed alone into the inn. I felt good about what we had done—not only had it been an enjoyable evening, but I also just may have managed to improve Georl’s reputation at the same time.
Walking into the inn, I realized that I hadn’t picked up any rations at the tavern, so I flagged down Ella and asked her to get me a few days’ worth. I didn’t want to leave it for morning and possibly forget yet again; finding myself in the wilds without any food would be a disaster. She brought them to me quickly and I handed her a silver Mark, overpaying by quite a bit, but not minding in the slightest.
Taking the rations up to my room, I stashed them in my backpack. I went over my equipment once more, and when I found that everything was in place, I did a final mental review of my plans for the morning. Then, with that complete, I was as prepared as I could possibly be for the day ahead of me. With my plans settled, I sat down on the edge of the bed and tried once more to comprehend the events of that morning.
All the evidence was there for me to believe that I was truly marooned here. I was stuck in what I had thought was a game but had turned out to be a real world that had been hijacked somehow by a group of game developers.
As I kept thinking of the Curate’s words, something about them tickled at the back of my mind, but I couldn’t bring the thoughts together. Then, suddenly, the pieces all fell in place for me, and when I realized the implications, my mouth fell open.
The developers knew!
They knew all along that they were connecting to a real world. They had to. The Curate said the ‘great wizards’ had not only been manipulating the people but had also been subverting the will of the Gods. But digital creations did not need to be manipulated or have their wills subverted. They simply did what you told them to do, without question. The only reason such actions would be necessary was if they stumbled across an already existing reality.
My mind nearly exploded at the revelation—it was all true. As absolutely insane as that seemed, it had to be true. Too many of the facts were adding up for me to deny it anymore. Somehow, inexplicably, the technology of my world had managed to interact with the magic of this one, and a bridge had been formed between them.
The implications hit me like a brick wall. I was well and truly stuck here, alone and abandoned. And I was not even me—I was Dreya, or at least I was physically. I could no longer afford to pretend that my situation was temporary. As unreal as it seemed, this truly was my new reality.
The message this morning said I retained my powers as a ‘Deathless.’ If that were true, that meant that I would still respawn if I died. But with the increased sensory levels of this game—shit, I mean this world—being so over-the-top, I wasn’t sure that I wanted to be dying all that often, if at all. Clearly, I would need to get stronger. To ‘level-up,’ as I would have said if I was still operating under the illusion that this was merely a game. I was only just barely level one—weak and vulnerable. I would need to work on that quickly if I wanted to avoid dying all too frequently in this harsh world.
I struggled with trying to plan a path forward but gave up after just a few moments. There simply was no point to it—there was too much that I did not know. My ignorance was a true detriment to me, and I would have to take things one day at a time until I had a better understanding of this world.
But at least I had tomorrow planned, which was a relief. I should gain some experience, get some decent loot, and explore this new world at least a little. I convinced myself that this was the best I could hope for at the moment and vowed to make every effort to make a place for myself in this world.
This certainly wasn’t the new lease on life I had been hoping for when I first entered the IR chamber… It wasn’t even a remote consideration. But I found myself beginning to cautiously accept and even embrace my circumstances. I was part of a living world again, even if it wasn’t my own world. The strange environment with its hyper-real sensations and imagery was drawing me in with its intense beauty and promise of adventure. The body I was in might not have been the one I was born with—it wasn’t even one that I was comfortable in, but it was mine now. For the first time, I found myself thinking of this as my own body and not just something on loan from Dreya. It was odd, yet a part of me slowly began to accept the truth of it.
Abruptly, my prior imaginings of Dreya as a separate person crumbled to pieces. I realized that as much as I had personified her over the years, that had been a mere artifice. My image of her as an individual was simply a vehicle that I had used to help me enjoy playing RPG’s more… nothing else. Playing games with a companion was more exciting for me, so I had manufactured them, imagining personalities and playing them as if they were real. I had maintained the illusion for so long that it had simply become second nature for me to think of them in this way. I had convinced myself that my marionettes were real, even though I had been pulling their strings all along. It took the shock of discovering that this was reality, and no simple game, to break me from my delusions.
But now the puppet master was suddenly turned puppet, forced to live a role I had merely played at before. And not in some pretend land where I could escape or take a break whenever I wished. This new world was real, where my actions would have consequences, and there would be no convenient breaks or time
-outs. But this role I was now forced into was one that I knew well, and I had played it for years, though only in a third-person sort of way. Now I would have to learn to play it as myself, without the filter of an artificial personality.
So, this was it then. I was a stranger in this world, ignorant of its ways and probably hated by many for the actions of those who had sent me here. I was weak in a world where the strong dominated. And, not least of all, I was a man suddenly stuck in the body of a beautiful woman. The road ahead would be difficult for me, and there would be no small amount of awkwardness as well. But even with all that, with all the danger and strangeness, I resolved to forge ahead and do my best to make the most of my new chance at life.
I had entered the IR capsule hoping it would help me find a renewed interest in life. This vibrant, new world had opened my eyes to that possibility in just the short time I had spent here. I knew that even if I could return home, I would simply continue to waste away there. All the joys of my former life had been ripped away from me. There was nothing there that made me want to live anymore. But here, despite the strangeness and challenges, I actually looked forward to my tomorrows. Here, an undiscovered world lay before me, and I was truly excited to uncover it. Yes, the situation was far from ideal, but if I wanted to continue living, to have any quality in whatever time I had left, this world was probably the only place where that had any chance of happening. The realization provided me with some comfort, as I had ultimately found a renewed desire for life and finally broke away from my former apathy. My one last desperate attempt to redeem my life had actually succeeded. It may not have been in the way I had imagined, but in the end, did that really even matter?
11
I awoke early the next morning confused and briefly alarmed for a moment by the unfamiliar surroundings. I may have come to terms with my new reality, but it had yet to fully set in. It all came back quickly enough as I stood and saw my reflection in the mirror. Actually, my first thought was ‘Damn she’s hot!’ Then I quickly remembered that ‘she’ was me, and the past two days suddenly fell back in place.
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