The cave on this side of the portal was fairly flat – it seemed weathered that way naturally, rather than being worked by tools.  Behind us was a portal matching the one we left on Earth – but all of our attention was focused on what was ahead, not what was behind us.  We reached the mouth of the cave, and were met by cool, crisp air.  I made sure to check on Rachel, because cold air was one of her triggers for her Asthma, but her recent use of the puffer a few moments ago seemed to be helping. 

 

                Arrayed before us was a majestic, panoramic view… We were on the side of a mountain, with a sheer drop at least 200 to 300 feet down to rocks below, and below that the mountain slopes were heavily forested, reaching outward in most directions for miles to the east and south.  To the north, the mountains were more rocky and bare of foliage, but had an ample covering of snow.  If felt cold up here – a marked contrast to the summery temperatures we just left behind us.  The hills arrayed to the east of the forest weren’t covered in snow, so I assumed the chill we were experiencing was due to our altitude, and not the season.

 

                As we watched, two gorgeous birds, which looked like red-feathered eagles with white feathered heads flew by, calling out what was unmistakably  an eagles call.  The air was crisp, and clean, and didn’t have even the slightest hint of smog or petrochemicals like car exhaust.  The air felt invigorating.

 

                “God, it feels like home.”  Rachel said.  “It’s beautiful.”

 

                Oddly enough, Jeff could feel it too… Something about this place made him feel at ease in a way he had never really noticed back on Earth.  It felt comfortable, and right, like he was meant to be here.  It gave him feelings of belonging, like the old treehouse he had in the backyard as a kid.  Like that.

 

                We stared a few moments longer, until I realized we might have a problem.  I didn’t see a way down, and we hadn’t brought enough rope, nor had enough skill to climb down 300ft of rope!   There must be another way!

 

                “Hey, Rache.  Help me look and see if there’s a way down, or at least out of this cave.”

 

                Rachel tore herself away from the vista, and nodded.  “Yeah.  I bet it gets pretty cold up here at night.  We’d be better off the mountainside by nightfall.”

 

                We looked around for a little bit, until I noticed the way forward, and gulped in fear.  There was a narrow 18 inch wide ledge running roughly across the cliff face for about 200 yards, until it ended at another flat rocky outcropping upon which stood a stone building with large closed wooden doors.  The ledge was precarious – and its only safety feature, if it could be called that, was a thick rusty chain stretched across the 200 yards, pinned to the cliff face at spots by rusty iron spikes. 

 

                “I found the way off.”  I called out.

 

                “No… No fucking way.”  Rachel replied, looking at the narrow ledge.  “Is that the only way?”

 

                “It’s the only way I can see.”  I replied, looking to see if I could find any alternatives.  I couldn’t.

 

                “Jesus.”  She looked over the edge of the cliff.  “On the plus side, if we fall, it’ll be quick.”

 

                “Yeah, it sure will.”  I tried the chain nearest to us and the ledge we were on… It seemed sturdy enough.

 

                “I think we should belay ourselves together.”  I suggested.  “That way if one of us slips, the other can try and keep them from falling too far.  We can use ropes and carabiners to connect our belaying rope to the chain.”

 

                Rachel nodded, looking pale.  I knew she wasn’t a coward – but that narrow ledge and the drop below us was terrifying and intimidating as hell, and it was fairly windy up here too to boot.  It was going to be a dangerous climb. 

 

I took some of our rope and got us belayed together.  “I’ll go first, okay.  Then, once I’ve gone a bit, you need to follow me, so that we stay close – within 10 feet of each other.  Let’s go.”

 

“Uh… I’m not sure I can do it, Jeff.”  Rachel looked pale, and she was shaking.  She was scared. 

 

“You can do this, Rache.  You know why?  Because  if you don’t, your only option is going home to your mom and dad, and I know you don’t want to do that.  Come on… I’ll keep you safe.”  I reached out and held her hand.  “It’ll be easy.  Just don’t look down.”

 

“You know everyone looks down when someone says that.”  She said, miffed.

 

“So get it out of your system now?” I joked.  “Come on.  We can do this.  You can do this.  Follow me, and do what I do.”

  I went out onto the ledge, and grabbed the chain.  The ledge was sturdy, and the chain felt reassuringly well anchored to the wall.  I walked a few steps until I was about 10 feet away, and called back.  “Come on, Rache.  You can do this.”

 

                Rachel nodded, and grabbed the chain, and walked on to the ledge.  Bit by bit she edged along the path – as did I and slowly we began to cover the several hundred yards to the wood and stone building at the far end.  The path was very well made, and sturdy, and the chain was equally sturdy, so although scary as hell, crossing the ledge was relatively easy, except at the mid point, where the winds picked up pretty fiercely.

 

                We made it past the heavy winds – which was tough – the winds caught at our packs, and without the belaying and the aid of the chain as a handle, we might have been pulled off, especially if the ledge had been wet or icy.  Eventually we made it to the far end, and as I stepped off the ledge onto solid ground, I could see Rachel was nearly at her limit.  I helped her up, and she walked several yards away from the edge, and sat down with a thump.  I sat down to join her.

 

                “That was easier than I thought, and very unpleasant.”  I said to no one in particular. 

 

                “I don’t want to have to do that ever again.”  Rachel agreed.

 

                I didn’t say anything, but I knew if I decided to return, I was going to have to brave it at least once more, by myself.  I wasn’t looking forward to it.  I pulled out my cell-phone and took some pictures of the ledge we crossed, and the cave mouth from our new vantage point – and I was surprised to see glints of bright silver in the cliff face!  I wondered if it was silver ore, exposed on the surface?  Either way, it looked amazing.  The pictures turned out great!  I took another one of the panoramic vista. 

 

                “Your asthma behaving, Rache?”

 

                “Yeah, so far.  I’m okay.  It got close though.  Do you mind if we take it slow getting off the mountain?”

 

                “Not at all.  Grandma’s journal said there was a town to the east – about a days’ walk.  I figure with our load it might be a day and a half, and from the sun we might have three more hours of light, maybe four, before it gets dark.  We should get moving soon, or plan to camp halfway down the mountain.”

 

                “Gimme five, and I’ll be good.”  Rache said, leaning back into her pack for a rest.  “What’s the name of the town?” 

 

                “I think it’s called Ender’s Hollow or something.  Defintely not Sleepy Hollow, though.  It was a small village when Grandma was here.  It was under the rule of the Laird Mac Tavish, who ruled from a city called Callenden.  That’s all I remember.”

 

                “You remembered more than I expected you to.”  Rachel joked.

 

                I grinned.  “Yeah, well when you might be the bastard grandchild of the local ruler, you tend to remember that stuff.  I thought it might be mildly important.”

 

                “You think?”  She chuckled.  “I’m good to go.”  She tried to stand, and couldn’t – so in the end she removed her pack, stood, then replaced her pack with my help on her back – and I had to do the same. 

 

                “What do you think this building used to be?”  I wondered.

 

                “I don’t know.  Those doors look like they used to be pretty sturdy.  Maybe to keep nasty stuff out?”

 

                “Well I hope we don’t run into any of it.”  I replied.  “Let’s get going.  I’m sure if anyone was living in there, they would have heard us outside and come to see.”

 

                “Maybe.”  Rache replied.  “Maybe not.  We should look inside, first.”

 

                “Okay.  Just in case.”  I went up to the two doors, and gave one a little shove.  It moved, with some argument from the rusty hinges, but it wasn’t locked or even latched.  Inside we saw a large courtyard, with a pair of stone buildings.  One was long and low, about 60 feet long and one story high over to the left, and to the right and back there was a two story high building made of wood and stone, with bars on the windows and a sealed door.  The courtyard was covered with thick gray webs the size of ropes, and was littered with the bones of dead things long rotted away.

 

                Rachel looked inside over my shoulder, and shuddered.  “Maybe this was a mistake. We should go.”

 

                I was beginning to agree with her.  I took a step back, and closed the door – but as the rusty hinges shrieked in argument, one of the hinges broke, sending the door tumbling down into the nest of webs, smashing a half dozen cocoons and skeletons, and making a gigantic racket.

 

                “Fuck!”  I said quietly, and reached for my gun.  If anything was alive here, there was no way they didn’t hear that.  We didn’t have long to wait… Three giant spiders, literally the size of large dogs, scuttled out of the building on the left towards us.

 

                “What the fuck!?”  I cried out.  Is this for real?  I grabbed my Ruger and aimed at one of them, trying to get an accurate shot.  I gave the trigger a pull – and the gun fired!  The sound of the gunshot was loud, but the spray of buckshot went wide, and did nothing.  I backed up.  “Look out!”

 

                My answer was the loud retort of a gun going off next to me, making my ears ring with pain.  Rachel’s shot was better aimed, and exploded one of the spiders, punching a hole through its head and torso.  

 

                We retreated as quickly as we could, taking aim – but the spiders were too quick, and leapt at us…  Holy shit did they leap!  The first spider jumped like thirty feet from the courtyard to the wall above us, like it was preparing to do a ‘death from above’ maneuver – and the other one leapt and landed right in front of me, and tried to bite!

 

                I screamed in pain as its fangs jabbed my thigh, drawing blood.  I smashed its head with the butt of my gun, and it let go – but I could feel a nasty burning in my leg, and I realized it might be poison.  I put my gun to its head, and pulled the trigger, but my leg gave out at the last moment, sending me to my knees.  My shot missed its head, and took it in the torso, and it looked seriously hurt.  Meanwhile, Rachel put her back to mine and aimed up at ‘death from above’ spider and tried to blow its head off.  Her shot was dead on, and took its head completely off, spraying us with bug guts.

 

                The spider shook off its shock, and moved forward to try and bite me again.  As it did, I blasted it at virtually point blank range, and the shotshell that was next in the cylinder blew its head off.  It fell dead at my knees, and I realized I couldn’t feel my left leg anymore.  I fell over onto my side.  I didn’t feel seriously hurt – but I couldn’t move my left leg at all.  It felt numb.

 

                “You okay, Rachel?”

 

                “Yeah.  You?”

 

                “Not so much.  I got bitten.  It didn’t make a deep wound, but the venom is paralyzing my leg.  I can’t feel it, and I can’t move it either.  If I got poisoned, I must have got off with a very light dose.  It hurts, but only where my leg isn’t numb.  Can you help me get away from here?”

 

                “Yeah.”  Rachel came over, and grabbed me from behind under my armpits and dragged me a good dozen yards away.  She knelt, and took a moment to reload her pistol, and I decided to do the same.  I was a little disappointed with the shotshells – I had hoped they would be like a shotgun blast, but the shot was so dispersed it was pretty much useless for what I wanted it for.  If I couldn’t hit anything farther than 10 or 15 feet away, it was pointless, so I took the remaining shotshells out of the gun, and loaded .357 ammunition.

 

                “That could have gone better.”  I joked. 

 

                “Yeah, but we’re still alive, so that’s something good.” Rachel replied.  “And once that venom wears off, hopefully we can get moving.”

 

                “I just hope it wears off soon, or we’re spending the night up here.”

 

                “You know, if this was a video game, we’d probably slap a healing potion on you, go search the lair, find a chest full of loot, and call it a day.”

 

                “Heh heh.  Well, getting bitten sucked, and I’m not sure I’d want to search that charnel pit.  Seriously, if anything was in there, it’s dead now.”

 

                “Maybe,” Rachel began.  “But spiders don’t spend gold, and dead people don’t need it.”

 

                “Really?”  I asked.  “Really?  Can we at least wait until I can feel my leg and walk again?”

 

                “Yeah, sure.”

 

                We sat down to wait.  After about an hour, I could start to feel pins and needles in my thigh, and my leg started throbbing painfully, which I guess was an improvement.  I still wasn’t going anywhere soon.  “Maybe we should set up camp here, Rachel.  I don’t think I’m going anywhere before nightfall.”

 

                “Okay.”  Rachel replied, helping me get my pack off – I had the tent.  “Thirsty?”  She asked.

 

                “Yeah.  Why?”

 

                She took off her pack, and handed me a chilled Bud light in a can, and took one out for herself.  “I kept four cans in my pack in case we needed fast liquid food.  Also, it seemed wrong to leave all of it behind.”

 

                “Awesome.  We’ll get camp set up after a quick drink.”  We popped the tabs of the beers, and took a drink.  The light beer was refreshing, but the flavor was a little off.  I was used to drinking it nearly ice cold, not slightly below room temperature.  I mean, compared to some other beers it was probably pretty bad, but we were 19, and underage.  Any beer was better than no beer, and we sure weren’t going to get drunk off of one light beer.

 

                We finished our beers, and I crumpled the cans, while Rachel got our tent set up and moved our gear inside.  I didn’t like feeling helpless, but by the time she had the tent set up and readied, there wasn’t more than an hour or so until the sun set.  What was really weird was that I could see the shadow of two moons in the sky – one white-ish like our moon, and one larger one that was red-ish.  Grandma’s journal had mentioned a third, smaller green moon, but I hadn’t seen evidence of it yet.

 

                There were some scrub bushed and small trees nearby – so we couldn’t be above the treeline, which was good.  That meant less climbing to get down off the mountain tomorrow, assuming we could travel.  My throbbing in my left leg was starting to wane, and I could feel my leg again, so I tried to stand.  I was a bit wobbly, but I could walk.

 

                “Hey!  You’re standing!”  Rachel said, as she looked up from putting the last of our gear in the tent.

 

                “Yeah, shakily.”

 

                “Good.  Go sit, and I’ll find some firewood.  You can build the fire and keep it going.”

 

                “I’ll gather some stones for the fire pit.”  I replied, and slowly went looking for some good round stones.

 

                My leg was still pretty wobbly, but I managed to hobble over to a small pile of stones that looked perfect.  I bent over to grab one, and lifted it with both hands to carry back to our camp – when I came eye to eye with a squirrel, watching me from about thirty feet away.  The squirrel was wide eyed, and standing on a fallen wooden log, and was wearing pantaloons, a vest, a sword belt complete with a sword, and a little pack with gear.  It also had a floppy hat on its head, and a warm jacket bundled on its pack behind it. 

 

                “Hi Hi Hi!”  It called out, like a little kid hyper on too much sugar.  “Don’t be scared!  I’m friendly!”

 

                I staggered back in disbelief, and fell on my ass, dropping the stone onto the ground.  WTF?

 

                “Are you okay?  Sorry!  I didn’t mean to startle you… I keep forgetting I’m really quiet.  I’m Tika.  Did you hear the loud noises earlier?  It sounded loud!  I came to see.”

 

                “You can talk.”  I said, deadpan.  “Are you one of the squirrel folk?”

 

                “Yup Yup Yup!  I’m a Reechi!  You’ve never seen a Reechi before?”

 

                “Nope, sorry.  What are you doing up here all alone?  Isn’t it dangerous for someone so small?”

 

                “I’m not alone.  Alyssa came with me.  I should go get her.”

 

                “I assume Alyssa is a friend.  Is she a Reechi too?”

 

                “Haha, no.  She’s a human, like you.  She’s good with medicines and herbs, which is why we’re here.  Some of the best herbs grow on the side of the mountain, so we took a trip.”

 

                “Well, if you do go get her, I suppose you two could join us at our camp.  My leg got injured by some giant spiders, and I don’t think I’ll be going anywhere before tomorrow morning.  I can barely walk as it is!”

 

                Tika looked nervous when I mentioned giant spiders – and I realized why.  To them, she’d be an easily snared tasty morsel. 

 

                “They’re all dead, Tika.”

 

                “Good.  I’ll go get Alyssa.  Bye. See you soon.”  And just like that, Tika ran off.  She was so fast and so small, she was practically invisible once she got 30 feet away.  I had to admit I had no idea where Tika went.  I wasn’t sure from their voice if Tika was a boy or a girl Reechi, but their clothes had some stitching on it that reminded me of flowers, so I guessed she was female.

 

                I scrambled to my feet, and began carrying the stones over to our camp for the fire pit.  It took me a little while, but I was able to build a pretty safe fire pit, so I sat down to rest my wobbly leg.  How the hell did Tika know English?  Were we even speaking English?  If we weren’t, how the hell did I understand her?  Did the adventure token translate for me?

 

                A few minutes later, I heard some movement, and Rachel called out, back from her journey to find firewood.

 

                “Hey!  I’m back!  Miss me?”

 

                “Haha… Yeah.  We had a visitor.  A little squirrel person called a Reechi, named Tika.  She’s bringing a friend with her.  I think they want to join our camp tonight.”

 

                “Is that good or bad?”  She asked, dropping a fairly large pile of sticks and branches next to the fire pit. 

 

                “Good, I hope.  I think they’re from that village I mentioned.  Tika said her friend Alyssa was searching for herbs and stuff on the mountainside.  I think she might be an herbalist – Alyssa I mean.”

 

                “Cool!  Maybe they can show us the way to town.  Have you noticed anything odd on your HUD?  I have a new symbol floating there – and when I activated it, it told me I had earned an advancement and my skill picks and edges and such increased.  Do you have one of those?”

 

                “Yeah… I do.”  I activated it, and a few seconds later, confirmed what Rachel said she had seen.  I had 1 advancement, and had apparently earned 1 skill pick and one stat or edge pick.  Interesting.  I decided to check my quest page…

 

 

• Meet Alyssa and Tika
• Search the Spider Lair
• Journey to the Town of Ender’s Hollow
• Explore your Heritage
• Kill the Spiders! – Completed!
• Go Through the Portal – Completed!
• Read Grandma Janet’s Journal - Completed!
• Follow the Map Marker to the Portal - Completed!
• Optional (Give a friend the other Adventure token) – Completed!

 

 

“Did your quest page change?”  I asked.

 

“Yeah.  A lot of stuff is completed, and now there’s some new stuff too, like ‘Find a magic teacher’ and ‘Discover a way to

become a girl.’”

 

                “Mine are a little different.  I guess each person has their quests tailor made for them.  Cool.”

 

                “That is neat.  You gonna get the fire started?”

 

                “Oh, shit.  Yeah, I’ll start working on it now.”  I dismissed the menu and started building the fire, just like I’d learned in Scouts.  Meanwhile Rachel broke out our cookware and some military rations, and went to find water to rehydrate dinner with. 

 

                By the time I had the fire kindled, I heard scurrying sounds, and realized Tika must be back – probably with her friend in tow.  “Tika?  Is that you?”  I called out, as I slowly fed the fire.

 

                “Yup yup yup!”  I heard her little voice call out.  “I brought Alyssa.  Say hello, Alyssa.”

 

                “Hello, Alyssa.”  A voice replied – but at first blush I couldn’t tell if it was a male or a female voice it sounded so androgynous.  I turned, and saw what looked like an androgynous young man wearing a homespun medieval dress, carrying a shoulder bag stuff full of something, and a small leather and canvas pack on his back.  He carried a staff, and a dagger at his belt.  He had long brown hair, in braids that looked distinctly feminine.  I wondered if he was transgender too.  He had a rather effeminate face, but had a little stubble from 5 o-clock shadow, and had painted nails.  I think I saw a hint of breasts on his chest too – but I suppose if he wasn’t trans it could be just moobs.

 

                “Hello.”  I said.  “My name is Jeffrey Fowler.  I understand you’re Tika’s friend?”

 

                Alyssa laughed.  “Yes, and she said you’d never seen a Reechi before.  I imagine you were a bit taken aback at her being so… so hyperactive.  Almost all of her people are like that.”

 

                Tika ran in a circle, an up Alyssa’s dress to sit on her friends shoulder.  “Yep!  We tend to be in a hurry!  It’s just the way we are.  Mom says I’m energetic.”

 

                “Your mom is often at her wits end with you, Tika.” Alyssa joked.

 

                Tika looked sad for a moment.  “I know.  It’s hard, but she’s a good mom.  I try not to be trouble.”

 

                “My friend will be joining us soon.  Would you like to share our fire?” I asked.

 

                “Sure.  Your tent looks amazing!  Is it made out of silk?”  Alyssa asked.

 

                “Uh… no.  It’s a special fabric from our home that’s made… alchemically.  It’s cool in the summer, and warm in the winter.  It’s waterproof, and it’s really comfy and light to carry.  Don’t let it get near a fire, though – it’ll burn really easily.”

 

                “That’s amazing!”  Tika squealed.  “Look, Alyssa!  He has a gun!  Are you rich?”

 

                “Huh?  Oh… I keep that for self defense.  I have some money, but I don’t know if I’m rich.  Why do you ask?”

 

                “Cause guns are really rare and expensive and come from far, far away and… and I think I’m chattering too much. Sorry.”

               

I laughed.  “It’s okay Tika.”

 

“We mean you and your friend no harm, and I want you to know that aside from healing herbs, we have nothing of real

value, Geoffrey.”

 

                Huh?  Did he think we were bandits?  “Uh… My friend and I aren’t bandits.  We’re adventurers exploring this land.”

 

                “Oh.  Alright.”  He said, exhaling a held breath.  “In that case, do you need help with the fire?”

 

                “No… I think it’s caught well enough.  Are you from Ender’s Hollow?”

 

                “Yep!”  Tika replied.  “We’re both from there.  You’ve heard of it, but you haven’t heard of Reechi!?”

 

                “Yeah.  My grandmother mentioned we should go to Ender’s Hollow in her journal.  She said it was a nice town.”

 

                “It is a nice place.”  Alyssa replied.  “…But it’s more of a medium sized village than a town.  It doesn’t have a wall, for one thing, and it’s only got about 800 people living in and around it.  It’s still nice though.”

 

                At that point I heard Rachel arriving, and called out.  “Hey, Rachel!  We have company!”

 

                Rachel came over, and handed me the two canteens of water, and looked over our guests.  “I can see that.  Hi.  I’m Rachel Wilson.”

 

                “Is Rachel a girls’ name where you come from?”  Tika asked.  “Cause it’s a girls’ name here.”

 

                Rachel looked embarrassed.  “My name was David when I was born, but I prefer Rachel.”

 

                “Oh, poop!  I’m sorry!”  Tika exclaimed and climbed down Alyssa’s dress to the ground and ran over to Rachel.  “I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.  I didn’t know you were Twin Souled, like Alyssa.”

 

                “Twin-Souled?  You mean like transgendered?”  Rachel said, confused.  “I don’t understand.”

 

                Alyssa brushed her skirts back, and sat down carefully with her legs crossed.  “Do you not have Twin-Souled people in your homeland?  Young men who wish they were women, or young women who wish they were men?”

 

                “Yes…  We call them transgender people.  Trans means they want to switch, and gender means the opposite.”  Rachel said, sitting down next to me.  “They aren’t common back at home, and they’re often mistreated or even killed, which is why I didn’t come out until recently.”

 

                “Mistreated?  Killed!?  That’s horrible!  Why would your priests allow that?  Any sane person would try and stop that sort of evil!  I don’t understand the rest, though.  What is coming out?”  Alyssa asked, looking mortified and incensed.

 

                “It’s…um… when you first tell someone you’re transgendered – or I guess here it would be saying you’re Twin Souled.  It’s really traumatic for some people because their families will often disown them, beat them, kick them out to be homeless – or even kill them.  My family was one of the bad ones.”

 

                “Oh my goddess, you poor dear!”  Alyssa stood up, and came over to Rachel, and knelt beside her and gave her a big hug.  “You’re safe in these lands, Rachel.  Your parents cannot harm you here.  Here, the gods watch over people like us.  We are blessed.”

 

                “You mean it?”  Rachel asked, looking happier than I’d ever seen her.  “No one will hurt me?”

 

                “Not for being Twin Souled, at least not in our town.  We respect the gods in our town.”  Alyssa confirmed.

 

                Rachel just held onto Alyssa, and buried her head in her shoulder.  Her shoulders heaved, and she started crying a bit.  Alyssa just stroked Rachel’s hair until she finished.

 

                “Are you okay, Rachel?”  Alyssa asked.

 

                “Yeah, are you okay, Rache?”  I asked.

 

                “Yeah, I’m okay.” She said, releasing the hug she had been giving Alyssa.  “I’m okay now.”

 

                “That’s good.”  Alyssa replied, and returned to her spot next to Tika on the other side of the fire.

 

                “Obviously Twin Souled people are treated differently here, than in our homeland.”  I began.  “Can you tell us a bit about it?”

 

                “Yes, of course.  Have you heard of the Twin’s story – of Feana and Hathor?”  Alyssa asked.

 

                “No.”  I replied.  “The gods in our land are very different from the one’s here.”

 

                “Oh… Well, then I’ll begin at the beginning.  In the beginning, when the Great Maker created Mercia and all the stars in the Heavens, he created his children, our Gods.  At first they were formless, but as untold years passed, they took on forms that appealed to them.  Hrask and Tiamat took the form of great dragons, although some say they had human forms too, while the other gods took human forms – in honor of the Great Maker.  At that time, there were only ten gods and goddesses - Feana and Heather were born later, the daughters of Askeline, the Lady of Mercy, and the Lady of the Three Moons, and Isundal, the Lord of the Sun.”

 

“At first, the Familia was blessed, but as the children aged, Heather became morose and unhappy, so much so she nearly extinguished her own spark.  Her mother and father were greatly concerned, so they asked their daughter what was the matter.  When she told them she was a mistake – that she was supposed to be a man, they were very concerned for their child.  Was it true?  Was she born wrongly?  They discussed the matter for many days – and in the end, Lady Askeline could not bear the pain her daughter was going through, and neither she nor her husband wished to think of what life would be like if Heather’s spark was extinguished.

 

                “In the end, Askeline took Heather aside and asked if this desire was what she truly wanted, for men and women are meant for different things – and the life of a man is very different from the life of a woman in many ways.  Heather said she truly wished this, more than life itself.  Askeline heard her prayers, and blessed her with powerful magic, and when the ritual was done, Heather was no more, and in her place stood Askeline’s and Isundal’s son, Hathor.  Strong, proud, and happy.  Hathor rejoiced, as did his parents and his sister, Feana, who longed to see her twin smile again.”

 

                “Time passed, and in that time, Hathor noticed that many of his parent’s mortal children were born like he was – in the wrong body.  He saw the pain it caused them, and showed his sister Feana.  They watched as many mortals took their own lives, or lived lives of pain and anguish, and it moved them to action.  They went to their mother, and begged for her to give the gift she had given Hathor to the mortals below, who suffered just as greatly.  Askeline, the mother of us all, looked and saw her mortal children suffering.  How could she deny to her mortal children, what she had given so willingly to her divine child?  And so, Askeline sent in holy visions to all of her priests, the news that these special children were Twin Souled, like her son Hathor, and gave them the spell to transform these children into the body of their heart, instead of the body of their birth, so as to ease their suffering.  She also instructed the priests to ensure that a period of time to educated these children in their new roles must pass, to make sure they do not make an irrevocable mistake.  Once that time of education is done, the priests cast the ritual, and the child is changed utterly, to the opposite sex, forever.  From that point on, they are considered the sex that they are, rather than the sex they were born as, and may live as they choose.”

 

                “We call ourselves Twin Souled, because our souls are like Hathor’s, and together Feana and Hathor are known as the Twins.  I am Twin-Souled, and am undertaking my period of education.  I will be eligible to undergo the change just before the fall festival, this year.  Alyssa is the name I chose, like when Hathor chose his new name.  My old name was Donal, which I do not use anymore.  If you value me as a friend, please do not use it when addressing me.”

 

                “I won’t.  I promise.”  Rachel said.  “That was a beautiful story.”

 

                “It was.”  I said.  “It sounds like you’ve found the right place, Rachel.”

 

                “Yeah.  I guess maybe I have.  Alyssa, how do you look so feminine?  Has some magic already been cast upon you?”

 

                Alyssa smiled, and shook her head. “No.  I have been drinking a special tea, brewed from the Averleath root, for two years now, ever since I told my parents I was Twin-Souled.  It is often used by adult women to prevent unwanted pregnancies, but with young men, it makes their features more feminine.  If taken early enough, it can make a man look almost identical to a woman, except between his legs.  There is a similar herb that men use – Canis root, which is chewed, instead of being brewed into a tea.”

 

                “Oh!  Wow!  So basically herbal hormones?”

 

                “I don’t know, Rache… I guess so.  Most of our medicines back home are plant based, and some of the plants here are probably magical, so why not?”

 

                “Is the tea expensive?”  Rachel asked.

 

                “Oh, goddess, no!  It’s very cheap.  Anyone could afford it.”  Alyssa remarked.  “I have some here with me.”

 

                “Could I… Could I try some?”  Rachel nervously asked.

 

                “Sure.  I’ll brew you a cup once we have some hot water.”

 

                “Thanks.”  Rachel smiled, looking super pleased with herself.  And why not, I thought.  She just got told the best news she’s probably heard in months.  Good for her.

 

                I opened the canteen and sniffed – virtually all of the chemical smell was gone.  Our water purification tablets at work!  I poured the water into our pot, and added the two boil-in-bag meals, and put a kettle on as well. 

 

                “What’s the shiny stuff you put in the water?”  Tika asked.

 

                “Pouches of food.  When they’re hot, you cut them open and nice warm food comes out.”  I replied.  “We’ve got Beef Stew and BBQ Chicken tonight, with some pouches of dehydrated mashed potatoes, two packages of hot chocolate powder, two tubes of peanut butter, two tubes of chocolate hazelnut spread, some salt, pepper, two tea bags, two pouches of instant coffee, some non-dairy creamer, some crackers, and two packages of fig newton cookies, plus some plastic utensils.”

 

                “I don’t recognize half of that.”  Tika said, a little awed.  “Are peanuts tasty?  Is it like nut butter?”

 

                “Uh… yeah, Peanut butter is a type of nut butter.  Chocolate hazelnut spread is a kind of sugary nut butter with chocolate added in.  It’s really good too.”

 

                “Umm…  Can I try some?”  Tika asked.

 

                “Sure!”  Rachel said.  “Tika can have my tube of hazelnut spread or peanut butter.  I’ll only use one of them anyway.”

 

                “Okay.  Which one do you want, Tika?”  I asked.

 

                “I’ll try… the Hazelnuts with chocolate!”  She said, looking really excited. 

 

                Wondering if it was a good idea to give a hyperactive squirrel person a small tube of chocolate and energy food, I handed it over and showed her how to open it up and reseal it so she could have more later.  In moments, she was eating some – and a silly grin crossed her face, and I swear her eyes almost crossed, she looked so happy!

 

                “Chocolate Hazelnuts are amazing!”  She said, running around the tube in a circle.  “Yum yum yum!  You gotta try this, Alyssa.”

 

                Alyssa smiled at her little friend.  “I will, Tika.  Let’s let our friends get their dinner going, while I dig out our food.”

 

                “Okay!”  Tika went and ate a little more Hazelnut spread, but then closed the jar, saving it for later.

 

                “I have some smoked sausage and some root vegetables I can donate to the cause, if that would help?”  Alyssa asked us.  “I have some cheese, and dried raisins too.”

 

                “I’m sure we can figure out something with all that.”  Rachel said.  “If you want, Jeff I’ll cook dinner.”

 

                “Thanks, Rachel.”  I groaned.  My leg was still pretty sore and crampy.  I stood up and stretched, and walked about to get some feeling back in it.

 

                As we were talking, the sun was finally setting for the day, and the two moons I had seen earlier were out in nearly full force.  The silver one and the red one were both just starting to wane.  The third moon had by now made an appearance – it was greenish in color, and was waning too, but was already half way across the sky.  Both Rachel and I paused to watch the sky for a little bit.

 

                “What time of year is it here?”  I asked. 

 

                Alyssa looked a bit confused.  “I suspect it is the same time of year, in the land you come from, is it not?”

 

                “Um… No.  Rachel and I came here through magic.  We’re not from Mercia.”  I wasn’t sure I should be telling her that, but I didn’t know what else to say.  It was bloody obvious we weren’t locals!

 

                “Like Prince Colin’s wayward bride!”  Tika exclaimed.  “Our king, King Colin MacTavish, searched high and low for years to try and find his missing bride to be.  She claimed to be from another world in the night sky too!  He was captured by brigands, and could not arrive in time to his wedding, and when he did arrive, his bride was gone.  His heart broke, and he desperately sought her at every turn for years, until he finally gave up.  He and his wife the queen, now rule at Callenden, although his rule is failing due to his advanced age.  He has a son by Queen Morag; Prince Michael Blaine MacTavish.  I understand the Prince is married and has two daughters about your age – Lady Donella and Lady Caoimhe, and a son named Eacharn, who is a year older.”

 

                “Um… yeah.  Was Prince Colin’s intended bride named Janet Fowler?”  I asked.

 

                “I dunno.  It’s an old story.”  Tike explained.

 

                Alyssa nodded.  “I think so… oh my goodness!  That would make you her grandson, by your age, would it not?”

 

                “Yeah.”  I replied.  “It does.”

 

                “Milord.”  She said, rising to curtsy.

 

                “Milord?”  I asked.

 

                “Told you.”  Rachel laughed.

 

                “Shut up!”  I groused.  “Am I a lord?”

 

                “Well, you’re related to the current king of these lands.  His half-nephew at least.  You’re not a commoner – but I suppose you might not receive a warm welcome, if King Colin’s son does not appreciate meeting his father’s bastard grandson.  I will keep your secret, in case it puts you in danger.  Milord.”  Alyssa smirked with her statement, obviously twitting Jeff about his social rank.

 

                “Thank you!”  I wondered if I would be in trouble… the last thing a ruler wanted in any world, I suspect

 

                “I guess, then, in answer to your earlier question, it is the 27^th of Sunbright, nearly the middle of summer.”

 

                “Umm… Can I ask a probably stupid question?”

 

                “Sure, Geoffrey.”

 

                “How many months are there in Mercia, and how many days per month?  How many days per year?”

 

                “Oh… that’s easy.  There are ten months, each of 42 days divided into 6 weeks, with a week-long festival at the end of Harvestide, and a week-long festival after Creator’s day, which is at the end of Deepchill… so… 435 days in a year!”

 

                “Wow.  Our world, Earth, has only 365 days a year, and has 12 months with roughly 30 to 31 days each.  Cool.”

 

                “Can you tell me a bit about your world, Geoffrey?”

 

                “Yah, yah, me too!  Me too!”  Tika asked.  “Tell us about your home!”

 

                “Guys?  Gals?”  Rachel called out.  “It’ll have to wait.  Dinner is just about ready, so get ready to eat, okay?”

 

                I nodded, and the four of us started getting ready to eat.  It looked like dinner – and afterwards – was going to be full of much more discussion.  I smiled.  This was kind of fun.  Alyssa was nice, and seeing her with such effeminate features gave me hope for how Rachel would turn out.  Tika was just a ball of energy that reminded me of a 6 year old, and I couldn’t wait to learn more about them.  I grabbed my mess kit and utensils, and went to join everyone for dinner.