“Ren,” Sara’s voice came through my door, “do you want to come to the market with me?” She paused for me to speak, but I couldn't even muster the energy to reply. “Well, I’m going to leave in ten minutes if you want to join me.”

     I heard the ladder creak as she climbed back down. I reached over and tapped my band, bringing up the menu.

 

     I should probably go… I kinda need some new clothes. I reluctantly pull myself out of bed and throw on my clothes. They smelled slightly, but it is what it is. God, I hate having facial hair, it’s so itchy. Though I don't really have the energy to shave it off. I walked down the stairs where she was sitting at a table waiting for me.

     “So you decide to come?”

     “I suppose,” I said flatly. 

     “Hey mom, me and Ren are going to the market. Be back later,” she said cheerily. 

     Ren followed Sara out of the tavern, dragging his feet as she waited at the bottom of the stairs for him. She watched him, a patient smile on her face as she watched him descend.

     “I’m glad you decided to come,” she smiled, she just gave a grunt in response. “I know it's hard to deal with. And I want you to know that I’m here for you. If you ever need to talk, I promise, I’ll listen.”

     “So did your family end up here with you?” he deflected, causing her smile to falter.

     “When we come here, our physical age stays the same. How old do you think I am?” she said, deflecting with a question of her own.

     “About sixteen,” he said dryly.

     “What do you think happens to children and weak individuals?”

     “They die?”

     “You would think, but not necessarily. That would be cruel, and though the gods are using us as entertainment, they aren't unnecessarily cruel,” she said softly. “No, children are taken to an orphanage. And those too weak to fight can work, like you.”

     “So you ended up at the orphanage?

     “Yes, I stayed there for forty years before being adopted.”

     “That's rough. I can't imagine being stuck as an eight-year-old forever and having to live in an orphanage.”

     “I don't know how it is from your world, but in mine younger children are adopted before older ones. Everyone here is fighting for a semblance of normalcy. Mom eventually adopted me to help with her tavern, but that doesn’t stop her from treating me like her real daughter.”

     A silence fell between them. As they meandered down the street. Passing by a wide variety of people, he saw people of all different races. Various forms of Beast-kin, elves, dwarves, humans, reptile-kin, all mingling together, talking, heading off to somewhere, or simply bartering.

     “Most of us here are trying to survive. Many people climb the tower, but many more of us stay behind and run the services necessary for this all to work. People like my mother are trying to just survive the thousand years until they reincarnate. Others like Palamon love it here and have decided to forego.”

     “Who would want to stay here?” he said, gesturing around him.

     “For some people, this is an improvement on their previous lives. I won’t mention who, but I know someone who used to be a slave to a master who would regularly abuse them. And for others they fear the unknown, while this world isn't without its troubles. It's familiar to most of us by now. I know it’s hard, but you need to try and see the positives.”

     “Who could possibly watch their soulmate die in front of their eyes, and ever see anything as positive!?” he cried out, drawing stares from several people.

     “I’m sorry…” she said meekly.

     “No, it’s fine, I shouldn’t have snapped. Let’s just,” he sighed before continuing. “Can we just go, I just want to get some more clothes, then go back to my room.”

     “Okay…” she trailed off softly.

 

*****

 

     After Renatus’ outburst, a silence fell between the pair. He could tell she was wanted to talk to him, but in the end she respected his wish for privacy. Just as the silence began to uncomfortably drag on, they arrived at the market square.

     “We’re at the clothing store,” she pointed.

     “Thanks,”  he muttered tiredly.

     Before she could say anything else, he made his way inside. The door opened with a jingling of bells. The inside was well lit, an assortment of clothes lined various shelves. Dotted around the room were mannequins wearing some of what he assumed were their more expensive clothes. There were several others in the store, and after a casual glance they paid him no mind. 

     “Welcome to Barneby’s if you need assistance I’ll be with you in a moment,” hollered a small boy from the behind the counter. The boy was assisting someone with their measurements. His body moved in ways Renatus would have assumed were impossible. His movements were too fluid. Carried too much grace and power. 

     He pulled his attention away from the odd child and looked through a shelf of shirts, though they were a far cry from what he knew. They seemed like an odd cross between stuff he had seen in video games and ones he had worn in real life. They had an old-fashioned look to them, but the fabric they were made from was soft and flexible. 

     “Hello, sorry. I was busy with another customer. May I be of assistance?” asked the boy from beside Renatus. The boy's unexpected arrival startled Renatus as he took a step backwards. The customer he was helping just now reached the door, giving her thanks and leaving.

     “Um yea… so I was looking for some clothes,” he hesitated. “But like, I don’t know what size I wear here.”

     “Sure thing, let's get your measurements then? If you’ll follow me, please,” he requested, leading Renatus, who watched the boy with intense scrutiny, to the back. The small child walked with steps there were too quiet, too precise. As if every motion was executed without any hint of wasted effort. The boy seemed to glide with an ethereal grace. “New to the city?” the boy casually asked.

     “Yea…” he hesitated.

     “No need to be so hesitant, I promise I won't bite,” he joked, smiling at the uneasy Renatus. “Not hard at least,” he added with a laugh.

     “How did you know?” he asked.

     “Your demeanor, mostly,” he sighed. “The way you carry yourself, I mean.”

     “What does that mean?” he asked as the boy directed him to stand on the same pedestal he saw the woman on. 

     “It's just the way things work here, you’ve seen your stats, I assume? The longer you stay here generally the higher your stats become,” he explained as he took Renatus’ measurements. His hands moving faster than the eye could follow. “And higher stats mean more power.”

     “Just like a video game,” he mumbled.

     “You aren't the first to say that. Though, she was more excited,” he mentioned offhandedly. “Alright, here’s your sizes.”

     Renatus looked at the piece of paper, there were two words written on them, next to a depiction of a body. Velnat next to a shirt, and Talrot next to some pants. “Thanks,” he muttered before walking from behind the counter.

     “No problem, just bring what you find up here, and I’ll check you out,” he smiled.

     Renatus went back to the shelves and picked out a pair of pants, they looked like a weird cross between jeans and khakis, the color selection was pretty plain, browns, greens, and reds were most common. He settled on a brown pair, and after a moment he located one in his size before turning his attention to the shirts.

     After finding two he liked, one white and one green, he carried the clothes up to the counter.

     “Find everything you were looking for?” the boy asked pleasantly. 

     “Yes,” he answered listlessly. 

     “Excellent,” the boy exclaimed, despite his customer's sullen attitude. “The total will be two hundred and fifty sols.”

     He shuddered, these clothes cost more than he made in a week. Regretfully, he tapped his band. Three silver coins appeared in his palm as he willed the money out. He hesitantly handed over the coins before the boy thanked him and wished him a good day.

     Renatus closed the door behind him, the bell jingling in the process. He wasn't sure where he was to meet Sara at. They hadn’t set up a meeting point, so he just wandered around. The market was busy, more busy than anything he had ever seen. People stood in front of stalls buying and selling things.

     Not having anything else to do, he decided to people watch. Despite the oddity of the different races, everything felt so… normal. Here he was, technically dead, sent off to a different world. Full of interesting, wonderful, and terrifying things, and all he could think about it how much he missed his girlfriend. 

     “I just want to go back home,” he muttered, his body seemed to collapse in on itself.

     “Ah, there you are,” Sara cried out, she ran over to the downtrodden boy. Carrying a bag that was nearly as big as he was. “Find something you liked?” she queried, he simply nodded in response. “Let's get back, then,” she said, her cheery attitude dropping.

 

*****

 

     “I'm telling you, watching that woman fight is like seeing a goddess dealing diving wrath,” cried a man, his beer sloshing as he thumped the table loudly. “There we were, fighting some Ratha. Nothing too difficult, then from the woods came a god's damned ogre. Thing was taller than this building,” he paused to down the rest of his drink before demanding another.

     “Yes and…?” One of his companions asked. 

     “And what?” the man asked offhandedly. 

     “You were telling us about this goddess of yours?”

     “Right…” he smiled drunkenly. “So this thing comes lumbering out of the forest, knocking down the trees, nearly crushed me it did,” the man continued, becoming increasingly incoherent. “We thought it was coming to fight us, but the thing ran right past. Then from the darkness she came, her red hair aflame as she proceeded to cut the thing into mince meat.”

     “Oh yea? And what did she do then?” the other asked incredulously. 

     "She looked at the thing with disgust, and then complained it didn't put up a better fight,” he replied. 

     “Here you go gentlemen,” Renatus said, setting down a fresh round of beers before bowing and heading back to the counter. “Do you know who they are talking about?” he asked, pointing to the rowdy group.

     “Probably Ariel the lion,” Sara replied, not looking at the boy. From the kitchen where she was preparing a dish.

     “Who's that?” he asked, the name sounding familiar. 

     “She's one of the ones climbing the tower, she appeared just over four months ago. Everyone believes she will be the next one to complete the tower,” Sara said, turning and placing the dish she made down, “Table thirteen.” 

     He took the food to a table where a lone man was sitting. He wore a veil that obscured his face as he simply observed the goings-on.

     “Here you go, sir,” he murmured, setting the plate of food down. “Please let me know if you need anything else.” After waiting a moment, he bowed and returned. 

     “What do you think of this Lion?” he asked, resuming the earlier conversation. 

     “I think she’s more of a battle junkie than Palamon,” she sighed, before turning back to her work.

     His thoughts once again drifted to his girlfriend, as they always had. Sara watched the life drain from the boy with a sigh.