After a short walk through the trade town, the shrimp person stopped at the entrance to one of the large buildings on the main road near the center of town, pulled open the thick hide door, and then gestured for her to go inside. The air was filled with a thick pungent smoke and conversations spoken in strange languages. The shrimp person walked inside behind her and then headed to one of the many tables that filled the room.

Anna scurried after it, and when they reached one of the tables, it pulled out a stool made from hide and bone and sat down. She copied the shrimp person and pulled out a stool for herself before climbing up on it. It was clearly made for a person much larger than herself, and her feet dangled several feet off the ground. She kicked them as she usually did while she waited for something to happen while seated.

A moment or so after she was seated, the shrimp person pounded on the thick stone table three times before taking a yellow gem from its gem pouch and placing it in the center of the table.

“What’d you do that for?” she asked.

“They will bring a plate of food for us to share now,” the shrimp person replied.

“What kind of food?” she asked.

“Fresh meat cut into strips,” it replied.

Well, free food is free food, even if it’s not cooked, and it’s not the stuff in the jar. Though, it’s not as if that was actually food for anyone but the shrimp people.

“So, what kind of meat is it?” she asked.

“Whatever the hunters brought back yesterday. Probably pook if I’d have to guess,” it replied.

It’s just like when the fishermen used to bring their catch back and sell them in Fishport! I wish I knew what the word for fish or fishing or anything like that is in shrimp language. Wait, do they even have a word for fishing? I mean, they’re shrimp, so they probably come from a place with water, maybe, probably, fuck, I don’t know.

One of the reptile people came over to the table and scooped up the yellow gem before setting a huge tray full of bloody meat on the table. The meat was dark red, so much so that it was nearly black, and it had several inches of fat attached to it. It had been cut into slices so thick that they were more like steaks at this point.

The shrimp person reached out and took one of the thick slices with its powerful claw and pushed it to its mouthparts where it tore the meat apart with ease and pushed it into its mouth. She took one of the slices from the tray and looked over the glistening flesh for a moment before taking a bite. The meat was soft though chewy, but she didn’t mind because it was rather tasty compared to everything else she’d been eating since she woke up in the strange place.

This stuff would be sooooo good if I roasted it over a fire and sprinkled some salt and dragon pepper over it. Oh, and butter, can’t forget the butter. Actually, as fatty as this is I probably don’t need the butter. Best thing to do would be to heat up some of the fat in the pan first so the meat doesn’t stick though. I wonder if there are any pooks on the other side of the sea? Wait, is this pook meat?

“So, what kind of meat is this?” she asked.

“Ernolo lizard I believe, very fresh too,” the shrimp person replied.

“What do they look like?” she asked.

“A large six-legged lizard covered in thick armored scales,” it replied.

“So, like a big version of the rainbow lizards I eat but with armor?” she asked.

“No, fatter than that, and their lower jaw doesn’t split open,” it replied.

She nodded and took another piece of meat.

“So, you’re going to be heading back in a few days?” she asked.

“Yes,” it replied.

“How long will it take to get home?” she asked.

“More than a year,” it replied.

“Is it worth it?” she asked.

“What do you mean?” it asked.

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“Whatever you’re trading for. Is it worth being away from home for so long?” she asked.

“That’s an odd question to ask a caravan master,” it replied.

“I know, it’s just, well, a few years away from your family is a long time,” she said.

“It can be, but I enjoy the open road and the feeling of a good deal, so it’s not bad for me,” it replied.

“Yeah,” she said.

So, what’s next? I could go home, but why? There’s a whole world out there for me to see, and no one will get hurt if I do it alone, so why not go and see it? All my old friends will be alive for at least another twenty years, and they’re so rich they don’t have to work anymore, so I’ll be able to find out why they left me out there, even if I spend the next twenty years exploring the world.

She munched away at the meal as she planned everything out before stopping, realizing that she was eating the shrimp person’s dinner.

“Uh, sorry,” she said.

“Don’t be. I got enough for three people,” it replied.

She took another piece and started to eat it.

You know, all that time I spent with beast people got me used to eating raw meat, though they seasoned it.

She ate a few more pieces and then licked her fingers clean. The shrimp person paused for a moment then took a small pouch from one of its many belt pouches and handed it to her. She took the pouch and looked inside to see that it was filled with the colorful gemstones that were used as currency in this part of the world.

“What’s this for?” she asked.

“You helped out, so you get paid,” the shrimp person replied.

“Oh, right,” she said.

“The yellow gems are worth a meal and a place to stay. The blue gem is worth thirty yellow gems. There are also red ones and green ones. The red ones are worth thirty blue gems, and the green ones are worth thirty red ones,” it replied.

“Thanks,” she said.

“You are welcome,” it replied.

She put the gem pouch in her satchel and then went back to eating. They shared a meal together before she slid off the stool and held out her hand.

“My people say goodbye to friends by shaking hands,” she said.

“I don’t have a hand,” the shrimp person replied.

“That doesn’t matter,” she said.

The shrimp person reached out its claw, and she took it and gave it a shake.

“Maybe I’ll see you again on the road,” she said.

“That would be pleasant,” the shrimp person replied.

She walked out of the inn and turned to head deeper into the town.

Okay, I know enough of the trade sign that if I go slow, I can probably get by, but I’d really like to learn the trade language. Too bad the shrimps couldn’t teach me, but they couldn’t speak it, so that wasn’t going to happen.

As she walked along, she could feel the eyes on her. She was used to this. She was strange looking, even in human towns, but it was a little unnerving, even for her, after so much time alone and with the shrimp people who didn’t seem to stare at anything.

It’s got to be the stalk eyes. They just kind of swivel them around, and there’s no telling what they were looking at.

When she reached the center of town, she found a crossroads and an open square with various open-front buildings that had a large hide covering the opening. She watched as people entered and exited the buildings and noticed that they were carrying things with them when they left.

Must be the market. I wonder what kind of weird shit they sell here?

She walked over to one of the shops at random and pushed her way past the hide.

Inside was dimly lit and filled with people, the tall thin reptile people that made up the vast majority of the population of this trade town. The shop had a pungent smell in the air, and the walls were lined with shelves that had various rocks and clay pots with symbols scratched beneath them. Though she understood what the symbols meant, it was clear to her what this shop was.

So, they have apothecaries on the other side of the world too!

She walked around the shop sniffing the various things in the jars and looking at the rocks and other things that were placed on the shelves, at the ones she could see. She was very short compared to the rest of the people in the room.

At least their parts are on the inside. Otherwise, this would get kind of weird.

She noticed that the owner of the shop was eyeing her, and considering the size of their eyes, that was a serious thing, so she left, walking back onto the street and heading to the next shop.

She poked around, looking at this and that until she found a place that just so happened to be selling a huge map. It was a nice map, fit for a royal army, so they had decided to display said map safety on the back wall. The owner of the shop sat in a chair next to a table near the map, looking at her suspiciously as she approached. She simply looked it over, noticing how detailed it was for a moment before turning away and looking at the other goods in the shop.

I think I can work out whatever their distance measurements are by that map, and I think I’ve been walking for over two thousand miles in the last half of a year. Fuck me in the ass with a steel rod! I really am on the other side of the world now!!!

She walked out of the shop and stopped on the road, looking in each direction for a moment.

I could go back, that map showed all the way to the coast, or I could head to the city on that primitive map the red people gave me, or further south where what might be a huge empire on the other side of something like a forest is.

She thought about it for a moment before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

“South, I’ll go south,” she said in common.

A few passersby looked at her oddly, but she paid them no mind. She turned and started to walk on the road south once more, heading out of the city and back into the rough wastelands. Only this time, there were people of all shapes and sizes on the road with her.

After spending a few hours walking, a feathered person who looked like both a reptile and a bird rode up next to her, driving one of the strangest wagons she’d ever seen. It made a screeching sound at her and patted the seat next to it.

Ah, what the fuck! Why not?!

She walked over to the wagon and hopped on, sitting next to the driver. She looked down the long dusty road and smiled.

I guess I’m on my own kind of adventure now!