Dinner was kind of a smorgasbord that night – there was a healthy serving of BBQ chicken, beef stew, instant mashed potatoes, some boiled carrots and peas and parsnips, some summer sausage and cheese, and several handfuls of raisins, along with a small number of cookies, served up with sides of hot chocolate, coffee, and tea – and Rachel had brought some sugar free juice crystals to make water into fruit juice like kool-aid. There was plenty for everyone.

“This juice tastes wonderful!” Alyssa remarked. “What fruit is it from, and how did that powder come to taste like this?”

“Heh. It’s a mixture of flavor crystals and sugar substitutes – like food alchemy, I guess – that make water taste like fruit juice. It works best with water – I wouldn’t mix it with anything else, actually or it would taste awful.” Jeff replied. “A lot of our food is like that – we take the flavors of fresh foods, and distil them into a power via what you would call food alchemy, and turn them into portable powders you just add water to. It’s a way of preserving food on the shelf for a long time, or a way to travel with a lot of food, but have it be really light weight.”

“This food alchemy sounds amazing. Do you have spellcasters? Sorcerers?”

“Some people say we used to.” Jeff replied. “A long time ago, people believed in magic, and sorcerers – but in the last five hundred years or so, most people started to believe that magic was make believe and that sorcery and magic didn’t exist. A lot of the reason for that was the rise of our sciences… What you might call alchemy and artificing.”

“Aye, we have alchemists, and artificers as well – but no one would be foolish enough to believe magic wasn’t real, nor believe that people couldn’t master how to wield it. I take it is not the same in your world?”

“No. For whatever reason, either our magic went away, or when the sorcerers died out without apprentices, we didn’t have anyone left who knew how to wield it. Because of that, people stopped believing in it. Instead they believed in the power of alchemy and artificing.” I said.

“Yeah.” Rachel replied. “And we took both to an entirely different level. We developed guns – you said you had guns here, right?”

“Aye. They are very expensive and fire a bullet propelled by a black powder.” Alyssa replied.

“Well the guns of our world use a smokeless black power that has ten times the strength of your black powder, that can propel bullets faster, and makes them far more deadly. They also can fire faster – they don’t need to reload between shots, and some of our rifles can fire hundreds of shots a minute. They are devastating weapons of war.”

“Oh, gods! That sounds horrible! How many deaths have they caused?”

Rachel shook her head. “Literally millions. No one really knows. We’ve developed weapons that can destroy an entire city and kill every living thing in it, with the push of a button. We have made weapons so deadly that no one ever dares use them, for fear of destroying our world.”

“That’s madness! Why would you build such things?” Alyssa replied, shocked.

“At first it was to stop a bad war from becoming worse – but then it was because the bad guys had them – and if we didn’t have them too, they might be able to kill us – so if we had them – and they had them, then no one would ever fight, because if they did, the world would end. It was called mutually assured destruction.” Rachel sighed. “I didn’t say it made sense, and I didn’t say you’d like it. Our world had some good things going for it too. We had developed artifices to help with farming, and food alchemy to help crops grow in places like deserts where they normally would die. The world had so much food that no one ever had to go hungry again – but millions of people did because of the greed of the others. Our world was ruled by greed, in many ways, I think.”

“It’s as if their world belonged to Hrask.” Tika whispered. “It sounds like I wouldn’t like your home very much.”

“There’s more, but I think we’ll save it for later. There is lots of good stuff – but a lot of it can be overshadowed by the bad stuff. I guess, in some ways there is a lot of bad stuff. I never really thought about it before – it’s just the way things were.”

“There’s lots of bad stuff that happens here too.” Tika said. “But there’s good stuff too, like you said. Maybe our worlds are too different for us to really understand?”

“Maybe.” Rachel said, smiling.

“Doesn’t mean we won’t try and explain it for you as we travel.” Jeff replied. “How do you explain an entire world in a single conversation? It’s not really possible.”

“True.” Alyssa replied. “I noticed you were favoring your leg. Are you hurt?”

“I got bitten by a giant spider earlier, and my leg got a touch of poison – it went numb, but its since gotten better. It’s just stiff and sore.”

“Would you like me to look at the wound? I have some medicines that might help.”

“Sure – maybe in the morning, when we can see better.” Jeff agreed.

“If you wish. I was worried it might fester overnight.” Alyssa replied.

“Jeff, I wouldn’t mess around with it. It’s better to get it checked.” Rachel commented.

“Okay. Let’s go over to the tent, and preserve some of my privacy.” I got up, and motioned for Alyssa to follow. Once at the tent, I sat down, and removed my boots and socks, and then my pants. I looked a bit green when I saw the wound – it was purplish black and weeping pus, and it didn’t look good.

“That might explain why I’m not feeling so good…” I said to no one in particular.

“Hrm… it’s too dark in here.” Alyssa muttered, and held up her hand – and a shining mote of light as bright as a light bulb appeared from nowhere, shining down with white light on the wound. “That’s better.”

“You… You have magic?” I asked.

“Yes… I’m a novice sorcerer, who specializes in Sight magic. I can make light, illusions and so forth.”

“Cool!”

“What? I expected you to be feverish?” She muttered, feeling my forehead.

“No… Cool is a word from home that means ‘cold’, but it also means ‘very good’ when used the way I did.”

“So you like that I can do magic?” She asked, smiling.

“Yeah. Rachel and I were wondering if we could learn it while we were here, actually. She has more talent for it than I do, but still.”

“Well, if you hold still, and let me tend this wound, I will tell you and Rachel about magic tomorrow morning. I need to clean this wound, and then pack and seal the wound. I’ll need some caulter fronds for a poultice, and maybe some wensin root.” She looked through her bag of medicinal herbs and quickly pulled out the ones she needed, along with a cloth and a bottle of liquid. “I will need to touch your leg where you were bitten. Can you keep your leg still, Geoffrey?”

“Yes… I will.”

“Good. This may sting.”

Alyssa took the bottle of liquid and poured some on the cloth, and began to gently rub the wound, squeezing it gently to get the pus and other stuff out of it. Some blood came out, and more pus, and eventually the wound seemed clean. Whatever the stuff was she put on the cloth stung like hell – like it was antiseptic, which it may have been for all I knew. I hissed in pain as it settled into the wound.

“Come on,” She chided me. “A big young man like yourself hissing over a little sting? Nettlewort isn’t that hurtful.”

“I guess not.” I said, trying to save face. “I was more surprised by it than anything else.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone, Milord.” She had that smile on her face again.

“I don’t think I’m a lord… I really don’t.”

“We shall see, Geoffrey. Alright, the wound is clean, but I need to make a poultice and some ointment to put in the wound. It will take but a moment. Can you lay still?”

“I won’t go anywhere.” I promised.

“Aye. I suppose I can say I was the first lady to see you without your pants on in this world.” She said, smirking.

I blushed. Was she flirting? “I… I guess so, Alyssa.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I would need to figure that out.

Alyssa brought out a mortar and pestle, and placed some green leafy fronds in it, along with some roots she cut into small pieces, and began grinding them together. A few minutes later, she had produced a greenish paste that smelled of mint and celery of all things.

“I’ll place some of this ointment on your wound, then bandage it up for the night. I’ll need to check it in the morning once more – and if I need to repack it, I will. Otherwise, you should be fine.”

“Okay, then do what you have to do.” I suggested, blushing a little.

Alyssa gently put some of the ointment in and around the wound cavity, and then bandaged my leg with clean linen wrappings. In a few more moments she was done.

“I think we are done, Geoffrey.” She smiled. “I shall leave you to put your pants back on, if you wish.”

“Yes, please. And thank you, by the way. I appreciate your help.”

“It was my pleasure.” She stood up, and left the tent, after looking me over one more time.

Was she checking me out? Holy shit! I sat there, stunned for a few moments, until I realized I was still sitting there like an idiot with no pants on. I blushed again, and pulled my pants on, and socks and boots, and rejoined my new friends at the fire.

“Everything okay, Jeff?” Rachel asked as I sat down.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.”

“Good. I was just telling Tika about computers and the internet.”

“And I was wondering how you can have all that knowledge and be so stupid at the same time!” Tika replied. “Rachel told me your people poisoned their planet for money, and now the planet is dying. That’s doesn’t make any sense at all! Where will you live when the air is bad and it’s super hot and all the ice caps melt?”

“Hey, I understand it’s a problem, but a lot of our people think ‘it’s not that bad’ or ‘it won’t get as bad as they say.’ They’re being shortsighted, and foolish.”

“I agree. Sorry, but I think Mercia makes more sense.” Tika replied.

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“I agree.” Rachel said. “I like it here already. It feels like home.”

“I felt that too, Rache. As soon as we left the cave and walked out onto that ledge, I could feel it. It felt like home.” I said.

“Maybe you were meant to be here?” Alyssa offered. “Maybe this is the home of your heart, if not of your birth?”

“I don’t know. Maybe.” I didn’t want to think about that too much yet. The idea of never seeing mom and dad again didn’t sit well with me. I had a lot of thinking to do – about going home or not, and about Rachel and Alyssa and their Transness and all that stuff. It was a big confusing mélange.

We sat there quietly for a bit, watching the fire.

Eventually, I broke the silence. “Gals, I need to go lay down. I’m pretty wiped out, and I’m sure dawn comes early.”

“I should get some sleep too.” Rachel muttered. “Do you two have a tent?”

“Yes. I’ll go set it up. There’s enough moonlight to see by.” Alyssa got up and began setting up a small one person tent – quite large enough for her and Tika. It was made of canvas and wooden poles, and it looked rather heavy compared to our tent.

“Do you want a hand?” Rachel asked.

“Sure – thank you!”

“I’ll see you shortly, Rache.” I called out, as I headed to the tent. I needed time to think. I idly noted the little green moon was finally up and moving across the sky… Alyssa and Tika had said it crossed the night sky two or three times each night. Weird. I headed into the tent, and stripped down to my underwear, carefully avoiding the bandage on my leg. I honestly didn’t know what was in that medicine, but it felt like it was working – the muscle cramps I had been having for hours had diminished greatly, and the fever I was beginning to feel, felt like it was receding too. I needed to thank Alyssa in the morning.

I crawled into my sleeping bag, the bright light of the spell Alyssa had cast still shining. I laid back and tried to rest, and think. I knew I had been calling Rachel by her chosen name, but I hadn’t totally thought of her as a girl – and I knew it was wrong, but I couldn’t help it. She still looked like the guy I’d always known as David. She was still my best friend, but now she was something else too, and I was having a hard time figuring it out. Alyssa, on the other hand, looked a lot more feminine, and I could see how she might turn out in a few months when the priests cast their spell. It was a lot easier to imagine her as a woman than Rachel, and I kind of felt like a shit for admitting that to myself. I felt like I was letting Rachel down, but I couldn’t just reprogram my eyes to see a girl when they saw a boy. I knew I needed to change something – whether it was the way I thought about them both, or whether it was how I understood what it meant to be a man and a woman – but I didn’t know how. In the end, I didn’t know what to do, so I just left it alone, and tried to rest. Maybe time would sort it out?

Rachel appeared at the door of the tent, and came in. “Hey Jeff. They’re getting bunked down for the night. I’d thought I’d do the same. I put the fire out and buried the coals.”

“Good idea, Rache. You have a good first day?”

“As scary as it was at times, yeah I did. Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah – my leg will be fine. Did Alyssa tell you she was a sorcerer?”

“I kinda figured it out when I saw the light spell in the tent. Tika told me she can use magic too – but she knows plant magic instead of sight magic, which is what Alyssa knows.”

“Cool. I’d like to learn some magic.”

“Maybe you will. I’d like to, too.” While talking, she took off her boots and pants and shirt, and crawled into her sleeping bag.

“Did you get to try that hormone tea?” I asked.

“Oh, shit, no! I guess we forgot? I’ll ask tomorrow.”

“Okay, just reminding you.”

We lay there, trying to sleep with the lights on. “Alyssa!” I called out. “Can you turn the light off?”

“Oh, sorry!” she replied, and seconds later, the light vanished. “Is that better?”

“Yes, much! Thank you.”

“It was no trouble. Good night Geoffrey, Rachel.”

“Good night.” I called out.

The tent was much more comfortably dark, and as I lay there, trying to get comfortable, I could tell Rachel was having trouble getting to sleep as well.

“Anything you want to talk about, Rache?”

“I don’t know. A million things and nothing? I don’t know how to put what I’m feeling into words.”

“Same here.”

“Do you think… someone like me could eventually find someone who could love them?”

“Yeah. It happens all the time back home, so why not here. Especially here. I’ll bet you’ll be a good mom someday, and have lots of kids.”

When Rachel replied, her voice was hoarse with emotion. “Thanks, Jeff. You’re the best.”

“You keep telling me that, but I keep not seeing it. Just being a best friend, Rache. Good night.”

“Good night, dorkus. Sleep well.”

“You too, dorkette.”

As we lay there a little longer, I wondered what Rachel would look like when she was changed into a girl… maybe like her mom? I tried to picture her as a girl in my mind, but before I could, I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

I woke to the sound of crackling fire, and Rachel shifting in the tent next to me. “Urghn.” I groaned. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, Jeff.” Rachel replied. I looked over and she was getting dressed – her pants and shirt already on, and her tying up her boot laces.

“Been up long?”

“Maybe ten minutes. I ran out to go to the bathroom, then came back to get dressed. That’s it.”

“Gotcha.” I groaned again. My back was a bit sore from sleeping on the ground, but I figured I’d better get used to it PDQ – ‘pretty damn quick’ in my mom and dad’s lexicon. I got up, and realized nature was calling me as well, so I pulled on my pants and shirt scrambled out of the tent to go do my business.

When I got back, Rachel was over at the fire, talking with Alyssa and Tika, who looked like they rose before us. Knowing Tika and her hyper energy she’d been up for a while. The fire was built up, and it looked like they were roasting potatoes on some spits – probably as part of breakfast.

Alyssa called out to me as I went to the tent… “Geoffrey! Please, don’t get fully dressed! I need to check your wound before you do.”

“Um… Okay, I’ll wait in the tent.”

“I’ll be there shortly.” Shortly after I thought I heard her whisper “…He’s cute when he blushes.”

I blushed harder, hearing that, and just waited. Maybe she was flirting? I took my pants off – and waited. A few moments later, Alyssa arrived to check my wound. She took of the bandage gentle, and washed out the wound again – this time I didn’t yelp, earning a smile from her.

“Your wound looks clean, and the infection is down. I think if I treat it one more time, you should be able to remove the bandages by tonight.”

“That’s great!”

“Yes, it is.” She replied, smiling. “Now let’s get you re-bandaged.” She reapplied some of the herbal mixture, and wrapped my wound again, and I was good to go. My leg felt a lot better, too.

“Thank you, Alyssa.”

“You’re welcome. Now you should come joins us for breakfast. If we’re to get back to town today, we have a long way to walk. Otherwise we’ll be spending another night outside.”

“Alright. I’ll be out as soon as I’m wearing pants.”

“As you wish.” She replied, smirking. “I shall see you soon, milord.”

“I’m not a lord yet!” I called out, laughing.

“Yet.” She said, jokingly, and went to the fire.

I pondered that comment for a moment. Could I be a lord? What did being a lord entail? There were probably perks – but probably downsides and responsibilities too. I shook my head – not bloody likely to happen. I couldn’t imagine a scenario where I became a lord, unless their King recognized me formally. Fat chance of that happening! I snorted, and joined my friends at the fire.

At the fire, some water was boiling for coffee or tea, another pot to rehydrate another meal from our rations, and Alyssa was cooking some eggs – wherever she or Tika had found them – in a frying pan next to some bacon. It smelled great. In another pan, the baked potatoes sat, ready to crisp with some hot oil. It looked to be a really good feast!

While I was getting ready for breakfast, I set aside my little tubes of chocolate hazelnut spread and my peanut butter for Tika to have later. “So I take it, once we’re done breakfast we’ll pack up camp and head down off the mountain?”

“Yes, unless there is anything keeping you here?”

“I was thinking maybe we should check the building, to see if anything valuable still is inside it.” Rachel mentioned. “If we’re going to be adventurers, we should act like it.”

“Urgh. I was hoping you were joking yesterday.” I replied. “Okay – we’ll pack up camp and then search the building, and then head to Alyssa and Tika’s home… And if I remember correctly, one of you, or both of you were going to explain how magic works?”

“I’ll do my best.” Alyssa replied. “I’m not a skilled practitioner yet. I know the basics, and the theory – but I have yet to become a journeyman in my Words.”

“Words?” Rachel asked.

“Yes… I promise I will explain later.”

“Okay.”

We sat and ate breakfast, and Tika insisted on trying some coffee. I looked worried, but Rachel had a ‘go for it’ look, and so I poured her a tiny cup. A few minutes later, she was buzzing, and even more hyper than before.

“Maybe we switch to decaf?” I joked.

“Ttthiiisss isss awweessommme” Tika buzzed as she ran around. “Eeevvrryy Ttthiinngg iisss sooooo sslloooww.”

Rachel took one look at Tika and nodded. “Definitely decaf.”

“Is Tika going to be alright?” Alyssa asked us, worriedly.

“She’ll be fine. In about 30 minutes to an hour, she’ll crash and need a rest. We can carry her if it comes down to it.” I replied.

“Alright then. Has this happened to you before?”

“Yes, but on a lesser scale. It seems to affect her more than it does us.”

“Maybe she should avoid it from now on?”

“I think that might be for the best.”

Alyssa handed a small tin cup of blackish tea to Rachel. “Here, Rachel. This is the tea you wanted. You might want to add some honey or sugar. It can be rather bitter.”

Rachel looked very grateful as she took the mug. “Thank you, Alyssa. I’ll pay you back for the tea, I promise.”

“Nonsense. It’s very cheap.” Alyssa replied. “It’s no trouble.”

Rachel took a sip and grimaced. “It is bitter!”

“I did warn you!” Alyssa laughed.

Rachel emptied a packet of honey into the tea, and sipped again – this time it seemed to go down with less effort. She soon finished her cup. “One cup down… Two more years to go.” She joked.

“Everything has its beginning – and an ending.” Alyssa agreed. “I hope you find happiness here.”

“I hope to as well.” Rachel replied, smiling.

At that point, their quiet moment was disrupted by a high pitched cry! “Hhheeeeyyy lllooookkk! I cccaaannn ffffllly!” Tika somehow had got to the top of a tall pine tree – or something that looked a lot like a pine tree – and was about to jump off!

Before I could react, Rachel was on her feet, and shouting. “No! Don’t jump!”

Tika jumped – and she squealed with glee as she leapt a good half dozen feet, then glided around at incredibly fast speeds, until she circled around Rachel, and landed on the ground in front of her, giggling! “That was fun fun fun!” She gasped. “I need to do it again!”

“Tika!” Alyssa called out. “Maybe for now you should come and sit down with me, okay?”

“Huh? Why?” Tika whined.

“This is one of those could and should moments your mom keeps telling you about.”

“Oh pooh! Fine!” Tika grumbled, but it was plain she was still in a hyper mood, and went to sit with Alyssa.

“Could and should?” I asked.

Tika sighed. “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.”

I nodded. It sounded like good advice. We finished breakfast, eating the last of the scraps, and put out the fire.

“If you’d like, I’ll pack up the tent if you clean the mess kits and pots?” I offered.

“Sure. Give me the canteens and I’ll fill them too.” Rachel replied. I handed her my canteen.

“When you’re done, could I get some help packing my tent, if I still need it, Geoffrey?” Alyssa asked.

“Sure.”

Rachel shook her head, and walked off with the dishes and canteens.

We broke camp silently, and I quickly packed up our tent, and got our packs ready. They were getting marginally lighter, which was good. Once that was done, I went over to see if Alyssa needed much help. It looked like she was working on it, but was struggling a bit.

“Need some help?”

“Aye. Ever since I’ve been taking the tea, my strength isn’t what it used to be. I shouldn’t be surprised. Women just aren’t as strong as men, after all. Still, it’s a little frustrating. Could you help me roll it up tight so it will fit in this canvas sack?”

“Sure.”

“So Tika is a flying squirrel?” I asked, while setting down to help roll up the tent.

“Yes. Some of her people are blessed with the ability to fly – and some are not. Most Reechi are excellent climbers, trackers and hunters, but maybe one in ten or one in twenty can glide like Tika. She came to the mountains with me so she could jump off a cliff and take a very long glide down. She’ll probably do that as we leave.”

“So she’s like a Reechi base jumper?”

“I don’t know what a base jumper is, Geoffrey.”

“A thrill seeker? Someone who pushes the boundaries of what they can do, and loves jumping from high places.”

Alyssa smiled. “Yes, that would be Tika.”

“Oh dear gods. And we gave her coffee.” By this time we managed to get the tent rolled tight enough to fit in her canvas bag, and she lashed it to her pack.

“Thank you, Geoff. I really appreciated your help.” She said, and before I could react, she kissed me quickly on the cheek.

“Umm… You’re welcome.” I replied, dumbfounded. To be honest I didn’t know how to react. Was I kissed by a guy or a girl just now? Fuck it, I was kissed by Alyssa. Whether she was a guy or a girl was irrelevant. She wanted to be a girl, so I would try to act like she was a girl, until I worked through my problem. “I should go get my pack ready.”

“Aye, I should too.” Alyssa blushed a bit, and turned to get her pack organized.

Rachel returned shortly thereafter, and we packed up our gear. “Alyssa seems to like you.” She commented, but it came off more as a question.

“I don’t know. Maybe.” I was beginning to wonder if she did, honestly.

“Right. Your feet are wet, dude.”

“Huh?”

“Because you’re in da Nile. Denial? Nevermind. What do you think of her?”

“I think she’s a nice person. I like her and Tika, and I think if the tea can do for you what it did for her, you’re going to look great in a few months. I don’t know what you mean, otherwise.”

“Would you date her?” She asked.

“I… I don’t know. I’m not sure. Why?”

Rachel just scowled. “No reason. I guess I’m just an idiot.”

“You’re not an idiot! What’s going on?”

“Nothing! Come on, we’ve got that building to search.”

I sighed. I don’t know what I said to upset Rachel, but I knew enough to keep my mouth shut. She said ‘nothing!’ like only a woman can, and even I knew it meant ‘something!’ I grabbed my pack. Maybe if she cooled down, she would tell me? I headed after her… we did have the building to search after all.

I wondered what we would find.