The slow pace of the raft made it difficult to believe that traveling by river was faster than walking. Sally had to make a conscious effort not to fall asleep from the warm lassitude, lest her hood fell, revealing her race. Who knows how the villagers steering the raft would react if they realized she was a half-elf? They might throw her overboard.

But maybe it wouldn’t come to that? They had saved the village from an aggressive wolf pack and their children from being crushed to death beneath a fallen building. That should have won them enough credit to forgive choosing to be a half-elf as her race during character creation. Unlike the others who chose human during character creation, and didn’t have to face rampant racism in this world.

Mina, the Barbarian, was looking queasy and standing as still as possible in the middle of the boat. Sally did not know how anyone could get seasick on a raft going this slow. The tall woman had her dark hair pulled back into a ponytail to keep it out of the way and hovered near the railing for whenever she needed to throw up.

Darcy, the Cleric, was checking on Tom, still quite weak and recovering from his injuries. It was thanks to Darcy’s restorative magic and a powerful healing potion he survived being mauled by a dire wolf. Yet, the injuries had taken their toll and Tom would require several days of rest to fully recover. Sally noticed them speaking quietly earlier and considered listening in on their conversation. Being a half-elf had some benefits, such as sharp hearing, but she decided against it. Darcy was likely trying to smooth things over with Tom after Sally’s latest bout of friction with him.

Being around Tom was confusing as he was an NPC, a person born or created in this world, but did not know that he wasn’t real. His life and world was created via the imagination of game developers and writers. On top of that, he was a royal prince they had rescued from a bandit hideout. If that wasn’t complicated enough, he was attracted to her, too. Or at least to the body that Sally inhabited.

The only one that seemed to enjoy the ride was Naomi, who couldn’t sit still to save her life. If she wasn’t pestering the boatmen with her incessant chattering, she was balancing atop the rails or trying to play travel games with a green faced Mina. The only time she wasn’t bouncing across the raft was when she dablled her feet in the water. Sally couldn’t blame her too much as Naomi was only nine years old, despite appearing as a teen.

None of them were who they were in the real world. Mina had been a Korean med student, Darcy had been shorter and needed glasses, and Sally had been overweight and mousy. Now Mina was an Amazonian Barbarian, Darcy was a magic wielding Cleric, and Sally was a beautiful half-elf Rogue. Maybe, when they returned to the real world, they could get their bodies back. The plan was to find other Players in Everguard and hope they had a clue about the Incident, the moment they became stranded in this world, and knew how to get home. They came across another Player, but there was no help to be found there.

Sally shivered at the recollection of the Hunter, the Player Killer, who enjoyed a fantasy world with no consequences and killing NPCS for entertainment. Reports circulated about her heinous acts; caravans littered with arrows and the many dead travelers. The rafters were whispering and watching the dark treelines in trepidation of an attack. It would be safer once they arrived in Everguard, a large port city and trade hub of the continent. They could disappear into the crowds there and the massive numbers of guards and NPCs should deter the Hunter from following them. Hopefully.

“Whatcha thinking about?” Darcy joined Sally where she was leaning against the rail, watching the treeline slowly pass. The trees stood tall, like the shadows of gravestones.

“About Everguard,” Sally sighed as the rippling shadows crawled over her face. “It’s been so important to get there for days, and now it’s making me nervous that we’re going to be there in a few hours.”

“Yeah, me too,” Darcy said, pressing her back against the rail with her arms crossed. The breeze gave her tabard and hair a playful tug as she surveyed the treeline, the bright sunlight making her face glow. “I’ve been there countless times when this was a normal game, so it’s going to be so weird to see it in real life.”

“Then you know the way to the bank?”

“Yeah, it’s at the edge of the wealthier part of the city, where they wall off the poor from the nobles and the wealthy.”

“And the money will be there?”

Darcy shrugged. “If the rules of the System are consistent, then 100,000 gold coins should be in a chest marked Sister Korra in the bank.”

The System, as they had dubbed whatever was keeping them in this world, had a rule that whatever the Players did in-game the day before the Incident, influenced the world. The day before they appeared in this world, Darcy had created a Human Cleric, Sister Korra, and completed quests around Spring Bell Village until she hit level 3, so after the Incident the NPCs recognized Darcy as Sister Korra and everything she did for them. Another significant thing Darcy had done was transfer in-game currency into the game’s banking system to buy weapons and gear later. If the gold was there, then they had a means of supporting themselves in this world.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

And they could pay for Naomi to be cured of the lycanthrope she contracted after being nearly bitten to death by a werewolf while rescuing Mina and Darcy from bandits. They had till tomorrow night to get her to a high level cleric that can remove curses.

“Why is it so expensive to remove a curse?” Sally had asked during the boat trip. “Wouldn’t they want to keep people from turning into werewolves every full moon?”

“That’s a game mechanic,” Darcy replied. “The game developers wanted there to be consequences for werewolf bites without making it permanent. So you dished out 5,000 gold to get yourself cured, but we easily afford it.”

With 100,000 gold, they could buy a house on Webber Street, a part of the city where the middle class lived. Darcy said they would have privacy and not worry about asshole innkeepers anymore. Sally didn’t blame her as the innkeepers they came across were cheapskates or racists.

“What about Tom? Is he going to his uncle’s home after we finish with the bank?” Sally asked, glancing at Tom, who was resting on a chair. He was looking better than yesterday, with a bit more color on his cheeks.

“He can’t just go there. They have guards posted at the gates to keep the lower classes away from the nobles in the Golden Quarter. Since he doesn’t have papers or anything to prove he’s a Prince, they aren’t going to just let him walk in without an invitation from a resident,” Darcy said, shifting on her feet uncomfortably. “He’s going to send a letter to let his uncle know what’s going on and stay with us until he receives an invitation. So until then, could you try to get along with him?”

Sally shot Darcy a hard look. “Fine, I’ll try.”

Darcy returned her look with a cool gaze. “Don’t try. Just do it. I know you’re socially stunted by choice, but don’t piss off someone who could be an ally in this world. And he’s not a bad person if you’d just . . .stop being . . . well, you.”

It took some effort for Sally not to roll her eyes. She heard the same thing all her life from her mother, then from her step-father and Darcy. They were social extroverts, and could never understand why Sally preferred to stay in her room and game. At least, I never have to worry where she is late at night. Sally had overheard her mother say to a friend when she thought Sally wasn’t listening.

“So, moving on,” Sally said, holding up a hand and counting off on her fingers. “We get the money, get a house, get Naomi cured, and Tom writes to his uncle. And then we find other Players?”

“That’s the plan, though I don’t know how we’re going to do that. I’m hoping they’ll stick out somehow, but if they’ve been in this world as long as we have, then they would have learned to blend in to be safe.”

“Let’s get settled in Everguard first before we start looking,” Sally said, wishing for a cigarette even though she had never smoked a day in her life. “How’s the racism in Everguard? Do I need to wear this hood the whole damn time I’m there?”

“You should wear it when we’re around the Golden Quarter. They might call the guard to have you arrested or they’ll take you to the Ditches.”

“The Ditches?” Sally said, not liking the sound of that at all.

“Their version of the ghetto,” Darcy explained. “Where the really poor people and non-humans live. But you should be safe walking around the market areas.”

“What about Webber street? Would I be safe there?” It was both frustrating and frightening to be so concerned about safety in public areas. She didn’t go out much back in the real world, but when she did make excursions to the store, she did so without any fear of prejudice or arrest.

“Well, it’s not exactly middle class,” Darcy said, switching into her lecturing voice. “It’s more like the lower end of the upper class. Think Victorian Age, you know, with servants like cooks and maids . . .”

Sally fixed Darcy with a cold look. “You’re going to pass me off like a servant, aren’t you?”

“Only in public,” Darcy said quickly.

“Why do we need a house on Webber Street, anyway? Why not find some place not so . . .esteemed?” Sally could see herself walking meekly behind Darcy and the others, carrying a basket and wearing a maid uniform. It set her teeth on edge.

“Tom says that Webber Street would be safer,” Darcy said, looking away uneasily.

Sally arched an eyebrow as her gaze drilled into Darcy. “Why would he say that?”

Maybe she should have listened in on Darcy’s conversation with Tom after all. Was he setting them up? She had a terrible premonition of guards arresting and throwing them into a cold dungeon cell.

“Sally, he’s. . .” Darcy said, faltering through hesitation, but then, making her decision, she laid a protective hand on Sally’s shoulder. “He’s worried about you. He doesn’t think the Ditches would be a safe place for you.”

“Why wouldn’t it be safe for me?” Sally said dryly. “Wouldn’t I be with my ‘kind’ there?”

“You’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you,” Darcy sighed, wishing she wasn’t the one to break this news. “Tom says that elven women, especially attractive ones, are sometimes kidnapped and forced to work in brothels or sold to rich men as mistresses. The Ditches have no law enforcement save for the obligatory patrol, but places like the Golden Quarter and Webber Street have enough patrols there to deter kidnappers.”

Sally stared at Darcy in stunned silence. The Cleric released a long breath and laid a hand on Sally’s shoulder. “At first, I thought he was exaggerating, but he’s pretty serious about it. Then I thought about how McRando wanted to sell you somewhere . . .so it might not be a bad idea to play it safe while we’re in Everguard.”

Bowing her head into her hands as if to hide, Sally muttered, “And I bet the Watch don’t bust their asses to find missing half-elves. To think back home being beautiful was supposed to make your life easier. God, if I had only known while making my character . . .”

“It’s going to be okay. We just have to be careful and not draw attention to ourselves.”

“Easier said than done,” Sally said as Naomi took this moment to jump into the river.