“Be that as it may, I guess we could use another hand to pack especially seeing as you’ll probably be needing a ride out of the danger zone,” The elderly woman said. “My name’s Tisha Meadows. Most just call me Tish. The guy on my right is Calvin and the one on my left is Bob. Yes, short for Robert but he prefers Bob. There are too many others to introduce in the middle of the street so come along and the rest of you, get back to work,” Tish said as the crowd dispersed and she led Adam toward a porch with a rocking chair and a bench on it.
Adam stifled a laugh as he saw the arrangement. It was a classic power play. A comfortable chair with an uncomfortable place to sit so people either didn’t want to stay long or come and sit down at all.
“What’s so funny?” Tish asked.
“I was admiring the chair and the bench,” Adam said honestly.
Tisha looked him over and smiled, “Saw right through that, did you? Must be some type of leader if you understand that the setting is just as important as the conversations.”
“Yes, I do. Also, my name is Adam. It’s nice to meet you, Tisha,” Adam said as he held out his hand.
“Likewise,” Tisha said as she gave Adam a good firm handshake. So how long have you been out and about? Also, I just need to ask. Do you have your gear stashed in a safe location? We don’t have much crime out here but we do have nosey kids.
Adam looked sheepish for a second as he realized he should have thought about the fact that if he was going to have been hiking for a while he should have had some gear then decided to come clean, “Well Tish you got me there. I don’t even know where I am, to be honest. I know I’m in a forest and I saw a lava spout off to our southeast from a hill near the edge of the forest, but I don’t know where I am.
“Do you even know what planet your own Adam?” She asked.
“You have travelers from other planets here?”
“Adam, I can’t use my abilities to scan you for some reason so when I say we have magic here, I’m pretty sure you understand what I mean. We have dimensional doorways to other places that come and go. This forest happens to have a lot of them for some reason,” Tish said.
“So, you have magic then? Good. Let me just say that I came here from elsewhere and yes I am new to your planet,” Adam said.
“Thought so. Well, as a new arrival, if you’re not going to immediately leave you need to register in one of the bigger cities. The really big ones are quite a ways away. At least 10 days of travel. There is a smaller town a little closer, it’s only about 30 miles or so. Once you’re registered you’ll get a crash course on this world and what’s expected of its citizens. I can give you a crash course if you’d like,” Tish asked.
“That would be nice,” Adam said happily.
“Very well, but you need to help out while I fill you in. We need to pack up our belongings and be on the road as soon as possible. It just so happens I have a lot of boxes a strapping young man like yourself can put in the back of a horse-drawn wagon.”
“That sounds fair,” Adam said as Tish led him to the back of the building they were standing near. Boxes had been stacked on the porch and a wagon that had two horses hitched to it. “Is there any specific order you would like these boxes in or just get it all in the wagon?” Adam asked.
“No order, just make sure the heavy stuff is on the bottom,” Tish said.
Adam went over to the stack, picked up a few boxes, and set them down so he could figure out which were the heaviest boxes and then started moving them to the wagon and loading them. While he loaded the wagon Tish continued, “So the world you’re on is called Gemma, as in the Gem of the Cosmos. Seems that you can understand us fine so wherever you are from they must have common, or something similar to it. As you’ve seen, we have some half-elves living with us out here but the elves have their own settlement about an hour north of here,” Tish paused for a second as she pointed to the box Adam had just picked up, “If you could put that one toward the front in easy reach, it has the drinks and snacks.”
Adam nodded then asked, “So why are you all packing up?
Tish nodded as she said, “Thank you. As for why were leaving, an alert went out earlier today that the magma chamber below us was filling and that there might be an eruption then a geyser of lava shot up into the sky southeast of here about fifty miles. Couldn’t believe it when it was reported on the news. There are also reports that a monster, or monsters were seen in the vicinity so we’re packing up and heading to the town about 30 miles north of us. Not the elvish town, that’s off to the northwest. We’ll be heading north and east a bit. It’s built to handle monster surges and such.”
“You all have monster surges on Gemma?”
Anywhere there’s magic, there’s monster surges Adam. Also, this forest has a nickname, Portal Forest. A lot of people have come from and disappeared into the woods all the time. Those that appear are usually like yourself, without memory of anything similar and talking about being from somewhere else, while those that disappear just vanish without a trace. The best document case happened just about seven years back. A female reporter was getting ready to do a report when she stepped behind a tree to use the bathroom. When she didn’t come back after 10 minutes they went to where she’d stepped behind a tree and found her purse and phone but no sign of her. When the assistant stepped over to pick up her purse he disappeared as well, which the cameraman caught on film. When he returned from getting help whatever had made them vanish was gone. After that the nickname Portal Forest kind of stuck.”
“Sounds like I was kind of lucky not to run into any portals once I came through then,” Adam said.
“If you stuck to the paths you should have been fine. People only tend to disappear when they step off a path.”
“Good to know,” Adam said. “What kind of government do you have here?”
“We have a group of smaller nation-states that elect a group to make decisions for them. That’s all done in the main capital of Athens.”
“Where I’m from we’d call that a Confederacy,” Adam said and then asked, “How much power do the people in Athens have? Do the laws they pass there have to be adhered to or can the nation states opt out?”
“The laws that come out Athens are the Law,” Tish said. Though laws don’t get passed that often. There are two branches of Government. There’s the President who is chosen by the Representatives out of the people who run for the right to be president. Once elected they serve a term of 10 years and cannot be removed, unless they die of course.
Adam mused over the system Tish was describing and immediately saw the holes in it. Athens must be incredibly corrupt if they were responsible for choosing the President, “So let me guess, the representatives create the laws and they don’t become official unless the President signs off on them?”
“That’s exactly right,” Tish said. “The other thing that must happen is that at least 76% of the representatives must agree on any proposed law before it can be sent over to the President for a signature. Gemma has representatives from all over the world from all sorts of races. Getting 76% of those representatives to agree on anything, yeah, good luck with that.”
“So each nation-state has its own set of laws and its own governing system?” Adam asked.
“Yes, but even so, there are agencies that transcend boards. As an example, the United Defense Coalition (UDC),” Tish said as she pointed over Adam's shoulder into the sky.
Adam looked over his shoulder and saw a flying airship. Unknown to him before that moment his eyesight had achieved a zoom function and his vision zoomed in and the scale of the ship was astonishing. It looked to be at least a thousand feet long with a deck that was at least 700 feet wide. Unlike the helicarriers in the Avengers movies, there were no engines off to the side. It looked to be kept aloft either by anti-gravity technology or magic. Along the side was one word, ‘Widehammer.’
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Adam looked back to Tish and asked, “So, why would that ship be heading into the area?”
“If monsters were sighted as part of the lava geyser breaking free the UDC will move in and try to search and contain any outbreaks. There are ships like that all around the world. They act as mobile headquarters that coordinate all air and land-based responses.”
Just then Clive came over, they let out an announcement that a dragon was seen near the geyser. That’s why the Widehammer is over there flying around,” he said.
“A Dragon?” There hasn’t been a dragon sighting in over 100 years,” Tish said.
“What’s the big deal about dragons?” Adam asked.
“For a long time dragons were the apex predator in this world. When man, and by man I mean the Elves, Dwarves, Men, and a few other minor races decided that this world was going to move toward a combined future dragons became a problem. They had been tolerated for a long time because some of them helped cull the monster surges that cropped up.”
“There are good and evil dragons…” Adam said.
“There are,” Tish agreed. “However, when people started to spread into their territories they were less than tolerant. Also, they were at war with others of their kind, the good ones fighting the evil ones some of our scholars say. Anyway, the war started to bleed into the realms of men, and the UDC, which had been created to primarily deal with monster surges was retasked with taking care of the dragon threat.”
“I would think the dragons would have had an easy time taking down one or two ships,” Adam said thoughtfully.
“The reason the UDC prevailed is because the dragons couldn’t stop fighting amongst themselves and the UDC was able to take them on in small numbers. That is just one of the UDC’s carriers. There were over 4,000 such ships on the planet at the height of the war. That was five for every 500 square miles. In areas without dragons, one carrier was left to patrol while the other four moved to problem areas. Ten to twenty carriers and their support craft made short work of individual dragons.
“And everyone gets along in the UDC, there are no issues, no chance someone will take over the abuse their authority?” Adam asked.
Clive broke into conversation, “Nope, not a chance. All make an Oath to do their utmost to protect the world from monsters and not abuse the trust given to them while they are a member of the UDC. ALL serving members. The Oath is made for a specific duration, after which the individual is released back to their homeland unless their willing to stay. Usually two or four years depending on what the person wants to do. If they decide to stay, they have to swear the Oath for another two or four years.
“So the UDC responds to monster surges and keeps the world safe and stays out of the politics for the most part?” Adam asked Clive.
“That’s about it. The last dragon was chased to the caldera of the volcano and dove right into the lava if you can believe it? Some earth mages came along while the ships patrolled and moved the earth to create the magma chamber and seal the fissure. For the last 100 years or so it’s been pretty quiet in the region.
“Yeah, a lot of the ships were decommissioned on account there was no need for them. The UDC is supposed to have just about 1,000 floating carriers to patrol and deal with monster surges,” Clive said.
Tish interrupted, “Looks like you’re about done Adam, everyone else is getting in their vehicles and wagons like us and heading out of town. It’s about time for us to do the same. Why don’t you ride on the wagon with me?”
“I’d be honored, Tish,” Adam said.
Adam climbed up on the bench after Tish took her seat and sat down. Tish touched a button and a holographic cover came up around them that looked like it would protect them from the weather while she tugged at the reigns.
The wagon started at a leisurely pace but was soon pulling up behind and keeping pace with the other vehicles in the convoy. The wagon's speed was assisted by magic in some way though it didn’t look like the horses were exerting themselves. As they headed out of town Adam asked, “So this world, how many continents do you have? Also, it looks like we’re headed north. Besides the cities you’ve mentioned, what else is north of here?” Adam asked.
Tish looked thoughtful for a moment then answered, “The first is easy. There are three main continents. The first two take up about 35 and 40 percent of the total land mass of the planet respectively so they are huge and exist through the northern and southern hemispheres. The third continent is about 10 percent of the available land mass and the last 15% is made up of islands. Our water-to-land ratio is right around 55 percent land and 45 percent water. As for your second question, you are on the largest continent in the northern hemisphere. We’re above the equator and as you move north there’s more forest which eventually opens up into an arctic tundra until you reach the ocean.”
“Do you have a north or south pole?” Adam asked.
“There is one of course, but there is no land at either location. Both areas are covered in Ice with the ocean floor about 1,000 feet below sea level,” Tish said.
“How do you know that?”
“We have some aquatic elves and even aquatic humans that have explored the seas fully. There are even settlements under the oceans, though us land lovers can’t get down there without equipment or magic,” Tish said.
“Good to know,” Adam said as he paused for a moment as he thought about how to bring up his next question. Tish, do you all have Gods here?”
“Of course we have Gods, are ye daft. Not everyone worships, of course, but we have Gods. They even make appearances from time to time. Besides, why do you think there was a crusade to destroy the dragons? The Priests of the Goddess Aires were one of the major proponents for the destruction of all dragons.”
“Wait, how do you spell Eris?” Adam asked.
“Aires, A I R E S, Aires. Why how do you spell Aires?” Tish asked.
“Where I come from we had a Goddess by the name of Eris in our Mythology that was the goddess of Strife and Discord. Our version was spelled E R I S,” Adam said.
“Well isn’t that a coincidence? Both names are said the same. Our Aires also stands for discord,” Tish said thoughtfully.
“Why did Aires want dragons destroyed so badly?” Adam asked.
“If I remember right, there was something about Dragons ushering in the end of days. There was even a short rhyme, a prophecy of sorts. Let me see if I can remember it,” Tis said as she began humming.
Adam took a moment to look around and noticed that they had made good time. Their convoy was coming out of a tree line with them at the back of the line. The forest had been stripped away and looked like there were at least five miles of well-lit open space between the tree line and the town wall which was at least 100 feet high. The Widehammer was off behind him out of sight behind the trees. He’d lost track of it when they were traveling through the forest. He wasn’t too worried. They’d have a hard time tracking him, though they’d probably be able to figure out where he landed and then track him to Cabin Fort, if they had any good trackers. Not that he was too worried about it. He just needed to make sure he was either long gone or he had a good reason to upset this world's status quo.
Adam was pulled from his thoughts when Tisha said, “I think I have it;
And the day will come
When a Dragon’s run
Will spark the fire
Quenching the earth’s desire
To Belch and consume
To Destroy and Prune
But be not deceived
For from the Dragon Desire
Chaos will Fire
Through the Hearts of all
After which many gods will fall”
“That’s it?” Adam asked
“That’s it,” Tish confirmed.
“Seems a really lame reason to destroy all the dragons. I mean seriously, If I were a dragon and I found out that a Goddess had destroyed all the dragons in the world I’d just been born into or arrived at, I don’t know how I’d feel for sure, but at a guess, Not Happy with her about it,” Adam said.
“Lucky for us you’re not a dragon and Goddesses can do whatever they want,”
“That’s not exactly true but I concede your point, from a mortal perspective Goddesses can do whatever they want,” Adam agreed.
“Well, we don’t have to worry about that. Before we arrive at Ardean I’d like to say thank you for helping me load the wagon. You saved me a lot of time,” Tish said.
“Not a problem, Tish. I was in the area and the talk we’ve had for the last hour or so has helped me get used to your world. If I might ask, what am I supposed to do now?” Adam asked.
“Now, we go through the gates and I drop you off at the Welcome Center. Every major town has one right inside the gate. You just walk in. Wait if there’s a line and then declare that you just arrived on the planet. After that, it’s pretty straightforward. They ask you a couple of questions. See if you have any skills they’re willing to trade for. If not, they’ll ask if need help to try to go home or if you’re going to stay they’ll start setting you up with a citizenship. If you decide to stay, there are some more tests you’ll need to take but while you’re there they’ll make sure you’re fed and you have a place to sleep if you need one.” Tish explained.
As the wagon came to a stop near a building with a sign that said ‘Welcome Center’, Adam hopped down off the wagon and turned back to Tish and held out his hand which she took and shook, “Thanks for everything Tish. I’ll look you up once I get settled,” he said as he paused for a moment. “If not me one of my friends might come looking for you, to help you out or balance our karma.”
“Balance our karma?” Tish said with a little confusion evident on her face.
“You helped me, sometime in the future, I’ll help you,” Adam said.
“Oh that’s fine, don’t you worry your little head about that. I’ll be just fine,” Tish said.
“Still, my friends that might come calling would be Adaline, Abi, or Amanda. Could also be a Desirae or Clarence but the first three are the most likely.”
“I’ll try to remember, but no promises,” Tish said with a smile as she made a shooing motion. “Now off with you.”
Adam stepped around the wagon, up a couple of steps, and entered the Welcome Center. It had the feeling of 20th-century bureaucracy. So much so that he could have sworn he was at the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). There was even a line of people waiting to be seen at one of the five tellers, only two of which had someone working. Adam stepped into the line, which had nine people in front of him to wait his turn.