I woke with the sun the next morning. I sighed deeply, Ava's scents crashing into me. I grinned as the events of last night came to me, and I couldn't resist looking over at the wood elf. Ava's jade green hair was splayed out all over us and she was snoring softly. The blanket had slipped down in the night, freeing her top half. I resisted the urge to grab her, pull her close, and go back to sleep.

"No, Micheal." I reprimanded myself softly. "Not yet. I don't know if that spell is an actual thing, but better safe than sorry." I sighed again, taking one last look at Ava, then crawled out into the morning. It was that perfect early morning and the sun was just starting to peak out over the horizon, setting the sky ablaze in reds and oranges. The night's dew dampened the grass and my feet as I stepped onto it. I stretched, my muscles feeling strong and ready to work.

We ate a quick breakfast, then got on the road. I hauled the cart all day that day, from sunup to sundown. I'd loose track of time pretty quickly while hauling. The cart wasn't that bad, kind of like I was back in bootcamp and going on those long ruck marches with a bunch of useless shit in my pack. The Archikin Forrest was way bigger in person than it was on the map. The map had shown a thick line of trees splitting it like a hamburger, and I figured it would take a day or two to get through the woods. Were we so lucky. It took us a fucking week to get out of those woods, and that was with me going at full tilt for much of the trip. The cart got easier to pull and my body became more resilient and accustomed to pulling things. I'd had the thought that this wasn't such a bad life, pulling things, about half a week into our trip. It was satisfying and physically exhausting. I understood why horses and oxen in my world like to pull things. It was fun. As soon as that thought crossed my mind, a message popped up in my vision.

HAHA! Loser! Looks like you're a pack animal now. How's it feel to be nothing more than cheap labor? Plus 2 (2) to Constitution.

I sighed. This System fuckin' sucked, dude. I wondered if it was actually a System or if it was just the gods' way of fucking with me. It would make sense; the backward ass rules, the fact that the messages seemed to be written by different people, and that I COULDN'T SEE MY FUCKING SKILLS DESPITE KNOWING I GOT FOUR LEVELS IN HIKING. A clap of distant, laughing thunder told me I was right.

"Fuckin' gods." I mumbled.

When we finally left the woods, it was just more delta, but I could feel a difference. Something felt...off. I couldn't put my finger on it, but the air felt colder, the sun a little less bright, and the world felt meaner on this side of the forrest. I shivered and pushed on, my stride encouraged by the disconcerting feeling. The road just kept on going, compacted dirt with ruts in it from hundreds of carts, and the scenery didn't change either. We passed the occasional herd of meltir, their orange skin sticking out against the green grass. There were pockets of trees here and there, scattered seemingly randomly about the delta, and I saw more of those pink birds from before. Some of them flew over us, and they looked like flamingo's, but massive. I'm talking the size of a fighter jet. And they flew in flocks of at least five.

"Jesus, those things are huge." I said, marveling at the creatures as they flew over us. They were low, just over the treetops, but I could be wrong. Distance is weird. They were lower than birds flew back on Earth, that's for sure. I swear I could feel my hair move as their wings pumped down. "Ava, do you know what those are?"

"The Strantum?"

"If that's what you call those big ass flamingo's, then yes."

"The Stantum are large, winged creatures that live near the Interntin River. They are incredibly territorial and will attack anything that comes near. They are docile when flying, however. What are flamingo's?"

"Pink birds that live in mountains and savannas, if I remember right. Their feather's are pink because of their diet, I think. I don't remember, I haven't watched Planet Earth in years."

"What are you talking about? I thought you lived on the Planet Earth." I laughed.

"I did. Planet Earth was a documentary that came out when I was a kid. It was this big thing, too, took 'em like ten years or something crazy to make. And they would show it to us in school when the teacher was too hungover to teach that day. Man, I loved Planet Earth. The guy's voice was so much fun to listen to, too. It was this series that went all over the planet filming nature in action. They had episodes on mountains, jungles, savannas, the poles. My favorite was the deep sea one. Sharks are fuckin' cool, you know? The caves one was pretty cool, too. It's weird to think that things can evolve to live in complete darkness and go without eating for years at a time." Ava sighed in exasperation.

"I knew I shouldn't have asked. Just more nonsense that I don't understand." I chuckled ruefully.

"Welcome to my world. This place is so familiar yet so foreign at the same time. Like, birds the size of fighter jets aren't normal on Earth. There's no magic there, either."

"What?" Ava asked, her voice going dead serious, loosing all sense of levity. "What did you say? Your world doesn't have magic?"

"Nope. Just regular old physics, science, and the drive to explore and understand the world around us. We came up with a lot of cool things, too. Like planes, giant metal birds that can carry people all across the world in a day or two. Hundreds of thousands of miles, years of travel, in under a day. And we were so interconnected. We had these devices in our pockets that contained more technology than the spacecraft that got the first man to the moon, and we used them to watch internet porn and cat videos." I felt anger start to rise as I remembered what I disliked about the world I left behind. I sped up. Soon enough I was running again, pulling the cart with the straps on my shoulders.

"But no magic? And did you say you sent a man to the moon?" Ava called to me over the wind and the rattling of the wagon. I nodded, slowing down so I could answer.

"I'd never even seen a spell until little Elizabeth lifted a crate twice the size of me with a green energy. The fireballs were unexpected as well. And then you with your golden light. I guess that maybe my regeneration counts, but I don't know how shit works here, so I'm just gonna accept it and move on. And yeah, America won the Space Race like thirty years before I was born. We haven't explored any other planets, but we did put people on the moon a few times. 'One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind'." I quoted.

"The moon?" Ava asked her voice filled with shock and disbelief. "Like the ones in the sky?"

"Yep. Also, Earth only has one moon; Luna. Our sun was called Sol, and we were lived in the Milky Way galaxy. There were nine planets in our little solar system, and I'll be dead and gone before I consider Pluto not a planet." I paused for a moment. "Huh. Well, I guess I am dead and gone, now. Does that mean there really are only eight planets? Nah, I'm still countin' the little guy." Ava was quiet for a good long while, maybe an hour or so.

"No magic?" She asked, still completely bewildered. "But you have mana. I see it within you."

"Yeah, I have it now. I think. I don't have any spells or a way to actually use it. My sheet says that I have it; a couple hundred at least."

"So then how do the people on your world defeat the monsters?" I frowned severely.

"This world has monsters? Like goblins and werewolves and shit?"

"Yes. Though monsters come in all shapes and sizes. Some creatures look like monsters but are actually sentient beings just trying to live their lives, like the goblin tribe to the North. They make some wonderful clothing, intricate and beautiful. But there are also goblins who will raid a village. taking whatever they can and burning the rest. It is not uncommon for farming villages to be besiged by goblins. Thankfully, the Imperial Army is capable of responding to threats all across the Empire."

"Huh." I pondered that revelation for the next few hours as the sun started to fall. Ava asked me if I wanted some food or water, and I took her up on the water. I drank deeply, still moving, then poured some over my sweaty head. It felt ice cold and exsquisite as it rolled down my back and face. I didn't care that sweat was pouring down my face by this point, I was unrelenting in my march.

That night, we stopped for supper at dusk, Ava stretching her legs as I caught my breath. I thought about what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it. My body felt fine, great even. I felt like I could go all night if I needed too. And I wanted to. I really wanted to pull the cart all night, just to see if I could. There was also this odd feeling telling me that we needed to keep moving. It had been growing all day, making me want to speed up. I worried that she wouldn't be able to take it, though. I knew I was being silly and that she was way stronger than I was giving her credit for, but I still wanted to make sure she was alright with going all night. Ava had just put the stew on the fire when I approached her.

"Ava," I said, quietly. "I have a massive favor to ask of you." She turned to look at me, letting the stew bubble away. I smelled sage and garlic, and I knew it was going to be awesome.

"And what's that?"

"I feel like I can go through the night tonight. I've been feeling it the last few days, and kind of want to try tonight. I don't like the vibe this part of the world gives me, and the sooner we get Lily, the better."

"I completely agree. Let's do it. Don't be afraid to stop if it gets to be too much, though. I don't want you killing yourself again. We are fully in the Empire, now. We have to be careful." We spent the rest of the night in amicable silence, enjoying the late afternoon sun and the wonderful potato stew Ava hade made.

"Here." Ava said after we had put the dishes away, thrusting new clothes at me. They were brown and looked roughly made, but comfortable. They were the kind of clothes that a farmer would wear. I stared at her.

"What?" I asked. She shook the clothes at me. "Clothes? I already have clothes." Ava scoffed.

"No, you have whatever the hell it is you are wearing. You draw enough attention already, we don't need your clothes helping you to stick out." I frowned and looked down at my fatigues. They were your standard desert digital camo.

"What about them? They look fine."

"No, they don't. You stick out like a sore thumb and we are trying to blend in. Now, go change, before I get mad." I sighed and grabbed the clothes from her. I rolled my eyes and stripped in front of her, grinning as Ava's cheeks flashed red and she looked away.

"Don't be a savage." She said. "Go change behind the cart." I complied, but her smile told me that she didn't really want me to go. I changed, grumbling about stupid bullshit and how I hated clothes shopping. They fit, but were tight in all the wrong places. I cursed as I heard something rip when I stood up. It was workable, but it would suck. I walked back in front of the cart and glared at Ava, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Happy?" She looked me over and nodded.

"You are passable."

"Can I at least wear my jacket?" I asked, sounding more like a whiny teen than a massive brute who can lug a cart. "I fuckin' hate the cold."

"Fine. Until we get to the town. Then it goes in the cart with the rest."

"Thank you." I sighed and went to grab my jacket off the side of the cart. I looked at it in my hand, really wishing I could take it into town with me. I felt naked without it. It had been with me through the last three years of bullshit, it should be with me for this. "I wish you could turn into like, a cloak or something. Then I could wear you all the time." I said wistfully. My mouth fell open as the material of my desert digital jacket shimmered and turned darker, becoming a more uniform brown. The collar grew, becoming a hood and the cloth extended, adding an extra foot and a half, two feet of cloth. I gaped as the jacket finished transforming into a cloak, exactly like I had asked it to. A message popped up.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Hooray! You've discovered a new spell: Change Clothes. By expending mana, you can change the appearance of your personal set of clothes. The more pronounced and intricate the outfit, the more mana it takes. Any protective based clothing, such as armor, does not take effect.

I laughed out loud, holding my jacket up and letting the material unfurl fully. It was a cloak that looked like it would fit me perfectly. I checked the cart where I had placed my other clothes, and, sure enough, they looked exactly like what I had on. I pulled up my sheet and checked my mana.

Mana: 200/300

I watched as the mana number ticked up slowly. 100 mana to change my clothes? Now that's a proper spell right there. Smiling widely, I grabbed MY clothes and put them on, feeling satisfaction at having my own set of clothing that did what I wanted it to.

"Micheal? Are you alright?" Ava called from the other side of the cart.

"I'm fine!" I hollered back. My smile turned evil, and I whispered to the clothes. "Hey, what say you we play a little joke on Ava? Turn back into the fatigue's for me." The clothes complied instantly. I felt a little tug at the edge of my mind, and it felt like... excitement. I walked out, dressed like I had been before and fighting to keep the smile off my face. Ava turned around to face me and her eyes went wide with shock, then narrowed with anger.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ava pointed her finger at me, anger clear on her face as she came around the cart to yell at me. "I thought I told you you were passible. Why in all the gods' names did you go back to those rags? Go back there and get dressed properly." I lost it, my grin becoming a laugh as the little wood elf raged in front of me. That seemed to make her even madder, as Ava started to beat her fists against me. I laughed even more, curling up to defend myself. I felt twinges of laughter coming from the back of my mind.

"These rags," I said through my laughter. "are incredible. See?" Ava stopped hitting me as my clothes shifted again. This time I asked for a nice suit from my world. Black jacket, slacks, freshly shined dress shoes, Rolex, the whole nine yards. Even my hair was slicked back and hung down to just above my shoulders, long and straight. I grinned at her as I adjusted my sliver cufflinks. My clothes left out a tie and left the top two buttons of my dress shirt unbuttoned, giving me a playboy type vibe. With my new body, I looked like a rich young man out on the town and looking for trouble. I sidled up to Ava, wrapping my arms around her waist. "My clothes are magical, remember? I just unlocked the spell to change their appearance at will."

"That's incredible." Ava whispered as she touched the jacket. "And so soft!" She ran her hands all over my upper body. I took a step back before I did something I regretted.

"Thank you, clothes. Please turn into the cloak and farmers clothes again." They shimmered and my suit was replaced with simple farmers clothing. I felt a little bit of a head ache coming on and put my hand to my head, groaning a little.

"Are you alright?" Ava asked, a knowing smile on her face.

"Yeah, just peachy." I groaned. "Damn, my head hurts."

"Check your mana for me." Ava said. I did.

Mana: 050/300

"Ah, I see now." I said, lowering my hand and fighting through the pain. "Low mana causes a head ache and I'm sure that, just like stamina, running out of mana taps into health." Ava smiled, patting me on the shoulder as she passed and climbed into the driver's seat.

"At least you're a fast learner." I laughed and settled into the pushing position, setting my hands on the smooth wood.

"That might be the first time anyone has ever said that about me." I started to push, getting back onto the main road. The cart had a comforting rumble to it, and it faded into the background of the evening noises as I walked. A light flared from behind me, and I heard Ava rustling some papers.

"We're only about a half day's travel from Martinlos, the village that marks our half way point. I can't believe that we made it here this fast. Even sleeping at night, it should have taken us two weeks at least to get here." Ava said.

"The lack of stamina is a magnificent thing." I said, thanking Kelltim once again.

"Even then, it feels like we're going fast. It typically takes a month to get from Rilmon to the Archikin Forest, and then another two weeks to get through it."

"So we should be in Rilmon in two weeks time, keeping this pace." I said. "Knock on wood." I rapped sharply on one of my handles three times. I heard Ava sigh and some muttering, before another sigh.

"Alright, I'll take the bait. Why'd you knock on the cart?" I chuckled.

"It's a superstition from my homeland. The world tends to fuck us over, right? A lot of bad shit happens and there's nothing we can do to stop it. So, we knock on wood to try and solidify that thing into happening. It's silly, but it works. Not always, but that's life, you know? Shit happens that we aren't prepared for."

"Hmm. But why wood? Why not glass or something?"

"I don't know, dude. It's something my grandparents did, so I did it too. It's habit at this point."

"Your world is strange." I laughed, looking up at the three moons. Their odd, ocean-like light gave plenty of light to see by, and the stars were all out to play. I didn't recognize any of the constellations and it hurt my head to look at them.

"You know what's strange," I called back to her. "your stars. One of these days, you're going to teach me the constellations, alright?"

We lapsed into silence as the moon rose and a chill set in as night settled in. I was grateful for my cloak, and it hugged me a little tighter, preventing the wind from getting in. I shook my head and pushed the growing feeling that my clothes were alive down. It got harder and harder to think as the night wore on. My legs never stopped moving, though, and that's what matters. My brain didn't have to think to get my feet to move, and all I had to do was move my feet. One foot in front of the other. I smiled as the old pains of marching started to flare. Lower back burning, thighs screaming, shoulders crying. Hah, fun times. I ignored my muscles and kept going. Exhaustion pressed in on me, making my eyelids heavy and everything a little fuzzy. The road was clear, though, and I never wavered. Left. Left. Left, Right, Left. That's all that ran through my head as I marched ever Northwards. Even when I was struggling to keep my eyes open. I didn't stop moving.

Something that wasn't pain twinged at my mind. It came from the east, warm and inviting. Hey, look at that, the sun's up. That's nice. Maybe now the Drill Sargent will call for a stop. Heh. Wouldn't that be nice. Naw, we still got a good long while yet. Nut up and shut up, Short Stack, we got work to do. I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up, the purple clouds swirling in beautiful patterns. I could lay there and watch the clouds for the rest of the day. Wait, lay? When did I start lying down? I tried to sit up but my body screamed in agony. Maybe I screamed. I don't know. A bowl was shoved into my hands and I drank greedily, a little bit of clarity coming back to me. I wasn't lying down, I was leaning against the cart with my back to a wheel. The sun was rising as another bowl was pushed into my hands. I slurped it down greedily and reality started to come back. I groaned as a massive headache pounded in my head. I leaned over on my side and let the cool grass on my bare skin ease some of the pain.

I woke in agony the next day. Everything screamed when I tried to move, from my legs to my abs to my arms to even my neck. I fought through the pain and sat up, smashing my head into the bottom of the cart. How the fuck did I wind up under the cart? I swore loudly and resisted the urge to punch the damn thing. Instead, I rolled onto my stomach with even more cursing and punched the ground. My fist left a good sized hole in the dirt. I got to my knees and crawled out from under the cart, the mid day sun high in the sky. I held my hand to the sun and glared at it, cursing the fact that it was already back up.

"Good morning." Ava said, laughter in her voice. "You slept well."

"Ava." I said, looking over at the woman smiling brightly at me. "What happened last night? It feels like I lost a fight against Rocky Balboa." My head pounded as my eyes got used to the bright sun. The smell of cooking food brought me over to the fire and next to Ava.

"I'm not even going to ask who that is." She said as I flopped down next to her. "You were pretty out of it for most of the night. You were talking to yourself a lot, and laughing. It seemed like you were having fun, so I didn't question it. You also didn't stop when the sun came up, you just kept on going. Went for another hour or so, then you pulled off to the side and collapsed. I've been making breakfast since." I took the plate she offered me with a word of thanks.

"So how long was I out for?"

"'Out for'? You never left." I laughed around a bite of food.

"Another idiom from Earth. How long was I asleep." Ava shrugged.

"Maybe three and a half, four hours." I groaned and rubbed my hands over my face.

"Everything hurts." I said, grunting as I stretched my aching body. "Why does today hurt so much worse than any other day?"

"You didn't sleep with me." Ava said matter of factly.

"Ava!" I cried in exasperation. "Phrasing!" She laughed at the look on my face and I sighed, rolling my eyes, which thankfully didn't hurt. "But what does me not sharing a bed with you have to do with soreness?"

"I'm a healer, remember? It's a pretty simple thing to wait for you to fall asleep and cast a simple recovery spell on you."

"And why didn't you do it this time?"

"It takes eight hours to work. I'm not going to let you waste a day, not when we're so close to Martinlos." I growled and cursed, but accepted the plate she handed me.

"At least we can have a hot meal every day." I said as I ate, trying to look on the bright side. "I always figured traveling without modern technology would be a bitch and a half, but this isn't half bad." I nudged Ava with my shoulder. "The company ain't bad, either." She blushed and ate her own food. We finished and packed quickly, both of us eager to be back in civilization. I stretched, making sure to limber up before I got into the straps and started pulling. My body screamed in pain at being forced back into service anyway. I growled and forced myself forward. No way was I giving up here, not when I could see the walls of the city on the horizon. We had stopped where I had fallen, literally on the side of the road. We made our way down the road slowly. I dug down deep and forced myself back into my normal stride, speeding up. I wanted to make the city before nightfall, and that sun was getting awfully high.

The sun had just started to touch the horizon when we came to the gates. I was huffing and puffing, sweat pouring down my body, my stomach aching, that feeling from earlier having gotten worse, but I still saw that the walls looked haggard. Some of the stones still had arrows sticking out of them. The human guards at the gate looked at me with curiosity, but none of them stopped us as I pulled the cart into the city. The sun disappeared as we crossed under the stone wall of the city. I saw the glint of firelight on metal reflecting off of something in the walls. I ignored it and continued on, coming out on the other side. I smiled. We had made it, and made it safely.

"Ho, strangers!" I groaned. I just had to go and say something, didn't I? I came to a stop, letting the cart stop as well. I put my hands on my knees and gasped for breath. I actually wasn't all that tired, but it couldn't hurt to play it up. I straightened as one of the guards came out of a door and rushed over to us.

"Are you alright, sir?" He asked as he came up to me. He was a young man, clearly a new recruit sent to see what was up with the mysterious new people. "Do you need some water?"

"Inn." I said, trying to slow my breathing. "We need... an inn. And a place to stash the cart." The young man nodded.

"Of course. Do you mind answering some questions as we walk?" I grunted, getting back behind the bars and pushing the cart down the street. The cart rumbled over the rough cobble stone streets and I heard Ava curse under her breath a few times as we went. "Where are you coming from?" The kid asked.

"Milania." Ava responded. The kid frowned.

"You came through the Archikin Forrest?" I grunted in agreement. "Did you face any monsters on your travels? Word is that the Archikin has been infested with monsters over the last few weeks."

"No." Ava said. "We haven't seen any monsters at all on our travels. Now that I think about it, that is a little strange. We should have seen at least one roaming the delta by now." The feeling in my stomach intensified, and I let out a groan of pain. Ava brushed it off. "Don't worry about him. He's fine."

"Alright." the kid said. The feeling grew to a full blown fear. Something isn't right here. "Well, we've been getting attacks every night for the last week or so now. You're lucky you made it in before sunset. They tend to come an hour after dark."

New Quest: Martinlos Massacre.

The city of Martinlos is besieged by monsters. You must help them, or the city will fall tonight.

Conditions for Success: Kill Thirty (30) goblins.

Reward for Success: Fifteen (15) levels in any skill you possess.

Cost of Failure/Refusal: This quest cannot be refused.

The feeling in my stomach dissipated as the message popped up. I froze, the cart crashing into my back but unable to move me. Ava squawked and reached for me as she went tumbling past, thrown forward by the momentum. I caught her easily and tossed her back onto the cart. I turned and focused on her, willing the quest to be shown to her. Ava gasped as the quest appeared before her. I saw her eyes go distant, then go wide as she read the quest. Her eyes refocused and flashed to the setting sun, then back to me.

"Micheal," She began.

"We need to get you safe. An inn ain't gonna cut it." I whirled on the kid, putting on my best sergeant voice. "Who's in charge, soldier?" The boy snapped to attention, training kicking in. I couldn't help but smile. Militaries are the same no matter where you go.

"Captain Andrew Yeful, sir." The kid responded. He blushed as he realized what he had done. I smiled at him.

"Don't worry, kid. It takes a while to break those instincts they beat into you. But I meant the town. Who runs the city?" The kids expression darkened.

"Mayor Rutfield technically is the leader of the city, but he doesn't do much. He drinks more than he works." I snarled. There goes leaving her with the mayor. "We could beat the monsters back easily if he let us fight back; they're only goblins. But, no, we get to sit here while monsters threaten to break down our walls, unable to do anything about it."

"How many come each night?" Ava asked. The kid shrugged.

"I don't know, maybe a hundred on average."

"And their weapons?"

"Sticks and sharpened stones with the occasional bow or spell thrown in. Mainly, they just beat on the wall until sunrise."

"So why hasn't anyone delt with them yet?" I asked. If they're so pathetic, what's the problem? Why the quest? And why such urgency?

"We were told to leave them alone. That fighting them was a waste of recourses." The sun fully set behind the western wall and the city grew darker by the second. I could only tell because the reds and yellows on the guards uniform got a little less bright, not sticking out as much as before.

I got my answer when a massive roar shook the air around us. I whirled, grabbing Ava and pulling her off the cart and onto the ground. I threw myself on top of her, protecting her with my body. I saw the kid duck down as well. The roar faded and the three of us looked between each other, the question on all our lips.

"What the fuck was that?" Ava asked.