Aarick turned to left and followed the man in yellow through the hallway then turned right into another at a small circular intersection. In his initial hallway, all the rooms on one side had no doors, just curtains. Most were open, though they revealed nothing but bare beds bereft of blankets or sheets.

He surmised, correctly, that the bedding was only put on when they were in use.

The first hallway was composed of a deep green floor, brown walls and an arched ceiling with traceries of glimmering copper and gold in pure white stone. The arch was slightly recessed into the walls, leaving a slight overhang. Indirect light, perfect and even, glowed and cast the entire arch into radiant display; the reflection was more than sufficient to light the hallway.

The second hallway was much like the first, though wider and the walls were carved with designs and alcoves held displays of art. The brown of the walls also gave way to subtly shifting shades of tan marble, flecked with gold.

The art piece he found most interesting was a tapestry of a man meditating in a green garden, with faint threads of light that seemed to be emanating off the man.

The art style felt unfamiliar. It felt a little Asian, but with exaggerated angles and curves; plus it didn’t have the ultra pale skin of a lot of Chinese art.

Is that supposed to be some kind of energy, or is it something like holiness? Or is he absorbing the energy instead?

It wasn’t like he could really stop and find out.

The second hallway intersected with other hallways, each one forming a circle with a domed ceiling overhead.

He occasionally saw other men and women. Each of them was dressed in the same style of robes, a deep yellow with grey trim, and all of them were at least six inches shorter than he was. Some of the people’s skin were unusual colors, with shades of pink, green, and orange just among the limited amount he had seen so far.

Not sure what is up with the different colors. I’m guessing the yellow and grey robe is important, though. Some kind of uniform, I guess?

Then, the second hallway ended, and Aarick realized they had been in the more functional areas of the building.

Is this a palace?

It certainly gave him that impression now.

Unconscious of everything else, he stopped as he entered, taking in the grandeur of the room.

The man he had been following stopped as soon as he did, but Aarick completely failed to notice.

An enormous, perfectly circular room soared upward, ending in an equally large dome. A singular massive crystal hung from the very center on a glittering silvery chain. The crystal glowed from within, the light shining out through its many facets. The light was mostly white, but in a few places the crystal formed a gentle prism, formed the subtle echo of rainbows across the pristine white of the walls.

It was an effect that had obviously been calculated with extreme precision, because he could see where the rainbows overlaid inlaid gold and stone worked in low-relief. The effect was to create the suggestions of scenes. The green laid onto a carving suggesting forests, with the blue of the sky rising above that, complete with a glittering gold sun, all above the yellow field of wheat.

The grandeur and scale would have been enough for Aarick to stop and appreciate it. However, he had been to Europe and toured through ancient castles, seen Greek temples, toured the Roman coliseum, and many others. The scale was noteworthy, but the precisely aligned art sang to him in a way that art almost never did.

Art was never his strong point. He understood it, from a technical perspective, but he didn’t get art. Not the way that many of high society claimed to. Sculptures, drawing, paintings: these, for him, were rarely an emotional experience. He appreciated the beauty of the form, the details, the subtle use of colors and contrast, but it didn’t really invoke emotion. He needed music for that.

Fortunately, his parents had reassured him that the number of people who could stare at a painting made of nothing but shades of blue and actually be overcome with emotion was vanishingly rare. Feeling emotion from more realistic art was more common, but even then, high society tended to exaggerate their responses for effect.

That part, at least, he could fake well enough. It wasn’t exactly hard to figure out what kind of emotions art could invoke. Especially if you went far enough back that it was all religious. At that point, worship was pretty much the only emotion they were trying to convey.

This art, however, sang to him. And it had nothing to do with the emotion, other than a faint sense of the awe he suspected this was meant to bring out.

No.

It was the precision and the magic.

This reminded him of The Pantheon. Aarick had felt the same wonder and appreciation there, standing within the dome and gazing up toward the oculus. It was an emotion brought on by the scale and magnitude.

Here and now, even with the ten columns supporting the dome overhead, this work was much smaller in scale. However, the precise alignments of the crystal, and using the subtle rainbows to work scenes onto the walls was incredible. The subtle oscillation of the crystal as it moved minutely under the pressure of the air made the scenes shimmer and gave a subtle impression of movement.

What exactly is that crystal… And if anything happened to it… would they redo the whole room?

He had a feeling they might.

Compared to that, the rest of the room was more mundane. Still showing exceptional craftsmanship, to be sure, but mundane in comparison.

A pair of doors twenty feet high were to his left. The doors looked to each be a single sheet of silver metal, though it had a deep blue cast that was unfamiliar. Each was chased with designs detailing fantastical beasts.

Well… maybe not fantastical here.

He glanced back toward the glowing crystal.

Yeah…

It might be magic, or it might not be, but he didn’t even speak the local language.

That thought lead to a sudden remembrance.

Oops…

The man in yellow was waiting for him, and looked rather impatient.

Aarick wasn’t even sure why he was so certain the man was impatient, either. He looked perfectly composed. His feet were planted firm, his expression was calm, and his eyes carried no hint of judgment or emotion. He merely bowed and gestured again to be followed before he turned away.

That’s it, he is too unemotional. Too controlled to feel natural. The bow had felt mocking in its precision.

I’m probably reading too much into it.

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There were seven hallways that met at the dome, including the one he emerged from initially. What lay beyond the enormous doors, plus other lesser doors, he didn’t know.

He followed him over intricate geometric patterns laid into the floor and into a new hallway that lay to the right of the large doors. This hallway was grander and paved with polished stone. The stone was a deep brown with streaks of emerald green. Plush rugs in many colors broke up the stone, soft underfoot, and intricate geometric designs were woven into the cloth. An occasional tapestry hung on the walls; stylized depictions of different idyllic scenes were the main feature. They were interspersed with alcoves containing their own art.

The tendency toward strong angles and exaggerated curves was present in other art, too. He had passed sculptures and vases with flowers that bore that pattern, already. Even the wood and paper shutters covering the windows he had seen earlier were similar in design, though much simpler.

Eventually, that hallway diverged into two others and they took the path to the right. Another left turn shortly after and then a straight walk led them into semicircular room. A number of doors led from it, but were closed, however, the largest set of doors was open and Aarick followed the man through them into a large office.

The room was a large square, but he was struck most by the person inside it.

Behind a large wooden desk sat a woman. She too, wore the omnipresent yellow robes, though hers displayed a green border, and were of a more intricately tailored cut. For all that the style of her robes emphasized her figure, that was not what drew his attention. Her skin was… gray, for lack of a better word.

That word failed to capture the intensity of her vitality.

She was like living stone, smooth and perfect. Her nose was long from top to bottom, combining with her delicate brows to frame her eyes. And what eyes they were, it looked like they were almost all pupil. On a closer look, he could tell that she actually had enormous irises, each a blue so dark it was almost black. Her hair reminded him of metal, something between spun copper and beaten gold. It was kept contained around her head, almost providing a halo.

Beyond all her appearance, both alien and familiar, he could feel a presence. His eyes were drawn toward her. Aarick could barely notice the rest of room, only noting the large covered window behind her, and the scripts that were glowing around the edges of the frame.

Wait, what?

That pulled his attention away for a moment. On the outside of the windows edge, outside the closed shutters, were characters and lines glowing with a pale white light. He looked at it more closely, leaning forward, but he couldn’t make out anything that he recognized.

Some kind of magic?

A cough interrupted his staring, and he jolted.

The man he had followed into the room was long gone, the office doors having closed unnoticed behind him, and he was alone with the woman. She was smiling in bemusement, looking at him like a pet that had done something cute and unexpected.

“Ah, sorry…” he said, before trailing off awkwardly.

Right, she won’t understand me.

The woman stood up from behind the desk, and he was struck by how short she was. Everyone he had seen here was shorter than him, but her presence made her feel like she ought to tower over him. She wasn’t the shortest person he had seen by far, at a little less than a foot shorter. She was not stout by any means, her body willowy and graceful. She seemed to float as she took each step, gliding through the world rather than doing anything so mundane as merely walking.

Once she made her way around the desk she opened a door he had failed to notice in one of the walls; a casual glance to check found another matching door on the opposite wall. She beckoned for him to follow, which he did.

The door opened into another semicircle, the flat side matching the office wall. A hallway extended ahead and to both sides. She led him left and through a door at the far end of the hall, passing two doors on the right side.

The large square room they entered was already occupied. A man sat on a chair, out of the way of the elaborate diagram carved into the floor. It glowed faintly with the same light Aarick had seen around the window.

The man stood up and bowed as they entered, though it was obvious he was not bowing toward Aarick.

“Taravec na Lurona. Hakenta shie en suraskis parosa?” he said.

He couldn’t tell what he said, but it was obvious there was a question mixed in. The woman answered him in, he presumed, the same language. Giving a short and clear answer.

The man came over and gently dragged him into the circle. In the middle was a clear space and the man directed him to sit through pantomime. He obliged, even if he was a little worried. Still, if they wanted to kill him they had more than ample opportunity. He just wished he knew what the hell this was for. He could vaguely remember a flash of seeing another, much larger diagram when he first fell between… whatever it was.

Here to hoping this one isn’t so fucking painful.

For a brief moment, he imagined stepping into the diagram and just being sent home.

How would I even deal with that?

The thought was enough to make him smile lightly.

He could just imagine trying to tell people what happened.

I would sound like those people who say they get abducted by aliens.

He could just imagine complaining that they hadn’t even bothered to probe him. That would have to be the most anticlimactic result ever. He could just imagine it, getting summoned to another world by mistake and then promptly returned.

At least it would solve all the other problems…

He cut that line of thought off. He had been, and still was, avoiding truly taking the time to think through his situation.

Now is not the time for a panic attack.

For now, he watched the man as he fiddled with the diagram. Small clear stones were added in various places, each one causing the light to intensify.

I would be much more eager to see magic performed if I wasn’t the target.

Despite his uneasiness, he stayed where he was. He couldn’t really go anywhere on his own, and the gray woman definitely gave the impression of someone not to be crossed.

Finally, the man was done and, bowing, he took a small green rectangle with golden edges from the woman. Then the man joined him in the circle.

Aarick didn’t see anything to signal the change, but the light started to glow more intensely. The man reached out and touched his forehead with the rectangle.

The world lost focus for a moment, and time stopped mattering. Before he could form another thought the circle had gone dark, the man had stepped away, and the rectangle had broken into fragments. Also, his head now hurt like it was an anvil being pounded on by an overenthusiastic blacksmith.

He reached up to cradle his head, even as the man bowed to the woman again.

“Agent Lurona, it is finished.” he said.

Aarick whipped his head around to stare at him, and immediately regretted it when his head swam with pain and tears popped into his eyes.

Gah! Fuck that hurts.

The woman, Lurona, turned towards him and spoke.

“I am sure you have questions, for the moment stay silent. Doctor, give him something to help with the pain.”

“Yes, Agent Lurona. It is my honor to serve,” the doctor said.

The doctor turned towards him and pulled out a small vial of clear fluid from somewhere he didn’t see.

“Drink this, sir.” he said, his voice neutral.

Aarick drank it down eagerly, the pain more than sufficient inducement. A moment later the pain was swept away like it had never arrived. He heaved a great sigh of relief.

Damn, that beats the crap out of ibuprofen.

“Ah, um, thank you Doctor,” he said.

He smiled at Aarick with a perfunctory grace that spoke of a practiced, but not enthusiastic, bedside manner, which served as his only reply.

Before Aarick had a chance to say more, Lurona spoke again.

“You are dismissed Doctor.”

He bowed and left the room, not wasting a moment.

Lurona looked him over critically, her gaze incisive.

“Well, I am glad that seems to have worked out reasonably well.” She said, her voice crisp. “No doubt there will still be many gaps left in just your linguistic knowledge. Not to mention all the practical everyday knowledge you will need to be taught.”

In a mutter Aarick almost didn’t catch, he heard her mutter an addition.

“At least he arrived clean, so I won’t have to teach him how to bathe.”

His skin pinked a little bit; he could feel a faint blush in his cheeks.

“Ah, and he has sharp ears,” she said, while arching one of her eyebrows. “Of course, to gain any real advantage from that, you don’t want to let on that you heard anything. I recommend working to control that blush.”

She sighed.

“Follow me,” she said, even as she strode out of the room, her feet making no sound on the stone below.

He followed, staggering for a moment as a wave of tiredness hit him. It passed as he righted himself.

It wasn’t a long journey, merely taking them down the hall to the intersection where they turned left. They entered the second door on the right.

The room was spacious, with a very wide window letting light into the room behind a series of shutters made of wood and translucent paper. Several couches and chairs, each overstuffed, were scattered about the room. A small nook in one corner had a small table between three chairs, while another section had a couple of couches facing each other. Other comfortable arrangements were placed almost haphazardly.

Compared to the almost perfection he had seen throughout the building so far, it was a striking contrast. It also made the room even more appealing. There was art in this room, too, but it seemed less polished. He would have bet these pieces had more sentimental value, rather than being valued for pure artistry or displayed to demonstrate wealth.

She led him towards two comfortable looking chairs, each almost facing the other. Between the two chairs was a delicate wooden table, set with a steaming pot of tea. The delicate notes of some flowery scent blossomed into the air.

She sat down in one of the chairs and he followed suit by sitting in the other chair.

“I know you are not from around here,” her voice said wryly. “However, in the future, you should only sit when given permission if the other person is your social superior. If you are in someone’s home, you should do the same, even if they have already sat down. In this case, both apply.”

He bolted upright out of the chair, taking a moment to process that this was her home.

Does she mean this suite, or the entire building?

It took a moment to rise, as he had already started to sink into it, and it was absurdly comfortable. It was coated in some kind of ultra soft leather, with thick padding beneath.

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t know,” he said, years of social training preventing a stutter.

“Yes, I know,” she said. “You may sit.”

He sat.

“I am sure all of this is truly overwhelming,” she said. “However, it is my job to learn about and deal with any unusual events. You,” she paused, “certainly count. I have already dealt with the cause of your arrival.”

Based on her inflection, whatever, or whoever, had lead to his arrival had probably not enjoyed the process of being dealt with.

She must have seen him about to ask a question, because she interrupted him.

“Yes, yes, I will tell you about all of that later. You should be aware that many will not appreciate you interrupting them to ask questions, no matter how well intentioned. This is especially true with anyone who is superior to you.”

He held his tongue.

“As I already said,” she fixed him with a slight glare, “we will get to the many questions I am sure you have soon enough. Good job on restraining yourself after correction. However, for the moment, I need you to tell me everything that happened to you. Start with leaving your former location.”

Haltingly Aarick explained what had happened.