As they walked back out the way they came, Dana couldn’t help but ask… “What as that about knowing the President longer than she’s been alive?”

Meira laughed softly, the sound clear as a bell in the quiet night. “The President is a phoenix… as you can guess at some points in her history her life… resets… sometimes peacefully, sometimes not so much. When she emerges anew to her new existence she doesn’t always carry over the memories of her past… sometimes part comes back to her and sometimes it doesn’t.” She smiles a little wistfully. “It can be difficult meeting a good friend and realizing they have no concept of who you are anymore. I’ve known Eterna through three such rebirths… even she doesn’t know how many she has had during her time… she doesn’t even know if she has a finite number left.”

Her voice trailed off a little, almost like she didn’t like where her thoughts were leading her. The silence followed them out under the gates of the school. Dana didn’t feel like intruding on whatever train of thought she was going through so just fell in step behind her. She led him to… what in his old world might be an out-of-the-way motel… a two-story somewhat squat building that ran along the school’s outside wall before another long section ran perpendicular to it, forming the whole building into a large L. A large sign outside proclaimed it to be ‘Exalted Lodgings’.

“We’re here… Wilben started this place with his wife quite some time ago now. He’s kept it running since she passed but sometimes I wonder if his heart is still in it.” *They passed through the door into a small office-like area, a bell above the door announcing their arrival. A wrinkled gnome grinned from behind a pair of glasses at seeing them.

“Well… we don’t often get customers this late.” He hopped off his stool and came over to Dana, nudging him with an elbow. “Or at all if you know what I mean.” The short man looked up, clear blue eyes absolutely covered in the gray hair of his eyebrows… actually, between his long hair, mustache, and beard, there was little of his face not covered in some sort of hair. “So what can I do for a fine-looking couple like you… looking for some wedding night fun?”

“Wilben, it’s Meira… Eterna was hoping you could put our new professor up here until we find him a better place. She’ll have the funds brought over in the morning.”

“Oh, Meira!” The gnome’s eyes refocused on her, his old face splitting into a toothy grin. “How is the old firebird these days? She doesn’t visit near as much as she used to.”

“She’s busy running the school. I’m sure she will stop by when she gets the chance. This is Dana Wilde, he’s new in town and in need of a place to stay.”

“Pleasure to meet you Wilben.” Dana bent down to shake the gnome’s hand… it was caroused and hard from a life of working. He could tell the old man was no stranger to knuckling down and getting things done. “I hope we can become good friends.”

“Oh he’s a polite one… don’t let this one get away, Meira. He won’t last a week when those young girls get hold of him.” The gnome shuffled back behind the small counter, grabbing a key and returning, holding it out to Dana. “You’re right above the office here… yes, it’s a walk up but it’s our nicest room, and the view of the street as people go by is lovely to people watch.”

“Thanks, old timer. Though to me I still feel like it’s mid-afternoon… even though it’s the middle of the night.” Dana took the key, adding it to the rest of the luggage he was carrying around.

Meira laughed at that. “Portal lag… you’ll adjust. Get yourself settled and take a look around the town, grab a drink, and get a feel for the place.” She stepped up to him and put a hand on his shoulder, looking him dead in the eyes with a gaze that made his breath catch. “But don’t you dare overdo it and be late for your first day. I vouched for you and I can be a little cranky when anything makes me look bad. For now… I need some rest. Stumbling on you saved me a lot of time but I was still searching for a while.”

Dana couldn’t help but grin, there was something in those eyes… he wasn’t sure what quite yet but that connection he felt earlier kept nagging at him. “I won’t be late… I doubt I could sleep much after today anyway.”

She grunted, turning around to leave him to get settled but he called out to her once more before she could get far. “I never got the chance to ask… what do you do in the school when not wrangling wayward teachers?”

“Oh… I teach too during the year. Archery mostly, some survival courses.” She called over her shoulder, the bell over the door ringing once more as she left out into the night. “Come by sometime, I’ll bet a city boy like you could stand to learn a thing or two about how the real world works.” With that, she walked off into the shadows of the street.

“Well… she always did know how to make an exit.” Wilben scoffed as he went back to his chair.

* * *

Dana went up to his room, dropping off his suitcases. The room was already bigger than the apartment that he left behind in the city. The north wall was filled with a large bay window that looked out over the street. Unpacking his suitcase into the drawers and leaving the heavier of the two in the closet he took a look at himself in the mirror. Considering how much his world had changed in the last twenty-four hours he was almost surprised to see the same person staring back at him. He patted his chest lightly, feeling the familiar weight there, and closed his eyes asking whatever forces were out there to guide him along the right way.

It was an old ritual, reminding him that the emerald scarab around his neck was still with him. He wasn’t so superstitious that he would never go anywhere without the simple totem but he always felt better when it was with him. He brushed his fingers through his brown hair, making sure he looked okay for going out in public, and headed back down to the street.

Looking around outside the hotel he thought, not for the first time, how normal the buildings around him looked. If you never ran into any of the residents you would never even think anything was different about the small town. He followed the sounds of celebration to one of the local taverns filled with people. The crowd was an eclectic mix of people… many humanoids mixed among creatures that would never pass as human even to a casual viewer. The ladies also vastly outnumbered the few men seen in the bar which was no surprise figuring the number of students at the school likely outnumbered the entire town supporting it.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Walking through the crowd was one shock after the next as Dana came face to face with all sorts of creatures everyone in the rest of the world thought mere fiction. Animal hybrids of various types danced next to women whose hair was fire… or snakes… or even some sort of metal shards. Minotaurs, ogres, and giants towered over the dance floor, moving side to side in a gentle sway to the music. The music was also strange… the throbbing beat was familiar to him from any club he might have visited back home but included sounds of instruments he had never heard before.

Stepping up to the bar at the back of the loud club he found a cute dark-haired girl with several tentacles moving around the bar behind and in front of her, mixing various drinks almost without her even paying attention.

“What can I get ya, cutie?” She said, leaning over to where he stopped. “Don’t get a lot that look like you around here.”

“Um… thanks… I’ll take a beer. Whatever you have on tap.” He turned to look over the room again as the girl brought him a drink. He thanked her quickly raising his glass to her with a smile. He could almost feel the very energy of the place flowing into him as he leaned against the bar. He shook his head slowly, once again simply dumbstruck by the circumstance he had ended up in.

“Looks like we got ourselves a new arrival…” A voice sounded next to him. He turned towards the speaker and found a gorgeous woman, dark brown hair framing her smiling face as she approached. A tight green dress covered in sequins shone in the flashing lights of the club and she moved with a smooth, easy grace that made it difficult to take your eyes off her. “What brings you to our little stretch of paradise?”

“New job actually… teaching at the school.” He took a sip at the beer he had been handed… a sweet mixture of honey and other flavors flowed down his throat, making him feel warm inside. “Just arrived today as a matter of fact.”

“Fascinating…” She moved closer to him and he could feel something wrapping around his legs. Looking down he only then noticed the large coils of a snake twisting around his limbs. Looking closer he could see where the woman’s sequined top almost seamlessly transitioned into the green scales of her lower body. They weren’t uncomfortable or trying to squeeze him in any way but were an interesting way to keep whomever you were speaking to from leaving too quickly.

“A lamia I am guessing?” He took another sip of his beer, putting the mug down on the bar. Her face broke into a look of joy at his words, she moved closer her tongue flicking out, tasting the air near him.

“Observant… for a human.” Her eyes widened at the realization. “So the rumors of opening up the island are true… tell me tasty… looking for some company?” Her body pressed close to him, the coils tightening snugly around his body.

“I wasn’t… not really…” Dana grinned at her as she got closer… her perfume filling his nostrils. “But I’m always up for making new friends, especially since I’m going to be here awhile.”

“Oh, we can be very friendly here…” She pressed her chest against him, arms circling his waist. “I’m Athise… its a pleasure.” She let the word trail off to emphasize it… making her insinuation clear.

“I’m Dana… Dana Wilde.” He said, honestly intrigued by the possibility. His fascination with cryptids and other creatures had always included the stories of them mating with humans and how that would work. His eyes ran down her body, past a pair of perky breasts down past her waist to where her form became more and more snake-like like and he found himself absently wondering… how would that even work.

“I could show you, Mr. Wilde… happily…” the lamia responded, only then did Dana realize he had unintentionally been thinking out loud. “No pressure of course… just two adults, sharing a good time…”

“I should… if only in the name of science…” Dana licked his lips, suddenly dry as this woman practically climbed all over him. Back home he was no stranger to female attention but this went beyond anything he had experienced before. Was this what Wilben had been talking about with the girls getting hold of him?

“Ahh… experimenting can be very fun… let’s go see if you live up to your name then… Mr Wilde.” He was moving towards the exit, being carried by the woman’s coils as they made their way back out into the night she leaned in to take his lips in hers. He found himself responding in kind, the taste of her lips intoxicating, his head spinning with how fast things were happening. It seemed he hardly blinked before they were back in his small room and she was pressing her breasts into his hands. They felt soft, just like a human woman’s… and he could even feel them perk up at the attention he was giving them, even through her dress. Athise let out a small moan as she leaned in to kiss him again, falling back onto the bed with him on top of her.

He kissed her deeply, her tongue shockingly dexterous as it fenced with his as they went back and forth. He pulled back, looking into the eyes of the beautiful woman with him, and stopped dead in his tracks as he saw a tear running down her cheek.

“Athise?”

“No… don’t stop… I’ll be okay… take me… please…” Her voice trailed off into almost a whisper as she looked up at him, another tear escaping her eye. “I need to forget at least for tonight…”

He reached down to touch her face softly, hugging her torso to him. That simple movement seemed to break something in her, as she broke down weeping into his shoulder. Her arms clutching at him and holding her tight against her.

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry… I… maybe I can’t do this…” she kept saying against his shoulder as she cried but he just held her silently. Letting her feel what she needed to before asking her anything more. Some minutes passed as she slowly came back to herself, recovering her composure. She pulled away from his embrace, wiping tears from her red eyes.

“Are you alright Athise?” He asked, concern obvious in his voice, his heart going out to her.

“Yes… of course… I just… it’s been so long since anyone has touched me… not since… not since my husband died. It was a year ago tonight, I was going to drink until things felt better. I thought I was ready to move on and a human being here seemed the perfect opportunity.” She looked at him sheepishly, fearing the judgment of her actions. “I didn’t mean to lead you on… you really are attractive… I guess I just am not as ready as I thought… Hell, my daughter goes to Spiritwood… she could be in your class.” She burst into laughter, dry and low. “There’s a conversation I don’t need having.”

“You don’t have to do anything you aren’t ready for Athise… promise. While, of course, I am interested in learning more about the beautiful creature before me… doing so physically is only a small part of what I hope to know here.” He gave her another warm hug, kissing her, this time on the forehead.

“Thank you for understanding Mr. Wilde… Dana, if I may.” She smiled, her cheeks still stained with makeup where it ran down her face. “Maybe thinking humans are so easy to manipulate and take what you want is a little too simple a view to have.”

“I’ll gladly prove to you how much more there is to me, given the chance.”

“I think I might like that.” She smiled, reaching out to touch his cheek softly. Dana turned over, leaning back in the bed next to her against her arm.

“So then… tell me about you Athise… who was your husband?”

They sat there in bed and talked for some hours before falling asleep. Dana lay wrapped in her coils as they hugged him protectively until morning.