Chuck was counting his blessings that he hadn’t been eaten or thrown in jail yet. He wasn’t too surprised that his plan to get into the city hadn’t worked - it was a long shot to get in unnoticed. He didn’t realize there was an entry fee and of course didn’t have any of this world’s currency. Luckily there were other races besides goblins but the others weren’t much better. The guards were both huge - a ferocious looking lion like beast person and what he could only describe as an orc with a pig like face and large tusks. They both had leather armor and spears. He hadn’t really noticed it before with the goblins but neither of the guards wore shoes or pants. They had long knee length tunics under the armor and shin guards. The wagon held a hawk like bird person with feathers covering its body and a sharp beak. It had short vestigial wings for arms with four digits at the ends that it used for grasping.
He was captured, stripped of his belongings, and trotted through the city to a large brick building. On the way he noticed several races walking around in brightly colored knee length tunics but they were all scary looking to his eyes. There were no humans, dwarves, or elves. There were also no cute cat girls that he was hoping to see. There were plenty of beast people including cats but they all had animal faces and he would describe them as more werewolf and werecat than anything else. The wolf and dog like variety were larger with bigger muscles and fluffier tails while the cat variety were slightly smaller and sleeker with skinny, longer tails - all equally terrifying with sharp fangs and claws. He even saw a couple bear people who were as large or larger than the orcs. There were more various bird people, different types of lizard people, goblins, orcs, and other races. The goblins were the only ones shorter than he was while the avians seemed to be about his height or slightly taller. The rest towered over him. There were even a few families with children running around. Some of the children ran on all fours and weren’t clothed. He had to admit he wouldn’t mind petting the little fluff balls if he wasn’t afraid their parents would rip him to pieces. Otherwise the denizens were all bipedal and the town itself seemed pretty normal with shops and street vendors. He had pulled the hood back over his head before leaving so he didn’t get too many looks.
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Chuck was made to sit in front of a fearsome looking lizard person with a mouth full of razor sharp teeth, a forked snake like tongue, and a thick scaled tail. It was as big as the lion beast person and was wearing chain mail armor. His seat was uncomfortable large and left his feet dangling. The sturdy wooden desk was cluttered with scrolls and Chuck’s possessions. Shelves lined the walls filled with odds and ends and a large sword rested in the corner. He seemed to be the one in charge and Chuck was starting to get even more nervous. He watched the huge lizard fiddle with his knife and the contents of his backpack. Chuck showed him the water bottle but they still couldn’t understand each other. Soon the lion person left and has was alone with the boss.
After about 30 minutes of uncomfortable silence, with the boss glaring at him and Chuck wondering what was going on, the lion person came back with a bespectacled goblin in tow then nodded to the captain before leaving. The goblin seemed surprised to see Chuck and said something while handing over a wooden box to the boss. The boss opened it and took out a silver necklace with a large circular medallion attached to it. The medallion was also silver with markings covering it except for a small area in the middle that had vertical openings. It reminded him of a speaker grill. It was only about an inch thick so he didn’t know what could possibly be inside it. The boss handed it over and gestured for him to put it on. Chuck was hesitant at first but figured if they wanted him dead there were easier methods than a cursed necklace.
It was lighter than he was expecting and he jolted in surprise as it glowed briefly and adjusted itself automatically to fit him. “Now then, can you understand me?” the boss spoke then a second later a gender neutral voice came out of the medallion in English. “Um, yes.” Chuck replied studying the necklace in awe. After he spoke the other world’s language came out of the medallion, presumably relaying his words. He didn’t know what was powering it or how it worked but it was amazing. “Good, I suppose we should start with introductions. I am guard captain Nass. Gar is the name of the guard who escorted you here and this is Nox from the alchemy guild.” Nass said gesturing to the goblin who bowed politely. “Nice to meet you, my name is Chuck Miller but you can just call me Chuck.”