Things happened fast after that.

The wizard disappeared and Bluey quickly reappeared in his place. He unties me and shoves a bundle of clothes into my arms and I don’t need to think twice for me to get dressed quickly. All I want is to get out of here as fast as possible and so in no time at all, I’m dressed in underwear, pants, boots, a shirt, a belt and a long coat to complete my ensemble. Bluey hands me a rucksack and I put it over my shoulder. I look down at myself. I look very Lord of the Rings right now with the exception of a sword and maybe a magical ring. I look back up at Blu…

BLACK

***************************************************************************************************************

I wake up flying ... before I hit the ground with no subtlety.

Ouch.

I turn back to see where I came flying from only to see the back of Bluey as he closes a very big stone door to a very tall stone tower that towers in front of me. The last time I’ll ever see him, I hope.

I struggle, but eventually manage to get to my feet after the third time of waking up confused about where I am and finding myself laid out over a hard stone surface.

I don’t think about anything. I just start backing away, trying to get as far away from the tower as fast as I can and before I know it, I’m running. I don’t stop to look at anything around me. I just run through a blur, hard, and as fast as I can.

I don’t know how much time passed or how fast I ran or how far I got away but it doesn’t take long until I can’t keep running any more. I turn a corner and hide in what looks like a safe enough place, a dark sort of street, filled up with what looks like some sort of rubbish. I crash to the ground trying to catch my breath, but as I do, it all starts flooding in.

The unfamiliar sights, the unfamiliar sounds, the unfamiliar smells and the unfamiliar taste in the air and now, I can’t catch my breath. My heart is hammering in my chest and the blood is pumping in my ears. My mouth is dry and I’m covered in sweat, I feel dizzy, I’m hot and I can’t stop shaking…

BLACK

***************************************************************************************************************

For the fourth time, I woke up confused and lying on a hard stone surface. This is getting to be too much, but this time is different. I’m feeling lost and I’m still scared but the sheer overwhelming terror component has subsided. I’ve managed to get a good enough grip on myself now.

I take a moment to assess my surroundings. I’m in an alley, or something close enough like it, and I seem to have hidden myself in a stacked up pile made up of what looks close enough to be old wooden crates.

The ground is hard but it’s not stone or dirt, it’s some sort of asphalt. It's different somehow though, like it's been melted into the ground instead of layered on top of it. I feel hot and I see up above me there’s a sun glaring down. It’s bright, brighter than what it should be, and I have to use my fingers to block it out. As I do, I notice that the sky is blue with some white fluffy clouds drifting across it.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Thank God. Something is the same.

I put my hand against my chest as I exhale and that’s where I feel the strap that causes me to look down at myself. I see that I’m still dressed in whatever Bluey dressed me in, albeit a bit dirty now from lying in a pile of rubbish in the middle of an alley, however I’ve still got the bag he gave me slung across my shoulder.

No point leaving it alone. Let’s have a look at what the lives of two hundred people have bought me in this world.

I open the bag and take out what’s inside and lay it all in my lap, one by one. First off is the food; starting with a loaf of some sort of bread followed by some sort of smoked meat still on the bone. Then there’s what smells like some cheese and some other weird looking things which I can only assume are this world's versions of fruit and vegetables. Yep, there’s the blue potato.

There are only two things left in the bag; a small pouch held together by a drawstring with what I think I already know is inside and also what I suppose is a waterskin. I open up the pouch and see what I expected. A collection of shiny coins, made up of a green/gold type of metal with weird symbols on one side, which I can only take to be some sort of text, and on the other, some sort of symbol that looks reasonably close to a castle. I take them out and count 30 pieces.

The wizard wasn’t one to boast, he literally only gave me clothes, food and money just like he said he would.

I put it all away and pause to collect myself for the moment.

I know what I have to do. I don’t want to but I have no choice. I can’t hide here in this rubbish pile forever and I don’t even know if it’s safe. Hell! I don’t have a clue what safe even resembles here. I take a good few breaths. In. Out. In. Out. Alright.

I stand up and I cautiously put one foot in front of the other and make my way out of the alley.

Looking around, I take in my surroundings and it only further cements that this is a fantasy world. The buildings are made of wood and stone that all look medieval. Like a medieval park or what you might see on the History Channel. Except this isn’t a TV set, this is an actual city.

I can’t see above the buildings but I can feel the breadth from beyond them that only big cities have. I haven’t seen anybody yet or maybe I did while I was running from the tower but the streets are eerily empty. I see a part of town up ahead that looks like the highest point around here. Knowing it's better to get to high ground so I can see what my surroundings are like, I start walking over.

As I climb my way up I can hear something, just barely, but it's getting louder as I make my way up higher and it seems kind of familiar to me but I can’t place what it is. I just keep walking however. Let's solve one mystery at a time.

It takes some time but I make my way to the top of the hill eventually, where I am greeted with my first panoramic view I have in this world.

Wow.

It’s a city. It’s a BIG city. Sure, it looks like it’s built in the style of an old European capital but it's vast and three things stick out to me clear as day. Looking to my left over a wide expanse of buildings I can see the ocean. And it’s blue. Thank God. One more thing that I can get my head around here.

Next is the tower. I can see it. You can’t miss it. While every other building is approximately around the same size, the tower is not. The tower is practically a skyscraper that looms over the city made out of a dark grey stone, watching down on everything like some sort of foreboding monstrous giant.

That’s where I came from, and I’m never going back.

The last thing I notice is the source of the noise I recognised earlier and looking down, I realise why I did.

People.

A whole lot of people are all condensed into what looks like what might be the city’s centre. As the sound of music and chatter makes its way over to me from faraway I realise it’s a parade, or maybe a festival. The city is throwing a parade or festival and the whole city has turned up it seems. That has to be why the streets are empty.

I take a moment to work through what I’ve seen before I come back to the present, and to my next step.

I’ve seen where I am now, and now, I have to know who I’m with.

The Sun’s high in the sky. It must be around noon so I’ve still got plenty of time to investigate my surroundings before figuring out what to do when night falls. Does night fall here? There’s a Sun so there should be. Only time will tell I guess.

I look over to the parade and I sort of make a plan to make my way through the streets to get there. The only two people I’ve met in this world are a sick and psychotic wizard and a cold silent blue man. Surely at least the people outside the tower are different from them.

ready myself before I start making my way down the hill. Let’s see how this goes.

I hope I don’t stand out too much.