Oliver, Shawn, and Jessica arrived in the town as the sun began to set. There were food stalls scattered around, along with one-story buildings with signs like “Pub” and “Doctor.” It reminded Oliver of some sort of wild west setting, except the people were dressed like they were in a fantasy movie.
“Did that person have wings?” Oliver whispered in Shawn’s ear, as they walked by woman who had wings.
"Yes!" Shawn nudged Oliver’s side and nodded towards a group of short men ahead. “Is it me, or do they look like elves?”
“That’s mean,” Jessica said from behind them.
“Check out their ears when we walk by.”
Oliver did just that. They were pointed, much like Faye’s. “You’re right. So this universe is some sort of fantasy land?”
“Maybe. All I know is, something smells good.” Shawn looked at a food stall selling some sort of cooked meat. “Do you think they accept credit cards here?”
“I dare you.” Oliver noticed a group of women staring at Shawn curiously while he continued to stare at the meat stall. With a pang, Oliver realized why. For Shawn wore the standard IT attire of jeans and a graphic tee. In his hands he held his hooded sweatshirt that he had taken off during their long walk. Meanwhile, Oliver wore a white button-up shirt and black trousers. Several men around them wore button-up shirts and trousers. Though Oliver’s had differences, he still blended in. Jessica wore a plain black blouse with a matching black skirt to her ankles. Though most women wore dresses instead of skirts, she still blended in about as well as Oliver. But nobody here wore jeans or graphic tees. It made Shawn quite the sight to behold.
An elf walked up to Shawn, who remained oblivious to the unwanted attention his outfit had drawn. The elf reached his hand out, and touched Shawn’s jeans. Shawn jumped, scowling down at him. “Yes?”
The elf continued rubbing the fabric in awe. “What is this? Hey, Garvin, Dorf, come feel this.”
Two more elves appeared, and grabbed at the fabric. Shawn nudged them away with his leg. “Stop that!”
The elves glared up at him, then scurried away, whispering to each other.
“Your outfit sticks out here. At least put your sweatshirt back on...” Oliver’s voice trailed off as he realized not a single person wore a sweatshirt. The solution would be for Oliver to lend Shawn the jacket in his hands. But not a single person wore a jacket either. Instead, they were going around in cloaks. “Never mind. Let’s hurry up and find someone to ask about Wizard’s Point, and go home.”
“Right.”
The three walked up to a stall, where a woman sold fruit. “Excuse me, miss.” The woman looked up at Jessica, who gave her a forced smile. “Do you know where Wizard’s Point is at?”
The woman stared at them. “You don’t know where Wizard’s Point is?”
“No. We’re new to the area.” Jessica's smile didn't waver, and it looked more painful than friendly.
“Is this some kind of joke?”
“No ma’am,” Shawn said. “If you could just point us in the right direction-”
“Do your eyes not work?” the woman asked. “Can you not see the tall mountain behind me?”
There indeed was a tall mountain behind the woman, looming high above the forest they had walked out of.
“Wow, we’re dumbasses,” Shawn said with an awkward chuckle.
“Clearly.” The woman stared at Shawn’s shirt. “What’s a Sonata Arctica?”
“Thanks for your help,” Oliver said, pulling Shawn away. Jessica trailed behind them.
“At least the place isn’t far from where we came from,” Jessica said, once out of earshot of the woman.
“Except we need to find it in some cave,” Oliver said. “A mountain that big is probably filled with them.”
“Maybe there’s an expert on them around here,” Jessica said. “Someone who won’t make us feel stupid for not knowing things.”
Oliver thought of Jyri and Faye. How stupid he must have made them feel, all day every day. His gut twisted in guilt. If they ever made it back, he’d be sure to apologize.
Shawn’s eyes landed on a winged woman walking in their direction. “Excuse me, miss.”
The woman only eyed him suspiciously as she walked past them.
“People here are rude,” Shawn said.
Oliver agreed, and they began to wander aimlessly. Every so often, they’d ask someone for help. At best they’d be ignored. At worst, they’d make comments on how strange Shawn looked.
“This is no good,” Shawn said. “My clothes stick out to much.”
The corner of Oliver’s mouth twitched. “Maybe you should take them off.”
“Gross!” Jessica crinkled her nose.
Shawn and Oliver held back laughs. “You both blend in better,” Shawn said to Oliver and Jessica. “I should hide somewhere outside of town while you ask around. They might be more willing to help without me.”
“Good idea,” Oliver said. “But it’s getting dark. We should camp out somewhere nearby, and try again in the morning.”
Shawn and Jessica agreed. The group turned around and headed back the way they came. But they didn’t make it far until they spotted two men in uniform headed directly towards them. Oliver swallowed. Though dressed differently than the policemen in his world, these men had the same air of authority.
Shawn grabbed Oliver’s arm, and bolted. Oliver stumbled behind him. He looked over his shoulder, and saw the officers running their way. But Jessica… Where did she go?
“Get back here!” one of the officers shouted.
Luckily Shawn and Oliver had a decent head start. They took a sharp turn down an alleyway, then another turn onto a busier street. Oliver looked over his shoulder. The officers still chased them. There was still no sign of Jessica. Maybe she got away. They pushed past a group of people to turn down another alley. Oliver spotted a door. Shawn tugged the handle. To Oliver’s surprise, it opened. The two slipped inside, and shut the door behind them, locking it for good measure.
The lighting in the room was dim. It looked as though they were in a stock room. Boxes were piled everywhere. There were no windows or lights. Only a faint glow coming through an open doorway leading to another room.
The doorknob rattled. Oliver's heart pounded as he shared a look of terror with Shawn. The two ducked behind boxes. But the lock must have worked, for the rattling stopped. The sound of footsteps faded away.
Oliver let out a breath, leaning against Shawn. “That was close.”
“Yeah.”
“Where do you suppose Jessica went?” Oliver asked. “I didn’t see her at all.”
Shawn was too focused on digging through the nearest box to answer. He pulled something out. “Sweet!”
“Sweet?” Oliver hadn’t heard that exclamation since middle school.
“It’s, like, a backpack. We could use this.”
Oliver took the object from Shawn. It was a large bag made out of a leathery material, with a top flap that was open. There was a buckle to close it securely. Oliver checked inside to find it empty.
“I don’t care what you say. I’m taking this.” Shawn took the pack from Oliver, and shoved his sweatshirt into it. He peeked inside the box again. “Looks like there’s more. You should take one for yourself.”
It would come in handy. Who knew how long they’d be traveling for. What sort of objects they’d pick up along the way. And he was getting tired of carrying his jacket. Oliver grabbed an identical pack, and shoved his jacket in. He buckled it closed before putting his hands through the shoulder straps. Just like a backpack. “Vintage.”
“I know, right?” Shawn dug through another box. “These are all purses. We must be in some sort of bag shop.”
“Any pants in your size?” Oliver asked.
“No, but there’s hats!” Shawn grabbed what looked like a newsboy cap and put it on Oliver’s head. “Cute.”
Oliver yanked it off. “There could be lice on it!”
“A bit of lice never hurt anyone.” Shawn pulled his hair tie out, letting his beautiful locks fall to his shoulders. “We need to disguise ourselves in case we run into those officers again.”
It was a good point. Oliver reluctantly put the cap back on. “What about your clothes? Those are the biggest offender.”
Shawn looked down at his shirt. Then, took it off. Before Oliver had a chance to check him out, Shawn turned his shirt inside out, and put it back on. “There. Normal shirt. At first glance, anyway.”
“What about your jeans?”
“It’s getting dark soon. They’ll be less noticeable then.”
Off in the distance, Oliver heard a door open. There was a tingling sound as it happened, as though there was a bell above the door. It had a charming effect.
The voices that followed, however, were not so charming.
“Did you see two men come in here?” a commanding voice asked.
“No,” a woman’s voice said.
“Can we check your back room?” a different commanding voice asked.
Shawn and Oliver hurried to the door, unlocked it, and stepped out quietly. They casually walked in the direction they had come from, doing their best to look as though they weren’t running from the law.
“Forget finding out about caves here,” Oliver said. “We need to leave before those cops get to us.”
“I’m not arguing with that. Let’s go. We can find some other town tomorrow. Hopefully with nicer people.”24Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡraHPaAx85T
and then Add to home screen.