“I’m lost,” you say, your voice hoarse from disuse, “and looking for a place to stay.”

The man stares at you suspiciously for a moment before letting out a sigh and sheathing his sword.

“I suppose you look harmless enough.” He says. “The name’s Tyrin. Tyrin Hearthflag. Welcome to Hartpool.”

You smile at his words and introduce yourself as Tyrin opens the gate and gestures for you to enter.

“I don’t suppose you have any money to pay for a room for the night?”

You shake your head and Tyrin let’s out another sigh.

“My mother won’t be pleased.” He says. Upon seeing your questioning look he elaborates. “She owns the inn. She’s also the town’s mayor.”

You give a nod as you follow Tyrin as he leads into the town and you give a start as a blue box appears in front of you.

Chapter 2: A New Future.

Rest at the inn for the night.

You don’t think you’ll ever be able to get used to the abruptness of these boxes.

You continue following Tyrin through the two, trying to look around despite the darkness. The buildings seem to be primarily made of wood, the largest of which is only three stories high and the buildings eventually break away to the sight of a large lake that glimmers in the moonlight.

Eventually you come to a stop in front of a two story building and Tyrin gives you a once over.

“Wait here,” he says, “my mother definitely won’t be happy if you track dirt through her inn.”

You listen to his words and wait outside as Tyrin enters the building.

A few minutes later he re-emerges with a woman in tow.

The woman’s fiery red hair makes her skin seem paler than it actually is and you can’t help but notice a commanding presence about her.

The woman gives you a once over, taking in your disheveled appearance before she speaks.

“I’m a little less trusting than my son,” she begins, “I hope you don’t mind if I cast some precautionary spells on you?”

Curious at what she means by spell, you give her a hesitant nod, not seeing many options before you.

“Magia Deprehensio.” She says as she waves one of her hands about in a practiced, but complicated motion.

Seconds awkwardly tick away as she stares at you with nothing seeming to happen before she gives a nod and begins waving her hands again.

“Personam Leporem.”

“Mother!” You hear Tyrin say as he gasps.

You don’t know what’s going on, but it should be okay. This woman is someone you can trust after all.

“I’m Olsa Hearthflag.” She says, and you can’t help but feel like you’re good friends who’ve known each other for a long time. “You look like you’ve had a difficult journey, why don’t you get yourself cleaned up a bit before coming inside. You can tell me all about your journey over a hot bowl of stew?”

Her words are quite reasonable and you find yourself agreeing to them almost immediately.

After listening to some brief instructions from Tyrin, who gives you a wry shake of his head and mouths sorry, you go around the building and into the little shack in the back to wash up. The soap is rough, but it feels good to wash off the grime of your travels, even despite the cold water. You stare reluctantly at your tattered rags before resignedly putting them back on and heading into the inn.

Upon entering you see several tables spaced throughout the room. Coupled with the fire crackling at the back of the room, the building has an almost rustic, antique vibe to it. Olsa and Tyrin are seated at one of the tables, a bowl of steaming stew sitting in front of the empty seats and you head over to join them.

Sliding into the seat, Olsa smiles at you and gestures for you to eat and you relax in the warm atmosphere, more at ease than you’ve been in weeks.

You pick up a spoon and begin to eat, the broth wonderfully warm on your tongue and soon you’re lost in the wonderful taste of the first proper meal you’ve had since coming to this world.

It feels like only moments later that you’re done and you lick your lips as you stare longingly at the bowl.

You know it’s impolite to ask for seconds, but then again, it should be fine since you’re friends.

As you open your mouth to speak Olsa lets out a laugh.

“Tyrin,” she says with a smile, “be a dear and fetch another bowl? Our guest looks particularly starved.”

Tyrin grumbles under his breath as he gets to his feet and picks up your bowl before leaving the room.

“So tell me,” says Olsa as she leans forward on the table, “what brings you to Hartpool?”

A part of you says you shouldn’t tell her everything. After all, it’s almost too unbelievable, but then again, she’s your friend, right? You shouldn’t lie to her.

You hear yourself begin to speak, finding yourself telling her more than you thought you would. About the Voice, about Derrick, and about the blue boxes that seem to be guiding you along.

At some point Tyrin walks back in with another bowl of stew and you finish your story between mouthfuls of the creamy broth.

“Well,” says Olsa some while after you’ve finished, “that’s quite the story.”

“Isn’t that just like–” Begins Tyrin, and Olsa nods.

“That’s right.” She says. “It’s similar to them. It even sounds like he arrived in the same cavern as them.”

“As who?” You ask curious.

Olsa smiles softly at you before speaking. “You’re not the first person from another world to come through here.” She says. “There was a group of six that arrived in the village a few years ago. But they’ve long since left.”

“But nobody recently?” You ask disappointedly. You were hoping you’d be able to find somebody else you knew that was summoned to this world.

“There was.” Says Olsa and you perk up at her words. “A girl by the name of Alice McKay I believe. She claimed to have also been summoned to this world, although instead of ending up in a cave she said she arrived on the beach to the north.”

“And where is she now?” You ask eagerly despite not recognizing the name. Somehow you feel the need to find someone else from your own world.

“She headed south,” says Tyrin, speaking up for the first time in a while, “a few days ago. She said she was headed to a city to the south. Something about seeing what the world has to offer.”

He shakes his head. “Foolishness if you ask me.”

“Oh?” Says Olsa as she raises an eyebrow at her son. “And just who was it that set off on an equally foolish journey five years ago?”

You watch as Tyrin looks down at the table abashed before Olsa returns her attention to you.

“You can go after her of course.” Says Olsa as she reads the desire on your face. “But it might be best if you leave such things until the morning. The roads can be dangerous at night.

You nod in agreement. You still have no idea how you survived in the forest for all those weeks.

“You can have a bed here for the night,” she continues, “but if you wish to stay any longer I’m afraid you’ll have to earn your keep. Tyrin, if you’d show our guest to an empty room?”

Tyrin gets to his feet and you follow suit. You wish Olsa a goodnight and part with a smile on your face as you head upstairs.

As you reach the second floor and Tyrin leads you to one of the doors, he stops and turns to you, a serious expression on his face.

“What’s wrong?” You ask as you notice the intensity of his gaze.

“I’m sorry.” He says, lowering his head in apology.

“For what?” You ask quizzically. You can’t think of anything he’s done that needs apologizing for. The two of them have been more than kind enough to you and you already know you have no real way to repay them.

“For my mother.” Says Tyrin as he shakes his head. “She doesn’t mean any harm, she just wants to protect the town.”

Seeing your confused look, Tyrin shakes his head again. “You’ll see in the morning.” He says as he begins walking back towards the stairs. “I’ve got to get back to the wall. Have a good night.”

You echo his sentiment, still a bit baffled at his attitude, but tired enough to put it off until tomorrow. You enter the room, navigating to the bed against the far wall under the moonlight that flutters in through the window.

Laying down, you let out a sigh as your head sinks into the pillow and you quickly drift off into a dreamless sleep, feeling safe for the first time in this new world.

Blinking your eyes open as you stare at the blue box above you, you feel disoriented as the queerness of the previous night’s conversation hits you. Just why did you tell Olsa everything? Where you came from, your powers, the blue boxes? Why did you feel like you could trust her? You don’t know her, she’s a stranger. Why did you feel safe enough to divulge everything? What did she do?

You stare up at the blue box, absently reading it over as you try to figure out just what happened to you.

Suddenly you bolt upright as you process the words on the box.

Chapter 2: A New Future.

Arrive at the Capital.

Reward: Second Skill unlocked.

What do you do now?

1) Confront Olsa about what happened last night.

2) Ask Tyrin to clarify what happened.

3) Leave Hartpool and chase after Alice McKay.

4) Leave for the Capital to get your second skill.