Soon after the team of two became a team of three, Edmund left them to finish their dinner and find their room. He’d said that he would return for them the next morning. In the meantime he’d said, they should eat their fill and get some rest, and why not when everything was already paid for. It seemed that the crystal Edmund had given the innkeeper had been quite valuable.

  Asher and Hazel ate together in silence, it felt right after the intensity of the night? Day? Asher wasn’t sure how to reconcile having left his home at night and appeared here in the middle of the day. The food, blissfully, was delicious, the meat was tender and well seasoned, the gravy was rich and the bread soft. The hearty meal had a grounding effect and by the time the meal was done Asher felt much more relaxed.

  After finishing their meal and drinks, the two made their way up to their room, exhaustion motivating them to brave the stairs for the promise of a warm bed. While he was desperate to lay down and sleep, Asher couldn’t help but worry. Edmund hadn’t mentioned if the room would have one or two beds. He prayed silently to any gods that might be listening that there would be two beds and save them all the headache.

  Arriving at their door, Asher took out the key Edmund left to them and opened the door to their room. It felt as though Asher’s heart fell straight into the pitt that had been waiting in his stomach. There was only one bed.

  “Just one huh?” Hazel pointed out as she strolled into the room.

  Asher didn’t know what to say. He stuttered as he stepped into the room.

  “I…. I was hoping for two.” Asher said. “Don’t worry, I’ll sleep on the floor or something.” He began scanning the room for anything soft. Maybe there was a reading desk he could rest at.

  Hazel sighed as she sat down on the end of the bed. “Don’t be ridiculous.” She said, “We’ve known eachother since forever. This bed is massive and I trust you, enough atleast to have come here with you in the first place. We can share a bed without all this.” She gestured in Asher’s general direction.

  Asher supposed all that was true, and he really didn’t want to sleep on the floor if he was being honest, his back and ribs were still achingly sore. Regardless of how reasonable and practical it was, the thought of sharing a bed with Hazel still made his heart race.

  “Uhh, okay. Yes, you're right.” Asher eventually managed to fumble out.

  The two settled into the room over the next hour or so. The accommodation was nice enough. The design was rustic with almost everything in the room being constructed of wood. There was a washroom available as a part of the room and the two took turns making use of the facilities.

  When the time finally came for bed Asher’s heart felt as if it might beat clean out of his chest.. He was terrified, he didn’t know what precisely he was terrified of, he only knew that he was terrified.

  Hazel seemed much less concerned. She had already climbed into the bed and was in the process of trying to get comfortable. Asher, on the other hand, continued to pace about the room, finding one task or another, anything to keep him occupied.

  Another sigh came from the bed. “Just get in Ash.” She ordered. “I’m sorry but it’s very obvious you’re nervous. Just relax, this bed is huge, we won't even be touching. Just get in so we can go to sleep. I am being patient with you now but keep in mind I’m very tired and you’re being ridiculous, you might wanna do what I say this time. “

  “Sorry. Okay.” Asher chose not to say anything more, convinced whatever he said, it would be stupid.

  Asher pulled back the covers and slipped into the bed. It was surprisingly firm and the sheets surprisingly soft. His exhaustion was drawn to the forefront and he realised just how tired he was, his nerves had been keeping him at high alert, but the comforts of a clean warm bed melted away his defenses and replaced them with a deep warmth and foggy awareness.

  Hazel had been right, this bed was huge, big enough that Asher could almost forget that he was sharing a bed. Almost. The smell of Hazel’s hair had already permeated the sheets. A slightly sweet floral scent, she must have used some of the soaps provided by the inn. The smell of flowers and the warmth of another body just beginning to reach him were the feelings that accompanied him as he drifted peacefully to sleep.

  Morning came and blasted early daylight through the room's windows, and squarely into Asher’s eyes. Sleep evaporated just as quickly as it had come last night, Asher dragged himself unhappily out of bed. Looking back, Asher saw that Hazel had moved closer to the middle of the bed, closer to him throughout the night. He felt his face flush and he fled to the washroom, rushing to hide before Hazel woke up.

  After he washed his face in ice cold water, he returned to the room, finding that Hazel had already left the bed. She stood near one of the exterior facing windows brushing her hair while she watched the passersby below.

  “Was that so bad?” She asked, still watching the people outside.

  “Uh, no, it was fine. Sorry for being weird about it”. Asher replied. He was trying his best not to sound embarrassed.

  After managing to get his nerves just barely under control and taking a few minutes to stretch out his aching back, Asher made his way down to the dining hall to grab breakfast. He found Hazel, already eating, when he arrived. To Asher’s surprise Edmund was sitting across from Hazel, gesturing wildly with his hands as he seemingly regaled her with some grand story.

  Asher didn’t know quite what to make of this man, his choppy yellow blonde hair seemed too perfect in its precise kind of messiness. His personality was so big Asher had to think that at least some of it was a performance. At the same time he found he couldn’t help but like Edmund, even if he was a bit flashy, his dramatic ways had their own unique charm.

  Asher grabbed a generous helping of food, bread with butter and assorted jams, and fruit that had been put out by the owners. Asher wondered to himself as he put his plate together if this was the norm for service in this world. Back home this kind of luxury would cost a prince's ransom. How wealthy exactly was Edmund?

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  “Ash! My late rising friend! Glad you were able to join us. I was just telling Hazel here that I really think we should leave. Right away. I’m packed and good to go.”

  “Good morning Edmund, straight to the point I see.” Asher replied, voice still croaky from the night.

  “Seemed to me like you talked about alot more than just us leaving.” Hazel spoke over a mouthful of buttered bread.

  “Well, we had time for some stories, but now that Asher’s here we can start really moving.”

  Asher was shocked by Edmunds eagerness. He could see that Edmund noticed and was revelling in the surprise. Unexpected as Edmund’s urgency was, Asher wasn’t about to turn the man’s support away.

  “Sound’s good to me, Ben’s chances are dropping by the hour. Honestly if I hadn't been so exhausted last night I would have demanded we set out then”

  Edmund stood and cheered, clearly he really was ready to leave right then and there.

  “After breakfast.” Asher instructed, just before he shoved a slice of fruit into his mouth. It looked almost like a regular apple but it tasted completely unfamilar. Strange.

  “Right, yes that makes sense. I will watch you two eat. I already had a meal before leaving the estate.” Edmund replied, and did as he said he would. He sat there and watched them eat in silence, until they were ready to go.

  Asher reflected once more on their interactions with this odd man. It was ridiculous, this guy was ridiculous and their situation was crazy, he could only laugh, and so he did. Asher laughed and laughed, Hazel prodded him demanding to know what was so funny, but it only made Asher laugh all the harder.

  It was mid morning when Asher and the other two arrived at the city gate. Calling it a gate felt inappropriate, The city was surrounded by massive, multi story high walls and the “gate” they stood at now was at least as high as a two story building and wide enough to allow three carts side by side to pass through.

  Edmund had explained that in order to be allowed to leave the city they would need to first be processed by the city guard, now that they were nearing the front of the line Asher was starting to catch glimpses of what being processed actually meant.. More of those tall white haired people with the long pointy ears were manning a booth to the side of the opening itself. They seemed to be waving some object in front of anyone leaving the city before allowing them to move on.

  “Elves.” Edmund spoke under his breath, just loud enough for Asher to hear. “I believe people aren't familiar with them in your world. They run pretty much everything on this side. That crystal they’re waving around in front of people passing through the gates records their appearance, name, and time of entry or exit.”

  “Won’t that be an issue for us? There won't be a record of us entering.” A nervous Asher indicated to himself and hazel.

  “Don’t worry friends. It’s not monitored that closely. It is more of an administrative tool, to help with tracking the foot traffic and the trade coming in and out of the city. With these, the city guard can also review who was coming into town if absolutely required, they say they don't really do that though..” Edmund replied, continuing to speak quietly as they waited.

  The man’s words proved true, they reached the front of the line, had some magical rocks waved in front of them, and just like that, they were ushered through. After passing through the gate Asher and Hazel were granted their first unobstructed view of what the landscapes of this world had to offer. Stepping out from the shadows of the city wall they were greeted by a beautiful sprawling, lush landscape. The features were familiar, there were rolling hills carpeted by grass, flowers and scattered trees.

  While the sights were familiar in the broadest of strokes, the differences could be found in the details, and they made all the difference. The trees were massive, the grass was a stunning, deep emerald green. The flowers were more plentiful and vibrantly colourful than any plant Asher had ever seen. While he was still reeling from the incredible sprawling landscape, Asher was blown away all over again as he glimpsed a group of tiny, sparrow sized, humanoids flying by on pearlescent wings.

  “Is the whole world this beautiful?” Hazel was the first to speak..

  “Does your whole world look the same?” Edmund asked as he strolled forward out of the shadow of the gates.

  “Well no, but this place is magic. I’m not making any assumptions.” Hazel responded, sounding slightly annoyed with Edmund.

  “That’s probably wise.” Edmund replied. To answer your question, no. There are some places in thi;s world that I would recommend you not visit. I would guess our world is likely just as varied as yours in terms of environments, perhaps a little more, because of magic and everything.”

  Edmund led the way assuring the others that he knew where he was going. “You're looking for goblin’s. I can find you goblin’s.” He had said.

  As they walked Asher and Hazel gave Edmund a more detailed account of the attack that had brought them here in the first place. To Asher’s surprise Edmund gave the two his full attention as they spoke about the raid, listening intently and nodding along.

  “That is very strange indeed.” Edmund said when they had finished speaking. “Normally entities cannot move down floor’s. As far as we know at least, perhaps more powerful beings are capable of it. But down here it should be impossible.” Edmund effected a thoughtful ponderous tone as he spoke. “ I wonder what it is that we’re heading into exactly.”

  “So what’s the deal with the elves? Why are they in charge?” Hazel asked, cutting into Edmunds ponderings.

  “That question has a long and bloody history that I doubt would interest you. Let’s just say we are very good at eliminating our enemies.” Edmund replied.

  “We.” Asher blurted out as he caught up to Edmund to examine his features with fresh eyes. He was pretty tall and light haired but the resemblance pretty much ended there, he didn't look all that much like the other elves.

  Edmund basked in the attention, raising his chin to allow Asher a better angle. “I know, I know, I don’t look exactly as you would expect. It’s because I’m only half elf, the other half is human. Like you guys.” He said cheerily. He removed his hat and brushed his blonde hair out of the way revealing that the tips of his ears were slightly pointed, they just didn’t extend backwards like the others did.

  Asher gasped when he saw the ears. “I had no idea.” He said as he kept moving around Edmund looking at him from different angles.

  “Well it’s difficult to spot if you don’t know what you're looking for.” Edmund agreed. His arms were extended to the side now and he was alternating between different poses.

  “So your height is from the Elf side?” Hazel asked.

  “Most likely, though I'm not so tall that it couldn’t have been inherited from the human side, my human relatives aren't short either.” Edmund replied.

  Their conversation continued down winding paths about Edmund’s family and his Elf background. He explained that his family had settled Brightwater before it was a port, right after some kind of magical cataclysm in the area. The effects of the disaster left the area full of both unusual threats, and magical resources. His family became fabulously wealthy on the back of the wealth of the land and sea. He explained that his family were traditionally full blooded humans and that his father had caused a scandal when he had married an Elf woman.

  “So it’s not common for the different types of people to mix?” Hazel asked.

  “Very common, for the “plebeians”. For someone like my father whose family was meant to represent the capacity of humans to compete on the world stage, to then go on to marry and have children with an elf woman. Well it caused a bit of a stir.” Edmund chuckled as he spoke.

  Conversation took a turn for the more mundane, the weather, the food from last night were frequent topics. Asher didn’t mind, the mindless chatter helped pass the time as they hiked the hours away.