Once our trolleys entered the Eastern District, the surprises here never ended. Everywhere our eyes could see, the city and its citizens were a mishmash of ancient, medieval, and modern civilizations. Again, not a single grown-up was found among them. It was like a school carnival for United Nations Day.
There were Romans, Medieval and Colonial Europeans, Mayans, Africans, and Asians, though there were others that I couldn’t recognize. Many of the passengers stood up to take a closer look out the windows. On the stone-paved street, we saw a Roman wearing sneakers, an armored knight riding a bike, and a girl dressed like from the Victorian Era and was talking to a cell phone.
“Guys, look,” Katie gasped. “They got cell phones. A lot of them got cell phones.” From what she said, my mind told me to look up. I was amazed they had modern technologies here as well. Utility poles, streetlights, satellite dishes, and radio towers; they even had cars on the street, but there was something bizarre about them. The cars looked like they belonged to the Era Thirties to Fifties, types that any great-grandparents would drive. Moreover, none of them belched smoke — electric cars, maybe?
Everything was so surreal that we all glanced at Andromeda to explain all this, but she and Brock were still ogling at each other. Again, they completely ignored us. Once again, the passengers were annoyed to watch.
“Ahem,” Alex said with a gruff voice.
Andromeda snapped back on his feet. She explained that the braves who had summoned from different timelines brought their knowledge and technologies. That was why everything in this city blended old and new.
If people had been living here for a long time, what happened to the Game of Heavens and Earth? Had anyone ever reached the finish line yet? My mind was throbbing with more questions.
Eventually, we were at the Eastern District’s forum. Many of the passengers stuck their heads out the windows, looking at more people wearing clothes from different timelines as they walked on the streets like it was a typical day. We passed several cafes not far from us, serving many diverse customers. I could smell the aroma of coffee and tea whiffing through the windows.
We found stores that sold electronics, some sold handmade crafts, and others were small-time factories. There was also a shop for scribes making handwritten documents. Something that no longer existed in our world. On the sidewalk, we could see the flow of commerce: people going shopping or browsing; wagons and early-versioned trucks were loading and unloading their goods; peddlers sat on blankets selling trinkets, gems, potions, and other strange commodities.
“Extra, extra, read all about it!” a newsboy cried. “The Black Sun Guild strikes again!”
To my amazement, I’d never seen a newsboy except in the old movies as people flocked to buy newspapers from him. That was one of many bizarre yet wondrous things for us to discover in this city that we couldn’t help ourselves not to blink. Again, we turned to Andromeda, hoping to explain all this. However, she got distracted when people on the streets were waving and cheering at her. When she greeted them back from the window, her mind shifted away from the passengers.
“She must be a celebrity in this city,” I muttered. At this point, we couldn’t ask her anything. Even Brock tried several times to call her attention back to him.
Eventually, we arrived at the trolley station that was converted from a Roman building. A crowd gathered around to meet Andromeda at the doorway. Wanting to get away from the excitement, we got off from the other side, only to be welcomed by a small group of people wearing hooded robes. They were all from the Crimson Shadow Guild. Hassan was their leader, a shady-looking person; dressed in black clothes, he had pointed brows, devilish dark eyes, and a beak-like nose.
Once everyone got out of the station, the jock found Li walking from his left and was surprised to see someone twice bigger than him. All this time, he was flirting with Andromeda; he never noticed the humongous monk in front of him.
“Hey there, Chan.”
“My name is not Chan,” Li replied in a polite tone. “I’m Li Bao.”
Brock gazed at the Shaolin in awe. Interestingly, Li’s size and skills would make him a great football player. Katie noticed this and moved the monk away from him.
Hassan guided us to a booth where we traded anything from our pockets for new ones. A cell phone for a new cell phone, a watch for a new watch. Even the local money here could be exchanged for the same amount we had. The untradeable items, by the way, were sold to the Crimson Shadows. I was stunned that Hassan bought a measly pen cap from one of the newcomers.
Katie was reluctant to hand over her cell phone. She had photos of her family and friends and the recent shots she took at the Gate Ring.
“No worries,” Hassan said, “we’ll transfer all your data and photos to your new phone. Our devices here are the only thing that can connect to our free Wi-Fi.”
“Free Wi-Fi? Sweet!” Katie immediately handed him her phone.
What I got in my pocket was fifteen dollars and five brochures that I never bothered to read. I hadn’t had a phone since it broke yesterday. However, Hassan still gave me one. It had a silver casing like the rest, and my fifteen dollars got exchanged for chaffs. I didn’t know why he wanted the brochures, but he paid me eighteen chaffs for them.
“Is this money?” Brock examined his chaffs. Instead of paper money or metal coins, they were plastic-covered cardboard discs, imprinted with a colorful banknote.
“Of course,” Hassan answered.
“Don’t you have paper money here?” Katie asked.
“We don’t.” He shook his head. “We never knew how to make them last longer like in your world. Precious metals here are hard to come by, but thanks to those who arrived from the Nineties, chaffs became a popular choice for currency in this world.” He handed each of us a card key. “Right across the street, there’s a Carthaginian apartment with a blue roof. That’s where you’re going to live for free in three months. After that, there will be three hundred chaffs of rent, plus the utilities.”
It sounded like a good deal. Three months was enough time for us to find work or a better home.
“Why’re you doing this?” Wilt inquired.
“Pardon?”
“Why are you giving us gifts and money for our stuff?”
“Especially the useless junk,” Katie added.
She and Wilt were right. The Crimson Shadows’ exchanges were too generous. I wasn’t sure why they bought scraps from our pockets. They even gave me a cell phone for free.
“Oh,” Hassan explained. “We, the Crimson Shadows, are the largest information guild in this world. We’re the ones helping newcomers like you to adjust in this world every year, trading whatever you bring from ours in return. That’s how we got our advanced technologies here. Also —” he waved the brochures that he bought from me. “We need to know the current events happening back on Earth. Think of it as a mutual benefit for both of us.”
“That makes sense,” Wilt swallowed.
“Wait a minute,” Alex interjected. “You mentioned that others arrive here every year.”
“Yes?”
“What happened to the Game of Heavens and Earth?”
“Yeah,” Katie said. “And how long has everyone been living here?”
Not wanting to spoil the surprise, Hassan revealed that Andromeda’s king would be the one who explained it to us, and he would take us there once we learned how to use our new phones. I guessed we had no choice but to do what he said for now.
For a while, we got connected to their public Wi-Fi. We were disappointed that they didn’t have social media and websites from our world. What they got was Snapsters, V-World, Owl, and a lot I wasn’t familiar with.
Li had never owned a gadget in his life. It took the whole gang a while to teach him how to use his new phone. After that, we were off to meet the king. We left Andromeda with the crowd that was asking for her autograph. Some members of the Crimson Shadow dragged Brock away. The jock was trying to get her phone number.
On the streets, I observed with caution at some people who were giving us long, curious looks. It must be that we were new in this city because of how we glanced around in awe while taking pictures like tourists. Because of the medieval and ancient buildings surrounding us, it was like we were in a European city. Many of the European newcomers felt right at home. Although there were scattered Asian and modern buildings, most of them were the tallest structures in this city, up to two hundred meters tall. “Is that a pyramid?” Katie pointed. We stared in the direction she was pointing, about twelve blocks away. We saw the largest. Almost twice as large as the one in Egypt, this one had a smooth whitewashed surface with a capstone made of gold. “That’s the Pyramid of New Beginning,” Hassan said. “It is now a bank of the Golden Griff Guild. That’s where they minted the chaffs and stored our gold.” “Gold?” we all gasped. “Everyone’s gold is in ther
I am dead. I am so dead, I screamed in my thoughts. A cold lump was building up in my throat as if I was about to choke before swallowing it, though my heart kept pounding against my chest. “The sad part is that you’ll no longer remember the god you met and all the events happening in this world,” Rad said. “And you go back to your normal lives like it was yesterday. It sucks, but it’s for the best. And also part of the rules of the Game.” Someone asked, “What happened to those braves who had reached the other side?” The Party King glanced at the crowd with a widened grin. “They made these….” He gestured toward the window once more. “The city that we live in, the walls that protect us, and the farms that feed us. The Guilds of Eight, or G-8, they called themselves, came together for peace and built this paradise for everyone. They then went back to protect the finish line so we can enjoy this paradise for all eternity.” As I glanced
After the welcome party, we headed straight to our new home that the Crimson Shadows provided. I was cautious when walking down the street ever since Li told me that someone was spying on us. We arrived at the Carthaginian apartment with a blue roof. The inscriptions on my card key said: Room Three-Twelve. Therefore, my new home would be in the twelfth room on the third floor. To my convenience, there was a laundry shop and a grocery store beside the apartment. The next day, we had an orientation back at the castle about the rules and customs of this world. It was strange that Rad personally lectured us since he was the Party God’s brave. Meaning, he would never get sobered — ever. From the orientation, we learned that the City of New Beginning was in the middle of a continent, which was also called New Beginning. It reminded me of the two New York, the famous city and the American state, back on Earth. New Beginning was divided into nine square dist
“Slip?” Lucas paled at the sight of the arrow below his groin. “You were clearly trying to shoot me!” The second arrow was embedded on the wall, about two millimeters from his ear. “Oops, I slipped again.” Anne nocked her third arrow with an emotionless face. “Stop it!” a Wolf Reign member growled. “We’ll call Libra on you!” Another threatened them. Two more struck underneath Lucas’s armpits. Again, Anne said aloud that she was clumsy, though everyone had a clear sight of her twisted retribution against him. Something that I’d remind myself to never tick her off if we ever crossed paths. Anne continued shooting every time Lucas and his companions kept threatening her to call Libra, the city’s only police guild. The last arrow struck near his other ear. It was dipped with foul, green ooze, slowly melting a small chunk of the wall. “Is that poison?” Lucas flustered as he grew paler and paler. The Wolf Reigns were gaping in horror
“What?” We were all bewildered. This paradise was a lie? What did he mean by that? “Have you ever noticed people staring at us when we got here?” Wilt asked. “Uh, time to time,” Nick replied. “I thought they were curious since we’re new here.” “But their stares earlier gave Alex and me the creeps,” Katie murmured. The Finnish girl shuddered upon remembering it. “What’s so curious about us?” “That — I’ve been trying to figure it out until I asked around,” Wilt said. “It’s not us that they’re curious. It’s our powers. Everybody here wants to know what kind of abilities we possess.” Many of us were exchanging comments because of that revelation. Others revealed to those who weren’t around in the forum about what happened earlier, especially the big shot guild that showed up wanting to recruit Alex. They knew something special about her that we didn’t. “They’re just looking for talented people to recruit,” Jasper asked. “What’s wrong with
We stayed in the alley for a while, discussing how to raise money for our flag before we could become a proper guild. We made Wilt the leader of our party since he was the one who planned all this. Eventually, not only did we find the solution to our flag’s expense but also for our livelihoods and bills to pay once they kicked in three months — that solution was taking quests. They were not only the biggest economy here but also the way of life in this world. Trade, manufacturing, industry, city maintenance, and defenses were built by this practice. For example, restaurants hired part-timers for labor, warriors for security, and hunters for retrieving high-class ingredients. Bounty hunting, mercenary works, barters, as long as anyone posted their quests on websites or information booths, everyone would join in to reap its rewards and profits. Quests also ranked the same class of metals as guilds, based on their level of difficulty and importance, at the same time, th
How did Brock get that silver-class quest? It was illegal for newcomers to obtain that in the city, yet he said the Libra Guild didn’t seem to mind. It was strange since they were the New Beginning’s only police guild. All of their members were braves of the justice gods. They were strict in upholding the law. Why would they allow this? Unless — “It’s a loophole,” I gasped in realization. Everyone focused on me. When they silently encouraged me to go on, I continued, “The rules stated we’re not allowed to get that within the city. The keywords there, within the city, that means anyone can get or posts a dangerous quest when you are —” “Outside the city,” Li finished. “Right, the quest starts in three days,” Brock said. “We have to be at the Azure Dragon Gate by eight in the morning.” “Azure Dragon Gate?” Wilt tapped his chin. “If I remembered correctly, that’s on the eastern part of the Outer Wall.” His eyes bulged. “That means this quest is
We were now in the Yellow Zone, a place with the yellow sky, and all around us was sand. In front of me, from both sides, on the horizon, the mountains that formed, everywhere was all sand. The whole caravan was traveling through the desert. We expected blistering heat and hot wind bombarding our faces, but we got none of them even though I was wearing my favorite hoodie coat. There was nothing to complain about except the sand that got into our shoes. Despite the never-ending surprises and weirdness around us, everyone had to watch out for dangerous creatures and outlaws lurking somewhere. Checking my phone, it was out of range of any signal, including Wi-Fi. We were on our own out here. “Brock,” Katie called when he strode ahead of us. “Huh?” “Why are you walking barefooted?” His shoes were dangling on his backpack. Looking down, he was walking without them. “Oh, the weather isn’t that hot. I feel like I’m strolling on a beach.” Our
By the next day, while reinforcement would arrive at any moment, Katie had finished our flag’s design. The whole gang loved it when she showed it to us before presenting it to the Mayflowers. Katie and all the seamstresses in the hill-fort gathered together to knit our flag inside Wilt Hall. We were astonished that Katie could knit. We waited by the entrance for hours. Mrs. Smith, Hassan, Commander Raja, Miranda, and the two Green Bit chiefs arrived with a wooden pole and silver ball. “How’s it going?” Hassan asked. Before anyone could respond, Katie came out to present our flag. “What do you think?” The flag was divided diagonally from the lower hoist-side corner, with the blue upper triangle and the green lower triangle. At the center along the dividing line was the fiery silhouette of a foxfire. “Looks good,” Miranda said, and many agreed. “It is.” Commander Raja asked curiously. “What are the symbolisms on those colors?” “L
It was afternoon. Marseille and I were strolling around Hammerhorn, with the newly blue sky that covered the entirety of the hill. This place was littered with emptied tents. Much of the supplies and valuables that the Blood Eagles left behind were now spoils of war. It was nice that the bathhouse and bridge remained intact. While everyone was tidying up their new home, Marseille told me what happened during the battle. It turned out that she and Deborah arrived to save Mrs. Smith’s group when a Blood Eagle company finally caught them crossing the river. As veteran elites, they managed to turn the tide of battle in our favor. Once the news of Commodus’s demise had been spread, the few hundred surviving Eagles and raiders began to scatter in retreat. Marseille stated that the big shots and guilds would eventually hunt them down, along with Alvarez, Javier, and the Storm Brothers. They would never pose a threat to this world ever again. For two days, my friends
I failed! I failed! I was so close… I was about to pass out from the blood loss. My eyes were getting heavy. Once they shut, that would be my end. “I got you! I got you!” Commodus bragged. “Didn’t I tell you that you’re nothing but a bug?” His loud, boastful voice was ringing my ears, which kept me from losing consciousness. I took a glance at him. My fist was still hovering near his face. That gave me one last idea as I quickly grabbed his hand that was holding the spear, grasping tightly so that he wouldn’t escape. “I got you,” I said with a weak voice, concentrating all my super-strength toward my fist. “What do you mean…?” Commodus was no longer bemused when my fist near him shook. He then realized my intent once my thumb released the full force from my bent index finger. “No, no, NO…!” Bam! A flick on his forehead and Commodus was sent zooming down the ground, along with his spear. My scream thundered throughout the sky in excruci
After I regained consciousness, I was in a different location, lying on the ground with an aching back — again. Once I returned to my feet, my senses alarmed me to duck. A halberd almost cleaved my head. A knight in red armor appeared from nowhere and prepared another swing. I slammed the ground with my heel to rock his footings before sending him flying with a punch. Two more knights, four Greek hoplites, six Chinese armored warriors, and dozens of raiders appeared in front of me. I waited for them to make a move. However, my eyes bulged to find Cara and her friends were among the raiders. They were shocked to see me again. Boom! I caught a cannonball before it could strike the back of my head. Several dozen yards away, a cannon team was reloading. The Eagles were about to gang up on me. I jabbed the ground, knocking them off their feet. Then I threw the cannonball back toward the cannon, and it broke into iron scraps. More enemies got close,
The raining weapons almost got me as I leaped into a safe distance. While keeping myself out of Commodus’s reach, I threw whatever I could get my hands on at him; branches, trees, and rocks. However, he evaded them with the same grace and agility as Cutler while manipulating the weapons to fly toward me. I had to dodge them with every inch of my life until I hid behind a tree once again. “Damn it, I need to get close.” My blood began to boil. “Wait, why did I say that?” Why did I feel the urge to attack him? My brain told me not to do anything stupid. “Calm down, Sam.” I breathed in and out when my rage grew. “Calm down.” “You’re quite confident for a newcomer,” Commodus’s booming voice wasn’t far from my hiding place, though not close. “I sensed both your fear and rage were conflicting. Signs of experience. Tell me, are you a warrior back in our world?” “I’m a former social justice warrior,” I replied. “I think that counts.” “You sounded doub
For a long time, we had a staring contest. My plan was that if Aurelius even flinched once, I’d give an earth-shattering punch before making my escape. Fighting a commander was one thing, but there was no way I could go up against aGuildmaster. As minutes passed, none of us even blinked. If I could land just one blow, it’d be over for him. He would never survive against my super-strength. Still, I didn’t have the confidence to fight him head-on. Aurelius observed me with hate-filled eyes as the raging battle thundered around us. What was he waiting for? I must get back to my friends. “That was genius!” he burst out laughing, to which I flinched. “You masked your escape when Anne unleashed her moon. We expected you to hold your siege or run away. Instead, you blow up your town as a diversion so you can bring the heaven stone to Hammerhorn. A better-fortified position. “Such a shame that there’s no one left in that hill-f
The five of us remained on guard. Those who were weaponless picked up the bronze knives that were scattered all over the ground. I, on the other hand, grabbed the uprooted tree. As we got close to finishing him off, Cutler cackled again before he was coughing heavily. Eventually, cracks began to appear all over his body. “Cutman?” Brock called him out. “It’s Cutler,” he corrected before coughing again, yet he was motionless. He had no strength to spare a glance at us. “That boy’s name is Wilt, huh? Let me tell you. He went down with a brave face.” His breathing was slowing down. “Thanks for the hunt, Foxfires.” He drew one last breath with a satisfying smile. “It sure is fun….” He slowly became dust. “He….” Katie took a deep breath five times to cool herself down. Her skin was no longer burning red. “He went down like a warrior,” she said begrudgingly out of respect. It wasn’t long for Zeki and Commander Raja to arrive, looking exhausted. “Is everyone
The bugs were the first to charge while the tengu braves followed behind. In a short moment, we were being surrounded, struggling to watch each other’s backs, especially Alex. “Alex,” Katie called while kicking a monstrous wasp in mid-air. “Now’s the time to do your magic.” “I can’t… focus…” Alex struggled to come up with a magic tune while most of the enemies set their sights on her. “I need to focus.” Cutler was observing our battle, waiting for his chance to strike. “Commander Cutler.” Another tengu brave appeared. “Our forces managed to regroup after the enemies ambushed us. We struck them back in a six-pronged assault. King Aurelius is now clashing with Chief Bess as we speak. And Rockflower’s denizens are almost at the river with the heaven stone.” “Good,” Cutler said. “We’re making progress.” “Why are you doing this?” Katie demanded, and the enemies got her attention. Cutler signaled the bugs to stop attacking. “Why are you dest
Back on the ground, we were heading to our rendezvous location with the Green Bits to help them stop the Blood Eagles from reaching Mrs. Smith’s group. However, ten seconds had passed, Li had everyone halted. “Look, Storm Brothers!” He pointed at them stuck on a redwood tree, about twelve meters above us. They were back in their human forms, but they had white eyes, scorching burns, and smokes rising from their bodies. “They’re unconscious,” Commander Raja sighed with relief after watching them motionless for a while. “They must’ve been caught by the blast.” “Good, we should finish them off,” Alex stated. “You’re right.” The commander summoned his spears. “We have to make sure they will never be a threat ever again.” The rest of us reluctantly conceded. Even though the brothers were now defenseless, they were too dangerous to be left alive. “Enemies from above!” I cried when my skin crawled in alarm. Twelve tengu braves pierced through