In his apartment, Alexander reviewed his checklist and saw it was nearly complete—he would finish just in time. Moving to the aquarium, he grabbed his trident that he had hung on the wall.

  ^

  Trident of Commune with Fish

  Rarity: Uncommon

  You can understand and speak with fish.

  “Hello, my water-dwelling friends.”

  As he watched for a response, he saw Daisy move out from behind a leaf and turn toward him. She touched her face to the glass as she always did at feeding time. Her majestic colors swirled in the glow of the full-spectrum lighting.

  “Feed me, you cheap bastard!” she said, directly into his mind. “You are home; I am hungry. So do your freaking job and feed me!”

  She did not say ‘freaking’.

  Alexander turned to look at the rest of the fish, who had finally noticed him. They all began chanting.

  “Food! Food! Food! AH! Scary!” They darted away from Alexander, who hadn’t moved, then turned around and swam toward him again, resuming the chanting. “Food! Food!”

  Alexander, disheartened by the interactions so far, found his shy plecostomus hiding under a piece of driftwood.

  “The darkness calls to me; it cradles me in the safety of its essence. When the light is vanquished again by the void, I shall feast.”

  Alexander sighed before hanging his trident back up over the aquarium. He pondered giving it away to an aquatic veterinarian. He made a mental note to warn them about the profanity if he did. Alexander fed his fish, but he didn’t take as much joy in it as usual; his wanderlust illusion had been destroyed.

  He did have another quest reward—maybe it would brighten his mood.

  ^

  Quest Complete!

  Summoned Resentment - Part 3

  An unknown entity is targeting you for capture by hijacking one of the world-quest portals, threatening mass casualties and property destruction.

  Objective: Capture or kill the summoner

  Quest rewards:

  1000 XP

  50 silver

  Mystery box (rare)

  He hadn’t told Ridley about this for obvious reasons: loot jealousy. Ridley would never let him hear the end of it if he opened whatever was in this box.

  As he claimed the reward, an ornate golden box appeared in his hands. He took a moment to appreciate its artistry before it disappeared. Opening the box, an intense light shone on his face. Not recognizing the object at first, he went ahead and pulled it out.

  ^

  Scroll of Find Familiar

  Rarity: Rare

  Summon a familiar which will contractually serve you for the duration of your lifespan.

  Reading the modest description made Alexander nervous about using such an item. He would add it to his list of questions for his guest. Looking at the clock, he expected him to show up soon.

  For the remainder of his wait, Alexander paced nervously in his living room. He had a dust rag in his hand, moving it about his shelves, because pacing nervously didn’t require him to be unproductive. When the doorbell finally rang, he took a breath and calmed himself. Opening the door revealed a spindly, tall man with thin glasses.

  “Ben, it’s been a long time,” Alexander greeted.

  “Alexander! Good to see you. I was wondering when you would finally invite me over to show me your new game that you’ve been so secretive about,” Ben said, shaking Alexander’s hand before pulling him into a small hug.

  “It took a lot of convincing myself, but I have decided to confess my addiction to someone,” he said, smiling.

  Alexander invited him inside.

  Ben chuckled knowingly when he saw Alexander’s fish tank and marveled at how cool his golden trident decoration was hanging over the aquarium.

  When Ben saw his keyboard, he asked, “Do you miss your concert grand?”

  Alexander sagged his shoulders. “Every day.”

  Ben chuckled. “Must be rough. My Godin fits nicely in a closet. I don’t play as much as I want, but I keep the strings warm for an occasional family performance.”

  They pleasantly discussed their music days for a few minutes before talking about work. Ben was an electrical engineer working primarily with drone technology. He complained about FAA regulations good-naturedly before asking Alexander what he was working on.

  “Let me show you my current muse before I discuss my current occupation.”

  “Yes! Excellent. Time to see this game that has you in a tizzy.”

  He was surprised when Alexander didn’t lead him to an entertainment center or computer.

  “It’s this way.” He waved Ben into his room.

  Ben stepped inside, surprised Alexander would install a TV in his bedroom of all places. However, Alexander led him to wooden stairs that circled upward past his roofline. Ben marveled at the wood interior. It all looked to be a single piece of fine-grain wood. A tree carved up its length spread out above his head and branched into the room. As he climbed the steps, the incongruity of what he was seeing finally hit him.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  “Alexander, what the hell is all of this?” he asked, almost whispering.

  “This…” he said, coming to the top of the stairs and then gesturing at his pedestal, “…is my game.”

  Ben gawked at a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree view of the city. No window panels, just a full, uninterrupted view.

  “What the…?”

  “Are you familiar with the thing they’re talking about in the news? The heroes and all that nonsense?”

  “Yeah, Joe Rogan’s guests have finally stopped calling it a big psy-op.”

  “Well, I am a wizard.”

  “Hah, funny…”

  “Flick, come greet our guest,” Alexander said, waving across the room.

  Flick leapt from the top of his tree perch and glided past Ben’s shoulder to land on Alexander’s head gracefully with a flap of his wings.

  Ben stumbled backwards and fell to the ground gasping for air. Alexander just stared at Ben, not sure how to calm him down. Ben looked back up and stared at Flick, his mouth hung open in pure disbelief.

  “Alexander… what is that?”

  “A demi-dragon.”

  “SERIOUSLY!?”

  Alexander nodded.

  “This isn’t one of those hidden-camera pranks?” Ben asked, his head looking for cameras in the corners of the room.

  “I am unfamiliar with that genre of prank.”

  “So you mean to tell me my old friend—who hated video games, comics, and fantasy novels—is now a wizard, and I am standing with him in his wizard’s tower?”

  Alexander looked around him at his room, then back at Ben.

  “I just called it the breakfast room.”

  “I’ll take a look, but no promises,” Ben said after a few hours of questions. He flipped back and forth between calling Alexander the coolest friend ever, geeking out over Flick, and telling Alexander he was so jealous he might try to kill him in his sleep just to see if he would get his powers.

  Alexander felt Ben could best assist him with the footage of Gruffel, his computer knowledge might make his words intelligible. When he showed Ben the footage, he fainted to the floor with a girly cry. After Alexander put a moist towel on his head and fanned him for a minute, Ben felt well enough to look again.

  “Well, it was recorded in 60 frames per second, which was good—these phones don’t even record audio in full slow-motion—but that only slows it down by a little more than half. He’s blitzkrieging those words. I mean, I assume they are words and not some crazy spell.”

  Alexander shuddered at the possibility.

  “I’ll get this on the computer and see what I can do.”

  “It may be a bit of a drive, but I am visiting this place every freaking day I can.”

  “To help me experiment?” Alexander asked.

  “Yes, to help you experiment! This is the greatest thing to happen since Napster!”

  “Well, I suppose I won’t mind the company, but I’m pulling a lot of overtime helping the orcs assimilate.”

  “And I need to meet an orc!” Ben demanded.

  “Not possible yet; none of them have managed to pass the temporary-residency test the government developed.” With Alexander’s help, he didn’t add.

  As he opened the door, he looked over to see Emily peeking out her door before ducking back inside her apartment.

  “She someone you know?” Ben smiled.

  “Someone I need to talk to,” Alexander admitted.

  “Well, don’t let me stop you. I have to get back before curfew.”

  Alexander nodded. Nobody was complaining too much about the temporary mandatory curfew. Districts were developing maps of danger zones based on where current and previous sightings of irregular beasts and monsters had been sighted. They swept through with guns holstered and had as many compound bows and crossbows as could be gathered. New strategies were being developed for how to trap and kill the new species, and anyone with abilities that could be found was being recruited. The numbers were, of course, shockingly few.

  “See you soon.” Alexander waved, not looking at Ben but at the door down the hall.

  “Okay, later, magic man.” He chuckled as he waved to his oblivious friend.

  Alexander straightened his shirt before walking to Emily’s door, then doubled back to his room to a mirror to make sure his hair was straight and nothing was on his face. Everything checked out, so he went to Emily’s door again and knocked.

  Emily opened the door slowly.

  “Alexander, good evening.”

  He looked at the chain on the door before asking, “Emily, this may be an odd question, but would you consider this apartment complex safe?”

  Emily let out a small laugh. “Well, no, not really. There are rodents of unusual size about.”

  “That’s rude; I’m standing right here.”

  That made Emily laugh wholeheartedly.

  “Can I talk to you for a minute?” he asked.

  “Please come in.” She said, opening the door.

  Alexander walked inside and gestured at her couch with a raised eyebrow.

  “Yes, please sit,” she said with a wave.

  “I imagine the events of the past two days have been taxing on you and Janelle,” Alexander inquired, taking his seat.

  “Alexander, that is the damned strangest thing. Janelle is fine! Everyone I work with is fine! The news makes a big deal out of it, but for the wrong reasons! Everyone is being so damned practical! I feel like I’m the crazy one for being afraid!”

  “I am sorry to hear that… Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “Yes… I’ve been thinking about moving back to my parents’ home in the country, but every time I do… I feel like I would be safer here. It’s illogical, but I almost feel like inviting them to live with me! I don’t know why, but being close to… this area seems safer.”

  Alexander nodded, relieved to hear she wasn’t going to move, though the other side of him pondered her words about civilization. Why was everyone so calm? Usually you would expect people to riot. Maybe he should check how the prepper forums were reacting to get a gauge on things.

  “Alexander, I know you are a private person and that you don’t exactly want to open up about your thoughts on everything, but I know something is going on. I recognize your coworker—she has those powers, right? And the orcs you are working with… Can you just tell me if I can be safe here? Or somewhere?”

  Alexander thought about it for a minute before making a commitment he shouldn’t.

  “I believe I can help keep you safe,” he said hesitantly.

  He felt pleased to see it helped Emily lose some of her tension.

  “Will you? Please?”

  ^

  Emily has granted you permission to expand your domain.

  Will you accept?

  “Yes,” Alexander said without hesitation, and he knew he had said the right thing for the first time since meeting Emily.

  She seemed to calm down a bit with his words. She fidgeted with her hands and there was an awkward silence that hung in the air for a minute before she spoke again.

  “You know what might make me feel better?” she asked.

  “What’s that?”

  “A movie.”

  Alexander spent an unplanned evening with Emily, but he didn’t mind. They watched what Emily described as the greatest movie ever made, The Princess Bride. A few minutes into the movie she had visibly relaxed. Alexander attempted to refrain from asking questions as the story unfolded. Emily giggled and slapped Alexander during the Fire Swamp scene. Alexander jumped and laughed when the ‘rodent of unusual size’ attacked Wesley.

  It was a tad fanciful for his tastes, but Alexander enjoyed it and thanked Emily for watching it with him.

  “I haven’t really relaxed and watched a movie in a long time,” Alexander told her.

  “Well, maybe we will have to watch another one soon,” she invited.

  “That sounds delightful.” Alexander smiled.

  There was a pause in the conversation, and Alexander got nervous, thinking there was some social cue he was missing.

  “Well, I have a few things to get done before work; onboarding orcs is not a task for the unprepared.”

  “Of course! Don’t be a stranger.”

  He waved as he left, closing the door behind him.

  “I’m definitely missing something,” he lectured himself.

  He pulled out his cell phone and hit record. “Order books on how to be a good neighbor.”

  -Gruffel the Rift Nibbler -

  “Found you, Alexander! That was more difficult than I thought it would be, eh, Tonchi?”

  A loud bellow roared in response.

  The great Gruffel, Master Wizard, sat on the head of his white-and-gold astral dragon companion that stretched nearly half a mile. It flew through an expanse of stars as the goat did calculations on what appeared to be a giant floating abacus that glowed with an ethereal light.

  “The planet is not at all where it is supposed to be, so the probability calculator was off by quite a margin. This is going to be soooo much fun. The others are going to be in quite the tizzy to see the most promising apprentice—wealthiest apprentice, most accomplished apprentice—in a millennium, not even a month into his wizarding career! It was completely worth being censured by the system!”

  The goat got so excited he bleated.

  “Provided he survives, of course. I am sure he has my message figured out by now.”

  The astral dragon opened its sleepy eyes, revealing slit pupils, before it bellowed out a sound like deep rumbling thunder.

  “No, they wouldn’t… or would they? They won’t reassign him another mentor wizard now that I’ve been censured. Would they? Egads! We must make haste, Tonchi!”

  He said this while standing and taking out a staff with a turtle shell adorning the top, ribbons striped all around it.

  With a wave, he opened a dimensional rift revealing cascading blue and silver colors. Once it had stabilized, Gruffel commanded his giant companion forward. As he passed the opening, he pulled some of the distorted aether from the edge of the portal into his mouth. Taking a large bite, he burped out shimmering dust before the portal’s frame sprung back outward to let him pass.

  —

  On Earth, in the middle of the mountainous region of Sweden, black smoke with no apparent source began to pour out of an opening no more than six inches wide. From the opening a hand—missing an index finger—pushed its way through to the clear air. Shoving further, a forearm appeared before the black portal closed, severing the arm at the elbow.

  It dropped lifeless to the ground for a moment before it floated upward and toward the nearest sources of life.

  The End of Book 1

  Which of the introduced side characters do you want to see more of in book 2 & 3? (up to three votes)