We moved through a village, and we—Sharena mostly—were pelted with greetings. I don't know exactly what I felt as we walked through the streets, but it sure wasn't friendly. We emerged on the other side of the village and arrived at the bottom of a short yet wide hill that led up to a castle nestled in a small mountain range. "Welcome to Castle Hoenir," Anna said without much fanfare. We were all tired, it seemed. The redhead pushed open a broad set of wooden doors, and we all entered. The interior was… lacking. It was dark, cold, but liveable enough. Tall stone pillars lined the entrance hall. The ground was carved with intricate Celtic knots. The most prominent one being a torch or badge design in the center of the floor. A round glass window hung at the back of the room, letting in plenty of sunlight. Beneath the light were two separate doors to the left and the right. On my right-hand side, close to me, was an empty fountain. To the left was another sort of gravestone, this one being black and carved with a shining four-pointed star at the top and dancing lights leading up to the star. Something about it made it feel deader than it was, as if it was supposed to light up or something. Further back from that was an empty notice board. And to the right of that was a sleeping owl on a sturdy perch.
Sharena quickly moved to the bird and scooped it up into her arms. As she brought it over to us, she said, "This is Feh, the official messenger owl of the Order of Heroes!" The owl blinked its eyes open and looked at us. It snuggled back into Sharena's arms and tried to drift back to sleep. "Sorry, she's a bit tired, I guess."
"'Tis just fine, Milady," Virion spoke. "A lady always needs her beauty rest, no matter the species."
Is he flirting with a bird? I thought to myself.
Anna clapped a hand on both Virion's and my shoulder. "I think this would be a good time to explain what's going on and why you're both here. Whatever questions you have, now's the time to ask them."
I stammered a bit before Virion asked his first question. "What is this miraculous country called?"
"Askr," Alfonse spoke. "It's a kingdom on the continent of Zenith. It was first established by King Líf many years ago, given to him by Askr, our dragon-god. As of now, my father, King Gustav, rules the land. Our kingdom is at war with the Emblian Empire, a nearby country ruled by Princess Veronica. Our two countries have a long-standing relationship that was, until now, perfectly fine. You see, the royalty of Askr has the ability to open gateways to other worlds. In contrast, the royalty of Embla has the ability to close the gateways that we open. I can't understand why, but starting with Princess Veronica's father, the Emblians have refused to close the gateways and instead invade the worlds, enslaving the Heroes there under the pretense of a magical contract. The contract, of course, prevents them from doing anything that isn't an order directly from the one who placed the Hero under said contract. The Order of Heroes is dedicated to freeing these Heroes, but it's not an easy task."
"That's right," Anna interjected. "That's why I summoned you here, Maxis. No one but the Great Hero of legend can summon Heroes. The help from you two has already been great, so I know that you'll both be valuable assets!"
Virion bowed lowly and dramatically. "You have my most humble thanks, Lady Anna. And my bow at your command."
"Thank you, Virion." She turned to me. "How about you, Maxis?"
I shrugged and mumbled, "Sure."
"Are you alright?"
I shrugged again.
"Hmm. I guess it has been an exciting day so far. Sharena, could you help Maxis find a room; I think he could use a rest. In fact, bring him to that spare suite next to ours! Nothing but the best for our Great Hero, huh?"
My eyes drifted downwards at that.
Sharena grabbed me by the hand and dragged me along behind her. "Come on; you'll love it!" she exclaimed as we ascended the four short steps and entered the door to the right. She led me through winding hallways, the only light sources being whatever sunlight was able to come through the windows. This place was in dire need of torches and carpeting. As we ascended a staircase, Sharena asked, "How do you like Askr so far?"
"'S fine," I tried to say.
"O-oh." We moved up another staircase. "Is it like your own world?"
"No."
"…I— I see." A third. "What's your world like?"
"'S fine."
"…Ah." A fourth. "Are there not many castles in your world?"
"No."
"Oh." We stopped in front of a simple wooden door with a large ring handle. "Are you okay? If you want to talk, I can most certainly listen."
"No. 'M fine."
Sharena lowered her head. "Oh." She looked back up at me. "This is your room now. Mine is right next door, Alfonse's is across the hall, and the commander's is next to his. If you need anything, just say so, alright?"
"Sure." I stepped in and realized that this wasn't a bedroom. It was a suite like Anna said. Not quite an apartment, but large enough for more than one person. To my immediate right was what I could only guess to be a kitchenette; it lacked what would usually go in a kitchen back home, but it had the shape to be one. Beyond that was an arrangement of a loveseat, two chairs, a coffee table, and two end tables surrounding a wood fireplace. At the back of the room was a large glass set of doors leading out to a wide balcony. To my left were a set of near bare bookshelves. And beyond that was another door identical to the one behind me. I opened the door and found that it was the actual bedroom. In the far left corner was a twin-sized bed, flanked by a nightstand holding up an oil lamp. The wall to the right had a large window with drawn curtains, and to my immediate right was a large wardrobe. To the left was a dusty vanity. Everything must have been covered in dust.
I sat down on the bed and fell back, kicking up some of the filth. Not a single thought came to me before my aching feet, comfy robe, and fractured mind put me into a deep sleep.
I awoke to Sharena's voice. It would have been a less than pleasant experience if she wasn't whispering as she woke me. "Good afternoon, sleepy! We're about to have lunch soon, and then we're going to have a war council meeting. Oh, and I brought some clothes of Alfonse's for you to wear so you can get out of that bathrobe."
She was right; this robe hadn't been washed for quite a while. My underwear was fresh, though. "Thanks."
"It's no problem at all. I'll be waiting outside; it's easy to get lost in here."
"Sure." She left the room, and I sat there for a while. I was still in this strange world, not knowing anything. I stood up, slipping Breidablik from one of the big pockets and taking off my robe. I brought it to the wardrobe and threw it in, not caring to use the hangers in there; it was empty, anyways. I took off my pajama pants and threw them in, too. I slipped the long sleeve shirt—tunic, I suppose—over my t-shirt and the pants on. They were itchy. I was used to wool socks, but they weren't like this. I decided to just put up with it, though, because I didn't want to pretend to be Arthur Dent anymore. I hadn't been very good at it so far, anyways. I slipped the golden gun between my hip and the drawstring of the pants, pulling it tight.
Leaving the room, I looked around. The walls hadn't shifted. I slowly crept towards the balcony, doing what I always did when it came to things like these. I peered over the edge then threw myself back into the room. Heights. I don't know why I always looked down whenever I was high up, but whatever. I was vaguely glad that the floor hadn't disappeared while I had my back turned. The carpet was nice and soft, too. Dusty, but soft. I stood up and shook my head. I was being ridiculous, if not childish. This wasn't a dream—though I could be insane still—and this world felt Euclidian enough. It was the portals that were strange.
I found Sharena outside of my suite, and she smiled up at me. "You look good! Are you ready to go have lunch then?"
I nodded. "Mm-hm."
"Great! Just follow me." She led me down the four staircases, trying to break the awkward silence between us again. The answers I gave didn't invite conversation. I obviously wasn't fond of talking. I always thought people wouldn't care to hear what I have to say because it was mostly about video games. I didn't care a whole lot about other people either. Most conversations that I've experienced had primarily been one-sided, from my grandpa talking about "Sleddy's new tractor" to a coworker talking about a friend getting the flu. I did have one friend who I could have a small conversation with, but he was off at college, and I didn't want to bother him. I especially didn't want to talk now, however, because I didn't want to listen to two balloons mating.
Sharena held open a door for me, and I walked into a cafeteria made of cobblestones. The walls and floors were cobblestones, but the ceiling was wooden. To the left were food lines and a kitchen, and tables and benches were organized throughout the room. At the back were three big windows letting in some sun. Again, that was the only light source in the room. I cocked an eyebrow at the two newcomers in the room, a young boy with green hair and dark robes, burying himself in a book, and a young man with brown hair, a red cape, and a knife sticking out from behind his hip. "Mathew, Raigh!" Sharena called out as she waved them over. They approached, and the girl gestured to me. "This is Maxis, our brand new summoner!"
The brown-haired man stuck out his hand and said, "Maxis, huh? Name's Mathew. I look forward to working with you."
I shook his hand pathetically. "Mm-hm."
The green-haired boy looked up from his book, sighing. "You can call me Raigh." Without another word, he turned around and went back to his book.
I sat down at a separate table but still close enough to "converse." Sharena moved into the kitchen and returned with bowls, spoons, and a large hot pad, setting down a bowl and spoon for each of us. When she set mine down, she said, with an ounce of worry, "We have plenty of room at our table." I grunted in acknowledgment, grabbed my bowl, and sat to Virion's right on the edge of the bench. Sharena came back with a large pot of steaming stew, saying, "Alright, everyone! Lunch is served!" She set it down and began taking bowls and dishing us up. I accepted my bowl without a sound and began to eat. It was good. It had meat, potatoes, onions, celery, the usual stew stuff. The others started talking amongst themselves, mostly about where each was from, their skills, and other things about being a Hero.
"Hey, Maxis," Mathew spoke. I looked up at him. "Where are you from?"
"…Earth."
"Earth? What you mean like the ground? I meant what world, what country?"
I shrugged. "The United States, I guess."
"United States, huh? I've never heard of a country being named two words before."
I grunted in acknowledgment as I lowered my head towards another spoonful of meat and potatoes.
"Well, if it's united, then it must be great there."
I grunted again, growing angrier, but trying to ignore it and everything else. Soon we all finished eating, and Sharena started collecting our bowls. "Maxis, did you want seconds?" she asked as she picked up my bowl. "There's plenty left."
"'M fine."
"Alright then…"
"Everyone," Alfonse spoke. "Commander Anna is waiting for us in the war room. Let us head there now."
All present began to follow him out, myself in the back. We soon made it to a door and were let in by Alfonse. Anna was already inside, leaning over a large wooden table. I didn't know what to expect from their war room, but I knew it wouldn't look like the one in Dr. Strangelove. It was more cobblestones, a wooden ceiling, and bookshelves and wooden file cabinets outlined the room. There was even a chalkboard on the back wall. The only light source was an oil lamp on the table—it was surprisingly effective, too. Everyone but Raigh, who was still transfixed by his book, and I gathered around the table. That is until Sharena waved me over. "As most of you know," Anna started. "The World of Mystery was invaded, and Princess Minerva was put under contract." Everyone nodded in understanding. "Prince Marth is now under contract."
"What?!" Alfonse gasped out. "But how?! When?!"
"As we were warding off Prince Xander. Princess Veronica was clever doing that while we were distracted, I admit. She'll likely be enslaving more Heroes as we free the ones she currently has."
"This is not good… We don't have the resources to compete, and Prince Marth alone could devastate our kingdom. Of all the Heroes…"
"We can do it!" Sharena exclaimed as she clenched her gloved fists in front of herself. "No matter how many Heroes Princess Veronica throws at us, we have the greatest Hero here to aid us!" she said as she clapped a hand on my shoulder. "Right, Maxis?"
I grit my teeth together. "How?"
"By… summoning, of course."
"I can't. I tried."
"What?! But…! What about Virion?"
"Summoned," Anna spoke. "I know he didn't walk out of the World of Awakening."
"Then why couldn't I do it later?"
Anna raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't aware that you tried. Breidablik has specific requirements for it to work. You need orbs—not something we have a lot of—and Heroes can only be summoned at the Summoning Ruins, the same place I summoned you at."
"Then why don't you do it?"
"Because we can't wield Breidablik. We don't know how to properly, and it's meant for you."
I pulled the gun from my waist and held it up, pulling the trigger repeatedly and impatiently, trigger discipline the furthest thing from my mind. I threw the weapon to Anna, muzzle control also forgotten. "There."
She eyed the weapon quizzically, holding how I did. Her finger tensed, but the trigger didn't move. "It's not working. Was there something else you did?"
"Is the safety on?"
"The what?"
"Give it here." She handed the gun back to me, and I looked it over thoroughly. It was a mess. Every law of good gun design was broken. It lacked a slide, a safety, and a magazine release button. It had an annoying loop on the entire bottom half of the grip, a guard around the whole weapon as if it was trying to be a rapier and a foregrip, and the muzzle was somewhat shaped like a cartoon keyhole. The caliber was that of a musket's, nearly an inch. The extra space underneath the actual barrel was an excellent way to push a ball out and let it drop to the ground in front of you. "Who made this?!"
"Maxis, calm down!" Anna said, clearly starting to lose her patience. "What's wrong?"
"This whole thing is wrong!" I ranted about the previously mentioned flaws to her and finished with, "Whoever made it was an idiot!"
Anna rolled her eyes. "Maxis, Breidablik was made by the gods. I'm sure their design is just fine."
"Fine. Whatever." I pulled the trigger twice more, making sure there were no issues otherwise. It wasn't built like an M1911, so it didn't have grip and thumb safeties. I handed it back to Anna. "Try again."
She pointed it down at the table, trying to pull the trigger again. "It won't budge."
"Could I try it?" Sharena asked. She accepted the weapon from the commander and attempted to get the trigger to move. It didn't work. "That's really hard! You must be really strong, Maxis!"
"I'm not."
"Allow me to try, Princess," Virion said. "After all, archery requires immense finger strength." He took the weapon from the girl, but even he couldn't get it to move. "How very queer…!"
I took the weapon from him and started swinging it around and pulling the trigger, making sure something wasn't falling out of place and preventing the trigger from being pulled. It moved every time I pulled it, no matter the positioning. It couldn't be ID locked, could it? "Why can't you guys use it?"
"Maxis, it was made for you," Anna said.
I shook my head angrily. "So, that's why you guys need me? To summon people? Then what else am I supposed to do, sit around in my room?
"No. Absolutely not. I won't let any member of the Order sit around."
"Mayhaps I can teach him strategy," Virion asked.
"That's an excellent idea. It'll keep you out of harm's way and busy."
"Hold on," I interrupted. "I can't play chess."
"Nonsense! I shall teach you! There are many other strategy games, as well!" Virion clapped a hand on my shoulder. "Though teaching you games is not the point. The point is teaching you how to win battles."
"He's right, you know," Anna spoke. "You can practice as we take back the World of Mystery. Come on, everyone; we're leaving for the sake of the worlds!"
