Another World

by D. C. Gomez

  “Let’s do it.” The Guardian dropped his robe again and cracked his huge hands. “I have trained with some of the great master of these lands, but that was centuries ago. I’m excited at being a student again. This is going to be fun.”

  “No pressure at all.” I took off my dagger and placed it as close to me as possible. If the Gecko was as powerful as Mister P claimed, my dagger did not serve much purpose here.

  Our dance lessons started easy, with some neck rolls and shoulder dips. My Gecko mastered those moves in record time. We moved quickly to the running man. Watching a seven-foot Gecko do the running man with his tail bouncing in step had me speechless.

  “Madison, you are a great teacher,” Guardian said, running in place. “One day you will be a great master of the art.”

  Guardian had high hopes for me. I hoped I didn’t disappoint him. We worked on the floss, and he managed to do it perfectly. I was pleased to see that Twerking was just as difficult for him. Maybe it required a large booty to pull it off. I was not blessed with extra junk in my trunk as the boys in the city reminded me.

  The moonwalk was his favorite. It took us a while for him to get the idea, but once he did it his execution became flawless. A moonwalking Gecko made for a pretty impressive sight. By the end of the night, I was feeling pretty proud of myself.

  The Guardian was so excited with his new moves that he promised to show me some spells. I had no idea where in New York City those spells would come in handy, but I always enjoyed learning new things. I agreed to our new deal and told him I would teach him other moves when I came back. The look of excitement on his face reminded me of a kid at Christmas.

  Sir Bertrant had not returned when I decided to call it a day. The ground was hard, and I couldn’t find any leaves to try to soften my new bed.

  “Mistress Madison, take these,” the Gecko told me from behind.

  I turned to face him, only to find him carrying two huge pillows.

  “Are you sure?” I asked, my eyes searching for Mister P. “Aren’t you going to get in trouble?”

  The Gecko laughed in a low-pitched tone. “I’m over seven-hundred-years old. What can the master possibly do to me now? Get some rest, mistress.”

  At the base of the mountain, he became a shadow and disappeared. Was he standing watch or inside? I glanced at the rock formation for a few more seconds before turning back to my new bed. The pillows were so big, even Sir Bertrant could sleep on top of his. I arranged my pillow to face the river. It was such a serene scene that I could hardly believe a dragon and a Gecko ran the place. I made myself comfortable on the pillow, covered myself with my blanket, and enjoyed the sound of running water.

  Sunlight hit me in the face, waking me up. I was sleeping on a bed that I didn’t recognize. I searched around. My travel blanket covered me, and I still had all my clothes on, so whatever happened must not have been too bad. Laughing in my head at my own joke, I climbed off the bed and found my boots next to me. Without making too much noise, I put my boots on. Voices traveled to my ear from the other side of the door. I reached to my waist, but my dagger was nowhere to be found.

  Mister P still had it. Where was I? I needed to get out of here. After a deep breath, I rushed out the room.

  “Ahhh,” I screamed as I tripped over a stool and went flying face first to the floor. Next time I decided to run inside a house, I needed to learn the layout first.

  “Are you okay, dear?” an older lady asked me as two other females stared down at me.

  “Sorry about that. Where am I and where is Sir Bertrant?” I asked, struggling to get up.

  “You are with friends, dear, and Bertrant will be back shortly. You need food.” The older lady seemed gentle and kind, her bright white hair and silver eyes warm and welcoming.

  “I’m not hungry but thank you,” I told the old lady, but once again my stomach betrayed me and growled loudly.

  “You have been asleep for almost two days. You need to eat,” the old lady explained as she handed me a bowl of stew with bread.

  The stew smelled delicious and I hated the fact that my mouth watered. The old lady patted my cheeks softly and handed me a large spoon.

  “Thank you.” I sat down to inhale my food.

  “Grandma, we will see you later,” one of the others said, and then both other ladies left the little house.

  “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for them to leave,” I told the old lady with a mouth full of stew.

  “Don’t be silly, dear, they have work to do in their own home. They were just bringing me fresh fruits. Now eat your food before it gets cold,” Grandma said, so busy cooking she didn’t bother to turn around.

  “Thank you again.” I dropped my spoon as soon as her words hit me. “Wait. Did you say I have been asleep for two days?”

  “Yes, Bertrant had strapped you to Lightning but didn’t want to risk heading all the way to his house with you in that condition. He left you here while he went to find the families of the girls.” Grandma took a seat next to me.

  “Did he find them?” I went back to my stew.

  “Word was sent to all the families. The last one came this morning,” she told me, patting my hand. “Let me make you another bowl. You have a long ride ahead of you.”

  I stared down at my bowl to find it empty. “I didn’t think I was that hungry.”

  “Magic potions take a lot out of the body,” Sir Bertrant said from the door.

  “Hi!” I shouted and hopped to my feet, running to give him a hug.

  “Hi to you too, Madison. I never expected that you would miss me so much.” Sir Bertrant petted my head.

  “It’s a little disorienting to wake up in a stranger’s house not knowing how you got there,” I whispered to him.

  “I left you in the most secure hands in the kingdom: Granny Virtus’s,” Sir Bertrant told me as he smiled at the old lady.

  Granny Virtus was back at the table this time with two bowls of stew. She placed the largest in front of Sir Bertrant and the other in front of me. She handed us a wicker basket of bread, along with some sliced fresh fruits.

  “He didn’t feel that way when I had to clean him,” Granny Virtus told me as she held Sir Bertrant’s hair away from his face.

  “You used to clean him?” I asked, trying to hide the smile that was forming.

  “Granny used to be my nursemaid,” Sir Bertrant admitted, trying to dodge Granny’s hand.

  “So, you have lots of embarrassing stories about Sir Bertrant? I want to hear all of them,” I told her, and she laughed a loud and contagious laugh.

  “I like her,” Granny Virtus told me.

  “Unfortunately, so does everyone else,” Sir Bertrant told her.

  “That’s not very nice.” I tossed a piece of bread at his face.

  “Why do you think we are stuck with this horrible deal with the dragon now?” Sir Bertrant pointed out.

  “Technically, I’m stuck with the horrible deal,” I corrected him.

  “I don’t know what technically means, but considering you are my page, this means we both are.” Sir Bertrant countered, raising his voice an octave.

  “We need to work on this language thing,” I told him.

  “Stop changing the subject,” he reprimanded.

  “What were we supposed to do? What is done is done, can’t cry about it now.” I stirred my stew like I didn’t have a care in the world. I was going to fake it until I made it.

  “This is a dragon we are talking about,” Sir Bertrant told me, making circles with his spoon. I wasn’t sure if circles were the sign for dragons in this county but decided against asking.

  “You said it yourself, if he wanted to kill us, we would be dead. Maybe it won’t be too bad. By the way, why didn’t you try to wake me?” I asked him, using my spoon to point at him.

  “Oh, we tried, but like I told you, Sageri’s potions are potent,” Sir Bertrant told me, focusing on his stew. “I’m just glad you woke up today. I feared you would be gone for
at least another day.”

  “I only took two, maybe three drops.” I pouted like a five-year-old.

  “Two drops are enough for a grown man,” Sir Bertrant said.

  “If you only need so little, why does she hand people such a big bottle?” Sageri needed to work on her delivery system.

  “That is a really good question, but I don’t know the answer to it,” Sir Bertrant admitted.

  We were both silent for a few minutes. Maybe this was part of the witch’s training. “…leaving?” Granny Virtus had asked a question, but I’d been so busy indulging in my theories that I had missed the beginning of the conversation.

  “As soon as Madison is ready, we will be taking off,” Sir Bertrant told her. “I need to inform Lord Peru that these people are making deals with the dragon.”

  “Do you think he is going to believe you?” Granny Virtus asked.

  “Why wouldn’t he?” I jumped in.

  “It’s a long story.” Granny gazed into the distance with misty eyes.

  “Let’s just say I didn’t make the best decision when I was drunk,” Sir Bertrant told me.

  “What happens if he doesn’t believe us?” I asked, putting my spoon down.

  “Nothing,” Sir Bertrant told me.

  “Nothing?” I asked, glancing between Sir Bertrant and Granny.

  “Madison, nobody believed I would leave the village, especially to find the dragon,” Sir Bertrant explained. “If they don’t believe, my life won’t change. Let me rephrase that. Our lives won’t be affected by it. We didn’t need the money that was being offered as a reward, so we have lost nothing.”

  “I like that,” I told him and went back to eating.

  Granny prepared a couple of lunches for our trip. I found that Granny’s house was in the middle of a beautiful field. She had chickens everywhere, and even some cows. Her house was modest but comfortable and secure. Sir Bertrant had explained that when Granny retired, she didn’t want anything fancy. All she asked for was a good home to take care of her family and friends. Sir Bertrant bought her that home and the land around it where the rest of her family lived. The property was on the outskirts of the kingdom, away from any gossiping neighbors.

  Granny’s house was Sir Bertrant’s retreat home. When we were leaving, Granny told me I could come back anytime with or without Sir Bertrant. It was fun to visit with Granny, but I was ready to be back in my own bed. I was amazed how quickly I had gotten used to calling the room in Sir Bertrant’s house mine.

  This world might just be growing on me after all.

  The ride back to the house was smoother and faster. Even with the quicker pace, we had to stop on the road one more night. Not a bad thing since Somnium was beautiful with incredible sunrises and sunsets. The kind you never saw in big cities. As we headed West, the temperature warmed up. Not to an uncomfortable level, but warm enough to put away our jackets.

  We arrived at the entrance of the city mid-morning of the twenty-second. With the sun shining down on the castle, the structure intimidated me. How did they build that thing? The castle was in the same category as the pyramids of Egypt: mysterious.

  I was listening to Thunder and Lightning bicker back and forth when we turned on the main road to find a group of six men on horses blocking our way. Around the group, at least a dozen civilians stood on foot. Sir Bertrant pulled his sword from his saddle and set it on his lap. I did the same with my dagger, not waiting for an explanation. If the knight was ready to fight, I was not going to be caught unarmed.

  “Well look who decided to come back,” one of the riders told us.

  Sir Bertrant squeezed the handle of his sword so hard his knuckles turned white. One of the riders rode up to meet us. I had never seen this guy, but he made my skin crawl. It was hard to judge how tall he was while he rode, but he carried himself with his nose in the air like he was the king of the castle.

  “Are you here to turn yourself in or just tell us a story?” the knight asked Sir Bertrant.

  “I only have business with my Lord, so move out of my way, Morien,” Sir Bertrant hissed the man’s name.

  If that arrogant fool was the famous Morien, I was not impressed. He wasn’t handsome in the traditional sense, but pretty in an almost feminine way. He had delicate features with thin lips and a pointy nose. Thick lashes outlined his brown eyes, blending with his mocha complexion. I did a quick comparison between the two knights. Sir Bertrant was manly in that James Bond kind of fashion. Nobody would ever describe him as anything other than handsome—at least now that he was cleaned and groomed.

  “You have no right to make demands here, Bertrant.” Morien inched his way closer to Sir Bertrant.

  “Either you move, or I will make you.” Sir Bertrant held his sword out to his side, taking a very impressive stance.

  The civilian bystanders cleared the area. Smart crowd. If a fight broke out, I wasn’t sure what my role was supposed to be. I wanted to ask one of the horses, but I feared addressing them in public would not help our credibility right now.

  Morien pulled his sword out and faced Sir Bertrant. Either Morien thought extremely high of himself or he had a death wish. No man in his right mind would ever face an opponent who was not afraid to die and hated your guts. This was going to get ugly.

  “Enough,” a voice boomed from behind the riders.

  The men parted and I was pleased to see Sir William, the White Knight, coming towards us. He was still dressed in the shiniest clothes I had seen in a long time. I prayed this was a good omen. We managed not to die on our failed mission, so it would be a shame if these two old fools killed each other on the road.

  It would be such a pitiful ending to my first great adventure.

  “This is not the place or the time for you two to be acting this way,” Sir William told Sir Bertrant and Morien. “Lord Peru would like to see you, Bertrant.”

  “Why? Is the Lord expecting me?” Sir Bertrant asked.

  “He will explain when he sees you,” Sir William told him.

  Morien snickered. “Afraid that your dark little secrets are coming to light?”

  “I have nothing to hide or to fear,” Sir Bertrant said, addressing Sir William, and ignoring Morien.

  I liked the fact that Sir Bertrant could be catty and dignified all at the same time. He would have made a great high school student in New York City. I might need to learn a few tips from him.

  “Aren’t you going to remove his weapons?” Morien asked Sir William.

  “Bertrant is a knight of the kingdom. He will have a chance to explain himself to the Lord before a judgment is passed,” Sir William told him in a commanding tone.

  Sir William towered over Morien. I wasn’t sure if he was taller or just had a bigger horse. I guessed I would have to wait until we all dismounted to find out.

  “Follow me,” Sir William ordered Sir Bertrant.

  That phrase had a totally different meaning in this world. I almost giggled just thinking of the knights following each other on Snapchat or Instagram.

  Sir Bertrant did not argue and followed Sir William up the path. I didn’t have to worry about making the decision to follow or not, because Lightning was already moving behind Thunder. The riders parted ways for us but they were all glaring in our direction.

  “Madison, what happened?” a familiar voice asked from behind.

  Julien had managed to get his horse next to mine without me noticing it. That was not my fault. I was too busy trying to hold on while Lightning made his way past the riders. I was afraid the crazy horse would leave me behind if I fell. Lightning’s body tensed and his neck went straight. He was not messing around.

  “I should be asking you that,” I replied.

  Julien glanced around before he spoke. The riders were not paying attention to us, instead were maneuvering their horses closer to Sir Bertrant and Sir William. It occurred to me that it was Julien’s job to escort the page to their final destination. That sounded so menacing, so much that it destroye
d all the good omens I’d had going on.

  “Three men arrived before dawn yesterday saying they had news about the missing girls,” Julien told me under his breath.

  “Are you serious?” I asked Julien. “How is that possible? We just found out less than three days ago?”

  “You guys figured it out?” Julien asked, getting closer to me.

  “Not exactly. Mister P told us,” I confessed.

  “Who is Mister P?” Julien asked.

  Having him so close to me made my heart beat faster. Please God, don’t let me stink.

  “Oh, Mister P is the dragon,” I told Julien, trying to slide farther away in the saddle.

  “You spoke with the dragon and he didn’t kill you?” Julien shook his head. “This is not good.”

  “You wanted us to die?” I asked a lot louder than I intended, making a few of the riders turn around to look at us.

  “That is foolish. Don’t listen to him,” Lightning communicated to me.

  I agreed with Lightning, and I petted his side softly to let him know I heard him. Julien had his own private conversation on his horse. I hoped he was talking to the horse and not himself, because he gave the impression he lost the argument.

  “Madison, you guys are in serious trouble,” Julien mumbled after his long pause.

  “I kind of figure that out on my own, but thanks Julien,” I told him. This world was full of people that enjoyed pointing out the obvious.

  “You don’t understand. The men brought information that a knight matching Sir Bertrant’s description had been seen making deals with the dragon,” Julien whispered to me.

  “Wh…” Julien covered my mouth before I could speak.

  “Shhhh, I’m not supposed to be talking about this,” Julien said quickly.

  “Why are you telling me?” I asked after he lowered his hand.

  “Because it doesn’t make sense and you can warn Sir Bertrant while you wait for the Lord,” Julien concluded, looking me straight in the eyes.

  My throat did that thing it does when he is around and went completely dry. My hands started sweating and I was ready to jump off Lightning and run away.