Outhouses. Ugh. Outhouses are distinctly not my favorite part of having been transported to the Three Moons world. I’ve never used one before. They’re every bit as stinky as I’d imagined. Maybe even more so. On the bright side, the public ones in Enatus have a magically cleaned water basin in them and Una showed me how to use it. So washing hands is a whole lot easier than out in the woods.

Una also knew that I wouldn’t have money, so she bought me lunch at the inn in a private dining room. I expected from the Three Moons game that the inn would be next door to the Vyapar temple, but it turned out that it was actually just two parts of the same establishment. The Vyapar temple is divided into a chapel section and an inn section with food and lodging. I guess now that I think about it, this makes some sense for a God of Commerce, right?

We had boiled root vegetables, kind of like fat carrots in a pale yellow color. And roast chicken with mixed greens. Chickens here don’t look like precisely the same bird as chickens back home. The shape seems more wild, kind of like a pheasant maybe. Though I’m no chicken expert. Maybe they’re just a different breed? Anyway, the translation fits well enough. And as the cliche goes, they taste like chicken.

Maeve: “Thanks. Once I’m no longer broke, I’ll have to return the favor.”

Una: “That sounds nice, but there’s no obligation. This meal was anticipated as part of the pilgrimage of the oracle. It is both my privilege and my duty to meet you. Although it has not been revealed to me exactly how, you have the potential to make a difference in the war against evil.”

Maeve: “The potential to make a difference sounds rather vague.”

Una: “According to our records, oracles tend to convey knowledge of one specific future event and nothing beyond. That last one I’m aware of that alluded to what might happen afterwards was over 500 years ago. It may be vague. But it is remarkable that Tornung gave any suggestion as to what might come about after our meeting.”

Maeve: “Huh. I don’t know what to make of that. But OK. So was the oracle … it can’t have been just about meeting me at the gate and showing me around, right?”

Una: “Hehheh. No. I have information I must convey. When that is done, we may talk for as long as you like. If I understand, you already somehow know something of our world, yes?”

Maeve: “Yes and no. In my world, there is a game called Three Moons. It is set in … in this world. So far it looks like a lot of things here are the same as the game. Some things aren’t. So I’m not sure what all I know of this world and what all might not be quite right.”

Una: “Fascinating. Even if I’d been aware of people in other worlds, I would not have guessed there would be a game about ours in those worlds. What … no, how is the game played? What do you do in it?”

Maeve: “We … uh. Huh. I’m not really sure how to describe it without referring to other things from our world. Wow. Sometimes we each play it alone. Sometimes we get together with other players to work together on quests or tough monsters. Mostly it involves wandering around and finding monsters then fighting those monsters. The game shows us images of the world. When we see monsters in that, we fight them by selecting spells or weapon moves to use to slay them. There’s also going to towns and making items or buying and selling them. And some other quests involve helping people in other ways aside from fighting monsters.”

Una: “And this is a game?”

Maeve: “Yep.”

Una: “It sounds more like hero training.”

Maeve: “That might not be an accident. I was recruited for coming here from among the players.”

Una: “So the game includes years of training in use of weapons and spell casting, then; that’s …”

Maeve: “Not exactly. I didn’t really know how to use a sword when I left my home world. Not beyond that you hold it in your hand and hit things with it. I’d never even held a real one. But somehow I kind of know now. I guess it’s part of the magic that sent me here. Still, I’m pretty sure I’ve just gotten to beginner swordsmanship. Certainly the stalker that snuck up on me while I was trying to hunt a rabbit kicked my butt.”

Una: “A stalker? How did you get away?”

Maeve: “Heh. I didn’t. I talked to her nice like ‘good kitty, kitty’ and tamed her.”

Una: “Y-you … are you serious?”

Maeve: “Yes.”

Una’s jaw dropped and her eyes went wide. Like, if this were an animated story rather than just my life, her jaw would have hit the table for sure. Instead, it was just kind of open mouthed awkward for a bit there.

Maeve: “So … I guess that’s not common?”

Una: “Common? Taming a stalker is unheard of. I’d have said ‘impossible’ if someone told me they wanted to try it. If I were not a priestess of Tornung, I’d probably have assumed you were lying.”

Maeve: “Why does being a priestess of Tornung mean that?”

Una: “Ah, you didn’t know? There are ways around it involving jest, but we sense lies when on duty. Thankfully only when on duty. Imagine casually asking if your spouse wants the last piece and being fully aware they’re partly lying when they generously say, ‘No, you have it.’ Because although they do want you to have it, they also want it. Noone wants that knowledge. We believe it is because Tornung grants us release from that responsibility in our homes. Although some say it is because the hearth is Satvar’s domain.”

Maeve: “Hmm. I’m not sure that sounds so bad. Then I’d know it was generous and not just because they didn’t want it. That sounds nice.”

Una: “Anyway … by tamed do you mean …”

Maeve: “We’re friends now, I guess. We hunted together. Though she’s got all the hunting skills, so most of what I did was building fires and cooking. And she walked me to the edge of the forest and seemed to listen when I said to stick to the woods while I’m in town. I kind of feel like right now she’s napping. But … I don’t know if that’s just guessing. She’s a cat and all that. They nap.”

Una: “Friends? Huh. Perhaps. Tornung said that you would be given a blessing by all seven gods. Maybe. Maybe that might be Ilki’s blessing.”

Maeve: “Ilki, the God of Nature. Sounds like a fit, I guess.”

Una: “You’re not familiar with the gods’ blessings either are you?”

Maeve: “Not really.”

Una: “I’ve heard of people said to have been blessed by two of the gods. They were heroes of legend. I’ve never before heard of three, let alone more.”

I didn’t know how to react to that.

Una: “What do you know of the evils of the world?”

Maeve: “You mean monsters?”

Una: “Yes.”

Maeve: ”In the game, they’ll always attack on sight. Assuming it is the same, I know what a bunch of them look like, what some of them are vulnerable to, what attacks some of them can resist. Things like that.”

Una: “Sounds like good practical knowledge. Like you said, assuming it is the same.”

Maeve: “What makes them evil?”

Una looks perplexed. Like I’ve asked a strange question.

Maeve: “I mean, when I was playing a game it wasn’t an important question. The game said they were evil. Simple. And they attacked without provocation, so why question what made them evil beyond that in a game. But it seems different when there’s an actual goblin there in front of you showing fear and running away from a stalker. Maybe they’re just trying to get by? Maybe we could make peace with them?”

Una: “I see. You have knowledge of what the monsters look like but not where they come from.”

Maeve: “Where they come from?”

Una: “It is very much tied to our history as the peoples of this world. So far, the gods have only given us some few revelations of things that happened before our histories. For instance, there is the legend of the slaying of the great bugs – insects far larger than even the giant insects that can be found now – to make way for people. We have known of them from visions since before the first time miners found traces of their vast carapaces in the ground.

“From the first human era, only a few poems survive. Most of those describe beautiful scenes in nature, such as the Valley of Rainbows which has either been lost or destroyed since before the second human era. Between visions from the gods and the stories from the elves, scholars of the second era record that the first era was an idyllic time, with no threats beyond weather, wild animals, and the occasional war among people.

“Between the first and second eras, the Incursion struck. A gate opened from somewhere else. Perhaps another world. Or perhaps from some other kind of place. First an army of goblins emerged from that gate. Behind them, others came. Everything that came through killed all the people in their path without exception, without mercy. And they destroyed every building or other work of people. Every human settlement lay in ruins and the survivors retreated to the dwellings of other races, though those too were steadily falling to the onslaught. Meanwhile the gods had been making magic weapons and teaching the people how to use spells while guiding the people to regroup. Somehow, a party of heroes made their way through the monsters and destroyed the gate. Among the scores who set out, 10 reached the gate. And 3 among those made it back to refuge after the destruction of the gate.

“The second era began with the founding of the city of Itracus in the very first territory reclaimed from fighting the monsters that the gate left behind in our world. Over the course of the second era, much of the known world was reclaimed from the monsters’ control, though even now some still infest areas between cities and villages. And the monsters still control lands beyond human reach.

“137 years ago, scouts discovered a new gate shortly before the destruction of the kingdom closest to its location. Thus began the third and current era. Since then, the monsters have been getting reinforcements through the gate and they appear to be more coordinated in their attacks. In that time, we have only managed to more or less maintain a stalemate, occasionally losing or rebuilding settlements or forts on a fluctuating border.

“During the second era, efforts were made to negotiate with various groups of monsters. Some were captured. Noone managed to learn the monster languages, although a few scouts claim to recognize some sounds as tactical directions. And the monsters showed no interest in learning our languages. In the 12th year of this era, after generations of research to prepare, a college of mages attempted magical communication. But they could only sense malevolence, a will to utterly destroy the life of this world and take it for their own. Several of those mages broke from the ordeal. One began raving incomprehensibly and died while flailing about and ranting. One inscribed a magic circle in the air, stepped through it, and was never seen again. Others cycled between gibbering and just behaving erratically. One of the ones who seemed OK at first was caught attempting to assassinate a prince. Another walked into an orphans’ school and slaughtered everyone there with a sword. The remainder were all confined for public safety and did not live long thereafter.”