And Luke was right. The trip went by much more smoothly than Hallie had expected. Luke kept Pine at a steady pace and he kept an arm around her waist to prevent her from falling off of the saddle. Despite Hallie’s initial discomfort, she quickly recognized that she’d rather him hold her than fall off. 

Before they were even out of sight of the barn, Luke said, “As a scholar, I have always had an interest in technology and Earth. If you don’t mind me asking, would you like to share some of your favorite experiences or just something interesting about it?”

Recognizing his curiosity and welcoming any distraction, Hallie found herself rambling about everything that she could think of. She tells Luke about cars and how common they were in many places of the world. Hallie also tells him of cell phones and TVs, submarines and airplanes and much more. 

Luke listened to all the information with interest, only interjecting whenever he could think of a relevant question. After a long conversation about technology, Hallie shifts the focus of the conversation to some of the unique wildlife they have passed during their journey so far and Luke answers her questions in return. 

Before long, they were approaching the city walls. Luke showed a small card to the guards before they were waved through. As they go through the gates, Luke explains that the ID card proves that he has access to this city and as a resident, he is able to bring in guests. As they rode through the city, Luke pointed out various buildings to Hallie. As they passed by the largest building Hallie had seen since arriving, Luke explained that the building was called the Teca and it was the biggest building in the whole of Ashka. 

“There are many Teca’s throughout the whole of the kingdom. So they are numbered. This one is number 15. Since only one is located in each Division, they are just referred to as the Tecas. Each Teca has a Great One who is the most knowledgeable Scholar in that division of the Kingdom. The capital city is full of even more knowledgeable scholars, but many people never get the opportunity to meet them. The Capital city is only open to the elites and even then many of them have trouble gaining access. Our Great One is Warlen, he is one of the oldest and wisest scholars in the kingdom. He is usually retired to his chamber for study by this time, so we will have to speak with him tomorrow.” Luke said.

Pine brings them in front of a small house with an even smaller stable attached, when Luke announces that we have arrived. The place was small, but cute and cozy. He handed me the keys and told me to unlock the door and get myself settled in while he got Pine unsaddled and fed. 

I unlocked the door and walked inside to find myself in a small living room. There was a fireplace, sofa and chair on one side of the room. The other side of the room was filled with books. The bookcase was made of wood brightly painted a vibrant yellow color and served as the focal point of the room. There were hundreds of books on this wall. There were shelves located on the other walls, houses, copies of pictures that I saw in the farmhouse and several more carvings of even more creatures. I walked through an archway to the right and found myself in a small kitchen and dining room. The kitchen was small, but it had all of the necessities. There was a small table pushed into a corner so that only 2 of its 4 chairs were actually accessible. The room was painted a faint green color and like the living room, was full of little decorations that made it cozy. Hallie re-entered the living room as Luke walked in the front door. 

“I see you've found the kitchen. I don’t have much in there right now. I tried to use everything perishable before I went back to the farm. We can go out in the morning to get breakfast. And, if you’re hungry now, we have some snacks here.”

“I’m not hungry. I was just exploring a little bit. Would you like some help putting that stuff up?”, Hallie asked as she followed Luke into the kitchen. 

“Sure, then I can give you a tour of the place. Although you’ve already seen the majority of it.”, he chucked to himself. 

They finished putting up the food and then Luke led her through the other archway out of the living room. This one led to a short, narrow hallway. The first door on the right was a small bathroom and the first on the left was the door to Luke’s room. He paused and dropped off his bags before leading Hallie to the last door at the end of the hallway. He opened the door and they walked inside. 

“It isn’t much, but there’s a bed and a desk. There is also a dresser and closet… I guess we should probably buy you some more clothes before we worry about where  we are going to put them. We’ll have to do that tomorrow as well.” Luke said. “I don’t have any women’s clothes, but you could probably borrow a pair of my pants and a shirt to sleep in, if you’d like.”

“Thank you. I think I might take a shower before bed.”

“Help yourself. The towels are in the cabinet in the bathroom. I’ll go get you those clothes.”

Hallie looked around the room. Even though the dresser and closet were empty, the room still felt comfortable. Overhead the ceiling light emitted a faintly yellow glow that bounced gently onto the soft blue of the walls and the dark colors of the wooden furniture. The worn and tattered quilt on the bed was full of pale blues, yellows, greens, and pinks and looked to be quite comfortable. 

“Here you go. I had some older clothes that don’t quite fit anymore that are probably a bit closer to your size.” said Luke.

“Thank you. Really.” Hallie said. “I am going to take a shower before I go to sleep so Good night.”

“Goodnight” Luke said before he slipped out of her room. 

Hallie looked through the clothes and selected a pair of plain brown pants and a white short sleeve shirt. She placed the others into the dresser. She took a quick shower, and headed to bed. Although she was worried about many things, her body was worn out and she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.