Eric, Sophia, and Clanker sat at a table downstairs in the tavern of the inn, the smell of roasting meat caressing Eric’s nose. His stomach growled in anticipation.

“Are skeletons like Clanker common in your world?” Eric asked, looking around the room and noticing the lack of alarm Clanker was raising. 

“Common enough,” Sophia said. “But this one is strange, with the eyes and all. I’ve never seen that before.”

“I am right here, you know,” Clanker said. 

“So, magic and stuff?” Eric said.

“It is quite prevalent here,” Clanker said. “Where perhaps on your world, it is not, correct?”

Eric nodded. “Other than in myths and stories, we don’t have magic. But, we do have science, and to some, that can seem like magic. Especially some of the weird and misunderstood areas of study, like quantum mechanics or polygon theory.”

“Hey,” Sophia began. “Don’t go getting all blasphemous, not that I care. That thing you call science sounds a lot like alchemy here.”

“This is accurate,” Clanker said. “The study of reality and the natural laws of existence isn’t very developed here, but is a bit taboo, since it’s closely tied to alchemy, and alchemy here is, as has been decreed by many rulers on Auron, blasphemy against many of the religious teachings of the Dracula rulers of the south.”

“But most don’t care about that,” Sophia said. “However, it’s the wrong words said without thought that can spark the fire that kills you. Best be safe and cautious, especially in taverns like this. You never know who’s eavesdropping.”

The food they had ordered arrived, brought by two servers on wooden plates, a mix of the steak dinner Eric was used to back home and some kind of Asian dish with a side of rice and what looked like butter. A large loaf of bread sat next to the plates on the platter. 

“Here’s your grub, Sophia,” one of the servers said. “Any kind of bone brew for your familiar?” The server asked Eric.

“I am no familiar,” Clanker said. “I am my own man. Well, my own bones.” The server didn’t look enthused. 

“Thanks, Grum,” Sophia said, throwing down a few silver pieces. “Any news?”

The man put a hand to his hip, the other hand stroking his scraggly beard. 

“Not much,” Grum said. “Though I heard that there was some commotion at the mayor’s manor. Seems like something spooked them.” 

Sophia nodded and he walked away.

“We may need to be vigilant about the mayor,” Sophia said. “He has interesting methods and resources at his disposal, which may be aware of you, Eric.”

“Really?” Eric said, startled. “How?” 

“Magic here is split into three main categories,” Clanker said. “Blood, bone, and sinew. Bone and sinew are somewhat similar in function and often aren’t even called magic, but just parts of life and how people learn to survive. However, blood fuels a great deal of the arcane, making all sorts of spells possible.”

“Using blood as the foundation of a spell,” Sophia began. “A practiced blood mage can do just about anything with the right understanding.”

“I had heard of such individuals that were capable of expanding their mind and soul to obtain foresight,” Clanker said. “These mages are often termed as Oracles, but I’ve always understood that to be somewhat of an insult to them.”

“Horace, the mayor, has an Oracle,” Sophia said. “So yeah it’s possible that they foresaw your arrival. We may want to be on our guard and prepare to leave soon.”

“To go where?” Eric asked. 

“Not sure yet,” Sophia said. “I was hoping to have more time here to plan some. I hadn’t even finished my hunt yet…I guess I won’t be getting paid.”
“Is it possible that they got it wrong?” Eric asked. “Or maybe that’s not why the mayor is freaking out?”

Sophia nodded. “Yeah, but it would be better to assume in this instance that is not the case and that they are looking for you.”

Eric looked at his food, nearly forgetting it was there, and began to eat. The meat tasted much better than it looked, with a strong salt seasoning and some kind of garlic. Sophia also took the opportunity to begin eating. 

“I miss food,” Clanker said. 

“How do you…exist?” Eric said between bites. 

“I don’t really know. The Hero’s magic was beyond me, even more so than what I remember seeing on Auron.”
“Did you say the Hero?” Sophia said, a bit of meat hanging from her lips.

“It makes sense that he would be well-known,” Clanker said. “He was a marvel on this planet. Truly something special.”

Sophia stopped eating and looked at Clanker. She then smiled and kept eating.

“What’s got you smiling?” Eric asked. 

“Well,” Sophia said. “The Hero of Bone, as they called him, existed a very long time ago. Did you mention something about being in a cave for eight hundred years?”

“Why, I do believe I stated that several times,” Clanker said. “But bringing it up again only hurts my feelings.”

Sophia laughed. “Well, bones, the Hero died nearly two thousand years ago.” Eric nearly choked on a bit of the rice.

“Wait, what?” Eric said, looking to Clanker.

Clanker looked up in thought, hand to his bony chin. Then, in a motion that Eric couldn’t track, Clanker reached out and sliced at Sophia’s arm, drawing a very small bead of blood. He snatched it on his finger even before she could react. Sophia looked at him in a building rage. 

“Hey, no one–” Sophia began but was cut off by a sudden vibrant, red light around Clanker’s hand.

An intricate ring of what looked to Eric like runes mixed with a few numbers here and there burst to light around Clanker’s wrist. 

Clanker raised his wrist to the ceiling of the tavern and it seemed to vanish, a dark sky of stars and light shining through, despite it still being daytime. Clanker twisted his wrist and the stars shifted and moved with the motion of his bony hand. Then, he stopped when he saw a certain pattern in the stars. 

“Well, call me burgundy,” Clanker said. “That is correct.”

“Call you what?” Eric said. Out of the corner of his eye, Eric noticed Sophia fuming. Then, he saw the small crowd that had gathered within the tavern near their table.

“More accurately,” Clanker said. “It has been roughly 2,032 years since I was cursed and placed in that cave. I apologize for the breach of personal space, Sophia. I had determined that Eric’s blood would likely not suffice, since he’s from another world.” Clanker then noticed the growing crowd. “Did I do something wrong?” He looked around the room.

Sophia calmed down, dabbing at her arm. “Don’t ever do that again, bones.” Her eyes conveyed the unspoken threat, making Clanker wilt a bit. He nodded in acquiescence. “How did you do that with just a drop of blood?” She asked him.

“That was just simple astrology analysis while peeking into the past,” Clanker said. “And I am quite proficient at the usage of blood in spells, allowing me to make use of every bit of power in your blood. Considering my origin, that is a feat I fought hard to achieve.” His voice shifted for a moment, gaining a sinister tone, then quickly fading as Clanker shook himself.

“It seems you do remember some of what you were,” Eric said.

Clanker raised his bone hand to his head. “I suppose so…”

Eric took another bite of his meat, what seemed to be a beef steak, then remembered something that had bothered him from the last few days. 

“Rose?” Eric asked. The system came alive as a floating blue orb of shifting light, which no one else seemed to be able to see. “What does Dracula have to do with this world?”

“They are the rulers of Auron,” Rose said. “Where Dracula is a specific vampire in your world, it is a title here on Auron. It is much like a king, but the title’s power and influence would match that of an Emperor.”

“Does Dracula mean anything to you?” Sophia asked. 

“It was the name of a very popular fictional villain, who was a vampire, in my world,” Eric said. 

“That’s odd,” Sophia said. “A weird connection to your world…especially since they are vampires.”

“I get the feeling that there will be more,” Eric said, taking another bite of rice. “And of course vampires are real. Next, you’ll be telling me werewolves are real.”

Sophia gave him a look. “What do you think I was hunting?”

“No way…” Eric said, a bite of meat halfway to his mouth.

“To my knowledge,” Clanker began. “There were no Draculas in my time. How recently did their rise occur?”

“Oh, I don’t know for sure,” Sophia said, wiping her face after having finished her meal. Eric looked at her plate in surprise. He had barely eaten a handful of bites. She continued. “I would say for the last six hundred years they’ve ruled in absolution to the south, beyond the desert band and in the southern green band.”

“What does that mean?” Eric asked. 

“Right,” Sophia said. “You know nothing.” She huffed in exasperation.

“Well, sorry,” Eric said, tone edging on sarcasm. “Not like I chose to come here on vacation or anything.”

Sophia looked at him, and then her expression softened. “Sorry, I get it. I’m just not…well I don’t really know a ton about the world. I tend to hate politics and history where it doesn’t involve me or my goals. I just try to survive as a hunter, taking hunts and jobs from local city and village job postings where I can.”

“Sounds kinda lonely,” Eric said. 

“I guess it is,” Sophia said, looking at Eric. “I haven’t really ever been in a party, a lone wolf you could say.”

“I wonder if my companion could elaborate,” Eric said. “Rose, what are you able to assist me with?”

The blue ball of light reappeared and spoke.

“My function can shift and grow according to your own experience, as well as certain quest rewards are given. But my main capacities are: language access, ability analysis as well as spell analysis, quest and party systems that include maps and navigation, and an inventory system that can be accessed at any time. However, your inventory is currently locked. Reason: unknown. Requirements to unlock: unknown.” 

“So that’s how I can understand you all,” Eric said. “That makes sense. And it sounds like I can learn a lot about stuff, map included, but right now I don’t have access to a lot of that. I guess I have to level up or something. I’m not used to this kind of thing. I wrote science fiction novels. I’ve barely even heard of role-playing from friends and anime.”

“What is anime?” Clanker asked. “That word is unfamiliar to me.”

“A form of media entertainment,” Eric said. “My favorite medium of storytelling, actually.”

“So you are a storyteller?” Sophia asked. “Might make getting through this world a bit rough. Take it from someone who knows this world.” Her eyes hardened, a darker history coming to the surface.

“Perhaps I’ll need to add a bit of light to it, then,” Eric said, smiling. “And as for the map and geography, we’ll just have to–”

The door to the tavern burst open, a man rushing in and yelling.

“The mayor is coming this way!”

Sophia gave Eric a look that seemed to convey an I-told-you-so.

Eric frowned. “I guess I’m popular around here already.”