“All this time, I should have realized,” Emerys said. “When the catalyst came to Pelios, I recognized a pattern in the energy. All this time, I couldn't place it, but the energy of this world is different. My past meditations now make some sense.”

Emerys kept on walking as she spoke, her calves protesting the amount of time she spent traversing the mountainous paths. 

When she had meditated in this world, a lot of calming techniques had overtaken her practice. So far, in this world, it had been hard to tell where she was. At least, not without the ability to look at the stars. But a part of her work with Verina had been to draw her own maps. While she met with Verina, she would often try to draw the stars and create her own star charts. At Valrun's place, although she had little time for the full map, she managed to draw the north star, as well as the other stars in the constellation.

In her old world had been Maros, Siras, Callios, and Erdrice. In this world, the major planets were known as Asden, Miderth, Nifle, and Muskel. From comparing maps the locations of each plants, and their visibility during different times of year varied. Therefore, it was easy to conclude Emerys wasn’t even in the same solar system, although there would still be a lot of guesswork surrounding such a decision.

“I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you have the ability to go to another realm, it would make it much, much harder to stay here, because you need a strong reason to stay,” Gudrun said. “I married a woman. But what do you have for yourself?”

“Well, I am bound to Jarl for business, right?” Emerys suggested.

“You have to have a steady proof of income as well, and no offense to Jarl, but it would be best if it were something else besides being a hunter's apprentice.” Gudrun said. “And a place to live would be important as well.”

Emerys threw her hands back. “And what if I became an adventurer in this world? What are some things we could do to increase my chances of staying here. Because there’s only one reason I would go back home of my own volition, and it would be to countersue him for all of his damages. But just because it’s my home planet doesn’t mean I have a home there. I mean, I don’t have one here either, but the village has been so much better for me than Pelios ever could be.”

“I’m not saying you should go back,” Gudrun said. “I am just saying that you need to prepare because the road ahead is challenging. The king might not be so kind to you, unless you bring something of value to him which he hasn’t had otherwise. And you will likely need a thousand copper coins to try and prove your case anyway, in terms of financial stability. Are we clear?”

“I think so,” Emerys said. “It has been a challenging few weeks, and I spent a lot of time wishing for this reality, just so that I could escape my old one. What am I going to do if I have to go back?”

“I don’t know,” Gudrun said. “What would you like to do?”

“Maybe see if there are other worlds?” Emerys said. “But then how would I know if they would accept me there, too? And do I really have enough gumption to learn another as I did this one again sometime?”

“I think that’s for you to answer,” Gudrun said. “I’m just warning you, though. Because you could help open up the possibility of interrealm communication, and that might be a strong asset in and of itself.”

“Also, there’s the problem of finding my son,” Jarl said.

“That, too,” Emerys said. “I haven’t forgotten that part.”

Jarl turned and gave her a harsh glare. “That was your promise to me. You had better follow through on that one, if nothing else. Are we clear?”

“Yes,” Emerys said. “I promise.”

Despite her protests, there was something of shame surrounding her decision to try and stay in the new world. Her parents and siblings would likely notice she was missing at the next holiday, although with her reputation, they would likely think it better without her. Then there was Verina, the woman who had taught her what she had known about astrology, helping Emerys come to a conclusion with the help of Velrun. Then there was Lydia. The woman who had judged her, to the point of, at least a year ago, told Emerys she needed some distance.

For her siblings, most of their disdain came from the fact that her older sister and brother had both followed their parents’ footsteps. Both had gone into academia, studying to a much higher degree in various fields. Meanwhile, Emerys had been expelled for poor grades, all because she’d spent more time partying than studying. And although she’d left university over five years ago, the scars still lingered when she joined them for family holidays.

One of the best allures of the new world was that no one here was privy of that lifestyle she’d lead. Although she would have to tell them the basics eventually, she wondered what they would think of her. A woman who had failed at life once before, trying again.

Meanwhile, although there were some challenges with her relationships in the new world, not once had she felt her new company had disparaged her over anything. Not over her lack of language skills, not over the fact that she had yet to find her proper place, and not over the fact that she had taken up a fair portion of their resources.

When they paused for a moment, Emerys took a bite out of a portion of bread. As she chewed, she looked out at the rainy forest.

“The travel bread tastes nice,” Emerys said. She then took one more corner off her bread. “His name was Jakob, by the way. And some night, when we have the chance to have a campfire, I should explain some things about him.”

“That would be nice,” Gudrun said. “I think I might have an idea, although I do not have the story.”

“It’s a complicated story. But once I tell you in full, I think you will understand why I wanted to stay here. Although, at this point, I would understand if you found yourselves suspicious of me when I told you.”

“We can talk about it over time,” Jarl said. “I mean, this is why we’re on a long journey here, is it not?”

She could not stop trembling. Not as she’d made the promise. If she were to break it and delay the telling of her story, she would likely prove one of Jakob’s points about her. And then there were her siblings, at the next holiday, chastising her about the fact that they had both married without some problem. After pulling the orb out of her pocket, she teazed the light.

It turns out immigration customs are challenging to deal with, especially when my level of documentation in this world leaves something to be desired. My next experiment with this light is to see if I would be able to light a fire with it. One thing is certain, though, and that’s the reality that my strength is growing. Although it’s a subtle growth at this point.