Ethan Cole stood on a steel platform high above the amusement park he worked for. His headset buzzed as the morning inspection team checked the last tracks of the coaster below. The sun warmed the horizon and reflected off the metal rails. Ethan loved this hour more than any other moment each day. It was the time when a park felt like a sleeping giant before waking up to thousands of excited guests. He had spent more than ten years building a reputation as a director who kept everything moving smoothly without chaos. He knew ride safety procedures crowd control staff rotation emergency drills and even the smell of the park during busy days. His mind constantly processed numbers timings and routes and that made him one of the few people able to predict where trouble would appear before anyone noticed

He looked down at the empty paths and waited for the day shift to check in. His phone vibrated. It was a message from HQ asking him again to consider a promotion that would move him away from fieldwork. He had refused twice. He enjoyed fixing problems not sitting behind a desk. Before he could type an answer a strange sound rolled across the sky. It was not thunder. It felt deeper and heavier as if something ancient had awakened above him

The clouds swirled like a whirlpool of gray white and electric blue. A spiral opened in the middle and a column of light shot straight down striking the rail beside him. Every nerve in his body burned and the world tilted backward. He felt the wind vanish. The metal beneath his feet dissolved like wet sand. His heartbeat grew loud until it filled his ears and then everything vanished

When he opened his eyes he was lying on a stone road. The air was colder and filled with a strong smell of smoke grass and unfamiliar spices. A huge wall rose beside him with banners showing symbols of animals and swirling runes. He pushed himself up and stared at the strange buildings around him. They looked like medieval structures from a fantasy film except for the floating lanterns and blue runes pulsing between the stones

His first thought was that this was a special themed resort. His second thought was that he had somehow survived a massive accident and been moved to a reconstruction zone. But the sky above him shimmered with two moons and a chain of floating rocks drifting slowly across the clouds. His chest tightened. This was not Earth. He knelt and tried to breathe slowly. Years of emergency response training kept him from panicking. He checked his hands legs and head just like he would after a heavy fall. Everything felt normal

A horse drawn carriage rushed toward him. The driver shouted for him to move. Ethan jumped aside just in time. The horses had glowing eyes and the wheels left thin trails of light on the stones. A group of armored guards approached him one wearing a bright crest shaped like a phoenix. They stared at his clothing which looked strange compared to their heavy cloaks and leather gear

The guard leader asked who he was. Ethan answered slowly trying not to sound confused. He said he was lost and did not know how he arrived here. The captain studied him for a moment. Then the captain told him something that turned his confusion into shock. A huge mana storm had just hit the city and people believed that strange beings sometimes fell out of those storms. The captain asked if Ethan had powers or strange items. Ethan shook his head. The captain motioned for him to follow. They walked through the stone gate into a courtyard filled with what looked like a training ground. Mages practiced small spells while archers aimed at floating rings

Someone shouted near the center of the courtyard. A young man in noble clothing had fainted and his guards panicked. Blue flames danced around his body. Everyone shouted at once. Ethan had handled accidents at theme parks many times. Instinct took over. He moved forward and ordered the guards to clear space. He told them not to shake the boy. They looked confused but obeyed. He checked for breathing and saw the boy struggling as mana flared around him. A mage yelled that the prince was caught in a mana overload. Ethan could not help with magic but he knew how to calm a dangerous situation. He told them to ground the area by removing metal objects and move people back then asked if anyone could stabilize mana flow. A mage ran forward and pressed glowing sigils into the air. The flames dimmed and the prince began to breathe normally again

When Ethan stepped back everyone stared at him. The captain demanded to know how a stranger knew how to handle a royal emergency. Ethan said he worked at parks where accidents happened sometimes and he had training. The guards whispered. Soon Ethan was taken to the palace where the king himself asked what Ethan wanted in exchange for saving his son. Ethan only asked for safety food and time to understand this world. The king granted him a protective badge and named him a temporary consultant for the royal entertainment bureau a department the king admitted did not actually do very much. Ethan thought it was a strange assignment but accepted it because he had no other options

He was guided to a room in the palace where he spent the night thinking about the impossible situation. He looked out the window at the floating lanterns drifting over the city. The kingdom seemed full of danger but also full of incredible potential. If magic was real and if it could be controlled safely maybe he could use it the way he used technology back home. He did not know yet but a small spark of excitement flickered inside him. It reminded him of the feeling he had when planning a brand new attraction. He did not know it yet but this world was about to see something it had never imagined