“It’s definitely different enough,” Jason said. “My world has its share of strangeness, but this is a whole different kind of strange. Some things are weirdly the same, though. Like hedge mazes, and people named Gary. I have a cousin named Gary. Not as tall as you, Gary, but almost as hairy.”

“He’s a leonid?” Gary asked.

“I think it’s a glandular thing. We don’t have leonids on my world.”

“I’m not well versed in astral magic,” Farrah said. “I’ve heard of outworlders, but it isn’t my field of expertise.”

“Alternate realities maybe,” Jason said. “Some things are the same, others different. If that’s what this is, then this world diverged from mine a very long time ago. The continents are different, but not completely. The fundamental physical laws here have some interesting addenda. My world doesn’t have magic, at all. Or a second moon. I did see a second moon, right?”

“Your world only has one moon?” Gary asked. “That’s weird.”

15. Outworlder

15

Outworlder

They continued walking through the stony desert. There was a rough trail to follow back to the manor, and Jason’s map ability had apparently been plotting locations, even when he was unconscious. The hard ground was uneven but not too difficult to walk on.

There was a stash of water bottles in Jason’s inventory, provided from Farrah’s own magical storage space. The pounding heat was not helping Jason’s condition and he emptied one bottle after another.

Jason was grateful they were walking over dry, hard earth instead of trudging through endless sand dunes. His knowledge of African geography was limited but he’d seen a documentary about Namibia’s Skeleton Coast once. From what he could remember, things got very sandy there. Of course, it could be a completely different in another world.

The others helped introduce him to their world as they marched on.

“What I don’t understand,” Jason said, “is why I have abilities that I never had before. Is it because my world doesn’t have magic, but this one does?”

“I’m not sure,” Farrah said. “I don’t know much about outworlders.”

“I’d never heard of them before this,” Gary said, “so don’t look at me.”

“I’ve met some before,” Rufus said, prompting groans from Gary and Farrah.

“What?” Rufus asked.

“Of course you have.” Gary complained.

“What’s wrong with that?” Rufus asked again.

“Your childhood friend is the Crown Princess of Vitesse,” Farrah said.

“This again?” Rufus asked. “It’s not my fault who my parents chose to socialise with.”

“So, Rufus is a big deal?” Jason asked.

“No.”

“Yes.”

“Yes.”

Rufus glared at the other two.

“I do know a little bit about outworlders,” Rufus said. “They’ve been pulled into our world from another one through some magical accident. Usually a summoning spell that’s gone awry.”