 
                              Dragonseeker
 
Part 1: Learning the Ropes
 
Prologue
 
 
 
            Donald White threw his book bag into the corner.  School
had been another bad experience.  Even at age seventeen, he couldn’t
seem to fit in.  Class was okay, but any time he had to mix in with the
other kids, life was unpleasant.  Buddy Selsner had decided that Don
was a good target for his fun this day, and so he had nearly been late
to class trying to stop his bloody nose.  He didn’t tell anyone about
it: the last thing he needed was for Selsner to think he was a snitch. 
He slumped into his chair, and woke his computer out of Sleep Mode.
 
            “Donny, dinner’s in an hour!” his mother called up from the
bottom of the stairs.  He cringed when she called him that.  It made
him sound like he was three.
 
            He logged onto the Internet, hoping to find something to
divert his attention from his bad day.  His connection zipped along,
and soon he was sorting through his email, most of it junk.  Normally,
he would just delete all of it, but one caught his attention.  Its
subject line was “The Mother of all RPG games”. 

            Although the title was clichéd at best, Don opened the
email.  He was an avid RPG fan, and had played every computer-driven
and online RPG in existence at one time or another.
 
            The email merely directed him to a website, saying, “You
won’t believe what this game can do!”  *Yeah, right.*  He clicked the
link anyway, being bored, and curious.
 
            The link took him to Zemlia Nov Games.  He had never heard
of this company, and he thought he knew all the RPG developers.  He saw
that the company was obviously small, as their website was only a few
pages, though well-constructed.  He noticed that they were only selling
one game at the time.  It was called “Dragonseeker”.  He clicked for a
description.
 
 
 
_Dragonseeker_
 
You have entered the land of Zemlia Nov.  Magic and mystery abound. 
The terrain and the animals are unfamiliar, and danger lurks around
every corner.  You have been armed, armored, and instructed in the ways
of the land, but there is no substitute for experience.
 
 
 
Zemlia Nov is a dangerous place, and not everything is as it appears. 
Not only the creatures will seek to do you in.  Can you survive long
enough to find a way out of Zemlia Nov?
 
 
 
You and your team, should you choose to bring help, will have to
survive the terrain, the creatures, and the inhabitants of Zemlia Nov
to escape back to your world.  Bringing help is *strongly* advised.
 
 
 
Can you locate the yellow dragon?  Will it help you if you do?  Or will
you and your party be forever trapped in Zemlia Nov?
 
 
 
 
 
*Dragonseeker* is on the cutting edge of RPG simulation.  You will feel
immersed in the world of Zemlia Nov.  So real, you may forget about the
real world!  If you’re looking for the best role-playing game ever
invented, *Dragonseeker* is the game for you!
 
 
 
_Money-Back Guarantee:_  If *Dragonseeker* is not the most realistic
role-playing game you have ever encountered, return it for a full
refund of the purchase price, *including shipping*.  We will even pay
for you to ship it back to us!
 
 
 
PC/Mac on a single CD - $74.95 plus $4.95 S/H
 
 
 
            Don thought the description was overly melodramatic, and
kind of cheesy, but to tell the truth, it did have his curiosity
aroused.  Besides, the guarantee made sure that he wouldn’t lose out on
the deal.  He reached for the box he kept his spare money in.  This was
money he’d earned, separate from his allowance.  He was often asked to
work on his friends’ parents’ computers, and so he had a fairly good
income from that.  He counted out what was in the box, and found it to
be more than enough to purchase the game.
 
            He had already made a standing arrangement with his father
about ordering things online, and he also already had his father’s
credit card number memorized.  Don hit the order button, and quickly
filled in the necessary information.  He decided to spend the extra $5
for second-day delivery, so that it would arrive before Saturday.  It
would give him and his friends something to do.
 
 
 
Chapter 1
 
 
 
            The game arrived on Friday.  It arrived in a padded
envelope, and was nothing more than a single disc in a jewel case. 
Already, Don felt a little cheated.  He’d expected at least a fancy box
for $75.  The disc itself didn’t even have any fancy graphics on the
label, just a black label with gold lettering.  He took it out, and
flipped it over.  Well, at least it wasn’t a CD-R disc.  It had been
pressed like a normal CD.
 
            He popped it into his machine, to see what it would do.  As
the screen graphics came up, he did have to admit that they were pretty
damned good.  The opening animation was very lifelike.  He watched as a
warrior battled a large, winged animal that he did not recognize.  It
had four legs in addition to its wings, but he never got a good look at
the beast’s head.  The last scene showed the warrior, lying dead on the
ground.  Words came onto the screen, leaving the image in the
background.  “Will this be you?” it said.
 
            The game brought him to a menu.  He chose “Instructions”.
 
 
 
Welcome to Dragonseeker.  You are about to enter a world of dragons and
fairies, of monsters and elves.  The land is full of magical and
dangerous creatures.  Your job is to survive long enough to make it out.
 
 
 
Your goal, as a Dragonseeker, is to find the yellow dragon.  Only it
can lead you safely back to Earth.  Only it knows the secrets of Zemlia
Nov.
 
 
 
Before you can enter the game, it will ask for several pieces of
personal information.  These are used to help it create your
character(s).  Please be honest with your responses.  These are not the
characteristics of your character, but your personal statistics as a
player.
 
 
 
After these questions are answered, you will enter character generation
mode.  The game will ask you to define your character(s), and then it
will ask you if you wish to extend the size of your party.  The screens
are self-explanatory.
 
 
 
Once you have defined your party, hit the “Enter Zemlia Nov” button. 
The game will then begin.  It is self-explanatory from that point on.
 
 
 
Enjoy Zemlia Nov, and good luck, Dragonseeker!
 
 
 
            Don figured there must be an extensive online help, for the
instructions to be so short, but he was used to dealing with computer
games, so he figured that nothing could be too difficult for him.  He
went to the “Begin New Game” option, and the screen brought up a list
of questions.  He saw that the list did, indeed, get *very* personal. 
It was when he got down to “Time of last sexual encounter”, that he
began to wonder what they might need this for.  He properly entered,
“Never” from the list.  He was glad no one was around to watch him do
this just now.
 
            He filled out all the other questions, which got more and
more personal.  It took him nearly ten minutes to fill it all out. 
When he was done, the game asked, “Save personal profile in encrypted
format?”  He clicked “Yes”.
 
            Next, he brought up the character generation screen.  He
was just about to scroll through his options when his mother called him
to dinner.  He closed down the game, and left.  He figured he’d go
ahead and wait for his friends to show up the next day to continue.
 
 
 
            Susan was running late, and she hated to be late.  Worse,
she couldn’t even blame it on her little brother.  Well, “little
brother” was her joke.  Even though he was a year older than her, he
was also four inches shorter than her, and she never let him forget it.
 
            Susan Ipswitch had never melded well with her new family. 
She’d been in the Stelwicht clan for only three years, and she didn’t
get along all that positively with either Gill, her older step-brother,
or John, her younger step-brother.  She felt like they were both just
complete losers, one a nerd, the other a gang member at age fourteen.
 
            She pulled her car in behind the one already in the small
driveway.  Apparently, Julie and her brother Paul were already here. 
It was a weekly gathering at the White house, the three brothers and
the three sisters would get together.  The boys would do something
stupid on the computer, and Susan and her friends would usually go to
the mall or watch TV.  The girls had come to know each other only
because the boys always hung out together, but they had grown to be
friends.
 
            She opened her car door and was assaulted by the humid,
stale air of the day.  It had rained all last night, and there were
puddles and mud everywhere.  She had not parked on the street because
of the huge mud puddle in front of the house.  She looked at the yard,
which was a murky mess.  The Whites never bothered to keep up their
lawn other than a weekly mowing.  She frowned.  She wasn’t going to get
her shoes dirty, as her brother had just done by walking through the
muck.  She walked down to the sidewalk and made her way toward the walk
leading up to the front door.
 
            She never saw the car coming.  It almost had to be a
teenage airhead who wasn’t even thinking.  Before she knew it, there
was a wall of filthy water descending on her body.  She screamed in
surprise and disgust as her clothes were drenched.  She stood there,
looking like a wet cat, her arms held away from her body as her sopping
clothes hung on her.
 
            Gill had turned when he heard his sister’s scream.  He
tried not to laugh at her.  She had been so prissy about her clothing. 
To see her covered in mud was a sight to behold.  He only wished she’d
been wearing white, to further humiliate her.  She had been a bitch to
him ever since entering the Stelwicht house, acting like the queen of
the ball, even though she wasn’t even the oldest.  Gill was seventeen,
like his friend Don and their mutual friend Paul.  They hung out
together at school, and they’d spent every Saturday afternoon together
for the last six years, barring a few here and there.
 
            Gill watched as his sister stormed up the walk and past him
into the house.  As she passed, she said, “Not one word.”  Gill nodded
as he chuckled to himself, and then followed her into the house.
 
            “What the hell happened to you?” Kate asked.  Kate was
Don’s sister.  At fifteen, she was the youngest girl in the clique. 
She never forgot it, either.  She was a JV cheerleader, even in her
freshman year, but she still felt like she was a second-class member of
a three person group.  Her brown eyes conveyed a look of concern as her
mouth twisted into a frown.
 
            “Some goddamned moron splashed that fucking mud puddle all
over me!”  Susan answered.  “Look at my clothes!  Now what the hell am
I going to do?”
 
            “Well, you really need to take a shower and dry off,” Julie
offered.  Julie was Paul’s sister.  She was a slut, plain and simple. 
If it was cute and male, she would go after it.  There was a running
joke at school about whether having only two legs was a requirement. 
Julie indignantly ignored these barbs.  She was the best looking girl
in her class, and she knew it.  She was 5’6” tall with short black hair
and a body to die for.  She was a junior varsity cheerleader, with
Kate.  But Julie knew, deep down, that she was varsity material while
Kate… probably wouldn’t make the cut.  Julie was a cheerleader because
football players went out with cheerleaders.  Football players fucked
cheerleaders, more to the point, and Julie loved sex.
 
            “And what the fuck am I supposed to do about these?” she
said, exasperatedly pointing to her clothes.  “Go naked?”
 
            Gill smartly kept his mouth shut at this point.
 
            “Maybe Don has an idea,” Kate said.  She went to the bottom
of the stairs and called out, “Don!  Can you come down here a minute?”
 
            Don hustled down the stairs, wearing loose jeans and a
black T-shirt with an American bald eagle on it.  “What’s up, sis…
Shit, Susan, what happened to you?”
 
            Before Susan could go off again, Kate said, “She got
splashed from the puddle out front.  She needs to get dry, but she
doesn’t have any clothes here, and mine won’t fit her…”
 
            Don looked at her for a moment.  For just a second, Susan
thought he was being sleazy.  But then he said, “She looks like she’s
about Mom’s size.  See if there’s something of hers that she can wear,
at least until she can get home and change.”
 
            “Your mother wouldn’t mind?” Susan asked, unsure.
 
            “Nah,” Kate said.  “She won’t be home for a few hours,
anyway.”
 
            “Okay.  Thank you, Don, for thinking of it.”  Susan had to
grudgingly admit that it was a good idea.  Had by a nerd, but wasn’t
that what nerds were for?  Ideas?  Certainly they weren’t good for much
else.
 
            “Sure thing.  C’mon guys, I got a new game for us to check
out.”
 
            The three boys moved back up the stairs.  Julie turned to
Kate and said, “Your brother sure is smart.”  

            Kate nodded.  “Sometimes I wonder how come I didn’t get any
brains like him.  But then I remember that I’m the athlete.  He
probably couldn’t run a hundred yard dash without a trip to the
hospital.”  The girls had a laugh.  “C’mon Susan, we’ll find something
for you to wear.  Then you can hop in the shower.”
 
 
 
            Upstairs, the boys had already booted the game, and were
through the introduction screen.  Don pulled up the menu, but was
greeted with a new question:
 
            Would you like to load saved personal data? (Y/N)
 
            Don said, “I entered my data last night.”  He entered “Y”,
and the hard drive whirred.  Then the computer indicated it was ready
for further entries.  He turned to the other two and said, “I don’t
know why it wants all this info, but the questionnaire gets *very*
personal.  I think we’d all feel better if each of you answered them
alone.”
 
            They each agreed, and Paul entered his questions first.  He
had to pause when he ran across the question, “Given no regard for
feasibility, what would be your favorite occupation?”  He thought hard,
and then finally entered, “Feudal Lord”.  That seemed in context for
the program.  He still thought this was more about defining a character
than his own personality.
 
            A few minutes later, and Paul emerged, to let Gill go back
into the room and enter his own answers.  Gill went along unconcerned,
answering even the most personal questions.  Near the end, he came down
to, “Enter your favorite sexual fantasy.”  This stopped Gill cold.  Oh,
sure, he had one.  But was he going to be stupid enough to tell the
machine?  Sure, Don said the data was encrypted, but he also knew his
friend was a hacker.  How secure was it?
 
            Gill flip-flopped for a minute or two, but decided what the
hell, and went ahead and typed in, “To have my step-sister as my
devoted servant in all matters, sexual and regular.”  The computer
chewed on this for perhaps a microsecond before popping up the next
question, and Gill moved on.
 
 
 
            Meanwhile, Susan had chosen some clothing from the closet
of Kate’s mother.  They were hardly stylish, but at least they appeared
like they’d fit.  She’d have to go home as soon as they decided what
they were going to do, so she could change.  She didn’t dare borrow
another woman’s underwear, so she was without any of that kind of
thing, and she didn’t go out like that.
 
            Presently, she turned on the shower to a very hot setting,
and climbed in, letting the water cascade down over her ample bust, and
trickle between her legs.  She sighed as the water eased her tensions
from the last few minutes.  Dammit, why did they have to come over here
every fucking weekend?  Surely there was something better she could do
with her time.  She’d much prefer to be on the archery range,
pretending to shoot arrows through Gill’s head time and time again.
 
 
 
            With all of the personal data collected and stored, the
three stood together as Don clicked on “Character Generation”.  First,
it listed Don’s name, so this was to be his character.  He had a fairly
short list of possibilities.
 
            “Hmph,” said Paul.  “Not much there to choose from.  Hope
you didn’t pay a lot for this game.”
 
            Don said nothing as he scrolled through the list.  It
wasn’t much, he admitted, but he’d make the best of it.  He chose
“wizard”.  The game told him to wait, and then it suggested suitable
clothing, which he could alter within parameters.  He made a few minor
changes, including the color, but left it alone for the most part. 
After that was done the game printed out:
 
Setting character parameters based on questionnaire answers.
 
            “What the hell does that mean?” Gill asked.  Don just
shrugged.  It asked for Paul to come in next, and so he sat down.  As
he began to scroll his list of characters, it was immediately obvious
that his was much longer.  Paul looked at Don.
 
            “I don’t know.  Maybe it has something to do with the way
we answered the questions in the first part.”
 
            Paul shrugged and turned back to the list.  He saw one that
surprised him.  He highlighted it and clicked on “What is this?”
 
_Psionic:_ An individual capable of manipulating the world around him
or her through the use of mental power.  This differs from magic in
that the source of power is internal, rather than external.  Master
psionics are capable of such skills as limited-distance teleportation,
and mind control.
 
            “Cool!” said Gill.  Paul agreed with his assessment.  This
was the kind of character he’d always wanted to play, but none of his
DM’s would ever let him.  Said he wasn’t suited to it.  *Bullshit.*
 
            Gill came in, and, given his size and skills, his choice of
character was obvious.  Gill was a weight-lifter, but he was also
smart.  He had a hard time fitting in at school.  The jocks ignored him
because he studied, and the nerds were nervous of him because he was a
jock.  It was a no-win situation, and he was just glad that these two
guys had known him long enough to be his friends regardless.  Gill
chose “fighter”.  He chose his own costume as well, looking reminiscent
of Robin Hood, he supposed, but without the bow.  His weapons of choice
were sword and quarter staff.
 
            With all three of them having selected characters, they
assumed the game was to begin.  They clicked on the “Enter Zemlia Nov”
button.
 
Your party contains only three people.  Six are available.  Would you
like to expand your party? (Y/N)
 
            “Now what?” Gill asked in exasperation.
 
            “I’m not sure,” Don said.  “It says we can have six people
in our group.  I remember the ad said that bringing help was *strongly*
recommended.  Maybe we should add the extra three?”  The other two
agreed, and so Don answered yes.  The computer came back with:
 
Your party is complete.  Remaining three characters will be configured
during transfer.  Please click to enter Zemlia Nov.
 
            Don clicked the button.
 
 
 
            There was no special sound or sight to follow the clicking
of the mouse.  Only a vague nauseous feeling greeted the travelers. 
The room dissolved around the boys, and they were suddenly standing in
a forest.  This was odd both because Don had been sitting at the
computer, and because computer programs generally don’t do such things.
 
            They glanced around quickly, noting the trees, and the
sudden hush of the forest.  They were standing at the edge of a grassy
meadow in the midst of a wood, the sunlight streaming down on them.  It
was a warm day, but not hot, and the humidity here was significantly
less than it had been outside Don’s home.
 
            It took none of the three very long to realize that they
had not been transported alone.  Standing about fifteen feet from them
were Kate and Julie, who had astonished, almost panicked, looks on
their faces.  And five feet away from them, standing in the open area
of the meadow, was Susan.
 
            Susan was dripping wet.
 
            Susan was naked.
 
            The boys gaped as Susan, realizing her predicament, looked
around in alarm, trying to cover herself, and finally running for the
nearest bush.  Gill let loose with a wolf whistle, and it earned him a
nasty look from his sister.
 
            “What the fuck are you looking at, you perv?” she retorted.
 
            “Nice bod, Susan,” Gill shot back.
 
            It took a little longer for Don to realize that there was
another person who was somewhat chagrined.  And he smacked himself
mentally for not noticing her differences earlier.  His own sister,
Kate, had changed dramatically.
 
            Kate had been slightly more than 5’2” tall.  Now, she would
barely make the 5’ mark.  Her auburn tresses had been replaced with
fine silver hair, which had somehow grown from shoulder-length down to
the middle of her back.  And her eyes, normally a dark brown, now
glowed with an almost golden color.  She looked a little sick, as if
she were about to pass out.  Don hurriedly moved to her side.
 
            Kate grasped onto him tightly.  “Don, what’s going on? 
What’s happened to me?”
 
            “I’m not sure, sis,” he responded.  Paul brought Don’s
attention to a pile of objects in the middle of the meadow.  On the
very top of the pile was a scroll.  Don went over and picked it up,
starting to read it before he even thought about the fact that it was
in modern English.
 
 
 
Welcome to Zemlia Nov.  The articles included in this pack should prove
useful, perhaps essential to your survival.  Included are clothing to
appropriately attire your characters, weapons to properly arm them, and
other sundry items that you should find of value.
 
 
 
No other objects will be provided for you.  Anything you may find along
the journey, you may keep, so long as the entity currently possessing
it does not, or can no longer, object.  Take heed of what you carry:
Some articles will be more trouble than they are worth.
 
 
 
The only way to return to Earth from Zemlia Nov is to locate the Yellow
Dragon, whose name is Vernior.  No instruction can be provided to you
as to where to find Vernior.  However, we do recommend that you begin
by travelling North.
 
 
 
Good luck on your quest, Dragonseekers!  May the Fates and the Fairies
watch over you.
 
 
 
            “What the fuck is going on here?” Susan screamed from her
safe hiding behind the bush.  “What have you guys gotten us into?”
 
            “Settle down, Susan,” Don said without thinking.  He didn’t
often speak forcefully to people, even those younger than him, but his
mind was working on autopilot at the moment.  He started to sort
through the pile of items.  The bulk of the pile was clothing.  He set
these out so that they could look at them.  For the boys, it was easy
to tell which outfit was whose, as the boys were very different sizes. 
Also, the outfits provided them were those they had described at the
beginning of the game.
 
            For the girls, each outfit carried a tag.  Don set Kate’s
on top of his robe.  He handed Julie hers, and he gave Susan’s to
Gill.  Gill walked over to her, bearing his gift.  She was still
fuming, but she accepted the clothing with as much grace as she could
manage.  She did not like the dirty look she was getting from Gill,
though.
 
            “Thanks a lot, you little… sir,” she said, and then blinked
twice in surprise.  *Sir?  Sir is not what I’d meant to say, was it?*
 
            Gill looked at her a little strangely, but then just
shrugged and walked away.  He picked up his own clothing, looking it
over.  He didn’t figure he’d have much trouble getting into it, and he
walked over to a group of trees to change.  Julie had already departed
with her clothing to a thicket near Susan, and Paul had followed Gill.
 
            Don picked up Kate’s outfit and gave it to her.  She still
looked a little shaky.  “You gonna be okay, Kate?”
 
            “Don, what’s happening?  Why am I different?”
 
            “I don’t know, kiddo, but we’ll get through it, all right? 
Now, why don’t you go change with the rest?”
 
            Kate moved off in a slightly different direction from the
others.  She had always been very shy about her body.  Don watched her
go before picking up his robe and heading toward Gill and Paul.  He had
his clothes changed in less than two minutes, for it was simply a robe,
after all, although he’d never worn one with a hood on it.  It was a
deep blue color, and came all the way to his ankles.  He noted, as he
put it on, that the inside was littered with pockets to stash items in,
while still keeping them in easy reach.  The robe had a silver fastener
at the waist, rather than a belt, which was unusual, but it still fit
him well, and allowed him to move freely.
 
            He was about to see how Gill looked in his new outfit when
he heard his sister scream.  He was immediately running to where she
had gone to change.  He came around a bush and saw her standing in the
middle of a dense group of trees.  Although she had managed to put her
skirt on, she was standing bare-chested.
 
            Without even finishing his examination of her, he blurted,
“Nice knockers, Kate.”  She blushed furiously, but then it dawned on
Don why she had screamed.  Extending from behind her shoulders were two
large wings, her wingspan perhaps ten feet across.  The wings were made
of feathers, but the feathers were an iridescent material that
shimmered in the dappled sunlight coming through the trees.  Kate was
on the verge of tears, and Don went to her quickly, wrapping his arms
around her.
 
            Or, trying to.  The wings made a normal hug difficult while
they were extended, and so he ended up wrapping his arms around her
waist and pulling her to him.  She wept in his arms for a few seconds,
and then she cried out, “I’m a freak!”
 
            “Shh, shh.  No, you’re not, Kate.”
 
            She backed away from him and demanded, “Oh, no?  Then what
the hell do you call this?” she gestured to herself, forgetting, again,
that she was not covered up.
 
            Don noticed, now that he was closer to her, that Kate’s
ears had also become pointed in her transformation.  Finally, it
occurred to him what had happened to her.
 
            “I call you a Winged Elf,” he answered.  “And a damned cute
one at that,” he added without much thought.  His sister blushed again.
 
            “Great,” she cried.  “I’m not even a person anymore!”
 
            “Katie,” he said, using a name she normally loathed, but at
times like this it made her feel better.  “You’re still a person,
okay?  You’re still my sister.  You’ve just got wings is all.  I still
think you’re the prettiest girl I know.”
 
            She wiped at her eyes and smiled at him.  She held up the
thin fabric of her top.  “What the hell am I supposed to do with this
thing?” she asked.
 
            “Go without it?” he quipped.  She swung it at him
playfully.  “Let me see it.”  She handed him the garment.  Though it
would cover her fully in the front, it was unlike any shirt he had ever
encountered.  The back was nothing more than a few thin strips of
fabric, with metal clasps to fasten it.  “Want me to try to figure it
out?” he asked.  She nodded tearily.
 
            First, he figured out which way was up.  This wasn’t overly
difficult.  Then he moved to his sister, almost reluctantly covering up
her wonderful chest, which had not shrunk in proportion to the rest of
her body, and so looked even larger than before.  He wrapped the top
strips of the garment around her neck, fastening them in place.  The
second set wrapped around her lower back, going below her wings, and
fastened in place.  She squirmed a bit.
 
            “What’s the matter?”
 
            “My boobs feel a little cramped.”
 
            “Well, adjust them!” he said with some exasperation.  “Do I
have to do *everything*?”  He raised his eyebrows lecherously at her. 
The conversation between them was odd.  Kate and Don had always been
close, but this sort of flirtation was not part of their normal
routine.  Not that Don didn’t find his sister to be a total babe,
especially now, but he normally did not have the confidence to make
those kinds of comments, even to her.
 
            After she made the necessary maneuvers, Don walked around
her, looking at her from all sides.  “Well, it’s kind of a strange top,
but you look good in it.”
 
            “Yeah, well, it’s no weirder than the panties were,” she
said glumly.
 
            “Oh, what about them?”
 
            “They’re kind of… rough.”
 
            “Let me see,” he said, again without thinking.  Before she
could protest, he’d lifted up the back of her skirt to see the panties,
made of a course cotton-like material, but not nearly as soft as what a
woman would be used to.  He ran his hand over it, not really thinking
about the fact that he was caressing his sister’s ass.
 
            She wiggled at the feel of it, though she definitely did
not find it unpleasant.  “At least the crotch is soft.”
 
            “Really?”  Without another word, he slipped his finger down
between her legs.  He wasn’t trying to feel her up, but wondered what
the material was.  She stiffened as his finger slid along her nether
regions, feeling the material of her new panties.  She wondered why he
was acting this way.  She wondered why she didn’t resist.  She wondered
if he was going to stop soon.  Then she wondered if she really wanted
him to.
 
            Finally, his curiosity sated, he put her skirt back down
and walked back around to face her.  “Well, we’re all just going to
have to make the best of it.  We’ll find a way out of here.”
 
            “Oh, Donny.  I’m scared.”  Unlike his mother, Kate had a
way of saying his name that made him feel warm and cozy.  She hugged
him, and he again put his hands around her waist.
 
            “I’ll look after you, sis,” he promised.
 
            She looked deep into his eyes, and saw his promise there. 
She leaned in and gave him a soft, quick kiss on the lips.  She had
never done that before, but neither of them commented on that fact.
 
            “Thank you,” she said, and then laid her head against his
chest.
 
            Eventually, Kate settled and wiped her eyes.  When she was
finished, the two headed back into the meadow with the rest.  Everyone
stared openly at Kate’s newest surprise.  Paul and Gill gaped at seeing
someone they had known for years transformed from a normal, if pretty,
teen to a beautiful winged Elf.  Julie was also in awe.
 
            Susan was still her smart-assed self, though.  “Damn, girl,
what costume party are you going to?”
 
            Kate’s reaction would not have been favorable, but Don’s
response was immediate.  “Shut the fuck up, Susan.”  His voice was a
deep, dark warning that no one had ever heard from him before.  Susan
thought to give a comeback, thought better of it, and kept her mouth
shut.  Kate squeezed her brother’s arm in thanks.
 
            Don moved back to the pile of stuff, which was still
considerable.  The first thing he noted was a sword.  He automatically
assumed this was for Gill, as he was the only person who *might* know
how to use it.  Gill removed the blade from its sheath.  The finely
crafted blade glinted in the sunlight.  He hefted its weight, checking
the balance before sheathing the sword and attaching it to his right
hip, for Gill was left-handed.
 
            There was a large bow also, and this he gave to Susan.  She
accepted the weapon, feeling its weight and balance before slinging it
over her shoulder.  She picked up the quiver that was lying at the edge
of the pile, and examined one of the arrows.
 
            “There must be some pretty nasty animals around here,” she
said, withdrawing one arrow completely.  Everyone could see that the
arrowhead was serrated and large.
 
            “Well, at least we won’t starve.  You should be able to
bring down a buffalo with that thing!” Julie gushed.  Susan looked at
her as if to say, “You moron”, but kept her peace about it.  She
returned the arrow to the quiver, and fastened the quiver onto her back.
 
            Paul was given a staff, which looked sturdy enough, but
which he would need mainly for walking.  Although he was a full six
feet tall, Paul had trouble with his left knee: it was a gift from a
car accident several years before.  He leaned against the staff, his
arm still mostly hidden beneath the black cloak he wore.  The cloak hid
dark gray clothing and a pair of black leather boots of the type worn
in the middle ages.  He actually looked very comfortable in his garb.
 
            The items were dwindling quickly.  It appeared that there
were no weapons for the rest of the bunch.  Julie was not upset: she
had no idea how to use one anyway.  Kate, however, was annoyed.
 
            “What the hell am I supposed to use?” she asked.
 
            “Your wits, I imagine.  You can fly your way out of danger.”
 
            “Only after someone teaches me how to use these things.”
 
            “Practice, sis.  Only practice can teach you how to fly. 
Should I take you up in a tree and push you out?  That’s how mama birds
do it.”  He grinned at her, and she swatted him with a hand.
 
            There were other items of use, including food, in small
pouches, and water in plugged gourds.  Don distributed everything
evenly, and no one questioned why he was the one doing the deciding. 
After all of that was done, the only thing left was a small book.  He
opened this to reveal a series of spells and lessons on magic.  He
figured this was for him, as the wizard of the group.  He stashed it
away in one of his many interior pockets.  

            With the items distributed, the group sort of mulled about,
uncertain of what to do next.  Kate, having an open area to work with,
attempted to learn how to use her wings.  She made several false starts
before lifting clumsily into the air, tipping this way and that.
 
            Don watched her closely as Paul came over to him.  “What do
we do now, boss?”  Apparently, Paul had easily accepted that Don was
the leader of this particular group.
 
            “I’m not sure.  The scroll says to head north.  I can’t
really see any reason not to.”
 
            “I suppose.  Who gets the compass, by the way?”
 
            “For now, I’ll take it.  Later on, after she gets better at
that,” he nodded at Kate, who was trying with some minor success to get
the hang of flight, “I’ll let her be our scout.”
 
            “Works for me.  When do you want to head out?”
 
            Don consulted the compass, and then looked at the sun.  It
was very low in the west, and there would be only a little daylight
left.  “Why don’t we camp here for tonight, so we can get our
bearings.  We can set off in the morning, and see if we can’t make it
out of here.”
 
            “You think we can find this dragon in a day?”
 
            “I don’t know.  I can hope.”  He settled down to look
through his book of magic, while keeping one eye on his sister.  Paul
went over to tell the rest what they were doing.  Susan wanted to
protest, but something inside her prevented her from speaking out.  She
wondered what it was about this place that had her so off-balance.  She
just wasn’t herself.  Calling her step-brother “sir”?  Letting that
geek tell her to shut up?  What was going on?
 
 
 
            As the sun began to set, Don cleared a spot in the center
of the meadow, and gathered up some kindling.  It was a moment before
he realized that they had no way to light the fire.
 
            “Um… guys?  Anyone want to take a crack at rubbing sticks
together?”
 
            “The Indians used to use their bow against wood to start a
fire,” Kate offered.
 
            “Their bows weren’t this big,” Susan replied not unkindly. 
“And I don’t know how to do it anyway,” she admitted.  Susan hated
that.  She never admitted her ignorance to others.
 
            “Damn.  We’re going to be cold tonight if we can’t start a
fire.”  The temperature was already beginning to drop, as the sun had
sunk beneath the tree tops.
 
            “Isn’t there something in that damned book?” Gill asked him.
 
            “Hmm.  Let me look real quick.”  Don flipped through some
pages, and stopped on one.  “Here’s a spell for a fireball… I’m not
sure if… oh, wait, yeah, here’s one that makes just a little fireball. 
I don’t know if I can do this, though.”
 
            “Give it a try, Don,” his sister encouraged.
 
            He tucked the book away after memorizing the words and
movements of the spell.  He concentrated and began the chant, moving
his hands around a small invisible ball.  When he concluded the spell,
nothing happened except for a brief flicker of light.  Susan snickered,
but Gill gave her a dirty look, and she quieted.  It was strange for
her, but she wrote it off to the unusualness of the day.
 
            Grumbling, Don dug the book back out.  He flipped open to
the page, and read it again, very slowly.  He re-memorized the spell,
and checked to make sure his hand motions were right.  He set the book
down, and tried again.  This time, he cupped his hands so that they
faced outward at the end of the spell.
 
            A small ball of blue flame jumped from in front of his
palms, and landed in the pile of kindling.  Very quickly, the kindling
caught, and, as the blue fire died, the orange glow of a normal fire
replaced it.  Don smiled in triumph.
 
            “I hope you get better with that,” said Gill.  “I don’t
want you to have to check the manual when there’s some big honkin’
monster coming at us.”
 
            “Hey, it’s my first day.  What d’you want?”
 
            

            The group ate their meal around the fire, quiet and
immersed in their own thoughts.  The siblings each sat together.  Kate
actually leaned against Don, while the other sisters merely sat close
to their brothers.  Soon, it was time for bed.
 
            “Should we keep watch?” Paul asked.
 
            “For what?” Susan replied immediately.
 
            “Exactly my point,” he retorted.
 
            “Probably a good idea,” Gill said.
 
            “Okay.  The guys will keep watch.  Paul, it was your idea,
so you get stuck with first watch.  Gill can take second watch, and
I’ll take the last watch.
 
            “How come you get to sleep the longest?” Julie asked.
 
            “Actually, Gill’s the only one with a shitty job tonight,”
Don answered.  “And we’ll rotate, so that no one gets stuck with it all
the time.”
 
            That settled, the group settled onto the ground to sleep. 
Don rolled up his old clothes into a pillow, and lay down.  His sister
lay beside him, her back to him, her face to the fire.  She snuggled
back into him to help keep warm in the chilled night air.  He put his
one arm over her protectively, and then he leaned over and gave her a
kiss on the cheek.  He saw her smile slightly in response.
 
            “G’night, sis.  See you in the morning.”
 
            “Night, Donny,” she murmured, already falling off into
slumber.
 
            Don settled back, his head resting on his makeshift
pillow.  He closed his eyes and it wasn’t long before he was asleep. 
He was sure he was going to need it.
 
 
 
