Chapter I - Welcome To The Frontier!

""Next!" Yelled a very manly voice. Anna... didn't know what was happening. The last thing she remembered doing was sleeping on something soft. Now, she was standing on a dock, dressed in very heavy and uncomfortable clothing.  Around her, she could see a massive ship behind her, endless beaches flanking her, and a very small village in front of her. Well, small compared to the massive city of Vancouver. "Next! The woman with brown hair!" Yelled a man again, Anna snapped out of her thoughts. Looking around to find the source of the voice, she spotted a table with a man raising a wooden paddle with a simple red-painted face. It seemed like that's where she had to go.

Once she arrived at the table, the man pushed a strange orb sitting on a seemingly soft and plush silk pillow. It seemed to be made of a very shiny purple glass, which seemed to be made with a high degree of quality. She assumes that it was high quality since that, other than the dock she is standing on and the clothes she is wearing, was the only thing she has seen. Though, there was one thing she was curious about. The orb seemed to have a cloud imprisoned inside. Forever in limbo, being the same as it was when it was first captured. She wanted to own one of these orbs only because of how strange it was. The man was looking rather impatient now, gesturing to the orb. "Ms, place your hands on the core," he commanded.

"Y-Yes. Sorry," she mumbled, placing her hands on the core. So that's what it was called. A core. A piece of paper appeared in the man's hand, who quickly skimmed through it. After the core stopped glowing, she assumed she was supposed to release it. The man raised his eyebrow in curiosity. It seems like he found something interesting about her. She had suddenly gotten slightly nervous as she knew she wasn't from this world. She would practically fall apart if anyone asked her any questions. She could lie, but what if information like that was easily accessed here?

"You haven't spent your allotted 30 francs sterling. Go to the general market if you so wish to spend your money," he said, sliding a rolled-up piece of paper to her, continuing with, "hand this paper to the general market owner to pay for the products you purchase. Next!" Anna took the paper, moving off to do exactly that. She felt relieved. At least she wasn't going to be called out for lying in a world she knows nothing about. The one issue was she didn't know where the General Market was. So, she decided to walk in a straight line, wondering where this would take her.

The town seemed run down. The buildings were made of degrading wood and raw lumber. She doesn't even know if they have been seasoned. The girl was expecting more from this "New World." She still liked the look of a rustic town. It gave her a feeling of comfort that she knew no one would know her here. She felt that she could restart her life here. She could talk to people in a way that she couldn't bring herself to do in her Earthly life. It was relieving to her. Eventually, she did arrive at a building labeled with massive white bolded letters reading "GENERAL MARKET." She chuckled to herself, somewhat amused with her ability to somehow arriving in the area she wanted to go. In reality, she had just walked in a straight line and luckily arrived where she wanted to go.

She gripped the paper that the dock man gave her, entering the General Market. It wasn't like the supermarkets or Priceco that she grew so accustomed to. Instead, she was confronted by a small building that had boxes and boxes of items labeled with what they were. Some were labeled "rifles," while others were labeled "powder." The building itself was cozy. It was warm and had this feeling that practically filled her with comfort.

"Welcome there, miss. Are you looking for something specific?" Asked the man at the counter. He looked young and handsome, having dark golden hair and a very sharp complexion. By Earth standards, he would have most definitely been some idol or at least a famous actor in Drywood. She couldn't help but stare at him for a moment, having to shake herself out of it to answer.

"Ah yes, sorry. I'm... new to this place and haven't spent my money yet... Is there something I am recommended to buy?" She asked, curious about his answer. She honestly didn't know what to buy and if even half of these were useful to her. She had averted her gaze away from him, looking at the box labeled "rifles."

He replied with, "do you have a job in mind? I can't recommend you anything if I don't know what you work as." He sounded sincere with that, but Anna didn't know what jobs were available. She had to make one up for now.  What could she be? She had read some books about people in her exact situation becoming adventurers. That would be an amazing idea right? She thought it was.

"I am an uh," she paused for a moment, thinking about how she could phrase her sentence, continuing with, "an adventurer?" She sounded like she was asking a question instead of answering. The man chuckled to himself, stepping out from behind the counter. He was taller than she expected. He practically towered her, standing almost a foot taller. This only proved to add to the   Who knew a place like these could procure such a tall person.

"Ah yes, another Adventurer. You can't go wrong with a firearm. Do you have identification or money with you?" He asked, reaching over to open one of the many boxes in the shop. Anna handed him the piece of paper that the dock man gave to her, assuming that this was her identification papers.  It had gotten slightly more folded on the way to the shop. She had tried to keep it safe, but there was only so much she could do to protect the paper. He took the paper, taking out a piece of graphite, and looked up at the girl, who seemed somewhat meek. This caused him to chuckle yet again. "Have you fired a gun before?" he asked. Anna shook her head. She hasn't fired a gun and she doesn't even know why she said "adventurer." There could have been a better job for her, such as a scientist or even a cook! But of course, she just had to become an adventurer. "I see. Well, it can't hurt to learn," he said, taking out a long object wrapped in a waxed brown paper. It reminded her of the waxed paper she would use to bake cakes with. He then continued with grabbing another wax paper covered object, and marking something down on the paper. "So, I have gotten you everything you need for the Frontier. A rifle, flints, powder, and balls. I recommend you to purchase a bag and maybe a sword, but that is your choice," he said, handing her the paper, which had some text crossed out. He also slid her a bag of coins, which also felt like it had a roll of papers inside.  

"Thank you... I'll think about it. Is there a place I can rest for the night?" she asked, planning to stay here for a while. More because she knows nothing about the world she is in right now and she doesn't even know how much money she has. At least she was conveniently able to understand their language. That did help with things.

"Ah yes, yes. Just 5 blocks down the street, there should be an inn. Have a nice day and be sure to come back again," he said, giving her a smile and a wink. She blushed, much to the man's confusion. Little did she know, this was just the way the people here functioned. Much like how some people greet people by hugging, kissing, or such, people here wink when they greet a person.

"Thank you. I'll be sure to be back," she said, departing the store with her newly purchased items. Good thing she had big pockets, stuffing the small box, identification, and bag of coins into one. She carried what she assumed was the rifle in her hand, only now feeling its weight. It was heavy, the girl having to constantly switch the hand she was carrying it in to rest them. It didn't help that it was hot, Anna sweating in the heavy clothing she was wearing. She couldn't wait to arrive at the Inn. She couldn't help it but look around. She could see people of many different appearances. There were the tall, white, blonde-haired, and blue-eyed people, while there were the darker-skinned people with equally dark hair and eyes but she hadn't seen anyone that even looked remotely like her. Maybe she was thinking too much in it, but she feels slightly out of place.

Eventually, she did arrive at what she assumed was the inn. It was a large wooden building, which had a large sign hanging off of the front labeled as "Plumbottom The Veined Inn." The building reminded her of those medieval inns that were always described to smell like alcohol, drunk men, and sweat. She didn't mind the smell of alcohol or sweat, but she feared for her safety. Drunk men tend to lose any hint of logic. She silently prepared herself outside, squeezing her cheeks and taking deep breaths, entering the inn. It wasn't what she expected it to be. She didn't smell any alcohol, the men in the inn didn't seem drunk and didn't look like a nuisance. It seemed like they were pretty well behaved.

Anna tentatively walked towards the counter, feeling the eyes of the patrons on her. Was it because she was a new face or was it because she was a woman. She wouldn't know anyway. This was her first day in the world. She wished that The Being would have given her more information about the place. That would have most definitely helped her in quite literally every interaction she had today.

"Hello Ms! Welcome to the Plumbottom The Veined inn. What can I help you with?" asked the woman. She seemed friendly enough and she seemed to be the only one working the Inn. Maybe the rest are resting or drinking right now. No matter. It seemed like the woman was able to handle it anyways.

"I am looking for a room tonight... Are there any for one person free?" she asked, taking out the money pouch that the store owner had graciously given her.

"Ah yes, let me check," the woman said, taking out a small book. She checked through the pages, nodding to herself. "Yes, we do have a room open. How long are you intending on staying for Ms?"

"I am... staying for a week. Yes, I'll be here for a week," she said, seeming confident about her decision. A week should suffice for her. It should be enough for her to explore the town long enough to learn as much as she could about the world before she inevitably went off to explore the world.

"That will be one mark sterling ma'am," she said, gesturing to the bag. Anne fumbled with the bag, looking at each coin and paper before the woman reached out and grabbed one of the coins. She held it up in front of Anne, saying, "this is a mark sterling. Your room is up the stairs and down the end of the hall. Enjoy your stay!"

Embarrassed that she failed at finding what she needed, she silently went to the room she was assigned. She entered, opening the door. There was a single bed, a window, a wood burner, and of course, a washing pail. She sighed, not knowing what she expected. She'll be sure to maybe make something in the future... at least when she learns how to make anything. She was only good at chemistry and physics. That was the only thing she was good at doing in her old life.

She sat down on the bed, placing down everything she had on her. To her, this was the moment that she was waiting for. It was like unwrapping Christmas presents to her, having two different items that were wrapped up. Sure, she knew exactly what each of them were, but they were still interesting. She started with the largest one, being what she assumed was the rifle. Removing the waxed paper wrapping, she was able to see what she had bought in her eyes. It was quite an attractive thing, being made of oiled wood and polished metal parts. She liked it. Looking at the wrappings again, spotting a piece of paper sticking to the waxed paper. It was like a manual to her and like any manual, she ignored it. She would figure it out. She played with the mechanisms on the gun. She pulled back the hammer, pulling the hammer immediately after. Feeling satisfied that she played with the gun enough, she opened the other bag, which produced a handful of flint chunks and smaller paper cartridges. She thought that this was cool. She wasn't able to do this in Canada, so she was going to take advantage of this. She assumed where things went on her rifle and eventually was able to get it to work. Of course, she didn't load it yet. That wouldn't be very smart for her. She squeezed one of the paper cartridges, locating what she assumed was the ball part of the cartridge and the powder part of the cartridge. Satisfied with what she has done, she neatly put everything she had away.

Anna was getting somewhat tired now, the sun starting to set. She had done a lot today. She had appeared on a random dock, in a random town, and in a new world. She was sure to wake up early tomorrow and explore more. She has a lot to learn of course.