They repeated this process on the other side, notching the corners, rolling it into place, and aligning it with the first. And as they did so, the wall lines began to form, with each step the cabin becoming more visible.

  “Since a winter storm is coming,” Kaelin said, grabbing some of the bark she had collected, “you’ll want to insulate the walls with this.”

  “You think it’ll be good enough?” John asked. It didn’t look too promising.

  “It’s the best you’ve got,” Kaelin said with a shrug. “Wind can’t pass through it as easily, and you’ll want to keep as much of it out, especially when the temperature drops.”

  Kaelin demonstrated how to patch in the bark, laying the strips between the logs where needed. John helped press it down firmly, squeezing the strips in place to keep any airflow out.

  Together—as Luna watched patiently near the dwindling campfire, which was lasting much longer now—they added logs to the left and right walls. They interlocked them from the first two logs like Lincoln Logs and repeated the process, difficult as it was, placing the next four logs and locking them at the corners. The bark acted as insulation between each layer.

  When they reached about window height on the far side of the cabin, which faced the snow-capped mountains in the distance, they used two shortened logs instead of full-length ones to leave a gap. They did the same for the doorway facing the little campfire and Luna, leaving an opening in the wall.

  “I can’t get over how much this feels like giant Lincoln Logs,” John said.

  As they finished the top layer, the inside of the log cabin already became noticeably quieter.

  “What are Lincoln Logs?” Kaelin asked, brushing a small strand of golden hair from her eye, damp with sweat.

  “Imagine something like this,” John said, patting the log cabin wall proudly. “But a miniature version for kids.”

  At the mention of kids, Kaelin’s eyes looked away.

  “It’s already warmer in here,” Kaelin said, not continuing the conversation.

  John sighed. I wonder what happened to her.

  Still, he agreed with Kaelin’s assessment.

  He could hardly believe they had done all this work. It had taken all day long, much longer than he had expected. But in the end, he had a decent-sized log cabin. Though the roof was nonexistent, he assumed that once they finished the walls, they would receive a quest to build one.

  Unsurprisingly, he was right.

  Objective Complete: Build the Walls

  Rewards:

  Level (+25): 3 (65 / 200)

  Log Cabin Door (Common)

  Glass Window (Common)

  Log Cabin Roof Recipe

  After the quest, John’s Woodcraft skill increased.

  Woodcraft (+20): lvl 4 (35 / 250)

  Luna yelped as a dark pine door appeared right in front of her, set with hinges and swinging open. A window appeared as well, made of tinted blue glass.

  What surprised John the most, though, was how serene it made Kaelin. She silently walked to the window and stared out at the snow-capped mountains. Only Luna coming up and howling for attention broke her from the moment.

  “I don’t suppose you’re going to try building the roof tonight,” she said, glancing up at the moon, which had just begun rising. They had spent most of the day building, and darkness would soon be on them.

  “Uh, no, I don’t think so,” John said, his eyes shifting downward. “I figured if you’re open to it, we could do that tomorrow. But I can cook you a nice fish stew if you’re interested.”

  “Only if it’s not a bother to you.”

  “I promise you it’s not,” John said, simply happy for the company. “Here, why don’t you sit down with Luna by the campfire?” John said, motioning toward it as they stepped outside the cabin, which he still could hardly believe existed. “I’ll reignite the fire,” he said, splitting the last extra log he had.

  That left him with just the ten logs he had hoped to save, in case he needed them later. He got the fire roaring hot. She thanked him quietly before sitting beside Luna, who continued begging for back scratches.

  Hearthcraft (+5): lvl 1 (55 / 100)

  “Don’t move, okay,” John said, a hint of desperation in his voice. “I’ll be right back, I promise.”

  “I’ve got nowhere else to go,” Kaelin said with a faint smile.

  John had the feeling she meant far more than what she said.

  As darkness settled over Meadowreach Valley and John splashed into the water, longing for the cold, refreshing creek, he nearly collapsed from exhaustion.

  Stamina: 10 / 100

  “I could just sleep right now.”

  The feeling only intensified as Kaelin took out her violin and began playing a sweet, soft melody.

  As John lowered his fishing line into the darkening water, the fish seemed lulled into a sense of ease, approaching his line and allowing him to catch them more easily than before. Several times, John became distracted, turning back to stare at Kaelin as she immersed herself in the music while Luna slept in her lap.

  More than once, he found himself simply staring at them and at the log cabin they had built together. He nearly forgot he had once been a life insurance salesman in that stale corporate environment.

  I can hardly believe my luck.

  With Kaelin’s music calming the fish, he gathered four of them rather quickly.

  Fishing (+20): lvl 1 (90 / 100)

  With his haul, he returned to the roaring firepit and quickly dispatched the fish while Kaelin continued to play.

  He was ravenous by the end of the day and assumed Kaelin probably was as well. Undoubtedly, Luna would be too. So he decided to prepare a big meal. Even if it wasn’t the most conservative choice, they had just built a house—well, most of one—and he felt he deserved a little something extra for the hard work.

  After cleaning the fish, he filled his cooking pot with river water and added fish, mushrooms, and berries. Kaelin added mysterious leaves that caused the entire pot to glow as if made from the silvery essence of the moon.

  “You sure that’s safe?” John said, frowning as he looked at the crystal-white essence she dropped in.

  He guessed they were herbs he had never seen before, maybe from a different biome.

  Kaelin smiled.

  “It’ll improve the flavor.” She paused. “Probably.”

  “Wait, what do you mean?” John said, laughing a little.

  “You’ll see,” she said, before returning to her playing.

  Cooking (+10): lvl 1 (85 / 100)

  It turned out her seasoning was rather good.

  Harmony River Stew (Uncommon) — The broth carries a gentle warmth and a faint musical aroma that lingers in the air. Packed with flavor. Restores Hunger, grants a Warmth boost, restful sleep until the following day, and a slight Morale increase.

  Kaelin wasn’t lying about the strange crystal-white seasoning.

  It was rich with flavor, unlike anything John had ever eaten.

  Luna was excited for it too, slurping hers down almost immediately while John did his best to show decorum.

  “See, I told you it was good,” Kaelin said, raising a brow playfully.

  “It is. Thank you.”

  He noticed that his conditions, except for stamina, were all maxed out. And because he had shared the stew with Luna, his Companion Bond increased 5pts as well.

  “She seems to like you,” Kaelin said, holding her own wooden bowl from her pack and taking gentle sips from the stew.

  John nodded, briefly distracted by fireflies—or perhaps fairies—glowing over the softly gurgling river. Luna looked very tempted to chase them.

  “It’s because I’ve been bribing her with fish,” John said sheepishly.

  “I’m still surprised,” she said, looking back at Luna. “These crystal wolves have a hard time bonding with other creatures, let alone humans.”

  “Do they have humans here in your world?”

  Kaelin closed her eyes and nodded.

  “There are more biomes here than you could ever imagine, John,” she said quietly. “The survivors are all spread out, but they’re slowly rebuilding. I’m not surprised you haven’t seen anyone yet, though I have seen some from your world.”

  “The Portal Co.?” John asked, trying not to take another slurping sip.

  “Yes, that’s the one,” Kaelin said, scratching Luna behind the ears.

  The wolf seemed completely comfortable with her, perhaps even more than with John.

  “Have they been friendly encounters?”

  “So far,” she said. “But why did they come here, your people?”

  John stared down into the stew, or what remained of it in the pot, as the flames flickered around it.

  “I mean… adventurism?” John said, though the word sounded uncertain. He shook his head, unsure what to say. “I don’t know. A chance to escape? Back in my world, everything just feels so crowded. We’re constantly working and doing jobs we don’t like. Paying bills. Rushing from one thing to the next. Everything just feels so…”

  John sighed.

  “Busy.”

  “Did your life not feel full?” Kaelin asked, raising one golden brow.

  John frowned. “Not as much.”

  What he really meant to say was not at all.

  John stared at Kaelin for a moment before looking out at the soft river, the sprawling meadow behind it, the deep forests, and the snow-capped mountains.

  “It’s a lot simpler here, that I’ll say,” John said. “It requires hard work, just like the other world does, but I don’t know. This just seems right, like I was made to do something like this.”

  “What did you do for work before?”

  “Do you guys have life insurance here?” John asked, cringing as he said it.

  Kaelin suppressed a giggle.

  “I don’t know what that is,” she said.

  “That’s probably why,” John said, feeling like a dweeb for even bringing it up. “Well, let me explain it another way. I was selling things for people I didn’t really care about. And out here I’m doing something that matters.”

  “Like building log cabins?”

  John chuckled. “When you put it that way, it sounds rather silly.”

  “I’m only teasing,” she said, smiling behind her bowl. “My world used to have cities, too. Though probably different from what you’re thinking.”

  “How so?”

  “Well,” she said, her eyes looking away. “We had all sorts of kingdoms here. Many different races—humans, elves, dwarves, fairies, werewolves—anything you can think of. The way the portals work allows us to connect to more biomes than you can dream of. But then… some of our top mages pushed the limits of portal magic. And they…”

  She did not continue.

  “But there is a remnant of you, is there not?” John asked, careful not to push too much.

  “Indeed,” she said, taking another sip of her stew.

  “Perhaps that’s why I’m here,” John said, “and my people from Earth.”

  When Kaelin frowned in confusion, he tried to explain.

  “Maybe I was sent here to help you rebuild your world.”

  “But why would you do that?” Kaelin asked. “What’s in it for you?”

  John was slightly taken aback.

  “You’re in need,” John said, certain of his conviction. “I don’t really need anything from you. I just like the quiet here, sure, but you’re somebody like me. Your life matters. If I’m in any position at all to help you rebuild and restore what once was, then that’s what I’m here for.”

  He believed the words as he spoke them. Even though they were simple and honest, they were true.

  “If only we had people like you before the world ended,” Kaelin said, flashing a small smile.

  “And if you stay long enough,” John said, “I’ll even try to build you a chair.”

  Kaelin laughed, her laughter as sweet as her music.

  “Before you build a roof, that is,” she said, glancing up at the space above the cabin walls.

  “Eventually,” John said.

  “Well, we can build it tomorrow,” she said. “And afterwards, I can take you to one of my favorite biomes, if you want. You’re probably going to need something to bring some light in there.”

  “Like a lamp?”

  “Something like that,” she said. “It’s called the Glowwood.”

  “Glowwood?”

  “You’ll see.”

  “So, the roof and then Glowwood?”

  Kaelin nodded. “Then it’ll truly be a home.”

  After they ate, Luna was already fast asleep.

  John offered his insulated tent for Kaelin to sleep in, but she chose to sleep beside Luna near the fire. She had her own sleeping roll in her pack and promised she would not be cold.

  When John climbed into his bed inside the insulated tent, she began playing her soft melody once again. The fire crackled in front of them, giving off warmth.

  As peaceful and soothing as it was, and as heavy as he felt after the stew, he could hardly sleep. The company he now had filled his heart far more than he could have imagined.

  He didn’t know what tomorrow held. But with his dog and this serene elf, he was sure it was going to be something out of this world.

  14

  RAISE THE ROOF

  John woke to the sound of a violin playing softly nearby.

  His body felt like a log as he pushed himself up, the smell of smoke and damp pine filling his nose while he forced his eyes open. He stared at the campfire, which was nothing but dull embers now.

  Luna and Kaelin were not there. Only the dried, hanging fruit and mushrooms swung from the drying rack.

  His heart panicked for a second, and he scrambled out of his tent, still in his trousers. When he finally found them, Kaelin was sitting on the edge of the cabin’s foundation between the doorposts, playing softly while Luna sat beside her.

  “I see you forgot your clothes,” Kaelin said, blushing and turning away.

  John, still groggy and about to comment that her music was better than the alarm clock on his phone used to be, looked down in horror.

  “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry,” John said, scrambling back.

  “Don’t worry!” Kaelin called out as he rushed into his tent, looking for clothes that weren’t there. “I washed your clothes, and they should be warm by the food drying rack.”

  John looked down at his slightly hardening body, which was beginning to grow muscle, though it was still far from what he wanted it to be. And he still smelled.

  “Can you look away for maybe a few minutes?” he called out.

  “Sure.”

  “I need to wash,” John clarified. “It’ll be really quick, I promise.”

  Another giggle followed by a calm reply.

  “I’m not looking.”

  John braced for the cold and dashed out past the campfire. His sudden sprint made Luna follow. She leaped with him into the cold river.

  As soon as he was in, he felt amazingly refreshed. He wiped wet hair from his eyes and relaxed now that his body was hidden beneath the water.

  “There are some roots just downstream for soap if you need them,” she said.

  John turned and saw a cluster already picked for him.

  “Don’t I need to boil it?” he asked, swimming over to grab them.

  “I already heated it for you,” she said, trying not to smile. “If you rub it on your skin, it should clean it.”

  John did just that, scrubbing his armpits and, well, everything else that needed scrubbing. He was thankful the water concealed him as he did so. Then, with a start, he realized she had also washed his underwear. They were hanging beside his plaid shirt, jeans, and socks near the fire.

  His face turned as red as the morning sun rising over Meadowreach Valley, casting a golden red glow across the land.

  Luna howled, a strange mix of barking laughter and excitement as she chased fish through the shallows. John couldn’t tell if she was making fun of him.

  But now he was fully clean, no longer smelling of sweat. He couldn’t wait to put on clothes that smelled of wood instead of body odor.

  After asking Kaelin not to look again, which she promised she wouldn’t, he climbed out of the river. She continued playing her violin. John hurried to the fire, dried himself off, and quickly pulled on his clothes. They were warm from the fire and smelled as clean as his skin.

  “Okay, you can look,” John said, zipping his pants as he walked over.

  Her eyes briefly looked him up and down before she stood from the doorway.

  “Luna and I also caught you some breakfast,” she said, pushing the door open wider to reveal three large Emberfish.

  John looked curiously at the wolf pup. She only licked her crystal lips, making John smile.

  He made a simple breakfast for them, roasting the fish over the fire using a log Kaelin had already brought over. It made the morning go much faster than if he had done it alone.

  Hearthcraft (+5): lvl 1 (60 / 100)

  Cooking (+15): lvl 2 (0 / 150)

  Cooking lvl 2 Unlocked — Steadier heat. Your timing improves. Food scorches less often. Simple meals come out more consistently and much faster.

  I bet Luna will like that.

  The three of them ate their roasted fish beside the campfire, with John receiving more points in his companionship bond with Luna, though with Kaelin, nothing with the system had happened yet. Would something happen? He had no idea.

  Steam rose into the cold morning air. They felt the chill far less thanks to the windbreak and the log cabin behind them.

  “So,” John began with a mouthful of fish, “have you found where my people have gathered? Like a trading post or something?”

  Kaelin frowned, wiping her lips of grease with a leaf. “I have, it’s in this biome. Did you not come from there?”