This is a work of fiction.
I follow Red through the opening in the wall and out into the sunshine.
We’re on a path that appears to be made of some kind of stones. On either side of it, there are trees and bushes.
In front of us, there’s a low, wooden building, and Red walks toward it.
We walk around its left side, and I see a long, plain wooden box on wheels. Blue, Yellow, Purple, and a man are sitting in it.
He’s wearing white shorts and a white T-shirt, is tall, has light skin like me and the quadruplets, and appears to be sound asleep.
At the front of what I want to call the carriage, there’s a horse, and standing beside it is a second man. He turns to face us, but looks at our shoes instead of at our faces.
“Ready,” he says.
He doesn’t speak with an accent, but his voice is slightly thick. His skin is very dark and his black hair almost reaches his waist. He’s dressed in black trousers and a black button down shirt.
“Hello,” I say. “I’m Alexis. What’s your name?”
“That’s Homer Theta,” Red says.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Theta. What’s your horse’s name?”
Before he can reply, Red says, “Odysseus Theta. The carriage is called Odyssey Theta. You can call him Homer. He’s a driver.”
She climbs into the carriage.
I step up and sit down beside the sleeping man.
The seat is padded and very comfortable.
Homer Theta climbs up and sits at the front, and I notice that his seat doesn’t have any cushions on it.
I wonder if the man beside me might be Goldensword Harvestmoon, but I decide to wait until he wakes up and ask him directly.
I look at Red and say, “Where are we going?”
In the pause before she answers, I realize that I don’t know where there is to go in this universe.
“Nutmeg.”
“Nutmeg?”
The carriage starts to move.
“Yeah,” Red says.
“What do you mean?”
“I keep forgetting I have to explain everything. It’s a city. They’re all named after spices.”
“Oh. How far away is it?”
“Not far.”
The man beside me groans.
I look over at his face, and a pair of blue eyes opens in it.
“Hello,” I say. “My name’s Alexis. Are you Goldensword Harvestmoon?”
He nods.
“We’re going to Nutmeg. Have you ever been there?”
“No,” he says. His voice is higher than I’ve been expecting, and even a touch strident. “I just got in life today.”
“In life?”
“That’s what we say,” Red says. “When we use our 3D printer, people get in life.”
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