Heroes Without A Plan
Chapter Two: An Old Life Goes Down in Flames

A loud noise came from the main part of the building just as Eliot was about to speak. “A fire alarm? What the hell is happening?” Alyssa yelped as soon as she heard it and quickly jumped out of bed. Eliot followed her, unsure of what was going on.

“AHH!” She cried out as she touched the knob of the door.

“What?” Eliot grabbed hold of her hand that stung from the fire.

“I think the fire is right out there! W-We’re trapped!” Fearing the worst, she began to hyperventilate and stutter her speech.

“All civilians on this side evac! Mike, I think people are still trapped in the back!” One of the firefighters said while he helped someone to the ambulance.

“On it!” Mike shouted. He rushed to the back rooms where the fire was most intense.

Alyssa cried, holding onto Eliot. Behind the door, the fire rose slowly. Mike was quick on his feet, dodging a piece of the ceiling that fell from above.

He shouted into the burning hallway, hoping someone would answer, and when he heard someone scream, he sprang into action.

He broke down the door and searched the room for any sign of life. Alyssa and Eliot quickly picked themselves up from the floor and ran to the fireman.

“Are you all right?” he asks, swiftly grabbing Eliot before he stumbled.

Just as the trio was about to leave the room and step into the blazing fire, the building began to shake, knocking all three to the ground. “What’s happening?” Eliot panicked.

The room began to shake mercilessly, pulling them back down to the hard floor. A ghostly blue glow began to form on the ground where they were sitting. As it grew brighter, the three of them squeezed their eyes shut, it was like looking into the sun.

“WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?” Alyssa yelled, clinging to the two men.

The room seemed to be spinning and soon it became too much for them and they all lost consciousness.

When the three awoke, they found themselves in a very foreign place. They were outside, on a hill, the sky dark and foreboding. A forest that seemed to have no end lay just below the hill.

They looked around in utter shock and confusion at what had just been. Then they realized: They too had changed.

Eliot was dressed in a long gray robe that covered his entire body and a tall gray pointed hat on his head. He also had what looked like a scepter at his side. Alyssa, on the contrary, was clad in a black hooded cloak, and a bow and arrow lay just below her fingertips. And finally, Mike, covered in silvery armor from the neck down, had a long red cape on his back, just short enough to keep him from stumbling, and a sword and shield on either side of him.

“Is this a dream?” Eliot wondered aloud.

“No, I’m fairly certain it’s real!” Mike gasped at their new surroundings. They stood and grabbed their weapons. Eliot then went on a rant about wormholes and portals, only to be shot down by the disbelieving Alyssa.

“I-I must be in a dream! Or comatose from burning!” Alyssa began to wander, pacing back and forth in the soft grass.

Eliot heard a noise that made him spin around in a hurry.

“Hi-ho, heroes!” an old-looking hag with an unbearably hunched back and a single eye walked up the hill, a walking cane clutched in her hand as she stopped in front of them.

“W-Who are you?” Eliot squeaked, taking a step back as disgust flashed in his eyes.

“Why, that’s rather rude, isn’t it? The name’s Agatha Ward! Delighted to meet you, heroes!” She said. Her warm smile flooded her face as she addressed the three.

“Heroes? What is that supposed to mean?” Mike asked, regaining his composure. Agatha took a moment to answer, taking a deep breath of cold night air. “Why, you are the heroes who came to rid the land of its evil!” She exclaimed, looking at the three of them with pride evident in her eyes. “Fate has chosen you and now you must obey it to save Solia!” Agatha came closer and touched Alyssa’s cheek with her cold, bony hand in an attempt to reassure her.

The two men, though confused beyond belief, came to terms with what was happening in front of them, more so than Alyssa.

“Don’t be afraid! Humans are naturally skeptical. Unable to understand anything unfamiliar. But don’t worry hero, I’ll help you understand!” She said with a laugh and withdrew her bony hand from Alyssa.

Before the heroes could speak, Agatha had already spun around and walked down the hill as she called out to them. “Follow me! I’ll show you where I live!”