Chapter II:
Richard groaned and slowly opened his eyes as he regained consciousness. He blinked in confusion as his surroundings began to register in his brain. He was lying in a large bed with a golden colored quilt on top; the sheets underneath it felt soft and cool against Richard's skin. The bed itself was probably the softest thing that he'd ever slept on; it felt almost as if he were sleeping on a cloud rather than on a mattress. It was a nice alternative to cold, hard metal, at least.
His clothes had been changed as well. He was wearing white silk pajamas that had likely come from one of the many closets in the massive room that he found himself in. For a moment, Richard shuddered, feeling uncomfortable with the fact that his clothes had been removed by a complete stranger, but he finally began to realize that such a thing was the least of his worries at the moment.
The room he found himself in had peach colored walls with a shiny, golden border with symbols painted on it just below the ceiling. Just behind the bed that Richard was lying in was a massive window that stretched across the entire eastern wall of the room. Underneath the bed was a half-circle of tan carpeting, but the rest of the room had a smooth, cream-colored marble floor.
There was a fancy looking compass rose painted onto the middle of the floor, and in the center of the compass was a small fish pond. To the west, directly in front of Richard, was a massive stone fireplace. The masonry had even more unusual symbols carved into it, but Richard was too far away to be able to make them out - not that he would be able to understand them even if he was up close. To the east of the pond was a large home entertainment system, which included a large plasma-screen television with surround sound and yet another massive window behind it, as well as an L-shaped black leather sofa with a matching recliner. Many potted plants also adorned the massive room. Many beautifully colored flowers hung from pots on the ceiling, and every corner of the room was occupied by a small tree,
As welcoming as these details all were, Richard did not feel like taking the time to appreciate them, for no part of the room fascinated him quite as much as the man sitting at the desk just a few feet away from his bed. Richard sat up and coughed to try to get the man's attention.
"Oh, I see you are awake," the man stood up and stepped away from his desk, which was painted white and had some golden trim on the edges, and walked over to the bed and put his hands behind his back as he spoke to Richard. "I would like to apologize that the two of us had to meet like this."
"Uh, me too...?" Richard swallowed as he looked up at the man. He saw the same dirty-blonde hair and the same pair of mighty, blue eyes that he had seen back in the jail cell just before he'd mysteriously ended up in this place. The man's hair, however, had more of a golden color now that it was in direct sunlight. Richard took a moment to get a better look at the man standing before him. He was wearing a long, purple coat with white fur on the inside. On his feet were black leather boots that went up to his knees, and his pants were a dark green color. He also wore a thick, black belt around his waist that carried with it a deadly looking longsword. The detail that intrigued Richard the most, however, were the man's ears. They were pointed and stood almost to the top of the man's head. They were also pierced at the bottom, and small, sapphire earrings hung from the holes.
"Allow me to introduce myself, sir," the tall man cleared his throat, "my name is Alezard Aluhreth. I can tell by the confused expression on your face that you are probably curious about my ears. I am, indeed, a high elf and I am very skilled in the practice of magic. I will gladly assist you in your studies in that field, should you require it," Alezard smiled warmly, "I have always wanted to meet you, but I do believe I never caught your name?"
He's always wanted to meet me, but doesn't even know my name?! Richard was puzzled by this but decided it was best to just answer Alezard's questions. "The name is Richard Hammond."
"I am going to assume that you have lost many of your memories since you've been in jail?"
"Yes, sir, I have."
