The soft glow of dawn barely touched the horizon as Carter, now Ahmoset, lay in bed, his eyes wide open.
Sleep had been sparse, not getting enough throughout the night. His thoughts had circled relentlessly, replaying everything that had happened since his arrival in this strange world.
The mysterious woman, the hieroglyphs, the unfamiliar memories—nothing made sense, but nothing felt more real.
A heavy sigh escaped his lips as he finally sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The room was still dim, the faint light of morning shining through the windows of the estate.
Carter pulled himself out of bed and walked over to the window. He pulled back the thick, dust-covered curtains, revealing the view of Sarnath below.
The estate sat on a hill, offering a pretty good view of the city. From his vantage point, Carter could see the architecture of ancient Egyptian influence spread out below, the soft curves of palm trees blending seamlessly with stone structures.
Hieroglyphs etched into buildings and objects. Almost like business names and regular things you would see on modern earth.
Although the buildings have the signature ancient Egyptian style—high columns, stone walls etched with hieroglyphs—there was something uniquely different about them.
There were no towering pyramids like he had remembered. Instead, the city's design was more modern yet blended with its natural surroundings. It retained the mystical allure of an old Kauai oasis but was grounded in a reality that felt more like a fantasy novel.
Not to mention, the estate itself was massive. It is a bit rundown from years of neglect. The structure was old but grand, a mix of stone and carved wood. Vines had overtaken parts of the outer walls, with tendrils winding through cracks in the stone.
The yard, which had once been carefully manicured, was now overgrown, but it still had a beauty to it that only nature's wild touch could bring. It was clear this was once a home of prestige, a place filled with life.
Carter glanced up at the sun, squinting as he looked on. Based on Ahmoset's memories, he knew it was around 8 a.m., and despite the strangeness of everything, his body ached for some normalcy.
"Sigh… some things never change," Carter muttered, walking away from the window.
He decided to fall back into his old routine, the one he had followed religiously before his life became consumed by books and video games.
Maybe that would help center him in this new world. He threw on some old workout clothes and made his way to the small training room just off the main hall.
The estate had no shortage of large, empty rooms—most of them covered in dust—but the training ground seemed to have been kept up in some basic way, likely by Uncle Ket.
For a while, Carter lost himself in his exercises. Push-ups, pull-ups, squats—it was all muscle memory from a life that felt so far away now.
Back then, his days had been filled with sports and conditioning. Football practices, track meets, workouts that pushed his body to its limits. But that had changed in high school back when his interests took a sharp turn.
No more football. No more sports. Instead, he had found a new group of friends who didn't judge, who introduced him to gaming and science, and robotics, which became his obsession. It was like a whole new world opened up for him.
The Three Kingdoms Online was what had truly captured him. It wasn't just a game; it was a sprawling world of history, strategy, and combat.
Players were immersed in massive open-world campaigns, fighting for dominance, building armies, and forging alliances. You could be a warrior, tactician, or leader, taking over entire regions with careful planning and brutal combat.
That world had sucked him in, especially with the crafting systems that let him build, forge, and invent things that fed into his love of science.
His mind wandered as he worked through his routine. Mina, the girl who often called him a lazy pig, had been the first to introduce him to the game.
She was part of the group that had shown him a new side of life, a life filled with quests, strategy, and exploration. They had spent hours conquering the Three Kingdoms, one battle at a time.
Carter's muscles burned as he pushed himself through his routine, his breath coming out in quick bursts. It felt good, in a way, to move his body again. To feel the strain in his muscles and the sweat on his skin.
After nearly an hour of intense exercise, he finally stopped, wiping the sweat from his brow. His body ached, but it was a good kind of ache, the kind that reminded him he was still alive and that he would improve. His mind drifted again to the mysterious young woman. He just couldn't shake her off.
After a quick shower, Carter made his way downstairs to fix himself something to eat. The kitchen, like much of the estate, was a mix of old and new.
Though advanced for its time, the house didn't have modern conveniences like refrigerators or gas stoves. Instead, the stove was metal and worked with some kind of energy he didn't fully understand yet. It operated like a regular stove, but without the need for fire or gas: it was cold, no heat.
'Wait a damn minute. Don't tell me this is cold technology…' he couldn't help but think so. There's no electricity here that he remembers or even sees. Carter put that thought in the back of his head and began his preparations.,
He rummaged through the pantry, pulling out a few ingredients: some flatbreads, eggs, grapes, and dried meats. As he started cooking, his mind drifted back to his time on Earth.
Cooking had always been something he enjoyed. It was a way to unwind, to create something tangible with his hands. Back home, he had been an excellent cook, always experimenting with new dishes and recipes.
But here, the ingredients were different, the tools unfamiliar. Still, as he worked, the familiar rhythm of cooking began to calm his restless thoughts.
He cracked the eggs into a pan, mixing them with some spices he had found that he remembers the taste of, and placed the flatbreads on a nearby rack to warm.
As he prepared his meal, something in the back of his mind nagged at him, a feeling he couldn't shake. It was as if someone was watching him, an unseen presence lurking just outside his line of sight. Once again, his sixth sense was alerted and he did not know why.
Carter frowned, glancing around the kitchen. The house was empty, or at least it should have been. Uncle Ket was still away, and the young woman he had found who was in the bedroom upstairs was long gone.
But the sensation remained, persistent and unnerving. He shook his head, trying to dismiss it. "Maybe I'm just tripping," he muttered.
Still, the feeling lingered as he finished cooking. He couldn't get rid of the feeling that someone was watching his every move.
Hours later, the food was ready. Carter set a plate for himself and sat down to eat. He took a bite of the hot food and hissed as it burned his tongue.
"Hot, hot, hot, hot!" he cursed, fanning his mouth. Despite the sting, the meal tasted good—simple, but satisfying.
Midway through his meal, the feeling returned. Carter, going off instinct, began preparing a big plate of food. It was meant for himself but now that may not be the case.
His hands worked fluidly, piling the plate high with eggs, bread, and other things. He didn't know why, but something told him it was necessary. Something told him to prepare for another.
Once finished, he made his way up the stairs, carrying the plate to his parents' old bedroom—the room where he had cared for the mysterious young woman. When he opened the door, he froze, surprised by the sight before him.
The young woman was there.
She sat in a chair near the window, staring out at the same view he had been looking at just a few hours ago in a room directly under his parents'.
The young woman's back was to him, her long dark hair cascading down her back, even extending a bit past the seat; it was cut at the ends, perfect and straight.
She was bathed in a glow from the noon sun, highlighting the faint, shifting hieroglyphs that moved across her skin, almost imperceptibly.
Carter's heart skipped a beat. He had thought she was gone. Maybe she had left after waking, but there she was, sitting as still as a statue, gazing out at the city below.
For a moment, Carter didn't know what to do. He cleared his throat and took a step forward. "Morning," he said, his voice warm and friendly. "I wasn't sure if you were still here."
The woman didn't respond. She didn't even turn to look at him. She just stared out the window, her expression unreadable.
Carter glanced over at the nightstand and noticed that the food he had left the night before was gone from the plate. A small smile tugged at his lips. "I see you ate," he said softly. "I made something fresh if you're hungry." He then approaches her with his arm extending, plate ready.
Without a word, she reached out, her hand moving gracefully to take the plate from him. Carter watched in awe as she began eating, her movements quick and efficient. She devoured the food with surprising speed, shoveling mouthfuls into her mouth.
Carter hesitated for a moment before placing a hand on her arm, shuddered at how soft her felt. She froze, her eyes flicking up to meet his for the first time. The intensity of her gaze sent a chill down his spine, but he cleared his throat and smiled.
"Hey, slow down. The food isn't going any where but your stomach."
The woman blinked, then returned to her meal, her pace slowing significantly. She closed her eyes as she ate, savoring each bite now.
Carter smiled, feeling a strange sense of pride. "It's just bacon, eggs, some oats, fattah, Mowz bil-Laban, and pancakes," he explained, his voice light.
With distant eyes, he continued, "Back then, I used to love cooking on the weekends for my parents. I love cooking. Could've whipped up anything but this is more familiar. Guess I'm still just a bit slow this time around." She said nothing, but for some reason… she listened.
Carter continued speaking softly, telling her how life used to be, leaving out the parts where he's not originally from the world, about his routines and how different it was here in Sarnath, about his old and new friends, and his parents' deaths, and Uncle Ket.
She didn't speak, but there was something in her body language—a slight relaxation of her shoulders, perhaps—that made Carter feel like she was at least paying attention.
Eventually, after about ten minutes, she set the empty plate down on the window sill beside her, not acknowledging him further.
Carter chuckled softly, knowing better than to expect anything in return. He stood up and took the plate from the floor. "Dinner will be around six or seven," he said. "I think I've figured out how to make things a little quicker, maybe two hours this time."
Still no response. Carter didn't mind. He just nodded to himself and left the room, closing the door softly behind him.
Outside, in the overgrown yard, Carter decided to work on his weapons training. After all, he had no idea what kinds of dangers this world held, and it was better to be prepared. The sword felt awkward in his hands at first, but he soon found his rhythm, swinging it through the air in smooth, controlled arcs.
The hours passed quickly. When Carter finally looked up at the sun, it was already well past 5 p.m. With a quickened step, he rushed back into the house to start cooking again. There wasn't much time left.
There was something strangely comforting about the routine. Even in a world where nothing made sense, the simple act of cooking grounded him.
As he cooked, that nagging feeling of being watched returned, but Carter brushed it aside. When he brought the next plate to the mysterious woman, she was still sitting in her chair, her side to him, but this time she seemed calmer, more settled as she read something in her hand. Maybe this was just how things were going to be for now.
He set the plate down next to her, exchanged a few words, and left her alone once again. It wasn't much, but it was something. A strange, silent companionship, but one that gave Carter a sense of purpose in this new and baffling world.
With that, Carter's routine in Sarnath begins to take shape, for now.
***
{A/N: I know it's a bit slow, but bear with me. The story will pick up after around chapter 8. Next chapter will build the world a bit. Thanks for reading.}