Zach arrived at his room at the Hard Fought Rest, planning to test a theory by taking a nap. If he flipped back to the real world it would suggest that sleeping, rather than something else like time of day, was the trigger for flipping worlds.

He was halfway through changing into some recently purchased bedclothes when he realized he had no desire to take a nap or return home yet. The day was still young and he still had so much to do in New Albion: people to meet, mysteries to solve, and economic systems to unravel.

He put his nice merchant clothes back on, pocketed a dozen Harts, and set out into the city. For over an hour, Zach made small purchases to get cozy with vendors, then asked them about their daily routines, their suppliers, and even how they paid taxes. Of course, some merchants weren't keen on sharing their secrets, but that didn't matter. Zach wasn't concerned with any single merchant, but rather with the systems that made this magical world's economy run.

Shortly after sunset, foot traffic thinned and the street vendors started closing up shop. Around the same time, a man in a hooded blue robe made his way down the street, lighting all the streetlamps with some sort of magic spell. At each lamp, he thrust out a hand, palm open, and a ball of light flew out and into the glass-covered lamp. Zach was incredibly curious about the display of magic, but the man hurried off to another street before Zach could get close.

Since the street was well-lit again, some larger stores stayed open a bit later, but most businesses were closed within an hour of sundown. Zach took his collection of mostly unnecessary purchases back to the Hard Fought Rest and began the next stage of his day: socializing with regular folk.

Zach ate dinner in the common area, ordering a simple beef and vegetable stew. While he waited for it to arrive, he made conversation with the man next to him: a laborer who was employed by the kingdom to maintain the Gwendolyn Wall. The man's hairline was worn thin by the leather hat he wore when he worked, and his arms and hands were deeply tanned.

"Wait, you just work on the wall for a living?" Zach asked. He'd been under the naive assumption that a magically-constructed wall would be maintenance free. Once he thought about it, it was obvious that a structure of that size would need to be repaired from time to time, especially with the region's harsh weather.

The stout man nodded. "Yes indeed. Got a whole crew of us dedicated to general maintenance, and another team that gets sent to fix urgent issues. My team just makes a slow circuit of the entire wall. Got me on top, Barclay and Scott at the base, and crazy Trent on a rope, checking the sides."

"And that's enough people for the entire wall?"

The man smiled proudly. "We're a good crew, so we can cover two or three miles of wall a month. I've got the experience from my years in home construction, and Barclay's magic can fix just about any issue we find. Scott's learning magic too, taking night classes at the Creator's Guild, so he should be able to help out even more next spring."

Ah, that explains it, Zach thought. Using magic for repairs must be significantly faster and more effective than doing it by hand.

The man watched the way Zach nodded in thought, then he said, "What's with all the interest? Looking for a job?" Zach moved to answer, but the man continued, "I don't have any openings right now, but we always need extra hands in the spring. The snow and ice do a number on poor Gwen every year."

Zach shook his head. "Just curious, that's all. I'm new to the city and trying to learn more about, well, everything."

The man finished off his plate and stood up from the table. "Keep asking questions like you have been, and you'll keep learning. And if you aren't afraid of heights and want a short-term job in March, go to the Council and say Tost Wakefield sent you. I'll hire you right up."

"Thank you for the offer," Zach called after the suddenly departing man. I guess he's got somewhere to go. Maybe family at home? Then why eat dinner here instead of with them?

Before Zach could ponder it any further, someone else sat down in Tost's empty seat and scooted it right up next to Zach's side. The scent of flowery perfume flooded his nostrils and he turned to see a beautiful woman.

Her hair was golden and flowing and her green velvet dress was indecently low cut. She had warm brown eyes outlined with a striking touch of dark makeup to draw them out. After a moment, Zach realized it was the same prostitute he had seen in the Rest on his first day.

"Hello there," she cooed flirtatiously. "You're awfully young and handsome for a merchant. Would you like some company tonight?"

Zach blinked in surprise. Alright, that was incredibly forward. Wait, she wants to sleep with me! The thought of sleep made him think of his plan to nap to test his theory, and that made him realize that if he did sleep with her, he would magically disappear at some point in the night.

"Um, n-no thanks," he stammered as his face flushed red. On top of his world-flipping dilemma, Zach's mundane life in suburban America hadn't prepared him for a genuine solicitation of sex. He could barely handle fake flirting from Erin.

Now, if only I still thought this world was a dream… Zach shook his head to clear that dangerous thought and repeated. "Sorry, but no thanks."

The woman didn't take it hard. She smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps another time," she said as she stood up. Then she flitted off to another table, leaving Zach a bit stunned and lost in thought.

Eventually, he finished his beef stew and looked around the room. He was hoping to find another merchant to talk to about New Albion's exotic and interesting economy, but the common room was surprisingly sparse. Other than Zach, there were just two groups of people left, and they were huddled in close-knit conversations and deep in their drinks. Even the prostitute had left, though Zach didn't know if it was with a client or not.

That was when Zach realized he had no idea what time it was. It felt late, but he couldn't get any more specific since there was no clock around. He didn't want to sleep yet, but there wasn't any value in sitting by himself in the common room.

Oh, I still haven't looked very closely at my maps, he thought, standing up from his seat.

As Zach studied his maps on his bed, he learned quite a lot about the place he'd privately nicknamed 'the magic world'. It had a very similar measurement system to the United States, with feet and miles, and his maps held to a clearly marked scale. Thanks to that, he was able to learn that the Gwendolyn Wall that circled the city had a diameter of almost exactly four miles. Some basic math told him that the city of New Albion covered just over 12 square miles.

While the city seemed to sit in the same location as Denver, Colorado, it was just a fraction of the size. A closer comparison would be to Denver's skyscraper-filled downtown area. New Albion was a bit bigger than downtown Denver and it was packed nearly as densely with people. It also served as a trading hub for all the farmers and ranchers that lived in the surrounding countryside.

Outside of the city, smaller villages and farmer communities were common. Zach's maps covered 550 miles from north to south, nearly twice the size of Colorado, with New Albion near the center. The city of Grotto was 70 miles further south, and a few other cities were scattered throughout the eastern plains.

He tried to commit as many details to memory as possible, such as the names of rivers and cities and the distances between towns, but it was tiring work.

Man, I wish I had some coffee right now, he thought. Caffeine had been his lifeline during finals last year and an invaluable study aid on other occasions too.

But the only coffee I've seen here was in that snooty cafe. They're definitely closed this late, and I can't imagine the price. Where do they import the coffee beans from?

Despite his best efforts to stay awake and focus on his maps, Zach eventually fell asleep at around 3AM. He flopped sideways on the bed with his cheek on his map of the north-west quarter of the New Albion kingdom. Before he could even drool on it, he disappeared from that world, leaving just a warm indentation behind.

Back in the 'real world', Zach went through his morning routine on autopilot. Even though he was only spending half his time there, his old habits held strong. However, he did have to double check the date to make sure he went to the right classes.

It was Monday, so his first class was Chemistry. And it was a quiz day. Dammit, I forgot to study for this one, he thought as he slumped in his seat in the lecture hall.

"Are you feeling alright, Zach?" It was James, the rather abrasive man who was also in Zach's History of Agriculture class.

"I just forgot to study for this quiz," Zach answered.

"That isn't like you, man. Normally you ace all the tests and quizzes."

"I know, and that's why I'm so bummed. Just let me sulk in peace." In reality, that wasn't the reason Zach felt down. Of course it was annoying to fail a quiz he could have aced with just 30 minutes of studying, but there was something else. Zach's strange mood had been so apparent that even James had noticed something was wrong, yet Zach still couldn't place the cause.

After solidly bombing the quiz and zoning out during the subsequent lecture, Zach moved on to his next class, Macroeconomics.

He got there on time and pulled out his textbook, but he just couldn't focus on the professor. His thoughts kept wandering back to New Albion, the satisfying feeling of holding a Crown in the palm of his hand, and ways to try to earn more Harts and Crowns.

I could try to introduce technology they're lacking, like clocks. Nah, that requires more infrastructure and skill than I have. Maybe I could disrupt an existing industry? Or should I try to do public service and work for the kingdom?

"Hey, Zachie," Erin said sweetly. She had her blonde hair pinned back over her ears and she was wearing contacts instead of her regular glasses.

"Hmm?" he said, coming down from his daydream about trying to introduce modern hygiene to New Albion. He didn't think he could get deodorant to catch on, at least not without the industry to produce isopropyl alcohol and powdered aluminum.

"You seem out of it today. Normally you love this class, but you're somewhere else," Erin said.

"I still love the class. I'm just having a hard time focusing today for some reason." In addition to not paying attention to the professor, Zach was oblivious to the extra effort Erin had put into her appearance.

"Did you get enough sleep?" she asked.

Zach nodded. It was true that he had gone to sleep late, but he slept well and didn't feel tired at all.

"Well, you can copy my notes if you want. Just text me anytime," Erin said with a bashful smile.

Zach didn't notice the smile. "Thanks," he mumbled, already lost in thought again.

His thoughts were in New Albion, and he wished his body could be too. It was a world of mystery and magic and potential, a place where he could use his knowledge of the real world to make a difference. Zach was starting to believe he could carve out a legacy for himself in that world, instead of living a mundane life of attending school and paying rent in this one.

After realizing that he couldn't focus even in an Econ course, Zach knew there was nothing to gain from attending his other classes. It was barely midday when he left campus and rode his bike back to his apartment.

Zach ate a quick lunch, relieved that he still had an appetite despite the unusual funk he was in, then flopped onto his bed. He took a nap, hoping as he fell asleep that he'd awaken in his other bed in the Hard Fought Rest.

To his great disappointment, he awoke an hour and a half later in the same bed and clothes.

"Damn," he muttered. "So much for that theory."

Then, in an attempt to prevent another bombed quiz, Zach consulted the syllabus and schedule for each of his classes, looking for upcoming tests. There were two that week, both on even-numbered 'real world' days. Starting with the one for Wednesday, he made an educated guess about how many chapters would be covered by the test, then read ahead in the textbook.

When he finished those chapters, he quizzed himself and was unhappy with how few of the details had actually stuck in his memory. He read it a couple more times, just in case, then moved on to the next course.

Around seven o'clock, noise outside his bedroom door told him that his roommates were home and cooking dinner. He joined them for the meal, mostly to convince them he was still alive, then returned to his studies.

Studying was so boring, at least compared to that mysterious other world, that he could barely keep his eyes open. Despite his nap earlier, Zach fell asleep before 9PM. A few hours later, right as his digital clock read 12:00, Zach vanished from his bed.