0 0 2 ━ [ 𝘚𝘵𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘰𝘯 ]

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝟷: 𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝙷𝚘𝚖𝚎

One's foot made contact with a hard surface on the other side. As she passed through the glowing rift, she saw nothing but gold until she passed all the way through. It took her eyes a couple moments to adjust to the bright lights, but eventually she was welcomed by an idyllic scene that rivalled the one she had just left. The Diagonal.

A paved road of black-veined marble stretched from One's toes to the horizon before her, and a series of strange automobiles crawled casually along it, including intricate horse-drawn carriages, shiny sports cars, and floating metallic scooters. As they passed by, they kicked up a sweet scent that gave One a strong sense of nostalgia, although she couldn't pinpoint why.

Buildings unlike any One had ever seen grew along the sides of the strange street, covered from top to bottom in windows that reminded her of scales. If One turned her head a certain way, the buildings almost blended into the sky as big, fluffy clouds rolled by their reflections. They took various shapes and sizes, making for an interesting skyline that she felt tempted to trace her finger over.

All in all, it reminded One of if someone had collected all their favorite elements from various different worlds and times and scattered them across a flat plane. It was quite literally paradise, and for a split second One found herself ruminating on what her life would have been like if she had grown up there.

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

Diane's voice shook One from her imagination, and her head jerked back to see that her mother was now standing behind her and that the rift was gone. A scene similar to what laid before One was mirrored behind her as well.

"Yeah..." One answered absentmindedly, all of her senses still focused on the beauty of the Diagonal.

"This is Helia," Diane informed her. She slowly swiped her hand across the air, as if it present the new world to One. "I'm excited to show you around and to introduce you to the others."

At the mention of people, One's body instinctively froze to its spot. James had told her that this world was full of beings with power far greater than theirs, and she wasn't sure whether she was ready to formally grace their presence. From the few beings she caught roaming about, she could already tell that she stuck out like a sore thumb. Especially in her ripped, bloody clothes. Gorgeous men and women moved about around them, dressed in elegant outfits that One's eyes struggled to even comprehend, and she immediately felt inferior.