The Hidden World of Nitea [2 | The Other Realms Series]

Chapter Seven

It was like a strange dream. Just ten minutes ago, Michelle was dropping by Bibliothèque Mazarine, hoping to appreciate the old architecture and the tranquility rarely found in the city. She did not expect that one of the walls would crumble before her to reveal a dimly lit room and narrow stairwell. Though part of her was telling her to turn back, another part pushed her to explore. She followed the latter. She entered the room, descended the stairwell, and opened the door that she came across once she reached the bottom floor. Out of curiosity, she then uttered the word she found written all over the walls. The next thing she knew, the door disappeared, the floor vanished beneath her feet, and she soon found herself sinking in a pond. Looking back, she should have gone to the nearest adult and told them that the wall had collapsed.

Gilbert held Michelle's hand as he led her around Nitea. She looked up at him. He seemed a bit younger than Grimelda, and his bleach-white hair contrasted his sun-kissed skin. Unlike Grimelda, whose dark eyes had a serious air about them, Gilbert's light brown irises held a friendly sparkle.

He uttered something to her in a non-human language. She gave him a blank look and said, "Sorry, I don't understand."

"Oh, you're human, aren't you?" he then said. "Sorry, I thought you were Nitean. Grimelda didn't tell me you were."

"Wait, where are we going?" she asked.

"To a hospital," he replied. "It's a pretty long walk, but we can take the portlinks. The stations tend to be very crowded so you have to stick close to me."

I definitely will. It was already bad enough that she was no longer on Earth. She could not afford to get lost on another planet.

They walked down the sidewalk and descended to an underground network. At first glance, it looked much like the Mass Rapid Transit networks that snaked underneath some Earth cities—people were queuing at ticket booths, passing through turnstiles, and reading from the large station maps that were posted around the area. However, as soon as the two walked between the turnstiles and headed to their platform, it became clear that their transport was nothing like an MRT. Instead of train cars stationed at the sides of the platform, cylindrical booths with screens and transparent doors lined its center. Michelle fixated her gaze on the booths as she saw lines of people entering them from one side, while a different group of people exited from the other.

"So portlinks are portals made using technomagic," Gilbert explained. "They have two doors. The one glowing green is the entrance; the red one is the exit. We can only pass through it one at a time. Do you want to go first, or me?"

"Uh, you can go first."

So they entered the fast-moving queue. Michelle tilted her body to the side to further observe the scene in front of her. First, the portlink's transparent doors would open, allowing one person to enter before closing. A beam of lime-colored light would then envelop the person before he or she disappeared. After a while, the doors would then open, repeating the process.

"And by the way, once you reach the other side, get out as soon as the doors open. People here aren't very patient."

Michelle nodded her head. Once it was her turn, Michelle briskly walked towards the portlink and stepped inside. Above her was an object that resembled a bundle of flashlights, its metal rim glowing a faint green. Michelle glanced at the ground. A pair of footprints were painted—or printed, she could not tell—onto the floor, marking where she should stand. She took a couple of steps and stood directly above the footprints. Whir. Michelle turned around. The doors had closed.

Flash. Magic whisked her away and then placed her back on the ground faster than she could notice. The next thing her senses registered was the sound of motors as they swung the doors open. Michelle glanced upwards. The metal rim that lined the lights was glowing red instead of green. She had reached the other side already.