The Realms [Watty 2017 Shortlist]

Arrival - 31

When the portal opens in the Third Realm, I stand up and look around, getting my bearings, letting my dizziness subside. I'm surrounded by limestone houses that gleam in the light of the two moons. The closest houses have pockmarks of varying sizes all over the outside walls. The navy grass brushes up against my ankles and I wonder why everything that was once pristine in the realm seems to be neglected, in decay. It's all familiar and yet foreign.

I remember grappling for Maizie and Ryan in the darkness, but we were pulled apart, the currents were too strong. I hope they made it through, but I'm not sure. I check my wrist to see that the clock started. One hour is gone, eaten up by the travel in the portal. I didn't understand how time worked between the two realms and I didn't think to ask. I curse my stupidity and wonder what else I should have asked. I have to trust that my watch is all I'll need.

Although this realm is the smallest of the three, I need to find my way to the Center Square. I don't know how easy it'll be to get to Grayson or whether the knife really will appear when I need it most. I stand in the middle of the pasture, almost paralyzed by indecision. I don't know where to go first. My plan was to get here. Now that I'm here, I don't know who I can trust to help me without Ryan and Maizie by my side.

The first explosion knocks me off my feet, coming out of nowhere, and I cover my face to avoid the white light that I know will follow. The flash is blinding, debilitating. My arms aren't enough to shield me. 

Before I can get back on my feet, the second explosion goes off, but thankfully it's further away. From a distance, it looks like fireworks gone nuclear. I crawl along the ground, my vision blurry from the lights. What's going on? I know about bolter bombs, their power, the blinding lights, but I never experienced one.

"Hey! Hey! Are you okay?" The voice is muffled, almost inhuman. A small child wearing a flash reflector, holding a dirty stuffed animal and dressed like an underground miner stands a few feet from me.

"What's happening? Why are there bolter bombs?" I ask him, almost afraid to leave my prone position on the ground. My forearms are buried in the long grass and I realize it's damp with dew. I shiver.

The child lifts his mask and gives me a blank look. "What'd'ya mean? There've always been bolter bombs. Why are you dressed like that?" He looks around, appearing to assess me and the situation. "Do you want to come to my house?" He flips his mask down as a third explosion rocks the ground.

There's something familiar about him. I am preoccupied with the glimpse of his face: the dark brown eyes, the light brown hair, brown skin, something in his cheekbones. When the flash follows the shudder of the bomb, it disables me. I cry out, feeling stupid in front of this small child. "I – I can't see." I reach out my hand and he steps forward to take it. As he walks, I crawl beside him and when we reach the threshold of a building, relief settles over me like a blanket.

"Mom! Mom! I found this lady outside."

"Outside? What were you doing outside?" I hear her approaching, but her voice doesn't get any louder. "You know the bolter bombs go off all night. It's too dangerous." She's angry, worried; I can feel it.

I still can't see and I wonder why the voices are muffled. Then, I remember. They probably aren't speaking out loud, internal conversations are the norm. I no sooner finish my thought when their mental walls fly up, blocking me out. I'm rusty at listening in and it's like I hear them through thick glass.

"Who are you?" The mother speaks aloud and the concern in her voice is palatable. There was no fear in her before; I wonder if it's there now.

I try to look into her eyes, but I can't see properly. She's a blurry haze of brown and white. "I didn't realize the realm had gotten this bad. I still can't see; I'm sorry."