World Hopping Chapter 03

Boring, boring chapter. I know...

You know the drill. Questions are in the comment box.

Oh and one more thing. All the unusual names here stated are completely fictional and based on Latin (or Latin based languages) words.

Also Haven is a made up town. Michigan is not.

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Chapter Three: Worlds

"Whoa, you Visios are serious with your promises. Are you telling me you'll commit suicide if you don't keep your promise?" He asked intrigued.

I chuckled "No, it's an expression. Now tell me." I sat on the ground still not letting go of my grip and motioned for him to sit as well.

"You expect me to take that long to tell my little story?" He questioned.

"Nope. I expect that the fact that you're sitting down will slow you if you attempt to escape." I replied bitingly.

He scratched his head. "Yeah, that may work." And he sat down and started on his tale.

"You see. The world started with only one human race."

"There are more?!"

"Don't interrupt. Okay, let me see… where was I…? Gah, I need a paper."

"I have one." I opened my backpack, pulled out my portfolio and ripped a page. I also took out a pen.

"Why do you carry all that stuff with you?"

"Um… school."

"Oh right. You people have school in the morning."

"Well some people don't and…"

He cut off in my sentence "Did I allow you to speak?"

I sighed "Please continue."

He took the paper from my hand and scribbled a stick figure on it. Then he wrote: base.

"So… how should I explain this? The human race is subdivided in five other categories that evolved from the base." He pointed with the pencil to the stick figure and drew five other stick figures around it.

"Base?" I cut in.

"I think the Visios call them… um… monkeys…"

"Oh right! We descended from monkeys! I knew that!"

"Well good for you." He said sarcastically. I did a huffy breath. "So that was millions of years ago when the "base" separated into five groups and split up into different worlds."

"Worlds…?"

"Yes worlds. You Visios are so egocentric. Even though your world is the place where the "bases" first inhabited doesn't mean you have to neglect all the others."

"We do no such thing!" I tried to defend my world. "We're just the only ones that aren't in the little secret!" I added with indignation.

"Well it surely isn't my fault, so stop yelling. Do you know what my race is called?"

I shook my head in deny.

"We're the Auditios. Do you know where the word "audio" comes from?"

"S- sound?" I guessed.

"Correct." He pointed to his ears. "What, did you think these ears were here for show? We can hear up to five times louder than your race." He glared at me and rubbed one of his ears, wincing a little.

"Oh… ouch."

"Yeah. Ouch."

"So Visio is… vision? What? Is our vision so special?" I whispered.

"Special? Well not for you since you're accustomed to it, but think about it. When it's pitch black. Can you see?"

"No…"

"Think harder."

"Well… when I close my eyes for a few seconds and then open them again I can see well enough to get along."

"Exactly! And you think every other race has that privilege?"

"Well I assumed…"

"Assumed wrong." He said sharply.

"So what are the other races?"

He picked up the torn paper and started to write something one the other three stick figures left.

"Lecto, Aquo and Velo?" I read out loud.

"Figure out anything?"

"I suppose Aquo has something to do with water so… fish?"

He shook his head. "Gills."

I got closer to him. "Really?! That's so freaking cool!!" I scram. He gripped his ears and closed his eyes in pain. "Oh… sorry."

He glared daggers at me. "Are you trying to kill me, woman?"

"Geesh, I said I was sorry."

He muttered something under his breath. Probably a swear word.

"Velo… velocity… speed?"

"Right on mark. Some can get up to two hundred miles per hour."

"Wow!" I shouted again. He looked at the verge of punching me. "Oops, I mean… wow." I whispered.

"But I don't really get the first one… Lecto?"

"Well I didn't expect that sub developed mind of yours to get it either."

"That sounded like an insult."

"Because it was. Now… Lecto comes from Intellect."

"Smart people!" I exclaimed. He covered his ears again.

"One more of those little squeals and someone's gonna get hurt." He mumbled through his breath again.

"So… was I right?" I asked anxiously.

"Yeah, yeah. Right."

"Then why are the Visios the only race who doesn't know anything about the other worlds. It can't be just because we decided to ignore it, can it?"

"Because you, living in the original world where the "bases" parted have a flaw not common to other races."

"What?" I intrigued.

He took the sharp end of the paper and ran it through his skin. I screamed as quietly as possible and covered my eyes expecting to see some blood. Nothing came of it. When I opened my eyes his skin only had a little white mark that healed instantly.

"You're the weak race." He said mockingly.

"Weak…? How?"

"Didn't you get it by my demonstration? Your skin is so fragile even paper can cut right through it."

"My skin is normal."

"Oh I'm sorry. Your race's skin is fragile." He mocked.

"And? What does that have to do with our seclusion?"

"Do you even know how to get to the other worlds?"

"I suppose you're telling me."

He sighed. "A vortex. You use a vortex."

"I don't get your point, oh mighty Auditio." I replied sarcastically.

"Let's put it simple. Your race has delicate skin and because it didn't get the chance to cross the portal when it was most weak and still possible to cross it didn't evolve into stronger skin. The other races got that chance. Your race'll get killed by the vortex's power if it tries to cross. The others won't, kapish?"

"K- kapish. Killed?"

"Killed, frozen to death, disintegrated, vanquished. Call it whatever you like."

"That's not fair!  Why does only our "weak little race" get to miss out on all the fun?"

"Look, it's not my fault so stop screaming in my ear."

"Okay fine. I will, but there's still a few things you aren't telling me."

"Like what for example?"

"You said you fell…"

"Oh right. That… Well, you see, my family's pretty big on the vortex transportation
system."

"Oh, just what I needed. A rich kid."

"Shut up. So I asked my dad if I could visit a vortex nearby so I could study."

"Study?"

"I didn't mention? I guess studying humans and their races and behaviour is like…"

"Geography..." I said in awe.

He stared at me with an intrigued expression "Well whatever floats your boat. Anyway, I had my dad let me go to the portal for me to watch the C world's behaviour and…"

"Wait, C?"

"Oh right. I forgot. Vortex travelling follows a circular motion." He picked up the paper from the ground and drew a circle "It starts with A. The Velo race's world." He wrote the letter "A" on a spot of the outside border of the circle. "Then goes on to B, my world; C, yours; D, Lecto and E, Aquo."

"So… did they use a special method to decide which world was A?"

"No, I think they just drew lots…"

I stared blankly at him "You're kidding me, right?"

"Nope, but as I was saying. Dad granted me permission to observe your portal and I kind of… fell in. Or it pulled me; I don't know what really happened."

"Couldn't you just get back the same way you came?"

"Have you paid no attention? It's a circular path! You can't just "get back from
where you came"!"

I was about to reply when I heard a loud rumbling sound. "Wh… what was that?"

"I think that's my stomach." He replied sheepishly.

"When did you say you get here again?"

"I didn't." I glanced at him sideways while opening my backpack. "Yesterday morning."

"Jesus Christ, eat right now!" I stuffed a leftover apple from lunch in his mouth. He rubbed his ears again.

"Ow… loud girl…" He complained while chewing his apple.

"How about a thank you?"

"Thanks…"

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Dun dun!

I actually didn't know when to stop with this chapter... oh well.

Reviews and critiques are appreciated~