Hello World (Infinite City #1)(Cancelled)

Welcome to Infinite City

On a bitterly cold night, we found ourselves in the narrow alley. The green dumpster was next to the brick wall - which I was close to. The putrid smell filled my nostrils; my stomach rumbled, begging me to vomit. On the other hand, you had your back against another wall, placing your hand on your head. We didn't know how we got here. But one thing was for sure -we needed to get back home.

"Dude, how did you get here?" you asked.

Stroking my chin, I looked down at the ground - there was a small puddle near my feet. "I don't know. I was lying on my bed, sleeping, and bam! Outside. How about you?"

Looking away, you scratched the back of your head. "I was on my phone."

We stopped talking. Maybe it was the smell of garbage. But as we stood there, the ground shook under our feet; I tumbled to the ground while you bent your knees to prevent yourself from falling. When you looked up at the sky, your mouth hung wide open.

"What's wrong?"

You pointed at the sky, "Look."

As I gazed upwards, I saw a bright white beam shooting into the night sky among the twinkling stars. It was a massive, ghastly beam that roared louder than a lion. Suddenly, the sky turned light blue, as if it had just turned to morning before shifting back. My heart racing, I blinked repeatedly in disbelief and got up from where I was sitting. Sweat poured down my face as I struggled to comprehend what'd happened. It was impossible; there was no way we had just witnessed that.

"What the fuck was that?!"

"I don't know. And I don't want to find out!"

"Let's get out of here!"

As we ran out of the alley, that was when it struck us. The tall buildings had different color neon lights: blue, green, and yellow. Seeing that reminded us of a light show at the Empire State Building in New York during our class field trip. It'd been fun, but we knew New York never had a light beam shooting into the sky! From out of nowhere, the chimes echoed, startling us.

"Attention," a robotic voice bellowed. "Blue Speedline is temporarily closed until further notice. If you are reliant on this transit, consider the following options: carpool, bus, or any other alternative for transportation. Thank you, and let's keep Infinite City thriving."

The voice ended with a click.

"Infinite City. That's a cool name."

Grabbing my shoulders, you shook me. "Are you serious?! You're thinking about the name and not what we're in?!"

"Yeah, we're in a different world."

"And you're not scared?!"

"I am, I am! It's just a lot to take in."

Before we moved, you fell to the ground. As I hunched over to help, I could have sworn I felt something stabbing at the back of my neck. Everything was blurry, and my body became heavy. Before my eyes closed, someone laughed.