DAYDREAMER

PART II: Inner City

"Now you look like you'd fit into Qaietiox! Well done," Alora grinned, she looked at them with pride, as if they were her own children.

"How'd you get your hands on so much money?" Jake asked, "Well, when you work for The Engineer, money doesn't really become much of an issue," she explained

"How long have you known them for?" Cynthia added.

"Half a decade now, give or take," she replied.

"When do we get to meet him?" Lucia asked, with an upsurge of curiosity and investment, if there was anyone who could get her out of here, it'd surely be them. If everything around her was constructed by the Engineer, then surely, they'd know the ins and outs of the Otherworld, and even better, how to escape.

"After the tour!" Alora repeated, giggling at their enthusiasm, "I appreciate your eagerness, but this tour is a mandatory procedure for everyone new to the Otherworld,"

From the fountain outside the shopping mall, they began to promenade towards the taxi rank at the far end of the city centre.

"If you need the brooch to get into here, then how did we get sucked into this? We aren't the ones carrying the stupid medallion... This clown is!" Jake questioned, pointing at Lucia, who cuffed him on the neck.

"Simple, actually. You know the brooch? It has a certain... let's say 'blast radius'," Alora started, "Anyone within range of the brooch when it begins to transport you to the Otherworld will also be transported,"

"How do you know this?" Aiden asked.

"The Engineer told me this during one of his meetings, I was curious about it! Just like you are,"

"And how far out can this 'blast radius' get?" Cynthia continued, getting into one of the hovering taxis that were parked at the rank "Well, it depends on the environment, it commonly engulfs the majority of the room its host may be in, but I don't quite know what happens when you're outside, or out in the open when the brooch decides to act up, which is why it most likely hasn't happened before," Alora shrugged, entering the driver's seat of one of the taxis, the rank began to clear up and Alora started the car, driving towards an opening in the interchange, the interchange was shaped like a clover, a true architectural masterclass, the roads flowing like a river in a valley, meandering and flowing as if it were one of nature, all vehicles and cars moved in harmony, no traffic or congestion could be seen from miles out, the streetlamps glowed an emerald green, illuminating the thoroughfare. Alora was silent as she drove, house music was being played in the taxi and she was clearly enjoying it, she loved the 'Otherworld' so much. It was written on her face, from the second they'd got there, to now.

"Where to now?" Magnus asked, interrupting the fleeting peace of the group, Alora looked at the Satnav, tapping the screen impatiently.

"The Decagon," she answered finally, "It's the heart of the city and the most prominent accommodation facility in the city, it's quite like the Burj Khalifa of Qaietiox," Alora pointed to the left, "There it is, you can see the thing from everywhere in this city, you can even see it from our neighbouring city Galvitos,"

She was right, there was a skyscraper, a sleek Nero but covered in a spiral of purple light, climbing up the tower in its stunning luminosity. It appeared to touch the stars in the cloudless sky, piercing the atmosphere as if it were a home in a fairy-tale. Although it was hard to make out fully, Lucia could tell where the name 'Decagon' came from. Emanating from the top of the Decagon was a beacon that was rotating, a powerful light soaring through the air. Magnus could have sworn that the light must've went on forever.

Alora noticed them gawking at the tower and added.

"Though this may not be the Engineer's actual private estate, he's done quite a few conference meetings there, he did one now too long ago," she commented, "If we're lucky enough, we might be able to see him around these parts, the Decagon may not be his favourite building, but it's most certainly his best and most impressive one, he takes a lotta pride in the thing,"