Amity POV
Amity was the last one through with Luz. She took in the surroundings as the portal door closed behind her. Their group stood in a small clearing in a forest, and behind them was a worn down cabin.
Amity was partially stunned. This was her first time in the human realm, and the trees alone looked so different. A solid green, and the trees looked so similar to one another. Very different than in the boiling isles.
"Woah!" Edric exclaimed from ahead of her, running ahead to look at one of the trees.
"Oh right. You kids haven't been here before. Well, you can 'ooo and ahh' over the differences later. We need to move for now."
Amity snapped back to focus, looking at Eda and nodding. She noticed that Luz was unusually quiet again, instead looking around with wide eyes. Amity pushed the thought away, and moved to follow Camila.
They traveled out of the forest in just a few short minutes, arriving at what appeared to be some form of stone road. Long and perfectly straight, with a tan clay based stone lining the sides. Amity looked around, and was surprised at how uniform the area looked. Dozens upon dozens of houses lined the road, all looking very similar. Barely varying colors, and only small differences in decor.
Camila paused at this road, and turned to come right next to Amity. "Luz, do you think you will be okay in a car?"
Luz visibly paled and Camila nodded. "I was afraid of that. Looks like we are going to be running. Okay, follow me."
Camila turned and proceeded to run down the clay lining the side of the road, and the group swiftly turned to follow her. Edric summoned his staff, and Amity was about to do the same, when Eda stopped her. "No. Human's don't fly around on staffs. If we do that, we will only draw attention. Keep your magic to a minimum, except for you Blight boy. If any humans come by, you make all of us turn invisible. Keep our ears looking human, and put an illusion on Luz hiding her wounds."
Camila turned down another street, and Amity continued to follow her. She was still amazed at how all the houses looked so similar, and were so close together. And there were so many! She was pretty sure that there were more houses she could see now than in the entirety of Bonesborough. "There are so many people here in the human realm! How do you even have space for stalls and shops?" Amity asked, unable to keep her curiosity down.
Camila looked back at Amity with a confused expression. "We don't keep stands or shops in our neighborhoods. That would be in town. You will see in a little while."
Her response only brought more confusion to Amity, who decided to stay quiet and just follow, and save her questions for later.
The group continued through this part of the human town for quite some time, and eventually, had to stop running as their legs grew tired. "How much further?" Edric asked, and Amity noticed he was looking more tired than the rest of the group.
"We have another two hours to the hospital. Normally, we go by car, so it's only a few minutes. But, that would have ended up hurting Luz more, since we don't have enough space inside."
"Um... What is a car?" Amity asked. As she asked, suddenly, she heard a low rumbling behind her. She turned to look over her shoulder, only to see two bright glowing eyes heading towards them.
"Incoming!" She shouted, moving backwards, as Edric moved to her side. The rumbling grew louder as whatever monster this was continued to barrel towards their group.
"No! Stop! That isn't a monster!" Eda shouted, moving between Amity and the beast. Amity watched, as this beast raced right passed them, continuing to proceed down the road, bright eyes glaring into the distance as it left.
"What the fuck was that?!" Edric shouted, as Amity took a breath of relief, only to hear a soft snickering from her arms.
"That was a car." Luz said from her arms. "They are our version of carriages. Or, well, we have carriages too, but those are really old, and not used any more."
"You climb inside of monsters to travel around here too?" Amity asked, only for Camila to give her a curious look.
"Luz can explain as we continue. We need to keep moving if we want to get Luz admitted before the sun rises". The elder human stated.
"No, those aren't monsters. They are machines. We build them, and they take us around. Kind of like the airships that the emperor's coven uses."
Amity nodded slowly, only partially understanding. "Then where are the animals that pull them?"
"We don't use any. Just like the airships. They use a machine to power them."
Amity proceeded to ask questions about how these cars worked, as they continued to this hospital. Occasionally, another 'car' would race past them, and it took her some time to not jump each time she heard one coming. Eventually, they reached a new part of the town.
The buildings took a different shape. Long strips, with countless doors and windows. It looked like a school hallway, but outside. Each window had decorations in them, portraying countless different themes and things for sale. Each door had different signs above it, portraying different names and advertising the sale of many different objects or uses.
"This is crazy. Why have so many doors to the same building?"
"They aren't. This is a strip mall. Named that because it is one long strip. Each of those doors leads to a different store or business. One sells hardware, tools, and building materials. One you can go clean your clothes at. One is a restaurant where you can buy food. That one lets you cash checks and help with money and other legal documents. That one is a furniture store. The next one is a post office. How we send letters and other packages to people all over the world. And that last one is a gardening store. They sell all sorts of things to keep a garden and yard looking good."
"Wow. I didn't expect so many stores to be so close together. So, all humans get their mail from this one building?"
Luz laughed, before flinching in pain again. "Fuck. Broken ribs really are not fun." She panted, before shaking her head. "No, only our town. We have a post office in every single town across the country, and then most other countries have the same system. That way all mail is delivered relatively quickly."
"Umm... How many towns are there?" Edric now asked
Luz blew out a puff of air. "I have no idea. Too many to count."
Edric gave Amity a bewildered look. "Luz? How many humans are there?" Amity asked now
"Last time I was here, I heard we had seven, maybe eight billion humans. Is that still right, Mami?" Luz asked, and Camila shook her head. "No, we are closer to nine million nowadays."
Amity gave Edric a confused look, and he now piped up. "Ummm... What is a million?" Amity nodded along to her brother's question.
"Oh, right. The Isles don't count that high. Well, you know what a thousand is. After that, if you have one thousand thousands, that is a million. And one thousand millions is a billion."
Amity couldn't even wrap her head around those numbers. How was there that many of something?!
"How do they not have numbers that high? Aren't numbers infinite?" Camila asked now.
"The demon realm is only one island. A big island, but just one island nonetheless. And, the witches and demons there don't spread like humans do. They have more space all over, and since the isles are so dangerous with many beasts and monsters, their homes are more spread out. The entire population of the isles is only a few thousand."
"Oh, okay. I thought you were away in another world this whole time! I didn't realize it was only one small town."
At this, Amity's mind froze. Small town? Camila thinks the demon realm is just a small town? How big is the human realm?!
Amity finally gave up. There were way too many questions for right now, and this was hurting her head. She decided to focus only on Camila, and following the human woman. Edric continued to try and ask more questions, and Luz answered. But Amity couldn't listen any more. It was too much to comprehend.
The group continued for a while longer, and slowly but surely, the town got more and more dense. Buildings got taller, and taller. Some reaching taller than Blight Bannor had. Big enough to be castles.
Before long, Camila turned them to a building that was lit up brightly. The large stone platform out front was coated in cars. The building was made of white stone, and a large red cross was posted on the side, high in the air. The building reached high above them. Rows and rows of windows showing multiple floors.
Cars came in and out, and some larger ones covered in flashing lights raced by. Amity almost dropped Luz as one of the flashing cars began to scream as it ran past. She managed to hold onto Luz, just barely, her ears ringing. Camila led the group towards this building, as she pulled her human scroll out and began to contact someone with it.
Camila motioned for them to stand next to the building, as she spoke softly. Amity waited, watching around nervously as humans moved past. More than she had hoped to see. The group stood out like a sore thumb she felt, and was worried one would say something.
One human wearing a white robe approached them, and as Amity and Edric moved defensively closer, Eda stepped forward. "Stay quiet, Don't say anything. Only nod if anyone looks to you for confirmation." She quickly said in a hushed voice.
"Hello, do you folks need help?" The human asked. A masculine voice, as a tall man with short hair and glasses approached. They had a friendly smile, but looked worried, their eyes focused towards Amity and Luz. Amity held the human in her arms closer to her.
"No, it's okay. Just had a bit too much partying and our friend here passed out. We just want to make sure she isn't too sick."
"That's a smart thing to do. Glad to see younger folks like you actually being responsible rather than just trying to wait out the effects of alcohol. I can get you in to take a look at your friend, if you want?"
"No, it's quite alright. We are with someone already." Eda said, motioning to Camila.
The man turned, and a look of recognition came over their face. "Ah, Camila is one of our best nurses. You are in good hands. Sorry we don't have a room for you yet. There was a fire tonight, so most emergency rooms are busy. Camila is going to have to take your friend to a proper room for tonight."
Eda smiled a thanks, and the man left. Amity relaxed as he left.
"What was all of that?" She hissed out to Eda, who had moved back by them.
"A very believable story. I have been to the human realm many times before. I know a thing or two. I am probably the only witch in the entirety of the demon realm that can successfully pass in the human realm with very little suspicion."
Amity nodded slowly, and a few minutes later, another male human exited the building, and approached them. Amity reflexively held Luz closer again, and Eda stepped forward, but Camila stepped up and shook the humans hand.
"Thank you for coming, Arnold. I know this is a lot to ask, but you know I wouldn't have asked if I didn't have to."
The human added, and motioned for everyone to follow him without a word. Camila mirrored his motions, before following him inside the building.
The first thing Amity noticed was the strange sharp smell the inside of the building had. Like chemicals. It made her nose scrunch up in retaliation. The second was how the building was pristinely clean. The white walls, floor, counters, and everything practically shined. The room was filled with chairs, and each one had a person sitting in it. All in various states. Some looked ill, some injured, others looked fine. But it was filled. Dozens upon Dozens of humans.
Arnold led them through some double doors, then down several halls, before the group stopped in-front of what appeared to be two metal walls. They leaned forward and pressed on a symbol on the wall between the two walled segments, and it lit up. A soft ring sounded, as the wall on the right moved to the side, revealing a small room inside. Wooden walls and a strange pelt floor. They stepped in, as did Camila and Eda.
Amity and Edric looked at each other before following inside. After they were all in, the door slid closed, and Arnold pressed a button on the wall. Amity let out a gasp as suddenly, she felt very off balance. She leaned on the wall for support, and Edric did the same. Her stomach dropped, and she never felt this off before. The room hummed around them, and Amity tried her best to keep her expression level. Camila, Eda, Luz and this Arnold person all appeared to be unsurprised.
After a few moments, the humming quieted, and Amity felt her balance shift again, before the entire room shook. A ringing sound echoed out, and the wall slid open again. She swallowed hard, and stepped out, following the rest of the group, as they turned and headed down several more halls. A few minutes later, Arnold turned to a door and opened it. Inside was what looked like a strange mix of a kitchen and a bedroom. Cabinets and a metal basin were along one wall. Two chairs sat at one side of the room, and in the middle was a strange looking bed. Many drawers under the green and white mattress.
"Lay her down on the bed" Camila said, as she stepped up and opened a few cabinets, and pulled some gloves onto her hands. She opened another and donned some sort of coat. Arnold moved next to her and did the same thing.
Amity lay Luz down, and stepped back as both Arnold and Camila stepped up on either side of Luz. Amity was worried, not sure what to think of this Arnold person, and not wanting to leave Luz's side.
"What is problem?" Arnold now said, in a strange thick voice, looking over Luz. They turned to Camila, and raised an eyebrow. "You said emergency. Many cuts. This girl not hurt."
Camila looked to Arnold and set him with a stern look. "You need to promise that everything that happens in this room never leaves it. Ever. Do you understand me?"
Arnold gave Camila a look, eyebrows raised. He seemed surprised. "Never expected secrecy from you. I accept."
Camila turned to Edric and nodded at him. "Go ahead and let him see."
Edric turned away, as he dismissed the illusion over the group. Amity saw his ears and Eda's return to their pointed form, and could only assume hers did too. She felt her heart swell as she saw the illusion over Luz vanished. And in an instant, Luz changed from looking perfectly fine, to looking like she was a mutilated corpse.
Arnold's eyes went wide, their gaze flicking between all the people in the room. They took a breath to say something, but a glare from Camila silenced him. Instead, they turned their gaze to Luz, and let out a sharp breath.
"What happen?"
Camila began to answer, and Arnold quieted her. "No." They turned their gaze to lock eyes with Luz, and asked again. "What happen?"