My Adventure in Mikellar

Chapter LXXV | An Astral-Swarmed Night | Part-I

Ok, it's gonna be alright.

It can't be that bad, right?

She won't get that mad. No need to worry

Twenty-five percent of my brain was trying to calm the seventy-five percent, which screamed and panicked like a monk monkey whenever they see a punk monkey.

I was pacing in front of the tall green marble door with antique golden handles for more than ten minutes.

I saw Iris anxiously approaching the room. Her hands were buried in her coat's pockets, and she looked like she was going to her death penalty. She walked up to me and eyed me up and down suspiciously. "You didn't say Galena about the white garden prank, did you?" She questioned.

"No? Why?" I paused, thinking for a moment before gasping from offence, "Wait-You don't think I snitched on us, right?"

"Well, whenever I sneaked peas from the kitchen to feed the ducks, you always snitched on me!"

"Firstly, I was three and dumb, and secondly, Who's idea was it?!" I hissed.

Creak...

"And who was whining from boredom?!" Iris growled back.

"I wasn't whining!" I retorted.

"Good evening, young ladies," The calm and serene voice of Queen Adela gave us jumpscares.

Fox Fork Frock Frog

"Good...-Good Evening, Queen Adela," we stuttered in unison, smiling sheepishly.

She glanced at us blankly, "Did something happen?"

"No." Iris responded.

"Then why are you all just standing there? Come in, please!" Queen Adela motioned as she led us into the hall.

Iris shot me a dirty look, and I stuck my tongue out to taunt her back as soon as Adela turned her back, before quickly walking through the gate into the hall.

The last time I visited the place was with Iris, Galena, Toivo and Cepheus when we were getting a tour of the entire castle.

The hallway was named after King Norbert, the third monarch of Mikellar, and was built during his reign. King Norbert was a weird philosopher who often came up with ideas and views that were way too different from the normal yet useful and functional.

Once during an unfateful drought during his reign, he invented an unusual cigar to solve the problem. He distributed it among his people and asked them to blow through the cigar every morning and every afternoon. Many people were too amused and puzzled by the invention, and many even protested against the idea. But soon, they stood outside their house with their jaw hung open as a billow of grey clouds formed above their lands.

One of his most peculiar and renowned concepts was The Doughnut Earth. The concept may seem out of a child's imagination, but that was the specialty of Norbert's mind. A child's imagination is boundless, and their brains are colourful messes. And so was Norbert's.

This bizarre idea brought many theories and thoughts of what could have happened if the world were shaped like a doughnut-elongated like a cake with a hole in its centre. Now, many would question the use of such theories-of something-that doesn't even exist would undoubtedly prove useless, but that's where we real world-citizens go wrong.

The most peculiar of ideas and discoveries come from the most ridiculous of things-things that we refuse to ponder over thoughts we consider rubbish. We are taught from the wee-beginning that things which don't give us quick pleasures are worthless, but boy, are we wrong. We are in love with the outcome rather than the process. We are motivated by the feeling of greediness and the sense of desperation. And that's how I see Mikellarians are different from us.

Nothing can pull their curiosity down. Nothing can break their courage to do what's right and what's true. They hate pondering over lies and myths. They are true explorers and discoverers of all the realms we can step into. Perhaps, even more, humane than us.

Which is why I believe I was brought here. Maybe, I didn't belong there after all. Maybe, I was born into the wrong world. Maybe...I was destined to be a Mikellarian.

Now, let's snap back into reality cause, we, unfortunately, don't have much time.

The Doughnut World inspired many scientists and philosophers to invent revolutionary ideas and gadgets. And Penelope Hall was a rough model of what the Doughnut World may look like.

The whole hall was circular in shape. There was no wall or ceiling, you could keep walking and walking all across the hall, and you won't come to a corner or in front of a wall.

Grass, trees and nature covered the grounds. In the center, there was a bright glowing mini-sun covered by a few white clouds that provided warmth to the flora and fauna that prospered in the hall.

But, behind the sun, there was a quiet moon. That brought a tranquil-night to the other side of the hall. They revolved around each other-creating a balance of day and night on both sides of the hall.

If you looked to the bottoms of the little ponds in which swam tiny colourful fishes, you would see the outside view like a window. And if you see ahead of the pond, you will find a small warm cottage, with a wooden park bench near a kitchen garden-it was the safe place of Queen Adela-the one I saw in her Vistrowler.

We stopped in front of the cottage gate, and Queen Adela sent us a sly smile. She fished two black blindfolds out of the pockets of her blue dress, handed us and asked us to wear them. I looked at it, confused, thinking what could be her plan after all, before finally giving up and putting it on.

The door clicked open, and we heard her footsteps knock on the wooden ground as she walked into the cottage. We slowly followed her in, while making sure that we don't end up knocking out toes or heads onto the door's sides or the headboard.

After a few more slow and cautious steps, we finally stood in the middle of the room.

"You can take off the blindfolds now," Queen Adela ordered.

We quickly took off our blindfolds from curiosity before having our eyes on stalks as we looked at it speechlessly.

"Holy crap," Iris muttered in awe. "It-it's beautiful.."