I woke up sometime the next day and began to observe the portal. As far as I could tell, It was just a clear ring floating in front of the branch. And It lacked any identification markings, that would give me some clue as to where it led. So, I was going to need to be extremely cautious moving forward, lest I get ambushed on the other side.

"Where will you take me?" I moved up to the portal and realized, it made a slight humming noise. Though, it was so faint, I could only hear it once I'd gotten close to it.

I leaned my head closer until my nose was brushing against it... And that was my mistake.

A strong pull instantly began to affect my body, almost as if the portal had its own gravity field. First, my nose was stretched until it was pulled inside, then my head followed and my body was pulled through, after. None of this hurt, though it was incredibly disorienting.

Once I was inside the portal, all I could see was a kaleidoscope of colors, and no sound seemed to exist in this place.

"Where... Am I?" A pop up answered my question.

Welcome to the Bifrost Please select your next destination from the available branches.

"Hmm... Alright, let me see the choices."

Iorus A majority of this planet is covered by water, and only three islands exist.

"Wait, is that it!?" Although I was slightly happy that I had a higher chance of finding the next animal. I would have preferred a non-water world first.

"Oh well, Planet Iorus, it is!" The force returned and started pulling me along.

I was unsure of just how long I was inside the Bifrost, though it probably wasn't a small amount of time.

Eventually, a clear ring formed in front of me and my body was pushed through.

After reforming on the other side and clearing my head of the disorientation. I looked around and saw buildings that had been built around the Branch in a circular pattern, and expanded out into a sprawling city. It would have been an amazing sight... had it not been in ruins.

The buildings were made with white stones, that had been slowly overrun by moss. Most of them were still standing high, with the tips appearing to brush the clouds that passed overhead.

"What is this place?" A pop-up appeared.

Welcome to planet Iorus Island of Brelt

"Well, that tells me where I am, but not what this place is..." I moved around the Branch to get a look in every direction.

After a few rotation, I believed that I had at least some idea of which way I should go. Because on the portal side of the Branch, was the ruined city. On the other side, was a sheer cliff that led to the ocean.

"That's... A long way down." I was looking over the edge for a safe way down, so I could try my luck at finding the water creature I need. After a few minutes of this, however, I decided to circle back and head deeper into the city.

"There's got to be a way down, somewhere." So, I resolved myself to search the city until I found one.

I explored the city for days, sleeping when I felt like it and just enjoying the fact that I wasn't constantly starving. The city was an amazing sight. Litteral skyscrapers dotted the cityscape, and it seemed as if a beautiful vista could be found around every corner.

"One day, if it's still here... I'm going to bring Sarah.*Sigh* She would love this place..." Which led to a question... if this place, this beautiful paradise, was left to ruin... Where did the inhabitants go?

From what I'd seen since arriving, this place had everything. The ocean was an endless supply of food, and fish could almost constantly be seen jumping out of the water below. Massive gardens filled with food were scattered around the Island, and yet... no matter where I looked. I had yet to find any clues as to a way down, or where the previous inhabitants went.

"It's almost as if this place was a prison, but surely that can't be... You don't just turn a place like this into a prison." So, if this place wasn't meant to keep something in, then what was it keeping out?

"I'm not sure I actually want to know...But, I need to find that water creature. So, I guess, I'll find out eventually. Regardless of what I want." If I was going to search the ocean for that creature, then I had to leave this place. Even though I didn't want too... "Wait... don't I want to leave?" I was beginning to develop a headache.

" Maybe I should go lay down for awhile..." In fact... the longer I thought about it, the better that idea sounded.

*Yawn* "That's what I'll do, then." I moved through the city until I arrived at my favorite sleeping spot. The grassy hill behind the branch, that overlooked the ocean.

Once I was there, I lay down and allowed my head to dangle over the edge. I don't know why, but for some reason, I really enjoyed looking at the water below.

*Chuckle* "Maybe, I should just jump?" Instantly, my headache worsened and I grew dizzy.

*Groan* "Alright, Alright. So, jumping is a bad idea..." I tilted my head further away from the cliff, as that was slowly easing my headache. Except, I leaned over a bit too far and fell over.

It was slow at first, but as I fell, my mind began to clear. That was also when I saw IT.

A massive creature, or the remains of one, was holding the city on its shoulders as it stood in the ocean. The water only coming up to its calves emphasized just how massive the creature was.

The only things I could clearly see was its dark blue skin that was covered in tribal tattoos, long black hair that almost reached the water below, the two curved horns on either side of its head, and the massive chains that held the island together on the creature's shoulders.

Then, I impacted the water and the creature was obscured from my vision. Although I was lucky because the impact with the water didn't kill me, it just knocked me unconscious and left me at the mercy of the waves.

Said waves, carried me far away from the creature and the paradise it carried on its shoulders.