Navigating the busy sidewalks of a beachside city in southern California as a shorter-than-average eleven-year-old was surprisingly not too bad. I was easily able to weave my way through the sea of adults. Some were talking on their cellphones in a very official-sounding way, while other younger adults grouped together to talk about how the surf was that morning. Surprisingly, not many people were heading in the direction I was. Although when I started passing more police cars than usual, I knew I was on the right track.

I came to a screeching halt at a police barricade that I was barely tall enough to see over. My eyes were glued to the floating circular portal that looked almost like an indentation in midair. Although it seemed innocuous enough, I could make out a faint pulse of energy that made the edges waver slightly every few minutes. And even weirder was that the air around it seemed different: thicker yet lighter somehow, as if the humidity in the air had gotten denser without the added stickiness.

A temporary platform had been constructed for better access to examine the gate. Civilians who weren’t permitted within the barrier regarded the gate with both curiosity and a hefty amount of apprehension while policemen patrolled the area. Luckily, the policemen didn’t seem to think a curious kid was a threat, so they left me alone to watch with wide eyes. 

That’s definitely a gate! I thought to myself with excitement and just a tiny bit of resignation. Honestly, I'd been a little excited about being in a slice-of-life story. But after my most recent experience in a romance fantasy story, I didn’t mind the chance to live a more fast-paced life. 

Taking a quick look around to make sure no one was paying attention to me, I took a steadying breath and then glanced up at the sky. “System!” I whispered as firmly as I could. When a game screen didn’t appear, I frowned and tried again. “Home screen?” Still nothing. “Oh! Stats! Or status screen? Menu? Hello?” 

Even after using every gaming command I could think of, no floating screen appeared in front of me. I chewed my bottom lip softly as I tried to recall stories that had gates in them that didn’t have a gaming mechanic. 

“Oh! Is this one of those stories where constellations or minor gods sponsor their chosen human and help them achieve their potential?” I wondered aloud, glancing up at the cloudless blue sky. “Wait… if that’s the case, wouldn't I be too young to be chosen as a player? What gives!” 

Grumbling to myself, I loitered around the barricaded gate, wondering how exactly an eleven-year-old girl was supposed to fit into a story with dungeons opening up to different worlds full of monsters and treasures. I stuck around until my stomach began to rumble petulantly. Deciding that I'd better focus even more on being healthy and fit if this was an action story, I headed back to the empty apartment, intent on making myself as healthy a dinner as possible. 

The next day I packed my school backpack full of snacks, water bottles, and an interesting book I found on the tiny bookshelf that the Simmons’ had in the living room. Feeling prepared, I walked the few blocks from my temporary home to the barricaded gate. One of the policemen who had been there the day before seemed to recognize me and walked in my direction. I skipped up to the barricade, trying to exude childlike innocence, and smiled up at the police officer who looked like he was old enough to have a kid of his own. 

“What are you doing here, little girl?” The man asked, stopping right behind the wooden barricade and looking down at me with a touch of concern in his eyes. 

“I want to see what will come out of the hole in the sky!” I responded as cutely as I could while pointing at the gate. The policeman frowned and looked back at the gaping black portal that didn’t appear to lead anywhere in particular. 

“Come out?” he repeated while scratching his head. “I don’t think anything will come out of it. The scientists think it’s just smog condensed into one spot. They’re trying to figure out how to clean it up.”

I just barely kept my eyebrow from raising sarcastically at the ridiculous notion. Since when does smog collect in only a single area like that? I scoffed inwardly.

It may have been a biased opinion, but my appearance in this life would definitely qualify as cute. Shorter than average height, big hazel eyes that changed hue depending on the color I wore, dark auburn hair that appeared redder in the sunlight, and a splash of freckles across my nose and cheekbones all combined into a picture of youthful innocence. Widening my eyes slightly, I clasped my little hands under my chin and blinked pleadingly up at the policeman, hoping to trigger his paternal instincts. 

“May I please watch, Mr. Policeman? I promise I won’t cause any trouble.” 

The policeman frowned slightly and glanced around. Several people would drop by to get a look at the gate and snap a photo, but they were all quick to leave. He asked where my parents were, and when I told him they were at the library just across the street, he finally shrugged and instructed me to stay outside the barricade. I nodded eagerly at him, and he gave me a little wave before going back to his post.

I stayed at the edge of the barricade, simply watching the people attempting to analyze the gate. It didn’t 100% surprise me that no one was willing to put their hand into the gate, but I watched with interest as the scientists (as the policeman had labeled them) experimentally tossed a stick towards the center of the gate. Everyone exclaimed when the stick did not appear on the other side of the black portal, and soon they were huddled together discussing things in a hushed tone.

After 30 minutes of nothing interesting happening, I was beginning to feel hot. Even with the ocean breeze, summers in southern California were no joke. Not wanting to give my little body heatstroke, I found a shaded bench nearby that still gave me a view of the gate and plunked my backpack next to me. I had drained half of my water bottle and eaten several snacks before someone new came onto the scene.

A woman carrying a box the size of a briefcase but twice as thick showed a badge to one of the policemen before stepping into the barricaded area. I watched with interest as she spoke with the “scientists” for a moment before setting her case down and beginning to assemble what looked like a drone of some sort. I couldn’t help but chuckle when I saw her getting a blocky remote control out before flipping several switches on both the control and the drone. 

When she appeared to be satisfied, she pulled out what looked like VR goggles and slipped them over her eyes, adjusting the strap so that the goggles remained snugly on her face. After a moment, a whirring noise erupted that sounded like an army of a million mosquitoes was about to descend on us. Goosebumps broke out on my arms at the terrible sound before the drone suddenly took to the air.

Wow. I don’t remember drones being this noisy, I thought as I recalled the adorable little AI bots that had been even more plentiful than humans back in my eighth life. Shaking my head, I watched with interest as the woman steered her drone up and towards the gate. Everyone was watching with bated breath as the drone slowly circled the gate. Some people were looking at a screen that was apparently showing in real time what the drone was seeing, pointing here and there as if they hadn’t already been studying the outside of the gate for the past two days. 

After their preliminary observations were made, the drone slid into position to enter the gate. Curiosity took hold of me, and I slunk around the edge of the barricade until I could see a corner of the screen from between the people standing in front of it. The pilot of the drone said something before the drone began to fly steadily forward. I watched the sliver of the screen that was showing the drone's point of view with interest. 

Unfortunately, as soon as the drone slid into the gate (without coming out the other side), the camera went completely black, and I thought I saw a flickering red light in the corner of the screen. The woman controlling the drone executed several fancy finger movements across her remote control while scowling heavily. After a few minutes, she tugged off her goggles and let out a frustrated sigh before shaking her head.

Hmm, I guess it makes sense that she lost signal. Usually, gates open up dungeons that are on completely different worlds. I doubt any wireless signal could span that kind of distance. At least not with modern human technology, I thought to myself as I rested my chin on the top of the barricade. 

By the time the sun was beginning to set, nothing else of interest had happened, and I’d devoured the rest of my snacks. I was a little disappointed at the lack of contact from a constellation, but I decided that there was nothing left for me to do today. Zipping up my backpack, I adjusted it on my shoulders and turned away from the gate, glancing back several times just in case something exciting happened.