Lucius immediately got a headache.
Through his eyes, he could see the classroom he was in. In his mind, however, he could also see himself in the world that he dreamed of.
He attempted to move in the other world, but couldn't grasp how. His leg shot up and smacked the chair in front of him, startling the person who sat in front of him.
"Sorry," Lucius said sheepishly and returned to his book.
After many failed attempts, Lucius finally figured out how to move. If you focused on one of the worlds, you became more in it. For example, if he concentrated on the other world, he was able to move just like how he did normally without moving in the real world. If focused on the real world, he could do the same.
No matter how much he didn't want to believe it, the alternate world couldn't be explained by science. He tried searching it up, spent countless time trying to think of a reason, but nothing reasonable could clarify what happened.
Eventually, Lucius gave in. The only way to describe it was magic, the thing that Lucius had previously refused to believe existed.
Lucius (in the other world) started to walk around. There was still a lot of things he wanted to see since it was a different world. New world, new plants, and wildlife, Lucius thought.
With his extraordinary ability to multitask, Lucius was able to divide his attention to both worlds at the same time. Still, it wasn't easy. Often, Lucius found himself walking into a tree since his attention was on the real world. Or, he would drop the book he was reading since his attention was on the other world.
Eventually, he got the hang of it and was able to simultaneously perform different basic actions in both worlds at the same time.
The first bell rang, marking the start of class. Lucius attempted to let the other world leave his mind to focus on school, but he had no such luck. No matter what he did, the world stayed in his mind. Eventually, he gave up and accepted the fact that it wouldn't go away.
When he put all of his focus on the school work in front of him, the other world faded into the depths of his mind and didn't bother him as much. He couldn't control his body, but he was dimly aware of sounds, sight, and his general senses in basic detail. If he saw a bird fly by, he could see the bird, but he wouldn't be able to describe the bird in detail.
"What's wrong, Lucius? You seem more distracted today," Kron, Lucius's friend, asked and walked up to him. He smacked Lucius on the back of his head, propelling it forward and smacking into the book.
"Hey," Lucius meekly complained. "Why do you always do that?"
Kron grinned. "It's funny seeing your reaction."
Lucius sighed and set down his book and pencil.
Kron had multiple personalities. Sometimes, he would be just chill, the cool guy to hang out with. Two seconds later, he would be making paper airplanes and throwing them at you. Then he would be mister nice guy and help you with everything. He gave Lucius stronger headaches than the other world.
Lucius turned his attention to the classwork in front of him. After a little bit of work, Lucius turned his attention to the other world.
Lucius trudged up a hill and looked at the forest from above. For the first time, Lucius got a good look at the world around him. Trees stretched as far as the eye could see in three directions, and there was a massive ocean in walking distance. Light reflected off the water, creating a sea of glare that hurt Lucius's eyes. He turned away.
I'm pretty sick of all these trees. Going to water might be a new experience, Lucius thought and headed for it.
One thing that Lucius noticed was the lack of humans. He found no sign of human civilization anywhere, and he began to question if there were other people.
What if I was the one that created this world? It came up in a dream, and maybe that created it. If that's the case, I might be the only one in this world, Lucius thought, growing both excited and sad at the same time. This is pretty lonely. I'm hoping I'm wrong.
Lucius arrived at the water as soon as the bell rang. Dividing his focus, he steered his real body to his second class while his other body peered into the water.
The water was clear and shallow near the land. The bottom was lined with normal looking rocks that were shaped into smooth ovals by the unforgiving water. As an urban person, seeing this water was astonishing to Lucius.
He dipped his hand into the water. A shiver of pleasure went through his entire body as he felt the cool water wash through his skin.
If I want to live in this world, I need some form of shelter, Lucius thought. He stood up and looked around.
Trees were the most abundant building resource, but Lucius had no way to cut it down with just his hands. Rocks were another option, but they were heavy and when Lucius tried to lift one out of the water, it didn't budge. It was stuck between the other rocks and was heavier than what Lucius could lift.
Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
Soon, Lucius gave up on shelter and just laid down on the grass. Shelter was for later when he could devote all of his attention to this world. He let the other world fade into the background of his mind and returned to school work.
Lucius was halfway through his work at school when a voice startled him.
"Helloooo. Are you dead?"
Lucius flinched and looked around. He was still in his class, and no one seemed disturbed. Lucius focused on the alternate world as a blur passed over his face.
"What--" Lucius started and sat up.
"Oh, you're not dead!" a girl said.
She seemed about the same age as Lucius, with long hair and kneeled about the same height as Lucius when he sat up. Her hair was a tan color, and...
She had small red wings on her back!
Lucius rustled slightly. I'm not the only one in this world! He was still startled though.
"Uh, who are you?" Lucius asked.
She didn't hesitate. "I'm Luna Bell, part of the dragon race. Though I have this human form," she said and seemed a bit angry about that. Then she became peppy again.
"Whats yours?" She asked and rose to her feet. Lucius got up similarly, head buzzing with questions.
Dragon race? That's cool. It explains the wings, but what is she doing here? Aren't dragons supposed to be important or something?
"I'm Lucius. Uh, I'm a human, I guess," Lucius said. He really didn't know how to interact with something that isn't human.
Luna seemed puzzled. "What are you doing out here, so deep in the woods?"
Lucius laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. "I'm not sure about that myself."
Luna seemed to take that as a good answer, even though it was pretty vague. "Well, no one comes out here that often. They all stay around the borders of this forest, where all the towns and cities are nearby."
Lucius got excited. There is civilization! I guess I'm not the one who made this world.
Lucius cleared his throat. "So, what are you doing here?"
"I've been here for years. I'm an orphan."
"So you've been living out here alone?"
Luna's eyes seemed to fall for a second, then they recovered. "Yeah, but it's fine. I do get to meet a few people once in a while."
There was an awkward silence that followed. He could see Luna's eyes scan his body and an unidentifiable look of displeasement crossed her face.
"You don't have a weapon? This is a dangerous forest," she said. Lucius nervously chuckled again, but he couldn't formulate an answer. He remained silent and stared out at the ocean.
"Well, if you don't have one, I can give you one," Luna said. She rummaged through the bag at her side and pulled out a blue knife the size of his palm. The edge was clearly sharp, and when Lucius touched the edge, he could feel how thin and sharp it was.
"Really? I can have this?" Lucius asked, marveled.
"Sure, I don't need it anyway. I have a bunch myself, and they are basically unbreakable" Luna said. She also handed Lucius a leather sheath, which he took and strapped it to his belt.
"Thanks," Lucius said. Then, a gust of cold wind blasted Lucius, chilling him to the bone. He visibly shivered.
"Hey, where do you stay? It's cold out here," Luna asked. She seemed concerned.
"Uh, I don't have a place to stay right now. I'm planning to build something here, maybe a house or something," Lucius said. He could accomplish the task now since he had a knife, even if it would take a while.
After a moment, Luna perked up again.
"I can help. I have good building skills," Luna said.
Well, it's not about that, I need strength, Lucius thought.
A sound of something cracking was heard, then Lucius's mouth dropped,
Luna ripped a tree out of the ground and hefted it back to Lucius. She dropped it, sending plumes of dust in the air.
Lucius was at a lost for words. He just stared at Luna.
"What?" She asked. "Dragons are known for their strength, ya'know."
Lucius nodded. Then, he gathered himself and got to work, cutting nicks into the wood.
He had something of a log cabin in mind, but he had no idea how to get wood in all of the spots. There was no guarantee that it would be weather-resistant either.
Lucius was grateful for Luna. She was the one that could get trees out of the ground, and without her, the task would be obviously impossible. She lifted logs into place, flew around and sealed holes and gaps with mud, and generally did all the heavy work.
She was so fast that in about seven hours, the structure of the cabin was complete. Lucius was already out of class and at home, just sitting at his desk. If anyone walked in, it would look like he was doing homework, but he was really immersed in the other world.
Lucius and Luna walked around the structure, admiring their work. Luna didn't seem tired at all, just a little puzzled.
"This is an odd shape. Why did you choose to build it like this?" she asked.
Lucius felt like she should know-- he trusted her. A lot, maybe too much.
"Well, I guess I'm not exactly from this world," Lucius said.
"Whoa! Are you serious?" she asked.
"Yeah."
"That explains the house," she said. They walked inside, sliding the door open.
Since Lucius had no way to build hinges, he settled on something more primitive. He cut a wide gap through the middle of the wood, and the door was to be pushed into that to open it or close. It wasn't exactly the smoothest mechanism, but it sure did its job.
The interior was empty at the moment, but it was a lot warmer than the outside. No wind could come through, making it quite cozy.
Lucius brought in lots of the grass that grew outside because unlike normal grass, this grass seemed to be soft and fluffy when it dried. Perfect for bedding or making cushions.
Luna left to go back to where she lived, which was apparently quite close. It was reassuring to have a dragon with super strength nearby.
Even though it was late for Lucius in the real world, the sun didn't seem to come down at all. But still, Lucius was tired so he went to his bed and lied down in the real world.
A small smile stayed on his mouth as he drifted to sleep.