Pale light probed its way into my eyes.

  Despite my daze, I heard the familiar sound of the city bustle; foot passengers clashing into one another’s umbrellas, vehicles stirring and sirens rhythmically shouting.

  All this noise woke me sourly, and I opened my eyes to see my familiar apartm-

  What?

  I found myself in an alley, a cramped and filthy side street. I had been lying in a small pool of mud and foul-smelling liquid. That figures.

  “What the hell? That—that monster, I remember. Ade, where is he?”

  I looked around searching for the old man’s bald visage, but he was nowhere to be found.

  “He must’ve done something to me, with that little gadget. And that— tissue? It appeared out of nowhere, and then disappeared all the same. And my arm—it’s completely healed…”

  What is going on here?

  Taking in a deep breath I started scanning the alley, when I felt a boulder strike me from behind.

  “Hey!” I shouted, my voice cracking. I turned.

  A mound of a man had stopped next to me, short of running me over.

  “Watch it, twerp! Bleugh.” He spat on the floor. “Have you ever seen a bath, punk?” Roaring in my face, he pinched his nose and dashed away. A dangling pearl earring swayed with his gait.

  I scratched my head, watching him leave; my reply was just short of slipping out. Sigh.

  “Have I seen a bath?” I asked, looking down at myself.

  Checks out.

  The city was busier than usual, businessmen and women moved in waves across the streets, as if they were actually busy. The pedestrian light I’d been waiting at turned green, and I stepped forwards. I found it strange that, none of the tens of people around me did the same, and looking back, I saw everyone painted in an odd, blue film.

  Am I insane?

  I heard a loud screech from my left before everything turned from blue to black.

  A moment later, I opened my eyes and saw a few men above me looking down with worry at my left side. I guess they weren’t that busy. My left arm felt odd, but didn’t hurt at all. I looked down, seeing it bruised horribly and bent at the elbow. For a moment everyone around me disappeared; I found myself back inside the cold, dark van. The monster was still there. After a second, my arm jutted itself into place, and the skin returned to beige. I stared at my arm speechlessly, snapping out of the dream.

  This— this has to do with yesterday.

  A small lady was pushing her way through the excited crowd, shouting.

  “Yer idiot! You’ve gone and got yerself killed! Bum!” She repeated the sentence with slight variance again and again, till she made her way over and saw I was fine.

  At this point most of the people around me were either leaving or replaced by other curious bystanders. The granny gathered her spit and turned to the side: “Ptui!”

  What’s with the spitting?

  I could not believe the audacity of this grandma. She didn’t linger any longer—so I restrained myself, after muttering some choice words…

  I better leave here—this isn’t normal.

  Getting up, I heard a man telling a policeman that the pedestrian light was yellow.

  After disappearing in the crowd, as much as a stinky bum can manage, I noticed the blue film again, and consciously trying to make it go away, it got smaller and brighter till it became a rectangle in front of me.

  ══════════════════════

  | Limited Stat Screen |

  Name: David Coppard

  Rank: Unranked

  HP: 100

  << Locked >>

  { Traits }

  Dimensional Traits:

  Lunar Marrow

  Foreign Resonance

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  << Locked >>

  ══════════════════════

  O—okay, that’s new. Why’s everything locked, and what’s Foreign Resonance?

  [ Foreign Resonance ]

  Other beings sense your unnatural presence.

  “Unnatural presence”— what?

  [ Foreign Resonance ]

  Nobody likes you.

  Ha -ha, I got that part. Wait—who’s there?

  I tried pushing against the menu, only for my hand to phase through.

  Seriously, what’s with this thing?

  After a few more failed attempts and receiving more than one odd look, I thought it might be a better idea to try that at home.

  This stinks.

  I had just arrived outside my apartment bloc when it started raining, and even without any fancy clothes to worry for, I’d much rather not run in the rain after today.

  Before getting run over, I had actually found my keys and phone in my pockets. The phone was in a sorry state, but my key fob looked unharmed. I routinely hovered it next to the scanner outside the bloc door, but the receiver made no sound to indicate the door opening, or the fob not matching. Great, what now?

  I tried pressing it once more, and accidentally dropped the fob and keys on the floor.

  A considerate little girl was rushing up the entrance’s stairs, and she was kind enough to pick up the keys for me.

  “Here mister, this is how you open the door!” the little girl exclaimed, and I looked down with a half-smile as she tried using the broken key.

  Ding!

  The hell? That’s weird…

  The little smurf boastfully smiled, clearly proud of teaching me how to open a door.

  “Anna!” Her mother hasted up the entryway, giving me a murderous glance as she pushed her defiant daughter away from the homeless man.

  I smiled bitterly, forgetting about the fob and entered the building.

  The stairs gazed at me alluringly, but today was not the day for stairs.

  After entering the elevator I noticed the massive mirror on the wall, but the more I looked at myself the stranger I felt. Something was off.

  I moved and saw it instantly; my reflection was a second late.

  Maybe I am actually going crazy. Maybe I’ll see Ade and he’ll ask me how work was.

  Maybe this is just a crazy dream…

  Shaking myself off, I exited the elevator with the circus mirror. By the time I arrived at my apartment, I was seriously starting to doubt my sanity. I reached the door numbered 321 in big, silver digits.

  No sooner had I unlocked and opened the door than it hit me: a disgusting, rancid smell that pierced my nose and stuck to my tongue. The eggs.

  I instantly turned outside and took urgent steps, retching in my throat.

  I was planning an omelette yesterday morning, which I didn’t make, and instead promised to cook that same night. The night I had busily spent sleeping in a side alley. Right.

  I stayed in the hall for a few moments, and after devising my tactical plan it was time to go back in. Stepping insid-

  Nope.

  I went outside again… That’s rough, man.

  “Okay, I’m going inside, bagging the yolks and opening the window.” Yeah.

  I cleared my throat, staring at the door. Here goes nothing!

  The yolks had turned into a brilliant jade, but instead of solid they seemed to be bubbling. Okay, let’s improvise.

  I flicked the light switch and dashed inside, hopping over chairs, the couch and table…

  I reached the casement window, and pulled desperately.

  Finally, it’s open.

  I faced the yolks once more and— of course.

  I had placed the bowl right above the bag drawer.

  It’s now or never.

  Pinching my nose, I took a bag out and threw in the yolks, bowl and all. I fiercely looped the top around itself, and at last managed to get my first puff of air since entering.

  It was night time when I finished; not too late to throw the trash, but not so early as to delay further. With trash in hand, I was ready. Looking out the window, I sensed that tonight’s moon felt peculiar, both in its brightness and its size.

  It demanded my attention. My eyes lingered on the crescent when they fell upon it, and in that moment all the stars were plucked out the sky. I was alone no longer; it stared down, upon me. It flew down from its umbral throne, grasped me in its hands and asked me: “Would you accompany me this night?”

  What? No. What’s going o—

  My reflection twisted—I felt wrong, something had just passed through me. I stepped away from the window. I remember thrusting the door open and leaving it ajar. Time spent in the hall was difficult, I sped up and reached a jogging pace. The stairs were an afterthought, the bloc door was open—I was outside.

  I felt it standing a hair's breadth away. I heard its candid request; it wanted to be part of me.

  Power pulsed within me; the same blue screen appearing:

  { Lunar marrow is resonating! }

  My heart drummed like thunder, I stood straight, stiff, entranced. I desired to find myself in the frost, to go upwards, onto highland; to approach the brilliant, pale moon. Sitting under its sacred light, I noticed the ground luster before the soft glow gave way to an untarnished, platinum-white powder. I immediately winced and stepped backwards, then bending over, I ran my hand through the emerging snow just below me. I felt an explosion, a potent gale erupt—and a blinding flash of light followed, forcing my eyes shut. No sooner had I opened them than I found myself in a completely different place.

  { Transportation to 'Lupine Reality' facilitated. }

  Lupine Reality? I've seen that before.

  I examined my surroundings: I was standing in a glacial plain plastered with snow, and a forest of gargantuan, silver-barked trees towered before me, ominously waiting, anticipating my entry.

  Turning around, I faced a void of endless darkness, where the ground was an abyss and the sky furnished by a single throne. The crescent moon persisted above me; it endowed its treasured light solely to the precious forest.

  I stepped towards the wood, breaking the sinister silence. I hadn’t taken my third step when the ground began to rumble and I heard a terrible concerto of clashing branches, followed by rhythmic banging only felt through the floor. Then I saw it—a solitary stump sat among the untouched giants. That could only mean—a tree shifted...

  My eyes widened— That stump! It wasn’t there before!