Hallucinations

Making it back to the door of the dorm building, he quickly shut it and locked it with a nearby chair as he sat on the floor to catch his breath.

His hands were shaking. He'd never felt so terrified before.

For several minutes, he sat there out of breath, trying to process what had happened.

He tried to think rationally, to think through the events he'd seen, but his mind simply couldn't grasp it.

First, he levitated after experiencing a fall, which, under normal circumstances, should have slain him. The people he considered responsible refused to acknowledge that something had even happened and now a screaming lunatic was teleporting across the university campus.

What has happened to this world in these past 900 years? Am I the insane one or has the world gone crazy?

After a minute of contemplation, Kevin came to a resolution. He was either a witness to supernatural events of which he had no comprehension or understanding, or he was a madman whose witness was unreliable and undeserving of consideration. Regardless of the truth, he'd investigate the cause of these strange events and find out for himself what had become of the world around him. To see if his present reality was abnormal or, in fact, the new normal after nine centuries of existence.

The university staff would be of no use. He had to find out the truth for himself. Dyson and Clay's reactions to his experiences made it clear they had no intention of giving him a straight answer.

Kevin stood up resolute in his next steps going forward. As he studied Yankish, he would make more trips outside of the university, not only to make money, but also to gain information about the supernatural events going on around him. He wouldn't allow Dyson and Clay to keep him ignorant any longer.

With new resolve embedded in his heart, he walked up the stairs to his room.

As he approached the door, he felt three taps on his right shoulder coming from behind. Kevin slowly turned around, heart pounding, and saw Carmita in her black dress and apron yawning with a look of confusion on her face. She asked in Yankish "I thought you sleep?"

Kevin exhaled with relief

"I went to the bathroom."

Carmita walked away stretching "Good for you."

Kevin wiped sweat off of his forehead. He briefly contemplated confiding in Carmita about what he'd just seen, but quickly abandoned the idea. The two could barely communicate. How could she help him? Kevin opened the door to his bedroom, making a point of locking it as he closed it behind him. Then he shut the window, which he'd left open during the incident before laying back in bed and allowing exhaustion to take him back to sleep.

As Kevin slept, his previous dream of light returned. This time he was in space from which he looked down and saw the earth. At the north pole, an enormous light shone brightly as it cut its way through to the bottom, the south pole. Once it reached the south pole, the light increased in intensity, engulfing the earth and the surrounding space. It swallowed everything.

He woke up the next day feeling groggy. He was still a little phased from the events of the previous night, but after 10 minutes of laying in his bed he got up and got himself ready for the day. While exiting the dorm building, he saw Carmita in a lobby chair, snoring.

The morning air was cool and crisp. The courtyard was still and silent. Kevin walked to the area where the incident the night before occurred and found everything there in order. There was no sign of blood, nor was there a single trace of the teleporting woman.

Kevin, as usual, ate breakfast and went to the library for his Yankish Lessons. After Yankish lessons, he ate a moderate lunch consisting of a bowl of vegetables, rice, and small amounts of salmon.

After lunch, Dyson came to visit him. Today he came alone with no eager scholar or academic trailing behind him.

Dyson sat across from Kevin. Upon seeing Kevin's complex expression, he said, "How are you today? Is everything alright?"

Kevin looked up from his notes "I'm alright today, last night was eventful"

Dyson seemed surprised. "What happened last night?"

Kevin recounted the events of the previous night.

Once he finished his explanation, Dyson leaned back in his chair and rubbed his beard. He deliberated for a few seconds before saying, "The incidents you have been experiencing are likely the result of stress you've been accumulating. Considering the circumstances, it is not surprising that you are experiencing these hallucinations or dreams. You've been through a lot and have been ingesting a large amount of information. Perhaps your brain is trying to fabricate a way to process all the changes you are going through?"

Kevin grit his teeth

"Is that an official diagnosis or just an excuse?"

Dyson made a smile typically given to naïve children as he said, "I do not give excuses, Kevin. As an academic, I simply offer theories based on logical deduction and empirical evidence to do otherwise would be unprofessional. If you disagree with my conclusions, then that is your decision, however I'll remind you that you were just placed in a state of.... as you once said it, suspended animation, for 900 years. We have no clue what the side effects of this could be both physically and mentally"

Kevin was about to retort when a short blonde woman wearing glasses with thick black frames walked over. She spoke in a monotone voice, "I'm sorry to interrupt Professor, but the dean has requested you immediately"

Dyson stood up and said to her in Yankish, "Understood." Then he turned back to Kevin, saying in Silicon English, "I'm sorry to cut this conversation short. If you truly need one, I can arrange to have you visit Doctor Jaxeson on campus"

Kevin frowned and begrudgingly said, "I'll consider it "

"Wonderful. If you experience similar incidents, please let me know so we can take appropriate action."

Kevin watched as Professor Dyson and the woman left the room. Once the door shut, he made a loud groan and buried his head in his hands.

Why'd I tell the guy who pretends he isn't magic?

When Kevin's fall ceased during the climb out of the ruin, Dyson and apparently Clay's course of action had been to either pretend nothing had happened or ignore any questions regarding the matter, so it was no surprise that the same was happening again.

Under normal circumstances he'd just ask any of the hundreds of students he saw on university grounds every day, but he had been so immersed in Yankish studies that he'd had very few opportunities to talk with anyone who wasn't his teacher, Clay, Dyson and whatever colleagues Dyson brought to meet with him. Not that it'd matter much if he did, while his Yankish was improving rapidly he was nowhere near fluent and according to what Dyson told him very few people who weren't academics could speak "Silicon English" so any attempt at a conversation would be pointless.

So here he was today, sitting in the library as usual. As he stood up to leave, he had an epiphany.

"The Church of the Breaker!"

Clay had mentioned at one point that he'd learned Silicon English first from the Church of the Breaker and that their holy books were in Silicon English. If that was true, then surely there would be a priest at the church Clay mentioned in Flagami who'd be able to speak at least some Silicon English, and Kevin would finally have someone other than Clay and Dyson to talk to about his experiences and the world around him. With an unusual vigor, Kevin quickly gathered his things and left the library. 

Once out, he started running, his goal being to find Clay so he could go on the trip to the bounty board he was promised the day before. After a minute, he stopped at the entrance of the courtyard to take a breath, and was stared at by students walking around the campus. The students, for the most part, were dressed in school uniforms consisting of cream-colored trousers or skirts, grey shirts, tan robes, black ties and shoes. Many of them seemed to be in deep conversations with each other. As Kevin prepared to run again, he stopped upon making a realization. He had no clue where Clay was!

S*** where the hell is he?