Reverse Chronicles

The Dream

Dinner is served in the same cafeteria. The dish is steak with a side of vegetables. We were given beverage choices, either tea, warm milk, water, or fruit juice. When I am about to return to our table, I notice everyone giving short glimpses. Ignoring the stares, I sat with Mathilde and the others.

“How did your first day go?” Mathilde asks.

“It was very eventful,” I answer.

“I’m Alan’s Mage Knight in Strategy class!” Roland boasts.

“That’s nice, but no one can beat my Johannes when it comes to strategy,” Carina plays down Roland’s boasts.

“Oh yeah? Just wait and see when you see our strategy!” Roland rebuts.

“I don’t have to, I know it’s going to be second rate,” Carina replies. “No offense, Alan.”

“It’s fine, Johannes is the Knight General’s Squire. He is expected to be great at strategy and command.”

“See! Even Alan agrees with me,” Carina claps back.

“Alan! You’re supposed to be on my side,” Roland complains. “Well, I guess we just have to do our best.”

The conversation about Strategy class kept my mind pondering about the correct strategy.

The Jyrian army could win using guerilla tactics, but that’s out of the equation since the Sianese army has already infiltrated the forest. What about those isolated units? Are we supposed to use them?

I finish dinner and return to my room. I sit in front of the window and gaze at the stars. The stars are still visible even in the middle of Xanvaldrea. Back home, there are no visible stars in the city. I try to read the star patterns. A constellation similar to ours should come up.

“Alan are you here?” somebody knocks on the door.

“Coming,” I open the door and see Roland. He was in his pajamas. He carried a book with him. “Can I help you with anything?”

“The stars are beautiful tonight, so we’re going stargazing. Want to come?” Roland asks.

“That sounds great! I’ll come with you.” I close the door behind me and head downstairs with Roland. “So, who are we stargazing with?”

“Our teammates from Strategy class,” Roland replies. “Our former commander is also with us. You should get to know each other.”

We exit the dorm building and head to the middle of the field. Under the starry night sky, others waited for us. They wave as we approach. The breeze of the night silently brushes against my arm. It was cool and satisfying. Julius, Julia, and Matthieu are waiting in the field, with them is a boy with white hair and golden irises. His skin is brown like the desert sand and his facial features along with his clothes make him look like a prince. His face is resolute and composed like the calming atmosphere tonight. When we got closer, he stood up and curtsied in a majestic way.

“Hi, Alan!” Julius waves and approaches. “Welcome to the club!”

“We spend some time together outside class hours,” Julia says. “And now that you are our commander, you are now part of our club.”

“Alan,” Roland overtakes me and positions himself perpendicularly, “this is our former commander, Vale.”

“I’m Vale Liberus T. Lharbian,” he curtsies again. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Squire of the Mythos General.”

“Nice to meet you!” I simply bow. “My name is Alan H. Lancaste. If I may ask, your last name, it’s Lharbian, are you…”

“Yes, I am a noble of Lharbian,” Vale replies. “As you may have already noticed, my features are different from everyone else’s. This is how people in Lharbian normally look. If I may also ask, there are rumor flying around the campus, these rumors tell that you are a woman inside of a man’s body. Are these rumors true?”

How did everyone know? Did Mathilde tell people?

“The rumors…are true,” I come out honest, which shocks everyone. “My real name is Alyssa.”

Julius, Julia, Roland, and Matthieu murmur. They casually glance at me as they continue with their whispered conversation.

“That’s really interesting!” Vale exclaims. “There is actually a legend in Lharbian about twins who can switch their souls. Legend says that they found a cave in a faraway land, where a giant magic circle rests. When they stepped on the circle, their bodies were switched.”

“Is there a way for the twins to know how the other is doing?” I ask.

“I don’t know, the legend abruptly ends without explaining anything,” Vale replies.

Our stargazing turns into a bonding moment. They accepted me for who I am, a girl in a boy’s body. To Vale, it was not a big deal. In fact, he thinks that it is legendary, and I am a person of legends. As the night deepens, I slowly feel the melatonin taking effect. We eventually retire and go back to our rooms. As I was washing, someone suddenly knocks on the door, again. It was Sir Galant this time.

“Good evening, Alan. I hope you enjoyed your first day.” He politely greets me. On his arms are uniform that are worn by the Chosen. “I’ve come here to deliver your uniforms!”

“Thank you, Sir.” I close the door and resumed what I was doing. I lie down on my bed waiting for slumber to strike.

In the middle of the night, I suddenly feel a hard-cold rock against my back. I try to ignore it and change my position, but when I turned to the side, I could feel rocks on my elbow. I open my eyes, but it was dark everywhere. A deafening silence filled the entire cave, not a single sound, not a single cry, not even the wind is audible.

Where am I?

I try to find my way around. I crawl towards anything that felt right. I begin to panic as the darkness is endless. Then, suddenly, a big magic circle illuminates the entire room. My hand is inside the magic circle and must have activated it. I inspect the magic circle, finally standing up.

This cave, this magic circle, could it be the circle from Vale’s story?

The illuminating magic circle suddenly increases in intensity. Its brightness increased in an instant, then the brightness became blinding. The deafening silence vanishes as I hear birds chirp. In front of me is a way out of the cave. I exited the cave and came to a forest with giant trees.

This area is familiar. Although, I should focus first on figuring out where I am and how I got here.

Mysteriously, I have a blade and a bag. When I inspected myself, I was back in my body! Josh must have switched bodies with me, while I was asleep.

He’s made it this far. Where am I anyway?

I grab the map from his bag. Everything became unfathomable when I figured out where I was. On the map, a city named Jyria is marked with a red cross. Josh came from a plain beyond the mountain range and the forest.

This is where the isolated units were! This must be the forest in that battle.

I enter the forest. The trees are giants, but they are dry and arid. I touch the trunk of one and it was completely devoid of moisture. I went deeper into the forest and the same problem is present. One lightning strike can set this entire forest on fire.

Wait, that’s it! The Jyrian army can defeat the invading Sianese if they set the entire forest on fire once their forces enter. Using the isolated units, they can strike from behind and take the Sianese army by surprise making it a victory for Jyria.

“Go back!” a man’s voice whispers in my ear. “Go back!”

“Who? Where? How?” I look around but there was no one.

“It’s me,” the voice whispers again. “Down here,” I look down but there was no one. “I am the sword.” I unsheathe the sword.

“Why do you want me to go back?” I ask the sword.

“Because it is not your story. You might be the owner of that body, but you are the wrong soul to play this part. Return to the cave and you should switch back.”

“What if I don’t?” I test the sword.

“Then, I will have no choice but to permanently sever your soul. Doing that will end your life, preventing your story from ever happening,” the sword whispers in reply. “You already have the answer for the dilemma that you currently face. It is time to go back!”

I follow the sword’s command and go back to the cave. As soon as I enter, I suddenly felt heavy. My knees got weak and I lay on the cold hard ground. I could not stop my eyes from closing. Into darkness, my consciousness entered slumber.

“Alyssa! Alyssa!” I can hear Mathilde’s voice. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, what happened?”

“I’ve been knocking on your door for an hour already. When you opened it you seemed different? You ran to the mirror, then suddenly fainted. The bells have already rung, we’re already late for class!”