[Calibrating…]
Jack groaned softfly in his sleep, lids pressed shut, while his hand drifted across the sheets in a clumsy search for the phone lying beside his pillow.
[Calibrating…Processing, estimated time: 840 minutes.]
'Where's that phone?'
Soon his fingers brushed against the phone and switched it off—only to notice the alarm hadn't even gone off yet.
'What was that? I heard something just now,' he thought and tried to look around with his eyes half-closed, but when he noticed nothing extraordinary, drifted back to sleep.
Then a few hours later he started groaning in his sleep. Then a sharp stab suddenly pierced through his skull and a flood of strange yet hauntingly familiar scenes started ripping through his mind.
Jack was dreaming where he was a different person who lived in a seemingly ordinary yet extraordinary world.
Every day, the world moved as usual. The sun rose in the east and set in the west, but beneath this seemingly normal world, was a secret—something so big that an ordinary person's life was pretty much a lie.
First, humans there were very different.
Most people there, while similar to humans, were actually descendants of elves, dwarves, beastfolk, mermaid, etc., and over time, these other races who had blended into society and created families with others were what people in that world refer to as "humanity".
Nonetheless, "humanity" thrived.
Those with elven blood were often beautiful, gifted with a natural grace for pursuits that demanded precision or nurtured the earth. Meanwhile, those of dwarven descent possessed great skill in the arts of creation and craftsmanship.
People who were purely human became very rare in society and it might be even true that they no longer exist.
That was the truth of the history of that world.
In that world, however, just like in reality, have the separate and opposite forces of evil and good.
There were individuals and entities who wants to reveal the truth and destroy peace and order.
Jack, in that world, was not an ordinary person while living as one. He was affiliated with a secret organization in partnership with the government. That organization were filled with capable and talented individuals just like him who has the duty to safeguard the world's truth and maintain the world's peace and order.
Jack in that world had learned survival skills and fighting techniques since he was a child. He could perform extraordinary feats in all sorts of martial arts, had great mastery with various weapons, and had great intellect.
He, however didn't like that kind of life. To be more specific, he had wanted to escape for a very long time. He had only one wish. He wanted to be an ordinary citizen, hang out with friends, create a family, visit the beach, hike in the mountains, and die of old age, surrounded by his grandchildren.
'I wish I had been born ordinary… I wish someone else would take this burden from me…' he was always thinking.
Watching the man's life as though it were his own, Jack couldn't help but feel admiration.
The man's life was like a movie, and the dream of any man.
Thus, even though he could understand the man's yearning for an ordinary life. Great power inevitably demanded great responsibility was what Jack thought.
'!!!'
All of a sudden while the man was peacefully walking, he looked at his chest and saw a knife had pierced his chest. Righ ttere and then, he dropped to the floor. That woke up Jack abruptly from his bed in shock, with droplets of sweat dripping from his face, soaking his hair.
'I was stabbed!'
Sitting on his bed, he subconsciously touched his chest looking for any wounds. but he only found skin and fabric.
With shallow breaths, he started to calm down.
Jack then scoffed as he ran his hand through his hair in self-mockery.
His life was pathetic.
'That's right it's a dream,' he thought bitterly. 'Compared to that man's, mine is nothing—it's like comparing gold to dirt.'
The real Jack was living in his parents' house for as long as he could remember, never once having the means or opportunity to move out.
His room was simple. He had a bed good for one person, a study desk with books and laptop, and a closet with unironed clothes. There were books, papers, and half-crumpled documents that were scattered among bits of trash.
There was one door led out, while two windows of uneven size opened to the world below—his view from the second floor.
When he calmed down, he slipped back into sleep and four hours slowly slipped by.
This was his morning routine every day.
He felt so pitiful.
Noticing the sunlight pressing through the curtains, Jack then stood up.
'What time is it? I need to review.'
With his usual sluggishness, Jack separated himself from the bed and shuffled to the nearby study desk, swearing this time he'd actually 'study'.
He opened his laptop, pulled up his review notes… but five minutes later was deep into X, Facebook, and three random tabs he couldn't even remember clicking.
Jack even managed to juggle anime, porn, and web novels like some kind of unholy multitasking champion.
By the time he snapped back to reality , it was afternoon. He stepped out of his room at a lazy pace with his slippers whispering against the floor.
While walking down the stairs, the faint sound of the kiddy television shows drifted to his ears. He could see her mother playing with his youngest brother who was still a toddler.
The baby momentarily gazed up at him.
'I'm jealous,' Jack thought, smiling at the adorable toddler. He wanted to be an innocent child again. He wants to be free of worries, free of guilt. To just eat, nap, and laze around all day without a shred of shame… now that was the dream.
"Good morning, son. Look, big brother Jack woke up late again—what do you say?" their mother, 47 years old, a full-time housewife, cooed in a playful voice to the toddler, who was happily playing with toys while the TV chattered in the background.
"When are you leaving?" his mother asked.
"The usual. Maybe five."
"You need to be careful, alright? I heard there was a shooting two blocks away—a delivery driver died."
"Was it a robbery?"
"I haven't heard the full details yet. Your father hadn't yet come back after and is on the scene since dawn. Just make sure to catch a ride straight home after class. Don't hang around."
Jack couldn't help but laugh to himself. Hang around? He never even entertained the idea—what was there to hang around for anyway? And really, what would even happen to him?
'Sure, if someone shot me, I'd probably die… but what are the chances of running into the shooter out of everyone in the world?'
'If it happens, I just have to blame my luck. So if it comes, it comes.' Jack said but decided to keep his thoughts to himself and ate a bread.
By noon, Jack arrived at the university with the the community bus, while phonk music was banging from his Bluetooth earbuds. The university wasn't far. At this time, most students were also heading home. But not him. Not them.
The thing was, Jack was a student too. He wasn't entirely hopeless. He was a law student, to be precise—and their classes didn't start until night. Not every law school followed this setup, but his university catered to many working students, some even supporting their families, so the schedule was arranged this way.
Soon, he spotted some students from varying ages going in like weary soldiers after a long campaign. Some of them still had their office IDs hanging around their necks, and others cluttching fast food bags for dinner. all of them wore the same exhausted look.
Classes hadn't started yet so some students chose to hang out outside just to keep up with others or have conversations among themselves in their circles, sometimes about school and sometimes just simple trivial stuff.
"Hey, Jack! Come with us." a voice suddenly invited him over to their circle.
Normally, Jack would have run to socialize with groups here and there. But Jack merely bowed and smiled, before continuing to walk into the building.
"What's with him recently?" someone then said.
"Right? He's been avoiding us lately."
"Not just us, he's avoiding everyone when he used to talk so much."
Jack merely smiled, ignoring what he could accidentally hear. He does not know why too, but lately, he wasn't sure whether going down this path was the best choice for him.
Sighing, Jack decided he might as well go to his classroom, but all of a sudden, Jack heard that faintly familiar voice in his head again, and this time, his head started to throb in pain.
[Reminder: 2 hours left before full calibration. User is advised to stop all activities and prepare for a painful experience.]