Date: Monday, October 29th, 2029
Time: Unknown
Location: Unknown

A dazed Joshua sat up as eyes slowly opened. His vision was blurry, like wearing someone's glasses that weren't meant for him, and his entire body was in great pain, like a truck had collided with him. The boy placed one hand into the sand in an attempt to push himself to stand up, but his legs buckled and sent him slamming into the dark sand, sending grains of it scattering everywhere. Joshua let out a yawn and rubbed his eyes, trying to clear up his vision.

"Man... next time I won't stay up so late playing video games..." he groaned, as his vision became less and less blurry. "Feels like I got ran over..." Once his eyes cleared up, a terrible sight came into view. No longer was he in his neat and tidy cream-colored room. Black-colored sand replaced the brown carpet of the room. The dresser, desk and other furniture in his room was now replaced with what seemed to be devastated ruins of a city—if overgrown, pointy thorns wrapped around to mimic the shape of city structures count as being part of a city. The thorns and sable sand seemed to go on for miles, with no end. This time Joshua stood up successfully, brushing off the sand off of himself. The scenery change seemed to accompany a clothing change, as the pajamas he went to bed in the night before was replaced with the blue polo shirt and black jeans he wore during the day.

"What in the... what is this place? Am I dreaming?" Joshua moaned, breaking the dead silence of the area. As the question left his lips, it mixed with the low groan of TV static in the background. It became apparent that he was the only person here, perhaps. Admittedly, that's the way he'd usually want it, but something about being alone here was different. Something wasn't right here... He decided to ask another question, even though no one answered the last one. "What the hell is going on here?"

"This has to be a dream... no real place like this exists, at least not that I know of..." Joshua said, mostly to reassure himself. There didn't seem to be any visible exits, and so the teenager decided to do the only thing he could think of doing: moving forward. He began trudging through the pitch black sand. The thorn buildings and sand seemed to go on forever, the scenery unchanging. Joshua wondered just what happened to ruin this city and turn it into such a post-apocalyptic setting. After what seemed to be a mile or so—the teenager doubted if he was actually going anywhere—he nearly jumped a foot when he saw an unbelievable sight: giant creatures, constructed entirely of dark, dried thorns, coming out of the thorn "buildings". They seemed to move quite awkwardly, as if walking was a struggle for them. Joshua took a few steps back.

"The hell are those things!?" Joshua shouted, his voice cracking. That proved to be a mistake, as one of the thorn giants turned their gaze towards him, a stone mask covering its face. Even through the stone mask, Joshua could feel the stare piercing his body. The brown-haired teenager froze in suspense, thinking that perhaps its like some animals where if you don't move, they won't attack. The giant continued to bore holes into Joshua, but made no moves. Eventually, it gave up and turned away from Joshua, shambling in the other direction. He continued to remain tense until there was a vibration in his pocket, eliciting a yelp from the teenager. The boy reached into his pocket and pulled out the object that vibrated, his black phone.

"How did I forget about my phone...?" Joshua said. It didn't seem as if it was going to be of any help, as there seemed to be no signal here. What piqued his curiosity was that he had a notification from a "CogniChat" app. He had no recollection of installing such a program—it certainly wasn't there the night before. Was this a prank? Joshua ignored the app temporarily and began checking out other apps, many of which practically required the internet to access. He turned his attention back to the peculiar CogniChat application, having received a message from a "Regent".

"'Regent'...? Never heard of them. I wonder how they got my phone number, though..." Ordinarily, he would just ignore messages from people he didn't know, but maybe this Regent had something important to say in this dream world. After all, they seemed pretty important, with their name being "Regent" and all. And there was another problem, too: he shouldn't have been able to receive messages like this. The teenager opened the app and read Regent's message, intrigued.

New Messages from: REGENT​

Hey, what are you doing here?!

This is not the place for a nap!

Runrunrunrunrunrunrunrunrun. Get somewhere safe!

****... Find somewhere safe and hole up. I'm coming for you.​

​

No new messages

[h1][/h1]
"No ****... It's not like I came here willingly..." Joshua hissed at his phone. This Regent wanted him to run somewhere safe, but where? The whole area was inhabited by those thorn creatures.

Evan Zhang​

"Umm, can you turn that light back off." How rude for people to just walk in and turn on lights. Not to mention that loud TV. He may not be a light sleeper, but even that was a little too much for me. "Is the thermostat cranked up?"

And then his brain finally started to make sense of what he was feeling. First off, his covers were gone. Secondly, that heat felt more like the sun beaming down on him than an overactive heater. Finally, he didn't remember his bed being so crunchy and uncomfortable. He slowly opened his eyes, and then shut them again in record speed. There's no way anything that he just saw was real. It was something like that sleep paralysis phenomenon; he just wasn't done dreaming.

A second look only caused his stomach to drop. Sure, he was tired earlier, but he would probably remember passing out in a sea of oddly-colored sand. Buildings also happened to make sense in the normal world, and last he checked the sky wasn't about to shatter and fall on him.

Luckily his phone was right next to his head. No sense in running into danger when he could do what he always did when he had a question: search the internet for answers and call someone who knew what the hell was going on. His notification light told him that someone was already reaching out to him. Sure, he didn't know who exactly "Regent" was, but his friends did change screen names from time to time in the various chat apps. He also didn't recognize CogniChat, but on the list of weird shit that was happening to him, an app he didn't recognize was probably not even in the top 10 at the moment.

Unfortunately, Regent didn't seem like the most helpful right off the bat.

Hey… can you tell me where I am at least?​

Where you are is a little difficult…

I mean, nearby major street would help. I don't think 10th street was having the apocalypse today, but I haven't checked the news.​

Why don't you focus less on the snark, and more on not dying to a monster?

…

Now he mentions the monsters.

Sure enough, there was a somewhat large crowd of murderous tree people gathering around him, and his birthday is still a while away. Well, they seem to have murderous intent. They seemed to have a little trouble with their feet, which took away from the imminent danger feeling and put a whole lot more into the "what the actual fuck is happening" pile.

He wasn't a huge horror movie buff, but he's seen the classics. Sitting around while they're circling you was about the second worst idea he could have in this scenario. The first, as always, was existing in a place with monsters.

Without a second thought he began booking it towards the nearest alley, path, whatever, he could see. Hopefully outrunning them. As is all the best laid plans of mice and men, things very fucking quickly went awry. These things were *fast*. Sure they looked like they were one step away from collapsing into a heap, but they were making record pace.

What he really needed now was the alley system not to suddenly turn into a dead end.

Evan Zhang​

A sense of vertigo and a thud welcomed Evan back to the real world. The back of his head was wracked with pulses of pain, making it hard to even think right now. He wasn?t bleeding, right? Okay, at least he didn?t make a complete idiot of himself, with his inability to wake up like a normal person.

Well, at least being in pain was better than being skewered by a monster. In a dream of course. The only monsters he knew of in real life he at least had a friendly relationship with. He?d probably have a head start if they started wanting his blood.

Thankfully he managed to beat his alarm clock this morning. Days like that were usually a good sign. He wouldn?t be in a rush, he wouldn?t forget anything, and the usual disruptors of his peace like to toe the line of being late a little too often. Well, at least one of them did?

The bus ride was quiet enough to spin his nerves a full 180 degrees. Normally beating the alarm was a good sign, but was beating his head on the ground a good one? The bus ride should be a chaotic time with a conversations and at least one person loudly having a phone conversation. The fact it was, dare he say, peaceful was a omen in and of itself. Whatever was going to happen today couldn?t be good.

Outside the school gates he almost found his inner peace once again. He was being silly, this was a normal day. Where?s his prided optimism? This rut was affecting him worse than he thought.

Inside the gate he realized his place in the world. He knew nothing. He was a small fish in a big pond, and his neighbors happened to be sharks. The fact he lasted so long was nothing short of a miracle. But even miracles run out, and now the hunters could smell his metaphorical blood. Before he could see the bringers of his own ruin he was surrounded.

?Hey, I have a large favor to ask. We need to borrow your camera.? The line was cast, and they expected him to greedily chomp down on the bait. Alison Warwick, the Demon of the Film Society, had him in her grasp. Short stature and her short, but wavy red hair only hinted at the true evil held within her. This was a woman who would eat you alive if you let her; just the phrase ?sure, I can help out with the movie? sealed your fate. The worst part was that he alone could have prevented this and kept her the kind and innocent girl she once was. The taste of power she got from the first film was enough to corrupt her very being. This kind of threat had to be dealt with swiftly and decisively and with no mercy to the human she used to be.

?Sure, which one??

?I want the VM1850.?

?Dammit, that one?? Evan sighed. Out of his cameras she had to ask for the most expensive one. ?I wouldn?t mind just handing you the X600 or the K7-C, but you know I?ll have to be there to at least supervise you.?

And he probably played into her secret plan based off how she smiled. ?That?ll be fine. It is a nice camera after all. Plus I think you want to be there for this one.?

?Hell yeah you do.? The specter behind him finally decided to do more than sit around and block his retreat. He?s surprised he didn?t see her earlier; paint splattered clothes and the mass of curly hair was usually hard to miss. Then again, Viv always managed to slink into the crowd somehow. ?You see that thing I finished last night??

?You mean that sci-fi looking gun model, that was a prop?? The three of them began to actually make their way towards the building. The last heat of summer was finally dying out and making way for a cool autumn breeze, and the trees in the courtyard were just starting to change colors.

?Yeah, saw some show, wanted to make something like it. Showed my plans for it to Ally and she wanted to use it.?

?It even still functions as an airsoft gun too,? Ally said, almost as proud as Viv. Then again, she always liked being able to use her friend?s creations as props.

?Years of pushing for something sci-fi and you tell me we don?t have the props for it. As soon as I leave the Cinema Society you all decide to make one. I?m a little hurt you know.? He wiped a fake tear, trying his best to look heartbreaking. Based off the dumb look Alison gave him it probably looked more weird than sad, but at least Viv got a laugh out of it.

?Maybe she?s just trying to pull you back?? Viv smirked, but somehow he got the feeling it wasn?t entirely a joke.

?Yeah right,? Alison countered, ?we?re better without him. Don?t need 5 hours for the ?perfect take??.

?I guess you don?t need my camera after all, by the sound of it.?

?Skip out on us Zhang, and I break your kneecaps.?

Date: October 30th, 2029
Time: Morning
Location: Home (Regency Park)

The next few minutes of the dream were a blur for Joshua and he could remember none of it. He had made it back to his room safely, it seemed, although that didn't stop his body from feeling like someone used it like a punching bag. Perhaps that dream was more real than he thought...? Something like that shouldn't be possible, though. The intensity of his body pain made him almost consider cutting class, but then he ran the risk of being caught by his father's wife, and then he'd have to explain what he was doing at home too, and ?I'm in pain because of a surreal dream? wouldn't cut it then. So the teenager decided to suck it up, fight an uphill battle against grogginess, pick up his phone off the nightstand next to him, and check his phone to see that his alarm had gone off nearly forty-five minutes ago.

It was enough to jolt Joshua awake. Luckily the rest of the Rivers had already gone to school or work, so he was able to slip outside and onto his bike. The next minutes were a race the against the clock from Regency Park to St. Dominics. Joshua thought he wasn't going to make it?he had gotten up almost an hour late, after all?but luck seemed to be on his side today. Once he made it to school, he made sure to chain up his bike and headed up the front gates. There were still students out and about, talking with their friends, sharing the latest gossip. Others were heading to their classes, as class would be in session soon. As he walked inside, he couldn't help but feel everyone was staring at him?like they could see through him and his true feelings. In reality no one gave a crap about his presence, but that didn't stop him from feeling like everyone had X-ray vision or something. Joshua staggered up the stairs?his body was still killing him, probably should've taken some ibuprofen before coming to school?and advanced to 11-B, his homeroom class. It hadn't been thirty seconds after sitting down at his desk and taking out his phone before the first annoyance of the day showed up to bug him.

Date: October 30th, 2029
Time: Morning
Location: St. Dominic's High School (Midtown)

?S'up, dude?? a familiar voice beckoned to him Joshua turned his head towards the voice. A tall, lean fair complexioned teenager with black hair approached him and put his arm around Joshua, which he quickly shoved off of him.

?Hi, Matt,? Joshua said begrudgingly. Tall with wavy black hair, fiery crimson color eyes, and slightly muscular, Matthew Brenner was, well, someone who spent less time on his homework and more time around the girls of the class.

?So, hey, Josh. Didja get my text last night??

Last night. Last night was such a blur that it made his head hurt even more just thinking about it. ?Er, yeah, sure,? he mumbled.

?Great! Alright, lemme the math homework before the teacher comes in.? Matt said, hand outstretched. Just as Joshua thought, all Matthew wanted to do was copy his homework. Matt was more of a leech attached to a vulnerable host than anything. And all he did was give into it, although he didn't understand what it was. Maybe his charms worked on more than just girls. Joshua began ruffling through his backpack, and that's when one of his fears came to be realized: in his rush he'd completely forgotten his homework. So much for a lucky break. Matt shifted uncomfortably, glancing at the clock.

Joshua looked up at him with a slight smile on his face. ?Sorry, Matt. Looks like I forgot it at home.?

?Damn, man... I was really counting on you to help me out this time,? Matt groaned.

?Well maybe next time instead of looking up girls' skirts you can spend your time looking up formulas on Google like I did,? Joshua quipped.

?What??

?I said, 'I'll try not to forget next time.'?

Matthew had fully picked up on Josh's snarky remark, but decided to ignore it. He never understood what always had his friend bothered, but moved onto the next subject. ?Yo, did you hear? Some senior's throwing a Halloween party tomorrow,? Matthew said, now leaning on Josh's chair. ?You should come with me. We never do anything together.?

?Maybe because you haven't gotten the point yet,? Joshua muttered. ?No, I don't think I can go. Family plans and stuff.?

?Pshh, lame,? Matthew said. There was a brief silence for a moment, before Matthew looked down at Joshua's arm and noticed a red bruise on his left arm. It looked awfully large, like someone had punched the stuffing out of him. ?What happened to your arm?? Matthew asked, motioning to Joshua's uncovered left arm. The brown haired teenager looked down at his arm, and quickly covered the bruise up, having noticed it for the first time. That hadn't been there last night. Did he get it from that dream, which, he remembered, he decided was just a dream?

?Uhhhhh... fell off my bike getting here. Y-Yeah, that's it.? Joshua stammered. ?Hey, shouldn't you be getting to your desk now??

Matt glanced at the clock. ?Ahh, crap! She'll be in here any minute!? He quickly ran to the other side of the room to take his seat. As the first period bell rung and the homeroom teacher came inside, Joshua sat in a slump and put his head down on the desk. First those dreams, and now this mysterious bruise on his forearm. What did it all mean, and what was in store for him?

?Why don't we start out by reviewing the math homework? Joshua, I see you're already bored of the class. Why don't you start out by doing the first problem on the board??