“At last, you’re awake!” Alfred exclaimed, his voice slicing through the heavy fog of my deep slumber. His cheerful tone contrasted sharply with the tranquil stillness of the early morning as he busied himself with preparations for our much-anticipated field trip. A whirlpool of excitement mixed with a hint of apprehension washed over me, stirring me from my dreams to the surrounding reality—a reality that felt disorienting and surreal.
I squinted against the harsh glow of my phone’s bright screen, the digital numbers glaring back at me like a cruel reminder. It was only 4 AM. The early hour seemed almost unnatural, especially here in Qeosis, a place where time felt untethered from the rhythms of the world I once knew. As I tried to gather my thoughts, an unsettling notion crept in: had s
