Keith came up to the main building and looked around the arena. It was old fashioned yet the artistic appeal of it perfectly fit the Middle Ages style the architects aimed for.
Keith wondered around for a while then walked towards the exit. The archway was right above him.
Phew! Time to leave
When he reached the archway, he felt the ground beneath him give way. It was like he had just stepped on nothing. His eyes widened as the cloudy sky went farther and farther away from him.
Darkness clouded his vision...
The alarm bell rang.
Keith opened his eyes and was momentarily blinded by the light from the ceiling.
Where was he? Is it daytime?
He looked around the familiar room and felt like he was forgetting something. The bird chirping outside and the feel of the his bed felt too real.
He sat up on the soft bed and rubbed his temples.
Such a bad headache.
He got up and went to the bathroom to freshen up. His daily routine. He could hear his mom calling him from downstairs, telling him that breakfast was ready.
He wore his school uniform and came out of the bathroom. He looked around his room and felt something was amiss. He shook his head and went downstairs.
In the kitchen, his mom's back was facing him as she fried bacon on the frying pan. He couldn't see her face.
Keith used a butter knife to spread jam on the bread and took a bite. It tasted bland to him.
"Mom, is the jam expired?" Keith said as a weird taste assaulted his mouth. It tasted nothing like jam.
"What do you mean, sweetie? I just bought it yesterday."
Keith frowned. His mom's voice sounded weird. It was...hollow.
"Mom have you been crying?"
"No, why?"
"You sound weird..." He walked to her and pulled her to face him.
Keith froze. He was met with a face as blank as a sheet on canvas. He stumbled back.
What happened to his mom's face? It didn't look like this...
Hold on, what did it look like in the first place? Why couldn't he remember?!
"What's wrong Keith? You look pale," The creature who looked like his mom said. No wonder her voice sounded hollow. It wasn't coming from her mouth.
Keith shook his head, his widened in horror and confusion.
What was happening? It was supposed to be a normal school day. How did it turn like this?
Is he dreaming?
That's right! Keith, you are dreaming. Wake up!
Keith slapped his face multiple times but couldn't feel the pain.
Wake up! Wake up, damn it!
His mom turned her head to the side and then her face started to melt into a gooey liquid. She started to limp towards him while making weird noises.
"Arghhh..."
Keith slithered back and his back hit the shelf. The monster was coming closer and closer to him. He couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed his head with both of his hands and screamed.
Everything around his turned back as if something had swallowed it all.
Keith woke up once again, he was panting after having that nightmare. He was thankful to have woken up. He looked around and saw that he was in an alley. It was daytime and the macabre style buildings seemed familiar.
He stood up and stumbled. He looked down and saw that his ankle was bleeding. He had most probably fallen. However, what caught his eye were the SpongeBob shoes he was wearing. They were tiny and seemed to belong to a kid.
Keith paused and raised his hands in front of him. They were tiny as well. Running a hand on his face, he seemed to realise that he had become a kid!
He remembered the SpongeBob shoes. His father had gifted them on his fifth birthday. Looking at how new they were, he seemed to have come back to the time when he was five.
"Little Derrick, you're still here?" A familiar voice said to him. He turned and saw a relatively young Crazy Mary.
She laughed when she saw Keith's dumbstruck face.
"Here's a bandage. Now go along and play with your toy. Don't go near the Colosseum. You don't want the evil fairy to get you!" Again with the Colosseum fairy tale. It seemed to work on children though.
Too bad Keith wasn't a child...mentally.
He nodded and didn't stay long to talk to Crazy Mary. He ran out of the alley and sat down on a bench to put on the bandage. He looked around and saw that he was near the mayor's house.
There was a crowd in front of the mayor's house. The townspeople had gathered to protest about something.
Keith could hear chants like "Kick out the Shaman" and "Bad luck is brought by the Beckleys!" He remembered this happening. This was a day before the Shaman had cured the mayor's wife who was ill and no doctor was able to distinguish the disease.
Keith didn't remember much but he knew that the mayor had brought the Beckleys in his house the day before. The shaman worked for two days before his treatment was successful. It's said that he didn't use any herbs or medicine but unorthodox methods that the mayor wasn't willing to reveal to anyone.
