Chapter 1: So This is Mahora

It was a beautiful, clear day. Like one would imagine the ones in those idyllic paintings at the art museums were like. Flowers were blooming, birds flying and chirping, and kids running to their classes without a significant care in the world, ignorant of the intrigues that lurked just beyond their perceptions. Among them walked a middle aged man with short dark hair and black eyes, a man who had seen past the veil of consensus reality. He hadn't seen past it by choice though, and would have rather liked to remain as foolish as everyone else, but had seen too much. He had seen demons struck down by the dozens in a single, perfect stroke of a Katana that would make masters of Iaido green with envy. He had seen large artifacts materialize in an instant from what looked like the trading cards children played with. He had seen so many strange effects occur at the behest of ancient and near forgotten languages spoken by people in the dark alleyways of this world.

He was awake and totally sober during all of these occurrences, so it was definitely real, and his mind simply refused to allow him to reject what he had seen. It was part of who he was. He kept it all to himself though, fearing commission to an asylum if he ever mentioned the things he has seen to anyone else, even his own family. Still, he knew what he had seen, and desperately sought an explanation, any explanation, that would satisfy his relentlessly logical mind and finally give him some sense of peace.

It was here he was struck once more with an impossible sight. In the distance he saw a tree. This type of tree was unlike any he had ever seen, far larger than ought to be possible in this part of the world, or any part of the world for that matter. The tree had to be at least 20 meters at breast height, wider than even the largest giant redwoods, and it's branches stretched out much farther than he thought ought to be possible. It was alien. Its existence was a complete contradiction to the laws of nature and science, just looking at it gave him a slight headache. Indeed, he'd had one ever since he'd set foot on the academy's grounds. He quickly retrieved the flask he hid inside his longcoat and took a swig to eliminate the dull pain. That pain, the same pain he felt whenever he saw those things that ought not be, why was it so omnipresent here?

"So this is Mahora Academy" he said to himself. It looked somewhat like Harvard University, only much larger. It had to be, for one could receive a K-12 education and beyond from this one institution. It was well reputed and accredited, which is why he had sent his son to study here. Scott was a Senior in high school and doing quite well, consistently ending up on the A-B honor roll. He had an interest in science, but he was already a master of philosophy. That was mainly his father's fault, for he had turned to the thoughts of ancient thinkers, theologians, conspiracy theorists, and occultists to find the answers he was searching for. None of their answers satisfied him. However, as fathers often do, he passed all that he knew and discovered to his son. Though determined to study science instead, he thanked his father for teaching him to think logically and see things in many impossible, even illogical, lights.

All that reading also had several secondary benefits. For one, the vast amount of knowledge he had acquired enabled him to simply test out of many university classes. As such he quickly amassed several Baccalaureate and Master's degrees in the liberal arts. This enabled him to make a meager living as a pseudonymous editorial writer and blogger.

"Now, where are the male dormitories supposed to be?" he said to himself.
"Um, sir, are you lost?" A cute young girl asked.
"I suppose so, I can't find the way to the place I want to be."
"You're looking for the male dorms, right?"
"Yeah, the ones holding high school age children."
"Oh? I know where they are, can I show you?"
"Sure, if it's not any trouble."
"Ok then, follow me!"
"Miss, if I may, what is your name?"
"Tomino Ai, and yours?"
"Alexander, Alexander Cipher."
"Oh, I've heard that name somewhere before" She put her hand to her chin and assumed a pensive stance, a moment later her face lit up, "Hey! Are you Scott's dad?"
"Yes actually, I'm here to visit him."
"Weird, he looks nothing like you."
"I know," He faked a smile "I always found it strange too."

The truth was, Scott wasn't his son in the biological sense, but rather, he was adopted around the age of 4. Alexander knew that a child was unlikely to be adopted by someone once they were older than the age of 2, and he had always hated that. "Everyone deserves at least one loving parent" was his reasoning. Scott was smart, kind, and above and beyond all else, a good person. He deserved better, and Alex was glad he gave him that.

"Here's the male dorm, Scott's room is 115." She quickly clasped her hands around her mouth.
"I'm sorry for prying, but do you know Scott?"
"Well I…" She started to blush. Cipher noticed this and formulated a few possibilities.
"Oh? Are you perhaps…"
"No no no. I don't, I mean," Her face was bright red, and her gaze quickly shifted towards her own feet. He didn't expect this possibility to be the correct one.
"Do you like him?"
"Wha, why would I…" she started waving her hands in front of herself. He hit the nail on the head.
"Look, if you like someone, you should just come out and tell them. Suppressed emotions and contemplations of what could have been aren't good for your mental health."
"But what if he's not single! What if he rejects me? I know too many things about him, what if he thinks I'm a crazy stalker or…" Cipher interrupted her.
"He's single, and quite unhappy about it I might add. He's really shy about these things though, I doubt he'd hit on anyone unless he was well and thoroughly drunk, no matter how enamored he was of someone. But, if someone were to hit on him…" he was interrupted
"But I'm only 14!"
"So?" He said without skipping a beat, "He's just four years older than you, that's not very illicit from a logical standpoint."
"But, what if he rejects me? What if he…" He interrupted her.
"'What if?' asked endlessly, always resolved negatively, is the mark of a coward. The only way to avoid risk is to be a dead and rotting corpse. Life is risk, it is uncertainty, it is chaos. If you never try, you'll never know if your worries were ever founded in reality. Besides, what if the 'what ifs' are resolved positively? What if he says he likes you too? What then? Did you even consider that outcome?".
"But…"
"You seem to be a kind, sweet girl. And you're certainly not ugly. He isn't looking for much and is easily pleased. Therefore, he's well within you league. However, he's not good at subtlety, so be sure to be overt about your intentions."
"But I can't stop worrying…" She was an open book, one could tell at a glance exactly what was going through her mind. He always like people like that, despite the fact that they also made him jealous.
"Stop worrying. Just tell him, or rather, show him how you feel next time you get the chance."
"But…"
"Quit with the 'but's' and 'What ifs' already! Just take the plunge and ask him out!" He took a deep breath, "*sigh* I already told you he's single and looking, what more do you want?"

Not many things actually got a rise out of him, and this wasn't one of them. However, he learned long ago that feigning that sort of thing was often required to get other people to listen to you, or for them to even think that you even had emotions in the first place. He couldn't explain why, but his emotions felt like they were always somehow disconnected from his person. He could be boiling over with rage and hatred, but unless he made a conscious effort to express himself, you'd never know it. His face and voice would always remain tranquil and somewhat blank unless he consciously tried to make them conform to his inner feelings.

"Yeah…" A sense of resolution emanated from her as she slammed her fist into her palm. "Yeah! You're right! I need to just confess and tell him how I feel!"
"Now that's how it's done!" He said, doing his best to form a comforting smile.
"Thanks mister Cipher, but, don't tell him about this. I want to surprise him."
"Alright, just be sure to act on your feelings from now on. Ok?"
"Ok, bye!" and then she ran off waving to him, her face filled with contentment.

The wind kicked up a moment later, revealing her panties for an instant. That kind of thing seemed to happen almost every chance it had to for some reason. Even if magic existed, he still couldn't explain it.

He made his way to Scott's room. The dorm was nothing out of the ordinary, and the pain in his head was starting to subside. As he got closer he began to hear the sound of an electric guitar. He wasn't a big metal fan, but he didn't truly dislike it either. He could see why his son loved it so much, but it just wasn't for him. The song he was hearing now elicited a feeling of defiance, as though one was taking on the entire world and was fully confident that they would win. The headaches, the pain that came when he witnessed the impossible. Something important was on this campus, something someone didn't want "normal" people like him to know about, and he was going to find out what it was.