Chapter 1

It was a normal Wednesday morning. I opened my eyes and sat up in my bed. I looked down at where my covers where supposed to be there. They were not on the bed but on the floor.

It was the 4th time this month. A nightmare which was hard to explain to myself.

I then looked to the side where a small table stood. It had a simple light and alarm clock on the top. I looked at the green lines on the clock and yawned. It was ten past two in the afternoon. I had overslept by some 5 hours. Today I had to go to the college and give in my essay which I had been up all night. But I finished it finally after 6 hours instead of 4 hours. Because of the lower floor neighbours who were having a party, a loud one and the party goers had even nearly broken into my apartment.

Even if I was in the other room I had set a trap for anyone who would try to break in. I didn't call the police just left them.

I stood up from the bed and dragged myself from my bedroom to the bathroom. I stepped in and closed the door behind me.

Some 10 minutes after walking into the bathroom, I came out not all happy and awake as every person in Moscow. I was awake but my eyes didn't show it. I walked back into the bedroom. I swung round 360 degrees to assure myself I was awake. The room's walls, ceiling, floor and furniture, I had done myself. The walls had been covered with a piece of white sheet that I was able to draw on and paint. On the walls there was the Black Sea, Hawaii, the Tundra of Russia and the Atlantic Ocean. On the ceiling I had made it so there were star signs. The floor was covered with fine wood and the carpet was artificial grass.

I assured myself I was awake and got dressed. Today I put on black trousers that were easy to run in, a black t-shirt with the words demon in red on the upper part. Over the t-shirt I threw on a black shirt with silver symbols on the sleeves.

And for the feet, some dark silver trainers; I walked into the kitchen and made myself some French toast. A thing I had somehow learned by accident when watching a cooking show on the television.

I made myself some black tea. As everything was made for breakfast, I quickly ate and drank everything. When I was finished I placed the plate and cup into the sink and washed them.

I left the apartment at thirty minutes past two and did not take the lift. I looked out the stair window and looked down. I was on the sixth floor. There was a four storey building next to this building. I looked to the side of the window and found a drain pipe. I thought of how to get down.

Firs down the drain pipe, then jump down the buildings and then run across the construction works before jumping through a small tunnel which would lead me next to the metro.

And then I took the plunge.

As I performed my plan out, my heart beat had become faster and I was feeling very light as if I were a bird. But what I was doing now was nothing ordinary. I just had tweaked at it a little. It was called free running and my version would put the most experienced adult free runners to shame.

I was there already and jumped into the small tunnel. I slid down and saw a light ahead. That couldn't be good news.

Inside the station, people were waiting for the train to come. Some were fidgeting, some were reading the papers and many were listening to music. There were advertisements on the walls. Like how to win a million roubles, or win a car, have white teeth and health insurance.

Suddenly the health insurance advertisement behind the glass broke as an object flew from the inside into the station. Everyone gasped, some women screamed before her husband stopped her. Everyone looked at the object. It was a young adult with shards of glass on the body.

I opened my eyes and looked round. I was in the station and I had made a lot of commotion. I also felt a stinging pain in my arm. I swung my arm to my chest and saw there were about five small shards of glass stuck in my arm. I stood up and swayed a little. A felt a hand on my shoulder and looked round. A man in security uniform looked at me. I expected to be told off.

"Are you alright son," he asked in a calm tone. I was actually surprised he hadn't told me off. I thought of a simple lie.

"Yes, I am just a little tired, I was walking in the construction site, I live near there and I tripped and fell forward, next thing I know it, I am here, I guess I fell down some sort of hole," I said. I waited for the result. Everyone looked at me and then turned round and continued with their routine. The security man looked at me.

"Hey I know you, you are Alexander Antovesky, the dark poet" he said. I stepped back.

"Yes, I am," I said nervously. The man patted me on the shoulder and slipped into my hand a ticket.

"This ticket will allow you free rides on the metro for two months," he said. I looked at him,

"Why are you giving this to me," I asked him.

"My daughter, a fellow student of yours, is happy for once, she is your number one fan, she loves your poems and stories" he said. He patted me again and left. I stood there with a puzzled look.

I looked down at the ticket and exhaled. I brushed the dust and small shards of glass from my shirt and walked forward. A train already stood there about to leave. I quickened my pace and moved into the carriage of the train just before the sliding doors closed.

I looked around and found out no seats were available, so a standing position would be the only choice for me.

I walked to the pole and grabbed the steel bar over my head. The train started to move. It was moving fast as I could see through the windows light flashing sometimes. I looked back at my hand. I held a small iPod and pressed the button to the option of shuffle. A song came on. It was one of Mozart's symphonies.

I closed my eyes and hummed the tune a little. The train stopped and the doors part. Half the carriage left. This was the first stop, Yaroslavskiy station. There were ten or more stops for me before actually getting to his stop, which was Locinoctrovckaya Station.

It would take me more than half an hour to get to his stop. He got used to it every time he had to go to the college, which was thank god only three times a week.

Time passed, which seemed for me like hours, but in truth was only 10 minutes. I opened my eyes and found myself in a darker version of the carriage. The people who I had seen before were moving slow, I could see in front of me a wasp whose wings were slowly raising and lowering.

I looked behind me and saw only two more people sitting, but they were moving at normal speed. I did not understand anything. I stopped moving around and closed my eyes to try to figure out the current situation.

For me it felt like time had passed for an hour or two but once I looked at my watch I had seen the second hand moving very slowly. Also the carriage was not silver but it was darker and there was some sort of blue moss growing in the corners of the carriage.

I fumbled inside my brain and came to a conclusion; I had somehow by my own will stepped into a different dimension.

The two people behind me somehow could also step into the dimension. My head was hurting. The people who had were also in the dimension stopped talking. I heard a small shout from behind me.

"Hey are you an Other," the voice asked. I did not turn round, just raised my hand and waved it. For some unexplained reason, I would later find out, my five senses had heightened to the extent I could smell everything in the carriage, better vision and hear better.

I did not want to turn round, but I needed to know.

The two people who had stopped talking, I heard their footsteps getting closer to me. I took a gulf of breath in as I felt a hand onto my shoulder.

"Hey. I asked you, are you an Other?" the voice was more serious and a little annoyed. I slowly turned my head and then body and was given with the image of a tall, sturdy and ragged looked man with a black top hat and a crisp ginger beard and long hair. His eyes were dark green, but it was terrifying just looking at the eyes. I turned my gaze to the second man and had to lower my gaze. The second man was shorter and thinner. He was wearing a smart suit. Light brown trousers, a white shirt with a brown tweed jacket over the shirt and a black tie. He was wearing a black bowl hat, which was very rare to see is Moscow.

"Um....." I was lost for words. The smaller man gazed with his crimson golden eyes, and I thought I saw something flicker, like a creature in his eyeball.

"What....is an Other?" he asked. Both men looked at each other. The larger one picked me up with one hand and then I do not remember what happened. It seemed once he touched me, I lost conscience and blacked out. What would happen to me? What happened to me?