The Planet Of Moons

The universe is a peculiar place. This is something one of my professors always said to the class before he started a lecture. It became somewhat of a catchphrase for me, always adding to an interesting moment that I happened upon. The universe is indeed a peculiar place as we do not yet know of other intelligent life, but we know of planets far in the distance that contain all the possibilities of life. They’re bright and unimaginable, painting the cosmos like Vango on a canvas. These wonderful worlds fill us with the hope that someday we may visit them and provide continuity to technology and the human race.

I speculate that it would take some time to get us to that point, but I hope my invention brings about a new beginning for us. You see I’ve been playing around with a concept, a “Perpetual Motion Machine”. If you're not familiar with it I’ll explain. It’s a device that seemingly moves about itself without the aid of energy.  Similar to how a windmill looks as though is moving on its own but where in fact it is moving due to the wind. These machines do not require such things. My invention plays on this notion and gathers energy by the use of tumbling cogs and weights that move a magnet generator in the back in order to generate electricity. The only problem is I can’t get it to work. There is a piece missing, but I can't comprehend a way to construct the device. To make matters worse I’m unemployed, living off a grant for a simple device I made as my engineering final, a special battery that is powerful enough to run a fighter jet but remembers its charge, a trivial thing really. I’d be able to get work done but I've been up for days, running off coffee and energy drinks. Now with a huge migraine, I may as well hit the hay. I almost went upstairs but remembered I had a cot in my lab. My “Lab” is in the garage, and it’s so much more convenient to sleep there. Laying down I closed my eyes and let gravity set me into place holding me so that I may not move an inch.

Sleep comes naturally to me, whispering its gifts of rejuvenation and the possibility of seeing another world in the form of dreams. As it happened to be this was the case tonight. Dancing in my head was a wondrous vision of colors wrapping around me, endlessly moving around until finally stopping in front of me forming what was like a glass pane showing me a vast world full of slender beauty. Large round moon-like masses floated in multitude, although stationary, as though an invisible hand was holding them there. I went to touch the glass pane as if to try and pull the image to me and seemingly pulled myself in. As if gravity had shifted I began to fall toward this unknown world. Falling faster and faster, climbing in speed, until finally hitting the ground jolting me awake. Waking up with a start, I bashed my head off something above me. Peculiar though, my garage is quite spacious and not as dark as I found myself surrounded by. Why must I be condemned to this confusion? At the least, my migraine had disappeared. Above me seemed to be a staircase, accompanying it was a frantic sound of footsteps. Funny I don’t live with anyone, and how did I wind up beneath my stairs.  Revealed there in front of me, as if to respond to my questions a bright stream of light blinded my vision, asking who I was.

“Who are you and what are you doing under my stairs?”

Standing now in front of the light was a rather feminine silhouette. I guess this would explain the voice I heard as well.

“What are you doing in my house?” I exclaimed trying to get myself up off the floor. “I must have been sleepwalking, did my mother send you to check up on me? Aw, don’t worry about it.”

The silhouette didn't seem pleased, as her body movement told me she was getting mad or was it her voice?

“I don’t deal too kindly to freeloaders especially the kind that doesn't ask permission to enter my home. Give me your Lens before I call the city guard on you. And you better have a damn good explanation for why you are in my home.”

Slowly my eyes began adjusting to the screaming light in my face. And contrary to my belief I was not in my house. I could make out that I was in some storage room under a set of stairs, and this silhouette was a human female that I did not recognize.

“Hello, Lens now”

“I seem to be at fault here and sorry for my confusion as I was sleeping and thought I was home still or rather I should be asking where is here and why would you want my glasses?

“Stop joking with me, you have to know who I am, why else would you be here. And the only way you could have gotten in here without breaking anything would have been with a Hacked Lens. So give it here or I will call the Guard.”

“Sorry lady but I've got no clue what you are talking about, or even how I got wherever here is. I can only assume you didn't kidnap me. And from the look of your clothing, I’m not in Canada anymore. Also, did you say guard?”

She was wearing some kind of leather jerkin from like 400 AD but it had weird twists about it and looked very intricate. It was adorned with gems of different colour and some, I don’t know if it was me or the light, glowed. They were inlaid into the leather and set into very beautiful patterns. She held on her waist a belt with a large pouch on it which had another crystal set into it as if to lock it closed. The belt was holding up a pair of tight leather pants but seemed to allow breathability. There wasn’t much about them but they tide into her overall looking perfectly.

“You’re crazy if you think your act is going to deter me here. Now give your Lens to me”

“I’m sorry I can’t be more clear. I don’t know how to say this any other way but I’m not lying. For heaven sakes women, look at my clothes have you ever seen them before? Have you heard my dialect before? I don’t know how I got here, I don’t know where THIS is. And why do you keep saying city guard, don't you have police?”

She stood there obviously in shock but took her time observing me and trying to understand what was going on. Once she realized I wasn't crazy she let me out of the trove. The room I was pulled into was not what I was expecting. Walls were constructed entirely of stone but didn’t excuse themselves from stones usual appearance. Everything had colour, the walls the furniture, the light. And it was all illuminated, interesting though, I could not find where the light was coming from. There seemed to be no electricity, but there was definitely a light source. There were no windows, but there was a breeze coming from somewhere. I decided to sit in a rather odd chair, but it was comfortable enough.

“So you are telling the truth. So then how did you get here? Where is Canada? Is it on the *south end of the world?”

“I don't know how I got here, I just woke up under your stairs. How do you not know where Canada is? It's one of the most known countries on earth

“What’s earth?”

Hearing this triggered something in me. I think I knew the entire time but didn’t believe it. I stood up from where I was and mentioned for the door.

“I’ll be back, I just have to see something”

She didn’t argue or try and stop me. I believe she knew what I was thinking and needed me to help her confirm what we both knew was true. She got up with me and unlocked her door, and let me out. Revealed before me was something I did not expect. I was greeted with a medieval, styled city washed with colour. Everything danced with colour, textiles full of life dotted the landscape in front of me. Homes look like pieces of artwork, melded together by a master sculptor. I began to walk around, trying to absorb everything around me.  Walls encircled everything around the city but never forbidding. Turning the corner I soon found what I was looking for, or rather something that proved the belief in the back of my mind. Trees and towers had been obstructing its view, the bright lights of the city dimmed its features, but when I looked upon its impressive size for the first time I was truly in awe. When you think of a moon, you think of the circle in the sky that watches over you in the night. When you see it during the day, you feel truly special. Before my eyes taking up most of the horizon was a moon, full of life and beauty. It was striking and confirmed my theory.

I wasn’t on Earth anymore

“See the awe on your face says it all, you aren’t from here are you.”

“No, I am most definitely not.”

“Quickly back to my home before the guard notice you”

“Why would I need to worry about the guard?” As I asked this a city guard came around the corner and noticed me.

“You aren’t from here and they don't forget a face. If they haven't seen you before they will ask questions. Pretend you didn't see him and come with me.”

She grabbed my hand and set us at a pace to try and avoid the guard. She weaved us through the city, taking the longest route possible to her home. Unfortunately, it was in vain, and I was jumped on by something.  Staring me in the face was a bronze replicant of a canine. It was large and resembles a dog, but it was made of metal and had a crystal beset in its head. It whirred and there was a faint rumbling sound coming from in it. I noticed I was mostly alone safe from the metal dog, and a guard I could see heading towards me.

“Sir, I’ve never seen you before. Hand over your papers.”

“What papers? I have no papers”

Before saying anything else grabbed something from behind his back. I couldn’t see what it was from the angle I was at, but there was a faint piercing sound and a bright blue light. Suddenly it became extremely hard to stay conscious and I blacked out.

I awoke in a small closed off room with no windows or even a door. The only opening in the walls were small slits to allow ventilation. You couldn’t even see through them. The walls were a weird reflective black surface. Inside the room was a slab of material with a somewhat cushiony material on top that I could only formulate being a bed. On the far wall, there was a hole in the floor that I can assume was for waste. Besides the slab, hole, and vent slits, the room was bare. There was Light but you couldn’t make out where it was coming from.

I sat on the “bed” and contemplated what I just went through. I went to bed with quite possibly the worst migraine of my life, and have a miraculously vivid dream. I wound up in some storage area on another planet and now stuck in some form of jail. Pinching myself for a second, realizing afterward that this was indeed real. I decided I needed a plan, only I had no idea about this planet. All I know is that I needed to get home.  Maybe I can learn something from this place at least. If only I could get out.

The day pressed on and the eventual impression of what happened faded. I contemplated everything I knew so far and devised what I thought might be a good plan to escape.  This place has a fixation on these crystals that are everywhere. Somehow they are important. I sat there brainstorming, focusing on all the unique properties I learned so far about this place. That canine for instance, what was it running off of and why was it making a clock like sounds. My only guess was some form of metal work, a series of cogs or gears to allow something to move. But what was its power source? “Yes, that's it” I shouted aloud sounding, but interestingly enough I got retort from someone, a familiar voice even.

“Well, that proves you’re crazy.” I looked up and found myself looking at the women that I first met. She was holding some form of masquerade mask on her face. It was rectangular with a screen on the front, a handle, and a large fuchsia crystal that was attached to the side.

“How did you….?”

“Get in here? I used this,” pointing at the strange object in her hand.

“This is a Point of View Lens. It allows me to travel to a different point in space that you can see.”

“Then how did that work to get in here? I’m closed in and there are no windows.”

“This one is hacked, It’s illegal,” she said smiling with deviant glee.

“Here” She then tossed one of these gadgets at me.

Upon further inspection, the device had telescope like features, a toggle for distance, a focus, but what struck me the most was when I put it on my face. As soon as I put it on my face I was able to see through the walls, ceiling, and floor. With the focusing toggle, I could change the range. From what I could see this planet was titanic. But I can’t fathom how we are able to stand like we were on earth.

“Now that you're done playing with that, let's get out of here” She then instructed me on how to properly use it and where to point it.

“We’ll be going to my visit some friends of mine”

She then pressed a button atop the Lens and disappeared. I followed her instructions, pressed the button, and found myself exactly where I was looking, at a very large crater in the ground that saw no light. Looking above I could see why there was no light. Above me were planetoid islands floating in the sky, slender and beautiful, motionless do too unseen forces.

It seems my dream had become reality.

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