A Living Nightmare - (MCSM FANFIC - Collab with eternal-eloquence) DISCONTINUED

Prologue

Chapter Written by: eternal-eloquence

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The aspect of reliving a distant memory could be an intriguing (yet treacherous!) concept.

The mere thought of resurfacing a past event, good or bad, could stir up a tussle of conflicting questions. The disagreements over whether such an event is even plausible would counteract all they had ever known about the universe.

As such, that notion has never been passed. Not even considered. Simply because, if you asked one, any sane human being would give you the same response.

No.

What a thought. So...obvious! So obvious, in fact, that the question has never even crossed their minds. What kind of foul creature would believe such a claim? Going against their knowledge that they'd worked so hard to obtain, just to be convinced of something that is most definitely erroneous!

However content the humans may be with themselves, though, one thing is for certain: things aren't always as they seem.

***

Lukas sat quietly in the Order Hall, eyes skimming over one of many pages in his newly-written book. The current addition was the Order's most recent accomplishment, one that he hadn't had the glory of experiencing in person. Which, as much as he hated to admit it, put him at a slight disadvantage when trying to write.

He'd gotten up early specifically for that reason, the fresh supply of caffeine next to him keeping him awake and alert. Though, it came with nasty side effects. He was bound to have bags under his eyes and heavy limbs by the end of the day.

Despite that, Lukas smiled. Nearly finished. All he had to do was revise a bit, maybe make a few more edits, put a few finishing touches on the cover, finally write the part about Romeo's defeated form when Jesse hit him with the gauntlet—

His smile quickly vanished.

The last time he'd seen Jesse, which had only been the previous night, she had looked terrible. Of course, both Jesse and Petra (who had been with Jesse the entire time in the Underneath) had emerged from the mission exhausted, but frankly, the latter didn't look nearly as horrible as the former. In addition, that was two weeks ago, and Petra had since recovered.

With Jesse though...that look still hadn't changed. Perhaps it was the Beautification Project that had been taking place in Beacontown that had been stressing her out. Two weeks was a lot, yes, but it was still nothing in comparison to months, which, at minimum, would take two in order for Beacontown to return to its former state. And that was including all the help from Axel and Olivia, who had put their jobs in Boomtown and Redstonia on hold to help out with the repairs.

Regardless, it seemed bigger than that. And Lukas' feelings were never wrong.

He shook his head and grabbed the mug of freshly-brewed coffee next to him, sipping lightly while keeping his eyes on the page and simultaneously keeping tract with his fingers. A certain sound, however, perked his attention.

"You're up early."

Lukas raised his head at the sound of the voice, familiar cocoa-colored irises meeting his own. He smiled at their owner, who was leaning against the doorframe of the Order Hall's kitchen. "Hey, Petra," he greeted.

Petra shook her head with a smile, pushing herself off of the doorframe before heading over to the counter and taking out a mug from the cupboard. "Still working on that project?"

Lukas nodded. "You bet. I'm nearly finished, just got to do the revisions, add in that last part with Jesse and the Admin, edit that part, then get it published..."