Hal woke up and found himself in a bed with black bed sheets. He looked across the room and realised that he was now in a dimly lit room with grey walls and carvings of stars scattered everywhere.
The room had touches that burned with a blue flame, which acted as the light source to the room. He held his head, unable to recollect the events that transpired before he got here.
It seemed like he was cursed to continue meeting strange entities and then ending up in strange places.
The black door that led to his room suddenly opened with a creaking sound as a woman dressed in a long black dress stepped into the room.
Her dress swept the floor as she walked, and it appeared to be embedded with stars. He gazed up at her face and saw a dazzlingly beautiful woman.
She heard beautiful black hair that shimmered with stars, making it appear as if the night sky was placed upon her head.
Her hair fell to cover one of her eyes, and the other had one star embedded into its centre, making her appear both beautiful and terrifying, at least to Hal.
The woman bowed slightly and spoke in a whisper that calmed Hal as soon as he heard it, "Dear guest of Grand Fernis, my name is Alostella Fernis, please follow me, my Lord would like a word with you"
Hal didn't know what to do; should he actually follow the woman or stay seated? The last time he listened to a strange entity, he lost his identity and found himself here.
So why should he meet this one in the first place? The woman tilted her head slightly and spoke again in that soothing whisper.
"I believe you may be sceptical about meeting my lord, but please trust him; he may even know a thing or two about your current situation, so I would advise that you meet him"
Hal still didn't want to go, but what would this entity do to him if he refused? "And if I refuse?"
The woman stayed quiet for a while before saying, "Then we will have no choice but to send you back into the jaws of the monster so that you may experience its harsh way of feeding"
Hal gulped as he stepped out of bed. There was no better motivator for leaving bed than being threatened to be someone else's meal, but did this mean he hadn't left the field at all?
Maybe just maybe, only his mind left the place, and now it was in the face of another entity, and the place he appeared in, it also left its own questions to be answered, but for now, he would follow her.
The lady led the way, and he followed as he stepped out of the room and into a long hall. The place had windows acting as walls on the side, stretching up to the end of the hall, with little light falling through
He looked out the window, and his eyes widened as he saw planets, stars, and nebulae floating outside the window.
Constellations moved like real people as the archer constellation Sagittarius shot an arrow at Taurus the bull, who turned around and gave chase to the poor archer, who turned around and fled.
White mist-like creatures flew around the stars and then into the room, flying, rotating around him before flying out back into the starry sky.
The lady's whisper called out to him again, this time louder than usual, "Please, dear guest, do not let those mischievous beings distract you. Besides, we have the dining room, where our Lord will see you"
Hal turned his gaze to the big black door in front of him, a shiver travelling up his spine. He quickly made his way into the room and saw a huge dining table in front of him.
The ceiling of the room looked like a night sky with the image of a strange dragon imprinted on it, still with the moon at its chest.
"Please have a seat", Hal turned to the source of the voice as he saw a mysterious man sitting at the end of the table.
The man looked to be in his twenties with hair that appeared like a dark stormy night, his eyes were distant and were a stormy grey, and unlike the girl, he had no stars embedded in them. He wore a stylish black suit and presented himself in a dignified way
'What kind of place was this could this world really get any weirder than this' He turned his eyes back to the man who stared at him with an intense curiousity
"So, tell me who you are?" Hal's voice trembled as he asked the question, to which the man leaned forward and rested his head on his hand
There was a silence that filled Hal with unease before the man spoke "I am the physical manifestation of knowledge, the absolute being that shapes space-time he who lives in the star weaver's castle but all you need to call me now is Ermond Varrant Grand Fernis"
Hal froze physical manifestation of knowledge, absolute being that shapes space time what the hell was going on where absolutely was he what had that entity done to him
And what this one planning to do with him, the lord of stars spoke again his voice resounding throughout the entire room
"Now that you know who I am, let me ask you a question, who are you in fact what are you, why were you able to survive gazing upon the tree of knowledge"
His eyes squinted as he spoke again "Why did the being that encompasses space time my symbol of power the great dragon Fernis look at you, save you and bring you here"
Hal could not reply what could he even say to such a question and even better how could he trust another entity after his previous run in with one ended so horribly
Hal gritted his teeth and refused to answer if he was the physical manifestation of knowledge and why would he need to inquire anything from him
Alostella stepped forward in a fit of rage and as if she had peered into his very thoughts and read his mind he spoke in a harsh tone
"I dare you doubt my Lord's power he is knowledge itself" Hal pulled back but before the angry lady could reach him the lord rose his hand signaling her to stop her advance
"Yes, nothing is keeping me from stealing the knowledge you possess like the one about the entity that trapped you here"
Hal's eyes widened 'How could he have known about that' his ears were glued back to the lord soon after as he heard the man continue
"But I prefer a faithful pursuit of knowledge I do not want my ability doing all the heavy lifting I want to obtain knowledge through much more entertaining means such as yourself"
This lord seemed to be able to read his thoughts and steal information from him could he really be what he said he was, he turned to the planet outside the window and paled
"So, what do you plan to with me" the lord smiled as his joyful tone filled Hal's ears "Learn from you of course"
The man stood up and walked towards the window looking gracefully out the window as the misty beings brought him a glass of wine that he received with a smile
"We both want something from each other, I want to satiate my hunger for knowledge, you a being not from this world, something I possess no knowledge so your life should be entertaining"
The man turned around and spread his hands out with a hint of obsession in his eyes as he spoke again
"I want to learn everything about the current you, I want to learn everything about the future as well, that's why I will turn your life in this world in to my novel and your experiences into my dreams and in return I the lord of stars we grant you power and knowledge"
Hal felt lost in the man's words as the lord spoke again "Right now your real body is stuck in time at the point before you are devoured by the grass beast, so I will offer you this"
The man let his hands fall and pulled a dagger out of a pocket in his suit and cut himself with it letting the blade soak in his blood and then spoke
"Forge this contract with me and surrender your knowledge to the tree of knowledge, let me read you like a book and glimpse at the secrets you know and those you are yet to learn and in return you will receive the power to shape space-time itself and the boundless knowledge of this world"
Hal froze as the unable to answer the question, this entity was the first one to offer him something he wanted but he knew nothing about this guy and his introduction wasn't useful either
"You still doubt me well you should not, unlike the entity you encountered; I have laid all my desires bear to you and told you all you can achieve not only will I survive your life from that creature but also grant you power and knowledge powerful weapons you can use to your advantage"
If the lord was not lying then Hal had no choice but to say yes if he did he would get to survive that monster and gain power and knowledge things he could use to defeat that entity
Hal gritted his teeth as a feeling of helplessness took him over and soon after words escaped his lips
"I accept your contract and offer up my knowledge to your cause, I will satiate your hunger for knowledge and you will grant the power I need to take back what is mine"
The Lord smiled and spoke with a humble tone "A wise choice as expected from a future seeker of knowledge"
And as soon as those words left his mouth Hal's chair sunk as the ground below him transformed in to water and now Hal found himself sinking before being pulled back from the water
He found himself back in the presence of the tree, he felt dazed as he saw the Lord holding him up before plunging the dagger deep into his chest
A pulsating pain followed as the water around them flowed in tiny streams that glowed with the radiance of stars as they entered his body through the dagger
Hal saw his veins glow as the starry water flowed through them the streams made his skin glow as they travelled through his body
He turned to the water and saw the streams move to his now blue eyes that shimmered with stars as the pain in his body intensified
"You are now the unquenchable novel, the slave of the stars and herald of their lord, your life is now my novel and your experiences my dreams, and with your help I may finally acquire the knowledge of the end of all dreams"
The lord let Hal sink into the water as he felt his body grow numb and as he lost consciousness he heard "I now name you Hal Leonardo Fernis he who will inherit the boundless dream". And like that, Hal's mind fell blank once again as he sank deep into the water