The Omniscrolls

After a stressful day at work, I decided to take a bath. I closed my eyes and may have dozed off, as I woke up coughing and feeling breathless. The water was over my head. What the hell is happening? I got to my feet and tried to get out of the tub, but I ended up falling again. The water was too high. I couldn’t understand what was happening. I decided to swim outside, but the door was locked. With much struggle, I managed to open the door, but I found that my entire house was flooded. But then I realised something strange—this wasn’t my house. How can this be? I just — I turned around to find my bathroom door gone. And it seemed that I had somehow found myself in a castle. Was I dreaming? Hallucinating? I pinched myself. No, it was all real. “Do not fear. You are not losing your mind.” There was a voice behind me. “Who’s there?” I turned around and found a woman swimming towards me. “I’m Princess Austra, your ancestor,” she replied. “What are you talking about?” “You’ve travelled bac...

“Liz, will you be free to hang out at the mall after school?” my best friend Anya asked. “Sure. Anything you need to get?” “A present for Alex. He’s turning six tomorrow.” When the last bell rang, I rushed out of class and was almost at the staircase when a sudden flash of light engulfed me. My body felt as if it were racing through endless space before I found myself inside what looked like a castle—and I was on a throne. Was it a dream? My thoughts were soon interrupted by three soldiers marching towards me. “Good morning, your majesty. We’ve received word that Alsgar plans to unleash his dragons by nightfall.” Alsgar? Dragons? What was happening? Where was I? I didn’t know what to say; I just sat there, frozen and speechless. “Your majesty?” Right then, a voice entered my head: Tell them to prepare for battle. Ask the six Generals to convene with you. Who are you? My name is Irja; I brought you here. Just do as I say. I followed her instructions and summoned the Generals. Irja got m...

It was a warm summer day and I was enjoying a refreshing drink at a restaurant when a young woman walked up to me and sat at my table. “Remember me?” she asked, glancing over with her hazel eyes.   “No, I don’t,” I replied.   “Egypt, 1802. We met at an excavation site.” “Athezas?” “Hello again, Imosia.” “You’ve changed your appearance quite a bit over the past two centuries. What brings you to Mexico?” “The ziggurats, same as you.” “Are you sure it’s not for any hidden treasures? I remember now that King Tut’s ring was stolen back when we met. It was unpleasant for me since I was forcefully searched.” “I’m sorry about that. I needed money at the time and had to sell the ring on the black market. But I actually got it back recently.” Athezas placed the ring on the table and slid it over to me. “Here, take it as an apology.” I was confused. The ring was far too valuable a peace offering, and someone like her who stole it before wouldn’t present it to me like this unless she had ...

As I walked down the street, I saw a yard sale banner. It was at my friend Ronda’s house. I decided to stop by and check if there was anything nice to add to my antique collection. “Hi, Rhonda, any antiques for sale?” “I don’t know if it’s an antique, but there is this ceramic doll I inherited from my mom.” “Oh, can I see it?” “Sure,” Rhonda replied, returning with the doll a moment later. “Here you go, Elise.” “Wow, creepy.” “Yes, it is, and it scares my kid.” “What’s the price?” “You know what? You can have it for free.” “Are you sure?” “Absolutely.” I took the doll home and set it with my doll collection. After a hot meal of rice and curry, and also some ice cream afterwards, I turned in for the night. However, it was not long before I was woken up by a loud noise downstairs. I found all my dolls, except the one I got from Rhonda, scattered in pieces across the floor. I looked around to see if an animal or a person had snuck inside, but there was nothing or no one to be found. I was...