Luna sat on the grass, staring at the endless floating islands above her. She had tried walking back toward where she thought the portal might be, but each step only made the landscape seem more alien. Broken stone bridges hung above bottomless voids. Islands drifted lazily, almost teasing her with their impossible positions.
I need to get back. Her thoughts circled around her like the petals still drifting in the air. If I can just find the bench… maybe I can return… maybe… maybe this is forever.
What if no one comes? What if I'm stuck here?
She clenched her fists. No. I won't think like that. I'm not alone. Someone will come. Someone has to come…
But the silence that followed was heavy, pressing against her ears, making every heartbeat feel loud.
Then she heard it.
A soft rustle in the bushes behind her.
Luna froze. Her breath caught. I thought I was alone…
The rustling grew louder. Something low and slithery moved through the grass. She squinted. Shadows shifted unnaturally. Then, from the bushes, a figure emerged.
It was small, stick-like, covered in what looked like orange clay. Its body wobbled unnaturally as it walked. Two glowing red eyes stared directly at her.
Luna stumbled backward. Her chest tightened.
"What… what are you?" she whispered. Her voice trembled.
The creature tilted its head. Its stick-like limbs snapped as it moved, making soft clacking sounds. It advanced toward her steadily, like it had made her its target.
Her mind screamed. Run. Run! But where?
Before she could decide, a strong gust of wind lifted her off the ground.
"Whoa! Hang on!" a familiar voice shouted.
Luna looked up. Two figures flew above her, mounted on a giant white bird. Her stomach dropped in disbelief.
"R-Ron?" she gasped.
"About time, wind listener." Ron shouted, holding her hand firmly. His dark eyes were calm, almost unshaken, even as he pulled her up into the air.
Next to him, someone else grinned like they had just won the weirdest lottery imaginable.
"And I'm Kenta!" the new voice yelled, holding Luna's other hand. "Do not worry! I am very heroic!!"
The creature on the ground screeched and stomped at them, its red eyes glowing brighter. Luna held on tightly, her hoodie flapping wildly in the wind.
"Fly faster!" she yelled. Her voice wavered between relief and terror.
Ron tilted his head. "Relax. You're safe....For now."
"Safe? Did you see that… thing?!" Luna shouted, slowing sitting on the bird's back.
"That thing?" Kenta waved dramatically. "That's Mr. Claysticks, the most polite creature you'll ever meet. Or maybe not. He's very… aggressive. But don't worry, I fought with him once with a sandwich. True story."
Luna stared at him, mouth open. "SANDWICH!"
As the wind carried them higher, Luna finally felt her mind slow down. She looked at Ron, his expression calm but his eyes sharp, scanning the islands ahead.
"How… how are you here?" she asked finally, her voice quieter now.
Ron's gaze softened, though he didn't answer immediately.
"Same way you did," he said finally. "The bench… the portal. We followed."
Luna's eyes widened. "You… you came through the portal too?"
Kenta threw his arms in the air. "Of course we did! But first, let me explain!"
Ron didn't comment, but Luna noticed a small curve at the corner of his mouth.
Kenta laughed. "Okay, so picture this: the day Luna first noticed the bench after her extra class, I mean, the very first magical glowing bench day, we were walking home. Ron was being… Ron. Mysterious. Smug. You know him?"
Luna blinked. "Yes."
"And I was being me," Kenta continued dramatically. "extremely handsome. Also slightly clumsy. We approached the bench because Ron said he had a 'feeling.'"
"Feeling," Ron muttered, glancing at Luna. "She would have noticed anyway."
"Yes, yes," Kenta said, waving him off. "So we're looking at this ordinary-looking bench. Just your regular bench, right? And then… WHAM! The air shimmers, petals spin, and Ron starts yelling something about 'do not panic.' I don't remember exactly what he yelled. But I panicked."
Luna blinked, trying not to laugh.
Kenta continued. "Next thing you know, we're sucked into the portal. And then… we ended up here."
Luna stared at him. "You mean… today you just… didn't come to school because you were… surviving in this… world?"
"Exactly!" Kenta said with a proud nod. "Our absence explained. You're welcome. school, You may now stop blaming us for homework.!"
Ron rolled his eyes. "Kenta, you sound insane."
"Correct." Kenta beamed. "We had to run from floating islands, dodge giant flying fish yes, flying fish, and I almost fell off a bridge made of clouds. Clouds! Can you imagine?"
"When will this mf tape his mouth...." Ron whispered quietly.
Luna's jaw dropped. "Cloud bridges? You're kidding."
"Deadly serious," Kenta said. "And don't forget the sand creatures that try to tickle you into submission."
Ron made a small noise in his throat, almost a chuckle. "Kenta exaggerated slightly."
"Maybe," Kenta shrugged. "But slightly is like… double exaggeration in my world. You'd understand if you were here yesterday."
Luna swallowed. So… all this time, Ron and Kenta have been in this world too…
"Why didn't you tell me?" she finally asked, her voice quiet but pointed.
Ron's expression darkened slightly. "Because you didn't know yet. We couldn't risk showing up without being sure it was safe. And… I didn't want you to panic."
"I didn't panic," Luna said, though the memory of the glowing portal and the spinning wind still made her shiver.
Kenta leaned forward, smiling widely. "She panicked. Big time. Don't worry, I saw everything. It was spectacular!"
Ron gave Kenta a flat look. "You didn't help."
"I did! I shouted words of encouragement." Kenta said, "'Run! Fly! Hold hands!' Heroic, isn't it?"
Luna finally laughed, tension breaking just slightly. "Okay… so… this is where you've been?"
Ron nodded.
The white bird flapped its massive wings, gliding across the strange landscape. Below them, floating islands drifted silently. Some had twisted trees. Some had ruins that seemed to whisper forgotten stories.
Kenta leaned over Luna's shoulder, pointing dramatically. "See that one?"
Luna squinted. "Which one?"
"That one with the weird tower. That's where we fought the wind spirits… almost. I tripped over a root."
Ron shook his head. "Focus, Kenta."
I need to find the portal… I need to get back home.
Luna glanced at Ron. His dark eyes scanned the horizon, calm as ever. He looked like he already knew the dangers and the rules of this world.
"Okay," Luna said, her voice barely above a whisper. "We need a plan. We can't just fly around and hope to stumble on it."
Ron didn't look at her. "The portal won't appear randomly.
Luna swallowed hard. "But… I don't-"
"Watch closely," Ron said. "Observe the shifts, the glow, the wind patterns. Small things matter."
Kenta flopped dramatically on the bird, waving his arms. "Small things matter! That's literally like the first episode of Crystal Gate Chronicles! Step one: locate the glowing thing that isn't glowing like the rest. Step two: dramatic confrontation. Step three: hero snacks. Step four: portal extraction!"
Luna blinked. "Hero snacks?"
"Energy for moral support," Kenta said proudly. "Very important in fantasy worlds. You'll see."
The bird flew between floating islands. Broken bridges hung over voids that disappeared into darkness. Luna's stomach flipped. She couldn't help thinking about her home, her room, the camera, the bench. I need to get back there.
"Do you… think the bench is the only way home?" she asked.
Ron's expression remained unreadable. "Probably. All the energy seems to converge there. Other benches may exist, but this one… it's tied to your arrival. And to ours."
Kenta snorted. "Arrivals, departures, and dramatic entrances. Yep, classic fantasy anime mechanics. Also, Ron totally ignores my genius, but that's okay."
"Your genius is… just like the thing we all did in toilets" Ron muttered.
"Exac-" Kenta shouted, suddenly realized "WHAT DO YOU MEAN HUH!!"
The bird glided low over the floating islands, petals drifting lazily around them. Luna squinted, searching for any unusual glow, any flicker that might mark the portal. At first, everything seemed calm. The stars reflected off the broken stone ruins. The wind whispered softly through the air.
Then something changed. The petals surrounding them began spinning faster. A chill crawled up Luna's spine. She reached out instinctively to steady herself, but the petals twisted around her hands like tiny threads of living shadow.
"Luna!" Ron shouted, gripping the reins tightly. His calm voice held a sharp edge now. "Hold on!"
Kenta waved his arms wildly. "Uh… this is new!"
The petals weren't playful anymore. They moved with purpose, swirling around her, whispering in a voice she almost recognized. Her own voice, maybe, distorted and hollow, repeating her name over and over.
One petal, darker than the rest, drifted apart from the spiral. It hovered inches from her face. She froze. Its edges seemed to ripple, as if breathing. The whispering grew louder.
"Luna…"
The bird shuddered under them as if sensing the change. The darkness in the petal seemed to stretch out toward her, hungry and deliberate. Luna's heart raced. Her hands shook. Her eyes met Ron's, but even his calm gaze looked tense now.
Then the petal moved closer. The wind stopped abruptly, leaving a deafening silence around them. Luna could feel it hovering, waiting.
She swallowed hard. The petal twitched. And then it split. Not into two pieces, but into dozens of smaller black petals, each spinning toward her like tiny knives.
Luna's breath caught. The world around them seemed to tilt. Something ancient and hungry stirred somewhere beyond the stars. And somewhere in the distance, a faint glow flickered on an island, almost like a promise.
Luna whispered, more to herself than anyone else. "What… what is that?"
The black petals surged forward.
TO BE CONTINUED IN CHAPTER 6.