Shattered - By Sophia Sharp Page 0,23

flowing a lot faster, like right now. It all comes in waves, I think. Maybe the best way to think of it is… the scale of time oscillating back and forth. Like a pendulum.” He made a sign with his hands designating one. “When it swings to the very right—” he brought a finger to the right, “—time here is much slower than in real life. And as it falls back and swings to the left—” he motioned with his finger to the left “—time here gets faster and faster, until it peaks as it hits the very left. And then it goes back. On and on again, back and forth, in a cycle.

“Now, one thing I’ve realized is that it’s not a perfectly even pendulum. Most of the swing is spent in the zone where time is faster here. Only a small sliver—” again, he motioned with his finger “—of the pendulum’s swing is spent in the zone when time is slower here.”

“I think I get it,” Laura said. Then she smiled. “You explain it very well.”

“Nah,” he said, waving the compliment away. “You just pick it up very quickly.”

“Maybe. So, what else does this place do? …Now that I’ve gotten the entire airplane safety lecture,” she added with a wink.

“Oh, I can show you,” Logan replied, with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

Chapter Ten

~A Watcher~

Laura felt exhilarated. She’d spent the last few hours exploring this world together with Logan. Reality really was mutable here, and she couldn’t believe the things they could do.

What stood out most to her was that you could go anywhere. Really anywhere. You had to know your spot to get to it, though, which meant you have to have been there in real life. Unfortunately for Laura, she hadn’t been much further than the border of the town where she grew up. Fortunately, Logan had.

“Ready?” he asked after explaining how traveling would work. She nodded, and took his hand. Instantly, everything around her started streaking in one direction. Landscapes raced by, towns and cities and mountains and highways and rivers and fields, all flashing by her in the blink of an eye. It didn’t feel like she was moving – there was no wind in her face, no resistance from the air like when you put your hand out the window of a speeding car. But everything around her changed, rushing by.

She couldn’t do it by herself, yet, which was why she needed to take Logan’s hand. It was the only way he could bring her along where he went. Finally they stopped, and Laura found herself atop a lush green hill, where wild flowers and grasses grew as far as the eye could see. The sun shone brightly above them, radiating heat onto Laura’s body.

She laughed and twirled around, spreading her hands to feel the flora brush against them. Logan laughed too, and sped down the hill, taunting Laura to follow. She ran after him, right through the tall grass and colorful flowers. Her toe caught and she tripped, but the soft dirt cushioned her fall, and she didn’t even bother to get up as she rolled down the hill laughing and giggling.

At the bottom, Logan was waiting. She landed right at his feet, and another fit of giggles overtook her. He pulled her up, laughing alongside her.

“This is wonderful!” she exclaimed for what must have been the tenth time thus far. “Everything about this place! The feeling of freedom, the absolute control, the endless possibilities… it’s wonderful!”

“Glad you like it,” Logan smiled.

“Although I’ve been wondering,” Laura added, “is it possible to bring things into this world?”

“Like what?”

“Objects, maybe?”

“You have to know it very well. Like…” he thought for a moment, and Laura jumped as his Volvo fell down behind her.

“Your car?” she said, raising an eyebrow.

He spread his hands defensively and smiled. “I’ve been working on it for a very long time. You try.”

“On what?” Laura asked.

“Something simple, at first. A purse maybe. It’s just like anything else here, you have to picture it down to its finest details.”

“Hmm. Ok.” Laura thought for a second, and then a heavy book appeared in her hands.

“A book?” This time, Logan rose an eyebrow.

“No, not just any book,” she said, and threw it to him. He caught it, and flipped it over in his hands. “Our math book,” he chuckled.

“That’s how all this started, after all.”

“That’s right,” Logan said.

Just then, Laura felt a shiver run down her spine. She turned back, wondering what caused it.