Pain.
That was the first thing he felt.
His head was splitting; every movement caused sharp pain, as if he were lying under a heavy load. It felt like his mind hadn't returned to his body yet and was still wandering in the void. But whatever this was, he couldn't get used to it.
— Ah, damn... such intense pain... Where am I? — he could barely open his eyes, and even when he managed to do so, everything before him blurred.
— Where am I? — Lon mumbled in a hoarse voice.
He tried to sit up, but it was impossible — his body simply wouldn't obey. Each new movement turned into excruciating pain.
Dark spots danced before his eyes, but he could clearly feel this wasn't his world. This wasn't his room; it was someone else's...
His memory seemed to be scattering, like a school of tiny fish. He tried to gather them together, but it didn't work — it only got worse.
He couldn't understand why... why... Something was wrong. He must have… lost consciousness. Or was it some… illusion?
But his blurry thoughts were interrupted by a door suddenly opening, bringing with it a new voice:
— Are you alright? — a young voice asked from the doorway.
Lon turned his head toward the door and tried to make out the dark silhouette slowly approaching him.
A thin figure came closer, making soft steps in the ward.
As the figure approached, Lon realized it was a nurse — wearing a light white dress with a colored collar. She adjusted the pillow and gently placed her hand on his forehead. Her presence seemed to bring some relief.
— Where am I? — he tried to ask, but his own breath faltered from weakness.
The nurse smiled and responded:
— Mr. Renvel, you're in Felix Hospital, in the Green District. You're very lucky that they found you in time, or you might have died...
«Renvel? Felix Hospital? Green District? What are these names? Where he lived, they never had words like that… And who was Renvel?! He was Lon!» — a flood of questions rushed into his mind.
Unable to resist, he asked the nurse:
— Green District?.. Where is that? — his voice was becoming more hoarse and tired.
The nurse nodded, as if expecting the question, and responded:
— Mr. Renvel, it would be better for you to rest. Your ribs were badly damaged, and your head... Just regain your strength, please. — she spoke casually and left the ward.
A few seconds later, he once again felt the world around him becoming blurry.
Trying with all his might not to lose himself...
But in the end, Lon simply passed out, not finishing his thoughts.
===
Slowly opening his eyes, Lon found himself lying in the same hospital room where he had fallen asleep.
Light softly filtered through the window, filling the room with a faint blue hue.
He tried to sit up, but his body still wouldn't obey.
— So, this is how it is, — Lon muttered.
«It seemed he was in someone else's body, — he realized. — This wasn't his body. What happened to him? Why was he here?»
He tried to focus — to remember what had happened before. An ordinary day… work… something strange… engines… and… then emptiness. It was as if something had been cut off.
Somewhere deep inside, a feeling of forgetfulness flared up, as if he hadn't just forgotten his memories — someone… someone alien had invaded his life and changed it.
===
There was a soft knock at the door. A man in a formal suit appeared in the doorway, wearing a serious expression. He looked old, but confident, with sharp eyes, as if he had been pondering something for a long time.
The man slowly stepped toward Lon, making deliberate steps.
Stopping in front of him, the man set down his cane and asked:
— How are you feeling? — his voice was stern but not without care.
Lon opened his mouth, trying to say something, but realized he couldn't.
Seeing this reaction, the man remained unflustered but frowned slightly, saying:
— You need to rest and recover. The incident at work is trivial. Although the engine did explode, it caused only minor damage. No one died, but there were many injuries. So just stay and recover. You won't be going back to work anytime soon.
He barely nodded. His memory was still like a mosaic missing pieces. Who was this man? Why did his face seem familiar, though he couldn't remember from where?
He… he looked like someone from his past. But there were too many gaps in his mind.
— Do you need any help? — the man asked seriously, his gaze focused directly on him.
— I… — Lon barely managed to utter a word to respond, but then realized — that was it, he fell silent again.
Donald observed the pitiful state of his son and sighed, saying:
— It's fine, just rest a little. Don't overdo it. By the way, Santi sent you some books he got from the library. He said they were good. — he reached into the inner pockets of his suit and pulled out a few books.
After handing them to Lon, he was already about to leave, so he walked toward the door and said:
— I have work to do, so I'll go. Don't get bored.
Just for politeness, Lon waved his hand in farewell.
After he left, the room became very quiet. Lon slowly lay back on the bed and looked at the ceiling.
«It seemed he had moved to another world… And taken someone else's body, named Renvel… — Lon sighed deeply. — He just wanted to go home…»
He desired only one thing —
to return.