The lecture hall was buzzing with the low hum of students packing their things, some muttering to themselves about the impossible ideas Sam Noctis had just presented. At the front of the room, Sam stood amidst a pile of notes, his messy hair and slightly wrinkled clothes making him look more like a mad scientist than a professor. His recent demonstration—a seemingly impossible manipulation of time—had left the audience puzzled. To most, it was an intriguing trick, an illusion that bent the mind but was ultimately explainable by advanced mathematics or sleight of hand.
But Terra Luna knew better.
She had watched, her dark eyes narrowed in focus, as Sam performed what should not have been possible. The way time itself seemed to bend around him, the subtle flicker of reality shifting when he adjusted the device in his hand. No one else noticed it, their minds trained to dismiss the impossible. But Terra had felt the fabric of time shift in a way no theory could explain. It wasn't a trick. It wasn't an illusion. It was real.
As the last of the students filed out, leaving only Sam at the front of the room, Terra remained seated, gripping her notebook tightly. Her heart raced as she went over the scene again in her head. How could no one else see it? She took a deep breath, steeling herself before standing up and walking toward him. Her pulse quickened with every step, and though her nerves were on edge, her determination was stronger.
Sam looked up from his notes, distracted and somewhat distant. His sharp blue eyes met hers for a moment before he returned to scribbling on the page, murmuring something to himself.
"Excuse me, Professor Noctis?" Terra's voice was steady despite her excitement. She stopped a few feet from him, clutching her notebook against her chest.
He blinked as if he'd just noticed her for the first time. "Hm? Yes? Did you have a question about the lecture?"
Terra hesitated for a second before deciding to dive in. "What you did up there—it wasn't a trick, was it? You didn't just theorize about time… you actually bent it."
Sam's pen stopped mid-scrawl. He looked up at her again, this time with genuine interest. "What makes you say that?" His voice was calm, but there was a hint of something guarded behind his words.
"I... I felt it," Terra said, her voice more assured now. "The way the light changed, the way time slowed, if only for a moment. No one else noticed, but I did."
For a moment, there was silence. Sam leaned back against the desk, arms crossed as he studied her, eyes narrowing slightly. "Most people wouldn't notice something like that. Most people wouldn't even want to notice. Why didn't you dismiss it like everyone else?"
Terra took a step closer, her eyes alight with excitement. "Because I don't believe in dismissing the impossible. I think the impossible is just waiting for someone to prove it's real."
Sam's lips curved into a faint smile, something almost imperceptible but present. He turned, pacing a few steps away as if contemplating something. "You're not wrong," he said finally, "though it's not magic, as some might think. It's science—though perhaps a science that even science hasn't caught up to yet."
Terra's breath caught. She had hoped, even dared to dream, that he would confirm it. Now, hearing the words from him directly felt like a door opening to a whole new world. "I want to learn how you did it. I want to help."
Sam paused, turning back to her with a raised eyebrow. "Help?"
"I've studied time," Terra said, her words rushing out. "Not just the academic theories, but the deeper mysteries. I've run experiments—nothing on your scale, but I know what's possible. You need someone who can keep up with you, who isn't afraid to explore beyond what's known. I want to be your assistant."
For a moment, Sam looked at her in silence, his expression unreadable. Then, after what felt like an eternity, he nodded slowly. "Alright, Miss…?"
"Luna. Terra Luna."
"Alright, Miss Luna. Meet me tomorrow morning at my lab. We'll see if you can keep up."
Terra smiled, her heart racing with excitement as she turned to leave. Just before she reached the door, Sam's voice called out behind her.
"And Terra…? Bring your most impossible ideas. You're going to need them."
She smiled to herself, gripping her notebook a little tighter as she stepped into the hallway. This was just the beginning.