KUMPULAN KARYA TULIS SISWA PADA KEGIATAN CHARACTER CAMP

saja kau, Mela”. Mela di tuntun ke sebuah ruangan megah yang katanya adalah kamar Mela. Ia membersihkan diri dan diajak makan oleh Eren dan Hana. Malam hari tiba. Mela, Eren, dan Hana mendikusikan tentang surat-surat adopsi. Eren dan Hana tidak bisa melepaskan mata mereka dari selimut Mela. Mela yang merasa tidak nyaman pun bertanya; “Apakah selimut saya menarik?” “Sebenarnya, iya. Um…” Kata Hana sambil menyingkirkan kertas-kertas yang berserakan. “14 tahun yang lalu, kami memiliki anak perempuan. Keadaan ekonomi kita belum memadai, sehingga kita harus memberikan anak itu ke orang lain.” Bulir-bulir air mata telah jatuh di pipi Hana. “Aku memutuskan untuk membuang bayi itu di sebuah desa yang lumayan jauh dari Bandung. Di tepi sungai, di dalam keranjang ditutupi selimut… yang kau pegang sekarang.” Mela terkejut. Rumor tentangnya adalah anak pungut ternyata benar. “Jadi Mela, kau sebenarnya adalah anak kami. Maafkan orang tuamu yang tidak bertanggung jawab ini.” Hana terisak. Eren hanya bisa memeluk istrinya yang tengah sedih namun senang itu. Mela tertegun dan teringat masa-masa saat dia masih di desa Pelangi. “Jadi, apakah E+H ini inisial kalian?” Tanya Mela bergetar. Eren mengangguk pelan. Mereka berpelukan, saling menghangatkan satu sama lain sambil terisak. Sudah 6 bulan Mela hidup bersama orang tua kandungnya. Surat-surat penting telah diurus dan sekarnag Mela bersekolah di sekolah yang mewah dan hidupnya bahagia. Mela rindu desa pelangi. Desa dimana ia tinggal. Mela dan orang tuanya setuju untuk pergi ke desa Pelangi hari itu. Aktivitas masih sama, jam 4 sore pada hari minggu, anak-anak masih bermain laying- layang dan gobak sodor. Mela berlari ke rumah Bilqis dan mengetuk pintu rumahnya. Alangkah terkejutnya Bilqis saat melihat Mela. Tak sanggup menahan rindu, mereka berpelukan. “Sendiri kau Mel?” “Nggak, bareng mama papa kandung” “Naon? Ketemu dimana?” “Stasiun” “Nak Mela? Benar kamu nak?” Sahut bu Lia. “Benar bu… kangen” Mela dan orang tuanya di sambut hangat oleh Bilqis dan Ibunya. “Maaf, bapaknya lagi pergi… Gak apa ya?” Tanya bu Lia. Keesokan harinya, Mela bermain dengan Bilqis dan anak-anak yang lain sedangkan orang tua Mela berbincang dengan bu Lia. Jam 1 siang, Mela dan orang tuanya harus kembali ke stasiun. “Jangan lupa balik, aing kangen.” Ucap Bilqis. “Balik lahhhh mana mungin aku bisa tinggalin kamu, kan kamu manja banget anaknya.” Ledek Mela. Mereka tertawa lepas. “Ingat aku bilang, Jadi orang harus kuat, harus tegar. Mela sayang Bilqis.” Bilqis tambah terisak keras. “Hehh aku bilang jadi orang harus kuat, harus tegar… kok tambah nangis?” “Iya iya, janji jadi orang yang kuat, tegar” ucap Bilqis sambil bergetar. “Bye, Melaaaa.” Lambai Bilqis dan teman-temannya. Mela melambaikan tangannya dari mobil. 50

I’m Stressed Well not really By : William The – 10 C 51

My Diary Name : Fefe Birthday : June 25, 2006 Hobbies : Drawing “Work Hard, Pray Hard” - Atta Halilintar Hi, this is me Fefe. I will try to write everyday, to track the things I’m doing so that I can read it back when I get accepted in Sinlui! I really hope that by having this diary, I can be more motivated to study so that I can finally get accepted into my dream highschool! I really am curious what I have become in these 6 months, so please, to myself, study hard! Remember that we have been on this journey for 3 years, now it is time for a change. Goodluck to me. Tuesday, January 19, 2021 It has actually been 2 weeks since this term had started but lesgooooo. So ya, as I’ve said in the cringey introduction there, I’m going to use this diary as a tracker so that I can be motivated (well that is what I hope for but go off) and basically, track me, my life. I only have a couple of months left till I graduate and that means in a couple of months, I need to start to prepare myself to apply to Sinlui. I chose this school because it is a very known school and a school with a good reputation for decades and with that it can help me to go to a good university! There’s nothing much that I can say for today, there’s no school and only some weird event that we have to participate in so I guess that’s it for today, see you tomorrow if I have the time to actually write this. Sunday, January 24, 2021 Wow, that was such a lie. I haven’t been writing since Tuesday because of the assignments we have been given, like ya’ll must know this, since we don’t have midterms this term, they’ve changed it to projects and every subject has their own projects. If that doesn’t sound burdening enough to you, then sorry to say it is individual. This is just the 2nd week my man, and literally there are so many projects. So there is one project that I am actually kind of interested in and it is the mathematics project surprisingly. For this math project we’re asked to design a book about a chapter assigned by the teacher and I got a kinda easy topic. I’ve had some ideas for this magazine or book thing but I don't know how to start. I guess I’ll think about it later, let’s procrastinate first :). 52

Wednesday, January 27, 2021 If y'all are tired of me complaining, then congratulations, I am still going to complain. Remember about that maths project I said I was interested in? Yea i guess I hate it now. The teacher, oh my goodness lord help me, I literally had made a draft for the front and back cover and y’all know what she did? She literally crossed the whole cover and added a comment that it was too plain and boring. I’m starting to question if she is an arts teacher or a maths teacher. Monday, February 1, 2021 Well look at the date, it is February already. I’m serious, I thought it was just january a moment ago, and now we’re in a new month?? Anyways I finally finished that mathematics draft and now I just need to finish the contents. Oh yea, and we actually have lots of tests this term, they lied. So there is Cambridge, national exams and a final test. My lord please give me the power to get good scores, I cannot take this anymore. Well I think the main focus now is to actually finish all the projects first because next month we’re going to have our national exams AND Cambridge. Tuesday, February 2, 2021 So I’m done with half of the mathematics content and I guess I am able to complete it by this week. As for the other subjects, I’m very grateful they let us do it in their slots, so I don’t need to spend my extra time doing their projects. Friday, February 5, 2021 I submitted my mathematics covers and contents, I hope that there are only little revisions for me to do. And the last time I said the other teachers gave us time to finish our projects is a lie and they now are teaching us new materials. Our chemistry teacher asked us to make a poster, Our biology teacher asked us to make a research paper + a video. Lord, help us. Tuesday, February 23, 2021 The thing about this diary is that I'm not consistent at all. I’ve tried the best way to actually fit my days to write down the things that happened to me but I just feel it’s so hectic. I spend my weekends doing the projects which were supposed to be days for me to rest. There is just not enough time for me to actually spend time for myself. I really wish school would understand that we’re just teenagers, we can’t handle so many things at once. I know that we need this to prepare for our university but, it’s too much. 53

Friday, February 26, 2021 Wohoo, I’m so happy (sarcasm). I’ve submitted every project today, since the due date is today obviously, and now we need to revise for national exams. I really don’t understand why we have so many tests you know, like after the national exams, we’re going to have our Cambridge exams right after it. I haven’t told you the date of the exam, haven't I? It is the 22nd of March, we only have 3 weeks of review and I also need to cram in materials that are being taught in those 2 weeks. Wednesday, March 10, 2021 Hello, I am still alive (don’t ask how). Less than 2 weeks and we’re going to have our exams. I have been reviewing mathematics and chemistry these past few days. I have given up on physics, my brain can’t handle it. Mathematics, I guess is fine, I get most of the concepts already but I’m having much trouble in chemistry, especially for the formulas they have and the unique words that they have. But okay if I don’t write again that means I am probably crying and asking why there are so many exams. Saturday, March 19, 2021 I have never written anything on saturday, oh my, hello saturday (ew disgusting). I finally have the courage and motivation to study physics, but my brain is still in error mode and I cannot process anything I’ve gotten from this book. I just hope that I can at least pass the exams. On monday, I’m having a quite easy subject, bahasa and chinese. I guess my bahasa is fine and my chinese is good, so I don’t have to worry about those, but the thing I’m worried about is the next day. We’ll be having physics AND chemistry in that one day. WHYYYY, WHYY AT THE SAME DAYYYYY. Tuesday, March 23, 2021 I died. The tests were so hard, both of them. I cannot process the questions asked like why would you ask me to count a guy throwing his balls?? Like that is the most useless question possible to ask in a test. Well the rest of the week is quite easy, so I don’t think I’ll write down any complaints. Thursday, March 25, 2021 I take back my words, fisika and biokim was killing. Well at least I can do most of the questions in biokim but for fisika, no. I don’t know if I’m just stupid at physics or the questions was just too hard, like everytime I encounter physics the questions was so inhumane, like why are you asking such random questions and I have to answer it with a formula that I have to memorize then I have to count it?? 54

Wednesday, March 31, 2021 Well we’re done with hell. This time I’m just going to rant. I feel that I didn’t do my best for these tests. I have been studying so much, I kept studying even though I slept for such a short amount of time. My school teaches us for integrity but when we get bad scores, our teachers blame us for not studying enough, whereas I have been kicking my butt of to study and to stay awake. I just wish that the teachers could appreciate integrity, they do teach us to apply integrity in our lives but it’s just taught by words not practically, so it’s really quite useless that they teach us integrity but if we get a bad score they would complain so much. Saturday, April 3, 2021 Y’ALL GUESS WHAT. So I met someone, a guy, I don’t want to mention his name here though, I feel that my sister likes to open my things without saying anything so ya, Me, if you’re reading this, I hope u get karma, love sister. This guy is kinda cute, he plays the guitar and bro he is rich not to mention an only child <3. He is also going to the same high school as me, Sinlui. I can’t wait to meet him actually, how would he look like in real life ya. Wednesday, April 13, 2021 This guy that I’ve talked about is such a cute man, he plays the guitar for me and even taught me mathematics like, is this a dream come true? Did I finally find one? (ew disgusting byeee) This month, we actually don’t have so much tests, which I’m glad for, so I guess this month is a relaxing month. Tuesday, May 4, 2021 Forgive me. I have spent so much time with this boy and I forget y’all exist </3. So this month is our final month. I haven’t been preparing and it starts on the 10th of may, yeay. I have made a list of what I need to grind on this month, pray for me I’m not going to cry. Wednesday, May 5, 2021 I’m crying, please send help. There is literally so much materials I have to cover. I know it’s my fault for not preparing well but I didn’t expect it to be this much. I’m going to die if I don’t get accepted to that school. Monday, May 17, 2021 Okay I will not die and I will survive. I want to say thanks to my friends that I can complete this test with little crying, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t cry at all. It is true that I didn’t cry because of the test, but I cried. 55

Sunday, May 23, 2021 I don’t know what to do. I feel so empty. The nights when we used to call each other and ask about each other is, gone. Well we didn’t actually become a couple but, why? Tuesday, June 15, 2021 I graduated, I got accepted in Sinlui, but I didn’t get accepted in his heart apparently. Thank you for this journal, it has been good. Bye for now. 56

PARASIT Oleh : Dave Rexton Panjaya – 10 C Pada suatu hari penduduk bumi digemparkan oleh berita tentang sebuah kapal angkasa alien mendarat di bumi,di duga kapal luar angkasa tersebut memiliki teknologi masa depan yang tidak seorang tau cara mengoperasikan,tempat kejadian pesawat jatuh pun telah dikepung oleh polisi,pada saat beberapa ilmuan yang sedang menyelidiki mesin tersebut tiba tiba muncul sebuah cairan padat yang memasuki hidung mereka,mereka sangat ketakutan hingga berteriak,polisi yang diluar pun mendengarnya dan langsung masuk ke TKP mereka tidak menemukan apa apa,tiba tiba ilmuan yang diserang tadi menampokan diri,anehnya saat di ajak bicara ilmuan itu tidak mengatakan apa apa,matanya mulai mengeluarkan darah dan kepalanya mulai terbelah dan berubah menjadi:bentuk fisik asli dari parasite tersebut,memiliki kepala yang kecil ,tangan kanan sangat besar,dan juga kaki yang kecil polisi tersebut sangat ketakutan dan langsung menembak badan parasite tersebut,peluru tersebut memasuki badan parasite tersebut dan lenyap,parasite itu memakan apapun sebagai sumber tenaga mereka,seketika setelah menembakan 10 peluru,parasite tersebut membentuk bentuk seperti pistol di tangan kanan nya dan mengembalikan peluru tersebut ke polisi itu.setelah itu kepala polisi yang menjaga diluar langsung menanyakan kabar polisi yang telah masuk ke kapal itu dan belum keluar sampai sekarang,mereka yang menjaga di dekat kapal itu pun tidak melihat keberadannya,mereka semua panik dan langsung memasuki kapal itu kapten membagi 3 tim,tim yang berjaga jaga diluar,tim medis dan tim yang dipimpin dengan kapten itu,setelah membagi formasi mereka mulai melakukan misi mereka,pada saat masuk kapal angkasa tersebut didalam terasa sangat sunyi,tidak ada suara apapun,mereka berjalan dengan perlahan memasuki Lorong Lorong kapal angkasa tersebut,salah satu dari mereka tiba tiba menghilang,tanpa diketahui oleh kapten ternyata saat memasuki tempat pilot kapal angkasa tersebut semua anggotanya telah hilang,kapten vince pun sangat panik dia mulai mengecek sekitar,saat ia menoleh kebelakang dia melihat sebuah makhluk cair yang merayap di lantai dan tiba tiba loncat ke badan sang kapten,dengan sigap kapten vince pun menembak makhluk tersebut,makhluk tersebut merasa terancam dan akhirnya masuk lewat tangan kanan kapten tersebut ,kapten dengan sigap langsung mengambil tali yang ia bawa dan mengikat tangannya agar makhluk tersebut tidak masuk ke tanganya,ternyata sudah telambat makhluk itu sudah menyatu dengan DNA kapten saat itu juga kapten merasa sudah mati tapi yang terjadi malah anggotanya tersebut Kembali dengan selamat dan tidak terluka sedikitpun,pada saat mereka keluar,kaprten bertanya kepada mereka semua apa yang terjadi didalam,mereka menjawab bahwa kita tidak menemukan apa-apa dan Kembali dengan tangan kosong,pada saat itu kapten pun merasa bingung dan merasa bahwa dirinya berhalusinasi. Saat pulang kerumah untuk istirahat,kapten vince masuk kekamar dan tiba tiba parasite itu mengambil alih tangan kapten tersebut dan mulai berbicara,kapten pun sangat terkejut dan langsung mengambil cutter yang terletak di meja kamarnya dan pada saat ia ingin memotong tanganya makhluk itu mengubah otot,dan kulit tangannya menjadi baja sehingga kapten sendiri tidak dapat melukainya,parasite itu mulai berbicara kenapa ia bisa ada disini dan asal usulya,dia memulai dari berbicara layaknya manusia dengan mengatakan bahwa dia adalah makhluk abadi yang membutuhkan inang untuk hidup dan agar dia dapat menunjukan bentuk fisiknya.dia 57

bercerita bahwa sia berasal dari planet pykoil,disana mereka semua adalah parasite yang meliki bentuk fisik,pada suatu hari ada meteor yang sangat besar berisi radiasi gamma menghantam planet mereka,karena radiasi tersebut mereka semua kehilangan wujud fisik nya dan berubah menjadi makhluk cair yang tidak dapat melakukan apa-apa perlahan lahan planet mereka mulai hancur dan dia dan teman temannya adalah slah satu penjelajah yang berhasil menerbangkan pesawat keluar dari planet mereka mereka menggunakan turbo untuk menerobos beberapa galaksi mereka akhirnya terdampar di dekat bumi Ketika bahan bensin mereka tipis,disaat itu kita satu melihat sumber kehidupan kapten kita ternyata memberontak dan berniat ingin menjadi penguasa planet ini dia membunuh semua kru kita dan akhirnya meyisakan diri ku sendiri pada saat ia ingin membunuhku,aku langsung menekan gas dan karena gravitasi bumi begitu kuat pesawat kami pun menembus atmosfir bumi dan langsung menabrak tanah.aku bersembunyi di ventilasi ruang pilot dan kapten bersembunyi di dekat Lorong pintu masuk,aku melihat,”sebentar sebentar kau mengatakan berani menggangapnya kapten setelah ia memberontak”kata kapten setelah mendengar itu.di dalam planet kit akita semua terlahir oleh 1 ibu,kita adalah makhluk abadi dan bentuk fisik kami adalah beberapa bagian dari tubuh ibu kami.parasit itu pun melanjutkan kenapa ia memlih kapten sebagai inang nya,dia bilang bahwa inang yang dibuthkan saya berbeda karena saya berbeda dengan kebanyakan kaum saya,saya seorang pecundang dan membutuhkan inang yang kuat agar bisa menampakan bentuk fisiknya,saya tidak bisa memasuki sembarang orang karena jika saya terus kehilangan inang saya saya akan semakin lemah dan akhirnya hilang,beda dengan kapten saya,dia adalah parasite yang sangat-sangat kuat dia dapat menguasai penuh badan inangnya.dia juga dapat berganti-ganti inang tanpa kehilangan kekuatan.kapten membalas”bagaimana kau dapat mengerti Bahasa ku”,disaat aku memasuki inang ku aku menyatu dengan DNA dan membuatku tau semua tentang inang ku.aku sangat lemah bahkan sekarang aku masih membutuhkan waktu untuk menyatu dengan dirimu.bahkan disaat aku menguasai tubuhmu kau masih akan sadar dan dapat mengontrol tubuhmu dengan sempurna beda dengan kapten dimana dia adalah predator inangnya sendiri.”Bagaimana kau mendapatkan kekuatan?”parasite itu pun menjawab aku berbeda dengan parasite lainya,dikarenakan aku sangat lemah aku bahkan tidak membutuhkan sesuatu untuk mendapat kekuatan,berbeda dengan kapten ku yang mendapatkan kekuatan melalui baja,dengan memakan baja itu akan meningkatkan stamina,kekuatan,reflek,regenerasi dan juga kecerdasannya. Keesokanya kapten mulai menjalankan tugasnya lagi karena kapten parasit yang merasuki tubuh ilmuan itu belum ditemukan,memulai dari menemukan jejak nya lewat radar darat,laut dan angkasa.di darat melalui radar militer mereka melihat ada sebuah makhluk yang berlari sangat cepat bahkan manusia sendiri blm pernah menciptakan sesuatu yang secepat itu kecepatan tersebut di kecepatan 971 km/jam.Ia tampak sedang menuju cina,para ilmuan mengatakan,”ada apa di cina,kenapa ke cina?”kapten menjawab “disana adalah tempat produksi baja terbanyak didunia!” “ada apa dengan baja?”ilmuan bertanya kebingugan,kapten menjawab ia membutuhakan baja untuk menjadi lebih kuat,”dari mana kau tahu itu?”ilmuan menjawab,”kita tidak punya banyak waktu”kapten berteriak cepat beritahukan ke Angkatan laut agar dapat menembakan torpedo saat parasite itu melewati lautan cina selatan,”siap pak!”.pada saat itu semua kapal selam telah membidik parasite itu,parasite itu masih tidak mengetahui keberadaan kapal-kapal selam tersebut dia mulai menyelam di laut cina selatan disaat yang tepat torpedo diluncurkan,parasit itu bukannya mengindar dia tetap berenang menuju cina,badannya diketahui telah beregenerasi dengan sangat cepat bentuk inangnya pun sekarang telah sangat kuat bahkan 58

sebuah torpedo pun tidak dapat melukai tubuhnya,kapten kapal selam itu pun memberi kabar ke kapten bahwa torpedo yang mereka luncurkan tidak memberi efek apapun ke parasite itu,disaat itu juga parasite itu berenang sangat cepat bahkan awak kapal pun tidak menyadari keberadaannya parasite itu ternyata telah berenang menuju kapal selam tersebut,dia mulai menghancurkan baling baling kapal selam dan menghancurkan mesin kapal selam yang berada di bawah kapal selam tersebut,kapten vince pun meminta bantuan kapal selam lain tapi kapten kapal selam mengatakan bahwa jangan,meskipun kau membawa 50 kapal selam untuk menghancurkan makhluk ini,kau akan mendapati 50 kapal selam hancur dan semua awak kapal yang dibunuh! ijinkan saya meledakan kapal selam ini ,dengan berharap dapat menghancurkan monster ini.Tidak lama kemudian setelah kapal selam yang lainya telah pergi terlihat ledakan yang sangat besar.pada saat itu air laut pun sampai terbelah,para prajurit yang di markas pun bersorak gembira karena berpikir telah melenyapkan makhluk ini.parasit yang ada di tubuh kapten vince pun tiba tiba berbicara ke kapten vince bahwa makhluk itu sekarang marah,dikarenakan efek radiasi tersebut radiasi yang sama yang telah menghancurkan planet mereka.kapten parasite itu pun sangat marah dan merasa dendam sekarang dia telah kehilangan inangnya tapi tidak lama setelah ini dia akan Kembali dan manjadi lebih kuat dari seblumnya,”berhati-hatilah!”kata parasite tubuh kapten vince. Keesokan harinya kapten vince melakukan tugasnya seperti biasa mulai dari melatih anggota timnya dan melatih dirinya sendiri,disaat waktu pelatihan kapten vince ingin memperkenalkan Teknik Teknik baru untuk anggotanya,disaat dia mempratekan Teknik tersebut tiba tiba dia dengan tidak sengaja mematahkan tangan anggotanya,dia merasa sangat bingung padahal dia melakukanya tidak memakai tenaga sama sekali,dia baru teringat ternyata sekarang parasit yang merasukinya telah melakukan reinkarnasi yaitu telah memperkuat jantung otot dan aliran darah di dalam badan vince,dia sekarang seperti superhuman dimana dia dapat berlari 100 km tanpa merasa capek atau haus,dia dapat memakan makanan anjing kucing dan bahkan badanya dapat mencerna batu,debu dan hal lainya.dia kehilangan rasa perasa dilidahnya,dia akan memakan segalanya saat di lapar tidak hanya itu badan kapten vince juga mengalami perubahan mulai dari dia meninggi dari 180cm-190cm tulang tulang menjadi lebih besar dan juga urat-urat di tubuhnya mulai dapat terlihat,kapten vince sebelumnya sudah memiliki badan yang atletis dan sehat,skrg badanya tampak begitu sempurna,ini terjadi karena parasite yang di tubuh vince telah benar benar manyatu dengan DNA nya.saat itu vince diemui dengan seorang professor Bernama Professor George yang sekarang sedang mempelajari tentang parasite ini.sia mengatakan bahwa”ada parasite di tubuhmu,dan statemen ini tidak dapat kau sangkal!”,kapten vince langsung menutup mulut George dan membawanya ketempat yang lebih sepi.Vince bertanyanya “Bagaimana kau bisa mengetahuinya?”George mengatakan,”mulai dari bentuk fisik dan dalamanmu itu semua tidak normal,apa kau kehilangan indra perasa?”Vince menjawab”ya”,George mulai mengatakan bahwa “parasite di tubuhmu tidak memiliki indra perasa,dia memberikan mu sebuah keutungan tapi juga mengambil suatu kelebihan mu,kini tubuhmu telah menyatu dengan Parasit itu,kau telah menjadi inang sempurna bagi parasit tersebut.”kapten vince mulai bertanya ,”jika dia berinkarnasi dengan sempurna apa dia bisa mengambil alih tubuhku?”George dengan spontan menjawab,”ya”,vince langsung pergi meninggalkan tempat itu dan masuk ke kamar mandi di dalam kamar mandi ia bertanya kepada parasit itu dan dengan seketika parasit itu memberikan jawaban di kepalanya dan hanya kapten vince yang mengetahuinya,aku sudah memberi tahumu bahwa aku beda seperti parasit lain aku 59

tidak dapat mengambil alih badan orang lain,lalu parasit tersebut memberikan tanda bahaya ke vince bahwa ada sebuah parasit sangat kuat yang berada di Gedung ini!Vince langsung mulai dengan mengatakan mari kita berburu,parasit tersebut langsung menghentikanya,parasit itu mengatakan bahwa dirinya tidak mungkin menang melawan parasit itu,sebelum kita terbantai habis melawanya sebaiknya kita kabur dan menghindari pertempuran,kapten vince dengan tegas mengatakan,saya adalah tantara berkorban demi yang lain adakah tujuan saya,satu-satunya hal yang harus saya lakukan sekarang adalah menekan tombol alarm bahaya dan mulai menyuruh semua orang untuk evakuasi,setelah Gedung ini telah tersegel disaat itu lah kita akan memancing parasit itu dengan cara berteriak.setelah itu kita baru akan memikirkan cara untuk melawanya,dikarenakan tekad kuat dan hati murni Kapten vince parasit merasa termotivasi dan mulai merubah pikiranya. Setelah itu kapten vince bergegas menyalakan tobol darurat,setalah tombol darurat ditekan,para prajurit langsung berkumpul dengan tim masing masing dan membanru yang lain untuk evakuasi,kapten vince melaporkan keadaan darurat tersebut ke komandan.”komandan parasit yang kemarin diduga telah dilenyapkan terderteksi berada di ruangan markas ini”lapor kapten vince.komandan menjawab,”bagaimana bisa?”,”ceritanya panjang!ini adalah masalah darurat,silahkan mengevakuasi diri anda,anggota tim saya akan memandu anda keluar. ”kata vince.setelah semua prajurit telah sepenuhnya terevakuasi,hanya tersisa kapten vince dan kapten parasite.diduga bahwa kapten parasite itu sengaja ingin melenyapkan parasit kapten vince sehingga dia mulai mengeluarkan suara aneh,kapten vince dengan beraninya ia mendekat ke kapten parasite tersebut,dia ternyata sedang duduk menunggu datangnya kapten vince,kapten parasite mulai bertanya,”TINY,kemarilah”Vince seketika itu mengetahui nama parasite di tubuhnya Bernama TINY.TINY pun langsung menjawab dengan Bahasa alien” ⎍ ⏚⟒⏁⍀⏃⊬⟒⍀,⍙⍜⍀⌇⏁ ☍⏃⌿⏁⟒⋏ ⟒⎐⟒⍀”,kapten parasit menjawab,” ⍙⍜⍀⌇⏁ ☊⍀⟒⏃⏁⎍⍀⟒”.apa maksudnya TINY,tiny menjawab,”kapten itu Bernama Xenomorph”.Xenomorph mulai membentuk tangannya seperti pedang dan langsung menyerang Vince,vince dengan reflek nya dapat menghindari serangan tersebut,dia dengan cepat membalas pukulan ke kepala Xeno tapi pukulan yang dipukulkan hanya menimbulkan luka kecil,pertempuran pun terjadi mereka bagaikan maklhluk ganas yang saling ingin membunuh,mulai dari Xeno memakai pedang buatanya menusuk dan membelah ,dan vince hanya dapat terus menerus menghindar,pertempuran mereka sangat cepat,mereka berdua menyerang dan membalas,melompat dan berlari,pada saat kapten vince telah mengumpulkan tenaga yang cukup,dia mengatakan pada TINY;”pindahkan dirimu untuk membentuk pukulan terkeras!”Tiny menjawab,”tidak mungkin jika kupindahkan diriku ke tanganmu saja,jika pukulan ini gagal kau akan langsung terbelah,dan aku akan lenyap selamanya!”vince menjawab,”percaya kepadaku!”tiny pun memindahkan semua kekuatan dan dirinya ke tangan kanan kapten vince,seketika itu pun kapten vince melihat celah pada saat Xeno membentuk pedang di tangannya,bahwa Xeno hanya menyerang terus menerus dan tidak melindungi tubuhnya sama sekali,kapten vince seketika itu langsung memukul dengan kekuatan penuh ke kepala Xeno,seketika itu Xeno tidak dapat mengelak karena ia sedang menyerang,dan BOOM,kepala inang Xeno langsung hancur dan tanpa sepengetahuan vince ternyata Xeno dengan cerdasnya keluar dari tubuh inangnya dan langsung kabur.setelah pertempuran ini Vince baru menyadarinya,bahwa ia telah pertama kali dalam seumur hidupnya membunuh orang tak bersalah.TINY mengatakan,”biarkan aku memakanya.”Vince dengan tegas menolak,”apa kau 60

gila,tidak”Tiny dengan suara lemas berkata,”aku membutuhkan supply makanan sekarang aku tidak pernah bertempur selama itu,jika bukan karena dirimu aku sudah akan lenyap,kau adalah inang yang sangat kuat!”Vince dengan terpaksa mulai memakan professor itu dalam kendali TINY.setelah pertempuran itu selesai markas besar hancur,saat komandan menanyakan situasi ,”apa yang telah terjadi apakah makhluk itu sudah terkalahkan?”Kapten Vince langsung mengambil microphone dan mulai berpidato,”aku tidak pandai berbicara tapi,aku telah dirasuki parasite itu”,komandan terkejut dan disertai semua prajurit mereka mengangkat senjata dan membidik ke kepala vince.kapten vince mulai menunjukan parasit yang ada di tubuhnya dan langsung menyuruh TINY untuk berbicara,”Perkenalkan saya TINY,saya adalah salah satu parasite itu,planet kami hancur oleh meteor yang mengandung radiasi gamma,hanya tersisa regu kapten saya,terdiri dari 5 parasit termasuk saya dan kapten.MASSIVE,JUGGER,BLACK,TINY dan kapten saya yang berkhianat yang Bernama Xenomorph,Kelima kami memiliki kehebatan masing masing,pertama yaitu MASSIVE,sesuai Namanya ia dapat membesarkan tubuhnya,JUGGER,dia adalah kakak saya,dia sangat genius dalam mengatur strategi,dia juga adalah yang bertanggung jawab atas persenjataan kapal dan yang terakhir BLACK sifatnya sangat dingin tapi dia adalah orang terbaik dalam pertempuran,kita semua juga memanggilnya sang pembunuh beraintai,dan yang terakhir kapten kita,XENOMORPH dialah yang paling Genius,paling kuat dan paling berani,tapi kami semua tidak tau kenapa dia berkhianat dan membunuh semua regu kita,hanya tersisa aku yang selamat”.”apa tujuan mu kesini?”komandan bertanya,TINY pun menjawab,”kapten melihat bahwa di planet ini banyak inang kuat dan tentunya mereka memproduksi bahan atau zat yang menjadi makanan atau sumber kekuatan kita,aku berada disini karena aku ingin menggunakan tenaga terakhirku untuk membantu umat manusia dalam melawan kapten saya.”komandan menyuruh semua prajurit menurunkan senjata dan langsung bertanya,”apa yang harus kami lakukan?”TINY menjawab,” aku membutuhkan waktu untuk mengetahui dimana dia berada dan siapa inangnya.”semua prajurit langsung mengenakan pakaian tempur mulai dari Angkatan udara,darat maupun laut,komandan berkata,”kupercayakan misi ini kepadamu kapten!”Vince dengan bangga menjawab,”terima kasih,akan kulakukan yang terbaik!”setelah Tiny mengetahui lokasi Xeno,ia memberi tahu Vince bahwa jika terkena radiasi gamma sekali lagi Xeno akan lenyap seluruhnya,Tiny dapat merasakan itu pada saat melawan Xeno,kemampuan fisiknya berkurang,jumlah kekuatan yang dikeluarkan juga tidak begitu kuat.Vince melaporkan ini kepada komandan bahwa seluruh perajurit akan membawa bom,peluru,roket yang mengandung radiasi gamma,komandan bilang dalam kurun waktu ini hanya memiliki 5 bom, dan 1 roket gamma, gamma dilarang dalam pertempuran karena efek radiasi gamma yang dapat melenyapkan kehidupan manusia dalam kurun area tertentu.Vince bilang bahwa ia bersedia menjadi umpan,dia membutuhkan 5 pesawat jett dengan formasi ‘arrow head’ dan juga 2 kapal selam sebagai penanda posisi Xeno berada. Pertempuran dimulai dengan mengevakuasi penduduk kota cina,setelah itu tiny mulai membuat suara bising menggunakan baja.mengetahui itu Xeno dengan inang barunya langsung bergegas ke asal suara itu,setelah sampai ketempat itu dia bertemu Vince,lalu ia tertawa,”kau masi mengira kau dapat mengalahkanku?”dengan inang barunya yaitu sebuah atlit angkat beban Bernama Tom stoltman.bentuk fisik Xeno sekarang sangatlah besar dan dia sekarang dapat membuat perisai di tangan kanannya,TINY berkata kepada vince,”Berhati-hatilah,tugas kita untuk memancing”.Xeno mengatakan,” ⎅⟟⟒”.disaat itu juga Xeno mulai berlari,Vince pun juga ikut berlari,dia berlari dengan kecepatan penuh dengan tanpa disadari Xeno,Vince mengunakan kabel 61

tiang listrik sebagai senjatanya,ia memulai dengan berlari memutari Xeno setelah itu Xeno dengan mudahnya mencapai Vince dan mencekiknya,vince tidak menyerah dia langsung menggunakan tali tersebut untuk mengikat tangan Xeno dan langsung menyuruh TINY untuk tidak berada di kepalanya dengan begitu kepala Vince menjadilebih kecil dan vince dapat turun setelah itu dia dengan cepat menyuruh kelima jet menembakan bom.Tanpa Xeno sadari,saat ia ingin bergerak dia tidak bisa karena kabel tersebut telah mengikat tubuhnya,dan BOOOOOOOOOOOM! Bom mengenai Xeno.Tny langsung mengatakan dia masi belum lenyap,bersiaplah,hanya dalam kurun waktu kurang dari 1 detik pedang Xeno telah menusuk perut Vince,Vince sangat kesakitan,Xeno membanting dan melempar Vince ke Gedung-gedung disana.”kau kira kau dapat melampauiku?”Kata Xeno yang marah.Vince sangat kesakitan,dengan sisa tenaganya ia memikirkan cara mengalahkan Xeno.ia menyuruh tiny untuk membantunya dalam mengelak semua serangan Xeno agar tubuhnya tidak hancur kini TINY membuat seluruh kulit dan otot vince menjadi baja dengan begitu,pedang tidak bisa menembusnya dan masi punya waktu untuk beregenerasi,disaat itu kapten vince melihat laut.dia segera berlari kelaut,Xeno dengan sombongnya mengatakan,”dikondisimu yang lemah sekarang tidak hanya kau tidak dapat menyeimbangi kekuatan fisiku,kau juga tidak bisa lebih cepat dari aku.”Vince mulai berenang,komandan bertanya ,”apa yang kau lakukan?”vince mulai berenang.dan menuruh kapal selam memancarkan radiasi sinyal yang dapat menganggu pendengaran para simbiot,vince berenang menuju kapal perang dekat sana dan menempelkan roket gamma ke baling baling kapal lalu melompat ke atas kapal perang,Xeno melompat ke kapal perang dan dengan tanpa banyak berkata dia langsung menyerang Vince dengan brutal,mulai dari melempar pesawat pesawat yang berada di landing port,menusuk dan memukul dengan sangat cepat.Dengan timing yang sangat tepat dia merangkul Xeno, Xeno mencoba menghajar TINY.Dengan kekuatan terahirnya Vince menyuruh komandan agar kapal selam meluncurkan roket ke baling baling kapal perang,awal mula komandan menolak,dan setelah kapten vince berkata,”ini salah satu cara,tidak ad acara tau kesempatan lain,hancurkan roketnya dan umat manusia akan selamat!”Komandan dengan sangat terpaksa mengizinkan kapten kapal selam untuk meluncurkan roket,roket pun diluncurkan.TINY mengatakan,”terima kasih vince!”.setelah roket meledak,Xeno berteriak,”TIDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAK!”ledakan terebut melenyapkan kapal perang,vince,TINY dan Xeno. Mereka dilaporkan lenyap oleh komandan karena akibat ledakan tersebut tidak ada yang tersisa dari TKP itu. Setelah kematian kapten vince,di markas markas besar para prajurit kehilangan sosok super hero mereka.sekarang regu kapten vince dipimpin oleh kapten muda baru bernama Kevin,pada misi mereka mereka diminta untuk menyelamatkan Sandra yang berada di Gedung,diketahui Gedung tersebut telah disabotase oleh terroris berdarah dingin yang tidak mau patuh dengan peraturan pemerintah.saat regu kevin terdesak karena kalah jumlah dan regu bantuan masi dalam perjalanan,ada sosok hitam yang bergerak layaknya sebuah bayangan,sangat cepat dalam kedipan mata semua terroris yang berada di Gedung pun telah lenyap dan para Sandra juga aman.kevin melaporkan kejadian ini kepada Komandan,Komandan dengan percaya dirinya mengatakan,”ialah sang pahlawan!”mulai saat itu vince dikenali dengan sebutan ‘SANG PARASIT PENYELAMAT’. 62

Even if Death Do Us Part By : Kezia R - 10C A boy and a girl fell in love with each other. The boy was a reckless one. The girl was a hopeless romantic. Once, they were watching a movie. After a roller coaster ride of saving the world together, the heroine settled down and got married at the end of the story. The hero vowed, \"until death do us part.\" A touching scene. But the meticulous girl said to her boyfriend unsatisfied, \"Why is it always until and not even if? I want a love that is not scared of death. Eternal love, something that is forever, more than something in a lifetime.\" One day, the boy left the girl for another woman who he said prettier than her. He told her that he no longer loved her, and the girl let him go. He soon realized he made a mistake when he caught his new girlfriend cheating on him. He cried days and nights, but it was because he regretted his decision of leaving the person who truly loved him for desire and lust. He swallowed his pride, put his guts in a box and brought it with him to visit his ex-girlfriend’s. He took a deep breath so he wouldn't scatter, and said he wanted to get back together because he knew she didn't like questions. He held the rain streaming from his eyes back. His eyes were heavy of unshed tears. And told her he regretted leaving her. He was ready to accept all decisions of her and the aftermath. But the girl with her soft gaze and a smile, reached the boy’s hands and stroked them with her thumbs. She said, \"I want to get back together. I have always loved you.\" Her voice was dreamy. He looked upright and saw a tear coming from her eye, along with a smile on her face. He packed himself up so he would come to his senses because he thought he was dreaming. He was already conscious the whole time. \"But- but I told you I stopped loving you,\" the boy said so the girl would convince him of what he heard. The girl answered, \"When I said I loved you, I never meant until you stop loving me, but even if you stopped loving me.\" That time, the boy realized he was cynical. Her love was forever and he had squandered it for something temporary. The boy casted a few tears then kissed her, and promised that he wouldn't waste her love again. A year after their new start, the boy proposed and the girl said yes. On their wedding day, at the end of the speech, the boy vowed, \"even if death do us part.\" 63

Pelajaran Pembunuhan Dasar Oleh : Audrey Levana Gunawan - 11A [Perekam 002] [mulai rekaman] [suara statik] [suara langkah kaki] Halo semua. Kalian tidak perlu mengetahui nama saya tetapi kalian bisa memanggilku Professor Moriuntur. Pertama saya mau mengklarifikasi bahwa ini adalah kelas pembunuhan, bukan kelas pengurusan mayat. Kelas pengurusan mayat akan diajari oleh Professor Morgue di ruang kelas B. Jadi tolong jangan bertanya tentang pengurusan mayat dalam pelajaran ini kecuali pertanyaan tersebut berhubungan dengan apa yang kita bicarakan. Kedua, jangan memberi identitas asli kalian ke siapapun di sekolah ini. Kalian yang sudah memiliki pengalaman pasti sudah mengerti. Bagi kalian yang baru mengikuti sekolah ini, ikuti saja nasihat saya. Kalian tidak akan mau tahu konsekuensinya. Ketiga, kita di Akademi Thanatos tidak peduli siapa kalian. Entah kalian itu pembunuh bayaran yang ingin mengasah keahlian kalian, pembunuh amatir yang ingin belajar, detektif yang ingin mengetahui cara para pembunuh ataupun agen pemerintah yang ditugaskan untuk membongkar sekolah kami. Tujuan kita adalah mengajar tentang cara para pembunuh, tidak lebih tidak kurang. Sekarang, mari kita mulai pelajaran kita. Buka buku kalian ke bab satu, kita akan mulai dengan teknik membunuh paling sederhana yaitu membunuh dengan menusuk manusia menggunakan alat yang tajam atau lebih singkat menikam. [suara kertas] Jangan kalian menganggap remeh bab ini. Hal-hal yang akan dibahas dalam bab ini akan menjadi dasar pelajaran kalian ke depan. Alat yang paling sering digunakan untuk menikam adalah pisau memasak. Iya, pisau yang biasa kalian gunakan di dapur. Pisau memasak mudah didapat dan tidak menonjol, itulah alasan utama kenapa pisau adalah senjata yang paling sering digunakan dalam pembunuhan. Anda bisa dengan mudah membeli sebuah pisau memasak di sebuah toko atau anda juga bisa menggunakan pisau yang sudah ada di dapur. Tidak seperti racun atau pistol yang membutuhkan banyak dokumen legalitas untuk diperoleh atau anda akan perlu memperolehnya secara ilegal di pasar gelap. Pisau memasak bukan sebuah senjata yang unik dalam arti lain, tidak akan ada petunjuk unik dari senjata yang anda 64

gunakan untuk para penyelidik. Tentu saja kalian bebas untuk menggunakan kreativitas kalian untuk membuat pembunuhan yang unik. Sekarang, saya mau bertanya, bagian mana yang paling mudah ditikam dengan hasil kematian? “Jantung?” Jawaban yang amatiran. Jantung memang adalah salah satu organ tubuh yang dapat menimbulkan kematian yang cepat jika terluka tetapi jantung juga terlindungi dengan baik oleh tulang rusuk. Jadi jawabannya bukan jantung. Selain itu, menikam seseorang tepat di jantung adalah hal yang susah, jantung relatif kecil yang membuatnya susah ditemukan. Jangan khawatir, kalian akan ada pelajaran anatomi semester depan untuk membantu kalian menemukan organ-organ yang tepat. Kita mencari bagian tubuh yang mudah ditikam bukan yang paling efisien menghasilkan kematian jika ditikam. Apakah ada jawaban lain? “Perut?” Kurang benar tapi akan saya perbolehkan. Jawaban yang benar adalah hati. Hati masih dilindungi beberapa rusuk tubuh tapi dibandingkan dengan bagian tubuh yang lain hatilah yang paling mudah ditikam. Hati memiliki ukuran yang lebih besar daripada jantung sehingga ada kemungkinan lebih besar untuk melukai hati saat menikam dibanding dengan menikam jantung. Mungkin kematiannya tidak secepat dengan jantung dan akan membutuhkan beberapa kali tikaman. Ingat, tujuan utama saat menikam adalah menyebabkan kematian dari hypoxia atau kematian dari kekurangannya oksigen bagi sel. Jadi, tidak apa-apa jika anda menikam di bagian lain, yang penting ingat untuk membuat cukup banyak luka sehingga korban kalian pasti akan kehilangan jumlah darah yang cukup. Ini juga berarti bahwa dengan cara menikam, korban kalian akan mengeluarkan banyak, dan saya tekankan, banyak sekali darah. Tubuh manusia dewasa memiliki kurang lebih 5 liter darah, kehilangan sekitar 40% dari darah akan menyebabkan kematian. Alhasil tempat kalian membunuh korban kalian akan berlumuran darah sekaligus dengan diri kalian. Penikaman adalah teknik yang mudah tetapi sangat kotor. Sekarang kita akan lanjut ke bagian teknis. Penika- [suara kaca pecah] [suara banyak orang] Haah… Tidak lagi. Tuan, saya tidak tahu anda ingin apa tapi saya sedang dalam pelajaran sekarang. Apapun yang anda ingin bicarakan, kita bisa melakukannya setelah pelajaran. Jadi, tolong keluar dari ruang- “Aku tidak ke sini buat bicara! Dasar psikopat!” 65

Urgh! Ma’af, tuan tapi anda akan membutuhkan lebih banyak dari itu untuk menjatuhkanku. [suara objek berat jatuh ke lantai] Nah… Murid-murid, tadi saya akan menjelaskan teknisnya menikam, bukan? Bagaimana jika saya langsung tunjukan prakteknya? [suara tidak diketahui] Pertama pegang pisau anda sehingga bilah pisau sejajar dengan tulang rusuk. [suara tidak diketahui] Jantung terletak di belakang tulang dada agak ke kanan dari perspektif kalian, di antara tulang rusuk ketiga dan keempat. [suara teriakan, tidak diketahui apa yang diteriakkan] Sekarang tusuk dada korban kalian dengan ujung tajam pisau. Jangan lupa untuk mendorong dengan kekuatan yang cukup! Daerah dada itu dilindungi dengan sangat baik. [suara tidak diketahui] Itulah cara membunuh manusia dengan cara penikaman jantung. Teknik ini bukan untuk amatir atau yang belum berpengalaman. Ma’af murid-murid tetapi kelihatannya kita terpaksa mengakhiri pelajaran kita secara mendadak. Saya akan memberitahu profesor lain untuk menggantikan saya, kalian akan mendengar pemberitahuan tentang guru pengganti kalian melewati sistem audio sekolah. Terima kasih dan sampai jumpa, murid- murid. [suara banyak langkah kaki] [akhir rekaman] 66

Cinta di Warung Bakso Oleh : Cleon Aurellio Soeharsa - 11A Angin berembus membelai rambut Bobi yang tipis. Ia menatap sosok yang dikaguminya selama ini berjalan dengan rambut terurai tertiup angin yang sesekali menyibaknya ke belakang telinga. Namun sayang, ia hanya mengaguminya dari jauh. Tak pernah berani ia mendekatinya meski hanya sekedar berpura-pura menanyakan tugas atau menanyakan sarapan pagi ini. Ia hanya memandangnya dari jauh sambil terus mengaguminya. “Woy, ngelamun aja lu,” sapa Dimas sambil menepuk pundak Bobi. “Apa sih?” “Oh, si Laras? Ya udah, tembak aja, Men! Toh udah lama juga kamu memendam rasa ke dia,” usul Dimas. “Hussh! Ngawur kamu. Kamu ndak lihat dia itu cantiknya kaya apa? Ndak tahu, berapa banyak pria yang mendekatinya? Lah aku ini siapa, Men? Sadar diri.” Bobi menyerangi pahit. “Daripada makan hati, tiap hari,” timpal Dimas “Ah, sudah, sudah! Ayo, kita masuk kelas!” Setelah kelas selesai, Bobi dan Dimas pergi ke kantin kampus. Seperti biasa, mereka memesan kopi dan nasi campur. Obrolan demi obrolan menemani kopi mereka yang terus mendingin. Sampai akhirnya sruputan terakhir Bobi terhenti saat hampir menyemprotkan kepada Dimas, tatkala Laras tiba-tiba mendatanginya. “Eh, Bob. Nanti sore ada waktu, ndak?” Mau antar aku ke toko buku?” tanya Laras. “Nanti sore? Emmm ... ndak ada, sih. Ya sudah nanti aku antar,” jawab Bobi tak percaya. “Ya sudah, nanti aku tunggu jam empat ya? Bye!” Laras pergi meninggalkan Bobi dan kawan-kawannya. “Pucuk dicinta ulam pun tiba. Apa yang diharapkan kini terwujud juga,” celetuk Dimas. “Apa sih Dim? Cuman beli buku,” sahut Bobi senyum-senyum sendiri. Namun hatinya berbunga-bunga, karena orang yang dikaguminya itu mengajaknya keluar. Selepas pulang dari kampus, Bobi segera mandi dan menyemprotkan wewangian di tubuhnya. Tak lupa rambutnya disisir kelimis dengan minyak rambut yang biasa dikenakannya. Celana jeans dan sepatu sneakers dipakainya untuk mendukung penampilannya di hadapan Laras. Kaus putih dan kemeja kotak-kotak sengaja dibuka kancingnya untuk memberikan kesan macho dan maskulin. Segara ia pacu sepeda motornya menjemput tuan putri di kosannya. Begitu Laras muncul dari balik pintu gerbang kosan, dunia seakan bergerak lambat. Mata indah dan rambutnya yang panjang seolah asyik menari-nari karena angin yang berembus. Matanya yang berbinar serta senyum manisnya yang tak tahan untuk dipandang. Bobi tahu, jika wanita yang sangat dikaguminya itu sangat cantik dan menaruk. “Eh, Sorry. Nunggu lama ya?” tanya Laras. “1000 tahun pun aku rela menunggumu,” jawab Bobi tanpa sadar. 67

“Apa?” Laras tak mengerti. “Eh, kamu sudah siap?” kilah Bobi. “Ya udah, ayo kita berangkat!” pinta Laras. Dalam perjalanan, Bobi tak berhenti senyum-senyum sendiri. Sesekali ia melihat wajah cantik Laras dari balik spionnya. Ia begitu menikmati perjalanannya dengan Laras. Setelah selesai membeli beberapa buku yang dicari oleh Laras, Bobi memberanikan diri mengajak Laras makan bakso Mbah Mat langganannya. Beruntung wanita yang dikaguminya itu tak menolak. “Kata orang, bakso di sini itu paling enak,” ujar Bobi. “Kata orang atau kata kamu?” goda Laras. “Eh, emang bener. Kata anak-anak juga enak.” “Enak soalnya ndak nguras kantong, iya kan? Hehehe,” goda Laras. Bobi hanya menyergai. Setelah itu, obrolan mereka pun tak berhenti dari obrolan ringan sampai diskusi soal kebijakan kampus. Dari hal yang remeh temeh sampai hal yang sama sekali tak penting. Namun, mereka sangat menikmati obrolan itu. “Eh, Ras. Kenapa ndak ajak pacar kamu buat antar beli buku?” tanya Bobi. “Pacar? Pacar siapa? Aku masih belum punya pacar,” jawab Laras. Entah kenapa tiba-tiba ada rasa senang dirasakan Bobi. Jantungnya mulai berdetak keras, seolah sedang balapan. “Mau nggak jadi pacar aku?” tawarnya tiba-tiba tanpa sadar. Ada malu, takut, khawatir setelah ia menyadarinya. Lalu ia tertawa untuk memudarkan rasa canggungnya. Berharap Laras tak mendengar ucapannya. “Aku mau,” jawab Laras singkat. “Hah?” Bobi tekejut bukan kepalang. Tunggu-tunggu! Ini benar? Jangan-jangan aku salah dengar. Bobi menatap Laras dengan mata melebar dan mulut menganga tak percaya. Karena Laras melihatnya dengan tersenyum. “Iya, aku mau jadi pacar kamu,” jawab Laras seolah mendengar suara hati Bobi. “Bener? Aku ndak lagi mimpi kan?” Bobi tak percaya. “Iya.” “Yesssss! Terima kasih, Tuhan. Engkau mengabulkan doa-doaku,” pekik Bobi senang. Mereka kemudian berpegangan tangan. Lalu membayar bakso dan melanjutkan perjalanan mereka membuka kisah cinta. 68

The Last Journey for Immortality By : Dhana Kresnawijaya – 11 A Chapter 1 – Immortality Paris, 18th September 1589, I, Michael Jules Vestino, a 60 year old ‘researcher’ was taking a short break from my intensive read on the concepts of immortality and death that were available in the vast expanses of books in the libraries. I sat on the vast fields of grass under the lone tree at the park. I looked up with a smile on my face to the irresistible blue sky with clouds forming abstract art in front. The sun above the wide sky shined brightly as it embraced me. Then I gazed down and watched as kids ran around the open field with no care of the world, all the while the morning breeze grazed my frail self. Ever since I was young, I have seen many deaths. My father was killed in front of me to protect me from a drunkard. I was a young boy at the time, all I could do was hide and cower in fear as sounds of screaming and crying entered my ears. My mother was accused of being a witch like many were at that time and was burned alive on the stake. A few years later, I witnessed a scene that had truly scarred me for life. Soldiers were marching forward to kill their enemies, screams could be heard from afar, the clashing of swords, dismembering of bodies. The ground was a red sea, body parts dispersed across the earth, heads of people I didn’t know on the ground exhibiting faces of true horror, pain, and despair at their last moments. The piles upon piles of corpses might even touch the sky. After witnessing such scenes was when I started to truly fear death. The thought ‘I don’t want to die’ followed behind me like a shadow for the longest of time… I could not go out of my house fearing that natural disasters may kill me… I could not interact with people fearing that those people may come to hate me and kill me… I could not eat or drink fearing that it might be poisonous and may kill me. It was truly the lowest point of my life. It was only when I started to feel the pain of hunger and thirst that I began to think. ‘If I keep going like this, I will also die.’ ‘So if either way, I die, then… the only way not to die is to risk death to keep on living’ and so with that I brought myself up, I forced myself to go out and buy some food and drink no matter how painful it was and I went back to my little home and enjoyed probably the best meal I ever had. As I was eating and drinking, I went into deep thought, ‘what will truly stop death’ ‘Death is something that is impossible to avoid or stop and if it isn’t stopped, scenes like the ones I experienced will still keep happening’ ‘Death… is something that’s… impossible…to avoid…therefore…if that’s the case… the solution is…also…impossible.’ I was a bit dejected to find myself to such a solution but I kept thinking and that’s when the word entered my head for this first time ‘Impossible…Immortality’. A concept that is far too impossible for humans to even comprehend, living as long as time stands, without old age, nor Death. I realized that it was an 69

impossible concept to begin with, but it was just such a beautiful concept that I could not just give it up like that. So I stood and began my search for true immortality, the true cure from this vile disease called Death. I’ve experienced and learned many things since then. I have travelled the world in search of immortality. I went to China, India, UK, America, and many other countries. One thing that were quite common among the countries were that they believed in an immortal God or gods. While they are indeed immortal, not only are they not human meaning they don’t have the physical properties that make up a human, I also can’t ask them the possibilities or ways for humans to become immortal such as them because I don’t know where they are. As I was getting older, I could not travel as much with the burden of old age, and so I stayed in Paris which was my hometown. There, I started researching immortality at the University of Paris where I met a lot of like-minded individuals through my visits to the library and labs. There, I stayed day and night to research on immortality, sometimes even abandoning sleep for more time. It was only recently that I started taking breaks from my constant search for immortality, as my body and mind could not endure through such pains no more. A few days ago outside of the library with my back against its hard brick walls, I had stayed late thoroughly read some recent research on a subject related to immortality. It was pitch-black outside and it was as quiet as a mouse. Thankfully, the moonlight shines bright outside the library and with its help I was able to see clearly without any problems in the darkness of the night. Suddenly however, I felt faint and almost outright fainted with the moon as my witness. It was then that I realized that I need to take a break if not I might actually die of overworking. I decided to take a day off the next day to rejuvenate my energy and come back fresh. Not having the confidence of going back to my small room without fainting, I decided to just sleep where I am right now, outside the library. Under the bright beautiful moonlight, I smile and admire its beauty and slept peacefully, no nightmares, no dreams, just a tranquil peaceful sleep. Tomorrow morning, I woke up, looking up I saw properly dressed students and professors walking past me into the library eyeing me with strange stares. I did not let that bother me and like I decided yesterday, I will make use of the rest of this day to rest my mind and body. I remembered that a good friend of mine said the newly open park a few hundred meters from the university has a very serene and beautiful atmosphere and it is perfect place for relaxing. Taking my friend’s opinion, I decided to walk there. I arrived at the location a few minutes after. I went in the park through the gate and the moment I step foot and looked. I was blown away. It was truly a scene as shocking as the mountains of corpses I saw at the battlefield, just the opposite, it was beautiful. Grass sway along the rhythm of the morning breeze, the children were happily playing with their parents watching on the side. It paints a pleasing picture before my eyes. It was a new experience for me, a new world. I was entranced with the beauty of nature for the first time. I wonder to myself why only now have I felt this way and not the many times before that I’ve travelled the world. I thought and only then realized that I was so obsessed with 70

immortality and Death that I forgot the real reason why I wanted immortality. It’s to live. Realizing that, I just lay down under a tree and sat, and just enjoy the morning breeze with a smile on my face. Ever since then, I found a new and better reason for my search for immortality, and it’s to enjoy life longer. After that, I promised myself that I would spend more time visiting this park, so as to not lose my way again. Chapter 2 – Hope So I was there, sitting under the lone tree like any other day enjoying the lovely atmosphere when a good friend of mine from my right walked towards me. “Ey, how’re you doing old friend? Looks like you’ve been taking care of yourself well.” He said energetically. “Nothing much, just taking a short break, I’m getting old after all.” I said back along after a sigh. “…You’ve changed old man, I thought you never take breaks, whenever I meet you I feel like it’s always in the library. Finally enjoying life I see.” He frowned at me as he sat on my right under the tree. “…” I just ignored him and smile. Corentin Bazett Leroy, or Corentin for short. He’s a good friend of mine, who had a similar past to me, and also pursues immortality, but in a less intense approach. He was a kind-hearted man and talked many words, and was also the one who recommended me this park. He was a little taller than me, has attractive light blue eyes and has a very bright smile. He currently also has a coat slung on his right shoulder probably from his latest travels. I first met him at the library when we were searching for the same research material, so we shared the material together. After we both finished the material, we bonded over our similar pasts and what made us pursue immortality, and so we talked and talked. Ever since then he frequently comes to the library to talk about recent studies or research and to discuss them with me. He doesn’t really come often nowadays as he is still much younger and healthier than me and also a very energetic one at that. As we were talking about what we were just doing before this and other small talk, he mentions to me a rumor which he almost never does as it is not backed up by evidence and it was usually fake or unreliable. This rumor however was unlike other rumors. “Did you know I just went back from Greenland, It was freeeezing after all the whole country is covered in ice and snow. Well luckily I got my trusty coat to cover my back.” He exclaimed with a tired look on his face. “Hmm interesting, a land covered in ice and snow huh, sounds like walking on a battlefield covered with landmines. Anything you discovered there?’ I replied back with interest. His eyes glittered at the last question “Haha glad you asked pal, yes I did, so firstly do you perhaps know of The Death Mountain Range?” I was not surprised at the mention of that name “Yes I do, A mountainous area with a diameter of 50 kilometers surrounding the northernmost point of Greenland and its blizzards cover even further back to the sea forming an area of Death, 71

no human being that has entered within its vicinity has ever left alive due to its extremely low temperatures and deadly blizzards that can make even a tsunami look cute.” He had his mouth opened which stated that he was quite shocked with the development of the conversation “Woooow…Old man… I thought you only researched on immortality” He boldly exclaimed. “I do, It just happens to be one of the components of the research I was reading recently. Quite incredible really, what mother nature is truly capable of.” I replied honestly. “Hmm hmm good, this way, I need not explain any further. If you know that, that means you must know that in the middle of the mountain range on its southernmost point there’s an entrance to the mountain range. It’s the only way to enter the Death Mountain Range aside from sea travel as the mountains are just impossible to climb. Not that it matters, since once you enter its basically certain death.” He took a short breath and he continued his long talk as I calmly listen to his words while wondering where this would lead. “The entrance was named the Death Door for that reason and according to the citizens at the nearest town from there, the Death Mountain Range and Death Door was believed to have existed since the beginning of the Earth.”He continued. “It is nature after all, it wouldn’t really be surprising for it to have existed since the beginning of the Earth.” I proclaimed. “Yes, that is true, it doesn’t really surprise me either, but I’m not finished yet let me continue. There exist a singular town near the Death Mountain Range, and they all believed in a certain Goddess, whom they worship. The Goddess of the Moon, Arc. It was believed she will only appear and can be seen by us at the height of the full moon in the skies alone gazing at the bright full moon. She was believed to have long blonde hair with a silver-white and blue dress and was said to be blindingly beautiful under the moonlight.” He spoke with a dramatic tone. “I’m guessing this has something to do with my or maybe our search for immortality. Gods or goddesses whether real or not however are essentially different beings from us therefore the rules of immortality will differ, didn’t we already discuss this before.” I interrupted him. He then frowned and sighed and said “Man, you really are obsessed with immortality huh. Besides I’m not even finished yet, I’m getting to the juicy part now, the one you probably want to hear.” I didn’t complain back because it is kind of true in a way, so I just replied back with a “Let’s hear it then.” “You see, the Goddess had an assistant or her interpreter per say. He was described to be very handsome with pitch black hair and was very kind to the citizens of that time. He always makes rounds around the towns surrounding The Death Mountain Range, talking to people, buying food from the market, etc. Well, only once a month at the morning of the full moon night.” He took a short breath and continued on with his talk with a more serious face “This person, you see, even though he was the Goddess’ assistant was said to be a human, it was confirmed by the written text that was copied from the ancient papyrus writings of the town people as was everything that I have said before and will say later. In the writing he said it himself and I quote, ‘I unlike what people expect me to be am but a human, but with the kind help of the goddess, I was able to achieve my goal of attaining immortality, and as repayment I have decided to stay by her side for as long as she allows, it was the least I could do for her.’” I 72

immediately interrupted him right after saying “By saying this to me, you’re suggesting that there exists solid evidence or proof that such a human exists?” He was taken aback by the sudden interruption and also on my unanticipated interest on his following words, but he smiled “Hehe, now you’re interested, and well yes, there are evidences, I don’t know if it can be called solid evidence or not, but I personally think it’s quite convincing.” “At night, three of the town citizens were on night patrol and for no reason at all they decided to visit the Death Door, maybe just for fun, you know, friends doing friend things. Well anyways, at around 10 o’clock at night, they were heading there and around 50 meters away from the destination; they saw a black figure calmly walking out of the Death Door. They immediately stopped their talking and hid behind the nearest tree or bush they could find. After all, no human, nor any being for that matter, have been seen to come out of the Death Door ever before.” He said with a blank expression. “That black figure…could it be…” I replied with a curious face. “Yes, upon closer inspection from the town citizens, it can be seen that he has pitch black hair and even though not very clear from afar a face that is worthy of being called handsome with a stoic and cold expression on his face unlike what was described in the written texts. After walking calmly out of the Death Door, he walked to his right which was the opposite way of the town citizens and as he was walking just disappeared without a trace.” He answered back. “The town citizens then went back in a panic and reported to the town mayor in a hurry. The town mayor was intrigued with what he saw, and the next day he brought 10 people to accompany him to confirm his existence and maybe even strike up a conversation with the man at night. So they went a few hours earlier than the town citizens did the last night, and hid behind bushes and trees. A few hours later, with the bright moonlight in the sky, at the same time as yesterday, the man indeed walked out of the Death Door alone. As soon as the mayor and the 10 people saw him, the mayor slowly crept out followed by the 10 men and walked towards the man. The mayor tried to talk to the man with a simple ‘How’re you good sir, may I have the pleasure of acquainting with you.’ The man however with just a single word from the mayor turned his head to the direction of the sound with lightning speed. The mayor’s words were cut off and all of them stopped on their tracks unable to even move. He glared at them with eyes as cold and dark as the night sky overflowing with murderous intent and contemplation, He, was angry. The mayor and the rest’s legs were trembling, not with cold, but with fear caused only by this man’s glare. Luckily however, it was only an instant, and after that glare, he turned his back and quickly walked back inside the Death Door and covered by the deadly blizzard he was gone. The next few days, the mayor asked another group to scout as he was quite possibly traumatized, but since that encounter, the man, has not been seen again.” He explained in detail the mayor and citizen’s experience. “…” I was bewildered by the developments of the events. An assistant of a goddess, a human being that has lived since the usage of papyrus, and has the capability to enter and leave the Death Door as he so please. An immortal. I was just there, silent, with a big smile on my face, because for the first time in my long journey for immortality I saw… hope. 73

“Hehehe, thank you Corentin for the valuable information, I would like to ask you a few more questions before I depart for Greenland, is that acceptable?” I smirked at him. His eyes widen with surprise and answered me with his usual chill attitude “Wow, wow, wait just a minute, you’re going to Greenland now? The man hasn’t been seen since then you know, and even if he does see you, he probably will just avoid you.” “Well, I have a better chance of succeeding no matter how small by going there, than I do just researching here.” I answered back After I said that, he makes his usual frown face and sigh “Well, knowing you, nothing I say will stop you from going anyway, so while I’m at it I might as well just give you my trusty coat, who knows it might make you live a little bit longer within your limited lifespan.” So he grabbed his coat which was dangling on his right shoulder and put them on my right shoulder. I was quite surprised and looked at him in slight disbelief that he was willing to give away his so called ‘Trusty Coat’ to me so easily. He saw my face and smiled “Don’t worry about it, the reason I call it my trusty coat was because I’ve had it for the longest of times. To be completely honest, it doesn’t really matter to me at all.” He replied back as he pat me on the back “Well, thank you nonetheless; this will help me a lot with the low temperature.” He just smiled back at me “Glad I could help, old man. Ah right, you have some unanswered questions right? I’ll try to answer them as best I can. I have all the time in the world, so ask away.” The mood changed drastically as I started asking questions “Well in truth, I only have two questions. The man had both left and entered the Death Door, this could most possibly mean that the man’s residence is inside the Death Mountain Range and because he said that he will stay by the Goddess’ as long as she allows it, that would also probably mean that the Goddess Arc’s residence is also inside the Death Mountain Range. Is that correct?” He closed his eyes and nod “Yes based on the written text that is indeed true… Wait, you’re planning to go into Death Mountain Range?! Have you gone crazy or something!!” I ignored his last exclamation “Ha, I thought it was weird that only now do I know her, since I have never even heard of the name Arc even after I basically travelled the world, so the only logical explanation would possibly mean that her place of residence is the inside the Death Mountain Range itself whatever it may look like.” He squinted his eyebrows and look at me “Hey answer me will ya? Are you really going to risk your life for something so damn impossible? You’re really going to die this time if you keep going you know?” I just looked at him with a smile “Ever since, that time I got back up from the pitiful state of fear I was back then, I learned that life cannot go on without sufficient risks. It’s just that the risk this time is just higher than the usual, after all, the higher the risk the better the reward. Since, the reward is immortality, of course the risks are going to be very high and I’m prepared for that.” Taking in my words, he just looked at me with a sad smile as if he knew I was going to die soon after “Man, you really are crazy huh, no human being has went in and left alive you know, no sane human being after being told such a thing will still do it. ”He closed his eyes and sighed, knowing that arguing with me would be a waste of time “Well, if you do die after this, I’ll be sure to take care of your grave, old man…. Anyways, you had another question that you wanted to ask right?” 74

“Well, I appreciate the concern, but don’t worry I’ll try my best to survive.” I paused for a second to let the mood adapt and I asked “So when and why did the Goddess and her assistant stop appearing? Does it have any relation to why the man looked at the town mayor and citizens with anger different to how he was described on the papers?” He nodded right away and said “Right, mentions of the goddess and her assistant appearing stopped at the year 1020, the reason of which was unknown. Even though, the townspeople said that the Goddess was just taking a long rest for unknown reasons, the mayor debunked that idea saying it was only mere rumors and speculations, saying the facts of which are not written on the papers… I do however have a speculation on what might’ve happened.” I don’t know much about Greenland or its history, so I’m basically a sitting duck in this supposed discussion. So I just continued with “Yes?” He frowned and said “…The Vikings…To be exact a man named Leif Erikson, son of the man who discovered Greenland. His death was said to also be around the year 1020, but no one knew what had happened to him or how he died. I don’t know what he could have done to the Goddess or her assistant to make them that angry to not make an appearance anymore, but they’re the vicious Vikings after all who knows what they’re actually capable of. Besides, the truth of the situation unless confirmed or told by the assistant or Goddess themselves will always be just speculation.” He ended. “Hmm, so I guess I have to figure it out myself huh when I get there huh.” I said as I stood “Well, it has been nice meeting you again, Corentin, I finally found hope of attaining immortality, no matter how small it may actually be, for the first time in my life it reached a number above 0%. So thank you for meeting me here and for the information you have given me today and lastly may we meet again someday if fate wills it so.” I ended in a jokingly poetic manner. As I walked towards the entrance of the park, he called out to me “Hey, old man… be careful and take care of your life, I really don’t want you dying on me, the grave will be a pain in the ass to take care after all.” He said sitting under the tree with a forced smile. He looked as if he was about to cry, and it breaks my heart seeing such a face on my good friend. So, under the now setting sun and bright orange sky I turned my back and smiled as naturally as I possibly can at him and assure him “Don’t worry, my friend, I have faced many deadly challenges over my long life, and I survived through all of them. So this for me will just be another challenge for me on this road called life and it will come to pass. Farewell, my friend.” As I looked at his sad expression, I turned my back once again and walked out of the park. Not knowing that, this will be the last time I will be seeing his face. Chapter 3 – The Long Journey It was a long and far journey, and there were many difficulties that I had to face along the way. The journey took almost a month by studying the moon at night. Along the way I met a lot of kind-hearted and welcoming people, and experienced different cultures and ways of living. My journey began as I left my hometown of Paris and headed north to the famed port of Calais where I would take a boat to the British Isles. The journey took a total of 3 days on my 75

trusty horse, Juan, whom I received as a gift on one of my birthdays. I had to sleep in the wilderness to not run out of money for the rest of the journey. The nights were filled with a cool breeze and fear of wild animals that may come out at any moment. I arrived at the port of Calais. Calais were a port town meaning there were quite a lot of foreign mercenaries trading items with the locals here and there. I however just passed them and head towards the port where I would ride on a boat to get closer to Greenland. The port was full of ships of varying sizes lined up with only the docks keeping them apart. On Juan, I rode off to the largest boat and asked one of the sailors where they were heading. Turns out their boat were heading towards London, one of the biggest ports in the world. I excitedly asked them if they allow passengers because the largest port in the world must have some boats that head to Greenland I believed. Luckily enough they do, and along with that they also allow horses to board on which was perfect. So I went on the ship called La Ciel meaning the sky in French. I head down the boat to the horse stable and put Juan in one of the empty stables at the back part of the boat. As I was doing that, the boat was already starting it journey towards London. The journey took approximately a day. I woke up the next day, to find out from the captain that we were already relatively close to our destination. I saw in the furthest part of the sea, the port of London. Along the River Thames, La Ciel moved calmly towards the London Bridge. Just before reaching the London Bridge, La Ciel docked at the right side of the River Thames. I grabbed Juan from the stable and headed out to the port of London where I would be searching for a boat that was heading towards Northern Greenland, since the Northern part and Southern part of Greenland was divided by devastating ice storms therefore not allowing land travel. I visited to all the boats that were in the crowded port and was left disappointed each time as none of them were heading to Greenland or anywhere closer to Greenland. By the end of the day, I was exhausted and my legs felt like it had been sliced off by a knife. I had no choice to give up for the day and rented an inn nearest to the port. I dropped my tired body on the bed and before long I was sleeping peacefully. After waking up from the first time I slept on a bed since Paris, I immediately got up, grabbed Juan from the stable and head directly towards the port determined to find the right boat today and that’s what I did. As I arrived to the port, I immediately saw something odd on the far left of the port furthest from the London Bridge. Something that probably was not common to see. A large boat twice the size of the rest, left excluded from the rest of the boat. I was surprised that no one was going there to check it out. I decided to take a bet and head there to ask the person on the boat if he was heading to Greenland. I went in the large boat and saw one man sitting down in the middle of the main deck of the boat eating biscuits and drinking water. 76

I approached him slowly and asked him “How are you doing good sir, are you willing to take me to Northern Greenland for my research?” The man stopped biting his biscuit, opened his once closed eyes and looked up at me with wide eyes suggesting he was surprised. After staring for a few seconds, he swallowed his biscuits and stood up. He was taller than I expected standing an arm’s length taller than me. He looked at me with his now serious eyes and said “Ok, I accept, have you prepared everything?” He said in a deep sounding Scottish accent English. I was taken aback by his reply, as not only was I expecting a no, I also wasn’t expecting we were going right away “…uh yes, I have everything ready here… except for the food supplies…” He replied “Ok, I’ll provide food and drinks, we’re going right now. You put your horse in the stable while I prepare the boat.” He said in a serious and demanding manner. I was quite scared of the man, so without asking anything I just do what I was told besides at this point I would do anything to get to Greenland. The sails were lowered and we went out to the vast seas. After everything had calmed down I went up to the man and nervously asked him “Uh, my name’s Michael, Michael Jules Vestino. What’s your name? Also why did you agree to take me to North Greenland, I’m kind of curious?” He stopped rotating the wheel for a moment, looked at me, continued rotating the wheel again and said “Avrain, Avrain Valera Arkangelis. North Greenland is my hometown, you were lucky meeting me. I would have kicked you out if it were anywhere else.” I was bewildered by his answer. An actual citizen of North Greenland, where the Death Mountain Range stood is standing right in front of me. I personally would like to ask him more questions about his hometown, but I decided not to because I could see that he was not a man who talked much. I was afraid that I would anger him and got myself kicked out of the boat mid sea. The gargantuan ship that was called El Cielo had to stop at Iceland to restock the food and drink supplies because the journey was that long. I was getting sick of being on a ship for such a long period of time. There was nothing to do, nothing to explore, and the only person I could talk to is this man and he didn’t even talk much. I knew that those days were coming to an end however when I saw land for the first time in 20 days. Chapter 4 – The End of a Long Journey For the first time in 20 days, we saw land. The land was covered with an ice sheet and from afar it looks far colder than any weather I had experienced before. As we were nearing, I saw a shocking sight, the Death Mountain Range from its left side. It can be seen from afar and it towers around 2 kilometers high and has a diameter of 50 kilometers. It was white meaning it’s covered in snow. The scene made me smile as my final goal was finally within my reach. The mountain was cut off at the end of the land and was followed by the sea. The sea area around the mountain range was still a part of the Death Mountain Range and can be seen from afar with the inside being a dark abyss that was covered by the blizzards. 77

El Cielo had docked at the only dock that was available in the secluded area of North Greenland. I leashed Juan from the stable and brought him out as Avrain docked the ship. The dock that was used as our way to get down the ship looking at the equipment that was on it was mostly used for fishing rather than docking boats. So I put on Corentin’s coat and we went down the boat onto the docks. We now head towards the town where the people were. As I rode on Juan and on my left Avrain matched Juan’s pace, I couldn’t help keep looking to my right at the magnificent sight of the mountain range. Its height forced me to bend my neck to see its peak. At the furthest my eyes could see, I saw a perfect split between the mountain range. It was the Death Door, the gateway to the Immortal’s home. The distance of the dock to the town was approximately 20 kilometers and it took about 3 hours to reach the town. Surrounding the town were 3 meter tall stone walls forming a circle surrounding the town with a wooden gate in the center. Once we had reached there, it was approximately 3 P.M. and as we were around 5 meters from the gate, Avrain put a hand in front of Juan signaling we need to stop, so we did. He moved forward a little and shouted some words in Greenlandic in front of the gates that I did not understand at all and in a few seconds the huge gate opened. The inside of the town itself wasn’t much impressive, instead it looked quite small and it was all covered in snow. There were actually 4 gates on all 4 directions and roughly only around 200 people in this town judging by the size and amount of houses. Avrain took the liberty of showing me around his hometown, meeting the welcoming people, the places like the library on the Southwest of the town and the town hall right in the middle of the town. Lastly his modest house with his sweet parents along with his fiancée which was quite the shock as Avrain was quite the silent man I didn’t thought that he had it in him to get a partner. Of course I didn’t say that because I would’ve died if I did. Avrain even though quiet was kind enough to let me stay at his home. He didn’t have extra beds, so I had to sleep at the floor which was better than sleeping outside in the cold. I was already prepared to sleep in the wilderness like I did back on my journey, but I would’ve probably died if I did that here due to the cold. It was now about 7 P.M. and after the flavorful steak dinner that the Arkangelis family had prepared I asked permission from Avrain to head out and check out the Death Mountain Range which was my original plan. He reluctantly agreed and told me the words I need to shout, so that I would be allowed to enter or go out of the gates. So riding Juan, I went through the North gate and I head towards the Death Door, which can be seen from afar, as there was an opening within the long white mountain range. The journey took roughly an hour on Juan, and just around a kilometer from the Death Door, trees and bushes can be seen surrounding the Death Door even though they were rather far apart from each other. Passing through the trees and bushes that were keeping a distance of around 20 meters, I saw the Death Door and Death Mountain Range in close vicinity for the first time. It looked truly 78

horrifying, the Death Door was about 10 meters in length and the only thing that can be seen within it was blizzards and blizzards, and only blizzards. There was no end to be seen; only blizzards as far as the eye can see. I didn’t let that bother me however, and staying at a safe distance of 21 meters from the Death Door within the cover of the dark wood trees, I started a campfire, sat down, and waited for the man to come out. This really was the best I could think of without risking my life going inside the Death Door. It was now exactly 12 at night according to the bright moon right above me and there was no single sign of the man at all. Since, it was late; I went back to the town and rest for the day. As I lie on Arkangelis family’s guest bed, I reflect on my journey and how far I had come. I slept peacefully thinking I’m finally close to reaching my goal. I woke up the next day feeling refreshed and ready to continue my search for the man. Luckily, Avrain mentioned yesterday that I could do whatever I wanted when I’m here because there wasn’t really much to do here as adults besides drinking at the tavern and fishing. So I stood from my bed and grabbed some food and drinks that the Arkangelis family had kindly prepared for me on the table as I woke up late and probably missed breakfast. I took Juan from the town stable and rode off to the Death Mountain Range. Today, I decided to patrol the entirety of the Death Mountain Range that was on land that I could. I only managed to patrol only the right side of the Death Mountain Range as I had to start from the Death Door meaning that I had to go to the corner and back. After night was closing in, I started a campfire in front of the Death Door and waited till midnight, when I would pack up and return to the town to rest. It was quite taxing on the body doing this, I could feel my arms and feet aching from the constant stress that it had to endure. I however just decided to ignore it and kept going with my research. This was my routine for the next 21 days as well, with no results to show at all. As the days goes by, I could feel my body getting weaker and weaker. I just chose to ignore it for the 22 days that I had done the routine, but today I woke up feeling immense pain from my entire body. My back felt like it had been pierced by a nail, my limbs are stiff and couldn’t move. Luckily, it was a temporary thing and it stopped right after. I thought that my old body was finally starting to act its age. I had felt that my body was getting closer and closer to death. I could stop and take a rest and I would have longer to live, but I had to make progress, if not I would have to leave empty-handed by the end of it and would die of old age without even a glimpse of result on this search for immortality. After 23 days of being around the Death Mountain Range, there was without a doubt no sign of the man at all. The only way I would actually make actual progress is if I went in the Death Door and met with him inside along with the goddess. Either I stall my certain death longer and die of old age or disease, or go in the Death Door risking my life for an insignificant chance of succeeding to become an immortal. The choice was hard and I had to sit on the bed for a long hour to think of an answer. I had made up my mind that I will risk it all and go in the Death Door. So following the routine I had done the past few days I headed towards the Death Mountain Range where death awaits me. 79

I tied Juan to the tree with a leash, and light up a torch. I faced the magnificent and tall Death Door towering in front of me. I felt nervous, desperate, afraid, but I took some time to control my breathing, ignored my feelings of dread and walked forward into the Death Door with wavering confidence. The temperature received a significant drop and added to that the cold wind of the blizzard. The only light that illuminated the dark path was the torch, and as I looked down I knew I had made a terrible mistake. On the white snow were grey structures of various forms, everywhere the eyes can see. It doesn’t stop, as I move forward, skulls, ribs, pelvises, appeared on the ground as if saying to me, ‘What a dumb man, blinded by his ideals’ I was naïve. What was I thinking? No one that has ever entered was able to leave alive, what made me think I could? I was just an old man with nothing special to show off. There was however no choice. Even though I had only walked only a few meters, when I looked back it was pitch black. I could not see the entrance, only darkness filled with the blizzards. This was the reason why no one was able to leave alive. Once you got in, you would be trapped and the only way to go is forward, so along the snowy earth and the heavy blizzard I move my legs forward. My feet were numb from the cold, the torch had long since died off, and I was shivering, my whole body aches and pains due to frostbite. I had no sense of time; I just walked forward through the pathway that the Death Door had given. My legs gave up on me. I couldn’t walk any further and I fell on the snowy earth, so I crawl forward on the white floor reaching for a hope that was never there. I kept moving forward as that was all but I could do, but I was having a hard time keeping my consciousness afloat. The blizzard showed no signs of stopping, and the end of the path was nowhere to be seen. As my consciousness was about to die off, I saw a figure calmly walking towards me. I couldn’t see clearly, but I could tell that he was that man, the immortal. He stopped in front of me and said in a calm soothing voice “… you remind me of myself back in the day, I shall give you another chance.” At that moment, as I reached out to the man, I blacked out. I woke up on a plain of grass under the night sky. I sat up in a daze and examined my surroundings. First I looked back and I realized that I had come out on the other side of the Death Door. I was ecstatic that I had actually survived. Then I looked forward, and my thinking stopped. Far in front of me above a hill, stood a crystal blue castle so beautiful. Its beauty was truly indescribable; I was instantly entranced, so I approached it. I entered the castle through its massive crystal corridor and as if in a daze I went up the crystal-blue stairs that seem to go on for forever. After that flight of stairs, I walked forward . My feet stopped. The grass field fills my vision; in the middle of it all stood a woman with long stunning blonde hair that flows along with the night breeze looking up at the big bright full moon. It was at this moment that I realized what being an immortal truly meant. 80

Under the moonlight, she looked at me with her cold red eyes. In a single instant, I heard a *slash* and I fell to the ground, bleeding from my abdomen and severed arms staining the vast grass field. As I looked at the beautiful goddess once more, I smiled “ah…Immortality… is…truly beautiful…” My consciousness faded and that was my last journey for Immortality. 81

Bag of Chips By : George Margono – 11 A “Peter, you’re late for school!” I sat on my bed staring blankly at the wall, trying to gather bits of my soul that left me while I was asleep. I have a caring family that loves me unconditionally. It’s the kind of ideal family you see in movies, the kind that is usually the main character’s second home after they ran away from their own imperfect one. Of course, I’m grateful to have them. It’s like I’m living the dream life. As I button up my school uniform, I glance at the tie laying limply on my desk. I stared at it for a solid minute and decided reluctantly to put it on. I knew how to tie a tie from my dad. I was quite good at it too. As a matter of fact, if I ever joined a tie tying competition, I guarantee that I won’t be in last place. I headed down the stairs to the first floor where all my family greeted me with a cheery smile on their face. I could see my mom vacuuming whilst calling someone, possibly talking about stocks; my sister sitting in front of her laptop busily typing, perhaps writing essays for her university; my dad pacing around the house with a cup of coffee in his hand and a pair of headphones on his… well, head, presumably on a call with a client. I could tell they were all quite busy, but the moment I sat on the table to eat breakfast, they stopped what they were doing and ate with me. It was a warm feeling that I would normally never admit to any of them. I looked around the house as I chomped on the soft cheese sandwich my mom made for me. The house was clean without a dust in sight. The walls were decorated with family pictures and the chandelier on the ceiling accentuated the dark oak picture frames. I finished my meal, bid my family goodbye before I went to school. Suddenly, I felt a strong pang in my toe. I winced and looked down to find a green bottle on the floor… was that… a bottle of beer? I rubbed my eyes and looked again to confirm my suspicion, but I was mistaken. It was only the green colored leg of our sofa. I was out of the house. I stopped walking. Something compelled me to go back. I sighed, gritted my teeth and walked back in. There was a pack of chips in my room. I was never really a fan of chips. They tasted good for sure, but I keep finishing them too fast and that just left me looking for more chips to munch on when there were no more. I grabbed the bag and put it on his working desk. He, unlike me, loved chips. He used to say that chips can run out quick so I should savor each chip, but I never really listened. “Is that for me?” he asked, looking over his shoulder. I nodded. “Why would you give this to me? You should eat it instead.” 82

“You love chips, don’t you?” I answered. He stared at me with an almost pained expression. Then, he laughed heartily. “Thanks, Peter. Have fun at school!” I walked away and out of my house. I stood in front of my house staring blankly at the school bus, my soul leaving me bit by bit. I had a family that loved me unconditionally. It was the kind of ideal family you see in movies, the kind that is usually the main character’s second home after they ran away from their own imperfect one. Of course, I was proud to have them. It was almost like a dream. If I had such a happy dream, I wouldn’t want to wake up to reality at all; a reality where the house got a bit dusty, just enough that I couldn’t tell what was window or wall, the family pictures rotted with termites feasting on our faces, and the chandelier that used to hang majestically on the ceiling laid pathetically shattered on the beer-bottle-littered floor. I wouldn’t want to wake up to a reality where mother always laid sprawled on the ground addicted to the smell of liquor and sister doing all that she could to gain money; a reality where my father left us to meet with the heavens. I guess I should have savored those chips. 83

Sunny Cradle By : Jason Matthew – 11 A What is the Sun? Is it the plate onto which we latch our fickle laughter, a symbol of positivity – do they not know of being pulverized upon contact with the Sun? A wax-wing murderer, perhaps it is the cluster of gases around which we revolve. I know the Sun is a star; it’s just that I had never felt the difference before. “It is kind, bright and soft. Now pack up.” Yes. I was often told of how the rays of Sun tapped and danced upon the graze of my skin, as if a gentle artist had taken stroke of its magnificence; a sunny cradle of maternity. I shoved the moist leather-wrapped package in my rough linen sack. But what the Sun is, its appearance – its warmth and its presence. What is it like? It’s dark. Accompanying the percussive kicking of the scorched and rooted earth entering every stomp of our feet was a sombre clearing of trees: teary funeral bards dressed in black capes as if mourning our arrival with the most fragile of branches underpinning one another, marking each with brown fingerprints of the soul interchangeable to those of two lovers bidding farewell. Farewell. As the mountainous path converged into a single track, I was only greeted with the lukewarm waving gestures of twigs incited by the passing wind. Were they waving at me? Poor boy, the breeze jeered. But I was sure there were other wretched children like me who had yet to see the Sun. “You’ll know once we get there. Keep walking.” It kind of smelled. Was it a dead animal? I couldn’t tell. Where are the animals? Though for an instant, I could feel the strangely welding sparks of our tedious midnight tryst, the sparse mist akin to one frail Parent. Again, that smell. What was that smell – like a meld of strange decay, the marriage of pungent whiffs of rusted cutlery and an uneaten, infested and rotting chunk of meat. Did the Sun ever smell like this? “We’re close.” 84

The shape of the terrain was irregular. Amid the polite bowing of flowers was a short up-trail of grass. The mud is printed with heavy footprints, a single step forward revealing the mass of water soaked into the ground. Alas, we had reached the peak. It was a solemn view, that – the bountiful skeleton of the wild, the trees, all seen from the same towering height above all heights man could ever imagine, bare their pitifully thinned out and drooping leaves with the same lack of grace. “…Look up. That’s the Sun.” As I looked up, what awaited me was not a graceful sense of relief, a moor, a symbol, a murderer nor a lifeline. It was a depiction of sadness; the painter had run out of all other hues in life, leaving only a pitch-black canvas of the night, not a single star in sight. I tilted my head down in disappointment to a sight of roughly patched dirt. Beyond me was a casket paved in hardened clay, and above it, a wilting pick of roses too pathetic to call a bouquet. The Sun had set. Who did you just bury? 85

Cerita Pendek (Tanpa Judul) Oleh : Kenneth Alexander Santoso – 11 A Hari pertama bulan September. Kata orang September ceria. Ya, mungkin aku setuju dengan itu, Tidak ada salahnya berharap bulan September menjadi bulan yang penuh dengan keceriaan. Apalagi bulan ini sekolahku mengadakan program school journey di alam terbuka dan yang membuat seru lagi adalah kedua sahabatku--Killie dan Orchad akan menjadi satu kelompok denganku di school urney ini. Mereka adalah manusia paling gokil berimajinasi tinggi yang pernah kutemui. Bayangkan saja! Saat ujian, Kilie meminta izin ke toilet, dan 5 menit sebelum waktu habis, dia baru kembali. Katanya dia ketiduran di toilet. Beda lagi dengan Orchad. Saat gilirannya presentasi di depan kelas, dia pura-pura kejang, Hingga harus dilarikan ke klinik sekolah. Gila 'kan? Tapi bagaimanapun juga, mereka adaiah teman yang sangat setia. Bayangkan saja! menemaniku dihukum meskipun mereka sebenarnya membawa tugas itu. Ya, meskipun belum selesai juga. Baiklah, cukup perkenalannya kali ini. Aku akan cerita perjalananku bersama teman-temanku saat acara school journey. Pagi itu kami diminta datang ke sekolah pukul 06.00 tepat. Aku yang tidak pernah bangun sepagi itu harus berusaha sangat keras membuka mata, menghilangkan rasa ingin tidur lagi, mempersiapkan jiwa dan raga untuk dating ke sekolah agar tidak telat mengikuti kegiatan itu. Untungnya aku tidak setelat kedua temanku itu. Hampir saja mereka ditinggal karena telat datang ke sekolah. Setelah guru memanggil nama kami satu per satu dari A sampai Z dan memastikan semua hadir, kami akhirnya berangkat. 2 jam perjalanan menuju de Hidden Lee Village terasa begitu cepat, karena sepanjang perjalan kami menikmatinya sambil bercerita dan tertawa. Sampai di lokasi, kami langsung melakukan upacara pembukaan, kemudian dilakukan pengarahan kegiatan. Kegiatan yang mengangkat hari sudah mulai gelap dan akan ada Hokage yang menculik salah satu anggota kami. Tanpa kami sedari, Killie hilang. Hanya teriakan dari kejauhan yang kami dengar. Kami sangat khawatir dan ketakutan. Namun, ada surat yang sengaja ditinggalkan oleh Hokage. Jika kalian ingin menyelamatkan kawan kalian, carilah nasi pecel di desa Hokaido yang berjarak 500 meter ke arah timur laut! Tanpa membuang waktu, aku dan Orchad berjalan ke arah timur laut. Namun tidak ada penjual nasi di Desa itu, hanya seorang nenek tua yang sedang makan. Tunggu! Mungkin yang dimakan adalah pecel. Ya, memang benar. Itu adalah petunjuk kedua. \"Nek, boleh kami meminta pecelmu?\" tanyaku ramah. 86

\"Boleh saja, Nak. Asal kamu tinggalkan temanmu di sini!\" jawab nenek itu meminta Orchad untuk tinggal. Baiklah, aku akan membuat rencana. Setelah aku menyelamatkan Killie, aku akan menjemput Orchad dari nenek tua ini. Setelah menyerahkan Orchad, nenek tua itu memberiku sebuah kunci yang ada di balik piring nasi pecel itu. Kunci itu adalah kunci rumah rahasia Hokage. Aku pun segera menuju rumah itu dan membukanya. Aku tidak percaya dengan apa yang kulihat. Killie dan Hokage sedang khawatir. \"Kamu siapa? Aku tidak punya teman sepertimu. Sekarang temanku adalah Hokage, Dia memberiku makan yang enak ini. Kau? Apa yang sudah kau beri padaku?\" tanya Killie sinis. \"Oh, begitu. Baiklah. Kupikir aku salah tentangmu. Kau hanya ingin enakmu sendiri saja.\" Aku pun kembali untuk menjemput Orchad. Namun Orchad pun sama sikapnya dengan Killie. Dia merasa aku mengorbankannya untuk mencapai tujuanku. Aku merasa sedih sekali, kedua sahabatku meninggalkanku. \"Joe, Joe.,\" Suara Mama terdengar di telingaku. \"Bangun Joe! Ngelindur, ya?\" tanyanya. Pelan-pelan kubuka mataku, ternyata itu hanya mimpi. Pantas semua terasa aneh. Untung hanya mimpi. Aku bersyukur tidak kehilangan teman-temanku yang paling gokil itu. Aku kemudian menceritakan mimpiku itu kepada mereka. Kedua tertawa terpingkal-pingkal mendengarnya. Dari mimpi itu aku belajar satu hal, bahwa sahabat adalah segalanya. Jangan pernah mengorbankan sahabatmu hanya untuk menyelamatkan dirimu sendiri. 87

The Dream of Immortality By : Kinardius Lukman - 11 A Chapter I Where It All Started ―In the year 1737, a devastating earthquake hit Mother Earth. It was caused by magic breaking through the seals placed upon it that were placed millennia ago by powerful mages. At the time, they were fighting against nefarious mages, hell-bent on conquering the world and reshaping it in their image. The tide of war has turned in evil‘s favor. Seeing the war was almost lost, they knew they had to take desperate action. They took an old scroll, preserved by magic, and nodded to each other. They stood over the only major intersection of ley lines under their control and drew the ritual circle. As they chanted, they, the evil mages, and every other mage felt magic drain from their bodies. By the next moonrise, magic, as it was, will have been completely wiped off the world. After completing the ritual, no magic-user was spared. All the civilizations of the Old World collapsed without magic, and everything that was preserved with magic, including most magic books and historical records, quickly deteriorated. Barely any remnants of the old, powerful civilizations, their legacy, and their teachings can be found. The seal had stood the test of time until 1737 when the sun, moon, and all the planets had aligned in just the right way that it temporarily magnified magic so much it burst through the seals. Mother Magic had returned to the Earth.‖ explained Mr. Mark, the teacher of Magical History, while levitating a marker to write on the board. Then, he turned around and saw a student, Tristan, sleeping. He called out his name thrice, and without getting any response, he shook his head and muttered an incantation. Suddenly, a ball of water appeared above and splashed the sleeping student. Tristan jolted awake, his classmates laughing and giggling at him, and glared at his classmates, but when he saw his teacher‘s expression and glare with such intensity, he backed down. He asked Tristan, ―What was I explaining about?‖ ―Uh… I don‘t know.‖ Mr. Mark pinched the bridge of his nose and said, ‖I know it‘s the last lesson on Friday, but at least pay attention. History is …‖ Tristan had stopped listening yet again, regretting yesterday‘s decision, ―I shouldn‘t have played around with that magitech equipment yesterday… It took hours to fix it and now I‘m tired.‖ ―… and that‘s why you should not sleep in class. Understood?‖ Tristan just nodded his head, ―Yes sir.‖ Brrring! The school bell had rung and Tristan stuffed his belongings messily into his plain, pewter green bag then left the school. He met up with a few friends and to their usual hangout spot. After talking, he waved them goodbye and walked on the usual route home, looking at the things around him. ―I have lived in this city for my entire life and yet it still seems magnificent. I could see magitech everywhere; it‘s a great decoration for this city. It has always been interesting to me. However, I do wonder if there is a world without magic, it must be very 88

odd…‖ he thinks as he looks at the buildings and transportation around him. Bright, eye-catching signs float in front of buildings and were lit up in vibrant colors. The sky was a bright blue while the Sun dodged the clouds above and smiled down softly. The city was pretty big and 5.6 million people live here, with very low crime rates. Many vehicles were on the street, some were moving on the ground, some were hovering, and some were parked. They come in various sizes, types, and colors. ―Magic is such a wondrous thing, are there any bounds to magic? I can‘t wait to learn more!‖ he muttered to himself. He looked down and brought his wrist closer, he saw his watch, powered by ambient magic, mirror the sunlight. When he saw it was 4:10 P.M., his eyes widened and he sped up his pace. After dashing for 10 minutes, he saw that he was close to home, but then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw an orange-striped cat walking across a street and his eyes widened when he realized that it was going to be hit by a truck. He ran to the cat, caught the cat by its tail, and pulled it out of the way. There was something in the back of his mind that was nagging him, something felt wrong about the cat, but he pushed them further back into his mind. He felt a rush of wind on his face as the truck raced across the length of the road and a loud honk can be heard, but the vehicle was nowhere to be seen anymore. He scowled to himself, thinking, ―Some people just don‘t care about animals, but they‘re living things too. Is the driver drunk or something?‖ Turns out that driver was, as a great crash can be heard in the distance. He was jolted out of his thoughts when the cat scratched him in the legs and walked away. ―So much for saving it…‖ he thought, wincing at the injury when he took a step. He took out a magically shrunk first aid pack, a simple, medium-sized white box with a green plus on top, and took a seat on the park quickly did the first aid measures. He poured antiseptic on a piece of cotton, tapped it on the wound softly while grimacing at the slight pain. Then, he wrapped a bandage and stood up carefully. He looked around and saw the Sun had continued to walk across the sky. He knew he had to hurry home and so he did. He walked with a noticeable limp through his neighborhood, unaware that something was following him. The houses in his neighborhood were mostly similar in shape and size, but the color varies house-to-house and there are a few exceptions to it, like the mansion a few blocks down. He reaches his house and after magical signature scanning, he unlocked the gate and door, went inside, and the wards that were designed to protect human lives had sprung back up. He looked around the house, checking a small screen that records human presence. He sees that his parents had left the house an hour ago. ―Thank you Lord and deities, I‘m not going to be reprimanded by my parents.‖ The cat then went behind a tree and shifted into a humanoid magical creature, thinking ―Well… That just happened. Guess I‘m honor-bound to thank him for saving the ‗cat‘. At least he seems like a nice kid.‖ An hour later, the magical being, which has shifted to the form of a man, knocked on the door and Tristan opened it. ―Hello, good afternoon,‖ Tristan greeted the man. He responded with ―It is a fine afternoon.‖ ―I‘m sorry, but I don‘t think we‘ve met.‖ ―Yes, we haven‘t formally. I have been called many names, but I‘m Edward and you can call me Ed.‖ ―Hello Mr. Ed, I‘m Tristan. May I ask what have you come here for?‖ ―Straight to the point, huh? I like it. Anyways, I came here to thank you for rescuing my ‗cat‘. It has been my companion for so long and I feel that his savior deserves a reward, but I don‘t know what. What might you like? I shall grant a wish…‖ 89

Tristan was tempted, but he remembered what his parents told him. ―Tristan, when we are not home, remember this: you should not accept any gifts from them unless they have sworn themselves on their magic and life. Here is the oath you must ask them to recite. People who wish harm would not want to recite it in fear of losing their life and magic.‖ He replied, ―Mr. Ed, not that I doubt you or anything, but can you recite the words on this piece of paper?‖ Ed nodded, took out his wand, and said, ―Smart, kid, you know how to keep yourself safe. I swear on my life and magic that I have no intention of bringing any kind of harm, directly or indirectly, to Tristan and his family for the period of my visit to their home. Let the Lord and the deities be the judges of my oath and hold me to it.‖ A white light flashed on his wand, signaling the oath has taken place. Tristan, seeing that Edward was still alive, allowed him in, but was still wary of his offer. Tristan turned to Ed and asked, ―What‘s the catch?‖ ―No catch, I am honor-bound to gift you something. I swear on my life and magic that what I just spoke was the truth. Let the Lord and the deities be the judges of my oath and hold me to it.‖ He raised his wand and it glows white, proving the oath has been made and that he was telling the truth. Tristan thought for a moment, something seemed fishy but he ignored the feeling, before saying, ―Immortality seems nice.‖ The man went silent and the small smile was wiped off his face, ―Are you sure?‖ Edward asked, but the response was an ―I am.‖ He tried to dissuade him from his choice, ―Have you reconsidered any other options?‖ ―No need, immortality sounds like the best option. The stories of legends all stem from immortality and I want to be a part of it.‖ ―Immortality may sound like a good or amazing thing, but please reconsider because immortality is —‖ ―Are you going to grant me the wish, as you have said you will?‖ Ed sighs, ―If that is what you want, I have no choice but to grant it. Though I implore you to rethink your choice and not be rash, I‘ll give you a day to rethink it and I‘ll come back tomorrow.‖ ―I don‘t need to rethink it; I want the wish to be granted now.‖ Tristan didn‘t really realize, like many other times, that he was being rash. Ed contemplated for a moment and then sighed before saying, ―I‘ll come back tomorrow to pick you up for the immortality ritual. For now, here is a potion for preparing you for tomorrow‘s ritual. Drink it before you go to sleep, it‘ll be least painful then.‖ Ed gave Tristan a flask containing a potion as purple as an amethyst. Edward then explained about immortality, when he will come to bring him to the ritual, and what other skills come from it, but Tristan wasn‘t really interested and thought about what he could do with his wish. After the ignored explanation, Ed said goodbye to Tristan and took his leave. ―I‘m sorry, but you must go through this.‖ Ed thought sadly, knowing Tristan was a good kid, just slightly blinded by his rashness, naivety, and beliefs. Tristan was ecstatic for the next day. He can‘t stop thinking about what he‘ll do. ―Maybe I‘ll invent a new field of magitech, or find remnants of the Old World.‖ He continued imagining what he‘d do in the future even as the Sun departed, the sky darkened, and the full moon shone like a beacon. His parents returned to see Tristan deep in thought, Tristan welcomed them home and they went to the spacious, azure-walled dining room. They talked throughout dinner about trivial things: school, work, their days, and more. Soon, the clock has shown 10:30 P.M. and Tristan went to his room. He looked around his bedroom, seeing his yellow-spotted ultramarine walls, and turned to his desk, still messy from the previous day‘s reading assignment. Right before he went to sleep, he whisked out the shrunk potion from his pocket, un-shrink it, and drank it. He made a face at the taste but wiped it off. He tucked into bed and ―I can‘t wait 90

for all the adventures I will have…‖ was his last conscious thought before he enters the dreamscape. Little did he know, adventure and danger lurk everywhere, and not everything he sees will be good. Chapter II It Has Begun It was a nice morning, the Sun was smiling gently at the world, the birds were singing songs happily, and the trees danced in the breeze. Tristan looked around his room. ―Something seems a bit off,‖ he thought but shrugs the feeling off. He goes downstairs and cheerfully greets his parents, ―Good morning, mom and dad.‖ His parents looked at him a little oddly, turned to each other, and talked through their mind link, discussing what could‘ve got their son into such a good mood in the morning, especially because he isn‘t a morning person. ―Good morning,‖ they said, ―What‘s gotten you in such a good mood?‖ ―Today, I‘m going with a friend. He wanted to show me what he recently made, you know me and magitech?‖ he replied, hoping that his parents wouldn‘t ask for more details. ―Okay then, have fun. Remember to be careful though. You remember the last few times, don‘t you?‖ He did remember. He‘s already had five incidents from playing around with magitech in the past 3 months alone. He thought to himself, ―I really need to be more careful and learn more before modifying them… That shield spell works like a charm.‖ He hears a knock on the door and says, ―That must be him. See you later, mom and dad.‖ ―See you, son. Remember what we‘ve told you.‖ He opens the door to see a boy his age. ―Um, hello. Who are you?‖ He chuckled, sounding vaguely familiar to Tristan, and said ―Did you forget? I said I was coming in a younger form.‖ ―Oh, yeah…‖ Tristan trailed off, remembering that he didn‘t take note of what his companion said, cursing himself for his inattention. ―Are you going to stare at nothing all day?‖ Ed asked with an amused smile. Tristan shook himself from his thoughts and nodded. The sun shined softly as winds bring the sweet scent of honey from a nearby field and embraced them as walked. Then, Ed excused himself for a moment to shift into his adult form. After the shift, he held Tristan‘s shoulder firmly as he teleported both of them. ―Can‘t allow anyone to see underage minors teleporting. Minors are also forbidden to enter the ritual chambers without adult supervision,‖ he elaborated, then muttered to himself, ―It has never always been like this.‖ Tristan didn‘t understand what that was supposed to mean, shrugged it off, and followed Ed into the hallway. They walked through the spacious, seemingly endless gray hallway. The silence was deafening, they could hear their footsteps‘ echoes. It started to unnerve Tristan. After what felt like 30 minutes, which was just 5, they arrived at a ritual chamber. Ed entered, beckoning Tristan to enter. The walls were a dull green and windowless and the room was dark, lighted only by a single bulb hanging on the ceiling from a thread and a few candles, and smelled musty. Ed locked the door and turned to Tristan, ―Listen, these last few minutes are your last few minutes as a mortal. Very few people have the ritual and even less have done it. Rethink on this decision, please. Being immortal is not as great as it sounds. We could undo this wish for 91

something else, but this isn‘t the best wish,‖ Ed tried to convince Tristan. He faltered for a moment but didn‘t change his mind. Ed slumped at his response, seen from his body language, and said, ―Well, okay then. You‘ve drunk the potion I gave you yesterday right?‖ ―I have‖ Tristan replied. ―Okay, we‘re set. Get in the ritual circle. Under any circumstances, do not leave these boundaries.‖ Tristan saw Ed pointing at the white outermost circle drawn on the crimson floor and stepped into it. Ed looked into Tristan‘s eyes for confirmation and Tristan nodded. Ed started to chant in an old and forgotten language, alien to all those of the New World, and only comprehensible by the people of the Old World. Ed‘s eyes started to glow red as he chanted. Tristan was fearful by the stern appearance of the easy-going man in front of him, especially the red eyes that glowed with hidden power and the hands that glow with a blue flame. Ed moved his hands in a way that seemed nonsensical to him, but as he saw patterns in the movements and the new carvings on the floor exactly the same as the movements, he realized, ―Those are runes, but I don‘t recognize any… That‘s odd, all modern rituals would have this one rune. Maybe I just missed it or -‖ Any further coherent thoughts were stopped from forming as he experienced such great pain. His blood felt like it was boiling, his insides were being scorched, burning as hot as the Sun, and his throat constricted so much that it felt like his neck would be snapped. Not even a small sound came out when he tried to scream. Finally, he welcomed unconsciousness with open arms and let it take him away from the world. A few hours later, Tristan was dragged back to the conscious world. Gasping for air, he quickly looked around and saw Ed leaning on a wall, reading a book. It looked to be very old, yet it still looks well-preserved. ―Ah… I see you‘ve woken up.‖ ―What was that pain? Why didn‘t you tell me about it?‖ Tristan exploded, but Ed just shook his head, ―I can‘t tell you. If I did, the chance of success would drop to 2.3%, and let‘s just say the consequences are harsh.‖ ―Well, what are they?‖ ―I‘m won‘t list them. You‘re immortal now and if I tell you, you might be scarred for the rest of your long life.‖ Ed told him. ―My head hurts, did I break something?‖ ―It seems like you didn‘t, though you might have a concussion from your fall. I think you deserve some explanations about the ritual, now that it won‘t threaten you.‖ He said, ―The ritual has broken your soul‘s connection to the cycle of Life and Death. Unlike other fake rituals for immortality, which only extends your life for a while, you need not repeat nor go through the pain again.‖ Ed explained, ―I modified the ritual to give you help. You can now put on masking charms that cannot be taken off by anything now nor in the future. I also gave you an anchor point in your mind, it‘ll take a while to find, but you can use it. Finally, I gave you eidetic memory to be able to remember important information. I also fixed your attention span…‖ Ed took a deep breath and warned Tristan, ―All of these will be very useful for the future. Remember it I suggest you keep this for yourself, bad things will come if you don‘t,‖ Tristan listened attentively this time and nodded his head. Ed helped Tristan get up and healed his concussion. ―There we go, you‘re patched up. Let‘s go home before your parents worry. Here‘s the magitech device to complete your alibi.‖ Tristan turned on Ed and asked, ―How do you know?‖ ―Your mind is undefended. A lot of people's are too. Rarely anyone knows how to defend their minds and even less knows how to read it. It‘s an old art. Don‘t worry, I have sealed that ability and only use it when needed. I don‘t go around and read people‘s minds for fun. There are special things in that magitech device you‘re holding. Don‘t lose it, it‘s very important.‖ Tristan nodded, trying to wrap his head 92

around the current situation and trying to solve the mystery that was his elder friend. They walked in silence for the journey home. The Sun had turned in for the night, the moon had taken over, and the stars were winking at them. They took in the city view around them; vibrant street and building signs and street lamps shine through the dark night. The bustling city had calmed down from the day. Barely any vehicles can be seen and nearly nobody was on the streets. Finally, they arrived at Tristan‘s house and Ed turned to Tristan, ―I guess this is goodbye. Remember what I‘ve said. Have a nice life, kid.‖ ―Bye Mr. Ed, will I ever see you again?‖ ―Just drop the ‗Mr.‘, it‘s just Ed now. The world is a small place, we might meet again soon.‖ They waved farewell at each other. Ed looked back at Tristan, who was entering his house, and thought, ―Good luck kid.‖ He left the premises, leaving no trace that he was ever there. When Tristan entered the house, he greeted his parents and showed them the new device. His parents looked amazed at the device Tristan held and worried, ―Tristan, where did you get that?‖ ―From my friend.‖ ―Is it safe?‖ ―It is.‖ His parents continue asking questions even as they are eating dinner. The clock showed 8 o‘clock and Tristan told his parents, ―I think I‘ll go to my room now. I have some homework to do.‖ He did, but it wasn‘t due until the next two weeks. He entered his room and saw that his room was in the same condition he left it this morning. Books were strewn all over the table, the green curtains were closed and the bedsheets were neatly placed on his bed. He shoved the books into a messy pile and put the device on the table. He saw a red circle and poked it. When it started to whir, he retreated, fearing the worst, but the device opens. It looks brand new, yet sounds old as it opens with a creak. He looked inside and saw a few thick books and a note written in messy handwriting. He wrote the note to himself, ―Hello Tristan, if you‘re reading this, it means that you have become an immortal. There are many things to be learned as an immortal, but I can‘t help with everything. The laws of the Ancients prevent me from doing so. Here are some books to help you with it. You don‘t need to finish reading it now. You have forever to do so, but I recommend you do it ASAP. It‘ll be very useful to you. Trust me, you‘d need them. Don‘t worry, those books are self-updating. There is a thin book inside, it‘s best to use it as a journal. The thick books are about shielding your mind, how to apply the masking charm, and many more. I know you‘re still living with your parents so I had cast a spell on the book to change its title when other people read it. Enjoy immortality. – Ed‖ He muttered, ―Thank you, Ed. Hope we‘ll meet again soon…‖ He turned to the stack of books and his mouth dropped. ―I‘m supposed to read 8 books?! And each of them is, like, 1700 pages long?!‖ He looked incredulously at the stack of books. He shook himself out of his horror and looked at the titles. ―The Aegis of the Mind‖, ―The Art of Disguise‖, ―The Wonders of Magitech‖, ―Defensive and Offensive Spells that will Save Your Life‖, ―Science in Magic and Magic in Science‖, ―Powerful Battle Tactics Explained‖, ―Useful Spells: Household and ‖, and ―Politics Through the Ages‖. He wondered where Ed had gotten those thick books, but then he just stopped that train of thought and chose to read the books. Then, he realized something; the books were thick because it was written on thick paper. Turns out, there were only 400 pages. ―Still a lot of pages,‖ he thought, ―but at least not as many 93

as I thought.‖ He looked at the time, 8:27 P.M., ―I still have time to read something… I‘ll read the magitech one now.‖ Two hours later, he put down the book and let out a yawn. ―I got so many ideas now, but I guess I‘ll go to sleep now.‖ He stood up, walked to his bed, and tucked in, letting himself get transported into the world of dreams, and awaiting all the adventures he will have. What an adventure it will be; a great adventure of adventures lies ahead… Chapter III Seemingly Normal Tristan went about life as usual and soon, Monday has come back. He starts the day by being grouchy. Then, he had his breakfast and prepared to go to school. At school, he meets his friends and they have a nice chat before lessons start. In class, he paid a lot of attention to the teachers closely, even in the lessons that he said were ‗boring‘. The teachers were quite surprised but welcomed this new development. He talked with his friends during the breaks and after dismissal. They noticed the development in him and asked about it, he merely responded with ―I‘m trying to improve myself.‖ After that, he went home and carried out his activities. After that, he‘d read the books Ed had given him, and finally, tuck in. He fell into this routine for weekdays. Once the weekend has arrived, he‘d feel more cheerful due to the absence of the need to go to school. He‘d follow the same routine on weekends, but with less grouchiness and with going to visit friends, play around with magitech knowledge, or reading those books replacing school. This routine stuck with him for the next few years of his life until he graduates from school. A few years later, he had recently turned 17. He was over the moon about it; he could leave home, explore the world, and learn more about it. However, he also felt down because he would be leaving the only place he could call home. He had a party and invited many friends over. After celebrating his birthday, he talked with his parents and they agreed to let him go out into the world after he graduated, albeit a little hesitant. They will miss him terribly, but they knew he was already old enough, moreover, he had promised to visit them twice a month and to call them often. Time passed quickly for them and soon, Tristan graduates from school. They went to the graduation and farewell party hosted by the school and met a lot of people. Colorful streamers were hung everywhere and a large golden banner etched with ―Congratulations‖ was hung for everyone to see. Music blasted through the speakers and people talked, danced, and played games through the night. The day after the large gathering, they had a small, private, merry party for his graduation at home. Tristan and his parents had grown closer as he grew up and he stayed with them for the next month, spending their time together bonding and recalling fond, silly memories. Before Tristan had to leave the city for college, they had one final farewell party. It was a small, private, sappy, and heartwarming one. There‘s nothing fancy, just a day of spending the whole day together from morning to night. Finally, the time has come for Tristan to leave and they all had a teary farewell. 94

College wasn‘t too hard for Tristan. He went to a city on the other side of the massive archipelago nation and met a lot of people there. He took his most favorite thing in the world as his major, magitech, and a bunch of others. He did well in everything, from the projects to the exams, and made a lot of new friends. In his spare time, he would hang out with his friends, take a stroll through the campus or a nearby park or continue reading the books Ed had given him. He also fulfilled his promise to his parents, who were happy that he did. Just like before, time had passed so quickly for him. To him, it felt like only a while since he entered college that he‘s graduating. The graduation party was amazing. Banners were hung everywhere in the large hall and colorful lights flashed everywhere. There was a large dance floor in the center of the room and tables serving drinks and foods arranged close to the walls. There was a podium for the talent show and the well-decorated game booths with fun games were on the opposite side of the room. Music played all throughout the night and people were dancing to the beat. Tristan had done all to be done there, he played all of the games, danced with others, and talked with his friends into the night. After that, he flew back and had a teary welcome from his parents back at home. They spent a lot of time catching up. Time ticked by really fast. In the year 2033, at 22 years of age, Tristan was accepted into a magitech company and he diligently sketched and designed many devices. From his diligence, he rose through the ranks quickly until he reached the Head Magitech Developer (HMD) position. After a few years, he married and settled down with his family near his parents. He had met Cora when he was 29, it was more of a business meeting, but soon attraction grew between them and they went on a few dates. Tristan had short, straight black hair and brown eyes. She had long, lush hazel hair and sapphire eyes. They married when Tristan was 32 and Cora was 31. Later, they had children who were a blend of both parents. The first child, a son named William, was born on August 11, 2045, and he had straight copper hair and indigo eyes, a blend of his parents. The second child, a daughter named April, was born on April 24, 2047, had long, straight, dark chocolate hair and a pair of heterochromia eyes. As time went by, the cries of babies hush down and those babies grew up. Soon, it was their first day at school and Tristan and Cora were teary and proud at the same time. He‘s always let his children visit their grandparents often and they‘d share some memories together. He and his wife also spent a lot of time with their children and drill many important lessons into them in hopes that they grew up to become great people; they will. They‘ve always been close to their children and they‘re still close to their parents. Their life seems so perfect, like the story in a fairy tale. Time went by even quicker to Tristan; one moment, his children were crying and babbling, the next, his children were walking and talking, and now, they‘re going to school and making many new friends. Both William and April were outgoing and made a lot of new friends. He felt really proud of them and it felt like a great life. However, shadows loom on the horizon. It was 2059 when the tragedy struck. Tristan‘s father passed during his sleep at home, at the age of 75. He seemed really healthy for his age, and yet the tragedy struck. They mourned for him for months to come, as are the traditions of their family and many other families in the city. After the first part of the mourning period, they cremated his body to allow his soul to be disconnected from the mortal world and traverse peacefully into Death‘s realm. None were as heartbroken as Tristan and his mother as they were the closest to the late head of the family. 95

Just a few months later, a second tragedy struck. Tristan‘s mother passed too, following her husband into the realm of Death. Even before the mourning period of his late father has passed, another mourning period is to be put into place. The wording of Oath of Togetherness in Marriage they had sworn during their marriage was slightly different from other ones and it was taking a toll on her, sucking the life out of her and she knew her time was almost up. She told them all, ―I do not have a lot of time in the mortal realm anymore. I think now is the best time to share the other memories you have not heard.‖ And she did, she shared and told stories of her and her late husband‘s experiences, sometimes breaking down before composing herself and continuing. At night, when Tristan was alone with her, she told him more of her memories that she‘s comfortable sharing, and after he left, she writes in a journal the memories she didn‘t get to share. Not even 8 months later, a third tragedy struck. Cora‘s parents had passed in an airplane accident in which none had survived and all the passengers‘ and crews‘ body was incinerated by the inferno when the plane‘s magical sensors and magitech equipment was disrupted by a freak storm. Tristan was close to his parents-in-law, especially due to the bonding they had and as they tried to help and comfort him. And now, they were gone. All of this hit Tristan as hard as a tsunami. The loss of four people he was very close to in succession devastated him and his emotions were destabilized for a long time to come. Cora was also devastated by the successive horrible incidents. However, they both knew that their children needed them and so tried to cover their raging emotions. They continued to do the same things as before all of this with their children. The children understood deep enough what was happening and wept with their parents. ―Why must all of them leave us like this? They were still young for Lord‘s sake. Have we done anything to anger him or the Deities?‖ he thought. They agreed that the successive incidents will be called ―the Family Tragedies‖, but they call it ―You-know-what‖ because they fear the name‘s power, which is a real thing there, and that it might happen again if it‘s said or invoked. After a year, the first, second, and third mourning periods are up, they were successive periods, but they still missed them very much. They knew that they couldn‘t be heartbroken all the time; it will just attract even more problems. They slowly gathered their emotions and fixed their problems. The kids are going to graduate soon. Each of the two graduation parties joined by his children was great, seemingly on the same level as his. Their parents are really proud and happy for them. They also spent a month after graduation with their parents, just like how Tristan did. The farewell was a sappy occasion. After which, they went out of the city to go to college before returning to work in the city. They caught up with their parents and stayed in contact with them and each other. Soon, they also got married and settled down with their own families. Things seemed to be looking up again. For the next two decades, things were going fine. His children and grandchildren were doing great. They were all happy and spent time with each other, sharing stories. They were one big happy family. Cora had retired at age 67 while Tristan had retired at age 74, though reluctantly as while his love for magitech was big, his love for his family is even larger. 96

The nation they lived in had recently been destabilized by a border war and now a new ideology was rising. The family had refused to accept it because it wasn‘t moral, but some people had started to promote it. The government tried to crack down on the new ideology threatening their reign, but it was very challenging; when they cracked down on an island, the supporters would cause problems and sow discord among the populous on another island. One day, Tristan was taking a stroll through the street, content with his current life. He had aged with time, even after his prime, and when he realized it, he thought, ―I thought I wouldn‘t age, but this is a good thing for disguise purposes. This way, no one would find out about my secret or Ed.‖ When he remembered Ed, he missed his presence and was very thankful to him. Though he might not have known him for a long time, it was a life-changing experience that was given to him by Ed. ―I wonder where he is right now,‖ he added in his mind. He looked around the city and saw trains zooming through floating tracks, towering skyscrapers above casting their shadows below, and colorful, floating platforms that move across the city, bringing people from across the city to other parts. As he walked on the street, he saw someone carrying heavy boxes. ―He looks suspicious though. Not many people would carry big boxes ever since the invention of those efficient robots,‖ Tristan thought as the man went through the backdoor of a building, ―Maybe I should follow him.‖ He sneaked into the building, following the suspicious man. He entered the room and saw boxes placed haphazardly and walked to one with caution. He opened the lid as saw a fine, grey powder, and starts to panic. The smell of smoke starts to seep into the room. He instantly become alert and ran through the hallway, adrenaline rushing through his blood, the only sounds came from his heavy breathing and footsteps. He took the emergency slide that winds around the building in case of an emergency. He ran away from the building, preparing for the worst, but then it was silent for a moment and Tristan looked relieved. Suddenly, a large explosion was heard and he could feel his eardrums burst. The building tore itself to shreds which are blown in every direction. Due to the pain, he didn‘t see the debris coming at him until it was too late. He felt the wind sweep him off his feet and when he focused his eyes, he saw shards of glass and metal approach him at breakneck speeds – and then nothing. Chapter IV Hurt and Regrets He opened his eyes slowly. When realizing he was in an unknown place, he sat up quickly, feeling dizzy as he felt blood rush quickly into his head and felt his head throbbed. He took a moment to re-focus his eyes and eyed his surroundings. ―This isn‘t my house! It isn‘t the hospital either! Where am I? Whose house is this? Was I kidnapped?‖ he panicked. After 5 minutes of panic, he tried to calm down as he realized there wasn‘t anything that will hurt him there. He carefully puts his feet on the floor and analyzes his surroundings. ―There is a table on my left. Are those books the ones Ed left? He must‘ve cast a spell on the book to prevent it from getting too far from their owner and keyed it to me…‖ he turned his eyes to the right side of the room. He saw a beige bookshelf with books neatly placed in it and an empty, white, wooden closet. A long, full-body mirror with a blue-painted wooden frame was hung near the door. He 97

walked around the room, feeling the soft carpet under his feet, and heard only his breath. He walked over to the mirror and saw that his facial features had changed. Instead of straight black hair, he now had golden-brown hair and his eye color had turned into a brighter shade of brown. ―This is odd,‖ he muttered to himself. Then, he walked over to the table to find a note. With his eidetic memory, he recognizes the handwriting to be Ed‘s. ―Hi, Tristan. If you‘re reading this, you must have already ‗died‘. Of course, you have not really died, I cut your soul‘s connection to the cycle of life and death, remember? What I meant by ‗died‘ is suffering a terrible accident. Anyways, you‘d find out that your body and facial features have changed. Every time you ‗died‘, your body is transported here and is put under a healing coma and You‘d stay as a male every time you come ‗died‘ because that was your gender when you became immortal. The room you are currently in is the anchor point I was talking about. You need to find it if you want to change it. You are now bound to the Law of the Ancients. It is something that all immortals are bound to. That‘s the top book in the stack. I also put the latest newspaper for you to read. I wish you the best of luck.‖ ―Thank you, Ed, wherever you are,‖ Tristan said. He saw that the date of the newspaper was June 3, 2090, his eyes widened in realization, ―It‘s been 2 months since the accident…‖ He started to break down. He really wanted to meet his family, to console them, and show them that he is alive, but alas, he was now bound to the Law of the Ancients. To find out more, he read the top book, ―Laws of the Ancients & What They Mean to You‖. He skimmed through the book, being absorbed into it. After a few hours, he finished skimming and was deep in thought. ―This entire book so thick, and yet it is literally only about one concept; Immortals cannot go back to their old lives whence said immortal has ‗died‘. I need to find a loophole, quick.‖ He spent the next few hours searching through the book, the sounds throughout the period of time were only the turning of the thick pages and frustrated growls coming from Tristan. He was exhausted by the search for a useful loophole and the failure of finding one infuriated Tristan. Finally, he just threw the book onto the table and went to bed. The next morning, he woke up and remembered what had happened. He was really heartbroken when he realized that he could never go back to his old life; go back to the family he loved. This broke him to the foundations and he tried to release himself from the pain in many different ways. At first, he just couldn‘t think straight, the wound was too fresh. He turned to all types of binging to try to relieve the pain; alcohol, food, movies, TV series, games, etc. His habits progressively got worse. After 8 years of living an unhealthy lifestyle, his magic, which has been trying to prevent disease, fails to prevent the heart attack and he woke up a day after the incident. He sees that the method he tried to employ had failed miserably and regrets doing that, he tries to fix it now. ―I have an idea. The pain might go away if I focus on trying to help people. That‘ll work,‖ he thought, but when he sees that there are so many movies and games that he hasn‘t watched and played yet, he added, ―I have all the time in the world. I can just do it later. Right now, I wanna try that newly released game on the console in the other room.‖ He got off his bed and prepared himself for the day. He continued procrastinating, postponing his idea to help other people until one day, when he opened a book, his journal. He saw the pictures of the family he had to leave behind and the pain came rushing back into him. He remembered all of the things he has done since his last revival. ―I shouldn‘t have done this. I think I should willingly 98

revive myself so that I can start anew.‖ He did just that. He reached into the pocket of the trousers he was wearing to find a small device. He spun it around and found the ‗on‘ button. He turned it on and a robotic voice asks, ―Would you like to restart yourself?‖ ―Yes.‖ ―For what reason?‖ It asked with the same robotic voice. He replied, ―I have messed up a lot for these last 2 lives I‘ve lived. I want to start anew.‖ The device became silent and it broke the silence by saying, ―I understand. Good luck Tristan.‖ The robot‘s voice surprisingly replied with a sympathetic and oddly familiar voice. ―Was it me or did the robot sound familiar and sympathetic?‖ He asked himself but got no answer as he suddenly blacked out. Chapter V Hidden Identity, Fixing Scarcities, and the Rise Tristan wakes up and his mind feels more clear and more focused. ―I swear to myself not to ever use that device,‖ he swore to himself. He quickly went off the bed and turned on the holographic computer. He checked the calendar and saw it was October 2101 and learned a few things about the world he currently lives in. ―I see it hasn‘t changed too much from 2090, when I left… my old life,‖ he thought, but hesitated when he reached the last part; his pain had not receded, it had only been covered up so far. ―I really need to discover a way to actually heal the pain. Maybe I should study psychology to heal myself,‖ he pondered on the idea, ―Yeah. That may work.‖ Then, he went to the mirror and examined himself. He saw that he was taller than last time, had storm grey eyes, and had messy sandy brown hair. He turned around and strode over to the seemingly unaging, spotless bookshelf. He picked out several thick, hardcover books. ―It‘s been a while. It‘s odd that we don‘t have to go to college to get our degrees anymore… We could just go to a testing station to do take the tests for the degrees. I admit, it seems really odd to me, but whatever. That‘s how they do it in this era anyway. Can‘t believe I‘m talking to myself now… Well, that doesn‘t matter right now,‖ he thought out loud. Tristan found himself bored with magitech; he was quite incredulous at first, but slowly come to terms that magitech is no longer as important to him as before. He thought, ―Maybe I could learn a lot of fields instead of just one. I think I‘ll plan for the next few revivals. ‖ Tristan had not left the house for the last 11 years, mostly because of his poor choices. He chose to take a stroll across the city outside, only to find out his large house was in the outskirts of the city. He shrugged, ―I might as well take this time hiking through nature before going into the urban city. Wow, those are tall buildings. At least I can see the stars…‖ Tristan hiked through along the dirt path, taking in the sight. The moon was high above, shining with all of its might, while the clouds seemed scared and left it alone, and the stars were scattered moondust in the sky, sparkling and shimmering as if joyful. The trees around him danced with the cool wind, which welcomes him with open arms. As he got closer to the urban center, he saw the moon dim and the stars disappear one-by-one. He could see the looming skyscrapers and hear the transportation whizzing past him at high speeds. Tristan found himself lost, the script being used was similar to the one he was familiar with, but he noticed some inconsistencies; three letters were new and one letter had disappeared. ―Hello, excuse me. I got lost in the large city. Can you point me in the direction of city hall?‖ Tristan asked a man nearby. 99