Hana stretched lightly and felt so refreshed. She dreamt of her beloved just now. It was a memory way back when their eldest was just a baby. A day out to the zoo turned comically disastrous. Well, it was because it ended with a bad leg cramp and a twisted hip from a series of unfortunate events. Maybe because the memory was enhanced with a '3D submersive experience', it felt so real, including the pain felt. It felt funny to walk down memory lane, but at that time, it was definitely not funny at all. 

 

Arash was sad, very sad. Though she felt that in her distant memories, it wasn't so. A bit of fatigue won't make someone like Arash sad out of the blue; he's a realist! Hence although happy to see her love in her dream, she felt quite concerned. 

 

Hana quickly reached for her smartphone. It has not been charged, as the battery was already less than ten percent since Kuro was not around. Hana had been switching off her smartphone most of the time all week. She switched it on only during exciting moments when she wished to take some pictures and OOTDs during her most recent excursion to the Waterwave Clan’s ground. Granted, the pics taken were superbly otherworldly! If she could upload them to social media sites, they could definitely garner at least thousands of likes! 

 

“Dear, help Mistress get that handbag, please.” Hana projected her dusty handbag full of kitty prints to enlighten the confused Elemental Fiend.

 

F1 crawled enthusiastically and fetched the bag as gentle as it could using its front limb. Hana rummaged through the handbag to get to her powerbank and attached the cable to her already dying smartphone. She sighed in relief and patted the head of the Elemental Fiend. F1 placed the handbag at the rack and continue to stand vigil beside the aunty, providing ample illumination.

 

Hana unlocked her smartphone enthusiastically. She was a bit too busy ever since she returned from her excursion to Ara’s home. She realized she didn’t get to chat properly with Arash and her Mom. Last night she only left with a short message to Arash to inform him that she’s back; a habit she cultivated early on. Others? Whatever. She didn’t really care, especially if by messaging, both parties will feel bitter within. Better not.

 

Once she accessed the chatting app, she saw a long message from her beloved; she had to scroll so many times! It could be new tutorials for something significant broken down to easier parts for her to apply. Arash was such a gem.

 

Feeling a bit parched, Hana looked around for a bamboo canister on the bamboo rack. Lo and behold, the hardworking F1 already scurried over to fetch one, dipped it inside the water blob at the edge of the cave dwelling, and presented it to its Mistress with a soft drone. 

 

Hana was deeply impressed! She took the water and drank it well. The only thing was the water became extra warm from the Elemental Fiend’s touch. The aunty didn’t mind since the surrounding was quite chilly and a good cup of warm water made her felt warm and fuzzy inside. If only there were tea leaves around…

 

She slowly went through the text diligently; a message this long meant a great deal of details. Knowing Arash’s habit of writing concise information, this meant that there will be a lot to digest. 

 

After a few minutes, she unintentionally loosened her grip over the bamboo canister. The partially filled cup fell on her lap, wetting her. Nonetheless, Hana didn’t blink, her eyes were bleak. She closed them for a few seconds and took a few deep breaths to calm herself. She massaged her temples with her right hand and continued reading what was written by the love of her life. Her eyes had progressively turned red.

 

Papa: …Tok Silihan, the leader of the aborigine clan near our town explained the repetitive occurrence of the ‘Gates of Hell’ phenomena in a span of 150 to 200 years apart. I have made a deduction based on the Elder’s explanation. This might be a dimensional crack phenomenon, or a space tear, something that we often come across as fictional. It could be true, it could be false. But the fact that you did appear inside an unknown cave within a time frame of a few minutes showed that it is highly possible.

 

Papa: Tok Silihan believed it wholeheartedly, and so did I. If he heard it from someone, I wouldn’t believe it so much. But he had experienced the phenomenon once. He is credible. He gained nothing from lying. While telling me the story, his face was filled with guilt. He looked deeply troubled and miserable. Sigh. There must be something more he kept away from me, I could feel it. But the fact that at least he told me this is already good enough. 

 

There was a gap of nearly thirty minutes for the next message to appear just by looking at the time sent. It must be hard for Arash to type the next sentence out. Hana, who read her husband’s messages late could only gasped in sorrow after reading the next sentence.

 

Papa: Ayang, there won’t be a rescue coming. 

 

Papa: I am so sorry. I’ve failed you.

 

Hana felt her world turned dark. These two sentences were a finite response which had dashed Hana’s hope ruthlessly. 

 

Papa: The next time the ‘Gate’ opens, you and I, both of us will be long gone. Unless we find a way now, from both sides. It will be tough. But we need to keep persevering until the end. We need to keep on trying for the sake of the kids. They need you, Ayang. I need you. Promise me you won’t give up, Love. 

 

At this point, tears already flowed heavily. Her vision blurred terribly, she had to pause from reading Arash’s messages to wipe the tears away and blow her stuffed nose. The fact that she could never see her family ever again made her felt deep grief. Nonetheless, she wasn’t really shocked with the revelation. Deep down she already knew something like this was an eventuality. The peculiarities of her surroundings and the intelligent animals around her were too glaringly obvious. However, she was still in denial and hoped that Arash will find a way to save her somehow. As the last wisp of hope diminished, she felt a gaping hole forming within her heart. The warm beating heart turned cold.

 

The Soul Hall Domain was shaking violently; all spiritual beasts contracted to Hana felt the turbulence at the same time. Their eyes trailed to the little cave atop the vertical hill while feeling the heavy emotions the Mistress was emitting. They stopped performing their tasks and training while remained pensive. After a while, other beasts present started to notice the peculiarities, but they kept quiet and kept on practicing. The atmosphere became heavy with tension without any tangible reason.

 

Hana continued reading the lengthy messages with shaky hands;

 

Papa: I know by now, you must be crying, Ayang. Pull yourself together! You need to! Tok Silihan has given me a clue. A few hundred years back, he said there were some of his clansmen who had gone through the Gate. They never returned. Perhaps, they still lived and build a community in the place you’re trapped in. You must try to find their traces. Only with numbers, one can achieve something.

 

Papa: Another important thing Ayang, I have a reason to believe that this leak in signal coverage might not be permanent. Hence, it could disappear anytime. It could be next year, tomorrow or even today. We need to be prepared for the inevitable. Be strong. We can do this! 

 

Hana felt so scared. Arash kept on throwing a hand grenade again and again to her face, her heart couldn’t take it. The mobile connection was the only reason that kept her sane! 

 

Memories of her two little ones flashed past. 

 

The time she got Aira. It was a difficult birth; she had to be induced. The pain made her felt traumatized for nearly three years before she dared to try again for a second one. The time when Aira called her ‘Mama’ for the first time, her first step, her first day at kindie (Hana cried for the whole day), how sad she was when Aira told her she wished to celebrate her birthday with friends at ‘school’ rather than with her parents at home. The time when Ai hugged her happily before sleep after feeling contented with a good bedtime story session. 

 

Aina. Her lovely little pearl. She said ‘Mama’ first and refused to say ‘Papa’ while spitting porridge over his face. A bit wilful and always love to spill whatever food given to her, but will pick random items on the floor and stuffed into her mouth. The time when she nearly put a live wire into her mouth and scared the hell out of Hana and Arash, the time when she picked Aira’s 3D butterfly stickers and ate them up, the time when she coughed so bad until she had to be brought into the clinic for neb¹a short for ‘nebulizer’ over here. It is used for kids who had breathing problem due to terrible cough. Can’t remember what medicine was used for the nebulizer though haha..was it Ventolin?. The time when Aina waved at her from the car window with starry eyes, hoping to be cuddled again later.

 

Hana swiped open her smartphone to tap on the ‘Gallery’ app. She swiped through a series of videos to see her beautiful Aira and Aina in matching pink frocks with white rabbit prints making cute faces and laughing their hearts out. Tears rained down like there’s no tomorrow.

 

Will these memories of her little daughters become the last ones?

 

She was unwilling!

 

She will not be played by fate!

 

Hana stood up abruptly, startling the concerned F1. It droned softly while taking a step back. Hana walked towards the levitating water bubble and dipped her hands in. She splashed some water over her face and took three deep breaths.

 

I am calming down.

 

I must calm down. She whispered to herself like a mantra as many times as she could. Ten minutes went by as she tried her best to be rational, just like how a grown up should be.

 

Nothing is impossible. There must be a way. I must make a new plan. No one is going to help anymore. I need to help myself. Hana whispered to herself calmly, as if her outbursts from before were just a figment of imagination. 

 

The Soul Hall Domain slowly calmed down.

 

Hana suddenly felt something wrong somewhere, but she couldn’t pinpoint where that awful feeling comes from. It might be her sixth sense. It was as if dangers were coming. Feeling confused she turned around haphazardly to locate the danger. Only F1 looked back while Pii-chan was still sound asleep defencelessly on the floor. Hana immediately established a Soul-link with Q-chan at the bottom of the hill to observe outside, but nothing was out of place.

 

Ku-chan! Her heart nearly stopped beating as she realized it might be her favorite pet-snake.

Authors’ Note:

1. neb = a short for ‘nebulizer’ over here. It is used for kids who had breathing problem due to terrible cough. Can’t remember what medicine was used for the nebulizer though haha..was it Ventolin?