In a small apartment complex, there's a woman with an undercut hair as black as the night, with her eyes' color like blood, sitting on her couch, eating breakfast. 

 

"Another issue of assassination, huh..." 

 

The news is about leaders getting threats from armed civilians. Threatening them to give funds for the people in the slums. 

 

"People are dying and yet people aren't doing anything..." She carries her dishes into the sink, sulking. 

 

She returned to her seat to watch more news when,

 

"Arete!"

 

She was choked and hit her chest to breathe. After that, she immediately stood up from her seat and took care of herself. She works as a waitress in a famous restaurant in their area. Her friend waited for 20 minutes outside before speaking again.

 

"Arete, we will be late for our work!" Her friend shouted at her door.

 

She didn't answer and continued drying her hair.

 

"Arete!"

 

"Come in." She said simply.

 

Her friend immediately opened the door and entered with bread. She smiled at Arete and waved the bread, "I bought it for us!"

 

Arete gave her friend an extra key so that if something happened to her, people wouldn't have a hard time helping her.

 

"Mio, you are making noise." She glared at her.

 

"It's always quiet here in your house! And stop glaring at me, I'm making a point."

 

Arete. That's just her name. She requested to remove her family name when she was able to save enough money. She is 22 years old. She grew up in an orphanage. When she was young, some people came to their house. They are called social workers. Arete, who was sitting on the floor, next to her mother who had passed away, asked the people what they needed. The people were so shocked by what they saw, they couldn't answer the child's question. One of the social workers knelt in front of Arete, saying that her mother was gone and someone reported a foul smell coming from their house. They were concerned about the child since there's a rumor surrounding Arete's family. The girl turned to her mother and hugged her tightly because she knew she had to go with the social workers.

 

Mio became her friend at the orphanage. Her parents also died and that was the way for them to meet and talk. They attended the same school. They both dreamed of working together in the same place. When they grew up, Arete decided to separate from Mio. Her friend respected it, but when they saw each other on their first day at work, they knew it's fate. 

 

"That's the point. There is peace here.”

 

"It's hard to be alone all the time."

 

“...”

What happens in her work is normal. It is up to the customers to leave a tip for the waiter and waitress. She doesn't even force them to be loyal customers because the place she works is not safe and comfortable. Her bosses are rotten up to the core. 

 

“ARETE, ARE YOU LISTENING?!” Her boss shouted.

 

She nodded, "I use my hearing to hear you and this is one of my roles as a waitress so I don't look stupid when customers ask me questions."

 

The restaurant had an emergency meeting after the inspector closed it on suspicion of not being a clean and safe environment for people especially children and women. Arete knew that this day would come because the managers and their bosses always put aside the complaints from the security guards, waiters, and their loyal customers.

 

Meetings are usually about reducing or adding a dish displayed on their menu. They are also informed of changes in schedules if an employee leaves the job.

 

“Two strikes this month!”

 

"The first one, sir, was the one that poured on me because the chef made a mistake in giving the order even though the number was already written on the wall. The second one is the one that the loyal customer of this restaurant touched me. I only acted in self-defense.”

 

"Fix what you're wearing!"

 

"I'm wearing the restaurant's uniform."

 

"I'm a man! I know what my fellow men are thinking!”

 

"Don't tolerate the actions of others, sir." She answered calmly. Her other co-workers were nervous for her because she always answered back to their boss without fear.

 

"Are you saying I'm stupid and a pervert?!"

 

“Sin comes from the mind and the influence of the environment. You have female employees. You have a mother and a female family member. While you protect people who commit disgusting actions, the rights of women are diminished.”

 

"That's it! You are suspended for two weeks!”

 

"I don't care. I quit." She removed her name tag and walked away.

 

"NO ONE WILL ACCEPT YOUR BEHAVIOR, ARETE!"

 

"Fuck off."

"Arete, just a moment!" Mio chases after her on the side of the road. Arete walks so fast that Mio cannot catch her breath easily.

 

"You're not the one who quit. Go back inside the restaurant."

 

"We know that our boss is wrong but it is wrong for you to embarrass him in front of us. He is the one who distributes our salaries. He accepted both of us even though we didn't fill-up the part where it needs family background. He almost seen us grow —"

 

"Your point? I don't want any more nagging."

 

"You should have respect especially for the person who helped you."

 

Arete walked away, unwilling to listen to what her friend had to say when Mio grabbed her arm.

 

"Let me go, Mio. With all the hardships we experienced at the orphanage, isn't that enough for you to speak against rotten and corrupt people?"

 

"Accord to the situation, Arete."

 

"My statement is justified. I calmly talked to him. What else should I do to silence your mouth?"

 

"You're hurting my feelings, Arete."

 

"I was also hurt by you people being blind to the customers who abuse us, servers. Just because this is our job, will we agree to them, stepping on our dignity?" She stared coldly at her friend and pushed her away, "Not even once did you defend me. You knew I was traumatized when we lived in the orphanage."

 

"They are the source of our money, Arete. If we want to live, we have to accept everything they do even if it is against us."

 

"I don't know why I'm talking to you, Mio. You know all my pains and fears, and yet you're one of those people who only do is talk. I regret having a friend like you."

It was late and it was dangerous for women to go out at that time. Extreme caution is needed but Arete is not deterred by that. She was focused on the mindset of her boss. Why is it necessary to tolerate others even if their actions are nauseating?

 

She stopped walking when she felt someone following her. From her peripheral vision, it was only one man but she doubted it. At this time, close to midnight, maybe the man had a lot of company so she sped up walking. She prepared the knife she always carries.

 

"Miss —"

 

She didn't flinch and stabbed the man in the chest. She correctly suspected that the man had an evil plan because a handkerchief fell from the man's hand. It was wet and a strange fragrance came from it. She stabs him until he dies.

 

"Don't try me." She wiped her blood, splattered on her face. She turned around in front of her and a group of men were about to attack her so she took off her shoes and ran away.

 

She meandered down the path. She tries to mislead the men who intend to ruin her life. But the shocking thing is, she killed someone with a smile. She tried to erase the memory that immediately stuck in her mind and focused on escaping.

She reached the high grass. She immediately went to hide there.

 

'They can't hurt me.' She looks behind her but she doesn't see anyone chasing her, 'It's impossible for them to see the specific description of my face in the darkness of the place I passed earlier.'

 

She dropped the knife and knelt down. Why are negative things happening to her directly? She only became peaceful when she became an animation student.

 

She knelt down and was trying to hide the knife when she felt something move. She bent down and put her ear to the ground, she listened carefully and found that the ground was moving.

 

"SHIT! I NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE!" She was about to stand up when her legs gave out. She was hitting it because her body was weak at the wrong time. She will not accept it if she dies in an unknown place without anyone.

 

But it was too late. The ground parted and she fell. She just closed her eyes and expected her back to break on impact but that opportunity did not come. Instead, she continued to fall. She opened her eyes and saw that the surroundings were totally black. The only source of light comes from the moon. It was orange and she didn't like what it meant. She remembered what her mother had said when she was a child.

 

"Arete, in our province, the old people who heal people don't want to see an orange moon."

 

"Why is that, mom?"

 

"Change is coming."

 

"Change is good, isn't it? You even told me that. It's an opportunity."

 

"The orange moon is not an opportunity. It is a warning that everything good that happened in your life will end. You will experience hardship for half of your life."

 

"But that kind of moon rarely appears, mom. Why are the old people afraid? Don't they leave the house when that happens?"

 

"Yes. It is believed that whoever is exposed to the light of that moon will cause destruction in human life."

 

'I'm so unlucky... Why did that kind of moon appear tonight? A lot of bad things happened.'

 

The light of the orange moon had disappeared in the depth of her fall. She still doesn't fall to the ground. She didn't want to show that she was scared nor feel it. This is no longer a natural earthquake. Something supernatural is happening here. Her thoughts about belief were interrupted when suddenly someone hit Arete. She turned behind her and it was water. Arete couldn't breathe and was trying to get out of it but it felt like she was being pulled down. She was about to run out of breath when her back started heating up. Fire enveloped her body and was ready to say goodbye but it seemed to be guiding her down.

 

'Why is the fire so gentle to me…'

 

She felt her back cool down but the fire in other parts of her body was still there. Her hands felt wet.

 

"Is your name Arete?"

 

'The fire in my body spoke!' She waved the fire away from her body as it spoke again.

 

"Just follow the direction I turn on the light."

 

She had no intention of speaking with her mouth. Apart from being so shocked, she was weak. The fire left her body and she saw that the torches gradually lit up leading to a large door.

 

"... Do you think you can fool me into going there?" She had the courage to speak.

 

"You are no longer in the world you grew up in, Arete."

 

"I fell here because of the earthquake. I don't need to go to that strange place. What if I die doing what you're telling me to do?"

 

"After you have done such a despicable deed, you still manage to be afraid? I'm speechless."

 

Arete tried to feel the dark path before her. She still thinks that her scenario is like a coin dropped in a well.

 

"Once the orange moon rises, no one can change their fate."

 

She didn't listen and waved his arms sideways in the dark. She doesn't give up even when she's tempted to go to the one lit by the talking fire.

 

"Give up, Arete. There's no going back."

 

"I know supernatural powers and events are real because the world I grew up in isn't the only one living in the universe, but don't bother me."

 

"No one is waiting for you there, Arete. Just accept what happened to you."

 

She didn't answer and walked away from the light. Arete looked for a way to climb back up. She didn't know how many hours had passed but the place she landed on seemed boundless. She returned to the talking fire.

 

"I'm ready to enter that door."

 

"Don't you have any questions?"

 

"Your name."

 

"My name is Han. I am the guardian of this place."

 

"I've read books about supernatural creatures like you. Don't you have a human form?"

 

"Yes. That's my original form but when there are visitors like you, this is what I use."

 

"Can I see it?"

 

"Have you accepted your fate? You can't go back to the world you grew up in."

 

"That's my question." She crossed her arms, raising her eyebrow, "there is a belief in our world that the orange moon brings bad news. I was fired from my job, I killed someone, I fell into this because the moon is orange. Because you are not normal, what is the meaning of this? Will you answer the question?"

 

"Usually, the orange moon brings change and a sign of good luck but since the kingdom I was serving was destroyed, the internal energies used to turn it into magic were used too much to protect the kingdom. It seems that it reached its maximum capacity. It exploded as punishment for using it."

 

"Punishment? Do you have Gods?"

 

"No matter how many dimensions, No matter what type of universes, we all have one creator."

 

"....You were punished for using magic?"

 

"It is beyond human ability to use magic. It is dangerous because you will use your life force to convert it into magic. Many people die because they run out of life force. The creator has forbidden it but the kingdom I serve wants to be independent. They wanted to use the resources that the creator had laid down for us and as you expected it, many abused that power. They fought against the creator until the creator resented them and imposed a punishment."

 

"And that happened when the moon was orange?"

 

"Yes. Other planets and dimensions were dragged with our punishment."

 

"... You went beyond the boundaries that the creator has placed. I know there are details you haven't told me yet. I have a lot of questions but I'll ask about them later. Thanks for the little knowledge, Han."

 

Suddenly the fire grew, as if it would burst into a blaze of colors. Arete covered her face so that if it splashed a drop of fire, she wouldn't be hurt. Well, that's useless because other parts of her body will still be affected.

 

"Arete, I'm Han. I will introduce myself properly now that I'm in my original form."

 

She slowly removed her arm and saw the man who was taller than her. His aura was not intimidating. He smiled at her. The hair's length is until his shoulder. Some of his hair is on his face. It's all messed up but it can be hidden that the man in front of her is handsome. She expected that his hair will have the shade of fire's color, but it's black. His eyes are like the color of a tree, green. He was wearing loose white robes.

 

"You're Han?"

 

"Hey there, Arete."

 

"Oh... Ah... Nice to meet you in person." She bowed her head slightly. 

 

"Let's go inside this room. Just don't be surprised by its size."