"1... 2... 3… Go!!!"
They are running with their heart and soul. The sound of the beast behind them is horrific.
They run and run.
Suddenly, Brac slips down to a hollow space, and it shuts down.
Everything becomes silent.
He is alone again.
No worries. Neon will make it, Brac thinks to himself.
He starts to walk again.
He felt like he was the man of walking. Nobody in the world has ever walked as much as he has.
---
"Hey, where's the sweet smell coming from?"
Brac sniffed the air as if he was a starving dog.
Well, there is not much difference between him and a starving dog… at least for now.
He followed the smell and eventually came across a pond.
At one side, there is something carved in the wall.
There is a symbol. It resembles a ruby followed by broken-up DNA which connects like a tear at the end.
He decides to take a bath in it.
He slowly undressed himself and dives into the pond.
All the tiredness is fading like a dust crystal melting in the ocean.
He sighs to himself.
He wishes to be home soon.
He drinks some of the water and gets out of the pond.
He washes his clothes and wears them while still being wet.
"Ahhhh. It's like a hot spring. Finally, I am relieved," Brac says as he plays with his hair.
There was a door at the end of the hallway.
He started to walk towards it.
---
"What is this calming noise?"
Brac looks back and discovers that wherever he walked is growing grass.
With much hope, he opens the door.
Wind blows and flowers bloom.
Is this heaven? he thinks to himself.
He runs and jumps in happiness.
There were arrow signs on the ceiling.
He followed them and stumbled upon a grand gate.
---
"The… 3rd… Realm," Brac reads what was written on the top of the gate.
He opens the gate.
The moment of sheer happiness.
He bursts up into tears like a baby.
Only a doorframe is left to cross to get to his world.
"Oh God, finally. After all these struggles, finally," he said in a sobbing voice.
He walked out of the jail.
As he walked out, the door behind him vanishes.
He runs straight to his home.
As he runs by, he admires the beauty of the sun and smiles as he begins to shed more tears.
"I am free. Haha, I am free!"
He jumps in happiness.
Soon, he ran to his home.
He opens the door and there was his mom.
He quickly ran to his mom and grabbed her from the back.
---
"Oh, it's you dear," Brac's mom said.
"I love you, Mom," Brac said as he cries.
"Oh my love, what happened? Why are you crying?" Brac's mom asked in a calming voice.
"You were just playing outside. Did someone hurt you?"
Brac was very confused.
Doesn't his mom realize that Brac was not home for weeks?
Brac looked at his clothes, and they were completely changed.
He is wearing a clean red T-shirt with black trousers.
The wound on his neck is also gone.
What is happening? he thinks to himself.
But he can't tell his mom what happened to him.
Cause she might think that he has gone crazy.
"Nothing," Brac said as he tries to wipe his tears.
"Go get yourself some rest, honey," Brac's mother said.
"Yeah," Brac shook his head and went upstairs.
He is now sitting in front of his desk.
What happened after that night? What is that place? What were those creatures?
These questions are haunting him right now.
He spins his pen and starts to think as if he could find any solution.
He is worried about Neon.
What should he do? Should he leave it be?
The answer is kind of complicated to him.
He tries to forget it and looks forward to living a normal life.
---
A week has passed, but Brac's life hasn't been normal yet.
He hears voices in his head.
It irritates him.
Nightmares and hallucinations are also happening with him.
He noticed some changes in his body.
He has become faster in everything.
He is worried about his mental health.
Today is the day when he will go to a psychiatrist.
---
[At hospital]
Brac is sitting in the waiting room.
There is a big counter and a clock hanging above it.
The ticking sound is annoying Brac very much.
A person walks into the room.
Brac seems to know him.
---
"Hey! Brac, what are you doing here?"
The boy with brown hair asked Brac.
He has dark green eyes, wearing an ocean-blue shirt and black jeans.
"Oh hi Hudson! I just came here to get a checkup. I am not doing well for a couple of days."
"I see. Hmm, same case for me," Hudson Gasper says as he sighs to himself.
"Sir Brac Aldenson," the counter guy raised his voice, interrupting their conversation.
"Room no 12," the counter guy said.
"Yes," replying to the counter guy, Brac continues,
"I may go now."
"Yeah sure. See you later," Hudson said while waving bye.
---
After the psychiatrist, Brac is now going down the stairs.
As he steps down, he begins to recall the convo with Hudson.
---
"Wait… ain't Hudson had something on his hand?" Brac mumbles.
"Mm… yes, the… sign from the pond."
He seems confused as he begins to realize something—
Something odd.
As he steps down and turns his head left, he sees Hudson going somewhere.
---
"He—" Brac tries to call Hudson but stops.
What if it was just a misunderstanding?
Brac tightens his fist.
No, he has for sure seen the sign.
He decided to follow Hudson.
---
Hudson passes by the road sign and turns left.
"Huh? It's been 30 minutes, why is he still roaming around?"
Brac chews on his teeth.
Hudson took another turn and went to an old building.
"What is he doing?"
Brac is not sure of his upcoming fate.
Hudson led Brac straight to the rooftop.
---
As Brac climbs the last stair, he discovers Hudson at the edge of the roof, facing the other buildings.
---
"The world sure is beautiful, yet it has an unknown side which is as horrible as the darkness of empty void. Isn't it, Brac Aldenson?"
Hudson Gasper said as he turns around.
---
"Let me get to the point. What's that sign on your hand?"
Brac asked him without wasting any time.
---
"Doesn't matter if you fear the past or the future. In the end, the only result you will get is suffering."
Hudson spread his arms.
---
"What are you saying, Hudson? Are you out of your mind?"
Brac shouted as if he assumed what is going to happen.
---
"See you around, big boy," Hudson smiled and let himself fall from the edge.
---
"Heeeeeeyyyy!"
Brac screamed and ran up to the end of the roof.
Suddenly, a dark crystallized chain emerged out of the air.
It's coming out of Brac's hand and going down while making shackling sounds.
It has wrapped Hudson's forearm like a giant snake would while feasting on its prey.
Hudson's eyes are in shock because he knows and understands what's happening.
---
"Aaa. A... aa... aa... a—"
Brac is struggling to hold on to Hudson's weight.
Brac somehow manages to pull him up.
---
"Haah... haah... Man, what were you doing? Why did you jump?"
Brac says as he breathes heavily.
---
"I see... hmm. So you had been in that place. Huh. Interesting," Hudson said as he looks pathetically at Brac.
---
"So it seems that we both know about the jail chamber," Brac said as he stands up.
"Now tell me—what is that place? And how did you know about it?" Brac continues.
---
"No need to hurry. Let's take a walk, shall we?"
Hudson said as he slowly walked forward.
---
"As your wish," Brac started following Hudson.
They went down the building and then to a café.
---
"So, let me tell you. I don't know how I got there, but ever since I got there, there… is… something wrong happening with me," Brac started the conversation.
---
"Do you have any idea how long you have been to that place?"
Hudson said as he starts to mix sugar in his black coffee with a spoon.
---
"I don't know. I just woke up and found myself in the jail. I was there for maybe 3 weeks or something," Brac slowly said as he looks down in despair.
---
"Mmm… How do you know about the sign?" Hudson asked him, looking into his eyes.
Brac felt like Hudson was looking straight into his soul.
---
"I saw it carved onto a wall on the side of a heavenly-looking pond," Brac replied.
---
"What!"
Hudson was shocked for a moment.
"That's rare to find in the jail. Did you drink it?"